creature, 2 Cor. v. 17. the Divine Nature 2 Pet. i. 4. Does it confequently rule and govern man? Hear how St. Paul expreffes this power of the habit of holiness in himfelf, Gal. ii. 20. I am crucified with Chrift; nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Chrift liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of -the Son of God, who loved me, and gave bimfelf for me. This is a conftant effect of habits, and is equally difcernible in thofe of vice and virtue, that they fway and govern the man they poffefs; Rom. vi. 16. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield your felves fervants to obey, his fervants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of fin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Shall I go on to a more diftinct and particular confideration of the properties of an habit? The firft is, a great averfion for thofe things which are contrary to it, or obftruct us in the exercife of it. And this is directly the difpofition of the perfect man towards temptations and fins; he is now afhamed of thofe things, which before he gloried in; he is filled with an holy indignation against thofe things, which before he took pleasure in; and what before he courted with fondness and paffion, he now fhuns with fear and vigilance.' In brief, the fcripture defcribes fuch an one as poffeffed with an utter hatred and abhor

rence

rence of every evil way, and as an irreconcileable enemy to every thing that is an enemy to his virtue and his God. Thus Pfal. cxix. 163. I hate and abhor lying, but thy law do I love; and verfe 128. Therefore I efteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right, and I hate every falfe way. And this is a genuine and natural effect of integrity or uprightness of heart; whence tis the observation of our Saviour, Matt. vi. 24. No man can ferve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or elfe he will hold to the one, and defpife the other. And indeed every-where a hatred, a perfect hatred of evil, is accounted as a neceffary confequence of the love of God; Pfal. xxxvii. 10. Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: and therefore the Pfalmift refolves to practife himself what he prefcribes to others; Pfal. ci. 2, 3. Iwill behave my felf wifely in a perfect way: O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart: I will fet no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn afide, it shall not cleave to me. And how can this be otherwise? the love of God muft neceffarily imply an abhorrence of evil; and that habit, which confirms and increases the one, must confirm and increase the other too.

2. The next property of an habit is, that the actions which flow from it are

(if we meet not with violent opposition) performed with eafe and pleasure what is natural, is pleafant and eafy, and babit is a fecond nature. When the love of virtue, and the hatred of vice, have once rooted themselves in the foul, what can be more natural than to follow after the one, and fhun the other? fince this is no more than embracing and enjoying what we love, and turning our backs on what we deteft. This therefore is one conftant character of Perfection in fcripture: delight and pleasure are every-where faid to accompany the practice of virtue, when it is once grown up to ftrength and maturity: The ways of wisdom are ways of pleafantness, and all her paths are peace, Prov. iii. 17. Perfect love cafteth out fear, 1 Joh. iv. 18. And to him that loves, the commandments of God are not grievous, 1 Joh. V. 3. Hence it is, that the good man's delight is in the law of the Lord, and that he meditates therein day and night, Pfal. i. 2. Nor does he delight lefs in action than meditation, but grows in grace as much as knowledge; and abounds daily more and more in good works, as he increases in the comfort of the Holy Ghoft. Consonant to this property of Perfection it is, that in Pfalm xix, and cxix, and elfewhere frequently, we hear the Pfalmift expreffing a kind of inconceivable joy and tranfport

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in

in the meditation and practice of the commands of God. So the firft Chriftians, who spent their lives in devotion, faith, and charity, are faid, Acts ii. 46. to have eaten their meat with gladness and fingleness of heart. And 'tis a delightful defcription we have of the apoftles, 2 Cor vi. 10.a As forrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet pofSeffing all things

3. Vigour and activity, or much earnestnefs and application of mind, is a third property of an babit. 'Tis impoffible not to be intent upon thofe things for which we have even an habitual paffion, if this expreffion may be allow'd me; an inclination, which has gathered ftrength and authority from custom, will exert itself with fome warmth and briskness. Now certainly there is nothing more frequently required of, or attributed to the perfect man in fcripture, than zeal and fervency of fpirit in the ways of God; and no wonder; for when actions flow at once from principles and cuftom; when they spring from love, and are attended by pleasure, and are incited and quickened by faith and hope too; how can it be, but that we hould repeat them with fome eagerness, and feel an holy impatience as often as we are hindered or disappointed? and as the nature of the thing fhews, that thus it ought

ought to be, fo are there innumerable inftances in the Old Teftament and the New, which make it evident that thus it was. Shall I mention the example of our Lord, who went about doing good, Acts x. 38? fhall I propofe the labours and travels of St. Paul? these patterns it may be will be judged by fome too bright and dazling à light for us to look on, or at least too perfect for us to copy after; and yet St. John tells us, that be, who fays he abides in him, ought himself alfo fo to walk, even as he walked, 1 John ii. 6. And we are exhorted to be followers of the apostles, as they were of Chrift. But if the fervency of Chrift and St. Paul seemed to have foared out of the reach of our imitation, we have inferior inftances enough, to prove the zeal and fruitfulness of habitual goodnefs. Thus David fays of himself, P/al. cxix. 10. With my whole heart have I fought thee. And Jofiah, 2 Kings xxiii. 25. is faid to have turned to the Lord with all his foul, and with all his might. How fervent was Anna, who departed not from the temple, but served God with faftings and prayers night and day, Luke ii. 37 ? How charitable Tabitha, who was full of good works and alms-deeds which he did, Acts ix. 36? where fhall I place Cornelius? with what words fhall I fet out his virtues? with what but thofe of the Holy Ghoft, Acts x. 2. He was a devout

man,