But then this belief muft bring forth obedi-Sunday ence, that what we believe thus fit to be L done, be indeed done by us; otherwife our belief that they come from him, ferves but to make us more inexcufable.

17. Thirdly, The Scripture contains Threat-Threa nings; many texts there are which threatenings. to them that go on in their fins, the wrath of God; and under that are contain'd all the punifhments and miferies of this life, both fpiritual and temporal, and everlasting deftruction in the life to come. Now we are moft ftedfaftly to believe, that these are God's Threats, and that they will certainly be performed to every impenitent finner. But then the ufe we are to make of this belief, is to keep from thofe fins to which this deftruction is threatned; otherwise our belief adds to our guilt, that will wilfully go on in fpite of those Threatnings.

18 Fourthly, The Scripture contains Pro-Promises. mifes, and thofe both to our bodies and our fouls; for our bodies there are many Promifes, that God will provide for them what he fees neceffary; I will name only one, Matt. vi. 33. Seek ye firft the kingdom of God, and bis righteoufnefs, and all these things, that is, all outward neceffaries, fhall be added unto you: But here it is to be obferved, that we must first feek the kingdom of God, and his righteouf nefs, that is, make it our firft and greatest care to ferve and obey him, before this Promise

Sunday even of temporal good things belong to us. I. To the foul there are many and high Promifes, as firft, that of present eafe and refreshment, which we find, Matth. xi. 29. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, and ye shall find reft unto your fouls. But here it is apparent, that before this reft belongs to us, we muft have taken on us Chrift's yoke, become his fervants and difciples. Finally, there are Promises to the foul even of all the benefits of Chrift; but yet thofe only to fuch as perform the condition required, that is, pardon of fins to thofe that repent of them; increase of grace to thofe that diligently make use of what they have already, and humbly pray for more; and eternal falvation to those that continue to their lives end in hearty obedience to his commands.

19. This belief of the Promifes must therefore ftir us up to perform the condition; and till it do fo, we can in no reafon expect any good by them: And for us to look for the benefit of them on other terms, is the fame mad prefumption that it would be in a fervant, to challenge his master to give him a reward for having done nothing of his work, to which alone the reward was promised; you can eafily refolve what anfwer were to be given to fuch a fervant, and the fame we are to expect from God in this cafe. Nay, farther, it is fure God hath given thefe Promifes to no other end, but to invite us to

holinefs

I.

holinefs of life; yea, he gave his Son, inundar whom all his Promifes are as it were fumm'd up, for this end. We ufually look fo much at Chrift's coming to fatisfy for us, that we forget this other part of his errand. But there is nothing furer, than that the main purpose of his coming into the world was to plant good life among men.

20. This is fo often repeated in Scripture, that no man, that confiders and believes what he reads, can doubt of it. Chrift himself tells us, Matth. ix. 13. He came to call finners to repentance. And St. Peter, Acts iii. 26. tells us, That God fent his Son Jefus to bless us, in turning every one of us from our iniquities; for it feems the turning us from our iniquities was the greateft fpecial bleffing which God intended us in Christ.

21 Nay, we are taught by St. Paul, that this was the end of his very death alfo. Tit. ii. 14 Who gave himself for our fins, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify to himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. And again, Gal. i. 4. Who gave himself for us, that he might deliver us from this prefent evil world; that is, from the fins and ill cuftoms of the world. Divers other texts there are to this purpofe; but thefe I fuppofe fufficient to affure any man of this one great truth, That all that Christ hath done for us was directed to this end, the bringing us to live Chriftianly; or, in the words of St. Paul, Ta teach

us

Bunday us, that denying ungodliness and worldly lufts, 1. we should live foberly, righteously, and godly in this prefent world.

22. Now we know Chrift is the Foundation of all the promises; In him all the promifes of God are Tea, and Amen, 2 Cor. i. 20. And therefore if God gave Chrift to this end, certainly the promises are to the fame alfo. And then how great an abuse of them is it, to make them ferve for purpofes quite contrary to what they were intended? viz.to the encouraging us in fins, which they will cer tainly do, if we perfuade our felves they belong to us, how wickedly foever we live. The Apoftle teaches us another ufe of them, 2 Cor. vii. 1. Having therefore these promises, let us eleanfe our felves from all filthiness of the flesh and fpirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. When we do thus, we may juftly apply the promifes to our felves, and with comfort expect our parts in them. But till then, though thefe promises be of certain truth, yet we can reap no benefit from them, because we are not the perfons to whom they are made, that is, we perform not the condition required to give us right to them.

23. This is the faith or belief required of us towards the things God hath revealed to us in the Scripture, to wit, fuch as may anfwer the end for which they were forevealed, that is, the bringing us to good lives; the bare believing the truth of them, without this,

is no more than the Devils do, at St. JamesundaL tells us, chap. ii. 19. Only they are not fo unreasonable as fome of us are; for they will tremble, as knowing well this faith will never do them any good. But many of us go on confidently, and doubt not the fufficiency of our faith, though we have not the leaft fruit of obedience to approve it by; let such hear St. James's judgment in the point, chap. ii. 26. As the body without the spirit is dead, Jo faith, if it have not works, is dead also.

tion.

24 A fecond duty to God is HOPE; that Hope. is, a comfortable expectation of these good things he hath promifed. But this, as I told you before of faith, must be fuch as agrees to the nature of the promises, which being fuch as requires a condition on our part, we can hope no farther than we make that good; or if we do, we are so far from performing Prefumpe by it this duty of Hope, that we commit the great fin of Prefumption, which is nothing elfe but hoping where God hath given us no ground to hope; This every man doth, that hopes for pardon of fins, and eternal life, without that repentance and obedience to which alone they are promifed; the true Hope is that which purifies us, St. John faith, i Ep. iii. 3. Every man that hath this hope in him, purifieth himself, even as he is pure; that is, it maketh him leave his fins, and earnestly endeavour to be holy as Chrift is; and that which doth not fo, how confident foever it

be,