that they are what they are. Leaving others therefore to the Judge of all; let us at prefent think of ourselves: confider, what manner of perfons our holy profeffion requires us to be; and whether we fo obferve its rules, that we may justly hope to attain its end escape the wrath to come*, and partake of the glory that fall be revealed. Now it plainly requires,

1. That we be duly affected by the peculiar doctrines of christianity. Many that profefs it, and are perfuaded of its authority, feem to have no notion almost of its value, or of any great regard owing to it. They say, it is defigned intirely to make men live good lives: and accordingly if they do but live what the world calls a good life, the design is answered. As for matters of mere faith, or even of practice beyond this, they conceive there is little need of being concerned about them and thus, they are very good chriftians in their own opinions, with fcarce any thing to diftinguish them from good, or perhaps even from indifferent, heathens. In this error, the artful enemies of the gospel ftudioufly confirm its inconfiderate friends. For thus, pretending by no means to oppose it, but only to rectify mens notions about it; and making loud complaints, if they are fufpected of any thing worse; they can destroy, where they gain credit, the whole effect of what it adds to the religion of nature and induce the unwary to imagine, there is nothing in it worth contending for, befides thofe practical, focial, and real duties, as they are pleased, by way of diftinction, to call them, which our reafon and fenfes prefcribe in common to us all; and which therefore we learn and obferve as well, without as with the bible; they lie mixed with many other things, ufelefs, if not hurtful; and are either mifrepresented by the writers themselves, or very liable to be mistaken by us. But indeed, if the very writers of fcripture, with the fpirit.of God to affift them, misunderstood the doctrines of revelation; he both chofe and guided them extremely ill; nor have we any poffible means of understanding thofe doctrines now. And if either they or we understand them at all; our Maker expects from us the belief of many things undiscoverable by reafon, as points of great confequence to our eternal well-being; as with good caufe he may. knowledge of our fallen eftate fhows us our original deftination, and our prefent need of help from above. The incarnation

• Matth. 7. Luke iii, 7.

+ Pet. v. 1.

The

tion and death of God's eternal Son could not be appointed by him for purposes of fmall importance: and his word acquaints us, that bleffings of the highest importance depend on what he hath done and suffered for us; on his atonement and mediation, our title to pardon of fin; on the grace of the Holy Ghost whom he fent, our ability of performing acceptable obedience; on both, our refurrection to eternal life; on our belief of thefe things, our interest in them. If then the gofpel be true, its peculiar doctrines are of the utmost moment: and the duties grounded on them, which we owe to God, as the Father of our. Lord Jefus Chrift; to his Son, as our Redeemer; to his bleffed Spirit, as our fanctifier; are both as real, and as weighty, as any poffible can be; fully equal in their obligation, and fuperior in their rank, to the most valuable ones of human fociety. They therefore who neglect them, lead very wicked, instead of good lives and they who efteem them lowly, dishonour the author of them. It is true, reafon cannot prove them : but it doth not contradi&t them. They are taught in fcripture only: but they are taught there by the all-wife God and he cannot have left us at liberty to model his revelations according to our own fancies; admit part, and reject part: but we are to take the whole plan of our falvation, as he hath delivered it: believe it though implicitly; and refpect it, in proportion to the ftrefs laid upon it by him, who must know. This will naturally difpofe us,

2. To perform the next obligation incumbent on us: paying a due regard to the peculiar inftitutions of christianity. Great numbers appear to have fomehow perfuaded themselves, that feveral things, which they must acknowledge their Maker hath appointed, as the ordinary means of heavenly grace and fpiritual improvement, may not withstanding, nearly, if not quite, as well, be let alone. Baptifm indeed 'they do practise: but with plain marks of confidering it, as a mere empty ceremony; not, as our Saviour hath declared it*, the exprefs and original condition of our claim to all the mercies of the gofpel-covenant. Laying on of hands in confirmation, after proper inftruction and a perfonal engagement to live piously and virtuously, though evidently a very affecting and useful rite, and reckoned, in the epiftle to the Hebrews, amongst the princi ples of the doctrine of Chrift; is yet defired, in proportion, D 2 but

Mark xvi, 16. John iii. 5.

† Heb. vi. 19 20

but by few. Receiving the Holy Eucharift, though a duty of all chriftians, enjoined by our Bleffed Redeemer, almoft with his dying words, and declared by St. Paul to be the communion of bis body and blood*, that is, a participation of the benefits of his death; is yet, I fear, entirely omitted by most, practised by many of the reft, very feldom; and by fome from very improper motives and fuch reasons are pleaded for the neglect, as have either no weight at all, or equal weight against the hope of future happinefs. Praying to God is a dictate of natural, as well as revealed religion. And yet were a great part of you here prefent queftioned, how conftantly you pray in private, indeed when you prayed laft, and whether you are careful to do it with attention and seriousness, or look on it only as a matter of courfe; what anfwer muft you give? And as for publick worship: how many are there, who yet callthemselves Chriftians, that hardly ever attend it? And how do many others think and fpeak of it? Perhaps as matter of curi ofity and amufement. If they can hope for an entertaining difcourfe after it, they will condefcend to come and do homage to him, that made them, or feem to do it: otherwise they will not. Or perhaps they vouchfafe to attend it as matter of decent example and propriety. Accordingly, in fome places they always go to church; in others, never: forgetting, that the latter will be known, and will influence, full as much as the former. Or the leaft trifle in the world fhall determine them, fometimes the one way, fometimes the other. And both doing and omitting it they talk of, in an easy, gay manner, as a thing of no confequence at all. Nay, too often, it is directly pleaded, that they can spend their time as well, or much better, another way: for they know beforehand every thing that is told them here. Now, not to enquire particularly, in what better things, that they could not find leifure for elfe, thofe perfons actually spend the time of divine fervice, who tell us fo frankly they can: poffibly they may, fome of them, a little over-rate their knowledge: at leaft, they frequently feem to have great need of being reminded, if not taught and had they none, another and higher duty, for which we meet, is prayer. But to this, and all other acts of devotion, they object, that true devotion is in the heart; and outward fhow is nothing material. Why, fo is true loyalty, true friendship,

1 Cor. x. 16.

every true virtue. But are we therefore bound to give no external demonstration of them? At that rate, what would they be worth, and how long would they laft? God indeed doth not want fuch demonstrations: but we want them, to keep alive our sense of duty to him: the world around us wants them, to fpread a like fenfe amongst others; and, were the benefits of his inftitutions much lefs evident than they are; ftill they are his, and we may be fure he hath reason for them. A good fubject will go beyond, rather than come short of, what the laws require, in paying honour to his prince. A penitent criminal will not fail to fue out and plead his pardon in due form, let forms, in themselves, be things ever so infignicant; if he did, purposely or negligently, he would well deserve to forfeit it. Every man of common prudence, on whom or his family, any thing valuable is bestowed on certain conditions, will think it of confequence, to qualify himself, or them, according to those conditions, whether he fees the particular ufe of them or not. If then we think fuch behaviour neceffary in all temporal concerns, why not in fpiritual? God is our king, and hath prescribed to us the manner of doing him homage. He is our judge, and hath directed us to the method of escaping punishment. He is our gracious benefactor, and hath notified to us the means of obtaining his favours. Why fhall any one thing, thus ordered by him, and therefore undoubtedly ordered in wisdom, be either omitted, or obferved with contempt? Surely this is by no means the fpirit, with which finners ought to receive a tender of forgiveness; and mortals, of eternal life. The epistle to the Hebrews directs the first chriftians, even in the midft of perfecution, not to forfake the affembling of themfelves together, which comprehends every public office of religion; and laments, that the manner of fome was to do otherwife. How guilty then must they be, who are now of this number; or put on the appearance of defpifing the ordinances of Chrift, at the fame time that they use them; and, though really, to fome degree, ferious in them, are afraid of being thought fo! But this leads me,

3. To a farther obligation we are under, which is to profefs our regard, both for the doctrines and the inftitutions of the gofpel, openly and boldly, on all fit occafions. It is a reproach, I believe, peculiar to the chriftians of this age and nation, that

Heb. x. 25.

many

many of them feem ashamed of their chriftianity: would not perhaps be faid to have thrown it afide, yet would by no means be imagined much in earnest about it: and therefore ftudy, if poffible, to conceal their way of thinking: or, when they are attacked upon it, excufe their piety, as others do their vices, with a fort of laughing half deference; and fhift off the fubject, as well and as foon as they can. A moft aftonishing

treatment of what our eternal happiness depends on: efpecially when our Saviour exprefsly requires us to confefs him before men, as ever we expect, that he should confefs us before bis Father, which is in heaven*. It is not meant that we fhould be affectedly forward in talking of our religion; but whenever we are called to do fo, unaffectedly own it, and stand by it. In fuch a cafe, diffimulation, or even referve, is a meanfpirited defertion of the worthieft caufe in the world and the words of the holy Jefus on another occafion are juftly applicable to this, that be, who is not for him, is against bimt. Whoever is unwilling to be taken for a pious and good man, runs a great risque of foon becoming a profane and bad one. Open profeffion would have reftrained him from doing wrong, and others from tempting him: whereas a timorous concealment expofes him both ways. At least, it gives the irreligious a pretence for faying and imagining, either that every one thinks as they do, or that no one can defend thinking otherwife and deprives thofe, who are better difpofed, of a very animating and needful fapport. For no inticement to neglect our duty is fo dangerous, as the appearance of general neglect or any perfecution fo effectual, as that of public fcorn. Therefore we should combine to fhelter one another from it: declare frankly and with fpirit, in our private converfation, as well as by our attendance here, what fide we are of: not be afraid of a little, perhaps only feeming, contempt from thofe, who are the jufteft objects of pity themfeves; but be willing to fuffer the affliction of shame, amongst others, if it must be fo, with the people of God: the number of whom is not yet become fo fmall, or fo deftitute of able advocates, but that, would they unite for that end, they might abundantly keep each other in countenance, and their adver faries in awe. We have every poffible reason to be zealous in our caufe. Unbelievers have no fingle good one to be fo in theirs. Yet they are active, and we are remifs: and what will

Matth. xii 30. Luke xi. 23.

Matth. x. 32.

Heb. xi. 25.