fter Designs, but out of pure Obedience to the Laws of God, as he is the Sovereign of Heaven and Earth, and, in Chrift, our Lord and our God. A thing much to be obferved in all our Services, without which, indeed, they are no Services at all. Infomuch, that should we pray our Tongues to the Stumps, and faft our Bodies into Skeletons; fhould we fill the Air with Sighs, and the Sea with Tears for Sin; fhould we fpend all our Time in hearing of Sermons, and our whole Estates in relieving the Poor; fhould we hazard our Lives, yea, give our Bodies to be burnt for our Religion, yet nothing of all this would be accepted as a Service unto God, unless it be performed out of fincere Obedience to his Laws, and with a fingle Eye, aiming at nothing but his Glory, which ought to be the ultimate End of all our Actions, 1 Cor. 10. 31.

Secondly, We muft not only ferve God with a perfect Heart, but with a wil ling Mind too; a properly with a willing Soul; that is, our Will, and all the Affections of our Souls fhould be carried after, and exercised in the Service of Almighty God. Our Defires are to be enflamed towards it,

Qur

our Love fixed upon it, and our De light placed in it. Thus the Ifraelites are faid to have fought the Lord with their whole defire, 2 Chron. 15..15. And we are commanded to love the Lord our God, and fo to ferve him with all our Heart, and with all our Soul, Deut. 11. 13. Yea, we are to delight to do the Will of God, Pfal. 40. 8. As our Saviour did, faying, It is my Meat to do the Will of him that fent me, and to finish his Work, Joh. 4. 34. Thus are we too to esteem the Service of God above our necessary Food, pleafing our felves in pleafing him, and fo make his Service not only our Bufinefs, but our Recreation too; and whofoever doth not fo, whatfoever he doth for God, he cannot be faid to ferve him, because he doth it against his Will, and against the Bent. and Inclination of his Soul. And therefore, though, as to the outward Act, he may do that which God commands, yet inwardly he doth it not 3 becaufe his Soul is ftill averfe from it, by which means it ceafeth to be the Service of God; because it is not performed by the Whole Man, even Soul and Body, both which are neceffarily required in our Performance of

real

Thirdly, What is the Reason why we ought to ferve God fo? Becaufe be Searcheth the Hearts, and underftandeth all the Imagination of the Thoughts: that is, He is throughly acquainted with every Thought in our Hearts, and with every Motion and Inclination of our Souls, infinitely better than our felves are. And therefore it is in vain for us to think to put him off with outward and formal, inftead of inward and real Service. For he doth not only fee what we do, but knows too what we think, while we are doing of it; and doth not only obferve the Matter of our Actions, but the manner alfo of our performing them. It being his great Prerogative to fearch the heart, and to try the reins, and to have all things naked and open unto him, Heb. 4. 13. So that he fees what the Soul doth within doors, in the fecret Clofets of the Heart, as clearly as what it doth without, in the open Streets of the World; every Affection of the Soul being as manifeft unto him, as the Actions of the Body are: And therefore Hypocrify is the moft foolish and ridiculous Sin imaginable, making

as

as if we could Cheat and Deceive God, and hide our Sins from the Al feeing Eyes of Omniscience itself, or make God believe that we are Holy, because we appear to be fo to Men.

ذ

But to bring this home more closely to ourselves. We have been all at Church, perhaps, performing our Ser vice and Devotions to him that made us; it is true, as to our outward Ap pearance, there hath been no great dif ference betwixt us, we have been equally prefent at these Publick Ordinances, and we do not know but one hath prayed and heard the Word of God both read and preached as well as another fo that feemingly our Services are all alike as to us; but are they fo to God too? that I much queftion: For he hath taken efpecial notice all along, not only of the outward Geftures of our Bodies, but likewife of the inward Behaviour of our Hearts and Souls before him: And therefore, as I hope he hath feen many of us ferving him with a perfect heart, and willing mind; fo, I fear, he hath found too many of us tardy, coming before him as his People come, and fitting before bim as his People fit, while our Hearts in the mean time have been about

about our Covetoufnefs and hath plainly feen, that though your Bodies have been at Church, our Souls have been elsewhere, thinking upon our Relations, or Eftates, or fomething or other, befides what our Thoughts fhould have been employ'd about in fo folemn a Duty as the Publick Worship. But know this, Ob vain man, whofoever thou art, that God will not be mocked: And though thou haft not feen, or perhaps fo much as thought of him, he hath feen thee and thy Thoughts too; yea, at this very Moment looks upon thee. And what wilt thou answer him, the great Judge of the whole World, when he fhall tell thee to thy Face, and call his Omnifcience to wirnefs, That he faw thee at this, as at other times, play the Hypocrite with him, making as if thou fervedft him, when thou fervedft him not; and inftead of ferving him with a perfect Heart, and a willing Mind, fervedft hun neither in Heart nor Mind. Let us all remember this when we approach God's House, and alfo bethink ourselves afterwards whether we have not been guilty of this Sin? if we have, we may be fure God knows it, and we fhall hear of it another Day. But to prevent what juftly