SERMON XXI.

The neceffity of watching and praying.

MAT T. xxvi. 41.

Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptatation: The Spirit indeed is willing but the flefh is weak,

A'

L L men have ever had a great sense of S ER M. the corruption and weakness of human XXI. nature, and it is what hath ever fufficiently been felt, and complained of, and bewailed; and the Devil hath in all ages made his advantages of it, giving men a formidable proffpect of the difficulty of virtue and holiness, by fubduing their lufts and vicious inclinations, and restraining all the evil tendencies of our nature: This hath never failed of its effect in those who confider this grievous infirmity without an eye to the mighty power and energy of those means by which it is to be cured.

And

SERM.

And accordingly fome looking on the reXXI. fraint of their lufts to be a ftrife against nature (as indeed it is) cease all endeavour towards a good life, they quite give out; and then the only work they have left, is to take care that the thoughts of another world give their pleasures as little intermiffion and difturbance as they can.

Others lefs hardy, but every jot as foolish, are always struggling with their lufts, though not to any substantial purpose of religion; they live in hopes this weakness is incurable; this is their great fupport and comfort in their fins, and they have all along in their minds a strange mixture of fenfual pleasure and remorse; of luft and godly forrow...

The laft fort of men, on whom the sense of this infirmity hath a malignant influence, are those who have fet in earneft upon the work with great fincerity and vigour, with great courage and refolution; and if the work were to be done of a fudden, nothing would be too hard for them. But after fome trials, finding the work always new, they come off of this religious fury; and when these first warmths are abated they feel this weakness of the flesh as much as ever: Thefe cannot be eafy under the thoughts of damnation; and therefore though they are foiled and beaten back again, yet they are always beginning but feldom make any confiderable progrefs.

Nay even in those who have made confiderable advances in piety and holiness, this weak

nefs

nefs of the flesh often gives a check to their SER M, endeavours, it makes the work go on heavily XXI. and fills them with defpondency; fo that the confideration of this weakness of human naturę hath unhappily every confequence but what it fhould have in the minds of men, and that is to awaken them with a fenfe of the danger they are in, and ftir up their endeavours, and make them conftant, and vigorous, and refolutę.

Our bleffed Saviour, who had himself a feeling of our infirmities, in thefe words describes most exactly wherein this weakness of our nature confifts, and the most effectual method of our cure. The Spirit is willing, the difficulty doth not lie there, but the flesh is weak; and for that reason we muft watch and pray that we enter not into temptation, (i. e.) that we are not overcome by it. He said this at a time when he himself was under the greatest temptation and trial that ever loaded any of the fons of Adam. Watching and praying were the means he used himself and found effectual; thefe are what he recommended to his Difciples then, when a great temptation was coming on them, and they failed for want of ufing them; and these are what he hath laid down for all fucceeding christians if ever they hope for fuccefs. Without the use of these means our natural infirmities are never to be overcome; and on the contrary a right ufe of them will never fail: So that the words are no excufe for fin, but a powerful motive to fubdue and overcome it.

My

SERM. My bufinefs at prefent shall be to enlarge XXI. upon these two things contained in my text, being of the highest confequence and nearest concern to us: Namely, to confider,

1. The great frailty of our nature, wherein it confifts; and the great difficulty of attaining to any good degree of virtue, even after a full purpose and refolution of the mind to endea

vour it.

2. The true remedy of this weakness, and the great means by which we are to overcome and furmount this difficulty.

do

As to the firft, in order to a more diftinct knowledge of the frailty of human nature, it will be neceffary to obferve, that the scriptures every where fuppofe two contrary principles within us interwoven in our frame, parts of our first make, and distinguished in holy writ by the names of flefb and fpirit. The latter of which is that more refined and exalted part of us which derives its original from heaven, carries on it a stamp of the di vine likeness; it is that immaterial, immortal, part of us, whofe firft and innate tendencies. were all to good, and all its inclinations to virtue and holinefs; and when it can act of itfelf it cannot help owning and acknowledgeing them. This is what the Apostle St. Paul 1. Cor. ii. 11. calls the spirit of a man which is in him, in diftinction from the fpirit of God in the verfe immediately preceding. And in Rom. vii. he calls the law of his mind.

Now

Now though this be in itself purely fpiritual, S ER M. ever ready to own and acknowledge the excel XXI. lencies of virtue and goodness, and in a difpo-" fition made for the beauty of holiness, to feel its charms, and be ever carried towards it by an inceffant strong propenfion; yet it is but a part of us, and, fince the fall and corruption of our nature, it is immersed and funk in flesh; to which though it communicate life, and motion, and understanding, yet it cannot diffuse its own native inclinations and defires through the unweildy mass which sets up a great variety of lufts and appetites of its own in direct oppofition to them; infomuch that the pure spirit hath loft all power of direction and government; and in a state of nature its faculties are fo broken and impaired, fo overpowered and obstructed, that of itself it is utterly unable to reftrain any one irregular paffion or appetite of the lower man, and exert itself to any good purpose by thought, word, or deed.

This wretched feeble condition of the mind of man is that which hath made fome help and affistance absolutely neceffary in order to its recovery; and that could be no other than the secret influence of the holy spirit of God upon this fpirit of ours, which hath been used to be called by a particular emphafis the grace of God, because it is the greatest favour ever vouchfafed to mankind, and a purchase made for us by the blood of Chrift.