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damental truths, because of Chrift's ftamp upon them, will not dare to give up with circumftantial truths which they know, feeing they also bear the fame impreffion of divine authority: So that it is a bold venture for a man, on any pretence, to quit the word of Christ's patience in a time of trial, and to step out of God's way; for he leaves his foul in pawn for it, which is of more worth than all he has in a world; and it is one to a thousand, if ever he has power to come back, and loose it by repentance.

Mot. 4. Death is approaching, and then you muft part with all you have in the world. Cleave as fast as you will to these things, you must let go your hold at length. The ferious confideration of the shortnefs of our time, the certainty of death, and the uncertainty of the time of it, would difcover to us, that the whole we can make by turning afide from God's way in a time of trial, is not worth our trouble, not worth the going off our road for it; for it may be, what is refused for Chrift may quickly be taken from you at death. I am fure we will never part fo eafily with what we have, as when we fit loose to it. Ripe fruit falls off the tree with a shake, when the unripe must be rent off. When the heart is loofed from what we have in the world, it is eafy parting with it, by what it is when the heart holds by it till it be forced from it.-Nothing is ever parted with fo honourably, as when it is parted with for Chrift. No thanks to you that you part with what you have, when God takes it from you whether you will or not. It is honourable to forfake the world at Chrift's call, for Christ's fake, before we be forfaken of the world.

Mot. 5. You will be no lofers at Chrift's hands. If you quit with them now to Chrift, he probably

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will let you keep them, and accept of your will for the deed. This was the cafe with Abraham, when called to offer up Ifaac; and with David, when it was in his heart to build a house to the Lord. Thus you will have them with his bleffing and favour. If he take them from you, without them you will get a throughbearing: Pfal. xxxvii. 3. Truft in the Lord, and do good; fo fhalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou fhalt be fed." A little ferved up to you from the promife, and brought to your hand by a particular providence, will have a double fweetnefs in it. That bread will not be loft which is thrown upon these waters; after many days you shall find it : Matth. xix. 29. "And every one that hath forfaken houses, or brethren, or fifters, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's fake, fhall receive an hundred-fold, and fhall inherit eternal life." Himself will be to you instead of all, and better than all here; and heaven will fully make up all hereafter.

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If any fhall fay, But, O! I fear I fhall never be able to carry through,' I would fay to fuch, You know that the foundation of your throughbearing is laid, if your heart be loofed from all things befides Christ, and if he be dearer to you than what is dearest to you in a world: Pfal. xlv. 10. 11. "Hearken, O daughter, and confider, and incline thine ear; forget alfo thine own people, and thy father's house. So fhall the king greatly defire thy beauty; for he is thy Lord, and worship thou him." When the king thus greatly defires thy beauty, he will fee to preferve it: John, x. 28. 29. "I give unto them eternal life, and they fhall never perifh, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, who gave them me, is greater than all, and no man is

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able to pluck them out of my Father's hand." You have taken him for all, and it lies upon his honour to see you carried through. Live by faith, and draw your daily fupplies from him: Hab. ii. 4. The juft fhall live by his faith." Ifa. xl. 31. "They that wait upon the Lord fhall renew their strength; they fhall mount up with wings as eagles; they fhall run, and not be weary; and they fhall walk, and not faint." Amen.

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A RICH REWARD TO DILIGENCE IN

RELIGION *.

SERMON XXXV.

Hos. vi. 3.-Then fhall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord.

T is an observation of Solomon's, Prov. xii.

IT

27. "The flothful man roafteth not that which he took in hunting." Men are at fome pains to get fomething, but when they have got it, they let it flip through their fingers. Hence our religion, good frames, attainments, refolutions, &c. turn to fmall account. We are at fome pains to acquire fomething when attending divine ordinances, but then we put it in a bag with holes. Now, the text tells us how to remedy this lofs, and to bring our religion to fome good account; and that is, when once our hand is in, to follow on eagerly: "Then fhall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord."-In these words, confider,

1. What is the fum and substance of all religion. It is "the knowledge of the Lord," that is, the practical

Delivered at Tweedfmuir, April 1712.

practical knowledge of him, who can only be truly known in Jefus Chrift. That thus the knowledge of the Lord is here to be understood, is evident, not only from the nature of the thing, but from other fcriptures: John, xvii. 3. " And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast fent." See alfo Hof. vi. 6. Jer. xxii. 16.-Con-fider,

2. The beginning of religion fuppofed. This is supposed in the particle then, namely, when we have turned to the Lord; and likewife in following on to know the Lord.-Confider,

3. The purfuit of religion, or the knowledge of the Lord propofed. We fhall follow on, if we fhall not content ourselves with the measure attained, but go on still farther, improving the beginnings. (Heb. pursue), which is an eager fort of following, as is the cafe when we follow a fleeing enemy.-Confider,

4. The benefit of this pursuit: "Then shall we know," we fhall thrive in our religion, get a larger measure of it, even of a practical experimental knowledge of the Lord. We fhall be ftill adding a cubit to our fpiritual ftature. The more we purfue, the more we will gain.-From this fubject, I obferve the following

DOCTRINE, That the way to thrive in religion is to follow on, to pursue, to hold our hand to it, when once our hand is in it.

It is evident, this is a day in which there is little thriving in religion. It is long fince the generation began to weary of God, and profeffors to decline; yet fometimes there is a blowing up of the fpark, but, alas! it dies always out again. Some

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