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SERM. ing no question for confcience fake: for the earth
CCX. " is the LORD's, and the fulness thereof." We may

take these things from God's hand, who is the true
LORD of them and of all creatures. For this reason
we may without fcrupulous enquiry, use those meats
which are publickly exposed to sale.

And fo likewife in the other case, if we be invited to the table of an heathen, we may eat what is set before us, without enquiring whether it be part of an idol-facrifice. But if any man tell us, that this meat was offered in sacrifice to idols, in that cafe we ought to abstain from eating of it, " for his fake that shew"ed it, and for confcience sake;" that is, out of regard to the opinion of those, who think these meats unlawful : " for the earth is the Lord's, and the " fulness thereof." Also in another sense, God hath made such abundant provifion for us, that we may abstrain from this or that meat without any great inconvenience. "Confcience, I say, not thine own " but another's." He had faid before, we should " eat of what was set before us, asking no question " for confcience sake;" that is, not making it a matter of confcience to ourselves: now he says, if we be told it was offered to an idol, we should " not eat " for confcience fake;" that is, not as making a matter of confcience of it to ourselves, but out of regard to " the confcience of another," to whom it might be a scandal. " For why is my liberty judg"ed of another man's confcience? and if I with "thanksgiving be a partaker, why am I evil spoken " of for that which I give thanks ?" that is, why should another man's confcience be a prejudice to my liberty? If another makes confcience of it as unlawful, why should his confcience govern mine, and make me think fo too; or why should I be evil spoken of,

for

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CCX.

for thinking it lawful to eat any thing fet before me, SE-R M.
for which I give thanks? This is a little obscure; but
the plain meaning of the apostle's reasoning seems to
be this; though I have that regard to another man's
weak confcience, as to abstain from eating what he
thinks unlawful, yet am I not therefore bound to be
of his opinion, and think it unlawful in itself: I will
confider his weakness so far as to forbear that which
I am perfuaded is lawful to do, but yet I will still pre-
serve the liberty of my own judgment; and as I am
content to give no scandal to him, so I expect that he
should not cenfure and condemn me for thinking that
lawful, which he believes not to be fo: and then from
all this discourse, the apostle establisheth this general
rule in the text, "Wherefore, whether ye eat or
"drink, or whatever ye do, do all to the glory of
"GOD." Το which is parallel that other text,
1 Pet. iv. 11. "That God in all things may be glori-
"fied" So that this general rule lays a duty upon
all Christians of designing the glory of GOD in all
their actions. All the difficulty is, what is here
meant by this of doing all things " to the glory of
"GOD." The Jews have a common saying, which
seems to be parallel with this phrase of the apostle,
" that all things should be done in the name of
"GOD." And this they make so essential to every
good action, that it was a received principle among
them, that he who obeys any command of GOD, and
not in his name, shall receive no reward. Now that
to do things in the name of God, and to do them to
his glory, are but several phrases signifying the fame
thing, is evident from that precept of the apostle,
Col. iii. 17. "And whatsoever ye do in word, or in
" deed, do all in the name of the LORD JESUS

دو

CHRIST; " that is, to his glory. Now for our
clear

VOL. XI.

C

CCX.

SER M. clear understanding of the sense of this phrase of glorifying GOD, or doing thing's to GOD's glory; we will confider the various use of it in scripture, and so descend to the proper and particular sense of it here in the text.

"The Glory of God" is nothing else but the honour which is given to him by his creatures; and confequently the general notion of glorifying God, or doing, any thing to his glory, is to design to honour God by such and fuch actions: and this phrafe is in scripture more especially applied to these following particulars..

I. We are faid in scripture to glorify God by a folemn acknowledgment of him and his perfections; ofi his goodness and mercy, of his power and wisdom, of his truth and faithfulness, of his sovereign dominion and authority over us: Hence it is that all folemn actions of religion are called the worship of God, which fignifies that honour and glory which is given to him by his creatures, signified by some outward expreffion of reverence and respect. Thus we are said to worship God, when we fall down before him, and pray to him for mercy and blessings, or praise him for favours and benefits received from him, or perform any other folemn act of religion. Pfal. lxxxvi. 9. "All nations "whom thou hast made, shall come and worship be"fore thee, O LORD, and shall glorify thy name."

But especially the duty of praise and thanksgiving is most frequently in fcripture called glorifying of GOD, or giving glory to him. Pfal. lxxxvi. 14. " I will. * praise thee, O LORD My God, with all my heart, " and will glorify thy name." Matth. v. 16.

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"Let

your light so shine before men, that they may fee

your good works, and glorify your Father which is " in heaven;" that is, praise him upon that account. Luke v. 25. it is faid of the man fick of the palsy, that when he was healed, " he departed to his own house, " glorify

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"glorifying God; that is, praising God for his SERM. great mercy to him. And Luke xvii. 18. our SAVIOUR speaking of the ten lepers that were healed, says that "but one of them returned to give glory to GOD;" that is, to return thanks to God for his recovery.

II. Men are faid in scripture to give glory to GOD by the acknowledgment of their fins, and repentance of them. Joshua vii. 19. " And Joshua faid to A"chan, My fon, give glory to the LORD GOD of If"rael, and make confession to him." In like manner the prophet Jeremiah, exhorting the people to repentance, useth this expression, Jer. xiii. 16. “Give " glory to the LORD your God, before he cause " darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the "dark mountains." And Rev. xvi. 9. it is faid, that those upon whom great plagues fell, "repented

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not to give GOD glory." We glorify GOD by confeffion of our fins and repentance, because in so doing we acknowledge his authority, and the holiness of those righteous laws which we have broken.

III. We are faid likewise in fcripture to glorify God by our holiness and obedience. Thus we are commanded to glorify God by the chastity of our bodies, and the purity of our minds, 1 Cor. vi. 20.

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Glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, " which are his." Thus our SAVIOUR is faid to have glorified God in the world, by his perfect obedience to his will, John xvii. 4. "Father, I have " glorified thee upon earth." And thus he tells us, we may glorify God by the fruits of holiness and obedience in our lives, John xv. 8. " Herein is my " Father glorified, if ye bring forth much fruit." So likewife St. Paul prays for the Philippians, that they may be " filled with the fruits of righteousness, "which are by JESUS CHRIST unto the glory and IV. We

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praise of God."

C2

SERM. IV. We are said likewise in an especial manner to CCX. glorify God by our fufferings for his cause and truth.

John xxi. 19. our SAVIOUR, foretelling St. Peter's martyrdom, expresseth it by this phrase of glorifying GOD by his death : "this spake he, fignifying by " what death he should glorify God."

V. and lastly, And because religion is the folemn honour, and public owning and acknowledgment of the Deity. Hence it is that in scripture we are faid to glorify Gon in a peculiar and eminent manner, when in all our actions we confult the honour and advantage of religion. Upon this account St. Peter exhorts the minifters of the gospel, so to preach to the people, and fo to perform the public offices of religion, as may be for the honour of religion; and this he calls glorifying of God, I Pet. iv. 11. " If any man speak, " let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man " minister, let him do it as of the ability which GOD "giveth, that God in all things may be glorified." And because the peace and unity of Chriftians is fo very much for the honour and advantage of religion, therefore we are faid in an especial manner to glorify God, by maintaining the peace and unity of the church, Rom. xv. 5, 6. "Now the God of patience " and confolation grant you to be like minded one " toward another, that ye may with one mind and " one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our "LORD JESUS CHRIST." And here in the text, we are said to do all things " to the glory of GOD," when in all our actions we have a regard to the promoting and advancing of religion, and the edification of Christians. For here by eating and drinking " to "the glory of God, the apostle plainly means, that when things offered to idols are set before us, we should refrain from them, when by our eating, the intereft

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