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8.9. When the Lord Jesus, speaking of the judgment of the great day, shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall be punished with everlasting deftruEtion from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power. So that the gospel gives all imaginable difcouragement to the transgression and disobedience of God's laws, by denunciation of the greatest dread and terror that can be presented to human nature, enough to make any sensible and confiderate man willing to do or forbear any thing, to escape so horrible danger, to cut off a foot or hand, or to pluck out an eye, not only to restrain nature in any thing, but even to offer violence to it, rather than to be cast into hell-fire, where the worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched, as our Saviour expresseth it, Mark ix. 48. This is the first argument from the threatenings. The

2. Is from the promises of the gospel, which are full encouragement to obedience; and there are three great promises made in the gospel to repentance, and the obedience of God's laws.

1. The promise of pardon and forgiveness. 2. Of grace and assistance.

3. Of eternal life and happiness. And these certainly contain all the encouragement we can defire; that God will pardon what is past, assist us in well-doing for the future, and reward our perseverance in it to the end with eternal life; and all this is exprefly promised to us in the gopel.

1. The pardon and forgiveness of fins past. Acts xiii. 38. 39. Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this manis preached unto you the forgiveness of fins: and by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. And this is great encouragement to amendment, to be fully indemnified from all past sins and tranfgreffions; and this promise is made to believing, which includes in it repentance and a better course.

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2. The promise of grace and assistance, to enable us to all the purposes of holiness and obedience. And this our Saviour hath most exprefly and emphatically pro

mised to all that are fincerely resolved to make use of it; and that upon the easiest condition that can be, if we do but earnestly pray to God for it, telling us that we may, with the fame confidence and assurance of fuccefs, (nay with much greater) ask this of God, as we can any thing that is good, of the kindest father upon earth, Luke xi. 9. And furely here is a mighty encouragement to well-doing, to be assured that God is most ready to afford his grace and assistance to us to this purpose, if we heartily beg it of him. So that neither the confideration of our own weakness, nor of the power of our spiritual enemies, can be any discouragement or just excuse to us from doing our duty, fince God offers us so freely all the strength that we need, and to endow us with an inward principle of well-doing, more powerful and effectual to all the purposes of holiness and virtue, than any oppofition that can be raised against it. So St. John assures us, that we have God on our fide, and the powerful affiftance of his Holy Spirit, and therefore are fure of victory in this conflict; I John iv. 4. Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome; because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. If the Spirit of God be more powerful than the devil, we are of the stronger side; and we have no just cause to complain of our inability and weakness to do the will of God, fince that strength and assistance, which we may have for afking, is to all effects and purposes of our own power. And therefore St. Paul made no fcruple to call it so, and to fay, he was able to do all things; I am able to do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

3. The promise of eternal life and this is the great promife of the gospel, and the crown of all the rest. 1 John ii. 25. This is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life. And this is a reward so great and glorious, and so infinitely beyond the portion of our service and obedience, that nothing can be more encouraging. What should not men do in hopes of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, hath promised to us? The expectation of such a reward, so well assured to us, is sufficient to encourage us to do our utmost, and to strain all our powers for the fsecuring and attaining of it, which we

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cannot do without holiness and obedience of life; for without holiness no man shall fee the Lord. So that all the promises of the gospel are to encourage and ftrengthen us in well-doing, to make us partakers of the divine nature, that we should cleanfe ourselves from all filthiness, and perfect holiness in the fear of God.

Thus you fee that the whole difpenfation of the gospel, and the doctrines of it, and every part of them, are all calculated to reform the minds and manners of men. This is the great design of the Christian religion, and all the parts and powers of it, to clear and confirm and perfect the natural law, to reinforce the obligation of moral duties by severe threatenings, and greater promifes, and to offer men more powerful grace and assistance to the practice of all goodness and virtue; and they do not understand the Christian religion, who imagine any other end and design of it. There is nothing that our Saviour and his Apostles do every where more vehemently declare, than that hearing and believing the doctrine of Christ signifies nothing, without the real virtues of a good life. Know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead, faith St. James. For men to think that the mere belief of the gospel, without the fruits and effects of a good life, will save them, is a very fond and vain imagination. And thus much may suffice to have spoken concerning the point.

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SERMON CCVIII.

Of the necessity of good works.

Тіт. ііі. 8.

This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God, might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.

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The second fermon on this text.

Rom these words I have proposed to handle these two points.

First, The certain truth or credibility of this faying and proposition, That they which have believed in God, ought to be careful to maintain good works. This I have spoken to, and come now to the

Second, The great fitness and necessity of inculcating frequently upon all that profess themselves Christians, the indispensible neceffity of the practice of the virtues of a good life. In the handling of this point, I shall do these two things.

First, I shall shew the great fitness and necessity of pressing upon people the indispensible necessity of the virtues of a good life. And,

Secondly, Answer an objection or two, to which the preaching of this kind of doctrine may seem liable. I begin with the

First of these, viz. to shew the great fitness and necessity of inculcating and pressing upon all Chriftians the indispensible necessity of the virtues of a good life. And this will appear to be very fit and necessary upon these two accounts.

I. Because men are so very apt to deceive themseves in this matter, and fo hardly brought to that wherein religion mainly confifts, viz. the practice of real goodness.

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II. Because of the indispensible necessity of the thing to render us capable of the divine favour and acceptance, and of the reward of eternal life and happiness.

I. Because men are so very apt to deceive themselves in this matter, and so hardly brought to that wherein religion mainly confists, viz. the practice of real goodness. They are extremely defirous to reconcile, if it be possible, the hopes of eternal happiness in another world, with a liberty to live as they list in this present world; they are loth to be at the trouble and drudgery of mortifying their lufts, and subduing and governing their passions, and bridling their tongues, and ordering their whole conversation aright, and practifing all those duties which are comprehended in those two great commandments, the love of God and our neighbour. They would fain get into the favour of God, and make their calling and election fure, by some eafier way, than by giving all diligence, to add to their faith virtue, and knowledge, and temperance, and patience, and brotherly kindness, and charity.

The plain truth of the matter is, men had rather religion should be any thing, than what indeed it is, the thwarting and crossing of our vitious inclinations, the euring of our evil and corrupt affections; the due care and government of our unruly appetites and passions, the fincere endeavour and constant practice of all holiness and virtue in our lives; and therefore they had much rather have something that might handsomely palliate and excuse their evil inclinations, than to extirpate them and cut them up; and rather than reform and amend their vitious lives, make God an honourable amends and compenfation for them in some other way.

This hath been the way and folly of mankind in all ages, to defeat the great end and defign of religion, and to thrust it by, by substituting something elfe in the place of it, which they hope may ferve the turn as well, and which hath the appearance of as much devotion and respect, and perhaps of more cost and pains, than that which God requires of them. Men have ever been apt thus to impose upon themselves, and to please themselves with a conceit of pleasing God full as well, or

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