prefer the world before him. 5. You pretend that you have true defires to be godly and what God would have you be : But they are fuch defires as the fluggard hath to rife, and as the flothful hath to work: that is, if it could be done with cafe, and without labour: you lie ftill, and ufe not the means with diligence, for all your defires. When you can fit and have your work done with wifhes, and your families maintained, and your neceffities all fupplied with wishes › you may think to come to heaven with wifhes: The good defires that the poor may be warmed and cloathed,that James fpeaks of, Jam.2.15. did neither relieve the poor, nor fave the wifher. The defire of the flothful killeth him, because his bands refufe to labour, Prov. 21. 15. Up and be doing according to thy defires, or elfe confefs that thy

wishes are hypocritical, and that thou deceiveft thy own heart by Vain defires.

6. You also pretend to be fixcere worshippers of God. You pray, and you read the Scripture and good books, and you hear the Word, and receive the Lords Supper. But I have before fhewed you your hypocrifie in these, you pray against the fin that you love and would not leave you pray for holiness, when you hate it or defire it not, in any degree to cross your flefh: you ferve God with meer words (whether of your own conceiving, or of others prefcribing,) with fome forced acknowledgement of that God that hath not your hearts or lives. Christ pass the sentence on you, and not I, Matth. 15.7, 8, 9. [Te bypocrites, well did Efaias Prophese of you, faying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth

Let

honoureth me with their lips; but their beart is far from me But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandements of men] You like that teaching that fooths you in your own opinions, and galleth not your confciences in the guilty place: A Miniftry you would have, that should ftand like an adorned Idol that hurts no body,and toucheth not your fores: or that is but inftead of a pair of Organs, or a tinckling Cymbal, to tickle your fancy, and make Church-worship to be as a kind of religious ftage-play to you. But a true Minifter of Chrift, to open to you the doctrine of the Kingdom, and roundly to awake you from fecurity in fin, and to call you up to the most serious holy heavenly life, and follow you and let you take no reft, till you yeild and practise it, and to call you to open confeffion of your open fcan

dalous

dalous fins, that you may make fuch reparation to the wronged honour of God and fouls of men, as you are capable of, and accordingly, to absolve you, or to bind you over to answer it at the bar of God,and charge the Church to avoid communion with you, if you are impenitent and incorrigible, fucha Miniftry as this (which is the Miniftry of Chrifts appointment) you abhor; at leaft, when they come to touch your fores. Then you are too proud to be taught and ruled by fuch as thefe, though you hypocritically profefs to be ruled by Chrift, who ruleth his Church by his Spirit, Word and Minifters conjunct. Then you fay, who gave you authority to do thus and thus by me? As if you knew not that Chrift in Scripture hath defcribed, confirmed and limited the Minifterial office. Like condemned Traytors, that fhould

I

fhould fay to him that bringeth them a pardon [Who gave you an thority to make fo bold with me?] or like a man that hath the plague or leprofie, that asketh the Phyfician [Who gave you authority to tell me that I am fick, and put me on fuch medicines as thefe?] or as the Ifraelite to Mofes, Exod. 2.14. [who made thee a Prince and a Judge over us?] not understanding that God by his hand would deliver them, faith Stephen, A&.7.25. Or as the Jews to Chrift, when he was teaching men the way to heaven, Matth. 21.23. [By what authority doft thou thefe things, and who gave thee this authority?] fo because you hate the way of your recovery, you will not be faved without authority, nor be fatisfied of their authority that would fave you, but are like a beggar that fhould proudly refufe a piece of gold, and ask, By what authority

do