VOL. Chrift, who lay in his bofom, and came from I. thence to declare the Father to the world, has or

dained that this revelation, of which he is the prime

author, fhall be held out before us from time to time, by the use of inferior and fubfervient inftru

ments.

I HAVE often confidered the strange prevarication, and sophistry, which some men use in stating things that are neceffary to falvation; and the ufe they make of that ftate. That is, because they can make a fhift to gather up the main principles of religion into a little compafs, as they may very eafily, they fay, "Here is all that is neceffary to "falvation. And therefore fince in that way, or "in that church all things neceffary to falvation. are taught, what need is there of any more?

66

why fhould not we come oyer thither? or why "fhould we feparate from it ?" Methinks it were an obvious eafy thing to most people to detect the fallacy. They ftate what is objectively neceffary to falvation, without confidering the condition of the fubject, and what is neceffary for that fubject. That is, they state what is neceffary to be known and believed in order to our being faved, but confider not what is neceffary to bring men to this knowledge and belief of these neceffary things, fo as to make a due impreffion of them upon their hearts. If, for inftance, you were to prefcribe to a fick languishing perfon a remedy for the taking off his diftemper; would you only tell him of fuch and fuch good fubftantial food that you would have him eat? and would you then think

you

you

SERM.

had done the bufinefs? Alas! the poor man S ER M. is fick! he defires nothing, can take nothing, can III. digest nothing, and cafts up all you give him. Why then do you talk to him of fuch things as will make wholesom and substantial food, when he can neither receive nor retain it? So in like manner in the present cafe and exigence of man, confidered as a fallen creature, if the bare propofal of the fundry heads of religion, neceffary to be known and believed, were fufficient; then to have a fermon once in a man's life-time might do the business; or a mere fyftem of the principal parts of the Chriftian religion would do what it is urged for, and anfwer the exigence of the cafe. This, I fay, were a thing eafily to be granted, if it was really fo with men, that a Doctrine would be understood as foon as proposed, and received when understood, and fo beget its due and proper impreffion upon the hearts of men. But truly the cafe is manifeftly otherwise, fince man is fallen into fo depraved a ftate. And to talk thus, is to speak of a scheme of divinity fuitable only to innocent men in paradife; when no more was needful to be done than barely to propound things with refpect to the clearness of the understanding, the rectitude of the will, the agreeableness of the powers one to another, together with the truth and goodness of their objects. But to say that this is all that is requifite, that there is enough held forth or laid before men, the knowledge and belief of which is fufficient to fave them, is juft as if one should fay, that fuch and fuch things proE 2 pofed

L.

VOL posed to a fick man would do him good if he were not fick. So in like manner this way of propounding the Gofpel would ferve the turn for men, if they were fuch as when they were at first created. Indeed it were no Gofpel, if it were only enough to fave men from fin, who as yet were no finners. The very notion implies a contradiction. For doth not the fame fin which makes them ftand in need of a Gofpel for the reconciling them to Gon, difaffect at the fame time their hearts unto God, and make them unwilling to clofe with him? Therefore they need to have precept upon precept, and line upon line; here a little, and there a little. And they that preach the Gospel to men, are urged to be inftant in feafon and out of feafon, to admonish, exhort, reprove, and all little enough, indeed all too little.

SURELY then there is fomewhat elfe to be confidered in the matter. When we confider what is objectively neceffary, it is alfo to be confidered what will bring men to believe thefe neceffary things. And in order to that there is need of their being frequently inculcated, in as much as things that are feen are more the objects of our love, than the things which are not feen; and what we ought to fet our hearts moft upon, are out of fight. GOD himself is the great object men are to be directed to, and to whom they must be united, or they are loft. He is invifible, and they are apt, as you have heard again and again, to mind nothing but what is feen. Therefore it is a strange unapprehensiveness

2 Tim. IV. 2,

unapprehenfiveness of the real ftate and condition SER M. of mankind, which those are guilty of, who decry III. preaching as a needlefs thing. Surely they that do fo, have little ftudied the nature of man!There are feveral other things that remain to be fpoken to, which I cannot infift upon at this

time.

E 3

SERM.

SERMON IV.

Preached September 13, 1676..

1 JOHN IV. 20.

He that loveth not his Brother, whom he bath feen; how can be love GOD, whom be hath not feen?

W

E have gone through the first part

of my defign from thefe words, which was to fhew, that men are lefs apt or disposed to the exercise of love to GOD than to one another. And we have made fome progress in the application, by way of inference; and therein have endeavoured to fhew, that the indifpofition of man to the love of GoD is a proof of his being in a lapfed and very degenerate condition. That this degeneracy must confift principally in the depreffion of the mind and its intellectual powers. That more especially man is prejudiced by the lapfe or fall with refpect to his inclinations towards GOD. That in confequence of this, he must needs be at a great distance from true bleffednefs, which is infeparably connected with the love of GOD. And in the next place, it was further inferred, that there is great occafion for frequent gofpel-preaching,