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throw religion out of the world, because it is no sufficient means to serve it: and at last men shall be left to live irreligiously, according to the disinclination and bent of a disaffected heart.

God hath not left us altogether "ignorant of Satan's devices ;" and "in vain is the net spread in the sight of any bird.” When he would so grossly impose upon us in so plain cases, we are very foolish creatures, sillier than the silliest bird, if we will suffer ourselves to be beguiled and imposed upon; especially as to such parts and pieces of our religion, as upon which all our present comfort and welfare, and our future and eternal hopes do so immediately depend. It would be great folly in so plain

a case.

Do but consider a little, wherein this doth appear most plain, so that every one may understand it if he will. Take the most unquestionable and indisputable things, that lie within the compass of natural revelation, and that cannot be understood to serve any ill purpose, or to gratify any corrupt inclination in the heart of a man, but directly the contrary; take these natural sentiments, and take the whole compass of Scripture together with them; and here is that, which in point of rule both for faith and practice is every way sufficient to serve its end. When we say, the Scripture is a complete rule, we do not mean as severed and cut off from the law of nature, or in opposition to that, or as excluding that; but as including it; and as excluding only the unnecessary and arbitrary inventions of men, and the additions that they think fit to subnect to it. Take the Scripture, in conjunction with the frame of most unquestionably natural dictates and sentiments; and here we have an entire discovery of all that is requisite to our acceptable walking with God. And indeed all those more essential necessary dictates of the law of nature are contained in the Scripture. But there are many things, that are still to be borrowed from thence, which may respect the matter of undetermined circumstances; and circumstances of that kind, that they are necessary to actions to be done. Not merely unnecessary circumstances. For if any would take their advantage and occasion from thence, to devise what circumstances they please; that is a groundless and injurious pretence. There can be no action done but with circumstances; and the determination of some circumstances is necessary: as, it is impossible for an assembly ever to meet together, if they do not agree upon a time there can be no such thing as social worship, if the persons that are to associate do not agree. Such a circumstance as this is necessary, because there cannot be worship without it. But for unnecessary circumstances, which signify nothing

to the work, and without which it may be, and may be as well and perhaps better; these cannot be fetched from the law of nature. But from the law of nature I can fetch this circumstance; if I be obliged to worship God, then I must find some time for it. And if persons be obliged to worship God together, then they must find some time to come together. And therefore all that is substantial in religion, though a great deal. of it be in the law of nature, you have it over again in Scripture. And for whatsoever of circumstance is necessary unto such exercises of religion, if you have not all those circumstances in the Scripture, yet the law of nature compared with Scripture will oblige you to find out fit circumstances; such as by which it shall be possible for the enjoined duty to be done, and such as without which it cannot be done.

And so in this sense the Scripture is a perfect rule, in opposition to unnecessary inventions; but not in opposition to the necessary parts of the law of nature, or whatsoever that is necessarily to be directive to us in. As, if Scripture say, "Worship God;" the law of nature saith the same thing; but it over and above obligeth me to circumstance it duly, and so as that the thing designed may be possible to be done. And if both together do lay me under an obligation to this or that part or kind of religion and duty, my obligation will be indisputable and indispensible hereupon.

These preparations being laid, we shall (God willing,) go on hereafter to evince to you the obligation that is upon us to family-worship; on the governors of families to take care, that it be set up; and to oblige those under their charge to concur; and their obligation spontaneously and willingly to concur.

SERMON II*.

BECAUSE I lay a great stress in the argument before us upon the law of nature, as you may see by what hath been already offered; it may be requisite, before I proceed upon the forelaid grounds to the proofs, that I should obviate some things which may arise in the minds of some or other concerning this law.

Objection. It may be said; "To lay a weight in this matter upon the law of nature, is to lay it upon the most uncertain thing in all the world. Who can tell, what the law of nature. is? How obscure and dark, how dubious and mutable a thing doth it seem to be; depending with one man upon this or that apprehension or fancy or inclination, and with others upon another?" To this I would say as follows,

1. The law of nature, as it lies in the minds of men, is a mightily shattered thing. But,

2. It is not equally obscure in all things.

3. In reference to what I design to appeal to it in, it is most clear and indisputable and I shall lay a weight and stress upon it no where else, but where it is so.

4. As to what relates to this matter, religion and the wor

* Preached December 17th. 1693.

ship of God in general, and which we shall afterwards have occasion to deduce and draw down to family-worship; it is so very plain, that is, the general is so plain, that I may be as sure what the law of nature is in the case, as I may be that contradictions cannot be true. For the worship of God or religion doth carry that in it, the assertion or affirmation whereof must as necessarily exclude the contrary, as one proposition must exclude another contradictory to it.

For instance. When I worship God, my worshipping of him doth imply these affirmations in it; that he is supreme, that he is the best of beings, that all things do depend upon him, that I have my own absolute dependance upon him, that in his favour stands my life, that his displeasure and anger towards me not reconciled must be a mortal and destructive thing to me. My declining or refusing to worship him implieth all the contrary negations. If the former affirmations be true; (and the conscience of every man may be applied unto, whether they be not true ;) the contrary negations can no more be true, that is, the contradictory, than it is possible for the same thing to be true and false.

So little do we need to be at an uncertainty or in a suspense, what the law of nature, as we shall refer to it, is. It is nothing else, but that essential reference between God and his creatures, which, upon the supposed existence of both, is necessarily and unavoidably, whether I think of it, yea or no, It is not an uncertain or mutable thing; it doth not depend upon my thinking or not thinking of it. Whether I think or think not, whether I sleep or wake; if God is and I am, such obligations must lie upon me necessarily and unalterably in this state of the case. That is, there are these things to be considered in God; and such really is the state of things between him and me, that I cannot but be under such obligations. And therefore it is vain to suppose, that the law of nature in these respects is an arbitrary and changeable thing. It is no more changeable, than the essential references inust be between God and me, while he exists, and I exist: so that I cannot make these obligations to be by my thinking of them, nor can I unthink them into nothing.

And when we therefore read of the law of nature as a law written in us, as the apostle's expression is; that must suppose it to have been, before it is written, that is, in order of nature before. For what is it that is written? Something that was before, at least in the order of nature. Those mutual references must be between God and us, which are only founded upon our own natures. They had a pre-existence; that is, whether there be any such impression upon me or no; if it remain, or

if it be blotted out, that doth not nullify the obligations between me and my Maker. And if those obligations do unalterably and indispensibly lie upon me in reference to myself, it will be a very easy deduction, when we come to that, to shew that they must lie upon me also, in reference to those that I am concerned for. And hereupon, though after the apostle we call this a "law written in our hearts," we must consider it as antecedent to that impression. Cicero, a heathen, calls it non scripta sed nata lex, a law born with us; which results from the very existence of such a creature, of such a nature, related to the Supreme Being as his offspring, or one that hath immediately been raised up out of nothing by him.

But now upon all this, such preparatories being forelaid, we shall proceed to the proof of what hath been asserted; that is,That it is incumbent upon the governors of families to take care that there be such a thing as family-religion preserved and kept up in their families as such.-We must here note to you, that by the exercises of religion in families, we do not mean, that all the exercises of religion must be there; that every instituted Christian ordinance can have place in a family. We do not intend that, unless in such families as may be also churches; as we read of some such in Scripture. But we mean such exercises of religion, as a family is the capable seat and subject of; as it is of those parts of merely natural worship, which are wont to be referred to that head: as prayer, comprehending confession of sin, and thanksgiving for mercies; and instruction, the endeavour of knowing and of being acquainted with the mind and will of God, touching what we are to believe concerning him, and touching what we are to do in a way of duty towards him. These are things, which lie within the compass of natural worship.

It is true, that there are instituted ordinances of worship besides, (as even these mentioned are instituted, as well as natural,) that do belong to a certain specified seat and subject; to wit, such and such societies, which the very institution itself doth characterize and notify as the apt and convenient seat and subject of such worship. Those I do not speak of. But that such parts of worship, that have been spoken of, which are natural as well as instituted, namely, praying to God, and instruction in the matters that concern us towards him, do belong to families as such, I shall labour to evince and make out And I shall endeavour to do this, partly upon rational, and partly upon scriptural grounds. And I shall do it in reference to these two things;

to you.

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