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(2.) THE fecond thing reftrained by chriftian purity, with respect to the appetites of the body, is intemperance, or excefs in eating and drinking. St. Paul, in his black catalogue of the works of the flesh, has inferted * drunkenness and revellings, as well as adultery and other acts of uncleannefs, and has alike excluded them who do fuch things from inheriting the kingdom of heaven. And that the avoiding fuch exceffes is one inftance of that purity in heart we are difcourfing of, appears from our Saviour's caution to his Difciples, Take heed to your felves, left at any time your HEARTS be overcharged with furfeiting and drunkennefs. The eager appetite and thirfty affection to these vices, having got poffeffion of the heart, are a very great hindrance to a fpiritual life, and render the foul ftupid and brutish, infenfible of future happiness, and averfe to God and goodness. But that which ftill more evidently makes it proper to confider them here, is this, that they are immediate incentives to luft, they are fuel to that impure flame, they pamper the body to wantonnefs, and over-heat the blood, and by that means fill us with leud defires and fancies, and excite us to all manner of uncleannefs. The obfervation is too obvious to be denied, and therefore whoever would be pure in heart, even in the fenfe given of it in the former article, muft purify himself from this intemperance, and cleanse his heart from those luxurious inclinations which may lead him to it. He must restrain his appetites to the proper ufe they were intended for, and not fuffer his body, which is indeed but a fervant to the better part, his foul, to ufurp the government within him. 'Tis reafon which ought to be the fteward there, That faithful and wife Steward who is to be ruler of the houshold, to give

* Gal. v. 21.

† Luke xxi. 34.

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them their meat in due feafon, to measure out those due fupplies and reparations which are needful for the body, and reftrain all that excess which would but fenfualize the mind, and indulge irregular defires. We have now confidered purity in oppofition to the lufts of the flesh. Our next confideration of it must be,

2. SECONDLY, As it reftrains the luft of the eye, the love and defire of money; and the rather, because St. Paul has taught us, that this is the root of all evil. Now this base affection in the heart defiles it, by drawing it down and chaining it to objects which are much below the heavenly original and noble capacities of the foul of man, and unworthy of thofe great and glorious

hopes laid up for the believing Chriftian. Impurity it is to be always groveling in the dirt, to fpend our days in toiling for a little harden'd earth, and pleafing our felves as fondly in the poffeffion of it, as children do with trifles. The chriftian religion would raise us up to higher thoughts, and better expectations, and more refined enjoyments. If ye be rifen with Chrift, fays the Apoftle, fet your affections on things above, not on things on the earth. This, therefore, is another inftance, in which we ought to purify our hearts, viz. from the love of this world, and of the wealth and riches of it, which falls under the name of covetousness, and may be branched out (fo far as we are concerned with it at prefent) into this threefold divifion. (1.) The coveting any thing which is the right and poffeffion of another, and this is exprefly forbidden in the tenth commandment. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's houfe, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his man fervant, nor his maid fervant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing

* 1 Tim. vi. 10. † Col. iii. 1, 2. + Exod. xx. 17. that

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that is thy neighbour's. The course of trade and honeft commerce is not at all affected by this prohibition, fo far as our neighbour has a power to alienate or transfer his right; and therefore by this coveting is meant an envious or eager defire of what is another man's property, either where he cannot part with his right, or where he will not; 'tis a defire to have what he enjoys, whether he will be willing or not, and to compass it by fraud or violence, when it cannot be fairly obtained. And to purify our felves from these irregular defires, we must inculcate upon our minds that contentment which Chriftianity recommends to us. * Let your converfation, fays St. Paul, be without covetoufness, and be content with fuch things as ye have. (2.) Another branch of the vice abovementioned is an over-eager follicitude, and anxious care for gain and profit, though in an honeft way; much more when it puts men upon the little arts of lying and deceit to obtain it; and there, I muft needs fay, it ufually ends, however honeftly it began; for when men have fet their hearts upon growing rich and raifing an eftate, they lie under a temptation of abufing an honeft calling, by difhoneft practices. Solomon long ago oblerved it, † He that maketh hafte to be rich, fhall not be innocent. And after him the Apoftle, They that will be rich, fall into temptations, and a fnare, and into many foolish and hurtful lufts, which drown men in deftruction and perdition. And therefore he advises, that having food and raiment (the neceffaries of life convenient for our rank and family) we should therewith be content. Nay, tho' we tie our felves down by the restraints of confcience, to exact honefty and fair-dealing, yet an exceffive thirst of being rich is not allowable in a Chriftian. The royal Prophet cautions us against

* Heb. xiii. 5.

Prov. xxviii. 20,

Tim. vi. 8,9.

it, Labour not to be rich; and our Saviour has done the fame, . Lay not up for your felves treafures upon earth, where moth and ruft doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and fteal: but lay up for your felves treafures in heaven, where neither moth nor ruft doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and feal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be alfo. And in another place has given us fair warning, how hard it is for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God. Riches are hard to be obtain'd by our induftry, with a confcience perfectly good, or without more care and trouble than they are worth; hard to be kept, for accidents and ill men may eafily deprive us of them; hard to be enjoy'd without vanity, and trufting too much in them, or doating too much upon them. And therefore we must purify our hearts from this inordinate appetite, and make the wish of Agur's ours, as it is the wish of every wife man; † Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me; left I be full and deny thee, and fay, who is the Lord? or left I be poor and steal, and take the name of my God in vain. (3.) The third branch of covetoufnefs, is, that fenfe which common ufe has fixed upon the word, viz. a penurious narrow fpirit, and fuch a fondness of wealth in the poffeffion of it, as renders men averfe to use or lay it out where hofpitality, charity, or even their own neceffities, call for it. Against this also our Lord has caution'd us. Take heed and beware of covetousness, for a man's life confifteth not in the abundance of the things which he poffeffeth; and St. Peter requires, that we fhould ufe hofpitality one to another without grudging,

|| Prov. xxiii. 4.
Mark x. 24.
|| 1 Pet. iv. 9.

.. Matth. vi. 19, 20, 21. + Prov. xxx. 8, 2.

Luke xii. 15.

As to charity, Solomon has laid it down as a rule, + With-bold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. And as to providing neccffaries for our felves, and those who depend upon us, the common reafon of mankind is argument enough for it, and has juftly branded the contrary, as abfurd, fordid and ridiculous. For what are riches for, but to be used? *There is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice and to do good in his life; and alfo that every man fhould eat, and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour; it is the gift of God. Now this penurious affection to the wealth we have, is to be purged out of our hearts, by reftraining the estimation of riches, that we may not fet too great a value upon them; for they are vain and uncertain things, they will either leave us before, or we muft leave them when we die; and therefore we fhould confider to how little purpose we hoard them up.

THE third and laft of those works of the flesh (reckon'd up by St. John) which christian purity fets its felf againft, is the pride of life, that affectation of efteem, and power, and popularity, which goes under the name of vanity and ambition, that over-great value we are apt to put upon our own perfons, parts, and wit; our own performances, our learning, wifdom, beauty, or any other faculty or advantage, and the foolish oftentation we are apt to make of pomp and grandeur in circumftances which will any way bear it; together with the confequents of pride, in all or any of these inftances, contempt of others, contention, animofity, and above all, divifions in the Church, and feditions in the ftate: But these will come to be confider'd in another place. I will only here take notice that St. Paul reckons up them, as well as un

+ Prov. iii. 27.

Eccl. iii. 12, 13.

cleannefs,

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