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SERM. XLII. that have thus walked, and ftands ready to perform to you also. If you look to enjoy the good of the promife, you are obliged by all your expectations and hopes, to order your lives purely and uprightly. This hope will fet you on work to purge your lives, as well as your hearts, from all pollutions, 2 Cor. vii. 1. Having these promifes, let us cleanse ourselves from all fil"thinefs of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of "God."

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Fifthly, Yea, He hatb yet more obliged you to ftrict and holy lives, by his confidence in you, that you will thus walk and pleafe him. He expreffeth himfelf in fcripture, as one that dares truft you with his glory, knowing that you will be tender of it, and dare do no otherwife. If but a man repose confidence in you, and trust you with his concerns, it greatly obliges you to be faithful. What an engagement was that upon Abraham to walk uprightly, when God faid of him, Gen. xviii. 19. "I know him, that he will command his children, and his

houfhold after him, and they fhall keep the way of the Lord," q. d. as for this wicked generation, whom I will speedily confume in my wrath, I know they regard not my laws, they will trample my commands under their feet, they care not how they provoke me, but I expect other things from Abraham, and I am confident he will not fail me. I know him, he is a man of another fpirit, and what I promise myself from him, he will make good. And to the like purpofe, is that in Ifa. Ixiii. 7. "I will mention the loving-kindness of the Lord, and "the praises of the Lord; according to all that the Lord hath, "bestowed on us, and the great goodness towards the house of

Ifrael, which he hath bestowed on them; according to his "mercies, and according to the multitude of his loving-kind. "neffes. For he faid, furely they are my people, children that "will not lie, (or fail me) fo he was their Saviour." Here you have an ample account of the endearing mercies of God to that people, ver. 7. and the Lord's confident expectations of suitable returns from them, ver. 8. I faid, (i. e.) (speaking after the manner of men in like cafes) I made a full account, that after all thefe endearments, and favours, beftowed upon them, they would not offer to be disloyal and falfe to me. I have made them fure enough to myself, by fo many bonds of love. Like to which is that expreffion, Zeph. iii. 7. "I faid, furely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction." Oh! how great are the expectations of God from fuch as you! I know Abraham, there is no doubt of him. And again, they are children that will not lie, (i. e.) they will not fallere fidem datam, break their covenant.

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with me. Or they are my people that will not shrink, as Mr. Coverdale well tranflates, filii non negantes, fuch as will be true to me, and anfwer their covenant-engagements. And again, furely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction. shall not all this engage you to God? What! Neither the ancient and bountiful love of God, in contriving your redemption from eternity, nor the bounty of God, in rewarding all, and every piece of fervice you have done for him. Nor yet the pleasure he takes in your obedience and upright walking: Nor the encouraging promises he hath made thereto, nor yet his confident expectations of fuch a life from you, whom he hath fo many ways obliged, and endeared to himself? Will you forget your ancient friend, contemn his rewards, take no delight or care to pleafe him? Slight his promifes, and deceive and fail his expectations?"Re aftonished, O ye heavens, at this! and be horribly afraid." Confider how God the Father hath faftned this five-fold cord upon your fouls, and fhew yourselves chriftians; yea, to use the prophet's words, Ifa. xlvi. 8. "Remember this, "and fhew yourselves men."

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Obligations from the Son.

Secondly, You are yet further engaged to this precife and holy life, by what the Son hath done for you; is not this pure and holy life the very aim, and next end of his death? Did he not shed his blood to " redeem you from your vain converfa"tions?" 1 Pet. i. 18. Was not this the design of all his sufferings?"That being delivered out of the hands of your enemies, you might ferve him in righteoufnefs and holinefs all the days " of your life," Luke i. 74, 75. And is not the apostle's inference, 2 Cor. v. 14, 15. highly reasonable? "If on died for all, "then were all dead, and that he died for all, that they which live, fhould not henceforth live to themselves, but to him that "died for them." Did Chrift only buy your persons, and not your services alfo? No, no, whoever hath thy time, thy ftrength, or any part of either; I can affure thee, chriftian, that Chrift hath paid for it, and thou givest away what is none of thine own to give. Every moment of thy time, is his. Every talent, whether of grace or nature, is his. And doft thou defraud him of his own? O how liberal are you of your precious words and hours, as if Christ had never made a purchase of them! O think of this, when thy life runs muddy and foul. When the fountain of corruption flows out at thy tongue, in idle frothy difcourfes; or at thy hand, in finful unwarrantable actions? Doth this become the redeemed of the Lord? Did Christ come from the VOL. II.

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SERM. XLII, bofom of his Father for this? Did he groan, fweat, bleed, endure the cross, and lay down his life for this? Was he fo well pleased with all his forrows and fufferings, his pangs and agonies, upon 'the account of that fatisfaction he should have in feeing the travail of his foul? Ifa. liii. 11. as if he had faid, "Welcome death, welcome agonies, welcome the bitter cup, and heavy burthen; "I chearfully fubmit to all this. Thefe are travailing pangs, "indeed, but I fhall fee the beautiful birth at laft. Thefe throws "and agonies fhall bring forth many lovely children to God; I "thall have joy in them, and glory from them, to all eternity. "This blood of mine, thefe fufferings of mine, fhall purchase to

me, the perfons, duties, fervices, and obedience of many thou"fands that will love me, and honour me, serve me, and obey ་་ me, with their fouls and bodies which are mine." And doth not this engage you to look to your lives, and keep them pure? Is not every one of Chrift's wounds, a mouth open to plead for more holiness, more fervice, and more fruit from you? Oh! what will engage you if this will not? But,

Engagements from the Spirit.

Thirdly, This is not all; as a man when he weigheth a thing, cafteth in weight after weight, till the fcales are counterpoised; So doth God caft in engagement, after engagement, and argument upon argument, till thy heart, chriftian, be weighed up, and won to this heavenly life. And therefore, as Elihu faid to Job, chap. xxxvi. 22. "Suffer me a little, and I

will fhew thee what I have yet to fpeak on God's behalf." Some arguments have already been urged on the behalf of the Father and Son, for purity and cleanness of life; and next I have fomething to plead on the behalf of the Spirit. I plead now on his behalf, who hath fo many times helped you to plead for yourfelves with God. He that hath fo often refreshed, quickened, and comforted you, he will be quenched, grieved, and displeased, by an impure, loofe, and carelefs converfation; and what will you do then? Who fhall comfort you, when the comforter is departed from you? When he that should relieve your fouls, is far off? O grieve not the holy Spirit of God, by which you are sealed, to the day of redemption, Eph. iv. 30. There is nothing grieves him more than impure practices; for he is a holy Spirit. And look, as water damps and quenches the fire, fo-doth fin quench the spirit, 1 Thef. v. 19. Will you quench the warm affections and burning defires which he hath kindled in your bofoms? If you do, it is a question, whether ever you may recover them a gain to your dying day. The fpirit hath a delicate fenfe. It is the most tender thing in the whole world. He feels the leaft

touch of fin, and is grieved, when thy corruptions within, are ftirred by temptations, and break out to the defiling of thy life then is the holy Spirit of God, as it were, made fad, and heavy within thee. As that word un λurale, Eph. iv. 30. may be rendered. For thereby thou refifteft his motions, whereby in the way of a loving constraint, he would lead and guide thee in the way of thy duty; yea, thou not only refifteft his motions, but croffeft his grand defign, which is to purge and fanctify thee wholly, and build thee up more and more to the perfection of holinefs. And when thou thus forfakest his conduct, and crof feft his defign in thy foul, then doth he ufually withdraw as a man thatis grieved by the unkindness of his friend. He draws in the beams of his evidencing and quickening grace. With holds all his divine cordials, and faith, as it were, to the unkind and difingenuous foul,

The Spirit's expoftulation with careless Chriftians.

"Haft thou thus requited me, for all "the favours and kindneffes thou haft "received from me? Have I quickened "thee, when thou waft dead in tranf"greffions? Did I defcend upon thee in "the preaching of the gospel, and communicate life, even the "life of God, to thee; leaving others in the state of the dead? "Have I shed forth fuch rich influences of grace and comfort

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upon thee? Comforting thee in all thy troubles, helping "thee in all thy duties; fatisfying thee in all thy doubts and "perplexities of foul; faving thee, and pulling thee back from "fo many deftructive temptations and dangers? What had "been thy condition, if I had not come unto thee? Could the "word have converted thee without me? Could minifters, "could angels, have done that for thee which I did? And when "I had quickened thee, and made thee a living foul, what couldst "thou have done, without my exciting and affifting grace? "Couldest thou go on in the way of duty, If I had not led "thee? How wouldeft thou have waded through the deeps of "fpiritual troubles, if I had not borne thee up? Whither had "the temptations of fatan and thine own corruptions, carried "thee before this day, If I had not ftood thy friend, and come "in for thy rescue in the time of need? Did I ever fail thee "in thy extremities? Did I ever leave thee in thy dangers? "Have I not been tender over thee, and faithful to thee? And

now, for which of all these kindaeffes, doft thou thus wrong "and abufe me? Why haft thou wounded me thus by thy un"kindness? Ah! thou haft ill requited my love ! And now thou

fhalt eat the fruit of thy doings. Let thy light now be dark"nefs; thy fongs turned into howlings; the joy of thine heart, "the light of thine eyes, the health of thy countenance, even "the face of thy God, and the joy of salvation be hid from thee." This is the fruit of carelefs and loofe walking. To this fad iffue it will bring thee at last, and when it is come to this, thou fhalt go to ordinances, and duties, and find no good in them; no life-quickening comfort there. When thy heart which was wont to be enlarged, and flowing, fhall be clung up and dry; when thou faalt kneel down before the Lord, and cry, as Elisha, when with the mantle of Elijah, he fmote the water, "Where "is the Lord God of Elijah?" So thou, where is the God of prayer? where is the God of duties? But there is no answer: When like Samfon, thou shalt go forth and shake thyself, as at other times; but thy ftrength is gone; then tell me, what thou haft done in refifting, quenching, and grieving the holy Spirit of God by impure and offenfive practices? And thus you fee what engagements lie upon you from the Spirit alfo to walk uprightly, and keep the iffues of life pure. I could willingly have enlarged myfelf upon this last branch, but that * a judicious hand hath lately improved this argument, to which I fhall refer the reader. Thus God hath obliged you to circumfpect and holy lives.

Secondly, You are under great engagements to keep your lives pure, even from yourselves, as well as from your God. As God hath bound you to purity of converfation, fo you have bound yourselves. And there are feveral things in you, and done by you, which wonderfully increase, and ftrengthen your obligations to practical holiness.

First, Your clearer illumination is a ftrong bond upon your fouls, Eph. v. 8. "Ye were fometimes darkness but now ye "are light in the Lord; walk as children of the light." You cannot pretend, or plead ignorance of your duty. You ftand convinced in your own confciences before God, that this is your unqueftionable duty. Chriftians, will you not all yield to this? I know you readily yield it. We live, indeed, in a contentious, difputing age. In other things, our opinions are different. One Chriftian is of this judgment, another of that; but doth he deserve the name of a Christian that dare once question this truth? In this we all meet and clofe in oneness of mind and judgment, that it is our indifputable duty, to live pure, ftrict, and clean lives. "The grace of God, which hath appeared to

*Mr. Polewheil's treatife of quenching the Spirit.

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