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ducers are the devil's factors; well as the curse. He preachthey are of all others the great-eth that Christ hath done all for est felons, that would rob you of them, and they need to do nothe truth; seducers have silver thing. So he makes the doctrine tongues; a fair tongue can put of free grace a key to open the off bad wares; they have a slight

to deceive, Eph. iv. 14. The Greek word there is taken from those that can cog a dye, and cast it for the best advantage; so seducers are imposters, they can

door to all licentiousness.

5. Another thing to unsettle Christians is persecutors, 2 Tim. ii. 12. The gospel is a rose; it cannot be plucked without prickles. The legacy Christ hath bequeathed

cog a die, they can so dissemble is the CROSS. While there is a and sophisticate the truth that devil and a wicked man in the they can deceive others. Now, world, never expect a charter of the style by which seducers use to exemption from trouble; and how deceive, is: many fall away in an hour of

1. By wisdom of words: Rom. persecution? Rev. xii. 3. 4., xvi. 18., " By good words and "There appeared a great red drafair speeches they deceive the gon, having seven heads and ten hearts of the simple." They have horns: and his tail drew the third fine elegant phrases, flattering part of the stars of heaven:" the language, whereby they work on red dragon the heathenish empire, the weaker sort, as being christed -and his tail, viz. his power and with Christ, and the light within subtlety, drew away stars, viz. them. eminent professors that seemed to shine as stars in the firmament of the church. Therefore we see what need there is to be settled in the truth, for fear the tail of the dragon cast us to the earth.

2. Another slight is a pretence of extraordinay piety, that so people may admire them, and suck in their doctrine. They seem to be men of zeal and sanctity, and to be divinely inspired; they pretend revelations, as Munster, Michael Servetus, and others of the Anabaptists in Germany, though they were tainted with pride, lust, and avarice.

6. To be unsettled in good is the sin of the devils, Jude 6. They are called 'morning stars,' Job xxxviii. 7., but 'falling stars;' they were holy, but mutable. As the vessel is overturned with the sail, so their sails, being swelled with pride, were overturned, 1 Tim. iii. 6. By unsettledness, who dost thou imitate but lapsed

3. A third slight or cheat seducers have is a labouring to vilify and nullify sound orthodox teachers; they would eclipse those that bring the truth, like unto the angels? The devil was the first black vapours that darken the apostate. So much for the first light of heaven; they would de- proposition, that it is a great fame others, that themselves may duty of Christians to be settled; be more admired. Thus the false the sons of Sion should be like teachers cried down Paul, that mount Sion, which cannot be they might be received, Gal. iv. 17.

4. The fourth slight or cheat of seducers is by "preaching doctrine of liberty:" as the Antinomian preacheth that men are freed from the moral law, -the rule as

renioved.

DocT. II. The second propositionis, that the way for Christians to be settled, is to be well grounded : If ye continue grounded and settled." The Greek

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word for grounded, a metaphor; it alludes to a building that hath the foundation well laid; so Christians should be grounded in the essential points of religion, and have their foundation well laid.

Here let me speak to two things: 1. That we should be grounded in the knowledge of fundamentals. 2. That this grounding is the best way to settling.

3. Armour of proof; it doth furnish us with weapons to fight against the adversaries of the truth.

4. It is the holy seed of which grace is formed; It is semen fidei, the seed of faith, Ps. ix. 10. It is radix amoris, 'the root of love,' Eph. iii. 17., "Being rooted and grounded in love." The knowledge of principles conduceth to the making of a complete Christian.

1st. That we should be grounded 2d. That this grounding is the in the knowledge of fundamentals. best way to settling: grounded The apostle speaks of the first and settled. A tree that it may principles of the oracles of God,' be well settled, must be well rootHeb. v. 13. In all arts and sci-ed; so, if you be well settled in ences, logic, physic, mathematics, religion, you must be rooted in there are some præcognita, some the principles of it. He, in Plurules and principles that must tarch, set up a dead man, and he

necessarily be known to the practice of those arts: so, in divinity, there must be the first principles laid down. The knowledge of the grounds and principles of religion is exceeding useful :

1. Else we cannot serve God aright; we can never worship God acceptably, unless we worship him regularly; and how can we do that, if we are ignorant of the rules and elements of religion: We are bid to give God a 'reasonable service,' Rom. xii. 1. If we understand not the grounds of religion, how can it be a reasonable service?

would not stand: "O," saith he, "there must be something within;" so, that we may stand in shaking times, there must be a principle of knowledge within,-first grounded, and then settled. That the ship may be kept from overturning, it must have its anchor fastened; knowledge of principles is to the soul as the anchor to the ship, that holds it steady in the midst of all the rolling waves of error, or the violent winds of persecution. First grounded, and then settled.

USE I. See the reason why so many people are unsettled, ready to embrace every novel opinion, and dress themselves in as many religions as they do fashions; It they is because they are ungrounded. See how the apostle joins these two

2. Knowledge of the grounds of religion much enricheth the mind; it is a lamp to our feet; it directs us in the whole course of Christianity, as the eye directs the body. Knowledge of fundamentals is the golden key that together, unlearned and unsta

ble,' 2 Pet. iii. 16. Such as are unlearned in the main points of divinity, will be unstable. As the body cannot be strong that hath

opens the chief mysteries of religion; it gives us a whole system and body of divinity exactly drawn in all its lineaments and lively colours; it helps us to understand the sinews shrunk; so neither

many of those difficult things which do occur in the reading ling of the word; it helps to untie many scripture-knots.

can that Christian be strong in religion who wants the grounds of knowledge, which are the sinews to strengthen and stablish him.

mus observe, many of the ancient fathers have written for it, Fulgentius, Austin, Theodoret, Lactantius, and others. God hath given great success to it. By this laying down of grounds of religion cate

USE. II. See then what great necessity there is of laying down all the main grounds of religion in a catechetical form, that the weakest judgment may be instructed in the knowledge of the truth, and strengthened in the love chistically, Christians have been of it. Catechising is the best clearly instructed and wondrously expedient for the grounding and built up in the christian faith; settling of people. I fear, one insomuch, that Julian the apostate, reason why there hath been no seeing the great success of catemore good done by preaching, hath been because the chief heads and articles in religion have not been explained in a catechistical way. Catechising is the laying the foundation, Heb. vi. 1. To preach, and not to catechise, is to build without a foundation. This way sabbath, in the afternoon, to make

chising, did put down all schools
and places of public literature,
and instructing of youth. It is
my design therefore (with the bles-
sing of God) to begin this work
of catechising the next sabbath-
day; and I intend every other

of catechising is not novel, it is
apostolical. The primitive church
had their forms of catechism:
so much those phrases imply, a
'form of sound words,' 2 Tim.
i. 13., and the first principles of
the oracles of God,' Heb. v. 12.;
and since the church had their
catechumenoi, as Grotius and Eras- which I am now beginning.

it my whole work to lay down the
grounds and fundamentals of reli-
gion in a catechistical way. If
I am hindered in this work by
men, or taken away by death, I
hope God will raise up some other
labourer in the vineyard among
you, that may perfect this work

MAN'S CHIEF END IS TO GLORIFY GOD.

QUEST. 1. What is the chief being a rational creature, must end of man? propose some end to himself, and that is, that he may lift up God in the world; and better lose his life than lose the end of his liv

Ans. Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him for

ever.

Here are two ends of life speci-ing; so then, the great truth asfied: 1st. The glorifying of God. 2d. The enjoying of God.

serted is this, that the end of every man's living is to glorify God; this is the yearly rent that is paid to the crown of heaven. Glorifying of God hath respect to all the persons in the Trinity; it respects God the Father, who gave us our life; it respects God the Son, who lost his life for us : it respects God the Holy Ghost, who produceth a new life in us;

I. I begin with the first, the glorifying of God, 1 Pet. iv. 11., "That God in all things may be glorified." The glory of God is a silver thread which must run through all our actions: 1 Cor. x. 31., "Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." Every thing works to some end in things we must bring glory to the whole natural and artificial; now man, Trinity.

When we speak of God's glory, the question will be moved,

Q. What we are to understand by God's glory?

the glory due unto his name," and, 1 Cor. vi. 20., "Glorify God in your body and in your spirit." The glory we give God, is nothing else but our lifting up his name in the world, and magnifying him in the eyes of others: Phil. i. 20., "Christ shall be magnified in my body."

Q. What is it to glorify God, or wherein doth it consist?

Ans. There is a twofold glory: 1. The glory that God hath in himself, his intrinsical glory. Glory is essential to the Godhead, as light is to the sun: he is called the God of glory,' Acts vii. 2. Glory is the sparkling of the Deity; glory is so co-natural to the Godhead, that God cannot be God without it. The creature's honour is not essential to his being; a king is a man without his regal ornaments, when his crown and royal robe are taken away; but God's glory is such an essential part of his being, that he cannot be God without it; God's very life lies in his glory. This glory can receive no addition, because it is infinite; this glory is that which God is most tender of, and which he will not part with, Isa. xlviii. 11., "My glory I will not give to another." God will give temporal blessings to his children, such as wisdom, riches, honour; the creature. This is to glorify

A. Glorifying of God consists in four things: 1st. Appreciation, 2d. Adoration, 3d. Affection, 4th. Subjection. jection. This is the yearly rent we pay to the crown of heaven. 1. Appreciation. To glorify God, is to set God highest in our thoughts, to have a venerable esteem of him: Ps. xcii. 8., "Thou, Lord, art most high for evermore;" Ps. xcvii. 9., “Thou art exalted far above all gods." There is in God all that may draw forth both wonder and delight; there is in him a constellation of all beauties; he is prima causa, the original and spring-head of being, who sheds a glory upon

God, when we are God-admirers we admire God in his attributes, which are the glistering beams by which the divine nature shines forth; we admire him in his promises, which are the charter of free grace, and the spiritual cabinet where the pearl of price is hid; we admire God in the noble effects of his power and wisdom, viz. the making of the world, this is called the work of his fingers,'

he will give them spiritual blessings, he will give them grace, he will give them his love,-he will give them heaven, but his essential glory he will not give to another. King Pharaoh parted with a ring off his finger to Joseph, and a gold chain, but he would not part with his throne, Gen. xli. 40., Only in the throne will I be greater than thou.' So God will do much for his people; will give them the inheritance; he Ps. viii. 3., such curious needlewill put some of Christ's glory, as work it was, that none but a God

mediator, upon them; but his essential glory he will not part with; in the throne he will be greater.'

2. The glory which is ascribed to God, or which his creatures labour to bring to him: 1 Chron. xvi. 29., "Give unto the Lord

could work. This is to glorify God, to have God-admiring thoughts; we esteem him most excellent, and search for diamonds only in this rock.

2. Glorifying of God consists in adoration, or worship: Ps. xxix. 2., "Give unto the Lord the glory blessing than to love God. 2d. Amor amicitiæ, a love of delight, as a man takes delight in a friend; this is indeed to love God; the heart is set upon God, as a man's heart is set upon his treasure. And this love is, 1st. Exuberant, not a few drops but a stream; 2d. It is superlative; we give God the

due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.' There is a twofold worship: 1st. A civil reverence we give to persons of honour: Gen. xxiii. 7., "Abraham stood up and bowed himself to the children of Heth," -Piety is no enemy to Courtesy. 2d. A divine worship which we give to God, is his prerogative best of our love, the cream of it, royal: Neh. viii. 6., "They bow- Cant. viii. 2., " I would cause thee ed their heads, and worshipped to drink of spiced wine, of the the Lord with their faces towards juice of my pomegranate." If the ground." This divine wor- the spouse had a cup more juicy ship God is very jealous of; this and spiced, Christ must drink of it. is the apple of his eye, this is the 3d. It is intense and ardent; true pearl of his crown, which he saints are seraphims, burning in guards, as he did the tree of life, with cherubims and a flaming sword, that no man may come near it to violate it; divine worship must be such as God himself hath appointed, else it is offering strange fire, Lev. x. 2. The Lord would have Moses make the tabernacle, "according to the pattern in the Mount," Exod. xxv. 40.; he must not leave out any thing in the pattern, nor add to it. If God was so exact and curious about the place of worship, how exact will he be about the matter of his worship? Surely here every thing must be according to the pattern prescribed in his word.

3. Affection. This is a part of the glory we give to God. God counts himself glorified when he is loved: Deut. vi. 5., "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul." There is a twofold love. 1st. Amor concupiscentiæ, a love of concupiscence, which is selflove, as when we love another, because he doth us a good turn: thus a wicked man may be said to love God. because he hath given him a good crop, or filled his cup with wine, and, to speak properly, this is rather to love God's

holy love to God. The spouse was amore perculsa, in fainting fits, sick of love, Cant. ii. 5. Thus to love God is to glorify him; he who is the chief of our happiness, hath the chief of our affections.

4th. Subjection. When we dedicate ourselves to God, and stand ready dressed for his service. Thus the angels in heaven glorify him; they wait on his throne, and are ready to take a commission from him; therefore they are represented by the cherubims with their wings displayed, to show how swift the angels are in their obedience. This is to glorify God when we are devoted to his service, our head studies for God, -our tongue pleads for him, our hands relieve his members. The wise men that came to Christ did not only bow the knee to him, but presented him with gold and myrrh, Matth. ii. 11.; so we must not only bow the knee, give God worship, but bring presents, golden obedience. This is to glorify God, when we stick at no service, when we fight under the banner of his gospel against regiments, and say to him as David to king Saul, 1 Sam. xvii. 32., "Thy servant will go and fight

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