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ledge, was yet towards the Evening of his Life, when the Sun drove hard, and the fhadows encreas'd, drawn afide by strange Women; and that his Wifdom departed from him like the Dream wherein it was given him, this indeed we may Lament, but cannot Excufe.

24. Confider Thirdly, That he who falls from a State of Holiness, muft needs do ftrange Violence to his Reafon. If he be a new Convert, he cannot fure without great reluctancy, defile that Temple which he has fo lately fwept and garnish'd. And if he be a Saint of fome confiderable standing, fure he must be the more unwil ling to break off a long-dated Innocence, for the unfatisfying Pleasure of a Moment. For tho' Men of defperate and Bankrupt Fortunes have little regard to their Expences, becaufe fhould they fave them, the Tide of their Eftates wont rife much the higher; and fo they think it impertinent to be Frugal, when there's no hopes of being Rich. Yet they that fee their Heaps begin to fwell, and that they are within the Neighbourhood of Wealth, think it worth while to be faving, and improve their growing Stock. But then after a long Thrift and Sparing, to throw away the hard purchale of many Years in one Nights Gaming, is one of the Prodigies of Folly and Indifcretion. And yet this is the very Cafe of him that lets go his Integrity.

25. Confider Fourthly and Laftly, That the Apoftate has the greatest ingratitude imaginable to aggravate bis Folly. Indeed, every Sinner is a very ungrateful Perfon, because he Trefpaffes against his best Friend and Benefactor, against him that Made him, against him that Died for him, and against him that Follows him with the daily offers of his Grace; and lays fratagems of Mercy for his Reformation. But the Back-fliding Man fins again greater Mercies, Endearments and ObligaHe has liv'd in the Service of his Lord, has receiv'd the Earnest of his Spirit, he has been of his Family; nay more, he has been call'd his Friend, he has Eaten with him at his Table, he has dwelt under the En

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dearments of Familiar Converfe, he has been with him in his Banqueting Houfe, where the Banner that was over him was Love, he has plighted his Faith, given his Heart, and faid with Paffion, My Beloved is mine, and I am his; fo that to turn Renegade now, is the greatest Bafenel's and Ingratitude conceiveable; 'tis to Betray his Lord and Matter after the Obligations of Intimacy and Difcipleship; 'tis to break the Tables of his Law, after he has been with him on the Mount, and feen the back parts of his Glory.

26. Since therefore the Apoftate has fo many peculiar Circumstances to aggravate his Crime beyond the guilt of Common Sinners, of how much forer Punishment suppofe ye fhall he be thought worthy, who has thus trodden under Foot the Son of God; and has counted the Blood of the Covenant wherewith he was Sanctified, an unholy thing; and has done defpite to the Spirit of Grace? which was the last general Confideration.

27. What now remains, but that upon a ferious Confideration of the Premifes, He that is Holy, think himself highly concern'd to be Holy ftill. That he lift up the Hands that hang down, and strengthen the feeble Knees; that he hold faft that which he has, that no man takes his Crown ; that he' unravel not his Holy Vows,nor put himself back in the Accounts of Eternity; that he be not frighted or laught out of his Religion, fince' tis his best and wifeft Choice, and will be found to be fo in fpite of all the prophane Drollery of Suppofed Wits, in the Day when Wijdom shall be justified of all her Children. For then fhall the Righteous Man ftand in great boldness before the Face of fuch as have afflicted him, and made no account of his Labours. And they fhall fay within themselves, this was he whom we had fometimes in derifion, and a proverb of reproach; we Fools counted his Life madness, and his End to be without honour. How is be numbred among the Children of God, and his lot is among the Saints! Wherefore again, let him that is Holy, be Holy ftill. Let him but maintain his Station during his fort warfare here on Earth, and he fhall be

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hereafter confirm❜d both in Holinefs and Happiness; and be fix'd in that Center where he fhall for ever reft. For fo fays the Spirit to the Churches, Him that overcometh will I make a Pillar in the Temple of my God, and he shall go no more out, Rev. 3. 12.

A Difcourfe concerning Heroic Piety;
Notion is Stated, and its Practice

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Wherein its Recommend

1. Ince the Practice of Religion in general, is not only the Natural Infirument of our prefent Hap pineis, but alfo the only and indifpenfable Condition of our Future, one would think there were but little left for the Orator to do here; the naked Efficacy of Selflove, and a ferious Confideration of our true and main Intereft, being fufficient to engage us upon Religious Performances. But he that fhall undertake to recommend the Practice of Hercic Piery, has a much heavier task, not only becaufe he perfwades to higher Degrees of Virtue, but because he is to addrefs himself wholly to a weaker Principle. For fince our Intereft is fecured by the Performance of neceffary Duty, there remains nothing but a Principle of Generofity to carry us on to the higher Advances, the more glorious Atchievements in Religion. And what fmall probability there is that it will often do fo, may appear from the ill fuccefs of the former and more prevailing Principle. For if the greateft Intereft imaginable can prevail with fo very few to perform what is indifpenfably neceffary to fecure it, fure there is little hopes that Generofuy, which is a much weaker Principle, fhould Engage many upon greater Performances.

2. But yet, notwithstanding thefe Difcouragements, fince our Bieffed Saviour has taught us to Pray, not on

ly for the Performance of God's Will in general, but

that

that it be done on Earth as it is in Heaven; that is, with the greatest Zeal, Readiness and Alacrity, with all the degrees of Seraphic Ardency that frail Mortality is ca pable of, I think a Perfwafive to Heroic Piety may be a proper and useful Undertaking; it being very reafonable, we fhould make that the Object of our Endeavours, which our Saviour thought fit to make the matter of our Prayers.

3. In difcourfing upon this Subject, I fhall proceed in this Method. 1. Ifhall ftate the Notion of Heroic Piety, and fhew what I mean by it. 2. I fhall demonftrate that there is fuch a Thing. 3. I fhall offer fome Perfwafives to recommend the Practice of it.

4. The Notion of Heroic Piety will be best underftood by confidering what the Moralifts mean by Heroic Virtue. For the one carries the fame Proportion in Religion, that the other does in Morality. Now not to trouble our felves with an Etymological Account of the Name, which is well known to be of an Heathen Extraction, by Heroic Virtue, I suppose, the Moralifts do generally mean fuch a vehement and intenfe purfuance of a Man's laft and beft End, as engages him upon fuch excellent and highly commendable Actions, which advance him much above the ordinary level of Human Nature; and which he might wholly omit, and yet still maintain the Character of a good Man. Ariftotle in his Ethicks, l. 7. c. 1. calls it, jus desmv, that Virtue that is above us. By which I fuppofe, he does not mean that it is above our reach, and unattainable, but either that it is above our obligation, or rather that when it is attain'd, it will elevate us above our felves.

5. In proportion to this Notion of Heroic Virtue, I understand by Heroic Piety thofe excellent degrees and eminences of Religion, which, tho to arrive at be extreamly laudable, yet we may fall fhort of them without Sin, God having not bound them upon us as parts of Duty, or made them the Conditions of our Salvation, but only recommended them by way of Counsel, and

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left them as Inftances of Generofity. This Heroic Piety confils rather in the Degrees than in the Kinds of Chriftian Vertue, and they are fuch degrees as are most eminent and excellent in themfelves, and that tend highly to the Perfection of the Nature of Man, but are not bound upon him by any pofitive and exprefs Law of God, and fo may be left undone without any difobedience to it, and therefore when done are the more commendable and rewardable. So that in fhort they are not Acts of strict indifpenfable Duty; but Inftances of extraordinary and uncommanded Perfection. According to that faying, (I think of St. Jerom) Non cogo, non impero, sed propano Palmam, Premia oftendo.

6. Thus far of the Notion of Heroic Piety. I come now to my fecond Undertaking, which was to fhew, that there is fuch a Thing. Tho' univerfality and fincerity of Obedience be indifpenfably required of every Chriftian, and confequently every part of Religion obliges under the penalty of Damnation as to its kind, yet that there may be fome degrees, to the Attainment of which we are not fo obliged, would evidently appear from the proof of this one fingle Propofition, That every one is not bound to do what is beft. The reafonableness of which Propofition may be argued from the very Nature of the Thing; for fince that which is Beft is a Superlative it neceffarily fuppofes the Pofitive to be good: And if fo, then we are not bound to that which is Beft; for if we were, then that which is only good would be evil, (it being fhort of what we are bound which to) is contrary to the Suppofition.

7. But left this Argument fhould not be thought fatisfy ing, as indeed I am not fully fatisfy'd with it, I farther confider, That the Scripture confills of Counfels as well as Commands. Now if fome Things are matter of Counfel only,'tis obvious to conclude two things. 1.From their being counfell'd, that they are good (nothing being matter of Counsel but what is fo;) and 2. from their being only counfell'd, that they do not oblige; and confequent

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