Ipair; and it makes the child of God abhor the idolatry, and dwell with complacency on his unchangeable por

tion.

Confider this, I befeech you, my brethren; for you are all liable to the ftroke of affliction, young and old, rich and poor, holy and unholy. It is indeed lamentable to fee the fretful impatience of those to whom the world is blafted from without, but the love of the world, in all its ftrength, ftill fubfifting within. They have no fource of confolation in themselves; and nothing comfortable can be spoken to them by others in a manner confiftent with truth and duty. To deal faithfully with them, we must do our utmost to add the bitternefs of repentance to their other fufferings; and this the cruel kindness of furrounding relations will feldom permit to be done. In the cafe of dying perfons, in particular, with what concern have I heard friends and phyficians telling the groffeft falfhoods, in order to keep off, for a few moments, the apprehension of what they knew muft immediately and certainly take place, and be the more terrible for the surprise !

On the other hand, it is comfortable to reflect, that the fanctifying influence of afflictions is no lefs the language of experience than of fcripture. Many have borne their teftimony, and fet their feal to it. Some have been fo effectually mortified to pride and vanity, by the injuries or the flanders of others, that they have even felt confolation in the reproach itself. But in a particular manner, I have been often pleafed with young perfons to whom the world, and all their expectations from it, have been crucified by early affliction, expreffing themfelves, not merely with fubmiffion, but with ferenity and thankfulness. Bear with me in mentioning à real inftance, known to myfelf, of a young man, who had been long confined with a difeafed member, and had a near and certain profpect of his diffolution. When, at the defire of fome perfon prefent, his loathfome fore was uncovered, he expreffed himfelf, to the best of my remembrance, in thefe very words: There it is; and a precious treafure it has been to me! 'It faved me from the folly and vanity of youth; it made * me cleave to God as my only portion, and eternal glory,

"as my only hope; and I think it has now brought me "very near to my Father's houfe." Now, what a fpring of confolation is here! Our duty, our bufinefs, our intereft is, to crucify the world, and to be crucified to it. May we not, then, with the utmoft gratitude, as well as patience, receive the appointments of that God who has promifed, not only to deliver us from all our fufferings in due time, not only to make up and recompenfe our losses with fomething better, of a different kind, but has affured us, that thefe very fufferings and loffes, as their immediate effect, fhall crucify fin, and further our meetness for his own prefence?

3. Let me improve this fubject by earnestly exhorting you to endeavor to acquire more and more of the temper and ftate of mind expreffed by the holy apoftle, in the text, "By whom the world is crucified to me, and I unto the "world." Be perfuaded, my beloved hearers, to look upon all created things with the eye of faith. Remember their relation to God. He is their Maker and yours; and they must not be loved or ferved but in fubordination to his glory. Do not place your chief happiness in them; do not efteem them too highly; do not love them immoderately; do not profecute them two violently. Place your chief happiness in the favor of God, in communion with him on earth, and the well-grounded hope of the perpetual enjoyment of him in heaven; and let your regard to earthly things be no other, nor greater, than is fuited to this end. That I may prefs this refolution upon you, allow me to propofe the three following confiderations.

(1) Confider the unfatisfying nature of all earthly enjoyments. They do not at all carry in them that sweetnefs and excellence which worldly men fuppofe. Sim has drawn a mift of delufion over the minds of men. The inflamed and difordered appetites of our corrupted nature always promise themselves, in worldly poffeffions, a fatisfaction infinitely greater than they are able to afford. We have this from the confeffion of many who have made the experiment with every poífible advantage. The book of Ecclefiaftes is an admirable and animated defcription of the vanity of human enjoyments. Solomon feems to

have been raised up in providence, for this among other ends, that he might leave behind him an account of the vanity of earthly greatness. And this is the title that he hath left written upon all that the world can give: Ecclef. i. 2. “ Vanity of vanities, faith the preacher, vanity of "vanities, all is vanity." Power and wealth, dignity and fame, variety of pleafures, nay knowledge itself, as a fource of prefent comfort, he affirms the vanity of them all: Ecclef. ii. 11. " Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had la"bored to do and behold, all was vanity and vexation "of fpirit, and there was no profit under the fun." And towards the clofe of the fame book, ch. xii. 12. he fays, "And further, by thefe, my fon, be admonifhed: of "making many books there is no end, and much study "is a wearinefs of the flefh."

Have there not been innumerable examples of the fame teftimony in every age and country? And what fays your own experience? or your obfervation of others? Do men indeed rife in comfort and fatisfaction, in proportion as they rife in ftation or opulence? On the contrary, do they not rather commonly increase in anxiety and difcontent? Do you indeed think, that those who appear in gilded equipages have always on that account the most joyful hearts? Alas! there cannot be a greater mistake. Could you fee what paffes within, there would appear ungoverned paffions, ungratified defires, and difappointed hopes; and could you enter their houses, you would find weariness and impatience, family-distress, family-disorders, and family quarrels. It has been an old, and it is a most just observation, particularly upon avarice, That the defire ftill grows with the poffeffion. It is the fame with every other finful paffion. Indulgence does not gratify fo much as it inflames them. Let a man climb ever so high on the ladder of ambition, he fees ftill others before him; and emulation and envy are as ftrong, or ftronger, between those who stand on the adjoining fteps at the top as at the bottom. There is one particular remark, that ferves at orice to fhow the vanity of the world, and the finfulness of human nature: The greater variety of the worldly comVOL. I 4 D

forts any perfon poffeffes, he is not the more, but the lefs content, under the want of any one. The more and the longer any perfon hath been accustomed to obfequioufnefs or flattery, he is the more impatient of the leaft contradiction. The more abundant and univerfal refpect that has been paid to any perfon, he is the more deeply wounded by neglect or contempt; as Haman, notwithstanding all his greatnefs, was quite unfatisfied while there remained one poor man in the king's gate who would not do him reverence. Take but one example more. If a man hath great and extenfive poffeffions, and is without children, he is but the more diftreffed to think, that fo noble an estate and family fhould be without an heir, and will often envy the families of the poor, as if it were hard measure, that he who had fo many temporal mercies fhould not have all. Upon the whole, you may fee, that there is a double vanity in the prefent flate. Created comforts are unfatisfying on the one hand, and human defires are infatiable on the other.

(2) Confider the uncertainty of all earthly enjoyments. No circumftance whatever fhould more abate our attachment to the world than its inftability. What happiness can we receive from, or what value fhould we put upon thofe poffeffions, which may be taken from us the next moment? The fpeedy, unexpected, and melancholy change, which often takes place from health to sickness, from wealth to poverty, from honor to contempt, I leave every hearer to meditate upon, from his own knowledge and obfervation of human life; only I cannot help mentioning to you the ftrong language of the holy fcriptures, Prov. xxiii. 5. "Wilt thou fet thine eyes upon that which "is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings, "they fly away as an eagle towards heaven." But the circumftance upon this fubject to which I would particu larly and chiefly point your attention, is, that our possesfions and enjoyments of every kind are under the immedi ate and conftant direction of Divine Providence. Believe it, Chriftians, and remember it, the providence of God reaches to every event that befalls you, however inconfiderable it may feem. It is God that "giveth you

"power to get wealth."It is he by whom you are "dimi“nished and brought low."It is he that "raifeth up one, " and putteth down another."-It is he that makes the "voice of joy and health" to be heard in your dwellings, or that "chaftifes you with pain, and the multitude of your "bones with strong pain." If this is the cafe, what reafon have you to be afraid of giving that love and fervice to any worldly enjoyment that is due to God? Will you "provoke him to jealoufy? are you ftronger than he?" If you fet your affections immoderately on any temporal poffeffion, he can immediately remove it, or turn it into gall and wormwood.

Instead of enumerating the several kinds of prefent enjoyments, I fhall only mention one, the defire of which is commonly very strong, viz. children or pofterity. Now, how eafily can a holy and righteous God take away the defire of your eyes with a ftroke? Nay, in how many inftances is the life of children a heavier trial than their death itself? For I muft fay upon this fubject, as I have faid often in your hearing, that to one that truly fears God, do not know any temporal calamity equal to that of ha ving profane or profligate children,

But perhaps fome attentive hearer will hefitate a little, and fay, I have not obferved this to hold true in experience. Even pious perfons feem generally to bear the irregularities of their children, though fome of them very fcandalous, much better than their deaths. Neither is ⚫ it unfrequent to see them excufing or palliating the worst practices, from the partiality of natural affection.' Perhaps then I muft retract, or alter the affertion, and fay, it is either the heaviest trial, or the most dangerous tempta, tion. But, after all, who can tell what floods of tears are fhed in fecret on this fubject? Parents may be often obliged to conceal their forrow from the world, because they know it would be treated with derifion. I the rather incline to this fuppofition in many cafes; for where indif ference or partiality to the fins of children is fo plain that it cannot be denied, I fhould greatly fufpect the piety of fuch perfons, let the appearance or profeffion be as a ming as it will.