We have the Scriptures open to us; are ad monished, and incited to the Practice of our Duty by weekly Exhortations; and difown all little Arts, fo ufual in other Churches, of procuring Salvation without a strict and real Obedience.

There remains then to us only rhe Plea of Infirmity, whereby to excufe our Sins, and not wholly to defpair of the Divine Mercy. This fuppofeth our fincere Endeavours of performing our Duty, and a settled Course of Vertue and Piety; in which Course we may be overtaken with Temptations, and being unawares infnared by them, may be betrayed into Sin, while the Soul is clouded with a Paffion, and by voilent impreffions from the Body, or outward Objects, hath fcarce the Liberty of directing her Thoughts aright. But if when this Tempeft is allayed, this Cloud removed; when the Mind regains its perfect Freedom, and enters into a ferious thought of its Condition, it entertains any Complacency with the Sin performed, or is willing to permit a continuance of it; this is no longer a Sin of Infirmity, but of deliberate and refolved Choice; much more when any Man refolves wholly to ftand out against the Divine Command, and Convictions of his own Confcience, and to proceed in his Unrepentance, although but for a certain time. This is a Sin of fo heinous a Nature, that no Pardon is promised to it under the Gospel,

nor

nor indeed can it confift with the Justice and Holiness of God to give it

And then, even for Sins of Infirmity, it is our conftant Duty to watch over them to prevent them, and if poffible at laft wholly to remove them. Otherwife, if the hopes of obtaining Pardon for them, betrays us into a neglect, or perhaps a voluntary Admiffion of them, they lofe their Plea of Infirmity, and become Sins of Presumption; Sins of a much deeper Contagion. To cure therefore and prevent even those Sins, which alone can take place in a true and real Chriftian, we must endeavour by an affiduous diligence and circumfpect Carriage to form Habits of Vertue and Piety.

For this end the Obfervation of Lent was wifely instituted by the Church; wherein by a more than ordinary vigilance over our Actions, by frequent Meditation, Prayer and other pious Exercises; and if it were neceffary, by Bodily Aufterities, and Mortifications alfo, we might feek Remedies to the Diseases of our Soul; and begin to form Habits of Holiness and Sobriety, which fhould not expire with the Solemnity of the holy Seafon, but be continued and improved through the whole Year, and even the whole Course of our Lives.

If then we be indeed convinced that Repentance is a neceffary Duty, that it ought to be undertaken upon the firft Conviction, and that to deferr it after That, is an unpardona

ble

ble Obduration; let us from this Moment refolve to do it: Let us confirm our Resolutions by a more than ordinary Vigilance and Attention in this Holy Seafon; and fo by making these pious Refolutions become Habits, continue the happy Effects of them to our Lives end. So fhall we not fail of that infinite Reward, which is annexed to true Repentance, and the Consequent of it, unfeigned Obedience: To which Reward God of his infinite Mercy bring us all, for the Sake and Merits of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Chrift.

SERMON

257

SERMON X.

Preach'd March 16, 16 at Lambeth Chapel.

Luke XIII. S.

Except ye repent, ye shall all likewife perifb.

I

T is an ancient and most prudent Conftitution of the Church, to fet apart folemn Times for the Exercife of Repentance, and a more serious Application to the duties of Religion, founded upon the Example of our Lord himself, who though he committed no Sins whereof to repent; yet, before he entred upon his Office, prepared himself for the execution of it, by an extraordinary abstinence for forty Days together; and continu ed by the Church in all Ages; although the remiffness and degeneracy of latter Times hath almost defeated the use of it. The Defign of it was, that Men, who are always willing to put off their Repentance from Day to Day, and contriving Reafons of their De VOL. I

S

lay,

lay, being loth to fix the Time of an unwelcom Duty, might be obliged by the Confti. tution of the Church, by the Example of their Fellow-Chriftians, and by the Admonition of their Guides to enter upon it at this Time to apply themselves in a particular Manner to fearch their Confciences, enquire into the Condition of their Souls, difcover their Difeases, and seek the Remedies of them; by confeffing their Sins to God, acknowledging the Guilt of them, begging Pardon of God who is offended by them; removing them from the Soul, introducing contrary habits of Piety and Religion; taming the unruly Paffi ons of the Body, by a ferious Attention to the Commands of God, to his Precepts, to his Promises, and his Threats, to the Deformity and unhappy Confequences of Sin; by inuring the Mind to Acts of Religion and Devotion, by a conftant Meditation, both of the Duty prescribed and the Arguments enforcing it; and if all this be not fufficient to check and over-rule the violent Motions of the Body, to deprefs them by Abstinence and Fafting; in a Word, to fubdue the Body to the Government of the Soul, and the Soul to the Obedience of God.

We are indeed always obliged to watch over our Actions, to repent of our Sins as foon as we discover them, and to strive against them; yet it will be necessary to fix fome certain Times, wherein a more fevere Examination is to be made, the State of the

Soul