venge, curfing and bitterness, in confequence of your refufal to enter into a friendship with Jefus Chrift. Confider how hard and cutting it is now to be hated, and have the ill will of others, and find yourself friendlefs when in calamity and diftrefs, and you stand in need of help; and let this teach you a little what you muft feel if you ever come to the cafe just described. And as you would avoid all this evil, of which we can have but a faint idea now, be perfuaded to attend to the moft kind offer which Chrift makes to you. O run, fly into his arms, which are now stretched out to you, and he will embrace you forever. Are you in the utmost danger of finking into hell, his almighty, everlasting arms fhall be underneath you, to hold you up, and raise you to the higheft heavens. Are you moft miferable and wretched, run to Chrift, and he will deliver you out of all trouble, and effectually fecure you from all evil; yea, he will turn evil into good, and bring the greatest good to you out of the greatest calamity and evil. He is, in the most eminent sense, the friend and brother who was born for adverfity. He is able and ready to help in the moft adverfe, evil case, where no other friend can help and deliver. This is his peculiar work, and which is his glory." He is anointed to preach the gofpel to the poor, to bind up the broken hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of fight to the blind; to fet at liberty thofe that are bruifed, to comfort all that mourn, to give unto them beauty for afhes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the fpirit of heaviness.

O, how much do you want fuch a friend as this! How miferable muft you be without him! What a comfort will fuch a friend be in the various calamities in this life! His name is as a ftrong tower: the righteous, his true friends, run into it, and are fafe. How much will you want fuch a friend, when you come to die! one who has conquered death, and taken away his fting, and turned him into a friend to his people: and

over fuch the fecond death fhall have no power. What have you to object against entering into this friendship without delay? Have you any objections against Christ, as not being fuch an one as you want and defire? O, let not one of you fay fo! How fhall we bear to have our dearest and moft excellent friend thus spoken againft, and fet at nought! O ye friends of Chrift, do not your hearts bleed when your beft beloved friend is thus contemned and wounded! And do you not pity these poor, deluded creatures, who are thus abufing the kindest friend of finners, to their own eternal ruin! Surely this is the language of your hearts, O finners! You have a thousand objections against him. He has in your eyes no form nor comelinefs, no beauty, that you fhould defire him; therefore he is defpifed and rejected by you.

Or do you object against yourselves, as too mean, guilty and unworthy to be received and loved by fuch a friend, fo that it would be prefumption in you to think of entering into fuch a near union and friendship with him? This objection is altogether groundless: was it not fo, he never would have admitted one of the fallen race into this happy, high and noble friendship; for this objection, if it were one, lies with infinite weight and ftrength against them all. Do you find that Chrift has any where made this objection against any, in his word? Surely no! fo far from this, that he has done and faid every thing he poffibly could, to fhew that this is not the leaft objection with him, and never did, nor ever will, make it against the most vile, guilty wretch among mankind, who is willing to be his friend, and chooses him for his friend and redeemer. Your guilt, vilenefs and mifery will be many ways an advantage to this peculiar friendship, as has been fhewn ; and will be fo far from being a difhonour to this glorious Friend of finners, though he take you into the nearest and dearest relation and friendship with himself, that it will turn greatly to his honour and glory. Let this

then

then rather be an argument with you to give yourselves up to him without delay, as your almighty, wonderful, excellent friend.

IV. Let the profeffed friends of Jefus Chrift be hence led seriously to confider their diftinguishing privileges, and high and peculiar obligations. Your profeffion and calling is a holy, high and heavenly one indeed. How amazingly dreadful to be found at last, after all your profeffion and hopes, thofe to whom Chrift will fay, "I never knew you: Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity!" O give all diligence to make your calling and election fure. Cleave to this infinitely excellent and glorious friend with your whole hearts, and in all your ways. O love him, and he will love you; he will manifeft himself unto you, in all the wonders of his love and grace; he will come unto you, and take up his abode with you. Shall the friends of Chrift fuffer themselves to get at a diftance from him, and let their hearts fink down into a great degree of indiffe rence and coldness towards him! Shall they cleave and bow down to fome other friend, which courts their affections! Shall they turn away from him, and seek to make friendship with this world, which is enmity against Christ? If there are any fuch, they may with great propriety be addreffed in the words of Abfalom to Hufhai: "Is this thy kindness to thy friend! Why wenteft thou not with thy friend?" What fault have you found in him, that you treat him fo? Are you not, in a fenfe, betraying him into the hands of his enemies? Shall he be thus wounded in the house of his profeffed friends!

Oh hearken to his fweet and charming voice, while he calls to you in fuch melting language as this: "Look unto me, my spouse, from the lion's dens, from the mountains of the leopards. Return unto me, for I am married unto you. Hearken, O daughter, and incline thine ear; forget alfo thine own people, and thy father's houfe; fo fhall the king greatly defire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord, and worship thou him." O, if

you

have a spark of true love and friendship for him, how can you forbear faying, and refolving with your whole heart, "I will go and return to my firft husband, for then it was better with me than now." Take with you words, and turn to the Lord, your Friend and Redeemer fay unto him, "Take away all our iniquity, and receive us gracioufly into thy favour, and the moft kind embraces of thy love: fo will we render thee our whole fouls in the moft ardent love, gratitude and praife." He will then heal your backflidings, and love you freely.

Let the dear friends of Chrift hold fast their profeffion without wavering, and follow on to know the Lord. Cleave to him, let it coft you what it will; and hold yourselves in readiness to part with all, even your own lives, for him. If ye fuffer in his cause, as his friends and followers, happy are ye. Bleffed are ye when men fhall revile you, and perfecute you, and fay all manner of evil against you falfely, for his fake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven. If there be therefore any confolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, fulfil ye my joy, that ye be like minded, having the fame love to Chrift and to one another. If ye be indeed rifen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Chrift fitteth at the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth: and when Chrift, the chief fhepherd and your friend, fhall appear, you thall appear with him in glory; and ye fhall receive a crown of everlafting glory, and reign with him in his kingdom forever. AMEN.

SERMON

Sermon IX.

WRITTEN IN THE YEAR 1798.

Phil. ii. 12, 13. Work out your own falvation with fear and trembling for it is God who worketh in you, both to will and to do, of his good pleasure.

Ipafage of holy fcripture with a view to promote the T is propofed to explain, illuftrate and improve this knowledge and practice of thofe exercises and duties in which real Chriftianity confifts, and by which it is dif tinguished from all counterfeits.

In order to this, the following things must be attended to, and with care diftinctly examined.

I. What is meant by Chriftians working out their own falvation, and in what this work confifts.

II. What is meant by doing this with fear and trembling.

III. What is to be understood by God's working in them, both to will and to do, of his good pleasure.

IV. Wherein, and in what refpects, this affords a reason and motive to enforce the foregoing exhortation, expreffed by the particle For, by which the fentence is introduced: For it is God who worketh in you, &c.

V. Improve the fubject to practical purposes.

I. We are to confider and fhew what is intended and implied in Chriftians working out their own falvation. For it must be observed, and kept in mind, while attending to this fubject, that the Apostle is here, and in the whole of this epiftle, addreffing none but those whom he confiders to be real Chriftians, "faints in Chrift Jefus ;" [chap. i. verfe 1 ;] in whom God had begun a good work, which he would perform until the day of Jefus Chrift; [v. 6;] who not only believed on

Christ,