ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world." It forbids all sin, in all its degrees, not only the consummation of it in the act, but the first conception of it in the thoughts and desires: which argues that the Lawgiver was more than a man, having an inspection into the heart, which is only visible to God, and only accountable to him. It teaches us to worship God, the supreme and purest spirit, with the highest esteem, and with purity of affections. It enjoins all relative duties to men in a most perfect manner. What things we would have others to do unto us, supposing ourselves in their circumstances, we are obliged to do to them. This one law of Christ, eminently contains all others that respect society. This is the primitive rule of commerce, and directs our carriage towards all persons with justice and equity, kindness and decency. The Gospel, also, with respect to ourselves, gives a perfect rule to make us holy and blessed. It teaches us the contempt of the world, the valuation of heaven, the restraint of corrupted sense, and the angelical exercise of our affections. In short, it commands the practice of all virtues, and that we should aspire to the most eminent degrees in them. But, especially, it enjoins humility and love to God, the foundation and perfection of all virtues, of which the precepts of philosophy take little notice. Humility, that is, a lively, deep sense, that nothing is properly ours but sin and misery, arises from the consideration of our absolute dependence upon God for our being, all the benefits we enjoy in nature or grace. From hence gratitude springs. It is most reasonable, that

our lives should be a continual expression of obedience, from a noble and free principle of love to God, and be designed for his honour, and that, for all our advantages, temporal and spiritual, we should only glory in him. In this, philosophers were very defective: they considered man with respect to himself, or to other creatures without him; and, accordingly, the product of their precepts, was a certain moral honesty, to do nothing unbecoming the reasonable nature, nor to break the civil peace. But they did not consider duly his relation to the Creator, in "whom he lives, moves, and has his being, from whom proceeds every good and perfect gift." And by neglecting him, all their glittering actions were but a weak counterfeit, a dead resemblance of real virtue. If God be not the principle, the motive, and the end of what we do, there are wanting the essential ingredients of moral goodness. Now, all these precepts shine with their native light, and carry such evidence of their rectitude, that our obedience may come from an ingenuous, filial spirit, satisfied with the reasonableness of our heavenly Father's commands, and not be servile, only performed to the absolute will of a master. And can there be a more convincing proof of the truth of the Christian religion, of its divine descent, than the image of God's holiness so clearly impressed upon it? And further, these precepts are delivered with that plainness, and so proportioned to the capacity of all, and yet with that sovereign authority, that it is reasonable to believe that God himself speaks, and it becomes man to hear with reverence and submission. The Gospel is without the ornaments of

art, yet its sweet facility is tempered with that majesty, that it is a sensible character that divine wisdom composed it.

3. Its Promises.-The promises of the Gospel are so worthy of God, and suitable to the wants and desires of men, that it is perfectly reasonable to assent to their truth and goodness. This will appear by a particular consideration of them.

The promise of pardon to penitent believers. And in this we are to consider the conditions, and the ground of its assurance to us. The conditions are, repentance and faith.

Repentance is a peculiar command and privilege of the Gospel. The law, considered in itself, did not admit of it, nor give the least hope of pardon: for it supposes man in the integrity of nature, and accordingly directs him how to please God and preserve his love, but propounds no means of reconciliation after an offence. There are no seeds of grace to temper its rigour. But the Gospel is the declaration of mercy to the guilty and miserable, upon such terms as God may be capable to give pardon, and man qualified to receive it. It is not more true that God is the judge of the world, and that all men shall appear before his tribunal, than that sin without repentance shall not escape punishment. To forgive the unreformed sinner would stain his purest perfections, the inviolable beauty of his holiness, the incorruptible rectitude of his justice. Such lenity would have a pernicious influence on the corrupt world, by encouraging men to sin without fear, and outrageously to break his laws in confidence of pardon. Therefore, in the evangelical promise, repen

tance and remission of sins are inseparably joined. Repentance is a preparative in order to our receiving divine mercy, and a strong preservative against sin for time to come. The remembrance of those sorrows and fears, the anxieties and indignation against himself, that sin causes in a true penitent, will make him jealous, for the future, of his heart, and circumspect against all temptations that may betray him. Besides, the apprehension of just and eternal vengeance, makes the mercy of God so admirable, the sense of his tender compassion so sweet, that an humble believer cannot forget or neglect it. The forgiveness of sin in this way, is not only an engagement, but an infallible cause, of fearing to offend a God so great and good.

And faith is a qualification as requisite for the obtaining pardon; that is, a cordial, entire receiving Jesus Christ, as he is presented to us in the Gospel: to resign our minds to his doctrines as our prophet, to have reliance on his sacrifice and mediation as our priest; to yield universal, cheerful, and constant obedience to him as our king. him as our king. And how congruous is it that all who receive so invaluable a benefit as forgiveness of sin, should thus honour him who procures it?

And the Gospel affords the strongest assurance that God is most willing to pardon humble and contrite sinners. This is necessary for the relief and ease of true penitents. For when the enlightened conscience reflects upon the number and enormity of its sins, and presumption in committing them, it is ready to be swallowed up with despair of recovering the lost favour of God. It cannot devise any means how to appease his incensed majesty, and satisfy

violated justice: how a rebel should become his son; how one condemned to everlasting punishment, should be restored to the unfading inheritance of life. The case is most intricate and hopeless. Now the gospel propounds means of universal sovereign efficacy to reconcile God and us; the most precious blood of his Son offered up a sacrifice to expiate sin. This sprinkles all nations, and in all ages retains an undecaying virtue. This affords solid and everlasting comfort to all sensible returning sinners.

The sending of the Holy Spirit of God to renew us according to his image, and to confirm us against temptations in this mortal life, is another promise of the Gospel, and most requisite to make us capable to serve and enjoy him. A happy temper of nature, the precepts of philosophy, virtuous examples, the severity of human laws, are not powerful enough to regenerate a man, and transform him into a new creature. They may restrain the exorbitances of carnal appetites, but cannot thoroughly change the mind and affections. Were there any vital spark within, any seed of holiness in man's corrupted nature, such assistance might cherish it; but he is dead to the truly spiritual life, though not to the merely moral; and no less than an omnipotent efficacy can produce a new spring of life, a divine nature, the principle of willing obedience to God. And after conversion, while in the state of trial here, the best are subject to innumerable surprises by their own frailty, and exposed to new dangers every hour, by temptations that foment and heighten the relics of sin in them, so that, without supernatural assistance, they would be quite discouraged and foiled by the enemies that