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ends, as a precious, none-fuch, paffing opportu nity; every filing of it is to be gathered up as gold fparkling. Hence Paul exhorts to redeem the time, because the days are evil, Eph. v. 16.

USE 2. of Reproof to several forts of perfons.

1. To those who look on the business of praifing and honouring God in the world as a burden. In itself it is the mercy of life; but they treat it as the plague of life. They are, as Doeg, detained before the Lord; and any holy exercise is a wearinefs to them; as was the cafe with Ifrael, Amos viii. 5. When will the new moon be gone, that we may fell corn? and the Sabbath, that we may fet forth wheat? The Lord takes notice of this temper of fpirit, Mal. i. 13. Ye faid alfo, Behold, what a weariness is it, and ye have fnuffed at it, faith the Lord of hofts. O how would ye take with heaven? but be sure that ye will never get there in that cafe, as not being made meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the faints in light, Col. i. 12. Ye will be eafed of that burden, but for a heavier one, Rev. xvi. ult.

2. To thofe who look on it as none of their bu finefs, whoever elfe be concerned in it. They make no profeffion of living to the honour of God, and their practice is conform. This speaks you neither to look on God as your Mafler, nor yet as your Father, Mal. i. 6. And if so, doubtless ye cannot look for his reward; nor for the éternal inheritance of his children: where then will lie the gain of this liberty which you take to yourselves?

3. To those who spend their life without confideration of the chief bufinefs of life.

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Spend their years as a tale that is told, Pfal. xc. 9. O how many are dreaming away a lifetime, out of which they are not like to awake till death awake them! They can confider any thing but their foul's ftate; but the thought of that they cannot dwell on. They that cannot confider the great business of life, will certainly lofe the opportunity of that business, and it will fit to them in the end: Prov. xx. 4. The flaggard will not plow by reafon of the cold; therefore shall he beg in harveft, and have nothing.

4. To those who do delay the bufinefs of honouring God, till they fhall be near death. Many fuch off-putters are there, who can never find the time to begin their work, though they do not want thoughts of it; as was the cafe with Felix, Acts xxiv. 25. who faid to Paul, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient feafon, I will call for thee. When they are young, they put off till they be old; then, till they be going to die; when fickness takes them, they put off ftill in hopes of recovery; when they are paft hopes, they are not capable for it; and fo the foul is loft. Mean while, all they are concerned for at beft, is but their own safety, not God's honour; and being regardless of this latter, no wonder they fall fhort of the former.

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5. lafly, To thofe whofe life is a life of difhenouring God, by fecret and open wickednefs and untenderness. And this feems to be the general cafe of this generation, by which we appear to be a generation of God's wrath: Micah vii. 2. 4. The good man is perifhed out of the earth and there is none upright among men they all lie in wait for blood they hunt every man his brother

with a net. The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn-hedge: the day of thy watchmen, and thy vifitation cometh; now shall be their perplexity. Corruption of life and manners is become univerfal, fo that people are become shameless in their fin, and proof against conviction from the word, being fo hardened under the foftening means of grace, that the cafe is grown hopeless; all which cannot mifs foon or late to bring down fome rousing stroke, Jer. vi. 15. Were they afhamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all aßamed, neither could they blush: therefore they hall fall among them that fall: at the time that I vifit them, they shall be caft down, faith the Lord.

USE 3. of Exhortation. Make it the business of your life to live to the honour of God. Queft. How fhall we do that?

Anf. 1. Honour him by faith: Rom. iv. 20. Abraham ftaggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was ftrong in faith, giving glory to God. Faith gives God the honour of all his glorious perfections as manifefted in the word, and without faith there is no acceptable honouring of him. Therefore the Chriftian life is a life of faith, Gal. ii. 20. And honour him,

ift, By believing on his Son for falvation, receiving and refting on him as your Saviour, to fave you from fin and wrath : 1 John iii. 23. This is his commandment, that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ. If ye honour not God this way, ye honour him not at all, John V. 23. God has fent his Son in the character of Saviour of the world, 1 John iv. 14. put your cafe in his hand, that ye may be faved from your

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fin, and fanctified by him, and faved from wrath through him. If ye live in your fins, and will not be healed; if ye do not believe him able and willing to fave you, ye difhonour God egregiously in a most tender point: 1 John v. 10. 11. He that believeth not God, hath made him a lyar, because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life and this life is in his Son.

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2dly, By trufting God in Chrift in all times and cafes: I. xxvi. 4. Truft ye in the Lord for ever. The established way of communication with heaven, is by trust in God and faith is productive of hope, which is the anchor of the foul, keeping the foul safe and spiritually at reft, in all storms public or private, Pfal. xxxvii. 7. Trufting in the creature, is a putting it in God's place; and hence bearing fuch a weight, it bows under it, and fails. But God is honoured by trusting him.

3dly, By believing his word in all the parts of it. Hence is that exhortation of Jehoshaphat's, 2 Chron. xx. 20.-Believe in the Lord your God, fo fhall you be established; believe his prophets, fo Shall ye profper. God is to be honoured by faith's acting on every part of the word; on the commands, believing the divine authority, equity, and goodness of them, as a transcript of the divine nature, Pfal. cxix. 128.; on the promises, believing the certain accomplishment of them, however unlikely, Rom. iv. 20. 21.; on the threatenings, believing the juftice and truth of them, xxxix. ult. and Ixvi. 2.

2. Honour him by the practice of holiness: 1 Pet. ii. 9. Ye are a chofen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar peoples that ye should

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hew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. To lead a holy tender life, is the way to honour God, conforming to him, and labouring to be like him in all converfation, 1 Pet. i. 15. 16. If ye be not Pet.in uniform and univerfal in your obedience, that part ye are deficient in, may bring a blot on all the reft, as Judas's covetoufnefs and treachery wiped out all his good deeds. And if ye would live to the honour of God, I would recommend to you particularly,

Ift, Diligent and reverent worshipping of God: Matth. iv. 1o. Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only fhalt thou ferve. Pfal. lxxxix. 7. God is greatly to be feared in the affembly of the faints and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him. Worship him in your families, morning and evening; worship him in fecret by yourfelyes; worship him in the public affemblies; fet up for his honour in the world; make confcience of joining therein for the honour of God. And be reverent in the frame of your heart, and in your outward gefture, as knowing that he is a great God with whom ye have to do: and there can be no reverence in their hearts, who behave irreverently.

2dly, Be nice and exact in point of juftice in your dealings; fhaking your hands of all gain of unrighteoufnefs, as in the fight of a holy juft God: I. xxxiii. 15. 16. He that walketh righteously, and Speaketh uprightly, he that defpifeth the gain of oppreffions, that Shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and fhutteth his eyes from feeing evil he Shall dwell on high, &c. That baseness of spirit, difpofing

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