upon us to devote ourselves wholly unto the service of the living God, and to the obedience of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; as knowing that, unless we do it, we shall not only be deprived of this transcendent happiness, but condemned, too, to the greatest misery that our natures can possibly be capable of; whereas, on the other side, if we do it, we shall as certainly not only be freed from that transcendent misery, but be instated also in the greatest happiness that our souls can possibly be invested with. And, therefore, I may conclude this with the words of the apostle, "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord 4."

Thus I have shewn now what reasons you and I, who profess ourselves to be Christians, have to be eminent for good works, so as to excel all of other religions in true piety and virtue; in that we have clearer discoveries of God's will and our own duty, a more perfect example and pattern how to do it, promises of greater assistance from God himself to do it, and stronger assurances not only of acceptance of what we do in this life, but likewise of an eternal recompence of reward in the life to come. And need I now use any more arguments to persuade you to endeavour at least to be eminent in all true grace and virtue? Will it not be superfluous after so many reasons as have been produced for it? Verily, one would think it would be so; and I desire to hope the best of you all, and that you will not content yourselves with the bare profession of that excellent and only true religion which you are of, nor yet with the practice of some few particular duties required in it; but that you will now use the utmost of your power and skill to be such as your religion commands you should be, even far exceeding men of other persuasions; that every one may see what religion you are of, by your being and living better

41 Cor. xv. 58.

than other men. And O that this might be the happy issue of this discourse, and of your coming hither at this time; even that from this day forward you would all strive and contend about nothing else but which should live the most like Christians, and which should most excel others in an universal obedience both to the law and gospel; that all here present might for the future shine as so many lights in the world! And let me tell you, this would be the way to shame both Jews and infidels into the embracement of the Christian religion. This would be the way, too, to convince papists, heretics, and schismatics, of their errors, when they shall see you that are sound in the faith outstripping and excelling them in your lives and conversation. All the arguments in the world would not prevail so much upon them as this one: and, therefore, if you have any love either for your religion or your own souls, halt no longer between two opinions; but if you be Christians, manifest yourselves to be so by your eminency in good works, excelling all others in your love to God's person, in your obedience to his precepts, in your fear of his threatenings, in your trusting on his promises, in your faith in his Son, in your loyalty to your sovereign, in your patience under your sufferings, in your contempt of the world, in your faithfulness to your friends, in your love to your enemies, in your constancy in praying, in your seriousness in hearing, in your frequenting the Sacrament, in your justice in your dealings, in your charity to the poor, in your lowliness in your own eyes, and in all other whether Christian graces or moral virtues whatsoever: for this is that which Christ expects and commands from you all, saying, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

SERMON XXIII.

THE WISDOM OF BEING HOLY.

PSALM CXi. 10.

"A good understanding have all they that do his commandments."

As none can know God and not fear him, so neither can any one fear God aright, but he must needs endeavour at least sincerely to obey him; for he whose heart is possessed with such a sense of God's greatness, power, and glory, as makes him stand in awe and fear of him, will not dare to do any thing wilfully which he knows will offend him, nor yet to omit any thing which he thinks will be pleasing and acceptable unto him. Hence the fear of the Lord in Scripture is usually put for the whole duty of man, for holiness or piety in general, or for the conformity of our wills and actions unto the laws and commands of God; because it is impossible that any one should fear God, and yet not serve him with a perfect heart and a willing mind.

In this sense, therefore, it is, that the fear of the Lord is to be understood in this place, where the Psalmist saith, that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;" that is, a total submission of our wills to God's, and a sincere endeavour to please and obey him in all things, is the beginning of wisdom: so that a man doth not so much as begin to be wise, and, by consequence, is a very fool, until his mind be so

enlightened, his will rectified, and his whole man so sanctified throughout, that he devotes himself wholly to the service and honour of Almighty God; for till then he remains a mere natural, no better than he came into the world, if not much worse, strangely distempered in his brain, distracted in his mind, and corrupt in all the faculties of his soul, and, therefore, he cannot but be very disorderly in his life and conversation. And hence it is that sinful men, that is, men still in their natural and sinful estate, are guilty of so many egregious follies as commonly they are, not knowing to do any thing aright but sin; losing heaven to gain earth, and selling their souls to gratify their senses; admiring nothing so much as gilded dirt, and preferring it before the chiefest good; gaping after popular air, and choosing it rather than eternal glory; kicking against the pricks, and rebelling against Majesty and Omnipotence itself; standing continually upon the very brink of the bottomless pit, and yet thinking themselves secure; and yet, for all this, conceiting themselves to be wise and prudent, noble and gallant persons, as natural fools and madmen usually do; which, together with many such like ridiculous and foolish acts, so frequently committed by the sons of men, are both the clear symptoms, and ordinary products, of distempered brains: and, therefore, it is no wonder that they are so common amongst us, most men being still beside themselves, yea, all who do not truly fear God; for all such have not yet attained to the first beginning, not to the lowest degree, of wisdom, and so still remain in their natural folly and distraction, as the Psalmist here signifies to us, saying, that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

But now, when a man returns to God, then he begins to come to himself, so as to become a wise, prudent, and understanding person; yea, a man of good understanding, as is here in the next place suggested to us: "A good understanding," saith he, "have all they that do his commandments."

For the opening of which words we must, first, consider what is here meant by "a good understanding:" for which we must know that every man naturally hath an understanding, without which he could not be man: for the understanding is the seat and fountain of all that reason and knowledge whereby men are distinguished from brute beasts; this being that faculty of the soul whereby alone we excel mere sensitive creatures, by being capable of apprehending and discerning betwixt truth and falsehood, good and evil, which other creatures cannot do. But now by nature every man's understanding is very bad and corrupt, that being as much depraved in its apprehensions, as the will is in its affections; so that it ordinarily mistaketh truth for falsehood, and falsehood for truth; good for evil, and evil for good; by which means it comes to pass, that men may be very subtle and cunning, and yet not wise and prudent; or, as the prophet saith, "They are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge." And I fear there are many such amongst ourselves, who are very cunning and ingenious at driving on a bargain, very witty and jocular at censuring and backbiting others, very nimble and ready at over-reaching their neighbour, that can commit any sin as dexterously and artificially as if they had been bred up to it all their lifetime, as really they were; whereas, set them about any thing that is truly good, as to repent of their sins, meditate upon God, examine their own hearts, or the like; and they know no more how to do it, than as if they had never heard of any such thing before; which plainly shews that, though they have an understanding, it is but a bad one in contradistinction to which bad understanding which they have that do not fear God, the Psalmist here saith, "There is a good understanding in them that do his commandments." They have not only an understanding as well as others, but it is a good one; good, not so much in respect of the act, as

very

1 Jer. iv. 22.