as the shining light, which shineth more and more unto the perfect day. But the way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not whereat they stumble. Some lust, some worldly interest or other, makes their minds purblind at the best, or tinges them with false colours, like a distempered eye. For men are apt to think as they would have; and this makes them not only unwilling, but afraid to think closely and impartially; and ready to give a false turn even to the holy scriptures themselves; and to entertain unworthy notions of God and religion, such as may best suit with their own corrupt inclinations, and excuse and make them easy in their evil courses; and when they have thus miserably deceived themselves, make them very loath too to be set right, and better informed. And what but the grossest spiritual ignorance can be the consequence of this? it makes them object, dispute, and wrangle blindfold, not knowing what they say, or whereof they affirm or deny; but finding fault, at all adventures, with what they neither do, nor, in the condition they are at present, can understand. For, as St. Paul says, 1 Cor. ii. 14, 15, the natural or carnal man, as it is in a parallel place, Rom. viii. 5-8, receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual discerneth all things. So that the most proper and natural means, in order to our improving in true Christian knowledge, is sincerity of Christian obedience. For religion, St. Paul says, is our reasonable service, and the scripture frequently styles it our wisdom, our greatest ? Prov. iv. 18, 19.

excellency and perfection; as it must needs be, since it is recommended to our choice before all things, by the wisdom of God himself.

And therefore the more seriously and affectionately we study it, and the more careful we are to make it the great rule of our lives, the more we refine and perfect our natures, brighten and invigorate all our faculties, and free our souls from that weight and pressure of matter which, as the Wise Man long since observed, extremely hinders their operations, and fastens them down to the earth, and blinds them with the gross steams and fogs of sensuality.

We gain a holy sagacity thereby, an exactness of judgment in spiritual things; our way of reasoning grows more strong and just, and we become more capable of discerning truth from falsehood and error, and lie less open to the force of sophistry and vain deceit. And when our minds are thus enlightened, and our reason again enthroned, and restored to her just empire, we must needs have clearer apprehensions of divine and heavenly things, than when our foolish heart was darkened, as St. Paul expresses it, and even blinded by the god of this world. And therefore those who sincerely devote themselves to the study and practice of religion are called children of light and of the day, and those whose God is their belly, who mind earthly things, and are slaves to their vices and justs, are called children of the night and of darkAnd their minds are so utterly void of judg ment, so stupidly dull and undiscerning, that even the greatest treasures of divine wisdom and knowP Rom. i. 21. q 2 Cor. iv. 4.

ness.

ledge are looked upon as foolishness by them, as the same apostle acquaints us in the place we mentioned before; and the life of the most virtuous and holy men is esteemed as madness by those poor, unhappy wretches, who give themselves over to lasciviousness, and upon whom, as the Wise Man expresses it, the light of righteousness hath not shined, neither hath the sun of righteousness arisen upon them. So that things of so great excellency as the theories of religion are far above the reach of such earthly-minded creatures as are always groveling on the ground, and looking downwards, and wallowing in mire and filth, and conversant with nothing but the meanest and most contemptible objects: which must needs destroy that clearness and quickness of apprehension which is necessary to our having right notions in things of so exalted a nature, and so abstracted from sense, as those are which our blessed Lord and his apostles have taught us to believe in order to our salvation.

Whereas the good Christian, that devoutly and attentively reads and meditates upon the holy scriptures, heedfully observes the amazing tracts of Providence he meets with there, those particularly that relate to the coming of the great Messias, Jesus Christ, and the redemption of the world by his sufferings and death; how the greatest turns in all ages, from the very beginning of the world till his coming, were managed with that view, and in order to that most glorious design, and were admirably subservient to it; and how, when the fulness of time was come, and this great Messias, the eternal Son of God, took on him our nature and lived amongst us, r Wisdom v. 4. 6.

he led a most holy life, and wrought innumerable miracles of mercy, and taught the world a most excellent religion; and then set a most perfect example of suffering virtue, and laid down his most innocent life in shame and torment to save a world of sinners from eternal misery: the good Christian that is conversant in the contemplation of these stupendous things, and duly and often weighs and ponders them in his mind, what wonders of the divine power and wisdom, goodness and truth, justice and mercy, will he thereby discover! how supremely excellent, glorious, and great, will the holy, blessed God then appear to him! how impossible will it be for such a one to entertain unworthy thoughts of him! how naturally will he adore and magnify and love, and make it his great endeavour to imitate, as far as a poor, frail, sinful creature can pretend to, such charming excellencies! And the more he contemplates and loves and imitates, and the nearer he resembles this his heavenly Father, the clearer and quicker sense will he still have of that infinitely transcendent glory and lustre, in which all possible perfections do shine in him.

And when a man has attained to such true and honourable notions of God, and is thus affected towards him, he cannot be to seek what duty and service to pay to him, nor want sufficient motives to do it heartily and with all his power. He knows that nothing can be pleasing to him but what is agreeable to his nature and perfections, and that without holiness no man can be in favour with a holy God: and adding purity of life to a sound orthodox belief, shewing the sincerity of his faith by his works, as St. James says, and proceeding from

right and worthy notions of God and religion to a suitable practice, and by such suitable religious practice still adding day by day new life and vigour, and firmness and stability to his faith, his worship will be most acceptable, his obedience sincere and uniform and lasting, and he will go on from one degree of knowledge and of virtue to another, till God shall please to call him to receive his reward in glory.

This is the first reason why the sincere practice of the duties of a Christian is the surest guard and best preservative of his faith; viz. because it brightens our minds, and clears up our understandings, and renders us more capable of forming true notions of God and religion; and apprehending aright what he has been pleased to reveal to us in the holy scriptures, by keeping our minds free from the partiality and false bias, and dangerous prepossessions of sensuality and a course of vice.

A second reason of this is, because the serious study and practice of religion in a settled, uniform way of piety and virtue, does of all things give us the truest notion of ourselves; the want of which is of the last ill consequence in matters of religion and faith and most, if not all, those bold heresies, and false doctrines, and turbulent, dividing principles and practices, which have for so many ages vexed and disturbed the peace and tranquillity of the church, have sprung from men's overweening opinion of themselves, their parts and abilities, and intellectual endowments, and leaning too much to the strength and clearness of their own understandings.

Thus the Gnostics, those first and worst of heretics, and from whom a numerous spawn proceeded,