him, purifieth himself, even as he is pure. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. Whosoever abideth in him, sinneth not: whosoever sinneth, hath not seen him, neither known him.-He that doth righteousness, is righteous, even as he is righteous: he that committeth sin is of the devil. Chap. v. 18. We know that whosoever is born of God, sinneth not, but he that is begotten of God, keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. John xv. 14. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. James ii. 10. Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. 1 Cor. vi. 9. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, &c. shall inherit the kingdom of God. Gal. v. 19, 20. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Which is as much as to say,

be one of them that a man has not respect unto, he will be put to shame another day. If a man lives in one evil way, he is not subject to God's authority; but then he lives in rebellion: and that will take off all his pleas, and at once cut off all his pretences; and he will be condemned in the day of judgment-One way of sin is exception enough against the inan's salvation. Though the sin that he lives in be but small: such persons will not be guilty of perjury, stealing, drunkenness, fornication; they look upon them to be heinous things, and they are afraid of them; but they do not much matter it, if they oppress a little in a bargain, if they commend a thing too much when they are about to sell it, if they break a promise, if they spend the Sabbath unprofitably, if they neglect secret prayer, if they talk rudely and reproach others; they think these are but small things: if they can keep clear of great transgression, they hope that God will not insist upon small things. But indeed all the commands of God are established by divine authority: a small shot may kill a man, as well as a cannon-bullet: a small leak may sink a ship. If a man lives in small sins, that shews he has no love to God, no sincere care to please and honour God. Little sins are of a damning nature, as well as great: if they do not deserve so much punishment as greater, yet they do deserve damnation. There is a contempt of God in all sins; Matth. v. 19. He that shall break one of the least of these commands, and shall_teach men so, shall be called the least in the kingdom of God." Prov. xix. 16. He that keepeth the commandment, keepeth bis own soul; but he that despiseth his way, shall die. If a man says, this is a great command, and so lays weight on it, and another is a little Commandment, and so does not regard it, but will allow himself to break he is in a perishing condition." Stoddard's Way to know Sincerity and pocrisy.

they that do any sort of wickedness. Job xxxi. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Is not destruction to the wicked? and a strange punishment to the workers of iniquity? Doth not ke see my ways, and count all my steps? Let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know mine integrity. If my step hath turned out of the way, and mine heart walked after mine eyes, and if any blot hath cleaved to my hands, &c. Ezek. xxxiii. 15. If ye walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity, he shall surely live.

If one member only be corrupt, and we do not cut it off, it will carry the whole body to hell, Matth. v. 29, 30. Saul was commanded to slay all God's enemies, the Amalekites; and he slew all but Agag, and the saving him alive proved his ruin. Caleb and Joshua entered into God's promised rest, because they wholly followed the Lord, Numb. xiv. 24. xxxii. 11, 12. Deut. i. 36. Josh. xiv. 6, 8, 9, 14. Naaman's hypocrisy appeared in that, however he seemed to be greatly affected with gratitude to God for healing his leprosy, and engaged to serve him; yet in one thing he desired to be excused. And Herod, though he feared John, and observed him, and heard him gladly, and did many things; yet was condemned, in that in one thing he would not hearken to him, even in parting with his beloved Herodias. So that it is necessary that men should part with their dearest iniquities, which are as their right hand and right eyes, sins that most easily beset them, and which they are most exposed to by their natural inclinations, evil customs, or particular circumstances, as well as others. As Joseph would not make known himself to his brethren, who had sold him, until Benjamin the beloved child of the family, that was most hardly parted with, was delivered up; no more will Christ reveal his love to us, until we part with our dearest lusts, and until we are brought to comply with the most difficult duties, and those that we have the greatest aver

sion to.

And it is of importance, that it should be observed, that in order to a man's being truly said to be universally obedient, his obedience must not only consist in negatives, or in universally avoiding wicked practices, consisting in sins of commission; but he must also be universal in the positives of religion. Sins of omission are as much breaches of God's commands, as sins of commission. Christ, in Matthew xxv.

represents those on the left hand, as being condemned and cursed to everlasting fire, for sins of omission, I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat, &c. A man therefore cannot be said to be universally obedient, and of a Christian conversation, only because he is no thief, nor oppressor, nor fraudulent person, nor drunkard, nor tavern-haunter, nor whoremaster, nor rioter, nor night-walker, nor unclean, nor profane in his language, nor slanderer, nor liar, nor furious, nor malicious, nor reviler: he is falsely said to be of a conversation that becomes the gospel, who goes thus far and no farther; but in order to this, it is necessary that he should also be of a serious, religious, devout, humble, meek, forgiving, peaceful, respectful, condescending, benevolent, merciful, charitable and beneficent walk and conversation.Without such things as these, he does not obey the laws of Christ, and laws that he and his apostles did abundantly insist on, as of greatest importance and necessity.

2. In order to men's being true Christians, it is necessary that they prosecute the business of religion, and the service of God with great earnestness and diligence, as the work which they devote themselves to, and make the main business of their lives. All Christ's peculiar people, not only do good works, but are zealous of good works, Tit. ii. 14. No man can do the service of two masters at once. They that are God's true servants, do give up themselves to his service, and make it, as it were, their whole work, therein employing their whole hearts, and the chief of their strength; Phil. iii. 13. This one thing I do. Christians in their effectual calling, are not called to idleness, but to labour in God's vineyard, and spend their day in doing a great and laborious service. All true Christians comply with this call, (as is implied in its being an effectual call), and do the work of Christians; which is every where in the New Testament compared to those exercises, wherein men are wont to exert their strength, with the greatest earnestness, as running, wrestling, fighting. All true Christians are good and faithful soldiers of Jesus Christ, and fight the good fight of faith: for none but those who do so, do ever lay hold on eternal life. Those who fight as those that beat the ear, never win the crown of victory. They that run in a race, run all; but one wins the prize; and they that are slack and negligent in eir course, do not so run, as that they may obtain. The

kingdom of heaven is not to be taken but by violence. Without earnestness there is no getting alone, in that narrow way on that leads to life; and so no arriving at that state of glorious life and happiness which it leads to.-Without earnest labour, there is no ascending the steep and high hill of Zion; and so no arriving at the heavenly city on the top of it.Without a constant laboriousness, there is no stemming the swift stream in which we swim, so as ever to come to that. fountain of water of life that is at the head of it. There is need that we should watch and pray always, in order to our escaping those dreadful things, that are coming on the ungodly, and our being counted worthy to stand before the Son of man. There is need of our putting on the whole armour of God, and doing all to stand, in order to our avoiding a total overthrow, and being utterly destroyed by the fiery darts of the devil. There is need that we should forget the things that are behind, and be reaching forth to the things that are before, and pressing towards the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, in order to our obtaining that prize. Slothfulness in the service of God, in his professed servants, is as damning, as open rebellion: for the slothful servant, is a wicked servant, and shall be cast into outer darkness, among God's open enemies, Matth. xxv. 26, 30. They that are slothful, are not followers of them, who through faith and patience inherit the promises; Heb. vi. 11, 12. And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence, to the full assurance of hope unto the end: that ye be not slothful, but followers of them, who through faith and patience inherit the promises. And all they who follow that cloud of witnesses that are gone before to heaven, do lay aside every weight, and the sin that easily besets them, and do run with patience the race that is set before them, Heb. xii. 1. That true faith, by which persons rely on the righteousness of Christ, and the work that he hath done for them, and do truly feed and live upon him, is evermore accompanied with such a spirit of earnestness in the Christian work and course, Which was typified of old, by the manner of the children of Israel's feeding on the paschal lamb; who were directed to eat it, as those that were in haste, with their loins girded, their shoes on their feet, and staff in their hand; Exod. xii. 11. And thus shall ye eat it, with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand: and ye shall eat it in haste; it is the Lord's passover.

3. Every true Christian perseveres in this way of universal obedience, and diligent and earnest service of God, through all the various kinds of trials that he meets with, to the end of life. That all true saints, all those that do obtain eternal life, do thus persevere in the practice of religion, and the service of God, is a doctrine so abundantly taught in the scripture, that particularly to rehearse all the texts which imply it would be endless. I shall content myself with referring to some in the margin *.

But that in perseverance in obedience, which is chiefly insisted on in the scripture, as a special note of the truth of grace, is the continuance of professors in the practice of their duty, and being stedfast in an holy walk, through the various trials that they meet with.

:

By trials here, I mean those things that occur, and that a professor meets with in his course, that do especially render his continuance in his duty, and faithfulness to God, difficult to nature. These things are from time to time called in scripture by the name of trials, or temptations, (which are words of the same signification). These are of various kinds there are many things that render persons continuance in the way of their duty difficult, by their tendency to cherish and foment, or to stir up and provoke their lusts and corruptions. Many things make it hard to continue in the way of their duty, by their being of an alluring nature, and having a tendency to entice persons to sin; or by their tendency to take off restraints, and embolden them in iniquity. Other things are trials of the soundness and stedfastness of professors, by their tendency to make their duty appear terrible to them, and so to affright and drive them from it; such as the sufferings which their duty will expose them to; pain, ill-will, eontempt, and reproach, or loss of outward possessions and comforts. If persons, after they have made a profession of religion, live any considerable time in this world, which

* Deut. v. 29. and xxxii. 18, 19, 20. 1 Chron. xxviii. 9. Psal. lxxviii. 7, 8, 10, 11, 35, 36, 37, 41, 42, 56. &c. and cvi. 3, 12.-15. and cxxv. 4, 5Prov. xxvi. II. Isa. Ixiv. 5. Jer. xvii. 13. Ezek. iii. 20. and xviii. 24. and xxxiii. 12, 13. Matth. x. 22, and xiii. 4-8. with verses 19-23. and xxv. 8. and xxiv. 12, 13. Luke ix. 62. and xii. 35, &c. and xxii. 28. and xvii. 32. John viii. 30, 31. and xv. 6, 7, 8, 10, 16. Rom. ii. 7. and xi. 22. Col. i. 22, 23. Heb. iii. 6, 12, 14. and vi. 11, 12, and x. 35. &c.—James i. 25. Rev. ii. 13, 26. and . 10. 1 Tim ii. 15. 2 Tim. iv. 4—8.