tion of men has tempted us to decline the duty to which we have been urged by our own hearts,—or in which we have gone into criminal compliances with the world, through a weakness of mind that was unable to fupport the prefence, or to contradict the opinions of our fellow finners. Let young perfons, particularly recollect their fears, left it fhould be known that they worship God, and pay to the Creator the first duty of a creature.-Recollect what it is that fometimes clothes you with a light and thoughtless air in the houfe of God, afraid to be serious, left you should appear too much to believe the gospel, or to be affected by its truths. When at any time the Divine word begins to feize upon your hearts, what is it that excites you to shake off the conviction? And when almost perfuaded to be a Chriftian, what withholds you from being perfuaded altogether?—It is fhame. You are afraid the world will remark it,-the world, whose prefence weighs more with you than the authority of an invifible Deity. If you feel the compunctions of repentance, you fear left they should be imputed to melancholy or to weakness. If you perceive the duty and importance of making falvation your first care, and of honouring your Saviour by a public profeffion of his name, yet you want the neceffary resolution to encounter the world, -to meet the fneers of your companions,-their looks of suspicion, their hints of hypocrify, their prefages of inconftancy. Thus may every hearer understand this fentiment, by recalling to mind the occafions on which he has felt it, and on which it has checked his defires, or destroyed his refolutions of duty. 2. I fhall further illuftrate it, by pointing out fome of its principal causes. Thefe may be reduced to the three that follow, the pain of fingularity,-the power of ridicule,—the want of fincerity. Singularity Singularity is always painful to an ingenuous mind, It seems to hold out as exceptions from the general law of human nature,-as infenfible to its feelings,-and worthy neither of the affections nor of the confidence of mankind. Singularity always attracts the cenfure of the world; or, by contradicting general practice or opinions, it invites contempt. The public manners have numbers on their fide, fufficient to brand with ignominy whatever, by differing from them, implies their condemnation. Superftition, contraction of fentiment, weakness of mind, illiberality of heart, are the mildeft reproaches that fafhionable diffipation beftows on piety that dares to be fingular. Wealth and power, objects before which the human mind is prone to bow, being too often on the fide of vicious fashion, give it great advantage in eftablishing wrong ideas of honour and difgrace. And because the multitude of men of fcience, like the vulgar multitude, are frequently on the fame interests, even philosophy and wit have been preffed into its service by thefe its obedient fons. To withstand so many formidable enemies is an arduous task, even for confirmed virtue. Little is the wonder then, if first resolutions in Religion should be fhaken by them; and if the young fhould fometimes not have fortitude to bear up against them. To be fingular in piety, is to dare incur contempt for the defpifed crofs. A hard facrifice this for human pride! and especially for juvenile virtue!-Many more are found who are ready to forfake the Saviour, than who have firmness of mind fufficient to overcome the conftraints of a falfe fhame. Imperious fashion, both in conduct and opinion, will for ever fway the worldly heart. To rise above its influence requires an extraordinary zeal in Religion that feems to annihilate the temptations of the world, or a long and refpected character in Religion, that that gives a man authority over his own actions. But in the commencement of a religious life, and before a character in piety hath become appropriated and facred for a man to enter into the fociety of his companions with reserve,―to go with it only a certain length,-to seem to enjoy it with constraint,-to reproach them by more fevere and corrected morals, and to incur their fufpicion, obloquy or contempt, requires uncommon prudence and uncommon fortitude.-How often does the dismaying power of shame fubdue the heart before so many difficulties! Another fource of false shame is found in the power of ridicule. Ridicule is perhaps the fevereft affault which a man about to enter upon duty is called to fuftain. It is apt to dismay and humble him much more than the coolness of contempt, or the violence of power. So fenfible of its force are fome infidels, that with this weapon alone do they attack Chriftianity, which they have fo long in vain affailed by reason. It is a species of attack which every man can use against Religion, because all can laugh, though few can reason. It can be ufed against Religion with peculiar fuccefs, because its perfections are often invifible to fenfe, or withdrawn from the view; while the imperfections of its profeffors, which are mistaken for it, are obvious to every eye-The faints!-the bypocrites!the weak fools!-are titles that will furnish abundant fources of amusement to those who mistake names for characters, and laughter for wit: And when other matter fails, mimickry, the lowest species of ridicule, comes in with a thousand malicious and falfe additions, to dress out the last scenes of impious diverfion. The wife and experienced Chriftian arrives at length to feel his fuperiority over thefe ludicrous attacks ;-but the young and inexperienced inexperienced find them almoft irrefiftible. They feel the humiliating contempt of laughter, they are degraded in their own esteem,-ridicule difmays them,—a senseless fmile fubdues their hearts, and before a finful generation they are ashamed of Chrift, and of his words. In the consciousness of want of fincerity, we find another cause of that weak fhame which is prone to deny or to disguise our reverence for Religion. Pretences to an unfupported character are in the highest degree dishonourable and reproachful. The world that differs in so many things from the difciples of Christ, agrees with them in condemning visible hypocrify. Many young perfons, dreading the contempt that is due to this character, are deterred from making a declared choice of Religion. Conscious that a conduct grave, devout and holy, fhould accompany the profeflion of piety, and fearing left they want that fincere and courageous zeal, which will enable them to make fuch a refolute and confpicuous change of life, as becomes the followers of Christ, they decline to appear openly for his caufe; they are afraid of discovering for it that reverence and attachment which they really feel, left they fhould not be able to support the profeffion with uniformity and confiftency. -Ah! my brethren, if our hearts were fincere, the importance and glory of Divine things would at once decide our choice, and overcome the apprehenfions of being ever willing to facrifice them to worldly interests, or to worldly pleafures; to the folicitations or the fneers of men. But infincerity fears the reproach of hypocrify more than it fears hypocrify itself-infincerity fhrinks from the opinion of a worm, but does not tremble before the justice of the Creator :-Infincerity is afhamed of our glory in the midst of finners who are for ever glorying in their fhame! 3. The confideration of the effects, as well as the caufet of this principle, will affift in explaining its nature. One of the most certain confequences of being afha med of duty, is to lead to boldness and audacity in vice. Shame is, perhaps, the evidence of a middle character, neither virtuous nor abandoned. It is always accompanied with fome remaining reverence for God. But, judging from the licentious face of the world, that other finners are not fubject to the fame constraints, it blushes for this fentiment, as for a weakness. Endeavouring to cover its belief, or its fears, it affumes a greater shew of infidelity and license than perhaps is real. It foon affects to talk in the ftyle of the world,—to divert itself with serious perfons, and at length with ferious things;-it gives hints of libertinism, which it reprefents as fuperior to vulgar prejudice-it fometimes pushes these appearances farther than would be neceffary, if men were really infidels, to fecure to themfelves, without controversy, that honourable character. But confcious infincerity urges them to extremes to cover its own deceptions. And men being prone to form their opinions, no less than to derive their feelings from fympathy, these mutual appearances contribute to create at length, that vice and infidelity to which all, in the beginning only pretend. It is besides, a principle of human nature, that pretence itself will ultimately form those difpofitions and habits, which it continues to affect. But if fhame more modeftly refolves not to renounce but to poftpone the care of our falvation, is there not reafon to fear, that this unhappy refolution will eventually come to the fame iffue? Need I repeat in this affembly the ufual fruits of delay? Ah! my brethren, men always find the fame reafons for delaying-and thofe who, through a falfe fhame and fear of the world, poftpone |