diligent and thorough Search after Wisdom, SER M. and his utmoft Enquiry into every thing II.. that had even the Appearance of it, finding that nothing here below could fatisfy the Mind of Man, pronounces Vanity and Vexation upon all his Experiments, and being at last affured that Religion afforded the only Means of obtaining Happiness, makes that the Sum of all our Duty; and thus concludes his whole Enquiry: Fear God, and keep his Commandments, for this is the whole Duty of Man.-----When the young Man asked our Saviour what he fhould do to inherit eternal Life, he did not turn him over to Arts and Sciences, and the Wisdom of this World, or bid him do what was not in his Power; but faid, If thou wilt enter into Life, keep the Commandments. And when a certain Lawyer asked him the fame, Question, either to try his Knowledge, or improve his own, or to fee whether he would. teach any thing contrary to the Law of Mofes, he enjoins nothing contrary to That, but refers him to his own Rule; What is written in the Law? How readeft thou? And he answered, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy Heart, and with all thy Soul, and with all thy Strength, and with all thy Mind, and thy Neighbour as thyfelf.

E

SERM. thyfelf. Upon which our Saviour did not II. fay this was not fufficient, or that Matters

of a speculative Nature were more neceffary to Salvation, but faid, Thou haft answered right; this do, and thou shalt live. And indeed 'tis very confiftent with the Nature of an all-wife and good Being, who would that all Men should be faved, to make the Way to Happiness plain and eafy; and fince eternal Happinefs is a Matter of infinite Concernment, and not confined to a few who have more Learning, and greater A bilities than others, but that the Learned and Unlearned, Bond and Free, are all to be faved through the Mediation of Jefus Chrift, if they will make ufe of proper Means, 'tis but reasonable to fuppofe that thofe Means fhould bc fuch as are fuitable to every Man's Capacity, and fuch likewise as will never fail of obtaining their End.--

Since then the Fear of the Lord, or a religious Life, is the only true Wifdom, what remains but that we endeavour to obtain it by a fuitable Behaviour and Conversation in every Action of our Lives? And indeed there feems to be lefs Need of any great Perfuafion in this Matter, because there are few but are willing and forward enough to be thought wife, even at the Expence of

their

1

their Modefty; and therefore to be really SERM fo one would think fhould be much more II. defirable, especially if we confider, that this is not the Wisdom that makes us wife only for a Day or a Year, but for ever; and tho' it be true that Tongues fhall ceafe, Prophecies fail, and Knowledge be done away, yet the Wisdom of Religion fhall never fail us, because it leads us to a Place where nothing fhall ceafe or be done away.----When a Man gains his End by proper Means, however trifling that End is when obtained, he is esteemed wife; how much wiser then muft he be, who has obtained an End of the greatest Concernment in the World, even the Salvation of his Soul. And fince People generally spare no Pains to obtain what, after all, is little else but Vanity and Sorrow, and hardly worth the Labour that is bestowed upon it; if they would but act in an equitable Manner, as in other Cafes, they would use the greatest Pains and Induftry about that which is of the greatest Moment: That, upon which a whole Eter nity depends, certainly requires our utmost Care and Concern: And they have no Right to make use of any Argument with relation to the Difficulty of the Task, who have not at least taken the fame Pains about it as

II.

SERM. they have in other Cafes, to obtain any other good End. In fhort, a rational Creature fhould act as fuch, and as Religion is undoubtedly his greatest Bufinefs, fo fhould it be likewife his greatest Care. 'Tis true, it is not expected of a Horfe or a Mule, that have no Understanding, to be religious; but Man, who has a reasonable Mind, must act contrary to his Nature if he is not fo fuch a one can never contradi& Religion, till he has first acted contrary to his Reason, and offer'd manifeft Violence to his Underftanding.----And we may add to this likewife, that we profefs ourselves to be Chriftians, and if fo, we don't act at all confiftently, if we are not Men of Religion; for however a lewd, diffolute Life may fuit with a Mahometan Scheme of Religion, yet for a Chriftian to live fo, who has engag'd to keep God's Commandments, and to walk in the fame all the Days of his Life, is the oddeft Thing in the World; 'tis going against Nature and Principle both, and deftroying the Notions we have of Right and Wrong. But if, after all, People will ftill go on in a vicious Way of Living, and yet nevertheless expect to be happy, tho they don't concern themselves at all about Religion, which (as has been fhewn) is the

only

II.

only Means of obtaining it, it lies upon SER M.
them to fhew where Happiness is promised
without it.------Since then a godly and re
ligious Life is fo neceffary and becoming in
every one who has a future Happiness to
fecuré; 'tis much more fo in those who are
called to any holy Function, because they
have stronger Obligations to it than other
Men have. They who give Rules to others,
must furely be fuppofed to practise them
themselves, if they think to inftruct with
Succefs, and be living Examples of every.
Precept they teach others; for People will
then only be convinced that we deal equita-
bly with them, when we require no more
of them than what we ourselves do constant-
by perform.

fet

up

To conclude. A good Life is the Sum of the whole Chriftian Philofophy; and every thing else is to be valued more or lefs, according as it has more or lefs Tendency to it: And whatever Fancies People may in the Room of it, which may be always Matter of Difpute, and become Demonstration in one Age, and Nonfense in another; yet, as long as the Word of God has any Influence or Authority with Men, the Fear of the Lord will always be Wisdom, and to depart from Evil Understanding.-.

This