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weakness of it.. Either men do not believe the recompences of another life, or they are not fo firmly perfuaded of the reality of them. If men do not at all believe these things, there is no foundation for religion: for he that cometh unto God, (that is, he that thinks of being religious), must believe that God is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently feek him; as the Apoftle reafons in the beginning of this chapter.

But I hope there are but few that are, or can be infidels, as to these great and fundamental principles of religion. But it is to be feared, that the faith of a great many is but weak and wavering: their faith is rather negative; they do not difbelieve these things, but they are not firmly perfuaded of them; their faith is rather an opinion, than a rooted and well-grounded perfuafion; and therefore no, wonder if it be not fo ftrong and vigo rous a principle of action, like the faith of Abraham, and Mofes, and other worthies mentioned in this chapter. For where faith is in its full ftrength and vigour, it will have proportionable effects upon the refolutions and wills of men; but where it is but weak, it is of little or no efficacy. And this is the true reafon why fo many forfake religion, and cleave to this prefent world; and when it comes to the pufh, chufe rather to fin, than to fuffer; and will rather quit the truth, than endure perfecution for it.

Thefe are they whom our Saviour defcribes, who receive the word with joy, and endure for a while; but when tribulation and perfecution arifeth because of the word, prefently they are offended: not that they did not believe the word, but their faith had taken no deep root, and therefore it withered. The weaknefs and wavering of mens faith makes them unstable and inconftant in their courfe; because they are not of one mind, but divided betwixt two interefts, that of this world, and the other; and the double-minded man (as St. James tells us), is unftable in all his ways.

It is generally a true rule, So much wavering as we fee in the actions and lives of men, fo much weakness there is in their faith; and therefore he that would know what any man firmly believes, let him attend to his actions more than to his profeffions.

If any man live fo as no man that heartily believes the Chriftian religion can live, it is not credible, that fuch a man doth firmly believe the Christian religion. He fays he does; but there is a greater evidence in the cafe than words: there is teftimonium rei; the man's actions are to the contrary, and they do beft declare the inward fenfe of the man. Did men firmly believe, that there is a God that governs the world; and that he hath appointed a day wherein he will judge it in righteousness; and that all mankind fhall fhortly appear before him, and give an account of themselves, and all their actions, to him; and that thofe who have kept the faith, and a good confcience, and have lived foberly, and righteously, and godly in this prefent world, fhall be unfpeakably and eternally happy; but the fearful and unbelieving, thofe who, out of fear or intereft, have deferted the faith, or lived wicked lives, fhall have their portion in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone: I fay, were men firmly perfuaded of these things, it is hardly credible, that any man fhould make a wrong choice, and forfake the ways of truth and righteoufnefs, upon any temptation whatsoever.

Faith, even in temporal matters, is a mighty principle of action, and will make men to attempt and undergo frange and difficult things. The faith of the gospel ought to be much more operative and powerful; because the objects of hope and fear which it prefents to us, are far greater and more confiderable than any thing that this world can tempt or terrify us withal.

Would we but by faith make present to our minds the invifible things of another world, the happiness of heaven, and the terrors of hell; and were we as verily perfuaded of them, as if they were in our view, how fhould we defpife all the pleafures and terrors of this world; and with what eafe fhould we refift and repel all thofe temptations which would feduce us from our duty, or draw us into fin!

A firm and unfhaken belief of these things would effectually remove all thofe mountains of difficulty and difcouragement which men fancy to themfelves in the ways of religion. To him that believeth all things are poffible, and most things would be easy.

2. Another

2. Another reafon of this wrong choice is, want of confideration; for this would ftrengthen our faith, and make it more vigorous and powerful. And indeed a faith which is well rooted and established, doth suppose a wife and deep confideration of things: and the want of this is a great caufe of the fatal miscarriage of men; that they do not fit down, and confider with themselves feriously how much religion is their intereft, and how much it will coft them to be true to it, and to persevere in it to the end.

We fuffer ourselves to be governed by fenfe, and to be transported with prefent things; but do not confider our future and lafting intereft, and the whole duration of an immortal foul. And this is the reafon why fo many men are hurried away by the prefent and fenfible delights of this world, because they will not take time to think of what will be hereafter.

For it is not to be imagined, but that the man who hath feriously confidered what fin is, the fhortness of its pleafure, and the eternity of its punishment, fhould refolve to forfake fin, and to live a holy and virtuous life.

To conclude this whole difcourfe: If men did but seriously believe the great principles of religion; the being and the providence of God; the immortality of their fouls; the glorious rewards and the dreadful punishments of another world; they could not poffibly make fo imprudent a choice, as we fee a great part of mankind to do; they could not be induced to forfake God and religion for any temporal interest and advantage; to renounce the favour of heaven, and all their hopes of happiness in another world, for any thing that this world can afford, nay not for the whole world, if it were of fered to them. For, as our Saviour reafons in this very cafe, of forfaking our religion for any temporal intereft or confideration, what is a man profited if he gain tie whole world, and lofe his own foul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his foul?

Whenever any of us, are tempted in this kind, let that folemn declaration of our Saviour, and our Judge, be continually in our minds: He that confeffeth me before men, him will I confefs alfo before my Father which is in heaven: but whosoever shall be ashamed of me, and of my words,

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words, in this adulterous and finful generation, of him shall the Son of man be afhamed, when he shall come in the glory of his Father, with his holy angels.

And we have great cause to thank God, to fee so many in this day of trial, and hour of temptation, to adhere with fo much refolution and conftancy to their holy religion, and to prefer the keeping of faith, and a good confcience, to all earthly confiderations and advantages.

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And this very thing, that fo many hold their religion fo faft, and are fo loth to part with it, gives great hopes that they intend to make good use of it, and to frame their lives according to the holy rules and precepts it; which alone can give us peace whilst we live, and comfort when we come to die; and, after death, fecure to us the poffeffion of a happiness large as our wishes, and lafting as our fouls.

To which God, of his infinite goodnefs, bring us all, for his mercy's fake, in Jefus Chrift. To whom, with the Father, and the Holy Ghoft, be all honour and glory, world without end. Amen.

SERM
MON

LVIII.

Of conftancy in the profeffion of the true religion.

HEB. X. 23.

Let us hold fast the profeffion of our faith without wavering; for he is faithful that promifed.

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HE main fcope and defign of this epiftle to the Hebrews, is, to perfuade the Jews who were newly converted to Chriftianity, to continue ftedfaft in the profeffion of that holy and excellent religion which they had embraced; and not to be removed from it, either by the fubtile infinuations of their bre thren the Jews, who pretended that they were in pof

feffion

feffion of the true ancient religion, and the only true church of God upon earth; or by the terror of the Heathen perfecution, which was fo hot against them at that time. And to this end the author of this epiftle doth, by great variety of arguments, demonftrate the excellen cy of the Chriftian religion above the Jewish difpensation; and fhews at large, that in all thofe refpects upon which the Jews valued themselves, and their religion, (as, namely, upon the account of their lawgiver, their high priests, and their facrifices), the Christian religion had every way the advantage of them.

And having made this clear, he concludes with an earnest exhortation to them, to continue ftedfast in the profeffion of this excellent religion, which was revealed to them by the Son of God, the true propitiatory facrifice, and the great high priest of their profeffion, and into which they had folemnly been initiated and admitted by baptifm, † 19. 20. 21. 22. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holieft, by the blood of Jefus, by a new and living way which he hath confecrated for us, through the vail, that is to fay, his flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God: let us draw near with a true heart, in full affurance of faith; that is, let us fincerely ferve God, with a firm perfuafion of the truth and excellency of this holy religion, into the profeffion whereof we were folemnly admitted by baptifm: for that is undoubtedly the meaning of the following words, y 22. having our hearts Sprinkled from an evil confcience, and our bodies washed with pure water; the water with which our bodies are washed in baptifm fignifying our fpiritual regeneration, and the purging our confciences from dead works, to ferve the living God. From all which he concludes, Let us hold fast the profeffion of our faith without wavering. This refers to that folemn profeffion of faith which was made by all Christians at their baptism; and which is contained in the ancient creed of the Chriftian church, called by the ancient fathers the rule of faith.

Let us hold faft, narxwww, let us firmly retain; the fame with xp27 Tns ouononias, chap. iv. 14. Seeing then we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Fefus the Son of God, let us take faft hold of our

profeffion.

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