the way to cause love is to represent the object lovely, which doth much more than command me to love it; so the way to cause hatred, is to represent the object hateful or unlovely, which is more than to bid us hate our brother. And he that hateth his brother is a manslayer; and none such have eternal life abiding in them. Away therefore with those volumes of learned slanders and reproaches, begotten betwixt uncharitableness and self-love, (or pride ;) and take them as the devil's books, that are written to draw thee to hate thy brother. Frown also upon the censorious: take heed also of divisions and parties, because they are enemies to universal love, and are but imposthumes or boils of the church, where zeal and love are diseasedly drawn into a narrow compass; and that is appropriated to a few, that should be common to all believers. Cherish meekness and patience, and reject all that carnal zeal or envy, contention and animosities, which are contrary to love. Read and study well the third chapter of St. James, and the epistle of St. John.

Direct. 8. Understand the preciousness and use of time. Love diligence the better, because it is a redeeming of time; a doing much in a little time. Hate that which would rob you of so precious a commodity.

Direct. 9. See that there be no predominant selfishness or worldly interest unmortified at the heart. Study duty, and do it faithfully, and trust God with life, estate, and events; and shift not for yourselves by sinful means.

Direct. 10. Maintain your authority over your sense and fleshly appetites. Captivate not reason to the brutish part; especially under pretence of liberty. Use your bodies as may strengthen them, and best fit them for the work of God: let them have so much delight in things allowed as conduceth to this; but take heed of making the delights of flesh and sense your end, or allowing yourselves in an unprofitable pleasing of your enemy; or of corrupting your minds, and relishing too much sweetness in the things of the flesh, and losing your relish of spiritual things. Set not the bait too near you keep the gunpowder from the fire. He that believeth that if ever he be damned, it will be for pleasing his flesh before God, and if ever he be saved, he must be first and principally saved from the inordinate pleasures of the flesh,

will not be so forward as brutish infidels are, to seek out for delights, and plead for all that pleaseth them as harmless.

Having thus in the introduction shewed you what Godliness is, and how it may be known, and what you must do to be soundly and sincerely godly, I hope you are prepared for the following discourse, of the Certain Necessity and Excellency of Godliness, which tends to fetch over the delaying, resisting, unresolved wills, of those that are yet in the BRUTISH state, and are strangers to the dispositions, employments, desires, hopes, and joys of true believers. The Lord concur effectually with his blessing. Amen.

LUKE x. 41, 42.

And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things; but one thing is needful; and Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her,

In order to the decision of the great controversy practically managed through the world, Whether Godliness or Worldliness and Sensuality be better? I have already performed the first part of my task, in proving the certainty of the principles of Godliness and of Christianity; which of itself will infer the conclusion, which I undertake to prove, that the reasons for Godliness are so sure, and clear, and great, that one must be A SAINT or A BRUTE. He that will every not choose a life of HOLINESS, hath no other to fall into but a life of SENSUALITY. Either the superior faculties proper to a rational nature must be predominant; and then we can be no less than SAINTS: or else the inferior, brutish faculties will be predominant; and then, (though from your natural powers you are called MEN, yet) if you may be denominated from your intended END and from the USE of your faculties in order to that END, you are but an ingenious kind of BRUTES; exceeding apes and monkies in the cunning contrivance of your unhappy designs, but incomparably worse in your successes; because you were indeed intrusted with the noble faculties and gifts of MEN, while you

captivated them unto your appetites and sense, and lived but to the END of BEASTS.

The second thing that I have to do, for the conquering all opposition to this conclusion, is to prove the NECESSITY of HOLINESS, which (being now to speak to such as profess to believe the Holy Scriptures,) I may easily do from this plain and pregnant text. To which I shall annex such cogent REASONS as may silence those that will not acquiesce in the authority of the holy word.

So great is the difference between a dreaming opinion in religion, (called a dead faith,) and a serious, hearty, practical belief, that if they that say (and do but say) they believe the Holy Scriptures, and yet are ungodly, had soundly believed, considered, and digested this very text, it would have made such a change both in their hearts and lives, as would have told them by happy experience, that the Gospel is not a dead letter, nor saving faith a lifeless, ineffectual thing; and that God sent not his Son into the world only to be complimented with, and reverently treated with a few good words; nor his Gospel and ministers merely to be entertained with a demure, silent, and respectful audience; nor hath proposed his kingdom to be merely the matter of commendation or discourse. But that as man is a creature of a noble and capacious nature, so he hath a high and noble end, and consequently the highest employment for his reason; and that religion is the most NECESSARY and must be the most SERIOUS business in the world. Did they believe this text, as verily they pretend to believe the Gospel, it would help to the recovery of the understandings of the ambitious, and make the proud ashamed of their glory, and settle the drunken, aspiring minds of those that think it worth more than their salvation, to sit upon the highest perch. It would call off the covetous worldling his immoderate seeking provisions for the flesh, and save them that are drowned in the cares of this life, by shewing them the true and necessary treasure. It would spare them many a vexatious thought, and a great deal of unnecessary labour, and prevent the shame and horror that must befal them, when in the end they find their labour lost, and all their expectations frustrated. It would quickly stop the mouths which prejudice, ignorance, malignity, enmity and deliration have opened against a life of faith and serious godliness; and

cause them that scorn it as a needless thing, to make it their daily business and delight. It would tell the sluggish, senseless sinner, that he hath work of everlasting consequence upon his hand, and that it is no time to dream or loiter: and it would tell the brutish sensualist that there are more sweet and durable delights; and the time-wasting fool that time is precious, and he hath none to spare and cast away, having so great a work to do. It would set men on seeking with greatest diligence, the kingdom which before they did but dream of; and would turn the very stream of their hearts and lives on that which before they minded but as on the by. In a word, it would make the earthly to become heavenly, and the fleshly spiritual, and the slothful to be diligent, and rotten-hearted sinners to become renewed saints, as all must do that ever will be saved. And if these words of Christ be not thus received by you, and work not such wonders on men's hearts, it is not because there is any want of fitness in the text, but because men's hearts are hardened into a wilful contempt of the most precious truths, which in themselves are apt to change and save them.

Of all ways of teaching, history is accounted one of the most effectual; because it hath the greatest advantage on our apprehensions, as setting our lesson before our eyes in the great character of example, and not only in the smaller letter of a naked precept. And of all history, what can be more powerful, than, 1. Where one of the actors is the eternal Son of God; and that not above our reach in heaven, but here in our flesh, on the stage of this sublunary world? 2. And the other actors are such as most fitly represent the different actions of all the world, at least that live within the sound of the Gospel; and lay open the great question about which the world is so much divided. 3. And when the matter itself is of the greatest consequence that can be imagined; even concerning the present choice and resolution of our hearts, and that expending of our time, and that business and employment of our lives, on which our endless life dependeth. All this you have here set out even to the life, before your eyes, in the glass of this example in my text: and the Lord of life doth call you all to see your faces in it; and here plainly sheweth you what will be expected from you; and what you must be, and do, and trust to; and this not in any long and tedious discourse, that might overwhelm

your memories, or weary your attentions; but in very brief, though full expressions.

As Jesus entered into Bethany, Martha (who it seems was the owner of the house) received and entertained him. No doubt but a great company followed Jesus; or his disciples, that ordinarily accompanied him, at least. Martha thinks that having entertained such a guest, it were a great neglect, if she should not provide for him and for his followers; and therefore she is busy in doing what she can ; but the number is so great, that she is oppressed with the care and trouble, and findeth that she hath more to do than she is able: her sister, that she thought should have helped her in such a case, is sitting with the disciples at the feet of Christ, to hear his word. Martha seeing this, is offended at her sister, and seems to think that Christ himself is too neglective of her, or partial for her sister; and therefore thus pleads her cause with Christ, "Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? Bid her therefore that she help me." As if she had said, 'Is it a fit thing that both thyself and all this company should be unprovided for, and have neither meat nor drink? Or is it fit that all should be laid on me, even more than I can do, while she sits hearing with the disciples? Deal equally and mercifully, and bid her help me.' And indeed most people would think that this was but a reasonable motion, and that when Christ was made the judge between them, he should have decided the case on Martha's side; but he did not so: But, 1. Instead of commending Martha for her care and diligence, he sheweth her error, by a gentle, but yet a close reproof: "Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things." 2. Instead of reproving Mary for negligence of her duty in the house, he highly commendeth her for the seasonable doing of a greater work: "Mary hath chosen the good part." 3. He groundeth the reason of his judgment on the different nature and use of their employments : "One thing is needful;" in comparison of which, the rest were all unnecessary things, and such as then might have been neglected. 4. And so he passeth sentence on Mary's side, that the good part which she hath chosen, "shall not be taken away from her :" in which he not only answereth Martha with an express denial, as if he should say, 'I will not take off Mary from the work which she hath chosen ;'