him. What is man! wherein is he to be SERM.3 accounted of? What are even good men ! V. how little to be depended on? man in his best estate is but vanity; in his best moral ftate, or temper of mind in this world, but uncertain. How changeable are his purpofes? they seem to be strong, and he has mighty confidence in them; in his own fond imagination nothing is too hard for him; but anon his paffions rife violently agitated by temptations, prefently his understanding is darkned, pious and virtuous resolutions are forgotten, and feeble as water, he yields to the firft affault. If the fhortness of the time, affording very little opportunity for calm reflection; the fituation of the apoftle furrounded with inveterate enemies, not one fellow difciple near him, nor any perfon who might in the leaft contribute to his affistance and support, and the confufion he was thrown into by his master's distress; if these circumftances do in fome measure alleviate his tranfgreffion; for, certainly, the greater perturbation the mind is in, unhinging it, and stunning its powers To, that they are rendred uncapable of exerting themselves regularly, the more pitiable is its condition, approaching to a distraction; and the lefs meditated

SERM.meditated and cool any evil purpose is, V. the lefs heinous; yet thefe very circuinstances prove the point before us, the weaknefs of human nature: for they clearly fhew, that man is obnoxious to fuch infirmities and diftempers of mind as render him infufficient for acting the part which becomes him, and perfevering fteadily in it. Distempers which, though they be partly natural, and fo far compaffionable; yet do they also participate of moral evil, and com municate it to the actions proceeding from them; which therefore are far from being altogether excufable, as furely St. Peter's denial of his mafter was not, whatever may be faid or imagin'd, in fome degree to extenuate it. Let us now proceed

Secondly, To confider one faulty occafion of this good man's great offence, as it appears from the state of the fact by the gofpel history, and it was felf-confidence, which he carried fo far as in exprefs terms to contradict his Lord, when he told him fo circumftantially, before the cock crow thou shalt deny me thrice; which one would think, might have very fenfibly affected his mind, and produced at least a jealousy of himself, if it was not peremptorily to be taken as a

prediction

prediction of a future fact; but the answer SER M. was pronounced, rafhly enough, in direct V. oppofition, tho' I should die with thee, yet I It is not at all to be

will not deny thee.

doubted but Peter expreffed the present real fentiments of his heart, he was far from intending to conceal a defign then form'd to act a treacherous part: That was an hypocrify which fo good a man could not be capable of. But his fault was, fpeaking fo pofitively, without due deliberation, without a becoming fenfe of his own frailty, and a just apprehenfion of his danger. He fpoke the language of a fudden emotion, a fervor that was natural to him, and even a passion, rather than a calm, well weighed judgment, which is the true foundation of ftable and lafting virtuous purposes. He did not confider 'cooly, as he ought to have done, the deceitfulness of fin, and the power of temptation, having never met with fuch a a trial before: But too prefumptuoufly trufting to the present warmth of his affection, was fanguine enough to believe it would never fail him.

I shall only observe at present, that an attention to what experience obviously teaches, will tend to illustrate the point before us. Nothing is more certain, or better known, than

VOL. I.

I

that

SERM.that paffions are the springs of hafty refoV. lution, and of action pursuant to it, whilst

they retain their ftrength: But they subside; and then the contrary paffions, in their turns prevailing, produce the quite contrary effects. Peter himself was an example of this; when the heat of zeal was predominant, he was ready to venture on the most hazardous attempts in defence of his mafter; that very evening he drew his sword, and boldly attacked an armed company, who came to apprehend Jefus, which he did rafhly enough too, and without waiting for orders; but foon that warmth abated, giving place to fear; and when this got the afcendant in his mind, he difcovered a cowardice unworthy of a man, not to speak of a disciple of Chrift. 'Tis thus commonly obferved in the ordinary courfe of men's worldy affairs, and their manner of conducting themselves; not the moft eager and paffionate in forming and entering into designs, are the most to be depended on for perfevering; but rather the cool and deliberate, because they having maturely confidered what difficulties and difappointments may happen, are the better prepared to meet them, and the lefs difconcerted in the execution

of

of their designs. It is still more fo in the SER M. affairs of religion than any other. For paf- V. fion has, or ought to have, lefs fhare in counfels of that fort: Efpecially it ought to be remembred, that our religious purposes above all others, are immediately under the divine protection, and the fuperior aids of divine grace are most neceffary to our holding them steadily. He, therefore, who en-. gages in any arduous fervice to God, without committing himself to his care and direction, without placing his principal confidence in the fufficiency of God's grace, and his power, which is perfected in our weakness; he that does fo, I fay, goes to war unarmed, and expofes himself to the hazard of a fhameful defeat. It is here, especially, that we ought to truft in the Lord with all our might, and he that trusteth in his own heart altogether, is a fool, as Solomon fpeaks. I do not mean by this, that good men, fatisfied from themselves, and rejoicing in the teftimony of conscience concerning their fincerity, fhould not have good hope of their persevering in it to the end; but first, that the judgment of the mind upon its prefent moral ftate, its tem

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