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him by a particular interpofition to favour SER M. fome of them with a positive revelation of III. his will, to reclaim them from their errors and lead them in the way to happiness. For this end was the conftitution of Ifrael form'd, which is fignificantly and juftly called a Theocracy; God himself was King, the laws were given by him, nay, and he kept in his own hand the laft refort of power in the execution. The people under that form of divine government, were the special favourites of heaven; God himself call'd them a chofen nation to him, a peculiar treasure, a kingdom of priests, and our Saviour tells us that fal vation was of the Jews. But whatever the special reasons might be, taken from the genius of that people and the circumftances of the time, there was in that oeconomy a great mixture of ceremony and external pomp, which rendered it imperfect, and unfit to answer the more extenfive purposes of that grace, defigned for mankind in the ful nefs of time: And therefore it must give way to a better conftitution, a new kingdom of grace, which God erected and put into the hands of his fon, to be wifely and graciously adminiftred by him, for turning the difobedient to the wisdom of the just, reducing to their duty the rebellious, not of one, but of all nations

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SER M. nations to whom it should be published withIII. out diftinction, and fo bringing many to

glory. It is the excellency of this laft and best scheme, that it propofes the first great principles of religion, with an admirable plainnefs, it gives fuch inftructions concerning the Deity, his moral perfections and his providence, and concerning the obligations and duties of morality, that is, of piety, temperance, righteousness, and charity, as are most answerable to the natural fentiments of mankind, and which our own hearts," if we seriously attend to them, cannot but approve; it prescribes fuch a pure, fimple, and reasonable worship as is worthy of God to accept, and of men to perform; it declares these terms of acceptance, accomo dated to the frailty of our present ftate, and the conscious sense we have of guilt, which gives the greatest encouragement to finners who are willing to reform their lives and return to their duty, and at the fame time, lays them under the greatest and most indifpenfable neceffity of reforming; and it enforces our obedience to the laws of God in the strongest manner, and by the most powerful motives, having brought life and immortality to light, and declared, that God has appointed a day wherein he will judge

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* Acts xvii. 31.

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the world in righteousness by that man, whom SER M. be bath ordained; whereof he hath given affu III. rance unto all men, in that he hath raifed him from the dead..

This is that kingdom of heaven which our lord fays in my text was then at hand, it was begun to be erected, and the model of it would foon be compleated; and that men might be the qualified approved fubjects of it, and entitled to the great falvation it proposes, he exhorts them to repent. I shall at this time, firft, confider the duty of repentance, and then, lay before you fome motives to the practice of it. Surely, this, if any thing in christianity, is of importance to men. The whole ftrain of the New-Teftament fhews it to be of abfolute neceffity." The most important confequences depend upon it. The great author of our religion has told us that* except we repent we shall perish. After the refurrection of Chrift, the apoftles filled with the holy ghoft, preffed it upon men in this manner, repent and bé converted, that your fins may be blotted out, Acts iii. 19. great doctrines of christianity, which are declared to be of its very effence, do all point to it as their proper improvement. The death of Chrift is represented as calling upon us to be crucified with him, to mortify the deeds

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* Luke xiii. 3.

SERM.deeds of the body, and to be renewed in the III. Spirit of our minds, that is to repent. And that future judgment which God has appointed, and the declaration and affurance of which is a peculiar glory of the gospel, ftrongly enforces the fame exhortation. Thefe confiderations will, I hope, engage your attention to that first and great inftruction which our Saviour gave to the world.

The original word which is generally used in the New Teftament for repentance, does properly fignify a change of mind, and very agreeeable it is to the nature of the thing; for that religious repentance which God injoins, and peremptorily infifts on as the condition of forgiveness, and our obtaining his favour, is a change of our difpofitions from evil to good, and as the genuine fruit of it, the ammendment of our lives. The gofpel fuppofes men to have universally finned and come short of the glory of God, nay, it declares that thofe to whom the great falvation was firft offered, both Jews and Gentiles, were very corrupt. Among the Jews religion had degenerated into empty form, and trifling ceremonies were fubftituted in the place of fubftantial godlinefs and virtue. Under a fpecious fhew of outward fanctity was covered reigning impiety,

impiety, pride, and covetoufnefs.

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heathen were deep funk in all manner of III wickedness, in adultery, fornication, lafciviousness, revelling, drunkennefs, unnatural contentions and animofities. Such were the perfons whom Chrift and his apostles called to repent, that is, to change their inclinations and tempers, to unlearn their vitious. habits, to bring forth fruits meet for amendment of life, to become lovers of God and men, to worship God in fpirit and truth, to be fober, patient, meek, humble, juft, and merciful.

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This is what the firft teachers of chriftianity mean by repentance, which they fo earneftly and frequently inculcate, and they fometimes reprefent it by different notions, but which amount to the fame thing in effect; as, by converfion to God, that is, whereas men were in a vile fubjection to fins, ferving diverse lufts and pleasures, they renounce the tyrannical ufurpation of those other lords who have had dominion over them, and yield themselves to God as their only rightful Lord, to walk in his ways, and to keep his Commandments. Sometimes it is -reprefented under the images of a new crea tion, and a refurrection or revival from death; which fignify that important moral change

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