with the Service of God, fo elfe where he teaches us the Inconfiftency of other Vices with it: As of falfe Honour and Vanity. (a) How can ye believe, fays he, who receive Honour one of another, and feek not the Honour that cometh from God only For we are told that (b) they loved the Praife of Men more than the Praife of God. We are told the fame of Luft; (c) Ye Adulterers and Adultereffes, fays St James, know ye not that the FriendShip of this World is Enmity with God? The fame Inconfiftency with God's Service, our Saviour takes Notice of in Malice and Hatred; (d) Ye are of your Father the Devil, fays he, and the Lufts of your Father ye will do: He was a Murderer from the Beginning, and abode not in the Truth. The Argument then we have been pursuing concerning the Impoffibility of ferving God and Mammon, will hold likewise against every other prevailing Luft and Corruption.

2. A fecond Inference I make from the Words is, that it is not every Sin we are guilty of that puts us thus in a State of Damnation or Enmity with God; but only those Sins which have got the Maftery of us, We cannot ferve two Mafters. Now there is a great difference to be made between those Sins, which we fall into through the Strength or Suddenness of a Temptation, which through the Grace of God we ftruggle againft, and get rid of; and fome other habitual Sins to which we are perfect Slaves, and have given over our Endeavours to conquer and overcome them. The first fort are

(a) Joh. v. 44. (d) Joh. viii. 44.

(b) John xii. 43. (c) Jam. iv. 4,

what

what every good Man is ftruggling against. But whoever they are that have given up them felves

to

any habitual Sin, they are at present the Devil's Slaves, being led Captive by him at his Pleafure. That Servitude must be broke off, before it is poffible they can be in a State of Grace.

3. A third Inference which will follow from what has been faid, is this; that seeing we cannot ferve God and Mammon, it is a vain Thing to attempt to reconcile thofe two Services, as a great many do. How many are there who, becaufe they are no Drunkards, no Curfers or Swearers, no Whoremongers or Adulterers, and abftain carefully from feveral other grofs Vices; though they are extreme covetous, flatter themselves that they are in a very good Way, and do not doubt they are in a State of Grace. But if our Saviour's Doctrine in my Text is true, there is nothing more inconfiftent with the Love and Service of. God, than this Slavery to the World; nothing more contrary to the Spirit of Christianity than Covetoufnefs, and the inordinate Cares of the World.

To conclude then, let us halt no more between God and the World: But fetting our Hearts on: Heaven, let us both inwardly in our Minds difburden ourselves of the fuperfluous Cares of the World, and let our Converfation likewife be without Covetoufnefs; and according as God hath bleffed us, let: us be ready to extend our Bounty and Charity to Chrift's poor Members; affuring our felves that of all our Estate, what is fo beftowed, will turn to the best Account. Now to God the Father, &c.

SERM.

SERMON XXIII.

MATT. VI. 25, &c.

Therefore I fay unto you, take no thought for your Life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your Body, what ye (hall put on.

The Fifth Sermon on this Text.

First Sermon against Anxiety, on Verse 25.

HAVE read to you these ten Verses, being all a Caution against Anxiety, or too great Sollicitude about the World, and an Enforcement thereof by several Arguments. The Caution we are to confider in the first Place, before we come to the Arguments, that we may know what it is our Saviour doth here require of us. And this likewife lies first in our Way to be confidered from the Text; which begins thus, Therefore I jay unto you, take no Thought for your Life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your Body, what ye shall put on. It is a Caution against a Vice which will require a good deal of Explication, as bordering fo near upon fome other good Qualities, that, without abundance of Care and Attention, we shall be apt to mistake the one for the other, To come then to a close Confideration

of

of the Words, in them we have these Two

Things.

I. The Connexion with what went before, Therefore I fay unto you.

II. The Caution itself, Take no Thought for your Life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your Body, what ye shall put on.

I. I begin with the Connexion; for perhaps that may give us fome Light into the Caution following. The Words immediately preceding, were, re cannot ferve God and Mammon; therefore I fay unto you, take no Thought for your Life. From this Connexion it feems plain, that this -taking Thought here ipoke of, is fomething of the Service of Mammon; q. d. Since ye cannot ferve both God and Mammon; therefore take Care, that under pretence of a regular Care and Induftry about the Neceffaries of Life, Food and Raiment, and far lefs about the Superfluities of it, ye be not involved in the Service of the World, and have your Hearts engaged in the Love and Cares of these inferiour Things. And as for the Words, I fay unto you; this is the usual Mark of an Improvement of our Saviour's, either by a new Precept, or a better Explication of an old one, than they had been taught before. Particularly the Doctrine of my Text feems to be a good Improvement of the Tenth Commandment: That forbidding only the coveting what is our Neighbours; but this moderating our own otherwife lawful Defires and Endeavours after the World. It is therefore a Doctrine more peculiar to Christ, and on that account should be fo much the dearer to us Christians,

II. From

II. From the Connexion, I pafs on to the Caution itself, Take no Thought for your Life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your Body, what ye shall put on. This is fomething further than he had faid before, about not laying up Treasures on Earth; for it was obvious enough for them to think, though we may not fpend our Thoughts and Time in amaffing ufelefs Treasures, yet we may lawfully provide Neceffaries for Life, Food, and Raiment, not only for our prefent, but for our future Occafions; and not only for our felves, but for our Children, and all others under our Care. To obviate this Subterfuge for worldly Cares, our Saviour feems to allow of fuch Providence, fo it be made with an eafy Mind, without engaging us in immoderate Cares, without making the World our Mafter, and without minding it in the firft and chief Place, fo as to turn away our Hearts from better Things, God and our Duty. This I take to be the Purport of this Caution. But to give as great Light as I can into this Matter, I fhall do these two Things: First, I will fhew that it is not all Care about the World, but only an exceffive distrustful Care, which is here forbidden. Then I fhall more particularly describe that anxious Care, which we are here cautioned againft.

1. First then, It is not all Care and Concern about the World which is here forbidden. The Words of the Text, indeed, in our Tranflation, Take no Thought, found that way; and the Example of the Fowls of the Air, and the Lillies of the Field, with which the Caution is preffed, are by fome thought to favour it; for that they with

out