that all the world do walk in, to the two extreamly different ends, which appear when death withdraws the veil. It is the ordination of God, that mens own eftimation, cheice and endeavours, shall be the neceffary preparative to their Fruition. Nemo nolens bonus aut beatus eft. Men fhall have no better than they value, and chufe, and feck: Where earthly things are bigbeft in the esteem, and deareff to the mind of man, such perfons have no higher, nor more durable a portion. Where the heavenly things are highest and dear:ft to the foul, and arc practically preferred, they are the portion of that foul. Where the Treasure is, the beart will be, Matth. 6. 21. The san&ifying fpirit doth lead the fpiritual man, by a fpiritual Rule, in a fpiritual way, to a fpiritual, glorious, durable felicity. The fenfual part, with the fenfual inclination communicated to the corrupted mind and will, doth by carnal reasonings, and by carnal means, pursue and embrace a prefent, fading, carnal intereft: and therefore it findeth and attaineth no more. The fish lufteth against the Spirit, and the spirit against the flish ; and thefe are contrary the one to the other, Gal. 5. 17. They that are after the flesh, do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the spirit, the things of the fpirit. To be carnally minded is death, but to be fpiritually minded is life and peace: Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not fubject to the Law of God, neisher indeed can be: So then, they that are in the flesh cannot please Ged. If any man bave not the Spirit of Christ, the fame is none of his. If we live after the fl fb, we shall die : but if by the spirit we mortifie the deeds of the body, we shall live. Rom. 8. to v. 14. Whatsoever a man sow.th, that shall be also reap. He that foweth to his flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption: but be that foweth to the fpirit, shall of the fpirit reap everlasting life, Gal. 6. 7, 8. As a man is, fo he loveth and defireth, as he defireth, he feeketb; and as he fecketb, he finderb and poffeffetb. If you know which world, what riches a man prefers, intends, and liveth for, you may know which world is his inheritance, and whither he is going as to his perpetual abode.

Reafon enableth a man to know and feek more than be feeth: And Faith informeth and advanceth Reason, to know, that by the means of fupernatural Revelation, that by no other means

is fully known. To feck and hope for no better than we know, and to know no more than is objectively revealed, (while we hinder not the revelation) is the blameless imperfection of a creature, that hath limited faculties and capacities. To know what's Beft, and yet to chufe, and feek an inferiour inconfiftent Good; and to refuse and neglect the Beft, when it is difcerned; is the courfe of fuch as have but a fuperficial opinion of the good refused, or a knowledge not wakened to fpeak fo loudly as may be effectual for choice; and whose fenfuality maftereth their wills and reason, and leads them backward: And those that know not, because they would not know; or hear not, b:cause they would not hear, are under that fame dominion of the fish, which is an enemy to all knowledge, that is an enemy to its delights and intereft. To profefs to know good, and yet refuse it; and to profefs to know evil, and yet to chufe it, and this predominantly, and in the main, is the defcription of a felf-condemning Hypocrite: And if malignity and oppofition of the Truth profeffed, be added to the Hypocrifie, it comes up to that Pharifaical blindness and obduratenefs, which prepareth men for the remedilefs fin.

Confider then but of the profeffion of many of the people of this Land, and compare their practice with it, and judge what compaffion the condition of many doth befpeak. If you will believe them, they profefs that they verily believe in the invifible God; in a Chrift unfeen to them; in the Holy Spirit, gathering a holy Church to Chrift, and imploying them in a communion of Saints: that they believe a judgement to come, upon the glorious coming of the Lord; and an everlafting life of joy or torment thereupon. All this is in their Creed: they would take him for a damnable Heretick that denyeth it; and perhaps would confent that he be burnt at aftake: So that you would think thefe men fhould live, as if Heaven and Hell were open to their fight. But O what an Hypocritical Generation are the ungodly! how their lives do give their tongues the lye! (Remember that I apply this to no better men.) It is a wonder that fuch men can believe themselves, when they fay they do indeed believe the Gospel: And fhews what a monfter the blind deceitful beart of an impenitent finner is: In good fadness can they think that they truly believe that God is

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God, and yet fo wilfully disobey him? that Heaven is Heaven, and yet prefer the world before it? that Hell is Hell, and yet will venture upon it for a luft, or a thing of nought? What! believe that there is at hand a life of endless joy! and no more mind it! but hate them that fet their hearts upon it! Do they believe, that except a man be converted and new born, be shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven? as Chrift hath told them, Matth. 18. 3. John 3. 3, 5. and yet never trouble their minds about it, to try whether they are converted and new born, or not? Do they believe God, that no man shall see him .without holiness? Heb. 12. 14. and yet dare they be unholy? and perhaps deride it? Do they believe that Chrift will come in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jefus Chrift; who shall be punished with everlasting deftruction, from the prefence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power, 2 Thef. 2. 8, 9. and yet dare they difobey the Gospel! Do they take God for their abfolute Lord and Governour, while they will not fo much as meditate on his Laws, but care more what a mortal man faith, or what their flesh and carnal reason faith, than what ke faith to them in his holy Word? Do they take Christ for their Saviour, and yet would not be faved by him from their fins, but had rather keep them? Do they take the Holy Ghoft for their Sandifier, while they will not have a fanctified beart or life, and love it not in those that have it? Do they take Heaven for their endless bome and happiness? while they neither mind nor feek it, in comparison of the world? And do they take the world for vanity and vexation, while they mind and feck it more than Heaven? Do they believe the communion of Saints, while they fly from it, and perhaps deteft and perfecute it? Is light and darkness more contrary than their words and deeds? And is not HYPOCRISIE as vifible in their prallice, as Chriftianity in their profession? It is the complexion of their Religion. HYPOCRITE is legibly written in the forehead of it. They proclaim their fhame to all that they converfe with. When they have faid, they believe the life to come, they tell men by your ungodly worldly lives, that they are diffemblers. When their tongue hath loudly faid, that they are Chriftians, their tongue and

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hand more loudly fay, that they are Hypocrites. And when they profefs their Faith but now and then, in a lifeless outfide piece of worship, they profefs their Hypocrifie all the day long: in their impious negle& of God and their falvation; in their carnal speeches, in their worldly lives, and in their enmity to the practice of the fame Religion which they profefs. Their Hypocrifie is a web, fo thin, and fo tranfparent, that it leaves their nakedness open to their fhame. They have not Profeffion erongb to make a confiderable cover for their unbelief. They hide but their tongues: the reft even, heart and all, is bare.

O the ftupendious power of felf love! the wonderful blindness and ftupidity of the ungodly! the dreadfulness of the judgement of God in thus deferting the wilful refitters of his grace! That ever men (in other things of feeming wildom) should be fuch ftrangers to themselves, and fo deceived by themselves, as to think they love the thing they bate! and to think that their hearts are fet upon Heaven, when they nei ther love it, nor the way that leadeth to it; but are principally bent another way: that when they ar: ftrangers or enemies to a holy life, they can yet make themselves believe, that the y are holy; and that they feek that first, which they never feek; and make that the drift and business of their lives, which was never the ferious, bufineß of an hour! O Hypocrites! ask any impartial man of reason, that fees your lives, and hears your prayers, whether you pray, and live, like men that believe that Heaven or Hell must be their reward! Ask your families, whether they perceive by your conftant prayer, and diligent endeavours, and holy converfations, that your hearts are fet on a life to come! It was a cutting anfwer of a late Apoftate, to one that told him of the unreasonablenefs of Infidels that denyed the life to come; faith he, There's none in the world fo unreasonable as you Chriftisns, that believe that there is an endless life of joy or mifery to come, and do no more to obtain the one, and escape the other. Did I believe fuch a life as thy, I would think all too little that I could do or fuffer, to make it fure. Who fees the certainly, greatness, and eternity of the Crown of Life, in the refolvedness, fervency, and conftancy of your holy labour! You take up with the picture of Sermons and Prayers,

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and with the name of Chriftianity and holy obedience: A little more Religion you will admit, than a Parrot may learn, or a Poppet may exercife. Compare your care, and labour, and coft, for Heaven, and for this world. That you believe the flattering deceitful world, we fee by your daily folicitoufnefs about it: You seek it; you ftrive for it; you fall out with all that ftand in your way; you are at it daily, and have never done: But who can fer, that you feriously believe another ́ world? you talk idly, and wantonly, and proudly by the beurs; but you talk of Heaven and holiness but by the minutes: You do not turn the glafs when you go to your unneceffary recreations, or your vain difcourfe; or at left, you can flay when the glafs is run: But in hearing the most neceffary truths of God, or in praying for everlafting life, the hour feems long to you; and the tedious Preacher is your wearmefs and moleftation. You do not feaft and play by the glass; but if we do not preach and pray by it exactly, but exceed our hour, though in fpeaking of, and for eternity, we are your burden, and put your languid patience to it, as if we were doing you fome intollerable wrong.

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In worldly matters, you are weary of giving, but feldom of receiving you grudge at the asker, but feldom at the giver. But if the gift be fpiritual and beavenly, you are aweary to bear talk of it, and expoftulate the cafe with him that of fereth it and he muft fhew by what authority he would do you good! If by firious holy conference he would further your preparations for the life to come, or help you to make fure of life eternal, he is examined what power he hath to meddle with you, and promote your falvation: And perhaps he is fnappithly told, he is a bufic, fawcy fellow, and you bid him meddle with his own matters, and let you speed as you can, and keep his compaffion and charity for himself, you give him no thanks for his undefired help. The moft laborious faithful fervant you like beft, that will do you the moft work, with greateft skill, and care, and diligence: But the most laborious faithful inftru&ter and watchman for your fouls, you mot ungratefully vilific, as if he were more bafic and precife than needs, and were upon fome unprofitable work; and you love a fuperficial hypocritical Miniftry, that

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