many an irksome fweat we must endure k. Yea, far- SERM. XLVIII. ther,

5. We may confider, that by delaying to amend, to do it may become quite impoffible; it may be fo in the nature of the thing, it may be fo by the will of God: the thing may become naturally impoffible; for vice by cuftom may pass into nature, and prove fo congenial, as if it were born with us; fo that we fhall propend to it, as a stone falleth down, or as a spark flieth upward: by soaking in voluptuoufnefs, we may be fo transformed into brutes, by steeping in malice fo converted into fiends, that we neceffarily fhall act like creatures of that kind, into which we are degenerated; and then nowise, without a downright miracle, are we capable of being reformed. How long, faith Solomon, wilt thou sleep, Prov. vi. 9. O fluggard? when wilt thou arife out of thy fleep? We may be so often called on; and it is not easy to awaken us, when we are got into a spiritual slumber; but when we are dead in trespasses and fins, so that all breath Eph. ii. 1. of holy affection is ftopped, and no fpiritual pulfe from Apoc. iii. 1. our heart doth appear; that all sense of duty is loft, all appetite to good doth fail, no strength or activity to move in a good course doth exert itself, that our good complexion is diffolved, and all our finer fpirits are diffipated, that our mind is quite crazed, and all its powers are shattered or spoiled; when thus, I fay, we are spiritually dead, how can we raise ourselves, what beneath omnipotency can effect it? As a stick, when once it is dry and stiff, you may break it, but you can never bend it into a Frangas ciftraighter posture; fo doth the man become incorrigible, corrigas

1 Tim. v. 6.

tius quam who is fettled and stiffened in vice. The stain of habitual quæ in pra, fin may fink in fo deep, and fo thoroughly tincture all vum indu. our foul, that we may be like those people of whom the Quintil. i. 3.

-fruftra medicina paratur,

Cum mala per longas invaluere moras.

Ovid.

Ῥῶν ἀπ' ἀρχῆς μὴ ἐνδόναι κακίᾳ, καὶ προσιοῦσαν διαφυγεῖν, ἢ προβαινοῦσαν ἀναzoa. Greg. Naz. Orat. 26.

1 Επειδὰν εἰς φρενίτιν ἐκπεσόντες λακτίζωσι καὶ δάκνωσι τοὺς βουλομένους ἀπαλλάξαι τῆς ἀῤῥωσίας αὐτοὺς, τότε νοσοῦσιν ἀνίατα. Chryf. in Babyl. Orat. 2.

ruerunt.

SERM. Prophet faith, Can the Ethiopian change his fkin, or the XLVIII leopard his spots? Then may ye do good, that are accuf Jer. xiii. 23. tomed to do evil. Such an impoffibility may arise from nature; one greater and more infuperable may come from God.

Αδύνατον.

Heb. vi. 4.

To an effectual repentance, the fuccour of divine grace John iii. s. is neceffary; but that is arbitrarily dispensed; the Spirit bloweth where it lifteth; yet it lifteth wifely, with regard both to the past behaviour and present capacities of men; fo that to fuch who have abused it, and to fuch who will not treat it well, it fhall not be imparted. And can we be well affured, can we reasonably hope, that after we by our presumptuous delays have put off God, and dallied with his grace; after that he long in vain hath waited to be gracious; after that he hath endured fo many neglects, and fo many repulfes from us; after that we frequently have flighted his open invitations, and fmoTo thered his kindly motions in us; in fhort, after we fo Txo unworthily have mifufed his goodness and patience, Ανυβρίσας. Heb.x. 29. that he farther will vouchfafe his grace to us; when we Advarov. have forfeited it, when we have rejected it, when we have fpurned and driven it away, can we hope to recover it? There is a time, a feafon, a day, allotted to us; our 2 Cor. vi. 2. day, it is termed, a day of falvation, the feafon of our vifHeb. iii. 13. tation, an acceptable time; wherein God freely doth exJohn ix. 4. hibit grace, and presenteth his mercy to us: if we let this Luke xix. day flip, the night cometh, when no man can work; when the things belonging to our peace will be hidden from our Ifa. lix. 10. eyes; when (as the Prophet expreffeth it) we shall grope for the wall like the blind, and ftumble at noon-day as in the night, and be in defolate places as dead men: after that day is fpent, and that comfortable light is fet, a dismal night of darknefs, of cold, of difconfolatenefs, will fucJer. xv. 6. ceed; when God being weary of bearing with men, doth Mal. ii. 17. utterly defert them, and delivereth them over to a reprobate mind; when fubtracting his gracious direction and Rom. 1. 24. affiftance, he giveth them over to their own heart's lufts, Pfal. lxxxi. and to walk in their own counfels; when they are brought to complain with thofe in the Prophet, O Lord, why haft

Luke xix.

42, 44.

42.

Ifa. i. 14.

vii. 13.

xxvi. 28.

12.

Matt. xxv.

Luke xiii.

29.

thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart SERM. from thy fear? when, like Pharaoh, they furvive only as XLVIII. objects of God's juftice, or occafions to glorify his Rom.ix.17. power; when, like Efau, they cannot find a place of repentance, although they feek it carefully with tears ; Heb. xii. when, as to the foolish loitering virgins, the door of Ma mercy is fhut upon them; when the Mafter of the houfe 10. doth rife and fhut the door, &c. when that menace of di- 25. vine wisdom cometh to be executed; They shall call Prov. i. 28, upon me, but I will not answer; they shall feek me early, but they shall not find me ; for that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord. And if, neglecting our feafon and prefent means, we once fall into this state, then is our cafe most deplorable; we are dead men irreverfibly doomed, and only for a few moments reprieved from the ftroke of final vengeance; we are veffels of Rom. ix. wrath fitted (or made up) for deftruction; by a fatal 22 Κατηρτισμέ blindness and obduration fealed up to ruin; we are like a sis áœáthe terra damnata, that earth (in the Apostle) which drink- Heb. vi. 7, ing up the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bearing thorns 8. and briars, is rejected, and is nigh unto curfing, and whofe end is to be burned. Wherefore, according to the advice of the Prophet, Seek ye the Lord when he may be found, Ifa. Iv. 6. call ye upon him while he is near.

λειαν.

27.

It is true, that God is ever ready, upon our true converfion, to receive us into favour; that his arms are always open to embrace a fincere penitent; that he hath declared, whenever a wicked man turneth from his wicked- Ezek. xviii. nefs, and doeth that which is right, he shall fave his foul' alive; that if we do wash ourselves, make us clean, put Ifa. i. 16, away the evil of our doings, and ceafe to do evil, then, al- 18. ・though our fins be as fcarlet, they shall be white as fnow; though they be like crimson, they shall be as wool; that if we rend our hearts, and turn unto the Lord, he is gracious Joel. ii. 13. and merciful, and will repent of the evil; that God is good Pf. lxxxvi. and ready to forgive, and plenteous in mercy unto all that call upon him; that whenever a prodigal fon, with humble confeffion and hearty contrition for his fin, doth arise Luke xv. and go to his father, he will embrace him tenderly, and 18.

5.

ad Theod.

ii. Judas

(faith he

pardon.

SERM. entertain him kindly; that even a profane apoftate, and XLVIII. a bloody oppreffor, (as Manaffes,) a lewd ftrumpet, (as Vid. Chryf. Magdalene,) a notable thief, (as he upon the cross,) a timorous renouncer, (as St. Peter,) a furious perfecutor, (as St. Paul,) a ftupid idolater, (as all the Heathen world, capable of when the Gospel came to them, was,) the most heinous finner that ever hath been, or can be imagined to be, if he be difpofed to repent, is capable of mercy: those declarations and promises are infallibly true; thofe inftances peremptorily do evince, that repentance is never fuperannuated; that if we can turn at all, we fhall not turn too late; that pœnitentia nunquam fera, modo feria, is an irrefragable rule. Yet nevertheless delay is very unfafe; for what affurance can we have, that God hereafter will enable us to perform thofe conditions of bewailing our fins, and forfaking them? Have we not cause rather to fear that he will chaftife our prefumption by withholding his grace? For although God faileth not Rom. ii. 4. to yield competent aids to persons who have not despised his goodness and longfuffering, thai leadeth them to repentance; yet he that wilfully or wantonly loitereth away the time, and fquandereth the means allowed him; who refuseth to come when God calleth, yea wooeth and courteth him to repentance, how can he pretend to find fuch favour?

We might add, that fuppofing God in fuperabundance of mercy might be prefumed never to withhold his grace; yet feeing his grace doth not work by irresistible compulfion; feeing the worfe qualified we are, the more apt we fhall be to cross and defeat its operation; seeing that we cannot hope that hereafter we shall be more fit than now to comply with it; yea feeing we may be fure, that, after our hearts are hardened by perfeverance in fin, we shall be more indifpofed thereto; we by delay of repentance do not only venture the forfeiture of divine grace, but the danger of abufing it, which heinously will aggravate our guilt, and hugely augment our punishment.

We fhould do well therefore moft seriously to regard Heb. iii. 13. the Apostle's admonition; Exhort one another to-day,

;

while it is called to-day, left any of you be hardened by the SER M. deceitfulness of fin. Now that we find ourselves invited to XLVIII. repent; now that we apprehend fo much reafon for it; now that we feel our hearts fomewhat inclined thereto now that we have time in our hands, and are not barred from hopes of mercy; now that it is not extremely difficult, or not absolutely impoffible, let us in God's name Jay hold on the occafion, let us fspeedily and earnestly set upon the work. Farther yet,

xiv. 5. vii.

1.

6. We fhould confider, that we are mortal and frail, and thence any defigns of future reformation may be clipt off, or intercepted by death; which is always creeping toward us, and may, for all we can tell, be very near at hand. You say you will repent to-morrow: but are you fure you fhall have a morrow to repent in m? Have you an hour in your hand, or one minute at your disposal? Have you a leafe to fhew for any term of life? Can you claim or reckon upon the leaft portion of time without his leave, who beftoweth life, and dealeth out time, and ordereth all things as he pleaseth? Can you anywife defcry the juft meafure of your days, or the bounds of your Job xii. 10. appointed time, without a fpecial revelation from him, in V whofe hands is your breath; and with whom alone the Pfal.xxxix. number of your months is registered? Boaft not thyself of Dan.v. 23. to-morrow; for thou knoweft not what a day may bring forth, faith the Wife Man; boaft not of it, that is, do oix des To not pretend it to be at thy difpofal, prefume not upon an inany thing that may befal therein; for whilst thou pre- ayyo ra fumeft thereon, may it not be faid unto thee, as to the Baf. M. exh. rich projector in the Gospel, Thou fool, this night shall thy ad Bapt. foul be required of thee? Doth not, fecluding hidden decrees, every man's life hang upon a thread very flender and frail? Is it not fubject to many diseases lurking within, and to a thousand accidents flying about us? How many, that might have promifed themselves as fair scope as we can, have been unexpectedly fnapt away?

Qui pænitenti veniam fpofpondit, peccanti craftinum diem non promifit. Greg. in Evang. Hom. ix.

4. xc. 12.

Prov. xxvii.

1.

τέξεται ἡ ἐπισ

Luke xii.

20.