But description is needless: it is to be felt, not defcribed. They who have felt it, need no defcription to make it more known; and they who have not felt it, will not be at all the wiser, I fear, from any defcription of it that can be given.

THUS I have endeavoured to explain to you the uses that may be made of our bleffed Lord's temptation. It remains for others to fhew what ufes it had, if it had not been real. I know of none. Where is the example, where is the confolation, in a mere vifion? It authenticates nothing it may be a pleasing narrative: but it wants authority, either to compel example, or to furnish comfort. In this therefore, as in all other things, we should follow the steps of our bleffed Lord, who came to teach us the way to falvation. As he was, fo may we be, affisted by the divine grace. We may fay, as he did, to every temptation, as it arifes, Get thee hence, Satan: God's grace is fufficient for us, and his Strength is made perfect in our weakness. The devil can only fuggeft temptations. He who tempts cannot compel. There can be no fin without our own confent.

There is no harm

in the temptation: there is no harm done till the temptation prevails. It is the Devil's act to tempt; and ours to yield. We may yield, or we may refift:-to yield, is fin; to refift, is religion. Temptations furnish opportunities for both. Danger indeed there is; and this fhould awaken all our care and caution; and the more fo, as we know our care and caution may be effectual; and that if we ourselves do our best, God's grace will not fuffer us to be tempted above what we are able; but will with the temptation make a way to efcape, that we may be able to bear it.

SERMON IV.

I PET. ii. 21.

LEAVING US AN EXAMPLE, THAT WE SHOULD FOLLOW HIS STEPS.

IT

is one of the great advantages of the Christian religion, that it is enforced upon us, not only by the precepts, but by the example of its bleffed Author. This is an advantage peculiar to Christianity: the Jewish religion could not boaft it: Mofes was a great leader, and a great lawgiver; but his example did not descend, like that of Jefus, into common life. It is true, indeed, that our Saviour's example is a mark, we can at best only aim at; yet still there is fomething encouraging in feeing the rules, that are to guide our lives, illustrated by the actions of a life: they feem to come nearer our attainment at leaft they fhew us, how amiably

they

1

they fit upon a human being; and in how refpectable a light even a mortal man might appear, if he could get the better of his bad paffions and appetites, his follies and prejudices, and govern his actions more by the example of his bleffed Saviour.-The example of Christ, therefore, I propose as the subject of the following difcourfe and fhall, first, point it out to you as a perfect pattern; and, fecondly, fhew you how far we may follow it.

The example of any human being might often mislead us. Where shall we find, among the children of men, the pattern of a life, not only unblemished by weakneffes, but untainted by fin? It is true, many parts of an amiable character may undoubtedly be worthy of our imitation; but ftill, without care, even these very virtues may mislead us. mislead us. If, as is often the case, through our admiration of a few shining parts in a character, we are led through prejudice to admire the whole, we may eafily be deceived: we may imitate weaknesses, prejudices, humours, and follies; we may adopt many wrong fentiments, from which no human being is free: nothing is more common than this fort of imita tion and deception. A man, for inftance, is

may

kind and friendly; and his kindness and friendliness are worthy of our imitation: but perhaps he fit loose to the ties of religion; he may be lax in his practice, or uncharitable in his party-distinctions. Now, if through our admiration of the amiable parts of his character, we imitate those which are faulty, (and, by giving his faults fome gentle name, this may easily happen through friendship,) we are misled, you see, even by virtue itself. In following the examples, therefore, of our fellow-creatures, even the best of them, it requires caution. Diftinctions must be made: we must feparate the good from the bad; and we must necessarily have another rule to go by, than the fallible example we follow; that is, we must have a rule, by which the example itself must be judged.—But the example of Christ is as much a pattern, as his precepts are a rule. Here we cannot err. We have only to imitate as closely as poffible; and the more closely we imitate, the better. It was the obfervation of an old philofopher in the heathen world, that if virtue could appear to mankind in a visible shape, clothed in all that majesty and sweetness which naturally belong to it, the heavenly form would captivate the eyes of men,

and