than these? Whoever is oppreffed with the Guilt of his Sins, it is but coming to Chrift, that is, as they ufually expound it, believing in him, and cafting themselves wholly upon him, and they fhall have their Burdens taken off, and be at perfect Eafe and Reft. But what follows? Take, faith our Saviour, my Yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in Heart, and then ye shall find Reft for your

Souls. Here our Saviour fhews that he means fomething more by coming to him: Coming to Chrift in his Senfe, is to take his Yoke upon ourselves, (and a most easy and comfortable Yoke it is) and to learn of him, to imitate his Example, to frame our Minds, and Spirits, and Tempers to a Conformity with his Mind, and Spirit, and Temper; to be meek and lowly in Heart, as he was; and fo in all other Inftances. This is that which every one must do, if he means to find Reft for his Soul.

Again, When our Saviour gave that unheard-of Inftance of Kindness and Condefcenfion to his Difciples in vouchfafing to wash their Feet, pray mind the Application he makes of it, John 13. 15. I have given you (faith he) an Example, that ye bould do to one another as I have done unto you. If I, fays he, your Lord and Master, have washed your Feet, then ought ye to wash one another's Feet.

You

You fee by this, that his Example was intended by him to have all the Force and Obligation of a Command; only in this it had the Advantage, that it was more moving and perfuafive.

As for the Apoftles, it would be endless to repeat all the Paffages wherein they propofe our Saviour to us as a Pattern and Example of Living: How they bid us to look up to Jefus the Author and Finisher of our Faith, left at any Time we should be weary and faint in our Minds! How they call upon us to walk in his Steps, to be Followers of him, nay, to be Followers of them, because they were Followers of him! How often do they mention his Patience, his Humility, his Meekness, his boundless Love and Charity, as Arguments and Encouragements to us to proceed in thofe Virtues? Laftly, they lay fuch Stress upon this Point of Conforming ourselves to the Example of Chrift in all Things, that they make the very Notion of Discipleship to him, to confift in it. Whoever (fays St. John, Ep. 1. ch. 2.) faith that he abideth in him, (that is, pretends to be a Disciple of his) ought himself also to walk even as he walketh; without this he cannot be accounted a Difciple of Chrift.

And indeed it mufts needs be true in the Reafon of the Thing. Which is the 2d Thing I would defire you to confider. For

what

what is it to be any one's Difciple, but to be a Follower of him in the Mystery that he profeffeth. If a Man fets up for a Mafter in any Science or fpeculative Matters, in that Cafe to be a Difciple of his, is to embrace his Notions and Sentiments of the Thing he pretends to teach. If he be a Teacher of fome Art, or Matters of Practice, why then his Difciples are those that conform themselves to his Methods and Ways of Practice in that Art. This is the Notion that all the World has of a Difciple.

If now we would know what it is to be a Difciple of Chrift, the Way must be to know what it is that Chrift profeffeth; what Mystery it was that he pretended to teach to the World. If his Bufinefs among Mankind was only to teach Men fome new Notions they knew not before, then I grant there is no more required to the being his Difciple, than only to believe and understand thofe Notions he deliver❜d: Or if his Bufinefs was further, to gather together a Number of Men that fhould openly profefs fuch a Set of Propofitions, and to oblige them thereto, they should all of them, upon the Entrance of that Profef fion, be baptized with Water, as a folemn Ceremony of Initiation into it; then indeed to make one a Difciple of his, it would be fufficient that he was a Profeffor

and

and a baptized Perfon, let him live what way he pleafed. But now, fince, as all must acknowledge, the chief Skill that our Saviour profeffed, was that of Living; the main Art and Myftery he pretended to teach, was the Art of ordering our Converfation fo, as that we might please God, and be accepted of him; there must go more to the making a Disciple of his, than either Belief, or Profeffion, or Baptifm. A Man, if he will deferve that Name, must live as he lived, muft conform himself to his Manners, and Precepts of Living, and Way of Walking, otherwife he doth not follow him in the Art he profeffeth, and confequently is no more his Difciple than a Man because he wears a Turbant is the Difciple of Mahomet, tho' in all Things elfe he be a few; or than a Man of old was a Stoick, because he, like them, walked in the Portico, tho' in the mean time he held the Principles of Epicurus.

This is fo plain a Thing, that tho' we may fometimes, with a great deal of Pains, cheat ourselves, yet it is impoffible to impofe upon any indifferent Perfon in the Matter. Let us fuppofe a Heathen to have read the Hiftory of our Saviour, and from hence to be informed what his Pretences and Designs were in the World; what good Precepts he gave for the Conduct of Mens Converfation; what a kind of Life he

led;

led; how innocent, fober, chaste, meekfpirited, patient, humble, devout, charitable a Perfon he was: Will he not from this conclude, that furely all that pretend to be the Disciples of this Jefus, are obliged, not only in Confcience, but in Decency, and for their own Credit, and the Credit of their Mafter, to live as he lived; or if they do not, they fhew they do not belong to him? Shall any of us be able, with all the Art we have, let us pretend never fo much Devotion to our Lord, let us make never fo many Reverences at his Name, tho' we extol him to the Skies, tho' we profefs we glory in nothing fo much as in being his Difciples, tho' we are zealous for his Religion above all Things, nay, tho' we fwear we would die for him, if there was occafion; yet, I fay, can any of us, with all these Artifices, make the Man believe that we are truly his Difciples, if we lead our Lives in a contrary Way to what he did? May he not truly and juftly reply to us, I hear your Words indeed, you are very civil and complimental to this Perfon whom you call your Saviour; but you must pardon me, if I cannot believe you have any real Respect or inward

Veneration for him? I cannot think that you either truly believe in him, or expect to be faved by him; for if you did, you could not poffibly live fo contrary both to