Let those who, though they really love, and fear, and serve God in the course of a virtuous and religious life; yet, because they feel not in themselves that warmth of affection, which many enthusiasts pretend to, are afraid and suspect that they do not love God sincerely as they ought, be corrected, by considering that there is no other mark so infallible of the goodness of a tree, as the fruit, which it brings forth. It is not a religious mood or humour, but a religious temper: it is not to be now and then pleased with our maker in the gayety of the heart, when, more properly speaking, we are pleased with ourselves: it is not to have a few occasional transient acts of complacency and delight in the Lord rising in our minds, when we are in a vein of good humour: but it is to have a lasting, habitual, and determinate resolution to please the Deity, rooted and grounded in our hearts, and influencing our actions throughout. If they live in obedience to the commands of God, they need no other evidence of the sincerity of their hearts toward him for all other signs may possibly be erroneous; but this is the very thing itself signified. Love of goodness, righteousness, and truth, is love of God: for God is goodness and truth; and he who loves these virtues, which are the moral perfections of the divine nature, does therefore love God most perfectly; because he loves those excellencies, for the sake of which God expects that we should love him above all things.

The other fruit of love is the desire of enjoying: this is the case of all men. They desire the company of those they love: so he that sincerely loves God will not only be constant in prayer, meditation, hearing his word, and receiving the blessed sacrament of the Lord's supper, with cheerfulness and devotion; but will earnestly wish to be dissolved, and to be with Christ in the glory of God the Father; with an entire resignation of this world, and all its enjoyments, to God's will and pleasure.

SUNDAY I. PART II.

V. The fourth duty to God is FEAR. Though love casteth out all servile fear, yet it doth not exclude such a fear as a dutiful son shows to a very affectionate, but a very wise and prudent father; and we may rejoice in God with reverence. as well as serve him with gladness. For love, if not allayed and tempered with fear, and the apprehensions of divine justice, would betray the soul into a sanguine confidence and ill-grounded security. Fear, on the other hand, if not sweetened and animated by love, would sink the mind into a fatal despondency. Therefore fear is placed in the soul, as a counterpoise to the more enlarged, kindly, and generous affections. There are two bridles or restraints, which God hath put upon human nature, shame and fear. Shame is the weaker, and hath place only in those in whom there are some remains of virtue. Fear is the stronger, and works upon all, who love themselves, and desire their own preservation. Therefore, in this degenerate state of mankind, fear is that passion which hath the greatest power over us, and by which God and his laws take the surest hold of us: our desire, and love, and hope, are not so apt to be wrought upon by the representation of virtue, and the promises of reward and happiness, as our fear is from the apprehensions of divine displeasure. For, though we have lost in a great measure the true relish for happiness, yet we still retain a quick sense of pain and misery. So that fear is founded on a natural love of ourselves, and is interwoven with a necessary desire of our own preservation. And therefore religion usually makes its first entrance into us by this passion. Hence perhaps it is, that Solomon more than once calls the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom.

To fear God, is to have such a due sense of his majesty, and holiness, and justice, and goodness, as shall make us not dare to offend him; for each of these attributes is proper to raise a suitable fear in every considering mind: his majesty, a fear, lest we affront it by being irreverent; his holiness, a fear, lest we offend it by being carnal; his justice, a fear, lest we provoke it by being presumptuous; and his goodness, a fear,

lest we forfeit it by being unthankful. So that this fear of God is not the superstitious dread of an arbitrary or cruel being, but that awe and regard which necessarily arises in the mind of every man who believes and habitually considers himself as living and acting in the sight of an omnipresent Governor, of perfect justice, holiness, and purity; who sees every thought, as well as every action; who cannot be imposed upon by any hypocrisy; who, as certainly as there is any difference between good and evil, cannot but approve the one and detest the other; and whose government consists in rewarding what he approves, and punishing what he hates. This fear of God is the foundation of religion; for the great support of virtue among men is the sense upon their minds of a supreme Governor and Judge of the universe, who will finally and effectually reward what is in itself essentially worthy of reward, and punish what is worthy of punishment. And consequently fear brings us into subjection to God's authority, and inforces the practice of our duty for, the fear of the Lord is to depart from evil. Yet

very

It may with sorrow be observed, that the fear of men, or dread not to provoke them, is too often stronger than the fear of God; though God is infinitely more to be dreaded than man; which is the lesson we are taught by Christ himself, who says, Fear not them that can kill the body; that is, fear not men so much as God; fear him infinitely more. It is lawful for us to fear men, and to stand in awe of their power, because they can kill the body; and death is terrible: but when the power of man comes in competition with omnipotency, and what man can do to the body in this world, with what God can do to the body and soul in the other; there is no comparison between the terror of the one and the other. God can do all that man can do, he can kill the body, and that by an immediate act of his divine power. He can blast our reputation, ruin our estate, and afflict our bodies with the sharpest pains, and smite us with death. And God doth all that with ease, which men many times do with labour; they use the utmost of their wit and power to do us mischief; but God can do all things by a word; if he do but speak, judgments come; we are but a little dust, and the least breath

of God can disperse it: he hath all creatures at his command, ready to execute his will. So that whatever man, or any creature can do, that God can do also, and infinitely more. His power is not confined to the body, but he hath power over the spirit; he can not only make body and soul miserable in this world, but in the other also; and that not only for a few years, but for all eternity. Therefore,

The fear of men will not be a sufficient plea and excuse for men; it will not be enough to say, This I was awed into by the apprehension of danger, or by the fear of sufferings; or, that I chose rather to trust God with my soul, than men with my estate; to save my life, I renounced my religion, was ashamed of Christ, and denied him before men; though our Saviour hath told us plainly, Whosoever shall be ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with his holy angels. Thus they who out of fear of men offend God, are guilty of this folly; they incur the danger of a greater evil; for, while they are endeavouring to escape the hands of men that shall die, they fall into the hands of the everliving God. Do we fear the wrath of man, whose breath is in his nostrils, who can but afflict a little, and for a little while; and is not the wrath of the eternal God much more dreadful? For, as we are sinners, our fear is justly increased from the holiness of his nature, the justice of his government, and the threatenings of his laws. But to conclude: as our offences respect men, it is possible we may transgress against them, and they not know it; one may steal his neighbour's goods, or defile his wife, yet keep it so privately as not to be suspected, and so never be brought to punishment for it. But this can never be done in regard to God, who knows the most secret thoughts of our hearts; and consequently, though we sin ever so privately, he is sure to find us out, and will as surely, except we repent in time, punish us for it eternally.

VI. A fifth duty to God is TRUST. For the homage due to God in all our wants and dangers, is to trust in him; whereby we declare our constant dependence upon God for the relief of all our wants and dangers, whether spiritual or

temporal, and to support us under all afflictions and temptations, founded upon a persuasion of his all sufficiency, and of his inviolable faithfulness to perform his word and engagements. As far as I trust a man, I suppose him able to do what I trust him for; that he hath given me some encouragement to believe his willingness, and that he will not deceive me: and it must be so in any regular trust in God, who is able to do for us, exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think. But then it is of the utmost concern to us, that we have no expectation from God for things which he hath never promised. Where he has been pleased positively to declare what he will do, we should firmly depend, whatever difficulties or discouragements may lie in the way of our hope: but where his promises are made with a reserve. for his own sovereignty, or the superiority of his divine wis dom, as he knows far better than we what is good for man in this life; there we should not allow ourselves to be positive in our expectations of particular events, but cast our care upon him in a more general manner; relying upon this, that in the way of duty, he will do that which upon

the whole is best for us to be done.

In all conditions that befall us we must repose ourselves upon God, in confidence of his support and deliverance, of his care and providence, to prevent and divert the evils we fear, whether spiritual or temporal; or of his gracious help to bear us up under them; and of his mercy and goodness to deliver us from them, when he sees best; provided always we be careful to do our duty to him.* Every man that believes this of God, as every man must do that be lieves there is a God, will first apply himself to God, and beseech him with all earnestness and importunity, that he would permit him to refer his affairs to him, and be pleased to undertake the care of them; and he will, without any demur or difficulty, give up himself wholly to him, to guide and govern him, and to dispose of him, as to him should seem best. Therefore, if God hath prevented us herein, and, without our desire, taken this care upon him self, we ought to rejoice in it, as the greatest happiness:

* See christian Fortitude and Patience in Sunday xvi, Sect. v.