another Life after this, and the most explicit Promises that we fhall be Partakers of it, if we be obedient to God's Laws, and have likewise the plaineft and fulleft Rules to direct us in that Obedience; fo that none of us, how ignorant or how shallow foever we be in other Refpects, yet, if we be honeft, can poffibly miss of our Way to Heaven And lastly, who have all this made out to us with fo much Clearness of Evidence, as will leave no Place for doubting in any reasonable indifferent Mind. I fay, what can be faid for us, if after haveing these great Opportunities put into our Hands of entring into God's everlasting Rest, Heb. 3. any of us fall fhort thro' Difobedience or Unbelief.

Oh, happy we Christians above all Men in the World! if having these clear Difcoveries of God's Will, and thefe ineftimable Advantages that flow therefrom, we do embrace and entertain them, and improve and make that Use of them we ought to do, by leading a holy, pure, and heavenly Life. But certainly we are the most inexcufable wretched People under Heaven, if we do not: Much better had it been for Ep. 2. us, as St. Peter fpeaks, never to have known the way of Righteousness, than after we have known it, to depart from the holy Commandment delivered to us.

21.

Oh,

Oh, my Brethren, to confider in how much Darkness all the reft of the World lies, and what a glorious Light fhines forth to us Chriftians; to confider how little Hopes, or how little Means they have of everlasting Salvation, and how richly, how abundantly God hath furnished us with both; fo that nothing is wanting to us, in order to our being everlaftingly happy, but only our own Choice and Concurrence: How ought this Confideration to affect us! What infinite Thanks do we owe to our gracious God for these unspeakable Mercies! And how can we exprefs these Thanks otherwife than by the Returns of a most hearty Love, and devoting ourselves entirely to his Service all the Days of our Life!

It is true, there are very few, if there be any, Nations in the World fo barbarous, as not to be of fome Religion or other. They do believe a God, and his Providence and Government of the World: Nay, the Generality of Pagan Countries at this Day do expect another Life after this, wherein good Men fhall be rewarded, and wicked Men punished. But then these general fundamental Truths are fo buried in an Heap of Errors, are fo defaced, and the Force of them fo much weakned thro' a Multitude of falfe and mischievous Principles that are mingled with them, that really the Condition of those Countries is very deplorable. P 4 What

What shameful falfe Notions have they of God and his Perfections! What horrible Idolatry and Superftition is to be seen in all their Worship! How flenderly grounded is their Belief of another Life, and what odd kind of Fancies have they about it! What a World of Foppery and Nonsense is there in all their Divinity! How much are they in the dark touching the Will of God and the Way of recommending themselves to his Favour! and how various and fanciful, nay, how ridiculous, and often impious, are the Methods they have pitched on for this Purpose! Not to fpeak of the horrible Slavery they are in to the Devil, who exercises a most cruel Tyranny over them in abundance of Inftances.

But, bleffed be the God of Heaven, we Christians have none of these Difficulties, none of these Inconveniencies to ftruggle with. We have a holy and a pure Religion taught us by God himself; a Religion, that in all the Parts of it is worthy of God, and fitted to all the Neceffities of Man. We have a Religion that teaches us to serve God in a Way fuitable to his Nature and to our own, that impofeth nothing upon us but what is good and excellent in itself, and tending to the Perfection of our Natures, and to the Peace and Happiness both of private Perfons, and publick Societies. We have a Religion that leaves us not to uncertain Gueffes and Conjectures about a

future

future Salvation, but has given us God's exprefs Word and Promife for it, fealed by the Blood of his own Son, and confirmed by his Refurrection from the Dead, and taking Poffeffion of the Kingdom of Heaven in our Behalf. We have a Religion that leaves us not to grope in the Dark how to get to that glorious Place where our Saviour is, but has defcribed to us all the Way that leads to it fo plainly, and withal given us fuch Notices of all the By-paths that may mislead us, that, if we be not extreamly wanting to ourselves, we cannot fail of arriving thither. We have a Religion that recommends itself to our Reason and Understanding, in which there is nothing trifling, nothing abfurd, and which the more any Man acquaints himself with, the more Satisfaction he will have concerning it. Laftly, we have a Religion, for which there is all the Proof, all the Evidence, that either Heaven or Earth can give for a Thing of this Nature. It is a Religion predicted by the Prophets; own'd feveral times by God's own Voice from Heaven; confeffed by the Devils; eftablished by an innumerable Multitude of Signs, and Wonders, and Miracles for a hundred Years together; attefted by the glorious Refurrection of our Saviour from the Grave, and his vifible Afcenfion into Heaven; confirmed by the Lives and wonderful Actions of a continued Succeffion of

wife,

wife, and good, and divine Men, who have profeffed it; manifefted by the Overthrow of the Devil's Kingdom in all Places where it got footing; and afferted by the Sufferings of ten thousand glorious Martyrs and Confeffors, who have from Age to Age refufed no Torments, no Cruelties of Death, to fhew how firmly they believed it.

This now being the Cafe of the Chriftian Religion; and the Profeffion of this Religion being the happy and glorious Vocation to which we are called by our Lord Jefus, Oh, what Obligations do there lie upon us above all the rest of Mankind, to be ferious in the Service of God; to be pure and unblameable in our Lives, and to abound in Phil. 1.11.all the Fruits of Righteousness which are by Chrift Jefus to the Praife and Glory of bis Name! And fo to fhew forth the natural genuine Fruits of fo holy, fo excellent a Religion! Oh, what manner of Perfons ought 2Pet.3.11.we to be in all holy Converfation and Godli

19.

nefs! Can there be any among us who 2 Tim. 2. names the Name of Chrift, and not depart from all Iniquity? Is it poffible, that where fo glorious a Light fhines forth, there should be any fuch Men as Atheists, Sadducees, or Unbelievers? Any fuch Thing as Profanenefs, Adultery, Whoredom, Drunkenness, Envy, Malice, Covetoufnefs, or the like? Why these are the proper Fruits of the Heathen State, out of which Chrift hath delivered us: And one would think that none

of