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SERMON XII.

What is meant by fetting our Affections on Heavenly Things, and not on Earthly: And how abfolutely necef fary it is, that we should thus rightly place our Affections.

COLOS. iii. 2.

Set your Affections on Things above, and not on Things on the Earth.

HESE Words, tho' as they lie in the Chapter they bear the Form of a Precept or Exhortation, yet we may confider them as an Anfwer to the great Enquiry of Mankind: A divine Resolution of that important Cafe, which every Man puts to himself. The great End that all Mankind purfue, is to be as happy as they can. This we are all agreed upon. But as to the Way of attaining this Happiness,

VOL. VI.

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or the Things in which it doth confift, about these we differ. For Men finding in themselves Appetites and Defires of several Sorts to be gratified, and Neceffities of fundry Kinds to be supplied, and accordingly there being fo many kinds of Objects that tend that tend to the Gratification of thofe Appetites, and to the supplying those Neceffities, which prefent themselves under the Notion of Goods (as indeed they are) it can scarce be avoided but that Men will differ, if not in their Opinions, yet in their Choice and Determination, which of these various Appetites they will lay out themselves in the fatisfying of; which of those Goods they will make it their Business to furnish themfelves with. And hence it comes to pafs, that fo many different Designs are driven on in the World: And all of them too in order to the fame End; that is, the living a happy Life. Tho' it is fadly true, that far the greatest Number of Men do exceedingly fail of their End.

The great Concernment then of every Man, when he comes to the Ufe of his Reafon, is to chufe right for himself; to propofe fuch Designs to pitch upon, fuch Objects to lay out himself upon, as will not fail to fecure to him the great End, viz. the being as happy as he can be.

Now

Now all the Objects in the World, that can be fuppofed to recommend themselves to our Defires or Purfuit, as the Things that will make us happy (how many and various foever the Particulars be, yet) we fhall find, that they may conveniently enough be reduced to two Heads; The Things of the Earth, and, The Things above, as the Apostle in my Text diftributes them. So that between these two Sorts of Things will lie the Competition.

By the Things of the Earth we may un derftand all Sorts of Goods that are herë about us, that affect our Senfes, that gratify our animal Appetites, that do directly and immediately tend to the Prefervation or Well-being of our bodily Life, fuch as Riches, Pleasures, Honours, Knowledge of Arts and Sciences, and the like.

By the Things above, we understand not only the glorious Rewards, which we expect after Death in the Kingdom of Heaven, but also all thofe Qualities and Difpofitions of Mind, which do prepare us for, and make us capable of thofe Rewards, fuch as Virtue, and Goodness, and the Fear of God. In a Word, by the former we understand all thofe Things that do corcern our Bodies, or our outward Man; by the latter, all thofe Things that do con cern our Souls, or our inward Man.

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Now we do not fo oppose these two Kinds of Things, as to make our Pursuit or Acquifition of the one of them incompatible with our Purfuit or Acquifition of the other. The Queftion is not whether, in order to our Happiness, we are fo wholly to attend one, as altogether to neglect the other. No; the Things on Earth, and the Things above, have both the Notion of Good, and therefore are both defirable, and therefore may be both laboured after, and may, at leaft in fome Degree, be attained; and when they are attained, may be enjoyed; and when they are enjoyed, we may take Delight and Complacency in that Enjoyment. But the Point lies here; which of thefe, in order to our Happiness, we are to fet our Affections upon: That is to fay, fince every Man, who doth not live by Chance, and is not like a Brute, perfectly acted by Things without him, doth propofe to himself fome Design to purfue, as the great Bufinefs of his Life, and upon the effecting of which, he takes his Happiness mainly to depend, and what he thus makes his chiefeft Bufinefs, is preferred by him before all other Ends, takes up the greatest Share of his Thoughts, and Labours, and Endeavours, while his other Projects give way to this, and are managed in Subordination to it. (No Man being able to drive on feveral different Designs

with the highest Degree of Earneftness and Fervor of Mind at the fame Time) And fince, laftly, no Man can make any thing his main Design but it will fall under one of these two Heads, either the Things of the Earth, or the Things above, the great Question is, which of these two Kinds of Things are to have the Pre-eminence in our Choice? Which of them, if we will act like reasonable Men, and confult our own Happiness and Advantage as much as we can, we are to pitch upon, as the main ftanding Bufinefs of our Lives, the Thing we live for, the Thing we will labour after in the firft Place?

This is the great Inquiry. And this the Apostle refolves in my Text, when he advifeth us to fet our Affections on the Things above, and not on the Things on the Earth. The Reasonablenefs of which Advice of his, it is the Bufinefs of the following Difcourfe to make out.

In order whereunto I fhall fhew, that all thofe Motives and Arguments, which do ufually prevail with Mankind for the determining their Choice to this particular Thing rather than another, are much ftronger on the Part of the Things above, than on the Part of the Things of the Earth. Which, if it be made to appear, the Confequence will be, that that Man is a Fool, and acts against his own Interest, against the common Reafon of Mankind, nay,

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