the other, from the grofs follies of fuperftition. And our church hath this peculiar advantage above feveral profeffions that we know in the world, that it acknowledgeth a due and juft fubordination to the civil authority, and hath always been untainted in its loyalty.

And now, fhall every trifling confideration be fufficient to move a man to relinquish such a church? There is no greater disparagement to a man's understanding, no greater argument of a light and ungenerous mind, than rafhly to change one's religion. Religion is our greatest concernment of all other; and it is not every little argument, no, nor a great noise about infallibility, nothing but very plain and convincing evidence, that fhould fway a man in this case. But they are ut-terly inexcufable who make a change of fuch concernment upon the infinuations of one fide only, without ever hearing what can be faid for the church they were baptized and brought up in before they leave it. They that can yield thus eafily to the impreffions of every one that hath a design and interest to make profelytes, may, at this rate of difcretion, change their religion twice aday; and, instead of morning and evening prayer, they may have a morning and evening religion. Therefore, for God's fake, and for our own fouls fake, and for the fake of our reputation, let us confider, and shew ourfelves men. Let us not fuffer ourselves to be fhaken and carried away with every wind. Let us not run ourselves into danger when we may be fafe. Let us stick to the foundation of religion, the articles of our common belief, and build upon them gold, and filver, and precious ftones; I mean, the virtues and actions of a good life: and, if we would do this, we should not be apt to fet fuch a value upon hay and ftubble. If we would fincerely endeavour to live holy and virtuous lives, we should not need to caft about for a religion which may furnish us with eafy and indirect ways to get to heaven.

I will conclude all with the Apostle's exhortation : Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be ye ftedfaft and unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.

Now the God of peace, which brought again from the dead our Lord Jefus Christ, the great shepherd of the sheep,

by

by the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleafing in his fight, through Jefus Chrift; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON

XII.

Of the inward peace and pleafure which attends religion.

PS A L. cxix. 165.

Great peace have they that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them.

I

N thefe words there are two things contained; the description of a good man, and the reward of his goodness.

1. The defcription of a good man: He is faid to be one that loves the law of God; that is, that loves to meditate upon it, and to practise it.

2. The reward of his goodness: Great peace have they that love thy law. The word peace is many times ufed in fcripture in a very large fenfe, fo as to comprehend all kind of happinefs. Sometimes it fignifies outward peace and quiet, in oppofition to war and conten tion; and fometimes inward peace and contentment, in oppofition to inward trouble and anguish. I understand the text chiefly in this laft fenfe, not wholly excluding either of the other.

My defign at prefent from thefe words is, to recommend religion to men, from the confideration of that inward peace and pleasure which attends it. And furely nothing can be faid more to the advantage of religion, in the opinion of confiderate men, than this. For the aim of all philofophy, and the great fearch of wife men, hath been how to attain peace and tranquillity of mind.

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And

And if religion be able to give this, a greater commendation need not be given to religion.

But before I enter upon this argument, I fhall premise two things by way of caution.

1. That thefe kind of obfervations are not to be taken too ftrictly and rigoroufly, as if they never failed in any one inftance. Ariftotle obferved long fince, that moral and proverbial fayings are understood to be true generally and for the most part; and that is all the truth that is to be expected in them. As, when Solomon fays, Train up a child in the way wherein he fhould go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it; this is not to be fo taken, as if no child that is pioufly educated did ever miscarry afterwards; but that the good education of children is the best way to make good men, and commonly approved to be fo by experience. So here, when it is faid, that great peace have they that love God's law; the meaning is, that religion hath generally this effect, though in fome cafes, and as to fome perfons, it may be accidentally hindered.

2. When I fay that religion gives peace and tranquillity to our minds, this is chiefly to be understood of a religious ftate in which a man is well fettled and confirmed, and not of our first entrance into it; for that is more or lefs troublesome according as we make it. If we begin a religious courfe betimes, before we have contracted any great guilt, and before the habits of fin be grown ftrong in us, the work goes on eafily, without any great conflict or refiftance. But the cafe is otherwife, when a man breaks off from a wicked life, and becomes religious, from the direct contrary courfe in which he hath been long and deeply engaged. In this cafe no man is fo unreafonable as to deny, that there is a great deal of fenfible trouble and difficulty in the making of this change; but when it is once made, peace and comfort will spring up by degrees, and daily increase, as we grow more confirmed and established in a good courfe.

These two things being premised, I fhall now endeavour to fhew, that religion gives a man the greatest pleafure and fatisfaction of mind; and that there is no true peace, nor any comparable pleasure to be had in a contrary courfe and that from these two heads; from teftimony of fcripture; and from the nature of religion,

:

which is apt to produce peace and tranquillity of mind. Firft, From teftimony of fcripture. I fhall felect fome of thofe texts which are more full and exprefs to this purpose. Job xxii. 21. fpeaking of God, Acquaint thyfelf now with him, and be at peace. To acquaint ourselves with God, is a phrase of the fame importance with coming to God, and feeking of him, and many other like expreffions in fcripture, which fignify nothing elfe but to be come religious. Pfal. xxxvii. 37. Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace. Or, as these words are rendered according to the LXX. in our old tranflation, Keep innocency, take heed to the thing that is right for that jhall bring thee peace at the laft. Prov.iii. 17. where Solomon, fpeaking of wifdom, which with him is but another name for religion, fays, Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. If. xxxii. 17. The work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and affurance for ever. Matth. xi. 28. 29. Come unto me, all ye that labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you reft. Now, to come to Chrift, is to become his difciples; to believe and practise his doctrine; for fo our Saviour explains himself in the next words: Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; and ye shall find rest for your fouls. Rom. ii. 10. Glory, and honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good.

And, on the contrary, the fcripture reprefents the condition of a finner to be full of trouble and difquiet. David, though he was a very good man, yet when he had grievously offended God, the anguifh of his mind. was fuch, as even to disorder and distemper his body: Pfal. xxxviii. 2. 3. 4. Thine arrows flick faft in me, and thy hand prefeth me fore. There is no foundness in my flefh, because of thine anger: neither is there any rest in my bones, becaufe of my fin. For mine iniquities are gone over mine head and as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. If. lvii. 20. 21. The wicked are like the troubled fea, when it cannot reft, whose waters caft up mire and dirt. There is no peace, faith my God, to the wicked. And If. lix. 7. 8. Mifery and deftruction are in their paths; and the way of peace they know not: they have made themfelves crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein, fhall not S 3

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know peace. Rom. ii. 9. Tribulation and anguish upon every foul of man that doth evil.

You fee how full and exprefs the scripture is in this I come now in the

matter.

Second place, To give you a more particular account of this from the nature of religion, which is apt to produce peace and tranquillity of mind. And that I fhall do in these three particulars.

1. Religion is apt to remove the chief caufes of inward trouble and disquiet.

2. It furnishes us with all the true caufes of peace and zranquillity of mind.

3. The reflexion upon a religious courfe of life, and all the actions of it, doth afterwards yield great pleasure and fatisfaction.

I. Religion is apt to remove the chief causes of inward trouble and difquiet. The chief caufes of inward trouble and difcontent are these two: doubting, and anxiety of mind; and guilt of confcience. Now, religion is apt to free us from both these.

1. From doubting, and anxiety of mind. Irreligion and Atheism makes a man full of doubts and jealoufies, whether he be in the right, and whether at last things will not prove quite otherwife than he hath rafhly determined. For though a man endeavour never fo much to fettle himfelf in the principles of infidelity, and to perfuade his mind that there is no God, and, confequently, that there are no rewards to be hoped for, nor punishments to be feared, in another life; yet he can never attain to a fteddy and unfhaken perfuafion of these things. And however he may please himself with witty reasons against the common belief of mankind, and finart repartees to their arguments, and bold and pleafant raillery about thefe matters; yet I dare fay, no man ever fat down in a clear and full fatisfaction concerning them. For when he hath done all that he can to reafon himself out of religion, his confcience ever and anon recoils upon him; and his natural thoughts and apprehenfions rife up against his reafonings, and all his wit and fubtilty is confuted and borne down by a fecret and strong fufpicion, which he can by no means get out of his mind, that things may be otherwife.

And