doubt it is but poor confolation that a man under great and ftinging afflictions finds from them.

The beft moral argument to patience, in my opinion, is, the advantage of patience itself. To bear evils as quietly as we can, is the way to make them lighter and eafier. But to tofs and fling, and to be restless, is good for nothing, but to fret and enrage our pain, to gall our fores, and to make the burden that is upon us fit more uneafy. But this is properly no confideration of comfort, but an art of managing ourselves under afflictions, fo as not to make them more grievous than indeed they

are.

But now the arguments which Chriftianity propounds to us, are fuch as are a juft and reasonable encouragement to men to bear fufferings patiently. Our religion fets before us, not the example of a ftupid Stoic, who had, by obftinate principles, hardened himself against all fenfe of pain beyond the common measures of humanity; but an example that lies level to all mankind, of a man like ourselves, that had a tender fenfe of the leaft fuffering, and yet patiently endured the greatest; of Jefus, the author and finifher of our faith; who, for the joy that was fet before him, endured the crofs, defpifing the fhame, and is fet down at the right hand of the throne of God, Heb. xii. 2.

God thought it expedient that the firft Chriftians fhould, by great hardships and perfecutions, be trained up for glory; and to animate and encourage them hereto, the captain of our falvation was crowned by fufferings, Heb. ii. 10. Much more should the confideration of this pattern arm us with patience against the common and ordinary calamities of this life, especially if we confider his example with this advantage, that though his sufferings were wholly undeferved, and not for himself, but for us, yet he bore them patiently.

But the main confideration of all is, the glory which fhall follow our fufferings as the reward of them, if they be for God and his caufe; and if upon any other innocent account, as a reward of our patience: Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 2 Cor. iv. 17. Chriftian religion hath fecured us that we shall be infinite gainers by our fufferings. And who would

not

not be content to fuffer upon terms of fuch advantage? to pass through many tribulations into the kingdom of God? and to endure a fhort affliction for an endleis happiness? The affurance of a future bleffedness is a cordial that will revive our spirits more in the day of adversity than all the wife fayings and confiderations of philofophy.

Thefe are the arguments which Chriftianity propounds to us; and they are firm and found at the bottom. They have ftrength and fubftance in them, and are apt to work upon human nature; and the most ordinary understanding is capable of the force of them. In the ftrength and virtue of this great example, and in contemplation of this glorious reward, with what refolution and chearfulness, with what courage and patience, did vaft numbers of all forts of people, in the firft ages of Christianity, not only men, but women, not only thofe of greater spirit and more generous education, but thofe of the poorest and lowest condition, not only the learned and the wife, but the ignorant and illiterate, encounter all the rage and malice of the world, and embrace torments and death? Had the precepts and counfels of philofophy ever any fuch effect upon the minds of men? I will conclude this with a paffage in the life of Lipfius, who was a great studier and admirer of the Stoical philofophy. When he lay upon his deathbed, and one of his friends who came to visit him told him, that he needed not use arguments to perfuade him to patience under his pains, the philofophy which he had ftudied fo much would furnish him with motives enough to that purpose, he answers him with this ejaculation: Domine Jefu, da mihi patientiam Chriftianam; "Lord Jefus, give me Chriftian patience." No patience like to that which the confiderations of Christianity are apt to work in us.

And now I have, as briefly and plainly as I could, endeavoured to reprefent to you the excellency of the Christian religion, both in refpect of the clear difcoveries which it makes to us of the nature of God, which is the great foundation of all religion, and likewife in refpect of the perfection of its laws, an of its arguments, to perfuade men both to obey and fuffer the will of God. By which you may fee what the proVOL. I.

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power

per

per tendency and defign of this religion is, and what the laws and precepts of it would make men, if they would truly obferve them, and live according to them; fubftantially religious towards God, chafte and temperate, patient and contented in reference to themselves, and the difpenfations of God's providence towards them, just and honest, kind and peaceable, and good-natured towards all men. In a word, the gospel describes God to us in all respects fuch a one as we fhould wish him to be; gives us fuch laws as every man that understands himfelf would chufe to live by; propounds fuch arguments to perfuade to the obedience of these laws as no man that wifely loves himself, and hath any tenderness for his own intereft and happiness, either in this world or the other, can refufe to be moved withal.

And now, methinks, I may with fome confidence challenge any religion in the world to fhew fuch a complete body and collection of holy and reasonable laws, establified upon fuch promises and threatenings as the gofpel contains. And if any man can produce a religion that can reasonably pretend to an equal or a greater confirmation than the gofpel hath; a religion, the precepts, and promises, and threatenings whereof, are calculated to make men wifer and better, more temperate and more chafte, more meek and more patient, more kind and more just, than the laws and motives of Chriftianity are apt to make men; if any man can produce fuch a religion, I am ready to be of it. Let but any man fhew me any book in the world, the doctrines whereof have the feal of fuch miracles as the doctrine of the fcriptures hath; a book which contains the heads of our duty fo perfectly, and without the mixture of any thing that is unreafonable, or vitious, or any wife unworthy of God; that commands us every thing in reafon neceffary to be done, and abridgeth us of no lawful pleasure without offering us abundant recompence for our prefent felf-denial; a book, the rules whereof, if they were practifed, would make men more pious and devout, more holy and fober, more just and fair in their dealings, better friends and better neighbours, better magiftrates and better fubjects, and better in all relations, and which does offer to the understanding of men more powerful arguments to perfuade them to be all this: let any man,

I fay, fhew me fuch a book, and I will lay afide the fcripture, and preach out of that.

And do we not all profefs to be of this excellent religion, and to study and believe this holy book of the fcriptures? But, alas! who will believe that we do fo, that fhall look upon the actions, and confider the lives, of the greatest part of Chriftians? How grofsly and openly do many of us contradict the plain precepts of the gofpel, by our ungodliness and worldly lufts, by living intemperately, or unjustly, or profanely, in this prefent world? as if the grace of God which bringeth falvation had never appeared to us; as if we had never heard of heaven or hell, or believed not one word that the scripture fays concerning them; as if we were in no expectation of the bleed hope, and the glorious appearance of the great God, and our Saviour Jefus Chrift; whom God hath appointed to judge the world in righteousness, and who will beftow mighty rewards upon those who faithfully ferve him; but will come in flaming fire to take vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jefus Chrift.

Let us not then deceive ourselves, by pretending to this excellent knowledge of Chrift, Jefus our Lord, if we do not frame our lives according to it. For though we know these things never fo well, yet we are not happy unless we do them: nay, we are but the more miferable for knowing them, if we do them not. Therefore it concerns every one of us to consider seriously what we believe, and whether our belief of the Christian religion hath its due effect upon our lives. If not, all the precepts, and promifes, and threatenings, of the gospel, will rife up in judgement against us, and the articles of our faith will be fo many articles of accufation: and the great weight of our charge will be this, that we did not obey that gofpel which we profeffed to believe; that we made confeffion of the Chriftian faith, but liIved like Heathens. Not to believe the Chriftian religion, after fo great evidence and confirmation as God hath given to it, is very unreasonable; but to believe it to be true, and yet to live as if it were falfe, is the greatest repugnancy and contradiction that can be. He that does not believe Chriftianity, either hath, or thinks

he hath, fome reason for with-holding his affent from it; but he that believes it, and yet lives contrary to it, knows that he hath no reason for what he does, and is convinced that he ought to do otherwife. And he is a miferable man indeed that does thofe things, for the doing of which he continually ftands condemned by his own mind. And accordingly God will deal more feverely with fuch perfons. He will pardon a thousand defects in our understandings, if they do not proceed from grofs careleffness and neglect of ourfelves; but the faults of our wills have no excufe; because we knew to do better, and were convinced in our minds that we ought not to have done fo.

Doft thou believe, that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness, and unrighteousness of men? and doft thou ftill allow thyfelf in ungodliness and worldly lufts? Art thou convinced, that without holiness no man fhall fee the Lord? and doft thou ftill. perfift in a wicked courfe? Art thou fully perfuaded, that no whoremonger, nor adulterer, nor covetous, nor unrighteous perfons, shall have any inheritance in the kingdom of God and Chrift? and doft thou for all that continue to practise these vices? What canft thou say, man, why it fhould not be to thee according to thy faith? If it fo fall out, that thou art miferable, and undone for ever, thou haft no reason to be surprised, as if fome unexpected thing had happened to thee. It is but with thee juft as thou believedft it would be when thou didst these things. For how couldst thou expect, that God fhould accept of thy good belief, when thou didft fo notorioufly contradict it by a bad life! How couldft thou look for other, but that God fhould condemn thee for the doing of thofe things for which thine own confcience did condemn thee all the while thou waft doing of them? When we come into the other world, there is no confideration that will fting our confciences more cruelly than this, that we did wickedly when we knew to have done better, and chose to make ourselves. miferable when we understood the way to have been happy. To conclude, we Chriftians have certainly the beft and the holieft, the wifest and most reafonable religion in the world; but then we are in the worst condi