Part III. terian, or any thing elfe; for he will be true to no profeffion it is not a real principle that holds him; and he is ready to be, upon any temptation, a fcandal to that way that he cleaves to. O make your own religion your first and great care! and this will learn you where to begin with others.

6. O make perfonal religion your firft and great concern! for, alas! here it is that the main de fect is among you. We have often complained, and we have daily new reafon to complain of you, that many, at leaft among you, are going in the broad and most patent roads to the pit; fome in that of ignorance of God; others in that of drunk ennefs; fome in that of abominable oaths and fwinih lufts; and others in that of devilish revenge and contentions, always leading down to death and deftruction, and that openly. I know moft have long fince laid down a conclufion, that they shall have peace, though they walk in the way of their own hearts, adding drunkenness to thirst, one fin to another. But affuredly ye are deccived. Be not deceived, thus faith the Lord, Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abufers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, fhall inherit the kingdom of God, 1 Cor. vi. 9, 10. And the fame fhall be the fate of curfers and fwearers. Then faid he unto me, This is the curfe that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth: for every one that ftealeth, fhall be cut off as on this fide, according to it; and every one that fweareth, fhall be cut off as on that fide, according to it. I will bring it forth, faith the Lord of hosts, enter into the house of the thief, "houfe of him that fweareth falfly by my name. And

and it shall and into the

*

And it shall remain in the midst of his house, and Shall confume it with the timber thereof, and the ftones thereof, Zech. v. 3, 4. Now, are there not fuch among you? Are there not unclean perfons, fwearers, drunkards, and the like, among you? And ye who are such, have not ye need to be concerned to be religious? Sure ye havę none as yet. And now, to bring this home to you, let me pose you upon three things.

(1.) Do ye believe that the words ye have heard are the words of God? If not, then be gone, you have nothing to do here. If ye da; then,

(2.) Do ye hope to get to heaven, when God has faid ye shall never get there? If ye do, ye are mad; and if ye do not, ye are mad: if ye hope to get to heaven in fpite of God, affuredly ye are mad; and if ye believe there is a heaven, and yet live in that which ye know will debar you thence, ye are mad indeed.

(3.) If God, by a gospel difpenfation, prevail not fo far with you, as to make you leave the open road to hell, is he like to prevail with you, to bring you over to a compliance with the gofpel call entirely? No, no; furely no. My friends, look in time, be concerned in time; for, as the Lord liveth, ye are in eminent danger, danger greater than ye are well aware of; and whether ye will hear, or whether ye will forbear, knotv that if ye die, your blood is on your own heads; ye have got warning. Take warning, and make perfonal religion indeed your first and great con

cern.

7. O make your own religion your firft and great care! for here many are deccived; many have a name to live, who are dead, and appear to be fomething, who yet, when weighed in the Ff 2 balance

Part III. balance of the fanctuary, will be found wanting, and have a Tekel writ upon them.

8. To add no more, confider feriously how fad a deceit in this matter is. O terrible deceit ! to mistake heaven, and instead of it flip into hell! to mistake the broad road, and think it the narrow! How terribly will the poor deluded fouls, that fwell with the hopes of heaven and glory, look, when instead of falling into the rivers of pleasure, they fhall fink like lead in mighty waters of God's holy, juft, and terrible indignation againft fin! As ye would not meet with this terrible difappointment, look to yourselves; make fure your own religion; lay the foundation well, and then ye may have peace, and the Lord will eftablifh it.

Now, for your direction, I fhall only offer two or three fhort words.

(1.) Bring yourfelves to the light, to the ftandard of God's word, and try yourselves by that which is the true teft, the balance of the fanctua ry, the counfel of the Lord which shall stand.

(2.) Whatever judgment the word passes on you, though it read your name amongst the black roll of thofe who are doomed to the bottomlefs pit; hear it, and believe it, for affuredly the fcripture cannot be broken.

(3.) Cry to the Lord, that he may give his Spirit to open your eyes, to know how matters :are with you.

(4.) When God, by his word and Spirit, has wounded you, wait upon him for cure, in the fame way for it is thence alfo you must have: your acquaintance with the blessed phyfician, Jefus Chrift, in whom alone your help is.

:

Thus having finished the second doctrine, I now proceed to the

Doct.

Doct. 3. Such as are fincerely religious themfelves, will take care that their families, and all whom they can have any influence upon; be fo too Or, fhortly thus, Such as are · fincere will be really careful to maintain family religion. But as for me and my house, we will ferve the Lord. Which fhews us,

1. That God requires houfhold religion, even that we and our houfes ferve the Lord. Now, what is not required, or commanded, cannot be fervice done to the Lord.

2. That we, and our houfes or families, fhould join, or perform jointly fome part of fervice to

the Lord.

3. That a mafter of a family is called to take care of, and may engage fome way for his houfe or family, their ferving the Lord.

Now, in the further profecuting of this point, we fhall fhew you,'

I. Wherein family religion lies.

II. Whence it is, that fuch as are fincere are fo much concerned about it, as we here find Jofhua, and others of the faints in fcripture.

I. Now, we begin with the firft, and fhall on ly here obferve, that family religion confifts of three parts, or is comprehenfive of the three following particulars.

First, Family inftruction.

Secondly, Family worship.

Thirdly, Family government, or order.

And about thefe it is, that a religious mafter will be concerned; and he that is not in fome measure carefully exercifed in thofe three, there is reafon to fear he has no religion. Now, we fhall a little open these three unto you; and,

Ff 3

First,

First, We fay, that family inftruction is that, which fuch as are fincerely religious will be careful of. Affuredly there will be nothing that will lie nearer the heart of a confcientious master of a family, next to the falvation of his own foul, than the falvation of his family, his children, and fervants; and one great part of his care will undoubtedly discover itself this way, in a deep concern to have them accurately instructed in the knowlege of their duty toward God, their neighbour, and themselves; and, in a word, the whole of that knowlege which is neceffary, in order to their walk with God here, and their enjoyment of God hereafter. And this part of family religion, we find the Lord very punctual and exprefs in commanding, Deut. vi. 6, 7, 8, 9. And these words which I command thee this day, fhall be in thine heart, and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou fitteft in thine house, and when thou walkeft by the way, and when thou lieft down, and when thou rifeft up. And thou shalt bind them for a fign up on thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets be tween thine eyes. And thou Jhalt write them upon the pofts of thy houfe, and on thy gates. In which obferve, 1. Perfonal religion enjoined, They fhall be in thine heart. 2. Domestic religion, Thou fbalt teach them diligently. Here alfo we have a plain account of this firft part of family religion, and a clear command for it; we see who they are about whofe instruction we are to concern ourfelves, it is our children, and those who are in our houfe, that is, children and fervants; for under the notion of children, fervants are frequently comprehended, as particularly in the Fifth Command. There it is agreed by all, that under that

of