we hew out to our selves broken cisterns that can hold no water and forsake Thee the Fountain of living waters In thee alone is true content and full satisfaction to be found O Lord as sensible of this our very guilty and very dangerous Errour we desire for the future to return unto thee to esteem thee our chiefest Good and to desire thee above all things Our Hearts are now ready to say each of us for our selves Bless the Lord O my Soul and all that is within me praise his holy Name We desire O Lord to praise and to honour thee with all the excellent Faculties and Powers that thou hast given us We devote our Reason and Understanding to thee to learn and meditate on thy glorious Excellencies thy wonderful works and the instances of thy obliging Goodness We devote all the power of our Wills to thee to chuse thee to fix upon thee as our chief Good to submit to thy will as the rule and law of ours We devote our Affections to love thee above all things to fear and reverence thee to hope and trust in thee to hate what thou hatest and love what thou dost love We devote all our Members unto thee to be governed by thy wise and righteous Laws We desire O Lord we purpose to love and serve thee the Eternal Infinite and most Bounteous Good with all our Heart and Soul and Strength O Lord strengthen we pray thee and confirm our too feeble and wavering Resolutions Create thou us again in Christ Jesus unto good works Let us not live estranged from thee whom we are made capable to enjoy both here and hereafter Make us in love with Holiness and Vertue as the health and rectitude of our Minds as our brightest and most advantageous Ornaments and the most useful and most durable Riches Renew in us most loving Father thy decayed Image and create us to righteousness and true holiness Learn us to see thy glorious Perfections in the visible things about us to make a religious Use of all that we enjoy in this World in loving thee for what is Good praising thee for what is Excellent in them and giving thee Thanks for whatever we enjoy of them We humbly recommend to thy infinite Mercies all Estates and Conditions of Men O Lord lover of Souls pity those that sit in darkness and bless them with the Knowledge of thee and of thy Christ whom to know is Life everlasting rescue them from their miserable Bondage under the Enemy of Mankind and bring them into the Kingdom of thy Son We pray thee bless and defend the Christian Church let the Gifts and Graces of thy good Spirit be abundantly poured out upon it purge it from all things displeasing to thee and give it peace and great enlargement Be merciful to that Part of it which thou hast planted amongst us in these Nations Water it plenteously with the Dew of thy Heavenly Blessing make it fruitful in all good Works and a Praise in the Earth We pray thee bless our King and Queen and all subordinate Magistrates and those that are the Ministers of thy holy Word and Sacraments make them all in their several Places and Stations useful to the promoting Piety and Vertue amongst us And make all those that are under them peaceable and obedient teachable and submissive to their Laws and godly Counsels Grant that we may all lead peaceable and quiet lives in all Godliness and Honesty Visit and relieve all those that are in any Trouble or Affliction Bless our Relations requite our Friends and Benefactors and forgive our Enemies Persecutors and Slanderers and turn their Hearts Finally O Father of Mercies we give thee Thanks for all thy Care of our Immortal Souls for all that thou hast done for their Happiness and Well-fare We pray thee bless to our spiritual Advantage those Ordinances of thine which we have this Day been partakers of Give us leave to commit our selves to thy Protection for this Night and reward our trust in thee with safe and comfortable Rest that being well refresh'd we may return the next Morning chearfully to our several Businesses and Duties and do thou accept us in all we pray through Jesus Christ in whose Name we present our selves and all our poor Services unto thee and in whose most comprehensive Words we conclude these our imperfect Prayers saying Our Father c. OF Vain Thoughts OR INCONSIDERATION With the Mischiefs and Remedies Let us Pray PRevent us O Lord in all our doings with thy most gracious favour and further us with thy continual help that in all our works begun continued and ended in thee we may glorify thy Holy Name and finally by thy Mercy obtain Everlasting Life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Psalm 119. 113. I hate Vain Thoughts but thy Law do I love OUR Care and Endeavour to live well must begin within us or it will prove vain and ineffectual We must keep the Heart with all diligence for out of it are the Issues of Life Solomon says Prov. 4. 23. According to which our Saviour teaches us That out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh and out of the good or evil treasure there proceed good or evilactions We must then take notice what our Thoughts are if we would have our Life good and not neglect them as Men too commonly do and this is what the Psalmist plainly intimates in these Words I hate vain thoughts but thy Law do I love I shall not trouble you with long Criticizing upon the words lest I should be guilty my self of what I intend to discourse against It shall suffice to observe for the justifying of our translation that the Original word here translated Thoughts is used with that significancy in other places of Scripture Particularly 1 Kings 18. 21 Where it seems to signify unsetled and irresolute Thoughts such as could not determine them to a fixed and steady Obedience to the Truth and in Job 4. 13. where it signifies such Thoughts as the roving Imaginations of the Night are wont to be employed in In both these places it signifies such as are not well guided nor directed And by reason of this use of the word in those places I doubt not but it is very fitly done that our Translators have added the word Vain in the Text to determine and signify what sort of Thoughts the Psalmist meant by the use of the word here I shall therefore understand this Text according to the import of the word Vain in our Language and shall represent it as signifying thus much I hate all idle roving and useless Thoughts such as are not considerate and designed and directed to some good and worthy purpose all inconsiderate Thinking As there are a great many idle impertinent words spoken among Mankind many very useless and unprofitable conversations and as there are especially in the briskness and activity of Childhood and Youth a great many very idle and trifling actions done by
be allowed a great deal of liberty and that a very little Religion may serve their turn 2. To shew that the time of old Age is That he means here by the Evil days and the years in which a Man shall say he has no pleasure in them for to illustrate this matter is to strengthen the Argument 3. To shew how this is a good argument and reason against mens putting off their repenting and being religious to their old Age and that the best Defence and Preparation that we can possibly make against the Inconveniences of that time is to be religious in our Youth I begin with the first of these To shew what is meant by Remembring our Creatour in the days of our Youth By Creatour then we are to understand he means God that made us for it is He that hath made us and not we our selves Psal 100. 3. By Remembring him we must understand these particulars are intended 1. That we seek and get a good measure of the Knowledge of God No man can remember him at all that does not know something of him Nor can any man remember what he is unless he does in some measure know this and we must remember him such as he is or we shall not do it to any good purpose We must therefore betimes enquire into what he has revealed of himself in his word We must know and remember that he is and is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him That he is a Being Infinite Eternal Good and Just Wise and Almighty That he is our Creatour and the Creatour of all things that he is thereupon the Lord and owner of all as he says The world is mine and the fulness thereof Psal 50. 12. and we are his people and the sheep of his Pasture as the Psalmist speaks Psal 100. We must know and remember that he has laid his Laws upon us and expects our Obedience to them that he is Judge of all the Earth and will render to every man according to his works Thus we must remember him in what he is in himself and in what relations he is pleased to bear towards us 2. 'T is also intended herein that we should often think of God that we should have him much in our minds that we set the Lord always before us as the Psalmist speaks of himself Psal 16. 8. It is the Character of an evil man that God is not in all his thoughts and of very wicked people that they forget God Men may actually think of God often in the midst of their worldly business and may habitually acknowledge him in all their ways they may and ought to depend upon his Providence thank him for all they enjoy praise him for and ascribe to him all the good they do We should begin and end every day and receive every Meal with actual thoughts of God and scrious Addresses to him of Praise and Thanksgiving We should duly set apart his Sabbaths to remember and worship him upon them 3. This includes also suitable affections of the Heart Our knowledge must not be speculative and unaffecting We must think of God with awfull reverence and fear of his Majesty and Greatness We must love him above all things and desire his favour and love as our chiefest good We must admire and delight in his Holiness and Justice and Goodness and endeavour to conform to them 4. This includes Obedience to his Commands and Resignation and Submission to his Providence This is due to him and is the just acknowledgment of his right in us His Laws must be the rule of our Actions and his Glory our great end as the Apostle says 1 Cor. 10. 11. Whether ye eat or drink or whatever ye do do all to the glory of God And whatever portion or fortune he allots us we must take with an humble contented and resigned frame of spirit as sensible that he disposes but of his own in his ordering of us and our circumstances We must be ready always after our great Pattern to say Lord not what I will but what thou wilt Thus much is included in the word Remember And all this is to be done in our early Youth according to the Wiseman's advice here As soon as possibly we can do it without any delay or putting it off We should with the first exercises of our reason study and learn to know him and his Laws With the first actions of out wills we should chuse him for our chief good and his Laws as our best rule and make it our great care and endeavour to conform to them rather than to the Customs and Fashions and Maximes of the foolish and wicked World and we should set our first affections on him give him our Hearts before the things of this World here get possession of them This is that which Solomon advises let us now proceed to consider that which is his argument to urge this advice That is that Evil days will come and the years in which a man shall say he has no pleasure in them That this is spoken of old Age appears by the following verses wherein 't is generally acknowledged he describes that Age of humane Life and indeed the description he makes of it does justifie his giving it the name of Evil days as he seems to have designed to do I shall give the Summ of what he says to this purpose in the following particulars 1. That is an evil time upon the account of the weakness and decay of Nature which often attends it There is then a great decay of all the faculties and powers the mortal Body begins to fail The Beauty of it is withered the Strength exhausted The dim Eye can no longer see nor the deaf Ear hear the feeble Feet cannot walk nor the Hands work as they could before And in this weakness the Limbs which were strong and vigorous become a burden to themselves The old man cannot help himself but descends perhaps to the weakness of a Child again Thus is he taken from action and business that which made him taken notice of and considerable in the World that which made him sought to and respected And now perhaps he sees himself forgotten and forsaken he sees those he has been kind to prove ungratefull and those whom he has nourisht and brought up grown weary of him And where these things are who would not account the time which that man continues further an Evil time 2. But further It often attends this decay of Nature that they are loaded with pains and distempers These whenever they come are an heavy burden even to those who are young and strong and therefore they will much rather be so to the aged and weak and these are more liable to them than younger persons Indeed if pains and distempers are very violent upon old Age they are not of long continuance because weak Nature cannot then bear much Yet they are very uneasie sometimes and of long continuance too
according to his Divinity and whence according to his Humanity what things he suffer'd and why what is the Vertue of his Resurrection what Gifts of the Spirit he promised and gave to the Faithful But it should also be taught what sort of Men the Members must be to whom he may and will be the Head What sort he requires and makes and loves and redeems and brings to everlasting Life When these things are insisted upon says he then Christ is preached Christus Evangelizatur Aug. de Fide Operibus Tom 4. This Preaching then does not take men off from relying upon Christ it does not tend to make them depend upon themselves for Salvation but it shews them in what way they must rely upon Christ for Salvation that they may certainly succeed in the doing it 2. To improve yet a little further what has been said we may thence learn the Vanity and Deceitfulness of their hopes of Salvation who lead wicked and ungodly Lives they that live in their Sins and yet hope to be saved expect to come to Heaven by the way to Hell they depend upon the Mercy of God and the Merits of Christ without taking the only course to have an Interest in them 3. There is not only folly and deceit in these Hopes but also there is great guilt and provocation in them For this is to turn the Grace of God into Wantonness which is that St. Jude Ver. 4. earnestly condemns when we encourage our selves in Sin from the undertaking of the Redeemer What is said of him in the Gospel is an encouragement for Men to forsake their Sins but not to continue in them This is the greatest abuse that can be of redeeming Love it is contrary to the end and design of it The Mediator took the Name Jesus to signify that his purpose is to save his People from their Sins And indeed his design had been a very strange one if he had come to procure a Dispensation for our Love of infinite Goodness for our Reverence of an infinite Majesty and of our Obedience to the Creator of all things if he had come to dispense with the Laws of Equity and Justice of Mercy and Charity of Truth and Faithfulness towards our Neighbour This is a design unworthy of the Holy Jesus this had not been to glorify the Father and how can it be but highly displeasing to impute to him such a Design as this Opinion and Practice must be reckon'd to do And yet further This is contrary to the Obligation of redeeming Love as well as to the Design of it and must needs be upon that account very displeasing It was the greatest Instance of divine Love to give his Only begotten Son to Die for us and then it is the greatest Obligation to the Love of God And is it not a most enormous and unjust requital to make this an encouragement to the living in hatred against him To live in constant rebellion and contempt This must needs give the highest and most guilty Aggravation to the Sins of Men that can be Let us consider then how much we are obliged by the Love of God to love him and that if we love him we must keep his Commandments The PRAYER OH most merciful and gracious God thy mercy is everlasting and thy truth endures from Generation to Generation Thou hast helped us in our low Estate through the greatness of thy Mercy When we had rendred our selves deserving of everlasting Misery and utter Rejection from thy favour and care thou didst then take care for us and laidst help upon One that is mighty and able to save to the uttermost Oh who can conceive or express the Love of God to us in Christ Jesus It passes knowledge We give thee O Lord most humble and hearty Thanks for this thy unspeakable Gift We thank thee for our Saviour's excellent Doctrins and Instructions whereby he shews us the way to happiness for his most holy and good Life whereby he leads us in the way to it and is become an encouraging Pattern and Example of Well-doing We bless thee for his meritorious Death whereby he has made an Attonement for our Sins has purchased for us thy sanctifying Grace and thy infinite eternal Favour Oh what reason have we to say what shall we render unto the Lord for all his Benefits How many ways O Lord hast thou deserved our highest praises our supream Affections and our best Obedience But Oh how unsensible have we ungrateful wretches been of this thy great Mercy How backward and slow to comply with the just and reasonable Terms of Salvation We are loth to part with our Sins even for the Love of Jesus or to wean our Affections from this World for the hopes of Heaven Yea we are apt to fall into the guilty and pernicious folly of turning the Grace of God into wantonness of encouraging our selves to continue in our Sins upon presumption on thy Mercy in Christ Jesus and of expecting Salvation by him while we have neglected the terms and conditions of obtaining it O Lord awaken us at length to a due and wise Care of our own Souls Of thy infinite Mercy pardon our past Neglects and give us for the sake of Jesus Christ what thou requirest that we may be partakers of the great Salvation Give us an unfeigned Repentance for all our past Transgressions stedfast and sincere purposes of new Obedience Give us an humble lively Faith in him such as may engage us to follow him make us love and chuse his Commands ready to deny our selves for his sake and to devote our selves entirely to him to live to him that died for us let it bring forth much fruit in a diligent and industrious Obedience and seek and expect our acceptance and reward only by Vertue of his Merits and spotless Righteousness Let such a Faith we pray thee be formed or promoted in us by the Ordinances we have this day enjoyed Let us lie down in peace with thee this Night and repose our selves under the protection of thy Providence If it please thee that we shall awake again in this World let our Hearts be full of a thankful Sense of thy Mercies and a Concern to shew forth thy Praise in the Course of our Lives We humbly recommend to thy Mercy and Favour all Mankind beseeching thee to enlighten those that sit in darkness and in the shadow of Death to bring into the way of thy Truth all such as have erred and are deceived To replenish thy Church abundantly with the Gifts and Graces of thy good Spirit to comfort and relieve any of thy Servants that are desolate and afflicted to prosper those that seek the Peace of thy Jerusalem We implore thy Mercy upon the Land of our Nativity Lord let Peace and Righteousness Charity and Piety setle and abound among us Rule and guide thou our Rulers in thy Fear Teach our Teachers Bless comfort and encourage thy Ministers both in Church and
thy Mercies our Friends Relations and even our Enemies and all that are in Adversity We render thee Thanks O Lord for all the Mercies of this Day in particular but especially for the Liberty of thy House and for the Means of Grace we have there enjoyed Hear O Lord the Prayers we have offered to thee Bless thy Word and Sacraments to us whenever we enjoy them let them be thy power to our Salvation We humbly beg thy Protection for this Night and evermore even unto thy Heavenly Kingdom for the sake of Jesus Christ to whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost be all Honour and Glory world without End OVR Father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen THE Pleasantness of Religion Demonstrated and Improved Let us Pray PRevent us O Lord in all our doings with thy most gracious favour and further us with thy continual help that in all our works begun continued and ended in thee we may glorify thy Holy Name and finally by thy Mercy obtain Everlasting Life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Prov. 3. 17. Her Ways are Ways of Pleasantness THese words are spoken of Wisdom as you may see by Verse 13. of this Chapter where Solomon begins the Commendation of that Saying Happy is the Man that findeth Wisdom and the Man that getteth Vnderstanding The Merchandize of it is better than the Merchandize of Silver and the gain thereof than fine Gold She is more precious than Rubies and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared to her Length of Days is in her right Hand and in her left Hand Riches and Honour then he adds Her ways are ways of Pleasantness And by Wisdom of which he says these great things he means Religion or the Wisdom of good and vertuous living to which the Scripture it self does elsewhere plainly give that Name Job 28. 28. The Fear of the Lord that is Wisdom and to depart from Evil is Vnderstanding The Ways of Wisdom then means the Practice of Religion and Vertue This he says is very pleasant He has Joy and Pleasure in abundance who steadily lives in a religious and good course of Life This is the import and sense of these Words And if this be true here is a very sensible and important inducement to a good Life contained in them There is nothing usually more powerful and attractive with Mankind than Pleasure nothing which they more earnestly or more universally covet If then it can be made appear that there is a great deal of this even in well-doing this may be a means to allure Men to the trial of it and to divert them from those courses of Wickedness which draw many into Everlasting Perdition by the allurement of Pleasure To make this good and to prove what Solomon here says will be the chief business of this Discourse And I do not doubt but it will be beyond any Man's Power to deny or question this who shall soberly consider the following Particulars 1. The Principle from whence all true and sincere Religion proceeds and springs is Love and that must needs render it highly pleasant in the Practice of it This must be the Principle and Spring of true and sincere Religion All the Duties we perform towards God or Man must proceed from Love to God and Man This must be the Principle of our good Actions and wherever true Love is it will be a Principle of good Actions All the instances of Duty required of us are but such things as Love it self will put us upon such as Love naturally suggests and does incline to He that truly loves God cannot chuse but seek what will please him and endeavour to do all that and he must endeavour to avoid whatever would offend God He must delight to contemplate the Divine Perfections to think upon the Object that he loves to adore and worship God to seek and promote the Love and Honour of him So he that loves his Neighbour sincerely must delight in and desire the Wellfare and Happiness of Men he must endeavour to promote it as much as he can and will be far from wishing or endeavouring any evil to any Man or from delighting in what does happen to any And this now is even a Demonstration of the Pleasantness of a Religious Life that all of it is nothing else but the Exercise of Love He that is driven to do his Duty by Fears and Terrors performs indeed an ungrateful Task and goes on in these ways with Reluctancy and Sorrow But he that is drawn with the Cords of Love follows with Joyfulness He will run and not be weary whom Love inspires He minds not is not discouraged with any Ruggedness of the way but is rather pleased with Difficulties and put on than troubled or retarded because they give him opportunity to express the greater Love This renders the Labours of Religion easy and even Sufferings delightful I take pleasure in Infirmities in Reproaches in Necessities in Persecutions in Distresses for Christ's sake says a great Lover of Jesus 2 Cor. 12. 10. It was the strength of Love in the Primitive Followers of Jesus which made them very laborious and diligent in Religion and made them suffer much even to the most cruel and tormenting Deaths and do both with unspeakable Joy and Pleasure They prov'd what a great Lover of God said long ago Cant. 8. 6 7. Love is strong as Death Many waters cannot quench Love neither the Floods drown it All the Task of Love is pleasant and nothing is counted hard or uneasy which that enjoins us 2. Another thing that renders the Practice of Piety and Vertue very pleasant and therefore proves it so is the fitness and reasonableness of all that which Religion enjoins us to do It is most highly equitable and just in all the parts of it and is most perfectly what the Apostle calls it Rom. 12. 1. namely Reasonable Service There is nothing required of us within the whole compass of our Duty but what a Man 's own Mind and Reason upon serious consideration must needs be perfectly satisfied in nothing that he can have any reason to be ashamed of or to think below him or unfit for him to do or that he can justly upbraid or condemn himself for doing How reasonable and just are all the Duties of Piety towards God This will appear upon a fair stating and proposal of them Is it not highly so that we reverence and adore an infinitely glorious and excellent Being That we trust the Original Truth That we love the Sovereign and the Fountain Good That we obey the supream Authority of the World in all
further how this does also appear in the Exercises or Benefits which his matchless Lovebestows From the former head we learn what great things it can do from this we shall see what it does and has done And we shall see that as there is no Love like his there is none so great as He so there are no such Benefits any way to be obtained as by his Love These Exercises of Divine Favour are properly his lifting up of the Light of his Countenance upon us and these are able to contribute more to our Happiness than all things in the world besides them The Benefits which the peculiar Favour of God bestows are these 1. He does forgive and pardon all their Sins to them who are thus the Objects of his Love They become so by the Meritorious Death and Passion of our Saviour Jesus Christ which through their Faith is to them a Propitiation for Sin And therefore the righteous Judge of all the World being atton'd and reconciled he will no more impute to them their Iniquity And tho the imperfect Creatures do too often offend notwithstanding all their Care yet upon the renewal of their Repentance and their daily asking the Pardon of their Sins His Mercy for the sake of Jesus Christ daily gives them their Pardon Now every man that knows himself a Sinner and that did ever seriously consider what that imports and what belongs to such a Condition cannot chuse but acknowledge it an unspeakable Benefit to have his Sins all forgiven to be sure it is really such in its self The Man who is forgiven can think of God and not be troubled nor afraid can put up his Requests to the Throne of Grace with assured and comfortable Expectations He that knows this of himself knows too that the great Obstacle and Impediment of the Exercises of Divine Mercy is removed and he may hope that the Streams of it shall plentifully flow towards him He may hope that his Iniquities shall not withhold good things from him And what a Pleasure is it to think of an Enemy reconciled and become a faithful affectionate Friend And especially to know this of the Almighty and Eternal God! To know that Infinite and Eternal Perfections which were adverse and angry are reconciled and become kind How great and how sensible a Blessing must it be for a man to be able to say I that was obnoxious to an Infinite Eternal Wrath I that lay under the heavy load of a Just Curse which doom'd me to Everlasting Flames am now become an Object of Infinite and Eternal Love and an Heir of Heaven He who might have treated me with Everlasting severity I am sure will now use me with Everlasting loving kindness The foolish and unreasonable Ills that I have done and the base Affronts I have offered the great God shall cost me no more Sorrow than that of a wholesome Repentance This is a very happy and very pleasant Change in a Man's Condition This Blessing introduces a Peace that passes all understanding and indeed a Peace which the world cannot give For I may add that the assured Pardon of our Sins is absolutely necessary to our taking any considerable Comfort or Delight in any thing of this World for without this if we look into our Condition we must know that these are all aforfeited things that they are but lent us by the Patience of God our tranquility and prosperity depends upon the will of him who is justly displeased with us for our Sins and is daily provoked to put an end to it The unpardoned Sinner cannot consider his Condition nor understand it but he must be affrighted and troubled for he must see that the Sword of Divine Vengeance hangs continually over his Head and this must needs dash all his Joy But that is a very poor Felicity which cannot endure to be reflected upon and considered which if it be rightly understood is spoilt and lost if it be examined is none at all If therefore we would have a Condition in this Life which we may reflect upon and consider and take delight to do so we must have the Pardon of all our Sins assured and God reconciled to us And now I think we may conclude this Head with the Psalmist's words Psal 32. 1 2. Blessed is the man whose transgression is forgiven whose sin is covered Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not Iniquity 2. Another blessed Exercise of the Divine Favour to the peculiar Objects of it is that he does sanctify them that he restores that most excellent Part of the Divine Image which we unhappily lost in the Fall of our first Parents We are taught that this is a Fruit of his Love Eph. 5. 25 26. where it is said Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word that is by pouring out upon them the sanctifying Operations of the Holy Spirit who is compared to water Thus he expresses and exercises his Love to them that are the Objects of it And thus his Love grows from Compassion to a Complacency He that pitied them in their wretched Pollution loves them into loveliness He so shines upon them with the Light of his Countenance as to communicate Light and Brightness to them so as to adorn them with the bright Rays of his own Glory and then he takes delight in them But how great the Happiness of this Effect is let us see This is an Exercise of Divine Love which is exceeding Fruitful and full of Joys and Blessings A world of new Delights this brings a man acquainted with that he never knew before nor was capable of knowing till this blessed Change was wrought in him The Rectitude and Order of the Soul which this introduces is as pleasant as Health after Sickness There is now Ease for Pain Strength for Weakness Freedom for Confinement a comfortable Enjoyment of good things without loathing of them Life and Activity without faintness and weariness in well-doing and the Pleasure of an useful Life to our selves and others instead of that which was a Burden and a Trouble to both He that is sanctified has so far a well composed Mind He has calm Passions regular Appetites right and true Thoughts good and wise and safe Inclinations He can do that which is good which his Mind tells him he ought to do which his Conscience may applaud him for doing That which will please God and bring him Everlasting Advantages He can delight in Good and Vertuous Actions these have a great deal of a pleasing Lustre and Beauty in them and he has Eyes to see this now He has a mind capable of and exercised in the discerning of Spiritual things Wisdom Goodness Justice Faithfulness in the exercises and expressions of them are as pleasant to the Observation of a good Man as the most lovely and curious Colours are to a sound Eye or the most harmonious Sounds
to a well disposed Ear. And if the Vertues of a poor imperfect Man are a delight to him How much more so must the Perfections of the Infinite God be in all the appearances and exercises of themselves With what delight does he view the glorious Rays and Beams of Divine Truth and faithfulness of Wisdom and Righteousness of Goodness and Mercy as they they appear in God's works of Creation and Providence and are scattered about upon this lower World He is capable of seeing some or other of the Divine Attributes every where and in those Dispensations which he cannot understand or reconcile to any other Attribute he willingly acknowledges and adores an Incomprehensible Wisdom The good Man by his spiritual and sanctified State of Mind does take a new and a higher delight in the Objects of his Senses than Beasts or Carnal men can do He does not stop at a meer sensual delight in them as they do but has moreover and besides that a very rational and religious delight in them He can please himself with admiring in them the traces and footsteps of God's glorious Perfections In what is suitable and pleasing to his Appetites He admires and delights in the Wisdom of God which adapted those things and made them so suitable and that glorious Goodness which affords so much Pleasure and Happiness to his Creature He delights to praise and love the Creator and Giver of the good things that he enjoys 3. Another Exercise and Benefit of the Divine Love is That he will favourably dispose of all their Affairs in this World for them who are the peculiar Objects of his Favour It is true the Scripture says Those whom God loves he does rebuke and chasten And accordingly they especially and above all men shall not escape without Affliction when their Spiritual Condition needs it But when God does afflict them he does this many ways favourably His wise and tender Love takes care that their Afflictions shall never be too heavy for them that they shall not continue too long that they shall redound to their Spiritual and perhaps produce some temporal Advantage The fruit of them shall be to take away Sin and so they shall cure and remore a far greater Evil than themselves are And it is an advance towards Happiness which is very considerable to cure a far greater Evil by a lesser one an Eternal Evil by a Temporal one Their Afflictions shall bring forth the peaceable fruit of Righteousness and so tho they are not joyous but grievous in themselves yet they shall be exceedingly joyous in their Fruits and Effects when they form in a Man a greater Fear of God more Meekness and Humility when they teach him Patience and Contentedness indifferency towards this World and desires after a better For these and other good Effects of Affliction upon those whom God loves we have reason to say with the Psalmist Blessed is the man whom God chasteneth and teacheth out of his Law But further We must consider that God is a defence to those whom he loves and David could say God is my Refuge as well as my Portion in the Land of the Living Thou wilt bless the Righteous says he Psal 5. 12. And with Favour wilt thou compass him as with a Shield When he sees it sittest for them he keeps them safe from Calamites and Afflictions So he preserved Noah from perishing in the Universal Deluge so he rescued Lot from the Flames of Sodom so he saved the Israelites in the Red Sea wherein he drowned the Egyptians And the assured Protection of the Almighty is a great comfort and satisfaction in the weak and exposed State of this present Life where innumerable Evils always compass us about Our own weakness and frailty and the frailty and mutableness of all those things whereof the Prosperity of this Life does consist render us continually liable to Vexation and Misery In this case and upon this account it is absolutely necessary to us to have some good Hope of the Divine Protection for the preserving our Minds in any measure of Tranquillity and Peace and to deliver us from the Wrackings and Torments of continual Fears How wretched may we see many Men even in the midst of a large Portion through the want of this Hope They are even undone for fear of being undone some almost starve themselves out of the Fear that they shall fall into want This wretched anxiety hinders them from using what they have and makes them want for fear of wanting it Hence are those Cares that devour the Thoughts of many Men that tire and spend their Bodies that disturb their Minds that confound their Reason that interrupt and break their Sleep and spoil the Enjoyment even of the best things they have So unhappy are they while sensible of the mutableness of their Condition and while they want an assured Trust and reliance upon the Providence of God But he whom God loves can rely upon him he can expect safety from his ever-waking and irresistible Providence and so is freed from the Torment of these Anxious Cares and Fears The happy Author of this Psalm where our Text is expresses something of the Tranquillity and Peace of his Mind which was the Effect of God's lifting up the light of his Countenance upon him I will both lay me down in peace and sleep for thou Lord only makest me dwell in safety Verse 8. And as the Man whom God loves has these comfortable Expectations relating to the Evils which this Life is exposed to so he may have as comfortable ones relating to the good things that may be enjoyed here These are all of them the promised Portion of those whom God loves as the Apostle shews us in saying That Godliness hath the Promise of the Life that now is as well as of that to come And when 't is said Psal 84 11. God will not with-hold any good thing from them that walk uprightly This is meant of such They whom he loves shall be sure to want no manner of thing that is good for them Now how great Content and Satisfaction may a Man conceive from this Exercise of Divine Love from God's continual Care of him and his Affairs Surely this is the greatest Felicity in this world to have all our Affairs regarded by the Wise and Almighty God the Disposer of all things To be and know our selves always under the Eye and Care of such a Friend To have all our Interests regarded as if they were his own To have him take upon himself the care of doing us good and making us happy of making every thing that befalls us to redound to our Advantage Indeed this assurance must needs sweeten every Evil that befals us of what sort soever it is to think This is ordered for me by him that loves me by him that is as tender of my Well-fare as I my self could be by him that is Infinitely wiser than I and knows what is best for me
How easy and calm a condition may that Man's mind be in at all times who has this assurance Further we must reckon that this consideration exceedingly heightens the sweetness of every good we enjoy To consider this is the Favour of Heaven to me I receive this Enjoyment from the peculiar Love of God to me The enjoyment of that which is the Fruit of a Man 's own Pains and Labour adds much to the Pleasure of the Enjoyment But the Favour of God and his Blessing contributes much more When I can say This that I now have proceeds from that special Favour of Heaven which takes care of me 4. Lastly The peculiar Favour of God gives to those whom he so loves an assured and safe Right and Title to the Everlasting Blessedness which is to come They are the certain Heirs of Heaven The Love of the Father is promised to them that believe in Christ And this Love has promised to give them Eternal Life His Love will never cease blessing them till it has made them perfectly Blessed Till it has cured all their Imperfections has supplied all their Wants has removed from them all Evil and set them safe in perfect Bliss This is the Condition of the Future Blessedness which they are designed for No desirable Thing shall be wanting there neither shall any evil encumber it And this shall be the Rich and Bounteous and Everlasting Portion of those whom God loves They may expect that the good Work of Sanctification which is begun in them shall be perfected unto the Day of Jesus Christ That the Lord Jesus will keep them from every Evil work and preserve them to his Heavenly Kingdom And how comfortably must a Man spend his Days under this joyful Expectation Every thing here may mind him of his Home the happy Canaan above The good things here may tell him of better there and when any of these please he can say How much more pleasant are the things which are there The Griefs on Earth may put him in mind of the Joys of Heaven and when any thing troubles him here he can consider there is no such trouble there The Mutation of Earthly things may call to his Mind the Stability and Durableness of the Heavenly and this may comfort when the other vexes him How pleasantly does he spend his Days that is all his Life long travelling towards Heaven It does not trouble him to perceive his Time waste and spend its self apace His Heart and Affections are removed to Heaven already and he is glad that Time makes haste to remove his Person thither too He is glad to think that it is continually doing so He knows that whenever Time shall commit him to Eternity he shall go from lower degrees of Happiness to higher from that which suffers some Interruptions here at least as to the Sense and Enjoyment of it to that which shall never know any Interruptions The Light of God's Countenance may have some Intervals of Darkness now mingled with it but then it shall shine bright upon him for ever and make a continually happy Day of Glory He goes from a mixed Happiness to a pure and perfect one He does not go naked out of the World but well provided for in another since God will there be his everlasting Portion and exceeding great Reward Now I have done the Proof of this Truth That the Favour of God is the most desirable Good and the enjoyment of that the best Spring and Fountain of our Happiness and Comfort I have dwelt long upon this as I said the Discourse would chiefly be employed in it and may I think be excused for staying long among so many pleasant Thoughts as the Love of God suggests Application I shall say but little now for Application of these things because I intend the following Discourse to be Applicatory of this For the present let us reflect a little upon what has been said And do not these things which have been said of the Love of God naturally lead us to condemn both in our selves or others all the neglect there is among us of so matchless a Benefit Is it not a wonderful thing that Mankind should neglect the Love of God That it should be common and general among Men to have little or no Concern for an Interest in that And yet it is thus with the World The Psalmist here does not say There be many that say Lord lift thou up the light of thy Countenance upon us Alas the Many follow other Goods and neglect this They spend their Labour for that which is not Bread and their Mony for that which will not profit and neglect the true Felicity There is nothing so little minded in the World as the securing an Interest in the Love of God There are many guilty of this that do not observe it in themselves Let us see then who must be charged with this Folly that so we may discover what there is of it in our selves Some look upon the Love of God as a thing that will come of its self without any seeking or endeavours after it and it is a very cheap thing in their Opinion of it They have such an Opinion of the Goodness of God that they think he cannot be affronted or displeased but will love them however they carry themselves towards him They think he will love them tho they do not much care for his Love tho they never seek tho they continually forfeit and despise it They think indeed that he will cast Pearls before Swine Many really do not value the Love of God they do not consider the Necessity and Worth of it They have God himself very little in their Thoughts and so they do not know or they consider not the Importance of an Interest in his Love They do not consider that an Over-ruling Providence mingles its self with all things That they have all they enjoy from him That they must be Beholden to him for an Happy Life on Earth and they banish utterly from their Thoughts all concern and care about the Life to come Is not any thing preferr'd by a great many before this that comes in competition with it Do they not value a little unprofitabl Gain a little foolish Pleasure a little slippery Honour and the most transient Gratisications of their desires of any sort more than the Love of an Infinite Eternal God Do not men commonly expect their Happiness from the things of this World from what they can see or taste or feel Are not sensible things most sensible to the dull and carnal Minds of Men How little Charm or Invitation has this thin invisible Blessing with it to a great many They forget that the things which are not seen are Eternal That Spiritu-things are the greatest and the most considerable Spiritual things are as nothing to them they have not the Senses of their Minds exercised to discern such things And further Are there not many that never had a
that thou hast been pleased to make us capable to know and meditate on thy Self to chuse and love thee to desire and enjoy thee who art an Infinite Eternal Good and in whose presence is fulness of Joy Oh how ready should our Hearts be at all times to say Whom have we in Heaven but thee and there is none on Earth that we can desire besides thee But alas we are degenerated we are fallen from our Original Excellency we are sunk into Sensuality we need to be put in mind and told wherein our true Happiness lies and to be excited urged and exhorted to pursue it We hover here below and seldom have any thoughts or desires moving upwards the objects of Sense detain us with them and we feed on Husks among Beasts we stay and abide upon the lowest and the smallest part of our Happiness Lord we are miserable we are undone and shall perish for ever if thy pity do not rescue us from the Love of these low Things Oh Pardon our guilty and heal our distempered Souls Discover thy self to us and make us love thee shed abroad thy Love abundantly in our Hearts Make us to rise by the Creature to the Creator Guide us by the streams to thee the Fountain of their Goodness and make us as we ought to love thee above all things Let us be governed by thy Love in the whole course of our lives and readily deny our selves to please thee and keep thy Commandments Let us firmly believe the glorious Things which thou hast prepared for them that love thee and draw our Hearts after them to endeavour that our Treasure may be in Heaven in Immutable things And direct us we pray thee so to pass through things Temporal as that we finally lose not the things Eternal Have mercy O Lord upon all Mankind Let the Earth be filled with Knowledge of the Lord as waters cover the Sea and all Men be directed and led in the way to true Happiness Give to all Nations Unity Peace and Concord Pour down an abundant measure of thy Spirit upon thy Church that the Gospel may run and be glorified from the rising of the Sun to the going down of the same Let them prosper that love it and let not the Gates of Hell ever prevail against it We pray especially for that part of it which thou hast graciously placed in these Nations and hitherto wonderfully detended Lord make it a very fruitful Vineyard and purge out of it all that is contrary to true Doctrin and Godliness Bless we pray thee our Gracious King and Queen and the Royal Family with all Spiritual and Eternal Blessings and give them long and happy Possession of the Throne of these Kingdoms to thy Glory and our Comfort Bless all in Authority under them help them truly and indifferently to administer Justice to the punishment of Wickedness and Vice and to the maintainance of thy true Religion and Vertue Give grace O Heavenly Father to all Bishops and Curates that they may both by their Life and Doctrin honour thee and guide thy People committed to them in the way of Blessedness Let all the Subjects of this Realm be subject to thee in Loyalty and Subjection and due Obedience to those that are over them in Church and State and let Piety Love Righteousness and Peace and Truth abound among us We commend to thy Fatherly goodness all that are in any Distress and Affliction all our Friends and Relations we pray for our Enemies do for all beyond what we are able to ask or think We humbly ask a comfortable and safe rest this Night and that it may please thee to make the out-goings of the Morning to rejoice Let thy word which we have heard this Day guide our Conversations and let us bring forth in them the Fruits of the Spirit let not the Cares of this World or the Deceitfulness of Riches choke the Word and render it unfruitful but grant we may live to the Glory of thy Name and to the Peace and Salvation of our own Souls by Jesus Christ in whose most comprehensive words we sum up our Requests saying OVR Father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever and ever Amen THE Necessity of Obedience TO THE COMMANDS of GOD Proved and Stated Let us Pray PRevent us O Lord in all our doings with thy most gracious favour and further us with thy continual help that in all our works begun continued and ended in thee we may glorify thy Holy Name and finally by thy Mercy obtain Everlasting Life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Mat. 7. 21. Not every one that saith unto me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the Will of my Father which is in Heaven HOW common a thing is it among those that have heard the glad Tidings of the Gospel for Men to take up a presumptuous reliance upon the Merits of Jesus Christ with neglect of Obedience to the Commands of God! Some of the most profligate and careless Sinners will hope to be saved And if one ask them how They will say by the Merits of Jesus Christ Many indulge themselves in their darling Sins and yet hope to be saved by the Merits of Christ And most certain it is that the Doctrins of some Teachers give occasion to this presumption They occasion Men to think there is nothing necessary to their Salvation but strong Believing and so to endeavour nothing but that and to rely upon the Righteousness of Christ so as to neglect all Endeavour after any Righteousness of their own And this Error and Delusion where it obtains does often prove able to harden a Man against the most earnest Exhortations to leave his Sins yea and even against the most plain Rebukes of Providence for them and to frustrate all other Means of Grace and Conversion whatever It is therefore of great Importance to remove it out of the way and this I shall endeavour by discoursing on these words of our Saviour which if they had been well considered together with many other plain Scriptures it had prevented the entertainment of such Imaginations in the Minds of Men. He had been in a long Discourse enforcing many of the Commands of the Moral Law And now towards the close of this Discourse he begins in this Verse to tell them of what importance and necessity it was to them to practise what he had taught He plainly teaches that no belief in him would avail them any thing if they did not together with it keep the Commands of God Not every one says he that saith to me Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven
perform it that I will keep thy righteous Judgments We must in our Judgments esteem the Law of God to be in all things right and good our Wills must chuse it as such and we should be possest with a hearty and sincere Love of it We must love his Law and hate every false way Every one must say to himself This shall shall be the Guide and Rule of my Life By this I will govern as far as I can my Thoughts and my Words and my Actions I will follow no common Customs or Fashions I will regard no wicked Maxims of the World I will not cherish or allow any Inclinations contrary to this Rule Nothing must be allowed or tolerated in our Hearts or Lives but what is according to the Law of God 2. From hence there must spring a constant Care and Endeavour to cease from Evil and do Good I will take heed to my ways says David that I offend not And it cannot be that a man can sincerely desire and purpose to keep the Commands of God and yet not diligently endeavour this We must then exercise a constant Watchfulness and Observance over our Hearts and Ways We must be willing to know our Duty be ready to be convinced of it We must endeavour to know it in the use of all fit means We must endeavour to do well and mind the keeping up our good Resolutions we must strive against the perverseness and backwardness of our Nature to do good silence and despise all Excuses and watch for and lay hold of all opportunities of well-doing in any kind In like manner we must constantly endeavour to abstain from doing evil We must avoid Temptations as much as we can and resist such as we cannot avoid The Scripture says Resist the Devil and he will fly from you We must endeavour to mortify and weaken and subdue all corrupt and evil Inclinations that are in us These things are meant when we are bid to work out our Salvation with Fear and Trembling And to strive to enter in at the strait Gate This then must be the grand Care and Concern of our whole Lives that which we do chiefly mind and that which must direct and influence every other Concern namely the keeping of the Commands of God 3. We must for the most part actually perform our Purpose and Resolution and live according to the Commands of God and we must always abstain from any wilful Violations of them in gross and scandalous Sins Certainly he may not be denominated a good Man that is not in the greater part good and that does not most commonly perform the Duties God requires of him in his Place and Station Therefore we must not live in the constant and habitual practice of any known Sin or of such an one as we might know to be a Sin The good Man will not allow not excuse himself in any the least Sin He may be surprised and drawn sometimes into that which is evil but he will not run into it and then there is nothing ill that shall be his constant Course for if he be surprised into a Sin he will not stay in it as we may say he severely rebukes himself for it he earnestly repents and sets himself to renew his Resolutions and care to abstain from it for the future And then besides all gross and high acts and degrees of Wickedness must be totally forsaken as we may learn from what the Apostle very plainly says in Gal. 5. 19 20 21. Now the works of the flesh are manifest says he which are Adultery Fornication Vncleanness Lasciviousness Witchcraft Hatred Variance Emulations Wrath Strife Seditions Heresies Envyings Murders Drunkenness Revellings and such like Of the which I tell you before as I have also told you in times past That they which do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God Such things shew a Man to be out of a State of Grace and Salvation they cut him off from all right to the Benefits of the Covenant of Grace He that commits such Enormities is a Sinner and his Repentance and recovery to a good Condition is not well assured till he he has for some time heartily grieved for such Sin and liv'd at a great distance from it and practised even against Temptations and Provocations the contrary Vertues These things are absolutely and indispensibly required And if we do thus God will look mercifully upon our Infirmities he will accept our Obedience tho it be imperfect and we shall be justified by him upon the Account of the most perfect and compleat Righteousness of Jesus Christ tho we cannot work out such an one of our own Application It remains now that I close up the Discourse with a brief Application of what has been said 1. And in the first Place we may from hence justify the frequent Preaching up of Vertue and Holiness The too common corruption and wickedness of Men's Lives do greatly require such Discourses and the Gospel allows them Shall we not urge and insist upon those things which are necessary to Salvation Upon those things which Christ himself and his Apostles much insisted upon and made them the aim and scope of all their Preachings and Writings Indeed without the frequent and earnest insisting upon the necessity of a Holy Life the corrupted Nature of Man is mightily apt to abuse the pleasant Doctrins of the Gospel when we hear of a sure Attonement for Sin we are apt to be less careful to avoid Sin than we ought to be It is certainly necessary and very fitting to tell Men they have nothing to do with the Benefits and Priviledges purchased by Christ till they are obedient to his Laws since this is very true and it were to betray their Souls into Perdition to be often telling what Christ has done for Mankind and seldom to insist upon what he requires of them Such would by no means deserve the Name of the most edifying Preaching such might indeed build Men up in a presumptuous Faith but not in the Holy Faith that is Saving And if the Gospel its self doth require Men's Obedience to the Laws of God then the urging of this is true Gospel-Preaching it is not obsolete legal Preaching nor is it dry mean Moral Preaching It is such Gospel-Preaching as Christ Himself and his Apostles employed themselves in To this Truth we have the Testimony of one of the greatest Lights of the Church since the Days of Inspiration and he a Zealous Advocate for Free Grace and all the glory of it I mean St. Austin This is to preach the Gospel of Christ says he Evangelizare Christum Not only to say what things are to be believed concerning Christ but also what things are to be observed and done by him that comes to join or incorporate himself into the Body of Christ And in speaking of the things that are to be believed concerning Christ It is not enough says he to say whose Son he was whence he came
this Exhortation we may consider that without doubt the Pleasures of Religion are the strongest and sweetest of any They sink deeper into a Man than any other and affect him more as they enter into his Mind and put all the inward Powers of that into a pleasing Exercise and Motion They possess more of a Man than those that touch only his Body and Senses The Mind of Man is the most and as we may say the greatest part of him It has most Desire and greatest Capacity of Pleasure It is much more sensible both of Pleasure and Pain than the duller Body The Psalmist speaks the greater Sweetness and Excellency of Religious Pleasure when he says of the Law of God If it sweeter than the Honey and the Honey-comb Psal 19. 10. He means the practice of Religion and Vertue the doing any Duties commanded by the Law of God afforded him a far greater Pleasure and Delight than e're he could by his Senses receive from the most pleasant things of this World 2. Since there is so much Pleasure in well-doing this may justly persuade Men off from the guilty Pursuit and Enjoyment of the Pleasures of this World Why should a Man suffer himself to be guilty for the sake of any Pleasure when he may enjoy that which is very Rich and Sensible without being so It is most certain that Guilt will greatly allay the briskest Pleasures of this World In the midst of guilty Laughter the Heart is sad These are always best and sweetest to him that regularly and soberly uses them that uses them according to the Rules of Religion Thus he shall hurt neither his Body nor his Soul nor his Estate nor his Neighbour while he pleases his Appetites and gratifies his Senses and so he avoids the unpleasing Farewell of a troubled Conscience He does not destroy the Appetite while he pleases it but keeps himself in a capacity to have always a very lively Relish and Sense of his Pleasures The irregular and intemperate Man makes a Drudgery of those of this World and turns their fine Relish eager and four And the other sort that is the high and delicate ones of Religion he utterly deprives himself of In a vertuous and religious Course of Life a Man may enjoy both sorts but in that which is guilty and irreligious he cannot well enjoy either This is the First Use may be made of this Discourse 2. A Second is this It ought to persuade Men to betake themselves steadily to a religious and good Course of Life It was said by the Spirit of God that the ways of Religion are ways of Pleasantness with Design to recommend them to the Sons of Men. He spoke this in a kind Condescention to our Nature and Inclination to make a Bait of Pleasure which we are so apt to dote upon And this surely should be a very powerful Argument to this purpose This ought much rather to induce Men to be Wise and Vertuous to act as becomes them and pursue their true Happiness than to make them guilty of Folly and Sin of what is shameful and hurtful to them and of what will incur their everlasting Misery And how great an Obligation to Obedience is it that the Laws of our Religion are thus contriv'd that the Universal Sovereign has made the Instances of our Duty so reasonable and so good that we may delight in our Duty and the Performance of it will reward it self They would exceedingly aggravate our Wickedness and shew a strange Obstinacy in Sin and Enmity to God if we should rather refuse all this Happiness and Pleasure than submit our selves to the Laws of Religion And thus I have far enough urg'd this Argument in our Text to shew that they who will do wickedly do obstinately refuse their own Interest And to furnish the Consciences of Sinners with such a Conviction as will at one time or other prove a sharp Sting and Torment if they will not suffer it now to restrain them from Wickedness THE PRAYER MOst Great and Glorious Lord God! the Infinite and Perfect Being The greatest Excellency among thy Creatures lies in their greatest Likeness and Conformity to thee We give thee Thanks O Lord for that thou hast made us capable of so great Honour as the resembling of thee in our Actions for that thou hast laid upon us such Laws as guide us to a noble Conformity to the Divine Nature Thou didst of thy bounteous Goodness make Man upright inclin'd to such Actions and suited to thy excellent Law But alass we have defiled and polluted our selves with Sin and are become averse and unwilling impotent and unable to keep thy Commandments Our carnal Minds are Enmity to thee and are not subject to thy Law nor can be till they be Renewed Sanctified and Created again in Christ Jesus unto Good Works O Lord open thou our Eyes to behold the wondrous and alluring Excellencies of thy Law Work in us to will and to do according to thy good Pleasure Rectify the Apprehensions the Relish of our Souls that we may find thy Commandments to be sweeter than the Honey and the Honey-comb Lord make us so steddy and diligent in our Duty so practised and inured to it and so in love with it that we may find thy ways to be to us as they are in themselves ways of Pleasantness Shew and convince us of the Equity and Reasonableness of all thy Service that it is perfect Freedom that it is our greatest Honour that the Wisdom of good Living is our best Ornament even as a Chain of Gold about the Neck Encourage us we beseech thee to our Duty with a constant Sense of thy Presence with us of thy gracious Eye and Regard to all we do Let us know thou dost accept our sincere Endeavours and imperfect Performances through the Merits and Mediation of Jesus Christ Inable us to hope in thy Mercy and assure us that if we put our Trust in thee in Well-doing we shall not be confounded But especially we pray thee O Lord shed abroad thy Love abundantly in our Hearts Let Love possess us Love move Love direct and byass us make us to love thee with all our Hearts and our Neighbours as our selves so shall we be reconcil'd to thy Commandments so shall we run and not be weary we shall ever walk before thee and not faint in that blessed way Renew us O Lord after thine Image and make us Holy as thou art Holy and Good as thou art Good Merciful as thou our Heavenly Father art Merciful and Forgiving as thou art ready to Forgive Let our Lives and Conversations shew forth the Vertues of him that has called us to his Kingdom and Glory Look down in Mercy upon all Mankind rescue the miserable Slaves of the Devil who is the Ruler of the Darkness of this World from their sad Bondage under him and bring them into the happy Liberty of the Children of God Save thy People O Lord and bless thine