Undertakings depends much on our right timing of them and in nothing more than in Administring Reproof God came to Adam in the cool of the day and the best time to advise a Man is when he is Sedate and Calm and at leisure to consider of the Counsel we give him Every Man has his mollia tempora fandi Seasons when he is willing and dispos'd to receive an Impression and the way to make our Advice successful and profitable to him is to lay hold on these Opportunities for as Solomon well observes A word spoken in due season Prov. 15.23 how good is it it is like Apples of Gold in Pictures of Silver There must be also regard had to the place for the more private our Reproof is it is for the most part the better Matth. 18 15. If thy brother trespass against thee tell him his fault between thee and him alone Publick Correption is then only necessary when others are to be warn'd to leave the same Sin and avoid the same Snare Neither are all Persons to be treated after the same manner Inferiours must be very careful how they behave themselves towards their Superiours and Governours Is it fit to say to a King Job 34.18 thou art wicked and to Princes ye are ungodly Great Care must be had least what we think Zeal for God and the Good of our Neighbour should be justly interpreted Sawsiness and and Presumption And therefore when Nathan was sent by God himself to Reprove David he doth it after the most modest and submissive manner by representing his Case to him in a Parable and decently veiling his Reproof under the name of another Man With our Equals and Inferiours we may use greater Liberty and Freedom only taking Care that whilst we reprove the Vice we do not shew any distaste to the Person Many more Rules might be given but in this as in such like Cases much is to be left to Christian Prudence and he who carefully observes the first Rule I laid down with which I shall also conclude cannot do very much amiss Which is That we make the Glory of God and the good of our Neighbour the End and Aim of our Reproof as well as of our other Actions SERMON V. PREACH'D When the CHAPEL was newly Furnish'd and Beautify'd PSALM XCVI 9. O Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness 'T IS agreed on by the whole Current of Interpreters that the inspir'd Pen-man of this Psalm sets forth the Kingdom of the Messiah and the blessed Effects of it the Conversion of the Jews and the Salvation of all Nations and hereby shews us not only how God was worship'd under the Law but points out to us how he expects to be worship'd under the Gospel The beginning of this Psalm contains an Exhortation to all the People of the World as well Heathens as Jews to praise God for that wonderful Blessing of sending a Saviour to preach the Gospel unto them and revealing the Doctrine of Remission of Sins and therefore he commands his Worshippers To declare his Glory among the Heathen and his wonders among all the People that all the Earth should sing unto the Lord and that they should shew forth his Salvation from day to day so that their Praise might be as extensive as his Benefits and in some measure bear Proportion with his Blessings which were to be shed upon all the Nations of the world and to continue for ever Ver. 1 2 3. In the following Verses he inforces this Duty of praising God by some Arguments drawn from the Consideration of his glorious and wonderful Attributes his Majesty Glory Power and Wisdom which were after an extraordinary manner display'd and manifested in the Incarnation of our Blessed Saviour and from thence he concludes Ver. 7 8 9. That it was the Duty of all Men to frequent the place of God's Publick Worship to Prostrate themselves before him and to admire reverence and adore his Holy Name Honour and Majesty are before him Strength and Beauty are in his Sanctuary Give unto the Lord Glory and Strength give unto the Lord the Glory due unto his name bring an Offering and come into his Courts And having in these words describ'd the Worship of God after the manner of worshipping him under the Law by approaching his Temple and bringing a Sacrifice in the words of the Text he explains himself that he doth not mean that these Sacrifices should continue under the Gospel and that those who liv'd under the Reign and Kingdom of the Messiah should worship as the Jews did but that it would be their Duty to worship God in the Beauty of Holiness i. e. with such a pure and devout Frame of Mind such suitable Affections such becoming decent and orderly Behaviour as were typify'd and denoted to them by the Rites and Ceremonies of the Jewish Law O Worship the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness In which words we have these two plain Lessons taught us I. That all Christians are oblig'd frequently to meet together for the Publick Worship of God II. That the Publick Worship of God ought to be perform'd in the most decent and solemn manner imaginable 1. That all Christians are oblig'd frequently to meet together for the performance of God's Publick Worship By Worship I mean that immediate Worship which is offer'd up to God in his Sanctuary that Publick Acknowledgment of his Government and Soveraignty over us by the performance of those Duties which are enjoyn'd us in the first Table such as are praying to him magnifying his Holy Name hearing his Word and receiving his Sacraments which Duties are in a peculiar manner call'd the Worship of God because they have God for their immediate Object they are address'd to him and terminate in him The Will of God is the Reason why they are perform'd and his Honour and Glory ought to be the ultimate End of the performance of them So that the Worship here meant may be defin'd that religious Adoration which is offer'd up unto God in the Publick Assemblies of Christians The Command of worshipping God in the Text was Originally given to the Jews but hereby was denoted and typify'd to us that more pure and spiritual Worship which was to succeed that of the Jews and was to be offer'd up unto God under the Gospel For there is a rich Vein of Gospel Truths which runs through the Old Testament and particularly the Book of the Psalms of which one of the Principal is this Command of Worshipping God in Publick which is as obliging to us Christians as ever it was to the Jews As may be made appear from these following Considerations 1. Because God has instituted and commanded this sort of Worship 'T is not only a branch of the Law of Nature but also a Principal part of instituted and reveal'd Religion The Light of Nature will teach us that there is one first Cause of all things who contains in himself all those Perfections
suitable to the Divine Nature then are our Minds duly qualified and prepared to perform that Spiritual Worship which God is best pleas'd with and takes most delight in John 4.24 For God is a Spirit and will be worshipp'd in Spirit and in Truth And therefore 't is no wonder that of so many who frequent the Publick Worship of God so few reap Benefit by it because the Generality of Worshippers render themselves uncapable of receiving those Blessings which God offers them in his Holy Ordinances They come into God's Courts carelesly and negligently without a due Sence of the importance of those Duties they are going to perform their Minds are full of vain worldly and sinful Thoughts polluted with carnal Desires and Affections and then no wonder that they take so little delight in the Service of God and reap no more Benefit by it 2. If we would worship God in the Beauty of Holiness we must comport our selves after such a manner as is sutable to the Duty we are about and express the Zeal and Fervency of our Souls by becoming and expressive Gestures of our Bodies Did we consider That the place we tread is holy ground Exod. 3.5 that God and his Holy Angels look down upon us and behold us the House of God would strike a greater Awe and Reverence on our Minds than the Throne of any temporal Prince which will not fail of exacting from us the worship of our Bodies Gen. 28.17 How dreadful is this place says Jacob This is no other but the House of God this is the gate of Heaven A due Sense also of the importance of the Business we are about would have the same Effect for were we begging of God some temporal Blessing which we might well be without indifferency in our Behaviour would better become us but when the eternal Welfare of our Souls lies at stake when we are Candidates for an everlasting Inheritance we cannot be too earnest we cannot be too Devout had we a thousand hands and a thousand tongues they might all of them be employ'd to express the Devotion of our Souls and the Fervency of our Affections 'T is not a bare joyning in the Prayers of the Church a repeating the Responses and putting our selves in that Posture the Rubrick enjoyns 't is not the avoiding the Indecencies of a prophane or clownish Worshipper I am now pleading for this the Custom of the place good Manners and gentile Education will exact from us But that we go farther and by the Humility Gravity and Composedness of our Behaviour stir up Holy Affections in our own Minds and encourage others to imitate our Example Lastly the Beauty of Holiness doth also consist in the Decency and Solemnity of those Circumstances which Accompany our Worship Which tho' they consist of Rites and Ceremonies in their own Nature indifferent yet are ordain'd to an excellent end and are of admirable use for the promoting Devotion and Uniformity in the Service of God The Generality of Mankind are very much influenc'd by the shews and appearances of things and whatsoever is pleasing to the Eye has an easier Admission and makes a deeper Impression on the Mind And therefore it has been the Care of Holy and Devout Christians in all Ages of the World when Religion had the Countenance of Publick Authority and was in a flourishing Condition to build Churches for the Publick Worship of God to keep them in good Repair to furnish them with such Ornaments that the Worship of God may be perform'd orderly decently and solemnly and appear regular and beautiful in the Eyes of the Beholders and hereby raise up in their Minds awful and reverent Thoughts of that God who is there worshipped For 't is a Sign that Religion is vile and cheap in the Eyes of those Men who as the Prophet speaks can suffer the house of the Lord to lie wast whilst they dwell in ceiled roofs They spare no Cost to raise beautifie and adorn their own Houses They ceile them with Cedar Jer. 22.14 and paint them with Vermilion and yet will not contribute the least Mite to the Service of the Temple Quorsum perditio haec is their usual demand To what end is all this Cost and Charges were it not better that all this Money was spar'd and given to the Poor To whom I answer in the words of a Learned Knight which probably will give better Satisfaction Sir Edwin Sands in his Speculum Europae than if spoken from the mouth of a Clergy-man Tho' the Ornaments says he of such places as are Dedicated to God's Service ought to be rather Grave than Pompous yet it could never sink into my Heart to imagine that the allowance for furnishing them out should be measur'd by the Scanty Rule of meer Necessity a Proportion so low that Nature it self has gone beyond it even in the most ignoble Creature or that God has enrich'd this lower World with such wonderful Variety of things Beautiful and Glorious that they might serve only for the pampering mortal Man in his Pride and that to the immediate Service of the great Creator Lord and Giver of them only baser cheaper and less Beautiful things ought to be employ'd Especially seeing that as in Princes Courts so in the Service of God this outward State and Glory being well dispos'd doth beget encrease quicken and nourish the inward Reverence and respectful Devotion which is due to so Sovereign a Majesty Thus this truly Pious and Devout as well as excellently Learned Person To whom Assents the voice of all Antiquity 't is well known what Care was taken that the Tabernacle of Moses should be as rich and as Beautiful as Art could make it in what Glory Splendour and Beauty the Temple of Solomon was built how desirous David was to have been the Founder of it But since that Honour was reserv'd for his Son Solomon he made it his business to provide Materials and tells us Moreover because I have set my Affection to the house of my God 1 Chron. 29.3 I have of my own proper Goods of gold and silver which I have given to the house of my God over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house even three thousand talents of gold of Ophir and seven thousand talents of refin'd silver And when this House was destroy'd a second Temple was built which tho' much inferour to the former yet for Beauty and Magnificency was the wonder of the whole World And thus 't was not only under the Law but from the first planting of Christianity as soon as ever the Christian Religion was tolerated by the Civil Magistrate their great Care was to build Churches for the more Decent and Solemn Worship of God And when those Churches which were overthrown in the Dioclesian Persecution were re-edified adorn'd and Beautified under Maximinus The Historian tells us Euseb lib. 10. cap. 2. That the Hearts of all Men were fill'd with a
in the most eminent Degree which he is pleas'd to communicate to inferiour Beings and is infinitely more excellent than the Workmanship of his own hands And since 't is natural for us to proportion our Esteem and Veneration of things according to that Worth and Dignity we apprehend to be in them it will from hence follow that the Contemplation of these infinite Perfections will require and ought to raise our Praise and Adoration For we receive all that we have from him and therefore we ought in the most solemn manner imaginable to return him the Praise and Glory due unto his Holy Name So that whether we contemplate the Excellencies of the Divine Nature in the general or the Effects of his Goodness deriv'd down to us in particular either of them will afford sufficient Motives to oblige us to frequent the Publick Worship of God For to what end can we imagine our reasonable Soul is plac'd in us Why were our Bodies enlightned with this Ray of Divinity But that we might be in a Capacity of considering and contemplating the wonderful works of God's Creation and Providence To what end have we a Power given us of communicating our Thoughts one to another but that we might joyn together in celebrating the Praises of our great Creator And 't is for this Reason that the Psalmist calls the Tongue man's Glory Psal 57.8 because the first and chief End of our Speech was to Praise and Glorifie God From these and such like Reflections the generality of Vertuous and thinking Men have given their Assent to this Truth That the Publick Worship of God is absolutely necessary and our indispensible Duty And therefore how wide soever Men of different Perswasions are from one another in their Way and Manner of worshipping God which proceeds from their different Notions of the Perfections of God yet all Religions in the World centre and agree in this common Truth and Principle that the Worship of God ought to be Publick and Solemn Publick Worship therefore is the Dictate of Nature a Precept of universal and eternal Obligation But besides 't is our declar'd Duty by positive Institution The Jews we know had a set and Solemn Worship dictated to them by God himself they were under his immediate Guidance and Government he was their God and their King too their Civil and Religious Sanctions were blended together and their Worship so truly Publick That we do not find any expresly Commanded by the Law of Moses which was not so And this I the rather mention because 't is on all hands agreed that the Jewish Worship was a Type of the Christian and tho' the Ritual part of it was no longer obliging than till the coming of the Messiah who was typify'd thereby yet all those Duties which were founded upon Moral and eternal Reasons as Publick Worship is confess'd to be were to continue to the end of the World And therefore our Saviour tells us That he did not come to destroy the Law Matth. 5.17 but to fulfil it i. e. he came to perform those things which were represented by the Types and Ceremonies of the Law which having had their Completion in him we might reasonably expect should pass away But he came to confirm and establish Moral Duties to place them in a clearer Light and to give Mankind juster Notions of them and to engage us to perform them by more powerful Motives To this end he made it his first and principal Care to establish the Publick Worship of God and to refine it from its Dross and to reform it from all those Superstitions and Abuses which in a long Tract of time were crept into it Because the Purity of Divine Worship is the Foundation of all Religion the Cement of Society and the Sourse and Original of all Moral Vertue To this end our Saviour instituted an Evangelical Priesthood a particular Order of Men invested with Authority to preach the Gospel to the whole World to offer up Publick Prayers and Thansgivings unto God and to unite Men into Societies for the Publick and more solemn Performance of the Duties of Religion and to gather him a Kingdom or Church through the whole World i. e. A Society of Men who enter into Covenant by Baptism to obey the Authority of our Saviour Christ and to live by those Laws which he has instituted and appointed in his Holy Gospel He therefore who neglects the Publick Worship of God which is one of the Principal Institutions of the Christian Religion doth in effect disown God's Authority denies his Saviour and casts himself out of his Protection And therefore the Apostle so earnestly exhorts the Hebrews Not to forsake the assembling of themselves together Heb. 10.25 as being one effectual Means to engage them to hold fast the Profession of their Faith and to secure them from the Commission of that heinous and dangerous Sin of Apostatizing from the Christian Religion 2. If we consider the Nature of Divine Worship it will from thence appear that to Worship God Publickly is absolutely necessary and our indispensible Duty For since Worship is an Acknowledgment of the Excellencies and Perfections of that Being whom we adore 't is evident that the more Publick this Acknowledgment is the more perfect and acceptable is the Worship in the sight of God because 't is more conducive and answerable to those Ends for which he at first instituted and design'd it Now the Reason why we are oblig'd thus Publickly to acknowledge the Excellencies and Perfections of God is that we may hereby express the Sense of our poor indigent and necessitous Condition and the infinite Majesty Power and Goodness of God that we receive every thing we possess from this Fountain of Goodness and depend on him for all that we enjoy And therefore since we can make him no other Returns we ought not to with-hold that of a verbal Acknowledgment and the natural Expressions of a grateful Mind And since God is Good not only to every one of us in particular but to all the whole Race of Mankind and since his most valuable tho' most unregarded Favours are bestow'd upon us in Common therefore we ought to joyn together in celebrating his Praises and to express our Thankfulness with the greater Veneration and Solemnity 3. Consider the Benefits which accrue both to our selves and others from the Publick Worship of God We are Creatures naturally addicted to Imitation and rather inclin'd to do as others do than to take their Advice and believe what they say Example has a strange influence upon us in matters Spiritual as well as Temporal our Passions are wonderfully rais'd when by a Holy kind of Emulation we as it were contend in the Fervency of our Devotion For as Fire kindles Fire and turns all other Materials into its own Nature So a Holy and Christian Zeal will produce its like in the Breasts of all who behold it A Man may go on a long time
our Ways as to turn our feet unto God's Testimonies Which God of his Mercy grant for the sake of our blessed Redeemer Jesus Christ our Lord. SERMON III. 2 TIM III. 5. Having a form of Godliness but denying the Power from such turn away THIS know saith St. Paul Ver. 1. That in the last days periolous times shall come because of the wickedness of Men as he goes on in the second Verse for Men shall be lovers of their own selves covetous proud boasters blasphemers and all which he comprehends under one Character in the words of the Text Having a Form of Godliness but denying the Power And this is the chief Reason why the times would be so perilous because the greatest part of these wicked Persons should conceal their Crimes under a Form and shew of Godliness Were they professedly and openly wicked there were some Ingenuity even in their Impudence because they could not be tax'd or upbraided with Hypocrisie Were they covetous proud blasphemers without a shew of Zeal and pretence of Religion then all Men might plainly discern and detect them Psal 55.12 and from an open Enemy I would have hid my self says David Shelves and Quicksands that have Lights always burning to discover them by are the more easily avoided and we are forewarn'd against the Dog that barks first But these Deceivers of whom St. Paul speaks have a fair and glorious outside tho' they are foul within These workers of Iniquity cry Lord Lord and are great Professors of Religion They put on the Form of Godliness tho' they deny the Power thereof and therefore they have the greater Sin From hence it is that they are the more dangerous Company and we have the greater Reason to observe the Caution laid down in the Text from such turn away Having a Form of Godliness but denying the Power from such turn away From these words I shall shew I. What is here meant by Godliness what by a Form and what by the Power of it II. That we may have a Form without the Power of Godliness III. How we may discover whether we have the Power of Godliness or else only the Form of it IV. And Lastly how far we must turn away from such as have only the Form but not the Power of Godliness 1. What is here meant by Godliness what by a Form and what by the Power of it Godliness in the Original 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is a devout and sincere Worship of the only true God in Spirit and in Truth both inwardly and outwardly according to his Word Or to describe it more fully and expresly 1 Tim. 1.5 'T is an earnest Love of God out of a pure Heart and a good Conscience and Faith unfeigned whereby we are incited to glorifie God and to do good towards Men So that in this one word is imply'd our whole Duty towards God and Man This is express'd by St. 1 Tim. 2.2 Paul by leading a quiet and peaceable Life in all Godliness and Honesty 1 Tim. 4.8 This is that Godliness which is profitable unto all things and has the Promises of the Life that now is and that which is to come By a Form of Godliness is meant an outward Resemblance a colourable shew or likely appearance of Godliness when a Man puts on the Face and outside of Religion Acts and Mimicks it so well as to deceive and impose upon those who converse with him who judging according to the outward appearance believe him to be an honest holy and religious Man tho' in truth he is nothing less He may not only deceive others but delude himself also and be confidently perswaded that he is the Child of God and one of the chief Favourites of Heaven when indeed he is a Servant of the Devil and a Firebrand of Hell And in truth the Form must be like the Pattern or else it is no Form at all for we do not say a Picture or Statue is such a Man's Picture or Statue unless it bears a lively Resemblance of his Looks and Person Thus a Form of Godliness must be such a shew and outside of Religion as is of the same hew and complection with true Religion and a lively Portraicture of it tho' in many Respects it falls short of the Power of Godliness which implies that Force and Efficacy that internal Principle and Spring of Action which is well express'd by the Greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 whereby a Man is made as St. 1 Tiâ—â— 41 8.12 Paul says An example of Believers in word in Conversation in Charity in Spirit in Faith in Purity and has the Grace of God which bringeth Salvation teaching him to deny ungodliness and worldly Lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world If a Man has Charity in Conversation Faith and Purity in Spirit so as to deny all worldly Lusts and to live soberly in himself and righteously towards others and godly towards his Maker and Redeemer Then is his Soul and Body entirely subject to the Cross of Christ then his Form of Godliness proceeds from the Power of it And this is that Power of Godliness which works mightily unto Salvation And this Power of God is most evidently seen in reducing the most Stiff-neck'd and Hard-hearted Sinners in prevailing with them to leave their beloved Sins and bosom Vices and in beating down and subduing the most stubborn and unruly Passions such as Pride Envy Malice and Revenge those Sins our corrupt Nature is most subject to and in making so great a Change in us that we do not seem to be the same Men. The Lyon becomes a Lamb and the Serpent a Dove a natural Man a Man wholly Spiritual and a Servant of the Devil a Child of God He aims at new ends Acts by new Principles and is ready to expose his Life by giving his Testimony to those Truths which before were foolishness unto him And therefore the Gospel is call'd Rom. 1.16 the Power of God unto Salvation to every one that believes This is that Power of Godliness which those Hypocrites mentioned by St. Paul in the Text are without here 't is they are defective which brings me to shew 2. That the Form of Godliness may be without the Power of it And this is confirm'd by many other Texts of Scripture We are forewarn'd that we do not look to the outward appearance 2 Cor. 11.14 for the Devil can transform himself into an Angel of Light and then 't is no wonder that his Servants can put on the guise and appearance of the Children of God There are numerous instances set down in the Holy Scripture sufficient to convince us of this Truth We are told that a Man may pretend to be sent from Heaven and yet Preach another Gospel than that which our Saviour reveal'd to the World and hereby deserve an Anathema Nay he may Preach the true Gospel with such force of Reason and wonderful Efficacy
twenty thousand or else whilst the other is yet a great way off he sendeth an Embassage and desireth Conditions of Peace So likewise whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he has he cannot be my Disciple The meaning of both these Parables is this That every one who intends to be Christ's Disciple must first sit down and consider with himself what 't is to be a Christian what Difficulties he is like to meet with in his Christian Race what Temptations he must encounter withal And if he doth not sincerely Purpose to forego every thing which stands in Competition with Christ and his Gospel if he doth not resolve to part with all that he has rather than deny his Saviour he can never be Christ's true Disciple And as we ought to make such Reflections as these before we enter on a Christian Course of Life so when we have made some Progress in it it will be necessary to examine and try our selves how well we have put these good Resolutions into Execution Whether we have acquitted our selves like Christ's faithful Souldiers and Servants or else cowardly left the Field and deserted his Colours And therefore we are so often commanded to examine our selves whether we be in the Faith 1 Cor. 3.13 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gal. 6.4 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and to prove our own selves And St. Paul advises the Galatians Let every man prove his own work The word us'd in both places in the Original signifies so to prove or to try as that a Man's Actions may be throughly known and approved fifted and made evident And that such an Examination as this will be of great use to promote our spiritual Well-being is evident 2. From Reason Common Sense and Reason will inform us that if we design to direct our Lives by the word of God we must frequently compare them with this Rule We must reflect upon our Actions and consider when we have done our Duty and acted as becomes us and when we have transgress'd the Commands of God For in the first place the best Men in the world are subject to many sinful Passions and tho' they make never so strong Resolutions tho' they could set the Faculties of their Souls in the most exact Order yet when they go abroad into the World they will meet with something or other which will ruffle and discompose them and betray them into disorderly Affections and sinful Practices There is no Man in the world so good and perfect but he has his Failings his Weaknesses and Infirmities And the Devil will be sure to assault him on that side where he lies most open to Temptation and will sometimes prevail against him And therefore the wisest Course a good Man can take is frequently to recollect himself to consider when and where he has done amiss what was the occasion of it what betray'd him into that sinful and foolish Action and having discover'd this heartily to repent of his Sin to fence and guard himself against it for the time to come and to resolve stedfastly never to suffer himself to be impos'd on and deluded again in the like manner In the next place there are many Actions which at first sight appear to us good and Praise-worthy which when more narrowly consider'd and try'd by the Rule of God's word are found to be crooked and deform'd such as we have just cause to repent of We place them at first in a wrong Light we behold them thro' a false Medium Our Kindness and Affection toward them makes them seem of a different Complexion than they are really of But when we come to consider them without Passion or Prejudice to weigh every Circumstance Then 't is plainly evident that we admire our selves for Qualities which are not in us and applaud our selves for Actions which are nothing worth We perform'd them either out of a wrong End or they proceeded from a false Principle or we were deficient in the Manner of transacting them So necessary is it to consider our Ways and to bring our Actions to the Touch-stone of God's word even those Actions which we esteem most Holy and Perfect For our Righteousnesses the most regular Acts of our Lives our most Affectionate and fervent Devotions are stain'd with Sin and want that Purity and Integrity which God requires in them they are deriv'd either from Self-love or Pride or desire of Honour or love of Gain from fear of Damage or discredit in the World rather than out of Love and Reverence and Gratitude towards God Charity and Good-will towards our Neighbour or a sober regard to our own true Welfare and Happiness And though God has Promised to pardon those Sins and to pass by that Obliquity of our Actions which proceeds from the frailty and infirmity of our Natures yet he expects that we should repent of them i. e. That we should confess and forsake them express our Sorrow for what we have done and resolve to Act better for the future which can never be perform'd without a severe Examination of our Hearts and calling our selves to a particular Account how and wherein we have offended But farther the absolute necessity of Examining our selves will appear from this Consideration That the greatest part of our time is spent amidst the noise and hurry of the World our Thoughts are taken up chiefly in the business of our Callings in providing for our Families which is so far from being a Fault that 't is highly commendable and Praise-worthy for God is better pleas'd with a Man who is diligent and industrious in that Calling and Station he has plac'd him in than he would be if he were continually upon his knees performing one uninterrupted Act of Devotion and this I am induc'd to believe for this one plain Reason because all the Devotional parts of our Religion were chiefly intended to help and assist us in the Practice of those Duties which God requires of us in our several Relations But yet seeing so much of our time is spent in the business of this Life so many of our thoughts taken up with our worldly Affairs we must needs judge it highly reasonable that we should set apart some time to retire into the Closet of our Breast and frequently consider what State and Condition our better and more Spiritual part is in what Sins we have been guilty of and whether we go forward or backward in the Ways of Vertue and Religion Every prudent Man and good Husband doth this in his secular Concerns he that designs either to keep or encrease his Estate makes it his first and chiefest Care to be exact in keeping his Accounts to Balance them often and to inform himself what proportion his Incomes bear with his Expences And thus careful and diligent we should be in our spiritual Affairs if we had but the same Value for our immortal Souls which we have for the fading Goods of this World this would supersede my
Labour of proving to you the absolute and indispensable necessity which lies upon every one to continue in the Practice of this Duty And in truth this has been the usage of good and vertuous Men in all Ages of the world not only of those whose Examples are recommended to our Imitation in the Holy Scripture but also of those Heathens who have been eminent for Vertue and Morality The Psalmist tells us Psal 77.6 That he us'd constantly to call himself to an Account I call to remembrance my song in the night I commune with my own heart and my spirit made diligent search Amongst the Fathers of the Primitive Church we find all those who wrote upon practical Subjects pressing this Duty of Self-examination The time would fail me should I instance in the Precepts of St. Chrysostom Basil Gregory and the rest Neither were the Heathen Moralists wanting in the recommendation of it both by Precept and their own Examples That Precept of Pythagoras in his golden Verses is generally known 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ask thy self says he every Night What Sin have I committed this day What Good have I done What Good have I left undone which I ought to have done Seneca tells us Quotidie apud me causam dico I every day pass Judgment upon my own Actions when I am in Bed and the Light is taken away I run over all my Words and Deeds I consider how I have spent that day I omit nothing which I can recollect for why should I be afraid to reflect on my own Failings when I can say to my self this was not well done but do so no more He also tells us of his Friend Sixtus the Philosopher who duly thus examin'd himself before he went to rest What Disease of thy Soul or what Vice hast thou cur'd this day What Sin hast thou subdu'd Art thou a better Man to day than thou wast yesterday If so thou hast liv'd to some Purpose but if not thou hast but consum'd and lost thy time And to name no more the Divine Plato when he saw any Man do a wicked or unbecoming Action us'd to ask himself this Question 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 have I never been guilty of this Crime If this Sin looks so ill in that Man is it not worse in me If I have never been guilty of it let me be sure to avoid it for the time to come I might easily heap up many like Instances for this has been the Practice of good and vertuous Men in all Ages and in truth 't is hardly possible for a Man to be good and vertuous who omits or neglects the Performance of it And therefore I shall take this for granted And proceed Secondly To lay down some Directions how we may perform this Duty to the best advantage And 1. When we design to perform this Duty of Self-examination let us first free our Minds from all the Cares and Business of Life from every thing which will take up our Thoughts and apply our selves to this Task with seriousness and attention For since the Interests of this World and the next are widely different it will be impossible to attend on the one whilst our Thoughts are taken up about the other And we may as well fix our Eye upon two opposite Objects at the same time as keep our apprehensive Faculty intent both on Things temporal and Things spiritual When we have cleans'd and purg'd our Souls from all carnal and worldly Thoughts and Affections let us beseech God from whom are the Preparations of the heart that he will enable us impartially to examin and search into our own Souls enlighten our Understandings assist our Memories and discover to us those Sins which lie hid in our Consciences and teach us those things we know not which either we never took notice of or which we have forgot That we may have the same apprehensions of them at present we shall hereafter be affected with when we come to lie upon a Sick-bed and to have a Prospect of the other World Having thus fitted and prepared our selves let us consider how and after what manner we must Examine our selves And I. The time when we ought to employ our selves about this Duty II. What ought to be the Subject of our Examination And 1. As to the time when this Duty will be most seasonably perform'd I have already made it appear That it has been the Practice of good Men in all Ages to examine themselves daily and this with very good Reason For since Confession of Sin is one Condition which God requires of us before he will Seal the pardon of our Sins 't is impossible we should make a full and particular Confession of them unless we examine our selves daily The number of our Sins is so great that should we defer it till a farther time many of them would slip out of our Memories and then God has reveal'd to us no other Condition of Pardon but that general Confession of them Psal 19.12 cleanse thou me from my secret Sins and how can we call those Sins secret which are conceal'd from us only because we will not take the Pains to discover them What time of the day is most proper for this Employment every Man's Prudence must determine this must be directed by the Exigency of his Affairs but for the most part it will be requisite even in this Case Eccles 11.6 to follow the Advice of the wise Man In the morning sow thy seed and in the evening with-hold not thy hand To consider in the Morning what Temptations we are like to meet with that day what opportunities of doing good and making the most strong and firm Resolutions that we will resist the one and embrace the other And to call our selves to account in the Evening how well we have put these Resolutions into Execution whether we have perform'd our vows unto God or else shamefully given up his Cause and yielded to the importunity of a prevailing Temptation But besides this daily Examination of our selves there are other times when we ought to call our selves to an Account 'T is the great Duty of the Lord's Day A Day set apart on purpose that those Persons who all the week long are cumber'd with the Cares of this world employ'd in the Business of their Callings and in making provision for their Bodies might have some time to recollect themselves and to secure the eternal Welfare of their Souls And how can Men employ this day better I mean that part of it when they are not call'd upon to joyn in the publick Offices of Religion than in recollecting themselves how they have spent the week past what Sins they have been guilty of what good Actions they have perform'd what Progress they have made in a holy and vertuous Life and in considering what Temptations they are like to be expos'd to the following Week and in taking up Resolutions of walking more strictly and more