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have others gaze upon it; Behold an Ifraelite indeed! Why fo?" In whom is no guile." Do not mistake me; I am not faying, that chriftians ought not to be prudent; they ought exceedingly to pray to God for prudence, otherwise they may follow the delufions of the devil, and by their imprudence give wrong touches to the ark of God. It was the lamentation of a great man, "GOD has given me many

gifts, but God has not given me prudence." Therefore, when I fay, a chriftian must be guileless, I do not mean, he fhould expofe himself, and lie open to every one's affault: we fhould pray for the wildom of the ferpent, though we fhall "we generally learn this wisdom by our blunders and imprudence: and we must make some advance in christianity, before we know our imprudence. A perfon really converted, can fay, as it is reported of a philosopher, I wish there was a win

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dow in my breaft, that every one may fee the uprightness of my heart and intentions t" And though there is too much of the old man in us, yet, if we are really converted, there will be in us no allowed guile, we fhall be harmless. And that is the reafon why the poor chriftian is too often imposed upon; he judgeth other people by himfelf; having Man honest heart, he thinks every one as honest as himfelf, and therefore is a prey to every one. I might enlarge upon each of these points, it is a copious and important truth; but I 2 do not intend to multiply many marks and heads.

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And therefore, as I have fomething to fay by way of perfonal application, give me leave therefore, with the utmost ⚫ tenderness, and at the fame time with faithfulness, to call upon you, my dear friends. My text is introduced in an sawful manner, "Verily I fay unto you;" and what JESUS faid then, he fays now to you, to me, and to as many as fit under a preached gofpel, and to as many as the LORD our Gob fhall call. Let me exhort you to fee whether ye converted; whether fuch a great and almighty change has paffed upon any of your fouls. As I told you before, fo I tell you again, ye all hope to go to heaven, and I pray GoD Almighty ye may be all there: when I fee fuch a congregation as this, if my heart is in a proper frame, I feel myfelf ready to lay down my life, to be inftrumental only to fave one foul. It makes my heart bleed within me, it makes me fometimes

fometimes moft unwilling to preach, left that word that I hope will do good, may increase the damnation of any, and perhaps of a great part of the auditory, through their own unbelief. Give me leave to deal faithfully with your fouls. I have your dead warrant in my hand: CHRIST has faid it, JESUS wil ftand to it, it is like the laws of the Medes and Perfians, it altereth not. Hark, O man! hark, O woman!. he that hath ears to hear, let him hear what the LORD JESUS CHRIST fays, " Verily I fay unto you, except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." Though this is Saturday night, and ye are now preparing for the fabbath, for what you know, you may yet never live to fee the fabbath. You have had awful proofs of this lately; a woman died but yesterday, a man died the day before, another was killed by fomething that fell from a houfe, and it may be in twenty-four hours more, many of you may >be carried into an unalterable state. Now then, for God's fake, for your own fouls fake, if ye have a mind to dwell with GoD, and cannot bear the thought of dwelling in everlasting burning, before I go any further, filently put up one prayer, or fay Amen to the prayer I would put in your mouths; "LORD, fearch me and try me; LORD, examine my heart, and let my confcience fpeak; O let me know whether I am converted or not!": What fay ye, my dear hearers? what fay ye, my fellow-finners? what fay ye, my guilty brethren? Has GoD by his bleffed Spirit wrought fuch a change in your hearts? I do not afk you, whether God has made you angels? That I know will never be, I only afk you, Whether ye have any well-grounded hope to think that GOD has made you new creatures in CHRIST JESUS? So renewed and changed your natures, that you can fay, I humbly hope, that as to the habitual temper and tendency of my mind, that my heart is free from wickedness; I have a hufband, I have a wite, I have alfo children, I keep a fhop, I' mind my bulinefs; but I love these creatures för God's lake, and do every thing for CHRIST: and if God was now to call meaway, according to the habitual temper of my mind, I' can fay, LORD, I am ready; and however I love the crea-1 tures, I hope I can fay, Whom have I in heaven but thee? Whom have I in heaven, O my Gop and my dear Redeemer,

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that I defire in comparison of thee? Can you thank Gov for the creatures, and fay at the fame time, these are not my CHRIST? I fpeak in plain language, you know my way of preaching: I do not want to play the orator, I do not want to be counted a scholar; I want to speak fo as I may reach poor people's hearts. What fay ye, my dear hearers? Are ye fenfible of your weakness? Do ye feel that ye are poor, miferable, blind, and naked by nature? Do ye give up your hearts, your affections, your wills, your understanding to be guided by the Spirit of GOD, as a little child gives up its hand to be guided by its parent? Are ye little in your own eyes? Do ye think meanly of yourfelves? And do you want to learn fomething new every day? I mention thefe marks, because I am apt to believe they are more adapted to a great many of your capacities. A great many of you have not that flowing of affection ye fometimes had, therefore ye are for giving up all your evidences, and making way for the devil's coming into your heart. You are not brought up to the mount as ye used to be, therefore ye conclude ye have no grace at all. But if the LORD JESUS CHRIST has emptied thee, and humbled thee, if he is giving thee to fee and know that thou art nothing; though thou art not growing upward, thou art growing downward; and though thou haft not fo much joy, yet thy heart is emptying to be more abundantly replenished by and by. Can any of you follow me? Then, give GOD thanks, and take the comfort of it.

If thou art thus converted, and become a little child, I welcome thee, in the name of the LORD JESUS, into God's dear family; I welcome thee, in the name of the dear Redeemer, into the company of GOD's children. O ye dear fouls, t though the world sees nothing in you, though there be no outward difference between you and others, yet I look upon you in another light, even as fo many kings fons and daughters all hail! in the name of God, I wifh every one of you joy from my foul, ye fons and daughters of the King of kings. Will not you henceforth exercise a child-like temper? Will not such a thought melt down your hearts, when I tell you, that the great GOD, who might have frowned you to hell for your fecret fins, that nobody knew of but GoD and your own fouls, and who might have damned you times

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without number, hath cast the mantle of his love over you; his voice hath been, Let that man, that woman live, for I have found a ranfom. O will ye not cry out, Why me, LORD? Was King George to fend for any of your children, and were you to hear they were to be his adopted fons, how highly honoured would you think your children to be? What great condefcenfion was it for Pharaoh's daughter to take up Mofes, a poor child expoted in an ark of bulrushes, and breed him up for her child? But what is that happiness in com parifon of thine, who was the other day a child of the devil, but now by converting grace art become a child of God! Are ye converted? Are ye become like little children? - Then what must ye do? My dear hearers, be obedient to GOD, remember God is your father; and as every one of you must know what a dreadful cross it is to have a wicked, difobedient child; if ye do not want your children to be disobedient to you, for CHRIST's fake be not disobedient to your heavenly parent. If God be your father, obey him; if God be your father, ferve him; love him with all your heart, love him with all your might, with all your foul, ard with all your strength. If GOD be your father, fly from every thing that may difpleafe him; and walk worthy of that God, who has called you to his kingdom and glory. If ye are converted and become like little children, then behave as little children: they long for the breaft, and with it will be contented. Are ye new-born babes? then defire the fincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby. I do not want that Arminian hufks fhould go down with you; ye are kings fons and daughters, and have a more refined taste; you must have the doctrines of grace; and blessed be God that you dwell in a country, where the fincere word is fo plainly preached, Are ye children? then grow in grace, and in the knowledge of your LORD and Saviour JESUS CHRIST. Have any of you children that do not grow? do not ye lament these children, and cry over them; do not ye say, my child will never be fit for any thing in the world? Well, doth it grieve you to see a child that will not grow; how much must it grieve, the heart of CHRIST to see you grow fo little? Will ye be always children? Will ye be always learning the first-principles of christianity, and never prefs forward toward the mark, for the

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prize of the high calling of God in CHRIST JESUS GOD forbid. Let the language of your heart be, "LORD JESUS "help me to grow, help me to learn more, slearn mecto slive "fo as my progrefs may be known to all !"

Are ye God's children? Are ye converted, and become like little children? Then deal with GoD as your little children do with you; as foon as ever they want any thing, or if any body hurt them, I appeal to yourselves if they do not directly run to their parent. Well, are ye God's children? Doth the devil trouble you? Doth the world trouble you? Go tell your father of it, go directly and com plain to Gon. Perhaps you may fay, I cannot utter fine words: but do any of you expect fine words from your chil dren? If they come crying, and can speak, but half words, do not your hearts yearn over them? And has not GoDvund fpeakably more pity to you? If ye can only make figns to him; “As a father pitieth his children, fo will the LORD pity them that fear him." I pray you therefore be bold with your Father, faying, "Abba, Father," Satan troubles me, the world troubles me, my own mother's children are angry with me; heavenly Father, plead my caufe! the LORD will then fpeak for you fome way or other.

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Are ye converted, and become as little children, have ye entered into God's family? Then affure yourselves, that your heavenly father will chaften you now and then;" for what fon is there whom the father chaftneth not: if ye are without chastisement, of which all are partakers, then are ye bastards and not fons." It is recorded of bishop Latimer, that in the houfe where he came to lodge, he overheard the master of the house fay, I thank God I never had a crofs in my life: O Taid he, then I will not stay here. I believe there is not a child of God, when in a good frame, but has prayed for great humility; they have prayed for great faith, they have prayed for great love, they have prayed for all the graces of the Spirit: Do ye know, when ye put up thefe prayers, that ye did also say, LORD fend us great trials: for how is it poffible to know ye have great faith, humility and love,suntefs GoD put you into great trials, that ye may know whether ye have them or not. I mention this, because a great many of the children of God' (I am sure it has been a temptation

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