of the Almighty? What have I, that I have not received from him? And what have I not to fear, lest he should deprive me of his grace?

By the righteous judgment of God, the heathens were deprived of that light which they abused: They knew God, but they glorified him not as God,* saith St. Paul; and what was the consequence; why, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to commit all iniquity with greediness. Christians should always fear, every one for himself, lest this should come to be his

own case.

And indeed it is but too plain, that the generality of Christians forget that they have a rule of faith to direct them, what to believe of God, and of his infinite perfections; and they will find to their cost, that it will be no advantage to them, to have been distinguished from infidels by a rule of faith which they never minded, and which had no influence upon their lives.

Let me, therefore, before I conclude this part of the Creed, put you in mind of a few truths and inferences, which I wish we may all remember, and carry home with us.

When we acknowledge God to be almighty, let us consider what a dreadful thing it must needs be to have the Almighty God for our enemy, one who can destroy both body and soul in hell. And then, how happy will all those be, who have an all-powerful God their friend, to direct, to support, and to reward them! man must have no value for his soul, whom this belief does not influence.

A

Let us consider further, what a dishonour we do to God, to call him our Father, and to behave ourselves like the children of Satan. Infidels will conclude from hence,-If these be the children of God, and hope for salvation from believing in him, who need despair of going to heaven? Let us rather remember, that our Almighty Father has given his children rules to live by; that they are not to follow their own will, but his, and that their happiness depends upon doing so.

When we call God our Father, let us consider, that our inheritance is in heaven. This should make us less fond of an earthly inheritance; at least, we should not think of setting up our rest here.-If God is my Father, I have nothing to fear while I strive to please him. I will trust in him, and I will go to him with the confidence of a child.—If every Christian has a right to call God his Father, then every Christian is our brother, and has a right to our love, and to our help, in his way to heaven.

We profess to believe, that God is the creator of all things. Every one who seriously believes this, will not dare to abuse any of God's creatures, nor wantonly destroy any thing that God has made. Made indeed they Made indeed they were for the use of man; but whoever destroys creatures that are neither hurtful when they are living, nor useful when dead, certainly sins against his and their Maker. Let us rather glorify God in and for his creatures. The very religion of heaven cors'sts in this: Thou art worthy, say the glorified saints in the Revelations, Thou art

worthy to receive honour, and power, and glory, for thou hast created all things. And we shall do this in the most humble manner, when we consider, that of all the creatures which God made, man alone behaved himself so ill, as to provoke God to say, That it repented him that he had made him. My God! and shall not sinful man be afraid, and bitterly repent, that ever he offended or provoked so great a God!

We should indeed have repented of, and bewailed our lost condition to all eternity, had not Almighty God, to manifest his infinite goodness, accepted of the mediation of his beloved Son, by whom we have been restored to the favour of God.-[But this must be the subject of another discourse.]

In the mean time let every one of us examine himself upon this part of his Creed; and see what fruits of this faith he has to shew. To live by faith-is to live as if we did indeed believe the things which we profess to believe.

Well then, let me ask myself, Do these truths which I profess to believe, do they really affect my heart? Do I truly fear the Almighty God; that is, Do I fear to offend him? Am I not more afraid of temporal evils, than of the wrath of God? Do I really love God; that is, Do I desire and strive to please him? Do I look upon him as the fountain of all good; that is, Do I pray to him for what I want, and give him thanks for the blessings I receive? Do I shew that I believe his infinite wisdom, by my leaving the choice of all the blessings I hope and pray for to him? for to him? Do I own his fatherly

love and authority over me; that is, Do I submit to all his dealings with me without murmuring? Do I own that God sees all that I do; that is, Do I live as in his presence, not daring to do any thing that I believe will displease him? Do I shew that I am convinced of his infinite patience, and long-suffering, by laying hold of the present opportunity of returning to my duty?

We lament the blindness of the heathen world which know not God: Do we truly value that light, and that word, by which we are come to the knowledge of God, and of his glorious perfections? Do we hear the word of God with attention; and do we beg of God the grace to understand it, and to incline our hearts to observe the lessons we there learn? Why has God thus made himself known to us, but that we may fear, and love, and adore, and praise him, and pray to him, and put our whole trust in him? And I pray consider, Christians, what a mighty blessing it is, that we are not left to ourselves, and, by our own reason, to find out God; but God has been so good as to manifest himself unto us in his holy word; and to discover his almighty power, his wisdom, his goodness, his justice, his faithfulness, and his holiness, in his government of the world.

Consider how very thankful we should all be for the benefit of these holy scriptures, in which every soul may come to the true knowledge of God, and the way of salvation. Where unbelievers may be convinced of the providence of God throughout all ages, by the fulfilling of innumerable prophecies;-where sinners will

find reasons to awaken them, by seeing the power of the Almighty manifested in the punishment of the impenitent; where the righteous may learn to depend entirely upon the protection of God, by seeing his infinite goodness towards such in all ages;-where all may learn to believe, and fear, and love, and worship the Lord Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.

We enjoy the benefit of all the creatures, without so much as thinking of him that made them. Which of them could we want, without being miserable? The Sun gives us light and heat: the Air, breath and life; the Earth and Seas, food; the rest of the creatures are all designed for our use and benefit. Shall we not then glorify God in his works, take notice of his providences, admire his infinite wisdom, be thankful for all his mercies, and dread to provoke a power that can ruin us? Shall we not desire and endeavour to please a most gracious God, who has promised eternal happiness to his faithful servants? Shall we not imitate his holiness, depend upon his promises, take care not to abuse his patience and long-suffering? Shall we not beg of God to increase our faith; to manifest himself and his glorious perfections every day more clearly to us, that as we grow in years we may grow in grace? And shall we not abhor and avoid the company and the conversation of all such profane people as may weaken our faith, whether by their wicked examples or loose principles?

Let us look upon all such as the devil's instruments, doing his work, and promoting his