fay whether it were poffible for the Devil to have been able to draw him into Sin, whilft he had fuch Thoughts as these present to his Mind, to oppose to his Temptations?

Titus ii. 11.

felf

But Chriftianity carries us yet farther. It fhews us a God Incarpate, a God made Man on purpofe for our Salvation; He gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all Iniquity, and purchase to himpeculiar People, zealous of Good Works. It reprefents to us a Covenant of Grace, Sealed with his own moft precious Blood, and into which we have every one of us been folemnly initiated, that is, folemnly Sworn at our Baptifm; and the Condition whereof on our Part we know was this, That we fhou'd for fake the Devil and all his Works, the Pomps and Vanities of this wicked World, and all the finful Lufts of the Flesh; and instead of serving thefe fhould obediently keep God's Holy Will and Commandments, and walk in the fame all the Days of our Lives.

I fhall not now enquire, how often we have, I believe, the most of us renew'd this Covenant, whether in the Church at the Holy Table, or on other Occafions, that have called us to put up our Vows to Heaven; nor need I add, that 'tis to fuch a Practice alone as that requires, that God has promised the Bleffing of Eternal Golry: But fure I am, whofoever will but duly confider the Weight and Moment of this one Engagement, will find in it an impregnable Fortress against Sin, and fuch as all the Temptations in the World Thould not be able to overcome.

For to reflect on it only in a Word or Two. What is there in all our Sins, or in all those Temptations that lead us to them, whofe Force

and

and Power would not be utterly overcome by this one ferious Confideration?

Where is the Luft that can offer any fufficient, fhall I fay, or rather any tolerable Inducement to comply with it, that may be worthy to compare with our Obligations to Love and Obey fo Great, and fo Excellent a Redeemer? Is there a Paffion fo darling, or an Intereft fo Valuable, that the most defperate Sinner would in his Cool Thoughts be willing to exchange Heaven for it? Or rather, for indeed that is the true Cafe, would be content for the Profecution of it to go down, it may be the next Moment, into Hell, and there dwell with Everlafting Burnings?

No, no: Sin may deceive us by our own Carelefsnefs, but it cannot ftand before Confideration. It may furprize our Paffions, but it can never reconcile its felf to our Reafon. Nor are our Natures yet become fo Degenerate, but that a due Reflection on our Engagements to Obedience would by the Grace of God foon refolve into a Performance of it: And the Hopes of Heaven, and the Terrors of Hell, The Vanity of this World, and the Eternity of the Next, once throughly confidered as they ought to be, fo top our Ears, that all

the Arts of the Charmer, charm be Pfal. lviii. 5. never fo wifely, fhould not be able to open them to his Infinuations.

And for a farther Proof of this, and which may be yet another Argument to confirm my Pofition, that 'tis the want of Confidering that is really the great and laft Caufe of all our Sin: Let me

3dly, Appeal to the common Practice, and Experience of Mankind: No fooner does any one begin feriously to Confider thefe Things, but he prefently becomes a good Chriftian. D

What

What is it elfe but this, that makes the very worst of Sinners, if they come but into any Danger or Calamity; if any Sickness or Affliction befals them; any Thing that but ftops them in their wild Career fo long as to give them only time to cool, and to Confider their Duty, and their great and dangerous Deviations from it; what is it I fay, but this, that makes thefe Perfons presently disclaim their Extravagancies? To confefs that they were 'mistaken in their Notions of Vertue and Vice, and had therefore preferr'd the Interefts of the One, because they had either never known, or never fufficiently confider'd the Excellency of the Other.

And if, perhaps, these Pious Reflections have not been able afterwards to fecure their Obedience, but they have again returned to the Follies they fo lately renounced; It is not that they are ever the more convinced that they were over-reached in the Argument: That Piety and Religion, have not that Reafon on their fide which we pretend, and which ought to engage them to the troublefome Task of denying themselves, and forfaking all their fenfual Pleafures, and worldly Interefts for its Sake: No, but only that their Danger being removed, they have alfo loft their Confideration with it; and their Incogitancy now again expofes them to thofe Sins, which no fooner fhall fome new Occafion call them again to reflect on, but they will be no lefs ready again to condemn them, than they were before.

And now, though I fuppofe it may by this time be fufficiently evident how great the Mifchief of Inconfideration is; yet, for a final Demonftration of its Danger, I will offer one Reflection more; and it is,

4. That whatever particular Temptations we may at any time chance to be expofed to, they would all of them have no force at all, but for this one General Defect.

For let us not deceive our felves; Pleasure, and Riches, and Honour, and Intereft, and if there be any other Vanity befides that is yet more powerful than all thefe, they are not fuch omnipotent Temptations as our corrupt Affections would reprefent them to us; on the contrary, tis certain that they have no force at all but by our own Incogitancy; to confider them only, were to overcome them.

ift. For Pleasure: Is it imaginable that the base Voluptuary would purfue that, as he does, did he really reflect what fhall in a little Time be the End of his Debauches? That yet a few Years, at the moft, it may be a few Months, or Days, and all his Enjoyments fhall ceafe; and his Pleasures be exchanged for Pain and Sickness, Impotence and Infirmity, and the reft of thofe Torments in this Life, that are ufually the fad Forerunners of his Eternal Punishment in the other?

2dly, For Riches, the next Inftance: Were it poffible Men fhould take for much Care and Labour to get them, and when they have got them, neither be fatisfied with them themfelves, nor do good to others, had they ever been acquainted with that Treafure in Heaven which the Gospel fpeaks of, fo infinitely furpaffing all the highest Acquifitions here; fo much furer to be obtained, and for the most part fo much easier too; and when it is got, for Ever to be Enjoy'd?

C...

D 2

3dly, For

3dly, For Honour, the next Temptation: If there can be fuch a Thing as Honour without Virtue, and that High Places, and Great Titles, and the rest of thofe trifles that have fo long ufurped the Name, may indeed be allow'd the Character of it: What other Judgment can any confidering Man pafs upon fuch Honour but this, That even Chrifianity apart, it must certainly be a very vain Thing to build a Man's Hopes, and expend himfelf and his Life, upon that, which when all is done, depends upon other Men's Opinions of, and Value for us; who too often give this Honour to the moft undeferving Perfons, and with whom the truly brave and worthy Man fometimes finds the least share of it?

And then 4thly, For the Interefts of this World; Good God! What can they appear to any ferious, confidering Man, but meer Vanity, who has learnt of his Saviour to ask his Confcience Mat. xvi. 26. that great and wife Queftion: What is a Man profited if he should gain the whole World, and lofe his own Soul? Or what fhall a Man give in exchange for his Soul?

Is it not Evident, that in all these, and whatever Inftances befides can be offered of the greateft Temptations, 'tis only for want of Confidering that they prevail upon us; and fo, that not they, but our own Incogitancy ought to be charged by us as our greatest Danger and Mifchief: The one, laft, univerfal Cause of all our Sins?

And now if this be fo, then it cannot certainly but be very well worth our while to fearch a little,

Idly, Into