SERM. the fuccefs of them more particularly depends upon him; XXXIII. that the glory of them in an especial manner is appropri ate, and, as it were, confecrate to him.

If it be a folly and a crime to think we can do any thing without God, it is much more so to think we can do any thing good without him; it is an arrogance, it is an idolatry, it is a facrilege much more vain and wicked to do fok. To imagine that we can, by the force of our own reafon and refolution, achieve any of those most high and hard enterprises, to which by the rules of virtue and piety we are engaged; that we can, by our own conduct and prowess, encounter and withstand, defeat and vanquish those so crafty, fo mighty enemies of our falvation, (our own fleshly defires, the menaces and allurements of the world, the fleights and powers of darkness,) is much a worse presumption, than in other affairs of greatest difficulty to expect fuccefs without the divine affiftance and bleffing, Pfal. xliv. 6. than in other most dangerous battles to think we can, by our own bow, and by our own Spear, fave ourselves; that we can obtain victory otherwife than from his hand and disposal, who is the Lord of hofts. Reafon tells us, and experience also fhews, and our Saviour hath expressly faid John xv. 5. it, That (in these things) without him (without his especial influence and bleffing) we can do nothing; he tells us, that we are but branches, inferted into him; fo that, without continually drawing fap from him, we can have no life or vigour fpiritual. The wifeft and beft of men have, by their practice, taught us to acknowledge fo much; to depend wholly upon him, to ascribe all to him A&s iii. 12. in this kind. Why, fay St. Peter and St. John, do ye wonder at this? or why gaze ye upon us, as if by our own power, or piety, we had made this man walk?—His name, (the name of Jesus,) through faith in his name, hath made this man ftrong: that acknowledgment indeed concerns a miraculous work; but fpiritual works are in reality no lefs, they requiring as much or more of virtue fuperna

16.

* Οὔτε γὰρ ἀνθρώπινόν τι ἄνευ τῆς ἐπὶ τὰ θεῖα συναναφορᾶς εὖ πράξεις. Ant. iii.

ural, or the present interpofition of God's hand to effect SERM. hem; they make lefs fhew without, but need as great XXXIII. efficacy within: fo our Saviour, it seems, did imply, when

e faid, He that believes in me, the works that I do he shall John xiv. do, and greater works than thefe. Every good and faith-12. Eul man doth, not work miracles; yet fomewhat greater,

it feems, by the grace of Chrift, he performs: however,

to thefe St. Paul referred, when he affirmed, I can do all Phil. iv. 13. things in Chrift that firengtheneth me; nothing was fo hard that he feared to attempt, that he defpaired to mafter and go through with by the help of Chrift; and,

τήσει ὑμῖν.

Not, faith he again, that we are fufficient of ourselves to 2 Cor. iii. 5. think any thing of ourselves; but our fufficiency is of God: he was as fenfible of his own inability, as he was confident in the gracious help of Chrift. Thus fhould we do all things in the name of Jefus; and it is not only a duty to do it, but it may be a great encouragement to us, that we are capable of doing it; a great comfort to confider, that in all honest undertakings we have fo ready and fo fure an aid to fecond and further us in them; confiding in which, nothing is fo difficult, but we may easily ac- od dvacomplish; (a grain of faith will be able to remove moun- Matt. xvii. tains ;) nothing is so hazardous, but we may fafely ven- 20. xxi. 21. tare on; (walking on the fea, treading upon ferpents and 6. jorpions, daring all the power of the enemy.) In his name Matt. xiv. we may, if our duty or good reafon calls us forth, how Luke x. 19. fmall and weak foever, how deftitute foever of defenfive arins, or weapons offenfive, naked and unarmed, with a fing and a stone, go out against the biggest and best armed Philiftine, nothing doubting of victory: our weakness itfelf, if we be humbly confcious and fenfible thereof, will be an advantage to us, as it was to St. Paul, to all effects and purposes, the grace of our Lord will be fufficient for 2 Cor. xii. 9. , if we apply it, and truft therein. But farther,

VI. To do in another's name may denote, to do it with fuch regard to another, that we acknowledge (that, I fay, we heartily and thankfully acknowledge) our hope of profpering in what we do; our expectation of acceptance, favour, or reward to be grounded on him; that they are

Luke xvii.

29.

xvi. 23, 24.

iii. 21.

SERM. procured by his merits and means, are bestowed only for XXXIII. his fake. Thus our Saviour bids us to offer our prayers John xiv. in his name; that is, representing unto God his merito13. xv. 16. rious performances in our behalf, as the ground of our accefs to God, of our hope to obtain from him what we Eph. v. 20. request. So also we are enjoined to give thanks in his name; that is, with perfuafion and acknowledgment, that only in respect to him we become capable to receive or enjoy any good thing; that, in effect, all the bleffings by divine mercy vouchfafed us have been procured by him for us, are through him conveyed unto us. And thus also we should do all things in the name of Jefus, offering all our deeds to God, as facrifices and fervices unworthy of acceptance, both in themselves, and as proceeding from us; but pleafing and acceptable to God only for his fake. We should do well, upon all occafions, to remember our natural condition, and the general ftate of mankind; fuch as it was before he did undertake, fuch as it would have continued ftill, had he not undertaken for it; that our race had forfeited and was fallen from God's favour; 23. 2. having injured him beyond all power of making him any reparation or fatisfaction; that thence it was fecluded from all means and hopes apparent of happiness, was exposed and tended downright unto mifery; that we consequently had no ground to hope that God (from whom, no lefs in mind and in deed, than by reafon of our guilt and state of condemnation, we were eftranged) would, in kindness, beftow any good upon us, or from us accept; favourably any thing we fhould do. But that, by our Saviour's performances, the cafe is altered; he, by his entire obedience, having fo pleafed God, by his patient fubmiffion to God's will, having fo appeafed his anger and fatisfied his juftice, that God is not only reconciled, but hath an especial favour, bears an earnest good-will toward us. That now the good things we poffefs, we As iii. 26. may truly esteem as bleffings, and enjoy them with real Eph. ii. 17-comfort, as proceeding from mercy and kindness; now what we honeftly endeavour, we may hope fhall please God; now we have a free accefs to God, and may cheer

Rom. iii.

Gal. iii. 22.

iii. 12.

"Ev TITOSθήσει.

Eph. i. 6.

fully prefent our facrifices of duty and devotion, with a SERM. full perfuafion that they fhall be accepted. But all this XXXIII. happiness, all these favours and privileges, we must always remember to come from the continued procurement and mediation of the Beloved; fo as ever to be ready to acknowledge it, and to return our thanks therefore. To this fenfe that our Apoftle here had an especial regard, the words immediately following imply-Doing all in the name of the Lord Jefus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him; that is, in all things we do, taking occafion to render thanks to God, as for his fake being merciful and bountiful to us; beftowing upon us the good we enjoy, bleffing our endeavours, accepting our performances. We must not conceit, that any regard, any mercy, any favour, any reward is due to us in equity, is in effect conferred upon us, upon our own personal score; (for, how mean things are we in comparison of his greatness; how vile and filthy things muft we appear to his most pure and all-difcerning eyes; how unworthy of his regard and of his affection must we needs take ourselves to be, if we do but well confider, and are acquainted with ourselves?) but that in him (i. e. for his fake, and by his means) God hath Eph. i. 3, 6. bleffed us with all spiritual bleffings, in him exagitwoev hμãs, God hath favoured, and caft his grace upon us; valuing us notwithstanding all our imperfections; loving us, notwithftanding all the spots with which we are defiled; notwithstanding all the offences we have committed; for the relation and alliance we have to Jefus. Nor must we look on our fervices (the best we are able to perform) as in themselves grateful or fatisfactory: for all of them, if we mark them well, we fhall find not only quite unprofitable to God, but very defective in many refpe&ts; for, who can fay, he performs any thing both in kind, in manner, in degree thoroughly right and good; with that ardency of love he owes to God, with that purity of intention, with that earnest vigour of fpirit, with that undistractedness of mind, with which he should perform it? No; in all our flock we cannot pick out a facrifice entire and unblemifhed; fuch as God requires, fuch as duty exacts of us.

26.

SERM. They need therefore (all our fervices need) to be com. XXXIII. mended and completed by the beloved Son's perfectly Heb. vii. well-pleafing performances; they need to be cleansed and hallowed, by paffing through the hands of our most holy and undefiled High Prieft; to become sweet and favoury Eph. v. 2. (or to receive that doμny euwdías, which St. Paul speaks of) from being offered up in his cenfer. In fine, as all our actions should, in our intention, be works of religion dedicated to God's fervice and honour; facrifices, as it were, of gratitude and homage to God; so they ought all to be offered up in the name of Jefus. I add farther,

Rev. viii.

3, 5.

VII. Laftly, that to do in the name of Jefus may well imply doing with invocation of him: thus we may underftand that place of St. James, where the elders are advifed Jam. v. 14. to pray, and anoint the fick in the Lord's name, for, to

anoint them, imploring our Lord's bleffing upon them, and upon thofe means used for their cure. And thus St. Chryfoftom expounds the words; do all in Jefus's name, that is, faith he, imploring him for your helper in all things; always firft praying to him, undertake your bufinefs. Doing thus, will indeed chriften and confecrate our actions; for 1 Tim. iv.5.all things, faith our Apostle, are fanctified by the word of God, and prayer; that is, by God's bleffing implored, and obtained by prayer; or, if God's word be there taken for his law, or revealed will, it is there fignified, that our actions are not only fanctified by their lawfulness, or conformity to that good rule, God's declared will; but alfo by the invocation of his name; however, all our actions, it feems, are unhallowed and profane, if not accompanied with devotion m. That to do thus is our duty, appears by 1 Theff. v. thofe frequent injunctions, to pray indefinently, to pray Luke xviii. always, to abide inftantly in prayer; which do not only

1.

Rom. xii.

12.

Col. iv. 2.

1 In locum. Αὐτὸν καλῶν βοηθὸν, ἐπὶ πάντων πρότερον αὐτῷ εὐχόμενος, ἔστιν τῶν πραγμάτων.

πι Δεῖ πάσης τῆς πράξεως προηγεῖσθαι τὴν προσευχήν. Μ. Erem. Μηδὲν μήτι ποιῶμεν μήτε λέγωμεν πρὶν ἢ τὸν θεὸν καλέσαι και παρακαλέσαι εφάψασθαι τῶν ἐν χερσὶν ἡμῖν ἁπάντων. Chryf.

Τότο δήγε παντες ὅσοι καὶ κατὰ βραχὺ σωφροσύνης μετέχεσιν ἐπὶ πάσῃ ὁρμὴ καὶ σμικρά ή μεγάλα πράγματος θεὸν ἀεί σε καλᾶσιν. Plato Tim. Vid. Εpif. 8. Ατ. Epi. 11. 18.