ruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, referved SERM. in heaven for us, who are kept by the power of God through XLIII. faith unto falvation, (which hope therefore can never be dafhed or defeated,) breed a most cheerful fatisfaction, far tranfcending all other pleasures, which fpring from the moft defirable fruitions here; according to that admonition of our Lord, Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that Luke x. 20. the fpirits are fubject unto you ; but rather rejoice that your names are written in heaven. III. We should evermore rejoice in the performing the duty of charity; both that which we owe to God, and that which is due to our neighbour. Love is the sweetest and most delectable of all paffions; and when, by the conduct of wisdom, it is directed in a rational way toward a worthy, congruous, attainable object, it cannot otherwise than fill the heart with ravishing delight. And fuch (in all refpects fuperlatively fuch) an object is God: he infinitely beyond all other things deferveth our affection, as most perfectly amiable and defirable, as having obliged us by innumerable and ineftimable benefits, all the good that we have ever enjoyed, or that we can ever expect, being derived from his pure bounty; all things in the world, in competition with him, being pitifully mean, ugly, and loathfome; all things, without him, being vain, unprofitable, and hurtful to us; fo that the Pfalmift might well fay, Who in heaven can be compared Pf. lxxxix. unto the Lord? who among the fons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord? Whom have I in heaven but thee? Pfal. Ixxiii. and there is none upon earth that I can defire befide thee.25. He is the most proper object of our love; for we chiefly were framed, and it is the prime law of our nature, to love Matt. xxii. him; our foul from original instinct vergeth toward him 38. as its centre, and can have no reft till it be fixed on him; he alone can fatisfy the vast capacity of our minds, and fill our boundless defires. He, of all lovely things, most certainly and eafily may be attained; for whereas commonly men are croffed in their affection, and their love is embittered from their XLIII. SERM. affecting things imaginary, which they cannot reach, or coy things, which disdain and reject their affection; it is concerning God quite otherwise: for, John vi. 37. He is most ready to impart himself, and will not reject any that cometh unto him; he most earnestly defireth and wooeth our love; he is not only moft willing to correspond in affection, but doth prevent us therein, for we love Apoc. iii. him, faith the Apoftle, becaufe he firft loved us. John xiv. 21, 23. 20. 1 John iv. 19. He doth cherish and encourage our love by fweetest influences and moft comfortable embraces, by kindeft ex preffions of favour, by moft beneficial returns, ordering Rom. viii. that all things fhall work together for good to those who love him and whereas all other objects do in the enjoy ment much fail our expectation, he doth ever far exceed it. 28. 1 Cor. ii. 9. 1 Cor. vi. 17. Wherefore, in all affectionate motions of our hearts toward God, in defiring him, or feeking his favour and friendship; in embracing him, or setting our esteem, our good-will, our confidence on him; in enjoying him by devotional meditations and addreffes to him; in a reflexive fense of our intereft and propriety in him; in that myfterious union of fpirit, hereby we do closely adhere to him, and are, as it were, inferted in him; in a hearty complaActs xi. 23. cence in his beniguity, a grateful resentment of his kindnefs, and a zealous defire of yielding some requital for it, John xv. 4, we cannot but feel very pleasant transports, assuring to Pfal. v. 12. us the truth of that faying in the Pfalm, They that love thy name fhall be joyful in thee; and difpofing us to cry out Pfal. xxxvi. with the Pfalmift, How excellent is thy lovingkindness, 0 Pal. Ixiii. Lord! Becaufe thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips fhall praife thee. Deut. x. 20. 6. 3. Indeed that celeftial flame (kindled in our hearts by the fpirit of love) cannot be void of warmth; we cannot fix our eyes upon infinite beauty, we cannot tafte infinite fweetnefs, we cannot cleave to infinite felicity, without we fhould alfo perpetually rejoice in the first daughter of love to God, charity toward men; the which in complexion and cheerful difpofition doth moft refemble its mother: for it doth rid all those gloomy, keen, turbulent imaginations and paffions, which cloud our mind, which fret our heart, which discompose the frame of our foul, (from SERM, burning anger, from ftorming contention, from gnaw- XLIII. ing envy, from rankling spite, from racking suspicion, from diftracting ambition and avarice.) It confequently doth fettle our mind in an even temper, in a fedate humour, in an harmonious order, in that pleasant state of tranquillity, which naturally doth refult from the voidance of irregular paffions. And who can enumerate or exprefs the pleasures which do await on every kind, on each act of charity? How triumphant a joy is there in anywife doing good! whereby we feed good humour, and gratify our best inclinations; whereby we oblige our brethren, and endear ourfelves to them; whereby we most resemble the divine good. nefs, and attract the divine favour. Rom. xii. 8. 10. St. Paul telleth us, that God loveth a cheerful giver ; 2 Cor. ix. and he prescribeth, that he who fheweth mercy, fhould do it iv iλapórŋrı, with merriness; and in the Law it is commanded, Thine heart shall not grieve, when thou giveft to Deut. xv. thy poor brother: and who indeed can out of charity give Ecclus. alms or fhew mercy without cheerfulness? feeing that he xxxv. 10. thereby doth fatisfy his own mind, and doth ease his own bowels; confidering that in doing good to his neighbour he receiveth far more good to himself; that he then doth put forth his stock to very great and most certain advantage; that he dischargeth an office very acceptable to God, doth much oblige him, and render him a debtor, doth engage him abundantly to requite and reward that beneficence. What fatisfaction is there in forgiving offences! whereby we discharge our fouls from vexatious inmates, (black thoughts and rancorous animofities ;) whereby we clear ourselves from the troubles attending feuds and ftrifes; whereby we imitate our most gracious Creator, and transcribe the pattern of our meek Redeemer; whereby we render ourselves capable of divine mercy, and acquire a good title to the pardon of our own fins; according to that divine word, If you forgive men their trespasses, your Matt. xi. heavenly Father will forgive you. 25. XXV. 35. SERM. Rom. xii. 15. 1 Cor. xiii. 6. 15. How unconfinedly and inexhaustibly vast is that delight, XLIII. which a charitable complacence in the good of our neigh bour (a rejoicing with those that rejoice) may afford! a man thence engroffing all the good in the world, and appropriating to himself all the profperous fucceffes, all the pleasant entertainments, all the comfortable fatisfactions Rom. xii. of his neighbour. Even a charitable sympathy, or condolency, in the adverfities of our neighbour, is not desti tute of content; for the foul is thereby melted into a gen tle temper, fufceptive of the beft impreffions; we share in 2 Cor. i. 6. the comfort which we minifter to others; we are refreshed in that kindly fubmiffion to the good pleasure of Zvμg God, in that lightsome contemplation of God's mercy, in those comfortable hopes of a happy issue, which we fuggeft to the afflicted; we thence are disposed to a grateful fenfe of God's goodness, in preserving ourselves from those calamities, and in qualifying us to comfort our brethren; we feel fatisfaction in reflecting upon this very practice, and observing that we do act conformably to good-nature, to the dictates of reason, to the will of God, therein difcharging a good confcience, and enjoying a portion of that continual feaft. vii. 7. κληθῆναι. Rom. i. 12. I fhould, if the time would permit, farther declare how we should find delight in the contemplation of all God's attributes, of his works, of his word; in thankful resentment of all God's benefits; in willing obedience to all God's laws; how joy is a proper fruit growing on the practice of humility, of juftice, of temperance, of devotion, of every virtue and grace: more particularly I should have evidenced how, from a patient fubmiffion to God's afflicting hand, from penitential contrition of heart for our fins, from a pious fear and folicitude in working out our salvation, most sweet confolations (fo tempering those ingredients as to render their bitterness very favoury) may fpring but in recommending joy I would not produce grief; and therefore fhall not farther annoy your patience. KEEP THY HEART WITH ALL DILIGENCE, &c. PROV. iv. 23. Keep thy heart with all diligence, &c. BEFORE we do apply ourselves to inculcate this precept, SERM. it is requifite that we should fomewhat explain the terms, XLIV. and fettle the meaning thereof; in doing that, we begin with the last words, which qualify the action enjoined as to its degree, or extent; with all diligence: the words (ppb) answering to these in the Hebrew, do, ac מן cording to the various use or force of the particle admit a threefold acception. They may (1.) denote abfolutely the intenseness in degree, or extenfion in kind, of the performance required in this precept: πάσῃ φυλακῇ τήρει σὴν xapdíav, Omni cuftodia ferva cor tuum; keep thy heart with all cuftody; that is, with all forts or with all degrees of care and diligence; so the LXX. Interpreters, and the vulgar Latin following them, render those words. They may, (2.) taking the particle for a Mem excellentiæ, as they call it, fignifying comparatively, præ omni cuftodia ferva cor tuum; keep thy heart above all keeping; that is, especially and more than thou keepest any other thing; fo doth Pagnin understand them, not without cause, both for the reason fubjoined here, because from it are the iffues of life; that is, because it is the principal part and fountain of all vital operations, and therefore deserveth the best custody; as alfo for that in what follows, and in |