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3. That ftability is a fence against temptations. The wavering profeffor is a hopeful prey to temptation. The town that begins to parley, is next door to furrendering. The Jews faw Pilate begin to waver, and then they plied him to condemn Chrift, till they carried him off his feet.-Confider,

Lastly, That ftability is the foundation of ferviceablenefs for God. The veffels of the temple were of gold, filver, brafs, &c. but none of glass, no crystal ones; these were too brittle for templefervice. So wavering profeffors will never be honoured of God to be ferviceable for him, but they will do much harm to the way of the Lord.

CREATION'S

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CREATION'S GROANS CONSIDERED AND

IMPROVED.

*

SERMON XXVI.

ROM. viii. 22. For we know that the whole creation groaneth, and travaileth in pain together until now.

IF F we look abroad into the world, we cannot mifs to perceive it in a feverish condition; the whole head fick, the whole heart faint; good men and God's good creatures alfo groaning under a weight of misery. If we look above us into heaven, we cannot but fee that it is an holy God who has caft them into, and keeps them in this miferable condition. But withal we may conclude, that it fhall not be always fo; this fever of the creation will have a cool. A gracious God will not fuffer it always to be ill with good men and his good creatures. Therefore the apoftle, ver. 18. of the chapter before us, taking a view of the fuffering lot of the faints, of which himself had a large fhare, by faith looks through the cloud of miferies

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* Delivered January 1716.

miseries into which the faints are now wrapt up, and beholds a glory that is to be revealed in them, a lightfome day that shall fucceed this dark night, when all the clouds fhall be scattered, never more to gather. He confirms the revelation of that glory from two confiderations. 1. The creatures, ver. 19. with earnest expectation wait for it. 2. The faints, ver. 23. anxioufly look and long for it. And neither of these can be in vain, for they are of God's implanting; and juftice ftands not against the fatisfying of thefe appetites raised by the fanctifying Spirit in the faints, and by the creating hand in the creatures.

As to the first of these, the apoftle, 1. Afferts that longing of the creatures for the revelation of that glory in the faints, ver. 19. 2. He fhews the

mifery they are under, from which they are fo anxious to be delivered, Vanity, ver. 20.; Corruption, ver. 21. 3. That their deliverance is connected with, and must be fufpended till the revelation of that glory in the faints, ver. 21. 4. He fhews how uneafy they are in the mean time, ver. 22.-Thus much for the connection.

In the words of the text, we have,

1. The party whose uneafiness is here taken notice of: "The whole creation," or every creature in heaven and on earth, is uneafy. Yet this phrase is not fo univerfal, but that it admits of fome exceptions, as Mark, xvi. 15. " And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gofpel to every creature ;" yet not to the angels, glorified faints, devils, &c. The limitation is every creature made for the use of man, in heaven or on earth, which, because of their relation to him, were made fubject to vanity on occafion of his fin. This fhews a good reafon for that phrase, Mark, xvi. 15. "Preach the gofpel to every crea

ture:"

ture;" that is, the gofpel, which is gofpel or good. tidings to every creature; for not only man, but the creatures that were funk in mifery with him, fhall have the advantage of it. As they fmarted by the first Adam's finning, they fhall be restored by virtue of the fecond Adam's fuffering. Acts, iii. 21. "Whom the heavens must receive, until the times of reftitution of all things, which God hath fpoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets fince the world began." So here are to be excepted,

(1.) The angels. For as they were not made for man, fo they are already perfectly happy, as the courtiers of the great King, who ftand before the throne continually, as is fignified by that phrafe, Matth. xviii. 10. That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven."

(2.) The devils. For though they be most uneafy, and carry their hell about with them, 2 Pet. ii. 4. "For God fpared not the angels that finned,, but caft them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be referved unto judgement;" yet as they were not made for man, fo man did not make them miferable, but they made: man fo. Befides, the creature here was subjected in hope, ver. 20.; but the cafe of devils is abfolutely hopeless; for them there is no Saviour, and to them there is no promise.

(3.) Men themselves. For as, 1 Cor. xv. 27.. "But when he faith all things are put under him, it is manifeft, that He is excepted who did put all things under him;" fo when it is faid, "The whole creation groaneth," &c. it is manifeft he is excepted, who was the cause of the groaning of them all. The reprobate, fome of them are in hell already, others are pofting on, both groaning, but in vastly different degrees. Yet they are not meant

here,

here, for their groans fhall never have an end. But all the effects of the curfe that are to be found in the universe this day, fhall with them be fwept out of the world into the lake at the great day, there to be settled on them as their proper base: Rev. xx. 14. "And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death." (4.) The elect. Some of them are in heaven, and groan no more. The unconverted elect groan under outward miferies; but they are not meant here, for, being immersed in wickedness with the rest of the world, they are far from the earnest expectation which the creatures here have, ver. 19. Believers groan moft fenfibly, but they muft alfo be excepted here, as being oppofed to this creation or creature. Ver. 23. "And not only they, but ourfelves alfo, which have the firft-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body."

;

Now, thefe being excepted, it remains, that by the whole creation we understand all the rest of the creatures made at firft for the use of man. They are all uneafy. The vifible heavens were made the roof of his house, the earth the floor the fun, moon, and ftars, were made to be his lights, the air to breathe in, the wind to refresh him; the various produce of the earth to afford him neceffaries, conveniences, and delights. He was lord of fea and land. Fishes, fowls, and beafts of the earth, were all at his command. While he stood, they were all of them moft eafy in his service. But now that matters are reverfed with him, their fituation is also reversed; none of them failed to share in his mifery. For though vanity, corruption, and mifery, first sprang up in man, they did not halt there, but fpread over the

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