indeed in the great Reward and more exceeding weight of Glory, that fucceeded their Painful and Laborious Warfare; but more Glorious, for having been thus made like the great Captain of their Salvation, who, as the Apostle tells us, was made perfect thro' Sufferings. And This way did he choose both to Found and Propagate his Church, and enlarge the Bounds of his Spiritual Dominion, first by himself not destroying but Dying then by a Noble Army indeed, but it was fuch a One as confifted only of Martyrs; and as other Conquerors boaft of flaying their Thousands and Ten Thousands, the Church of Chrift on the Contrary was Victorious and Triumph'd and over-fpread the World, by having her Thousands and Ten Thousands flain.

From all which we may perceive, that if Affliction is the Lot of the Righteous, yet that if all Circumftances are confider'd it is No Evil that happens to the Just. For if Affliction be rightly improv'd by Us, to the ends for which God Almighty fends it; By it God receives the Honour of his Sovereignty, his Juftice, his Goodness, his Wif dom, his Truth; and Man receives the Benefit of Prevention from Sin, Deliverance out of it, Improvement of his Graces, Perfecting of his Soul and Advancement of his Glory, thro' the Mercy of God and his

Bleffing

Bleffing upon this bitter Cup, the Cup of Affliction.

To conclude therefore, fince Afflictions, One time or other, are likely to fall to the share of all Men living, fince the best Men can't pretend to any Priviledge or Exemption from 'em, Let us wifely provide against 'em, that if we are not deliver'd from 'em, yet whenever they come they may not have the power to hurt Us. This can no otherwife be done, than by taking up and conftantly adhering to Holy Fob's Refolution, Chap. 27. v. 5, 6. 'Till I dye I will not remove my Integrity from me my Righteousness I hold faft, and will not let it goe; my Heart ball not reproach me as long as I live. For, as David fays, He that doth these things shall never fall. This will either fecure us from Afflictions, or support us under them, will either carry us thro' this Vale of Mifery free from the Calamities incident to our Nature, or the Just Punishment of Sin; or elfe, if it fhall please God for the Tryal of our Faith, or the Exercise of our Virtue, or the preventing of Sin, or the withdrawing of our Affections from the World, or the encrease of our Future Glory, or any other Wife and Just reason, to vifit us with Afflictions, will teach us to make that Ufe and Advantage of them, that they prove no real Evils

to

to Us; but that thro' the affiftance of our Bleffed Saviour, by Suffering like Him, efpecially for Him, we may be entitled to a certain hope of reigning with Him to all Eternity.

Which God of his Infinite Mercy &c.

SERMON IX.

SERMON IX.

Acts XIX. 2, 3.

He faid unto them,have ye receiv'd the Holy Ghoft fince ye believ'd? and they faid unto him,we have not fo much as heard whether there be any Floly Ghost. And he laid unto Them unto what then were ye Baptiz'd? and they faid unto Him, unto John's Baptifm.

T

HESE remarkable words are part of the Narration, which St. Luke gives us, of an encounter, which the great Apostle of the Gentiles St Paul met with at Ephefus, where coming he found

ye

found certain Disciples, very probably the Difciples of Apollos, who we read in the foregoing Chapter v. 24, 25. had been there before, and tho' a Man mighty in the Scriptures and inftructed in the way of the Lord, as it is there exprefs'd, yet as it follows, knew only the Baptifan of John. And at the first meeting, the very firft Question he puts to them is, Have ye receiv'd the Holy Ghoft fince believ'd? Which is fufficient to let us underftand how very material a Point the believing and receiving the Holy Ghost is to all Chriftians, fince the great Apoftle makes it the first Article of his Enquiry, as a Teft of these Disciples Faith, a Tryal whether they were yet indeed Chriftians or no. Their Answer ye have heard read in the Text, namely That they were fo far from having receiv'd the Holy Ghoft, that they had not fo much as beard whether there were any Holy Ghoft. Which was fo ftrange an Answer from the Mouths of Chriftians, for fuch they pretended to be, we find that St. Paul is furpriz'd at it, and asks them Unto what then were you Baptiz'd? It being impossible that any true Member of Chrift's Church, into which none enters but by Baptifm, fhould not have heard of the Holy Ghoft. The very Form, and effential words of Baptifm being by Chrift's own Institution and the agreeing Practice of all his Apoftles,

I baptize