continually worrying to make themselves better, and fit themfelves for the reception of Chrift. But be affured, O finners, you will never be better by all your wailings, tears and cries, till you go to Jefus poor and miferable, wretched and naked as you are, until you become washed and cleanfed by his blood. Wait not for delufive impoffibilities: stand not in the vain expectation of making yourselves better by your faftings, prayers and mortifications, but inftantly in all your corruptions lay hold on an offered faviour; flee from Sodom to Zoar-tarry not on the fulphurious plain-escape to the mountain-look not behind you. Chrift never fays, make yourselves better and then come; but his language uniformly is, "Come unto "me and I will give you reft. Ho, every one that thirfteth, "come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money, come ye, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without mo. ney and without price."

Thirdly, we here learn that all acceptable duties in their very nature, involve in them true respect and a fincere love to God. Make the tree good and the fruit will be good. Our prayers, in our appearance, pofture and words, fuppofe a ref. pect to God. You would think it ftrange to see a person set about to pray, and worship the God of Ifrael, and at the fame time declare he did not intend to fhow him any respect, or holy reverence. Such a declaration would even shock the depravity of man. Hence all prayers, public homage and religious performances, proceed upon the fuppofition of a ref pect and love to God. And where this is not their foundation they cannot meet with acceptance. "Whatsoever therefore ye "do, whether ye eat or drink, do all to the glory of God."

"Fourthly, it appears from this doctrine, that as there is no virtue in the doings of the wicked and impenitent, there can be no promifes of grace and falvation made to performances originating from an heart full of enmity and infincerity. The

very supposition of special grace, and faving favours, connected with such exercises, implies not only an abfurdity, but something very unfavourable to the divine character. It seems to imply that God has no regard to fincerity and real goodness, more than to finful and wicked defires; that he is as well fatisfied with the show of piety as its reality; yea, that he stands as ready to reward the former with grace and falvation as the latter. Can it be credible to any person who has even tolerable fpeculative notions of the divine perfections, of the evil of fin or the defperate wickedness of the human heart? Would not fuch promises demolish the distinction between virtue and vice, between right and wrong? Can God approve of fin as well as holiness, and fet as high a value upon inimical paffions, as friendly affections. Hence let this gospel truth be held up ftrongly to the view of faints and finners; the former have an experimental knowledge of it while the latter doubt. "It is "not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God "who fheweth mercy."

Fifthly, we are from this doctrine inftructed in the beft of all fciences, the nature of true religion. It confists in a genuine refpect to the intereft and glory of God. This is the foul and fpirit of all piety. In the abfence of this, all appearances of religion are like the deaf fhell, fair outwardly but emptiness within. Without charity or divine love all is nothing. For God's fake, for the fake of our immortal fouls, let us not deceive ourselves-the judge is at the door, and our destiny will be inftantly decided. God will not be mocked, and imposition cannot enter into his prefence, therefore wander no longer in the fafcinating wilds of deception. He will never accept feeming virtue for real. He is a jealous God and his name is jea lous, and he will fuffer none to be preferred before him. If we prefer ourselves or any other creature, he will furely right himself upon us in due time; he will manifeft that his glory fhall not be given to another. Confider this, all ye that forget

God, left he tear you to pieces and there be none to deliver.

Sixthly, perfons may here learn in a general measure to estimate the degree of piety and religion there is in their habitual courfe of life. Thefe are exactly as the degrees of refpect they bear to the glory of God. The more regard there is in our conduct to the honor of the Most High, there is the more religion. If there be little love to God, there is little religion in the foul, however numerous, pompous and expensive the external exhibitions of it may be. By this rule of estimation, alas, how little religion is even in the beft; and in what multitudes, none at all? They eat and drink, and live entirely for themfelves, as if they were independantly their own, and none was Lord over them. Let us, therefore, my hearers, look into the leading views and motives of our lives. Some perhaps may obtain the greateft bleffing which at prefent can be bestowed, to wit, a full conviction that we have no religion, that we are dead in trefpaffes and fins. And others, in whom there is fome good thing towards the Lord, may be humbled for their declenfions, and aroused from their flumbers, to a clofer walk with God. How many have reason to lament the lofs of their first love. "Wherefore let us remember from whence we have fallen, and do our firft works, left Jefus Christ should come quickly, and remove his candlestick out of his place." Sleep not as do others, but watch and be fober. See that you live not to yourselves, but to the Lord who hath redeemed you.

Those who know in their own confciences that you are deftitute of all love and refpect to the glory of God, furely it is high time for you to confider your ways. If you have been all your days enemies to God and neglecters of the Lord Jefus Chrift, now after fo long a time, "Hear the voice of the Lord, and "repent left you all likewife perith; repent and believe "the gofpel; repent and be converted that your fins may be blotted out." Confider if you give not glory to God, his jealoufy and vengeance will fmoke against you

another day; but if you turn unto him with your whole hearts, your fouls fhall live. "Turn ye, turn ye, for why will "you die." Let our text be engraven on the palms of your hands, that it may be continually before you. "Whether, "therefore, ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the "glory of God."

SERMON XII.

Self-examination a necessary preparative to the Holy Communion.

1 Cor. xi. 28. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup.

WE fhall not now attend merely to the words of our text, but with them take a brief view of the inftitution of the Lord's fupper in general. From the feventeenth to the twenty-third verfe of this chapter, the blessed Apostle had been sharply reproving these Corinthian chriftians for their irregularities, indecencies, and wicked conduct at the facred table. Their abominable practice was fuch, as not only brought reproach upon christianity, and difgrace upon themselves, but subverted the very design of this divine institution. They waited not one for another, they fat not down together with an holy reverence, like Chrift and his difciples, but they rushed to the place where the ordinance was to be celebrated, in a ftrange, disorderly manner. Surely they could have very little appearance of a religious affembly, when every one as

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