Secondly, to confider the high advantages and benefits it affords its friends. Profit and pleafure feem to be the great pursuits of men; and if we would have them united in the moft eminent perfection, let us engage in the ways of religion. The pleafures of the world, and the gratifications of fenfer always mock their votaries aud leave a fting behind. Not fo with the votaries of piety. Their expectations are never difappointed. Its purfuits are delightful; fo are all its effects and confequences. Instead of pains of body, remorfe of confcience, and twinging perplexity, the fruits of fin, they have inward peace, ftrong confolation, joyful hopes, and a fatisfactory affu. rance of the rewards of eternal felicity. If the friends of reli gion have troubles in the world, yet in Jefus they have peace, and all the riches of heaven full in their view as their everlafting inheritance. The profits of their business are not like the perishing profits of time, they are infinite in value, and their durability is as the heavens. They are fupported by fure and certain promises here, and the future recom pence of reward cannot fail. "God will never leave them nor forfake them, "and all things fhall work together for their good." They have all things in enjoyment, and eternal felicity by an inde feafable reverfion. All things are theirs. Thus faith the apole, "Whether the world, or life, or death, or things pre"fent, or things to come; all are yours. And ye are Christ's "and Christ is God." Religion is truly profitable for this world and for that which is to come. Who can defcribe the riches of the city, which is to be their everlafting dwelling. The walls of it are jasper, its gates pearl, and its streets of pure gold. Methinks could a mifer have a view of its glory and wealth, could he be induced to realife and believe in the profits and advantages of religion, he would immediately forfake all and commence a follower of Jefus. He that can number the tars, or count the falling leaves in autumn, let him calculate the riches of the faints. Could fubftantial profit and unmixed pleafure operate upon the hearts of men, furely they would s

inftantly engage in the ways of piety and godliness, which have the divine promife of the wealth and advantages of both worlds. But the doctrine of our text is ftill further confirmed by the experience of all. Which leads me,

Thirdly, to confider the pleasures of religion as appears from the experience of those who have entered into her ways and travelled in her peaceful paths. Here we may without hefitation appeal to all who live godly in Chrift Jefus. From their own feelings, exercifes and experience, they all concur in this teftimony, "That all her ways are pleasantnefs and all "her paths are peace. "Their pleasures and their joys at times are fuch that they cannot exprefs. All her precepts, her counfels, exhortations and promifes, the views which the affords, the profpects fhe opens, fhed pleasure thro' the foul, unfpeakable and full of glory. Go to the dying bed of the true chriftian, enquire of him what he thinks of religion? And that ist commonly confidered as an honeft hour. He will immediately inform you it is infinitely preferable to all the riches and treasures of this world. He groans forth in his laft struggles, in all the agonies of diffolution, "I fhall foon be difincumbered of this flesh and be with Jefus. O the joys, the comforts, the hopes that I feel! With pleasure I leave the earth! Heaven opens to my view.” In their paffage through this life, how often are they saying, "It is good for us to draw near to God." They are frequently in divine worship and in fpecial ordinances experiencing and declaring it is good for us to be here, this is none other than the gate of heaven, let us ever dwell in this place. They will be often adopting the language of the spouse and faying, "I fat down under his fhadow with great delight, "and his fruit was fweet unto my tafte. Stay me with flacr gons, comfort me with apples, for I am fick with love." They are fometimes ufing the words of an ancient faint, "Let their money perifh with them, that esteem all the wealth and pleasures of this world, worth one hours communion with

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God in Jefus Chrift." Confider all the fancied pleasures of fin are only for a season, and that season is short. Solomen drunk deep of them all, and what were they? «Vanity of "vanities, vanity of vanities," and all accompanied with and terminated in vexation of spirit. Enquire of the worldling, the drunkard, the debauchee, the whole tribe of fwearers and gamblers, what profit and happiness they have had in these courses? and their answer will be, none, and worse than none. Repair to their dying bed, and there behold their anguish, and excruciating distress, all regret, remorfe, fears and terrors within, and nothing but torment in profpect. Let us turn away from the miserable objects, and contemplate the departing christian, who in raptures of pleasure is crying, "Come, "Lord Jefus, come quickly." Here it may be asked, if there be fo great pleasures in religion, how comes it, that profeffors often appear fo gloomy and unhappy? The reply to this is eafy and plain. It arifes from their fins and corruptions. Now is it rational to afcribe to religion, what ought to be at tributed to iniquity? If each has its due, fin will be found to be mifery in its nature, and all its confequences, but religion perfectly the reverfe, pleasure is its nature, and compleat happinefs its end.

A word of exhortation fhall close this lecture.

Let us all now-be prevailed upon to become feriously religious. Her ways are pleafure, peace, comfort and blifs, whereas the ways of fin are forrow, wretchedness and death. Moft men would rather be allured and perfuaded to their duty, than be affrighted and terrified to it. Much might be faid to alarm you with horror, and frighten you from courfes of tranfgreffion and folly, but would you not rather be led than driven, courted, than compelled? A word of threatening has fcarcely paffed my lips to day. Wherefore, now be per fuaded with your whole hearts to engage in piety. God is

inviting you, Christ is tenderly calling upon you, the holy Spi rit like a dove is moving upon your hearts, and fweetly perfuading you to turn unto the Lord. The good angels are ho vering around you waiting to carry the glad news of your re pentance to heaven, that all that blissful world might be filled with joy. Hearken to the compaffionate and endearing voice of your bleeding Saviour, "Behold I ftand at the door and "knock, if any man hear my voice and open the door, I "will come in to him, and fup with him and he with me. I "counsel thee to buy of me gold, that thou mayeft be rich; "and white raiment that thou mayeft be cloathed, and that "the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine "eyes with eyefalve that thou mayeft fee." What more compaffionate perfuafions can be poured into the ears of finners? O finners, turn and live, turn and be happy forever.

And thofe of you, my hearers, who have entered into the pleasant ways and peaceful paths of religion, continue therein; turn not afide to the right hand or to the left. Proceed on from faith to faith, from duty to duty, from one holy exercise to another, and you will foon appear before God in Zion; you will foon be at home, in your fathers houfe, to be forever with the Lord.

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SERMON XXVI.

The roays of Religion are Fleafant.

Prov. iii. 17. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all het paths are peace.

LET us once more take a view of this pleafing theme. Pleafure is not eafy to be parted from, fo it is not eafy to relinquith this delightful branch of divine truth. We have al readly contemplated the pleafantnefs of religion in its nature, and fome of its exercifes. We will now endeavour to attend to it in another point of light, and illuftrate its excellency and beauty from the terms employed in the text, as a pleasant way and a delightful path.

We find by inspection of the facred oracles, that the practice of religion is often compared to a way, and they that walk therein are denominated travellers. They are frequently reprefented as perfons from home, as fojourners, pilgrims and ftrangers, yet as thofe who are on a journey homewards. The religious He is a journey indeed, and heaven is its end, and thither vard all the pious bend their courte. So that