good in their ufe. A good improvement may be made. of them. They may be improved to the honour and glory of God, to the benefit of others, and to our own temporal and eternal welfare. They are not therefore to be flighted or difefteemed. Yet however, they are not fuch good things as can give life and fatisfaction to the foul. For they want thofe properties which are absolutely necessary to their being so. Particularly, 1. They are not a fuitable good. The foul cannot live upon, or be fatisfied with any thing, but what is fuitable to it. If it fuits not the nature of the foul, it cannot promote the life of it, or give fatisfaction to it. Now the good things of this world are not fuitable'to the nature of the foul. For these things are corporeal, but the foul is a fpiritual being. Thefe outward creature-bleffings are indeed fuitable to our bodies, and therefore proper in their nature, to fupport bodily life, and to fatisfy the appetites of the body. Pfal. ciii. 5. VVbo fatisfieth thy mouth with good things. But they cannot nourish and fatisfy the foul, which is a fpirit. Nothing can do this, but that which is fpiritual. A created fpirit, fuch as the foul of man is, can find life and contentment in no objects or bleffings, but fpiritual ones. All carnal, earthly things, are but hufks for a foul to feed on. They are dry, infipid things, which have not the leaft foul ftrengthening, foulrefreshing, or comforting vertue in them. 2 They are not a proportionable good. Nothing can enliven or fatisfy the foul, but what, in proportion, is fuperior to the foul, at leaft equal to it. It must be fomething that is better than the foul, or at least as good as the foul. But now, as for the good things of this World, they are, in excellency, far inferior to the foul. The foul of man is a much more noble and excellent being, than they are. A fingle foul is indeed of far more worth and value, than all the things of this world taken together. Matth. xvi. 26. VVhat is a man profited, if he fhall gain the whole world, and lofe his own foul? or, what shall a man give in exchange for his foul? All the riches, honours, E delights delights and enjoyments of this world, are not worth one foul. He makes a lofing bargain,that exchanges his foul for the whole world, if it were poffible to be obtained. The gain of the whole world cannot compenfate for the lofs of the foul. Nor is this whole world a fufficient ranfom, to purchase the redemption of a foul. Something infinitely more excellent than all the world, was laid down as a ranfom price for it, even the precious life of the Son of God, Tit. ii. 14. VVho gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity. 1 Pet. i. 18, 19. Forafmuch as ye know, that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as filver and gold, but with the precious blood of Chrift as of a Lamb without blemish and without spot. 3. They are not a fufficient good. Nothing can put life into the foul, and afford fatisfaction to it, but that which is every way fufficient to fupply all its wants, and anfwer all its defires. If it be deftitute of that good, which the Soul needs and craves, it cannot uphold the life of the foul, or give contentment to it. Now, as for the things of this world, they are utterly infufficient to relieve the neceffities, and fulfil the defires of the foul. They are cifterns, broken cifterns, which can hold no foul-refreshing and reviving waters. Indeed, the men of the world do expect all happinefs, both for foul and body, out of their worldly enjoyments. Hence they truft in their wealth, and boaft themfelves in the multitude of their riches, Pfal. xlix. 6. They make them the object of their flay, confidence and boafting. Yet the world is but an empty veffel, from whence no fupplies can be drawn for the foul. Confider here, 1. All the world cannot remove those burdens, which lie upon the foul.-There is a burden of guilt on the foul, which all the world cannot take away. All the wealth of the world, cannot procure the pardon of fin. It cannot quiet the clamours of a guilty and accufing confcience. In the midst of the greatest abundance, the ungodly finner is exercifed with terrors of confcience, which he cannot wholly rid himself of. The most flourishing outward profperity profperity cannot give inward peace of confcience. When David was under guilt, all the wealth of his kingdom could not prevent his being terrified by his confcience, Pfal. xxxii.-Again, there is a burden of fears on the foul, which all the world cannot remove. The fouls of finners are in danger of eternal damnation; and fook pr later they are apprehenfive hereof. And when they are fo, deftruction from God cannot but be a terror to them. They are filled with difmal, diftreffing fears of the wrath of the Lord God Almighty. They fee it to be a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. And now they find all the things of this world to be miferable comforters, phyficians of no value, that cannot afford relief to them under their fore difappointments. None of all thefe things can fhelter them from the wrath of God, or fave them from the damnation of hell. Luk. xvi. 22, 23, The rich man died alfo and was buried; and in bell be lift up bis eyes, being in torments. 2. Again, all the world cannot reftore to the foul, the good it has loft and stands in need of, I mean, the favour and image of God.-It cannot reftore man to the favour of God. Man at firft was interested in the fweet favour of God his maker. But by his finning against God, he caft himself out of the favour of God. Hence he is faid to bide himself from God, dreading his prefence, as being a God, whole friendship he had loft, and whofe anger he had incurred. So that all men in their natural eftate are out of the divine favour. Now all this world cannot recover the favour of God for them. Riches may procure for us the favour and friendship of men; hence that, Prov. ziv. 20. The rich bath many friends: but they cannot obtain for us the favour and friendship of God. None of all these things can reconcile us to God, and caufe him to be at peace with us. Thousands of rams, and ten thousands of rivers of oyl, will not pleafe or pacify him, Mic. vi. 6. As the greateft abundance of worldly good things, are no evidences of God's fpecial favour; fo neither are they fufficient means to obtain it. Nay, by them, men are, for the most part, more alienated from God, and carried further out of the reach of his favour. Again, the things of this world cannot reftore man to the image of God. Man was at firft made after the image of God, in knowledge, righteoufnefs, and true holiness. But by the fall he loft the divine image. Now the things of this world cannot procure a restoration of this image, nor can they by any means work it in men. They do not make men more knowing and wife, holy and good; but are oftentimes an occafion of men's being more ig. norant and unacquainted with God, and more vile and vicious, than otherwife they would have been. Prov. xxx. 8, 9. Give me not riches, left I be fall, and deny thee, and Jay, Who is the Lord?-Thus for the third thing, fhewing that the things of this world are not a fufficient good. 4. They are not an eternal good. Nothing can fatisfy the foul, or make it happy, but that which is everlaftingly good. For, the foul of man is an immortal being. It is a fpirit, and fo cannot die, but lives for ever. That therefore which is not of eternal duration, and eternally good, cannot inftate the foul in a life of happiness, and terminate its defires unto full fatisfaction. Now, as for the things of this world, they are not a permanent and everabiding good: They are mutable, and unconftant, and perishing things. Job. vi. 27. Labour not for the meat which perifbeth, but for that which endureth to eternal life. The things of this world may very quickly leave us. They many times fo do, being in a little while taken away from us, by one unforeseen providence or other, as in the cafe of Job. Riches, oftentimes, make to themselves wings, they fly away as an eagle towards heaven, Prov. xxiii. 5.-Or, if the things of this world do not quickly leave us, yet we fhall quickly leave them. We muft certainly die within a little while; and when we do, all these things muft be left behind us. When God requires our fouls by death, the things we now have, will no longer be ours, whofe foever they be. We brought nothing into this world with us, and it is certain, we ball carry nothing away, 1 Tim. vi. 7. Not the leaft of all our good things fhall we carry with us: But go naked out of this world, as we came into it, Ecclef. v. 15. Here we found these things, and here we must leave them and how foon we must do fo, is utterly unknown to us. When we are promifing ourselves a long enjoyment of thefe things, God may in a moment snatch us away from them. And when our fpirits depart out of this world into the other, none of thefe good things fhall accompany them. But then they take an eternal farewel of them all. These things then cannot conftitute an happiness for, or give full fatisfaction to, an immortal, everliving foul. Nothing can do this, but what is commenfurate with the foul in duration. If it endure not to eternal life, fo as to make happy for ever, it cannot fatisfy a foul, whofe exiftence will be endlefs, and whose defires reach forth after an eternity of blessednefs. O then let us not content ourselves with thofe things which are good only for a feafon, as are all the things of this world. They are but a tranfient and tem porary good, whofe enjoyment is limited to this prefent hort life. But let us be concerned that we be poffeffed of durable riches, which will go with us into the other world, and abide with us in that world, and bring us to the eternal enjoyment of God,the chief good, and infinite fountain of living water. Now these riches are the righteoufnefs of Jefus Chrift, and the graces of his holy fpirit, putting themselves forth in all good works. If we are clothed with the robe of Chrift's righteoufnefs, we shall not be found naked, at death, nor after death, fo as to be expofed to the wrath of God. That garment of his will fecure us from deferved wrath, and commend us to the everlasting favour of God. And if we are adorned with the graces of Chrift and the good fruits thereof, thefe will go with us, and follow us, and abide with us in the other world, and be made perfect in compleat and eternal bleffedness. Rev. xiv. 13. Blessed are the dead, which die in the Lord, interested in Chrift and his righteousness : they reft from their labours, and their works, good and E 3 holy |