here in this very Chapter of my Text inculcates it so often; Know ye not that to whom ye yield your felves Servants to obey, his Servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of Sin unto Death, or Obedience unto Righteousness? But God be thanked, ye were the Servants of Sin, but ye have Obey d, &c. and in feveral other places. Now what fo abject a condition as Slavery? and what Slavery fo mean as that of Sin? and it is yet the more base, because it is in our own power to be free. For Sin Lords over us, not fo much by its own Strength as by Our Cowardice, by our want of Courage to caft of its Yoke; or what is worse, by our baseness of Spirit, that prefers the Life of Bondage to Liberty. A Man, without Difgrace or lofs of Honour, may be overcome and made Captive by a more powerful Enemy; and if he have made a gallant Defence, he may bleed, but he need not blufh; he may be in Chains, but his Mind be free. But the Slavery of every one that is Captive in this Spiritual War, is truly dishonuorable and without excufe. To yield to fuch an Enemy as we are affur'd by Truth itself, if we refift will fly from Us; an Enemy against whom we have taken a Military Oath in Our Baptism, and lifted ourselves to fight Manfully against under Chrift's Banners; an Enemy, that if we had dy'd even in our Infancy Infancy we had overcome, is not only beneath the dignity of our high calling as we are Christians, but below any Man of Reputation or Honour. 3dly. It is manifeft how natural a Vilenefs there is in Sin by this, that the most profligate Wretches are fo conscious of it, that tho' they fear not to do ill, they fear the Shame of it; and tho' free from Conscience, are Slaves to Reputation. They love Darkness rather than Light because their deeds are Evil. For tho' fome indeed have the impudence to boast of their Wickedneffes, and act them in open day, debauch'd by the degeneracy of an Age that has made fome Sins not only in fashion, but in repute; yet they are but a very fmall number, in comparison of the innumerable company of the close, and demure, and filent Sinners, who as fond as they are of their Vices, know that the keeping of them to themselves is the only way of keeping their Credit too. By which plainly they confefs that they ought to be afham'd to commit those things, which whenever the World finds out, they can't help being afham'd that they have committed. But 4ly, The detestable Vileness of Sin do's not fo much appear by the Shame that it produces in thofe fly Sinners, which is rather to be ftyl'd Cunning or Hypocrify; as it do's in that fort of Shame, with which these Romans, to whom the Apostle writes, were affected; when after their Converfion, all the Abominations of their former unregenerate State, all the Filthiness of their Converfation, and the Baseness of their Slavery was laid open before their Eyes. The Shame of the Converted is a generous Shame, not regarding the Opinion of other Men, not fo much concern'd that there is no Fruit in these things, or that the End of them is Death; as arifing from the Senfe of the very Nature and Effence of the things themselves. With what Confufion of face muft they needs be furpriz'd, when they first come to have a true Sight of the real Uglinefs and Deformity of thofe Monsters, they fo long fofter'd in their Breasts? This is a Shame, by all devoutly to be wifh'd for; this is to be cherish'd, and whenever it happily feizes us after the Commiffion of any Sin, not to be turn'd away or put off; but entertain'd till it has made us entirely vile and despicable in our own Eyes, and laid us in the Duft, and debas'd us fo low, that God out of his tender Pity may think us fit to be reftor'd again, and lift us up. This is a Shame not to be afham'd of, and works a Repentance not to be Repented of. And indeed there can be no greater Security of a Repentance being fincere and true, than than its having been produc'd by this Shame. Nor is it only moft fecure to us, but most pleafing to God; for tho' all the Methods, that God ufes to bring us to Repentance, are of excellent use and agreeable to his Divine Wisdom; and a true Repentance, by any of those Means wrought, is accepted by him; yet certainly that which springs from the Senfe of his Goodnefs being abus'd, and the Foulnefs of our Guilt, and the Shame of our Ingratitude, must be more acceptable; than that which is extorted by the fervile Principle of Fear. And that Man has certainly a Temper fram'd by Nature for Virtue and Goodness, whom the fenfe of an ill or unworthy Action, into which he has unfortunately fall'n, fo overwhelms with Shame, that he would willingly exchange the Punishment he feels within from That, for any outward Torment that can be inflicted or invented. On the contrary, there can be no greater Sign of an hardned and fettled Impenitency, nor any greater aggravation of Guilt, than want of Shame. This is that of which God by his Prophet with fo much Indignation complains, Thou hadst a Whore's Forehead, thou refufedft to be afbam d, and in a more peculiar manner threatens with Deftruction, Jer.8.12. Were they afbam'd, when they had committed abomination? Nay, they were not at all afbam d, neither neither could they blush: therefore fhall they fall among them that fall in the time of their Vifitation; they fhall be caft down, faith the Lord. But if not to Blush at our Wickednefs be fo heinous an Abomination, and deserves fo much Vengeance; what muft be their Portion, who not only difdain to blush at their Impieties, but glory in 'em? That fet up for Patrons of Vice, and are proud to draw over Profelytes to Iniquity; that would have all their own defperate Wickedneffes pass for Gallantry of Spirit and good Breeding; and all the contrary Virtues of Others for want of Mettle or Affectation of Singularity? These are next of kin to the evil Spirits themselves, that would draw all they could into the fame Condemnation; and in an Age wherein Cuftom fways almoft as much as Reason, no wonder if fome deluded People, who really deserve Pity, taking these for the choiceft Spirits of the Time, choose rather to forfeit their Conscience than be out of the Mode; and it is too plain, that many, otherwise well enough difpos'd Minds, have too much comply'd with the reigning Vices and Follys of the Times, meerly out of Shame of being thought fingular and Men of a Humour by themselves. But befides, the unaccountable Abfurdity of this Plea of Singularity, there is a further Confideration behind, |