put away sin by the sacrifice of himself; so that there is now no condemnation to those who believe in Christ Jesus, and who henceforth resolve to walk no more after the flesh, but after the spirit.-Our holy religion alone discovers to us, that the chief end for which we are sent into the world, is to prepare ourselves, by the acquisition of every good habit, for the enjoyment of another, and a better state beyond the grave, where we shall arrive at higher degrees of excellence, and greater perfection of character than we are now capable of attaining; and, therefore, we should purify ourselves from all remaining corruptions of the flesh and spirit, that we may be meet for the inheritance of the saints in light.

All former systems of religion which appeared in the world, proposed merely to render men more virtuous, that they might pass through this world with tranquillity and credit; whereas Christianity intends by its principles and precepts to qualify men for that future world, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Accordingly, different disposi tions are required by the gospel, from those which reason and philosophy inculcated. The latter recommended merely the practice of justice, temperance, and sobriety, which were sufficient to make men good subjects of an earthly kingdom; but the former enjoins in addition to these the exercise of piety, faith, resignation, contempt of the world, and heavenly-mindedness, as qualities indispensably requisite to prepare us for being fellow-citizens with the saints, and heirs of the household of God.-The religion of nature delivered only obscure intimations of a future state, and could never decide with certainty any circumstances respecting its nature and condition. But, the religion of Christ exhibits a clear prospect of the destiny awaiting us; it declares that "to those who by patient continuance in well-doing, seek for glory, shall be rendered eternal life; but, that those who obey unrighte ousness shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;" that at the consummation of all things, the dead shall be raised, and receive a sentence according to their works, which shall place men in a state of happiness, or

misery, as their characters shall be found to be good or evil.

Where shall we find such discoveries as these, among the writings of philosophers, sages, or legislators of antiquity? where shall we meet with such sublime doctrines, and such a consistent scheme of faith as in the pages of the gospel? There every mystery which perplexed the human mind respecting the nature of God and man is fully explained; and there we are instructed how to conduct ourselves in the present world, and what we may expect in the world to come. If we compare the religion of Christ, with that of Moses, of Mahomet, of Zoroaster, or any other which has obtained among mankind; we shall soon be convinced how superior its information is, on every topic relative to our present condition and future destiny. Every humble Christian, who has the scriptures in his hands, is thereby better acquainted with those truths which concern the well-being of his soul, than the most learned Pagan, or devout votary of superstition; and well may we say with St. Peter, " to whom can we go but unto Christ; he alone hath taught the way of God in truth, he alone hath the words of everlasting life."

Having thus shortly detailed the miserable condition of mankind, without the knowledge of the gospel of Christ, and the importance of the doctrines which it reveals. I proceed to illustrate,

II. The excellence of Christianity, in discovering to us the existence of a future state, and the means of preparing ourselves for its enjoyment.

Life and immortality are now brought to light by the gospel, since he who came down from heaven, hath instructed men in the knowledge of that invisible world, which we are appointed to inhabit after our departure from the body. The evidence by which this discovery is confirmed, arises from the credible testimony of an eyewitness who dwelt in the mansions of bliss from everlasting ages, and who was well acquainted with the residence which God had prepared for those who love him. His declaration, therefore, may be relied on as true and

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faithful; and to convince mankind of the reality of his mission from on high, and that he spake as the Father gave him commandment, our Lord ascended to those celestial regions which he had revealed to his followers, assuring them, "that where he is, there they shall be also," to behold his glory. This is direct information, from one who knew the place from which he had descended, and to which he now returned after finishing the work that was given him to do. As we credit the report of a traveller, who has traversed some distant land, and no longer doubt of its existence, when he has taken up his abode in its territories; so we are constrained to believe, that there is a heavenly inheritance beyond the grave, which Christ possesses, and that he has gone to his Father and our Father, to his God and our God.

We are further assured, that, by his obedience unto death for our sakes, he hath procured as the reward of his services, admission into the kingdom of glory for all those who believe in his name, and live in conformity to his precepts. We are now no longer uncertain of the issue of a holy and virtuous conduct, nor left to conjecture, whether God will confer on his people a high degree of happiness in a future state; but taught, that Christ is preparing regions of rest and peace for the righteous, that so they may be ever with the Lord. We are now therefore instructed to look forward to that unseen residence, whither our forerunner is for us entered, that he may confer it at last on those who shall be fitted to inherit it. As he hath thus revealed to us a future state, and procured it for all who shall one day enjoy it; well may we say with St. Peter, "that he hath the words of everlasting life."

But, it should be recollected, that there are certain qualifications which Christ hath enjoined on his disciples, which they should possess to prepare themselves for its attainment. These are peculiar to the gospel-dispensation, and were never taught in any other system of religion which appeared in the world. It is therefore our concern to enquire, what are the features of that character, which, through the merits of our Saviour, shall be

deemed worthy of entering into the kingdom of heaven. The first of these is piety, or a devout acknowledgment of God in all our ways, which ought to be expressed by fervently praying to him for every thing of which we stand in need, grateful thanks to him for what we enjoy, and a ready disposition to do and suffer whatever he shall appoint in the course of his providence. This quality of heart is required, not only as necessary to beget in us a sense of our dependence on him and his loving-kindness to us while we sojourn on earth, but because we shall have occasion to express the same feelings in a future state, when we shall perceive more clearly that in God "we live, and move, and have our being; and that from. him we receive every good and perfect gift." Therefore, we must now cultivate a devout temper, since it will remain as the distinguishing characteristic of saints made perfect around the throne of God.-Again, faith is another virtue, which is required in the gospel, and which we should possess to qualify us for inheriting eternal life. This implies a disposition to believe all the declarations which God hath given concerning himself and his purposes to mankind; dependence on his providence for our protection, trust in his promises for their accomplishment, and fear of his threatenings, that we may avoid the dangers to which we expose ourselves by impenitent transgression. Such a disposition is necessary in the present world, because it enables us to realize all the discoveries of revelation which are still unseen, but which are intended to influence our hearts and lives. And it will be no less requisite in a future state, where we must believe many declarations which God will then make, the truth of which we may not apprehend, till we have arrived at greater degrees of knowledge in our progress to perfection. But, as we are here very imperfect in our characters, and fall into many sins which easily beset us; therefore, repentance is a third duty enjoined by our Saviour, and evidently necessary for promoting our holiness here, and our felicity hereafter. This consists in that moral reformation of our habits, by which we cease from doing evil, and learn to do well, by which we renounce any

evil practice, and walk in newness of life. It is enjoined in the gospel, as indispensable to regain the favour of God, for he will by no means clear the guilty. And it is of no less importance in rendering us meet for the heavenly inheritance; since we are assured, "that without holiness no man shall see the Lord." If, therefore, we are addicted to any vicious indulgences either of the flesh or of the spirit, we must be renewed in the spirit of our minds, put off the old man with his deeds which are corrupt, and put on the new man, which is created in righteousness and true holiness, that we may appear be fore God without spot and blameless.-As corruption, however, is inherent in our nature, and in many things we offend and come short of our duty, therefore the gospel requires us to rely on the merits of our Saviour, who is made to all those who believe in him, wisdom, and righteousness, and justification, and redemption. Though we must endeavour to perfect holiness in the fear of God, yet we cannot claim acceptance with him for works of righteousness which we have done; we must still own that we are unprofitable servants, who require forgiveness for our manifold transgressions, and can only hope that he will receive us graciously for the sake of him who hath made reconciliation through the blood of his cross, and presents us as chosen vessels whom he hath redeemed from all iniquity, and sanctified to himself as a peculiar people zealous of good works. Therefore, reliance on Christ as able to save unto the uttermost all that come unto God by him is a disposition which we must possess, that we may have a right to the tree of life, and enter into the joy of our Lord.-Since we thus owe our salvation to the grace of God, through Jesus Christ; hence, another disposition which we should cultivate as peculiarly well pleasing in the sight of God, and requisite to render us partakers of his heavenly kingdom, is humility, or self-abasement for our unworthiness. This implies, that we are sensible of our failings and imperfections, that we are conscious of our demerit for our manifold offences, and that if God were strict to mark iniquity against us we could not stand, nor answer him for one of