them, and drawn your hearts from the fear, love, obedience, and felf-denial of a true difciple of Jesus. Tack about then, and hearken to the ftill voice in thy confcience; it tells thee thy fins, and of misery in them. It gives a lively discovery of the very vanity of the world, and opens to thy foul fome profpect of eternity, and the comforts of the juft that are at reft. If thou adhereft to this, it will divorce thee from fin and felf: thou wilt foon find, that the power of its charms exceed that of the wealth, honour, and beauty of the world, and finally will give thee that tranquillity, which the ftorms of time can never fhipwreck nor diforder.. Here all thine enjoyments are bleft: though small, yet great by that prefence that is within them.

Even in this world the righteous have the better of it, for they use the world without rebuke, because they do not abuse it. They fee and bless the hand that feeds, and cloaths, and preferves them. And as by beholding him in all his gifts, they do not adore them, but him; fo the sweetness of his bleffings that gives them, is an advantage fuch have upon those that fee him not. fides, in their increase they are not lifted up, nor in their adversities are they caft down: and why? Because: they are moderated in the one, and comforted in the other, by his divine presence,

Be

In short, heaven is the throne, and the earth but the footstool, of that man, that hath felf under foot. And thofe that know that station will not eafily be moved; fuch learn to number their days, that they may not be furprized with their diffolution; and to redeem their ⚫ time, because their days are evil";' remembering that they are but stewards, and muft deliver up their accompts to an impartial judge. Therefore, not to felf, but to him they live, and in him die, and are blessed with them that die in the Lord. And thus I conclude my difcourfe of the right ufe of lawful self,

d Eph. v. 15, 16.

СНАР,

CHAP. V.

§. 1. Of unlawful felf, it is twofold, 1. In religion. 2. In morality. §. 2. Of those that are most formal, fuperftitious and pompous in worship. §. 3. God's rebuke of carnal apprehenfions. §. 4. Chrift drew off his difciples from the Jewish exterior worship, and instituted a more fpiritual one. §. 5. Stephen is plain and full in this matter. §. 6. Paul refers the temple of God twice to man. §. 7. Of the cross of thefe worldly worshippers. §. 8. Flesh and blood make their cross, therefore cannot be crucified by it. §. 9. They are yokes without reftraint. §. 10. Of the gaudinefs of their crofs, and their respect to it. §. 11. A reclufe life no true gofpel abnegation. §. 12. A comparison between Chrift's felf-denial and theirs: his leads to purity in the world, theirs to voluntary imprisonment, that they might not be tempted of the world. The mischief which that example, followed, would do to the world. It deftroys ufeful fociety, honeft labour. A lazy life the ufual refuge of idleness, poverty, and guilty age. §. 13. Of Chrift's cross in this cafe. The impoffibility that fuch an external application can remove an internal caufe. §. 14. An exhortation to the men of this belief, not to deceive themselves.

§. I. I

Am now come to unlawful felf, which, more or lefs, is the immediate concernment of much the greater part of mankind. This unlawful felf is twofold. ift. That which relates to religious worship: 2dly, That which concerns moral and civil converfation in the world, And they are both of infinite confequence to be confidered by us. In which I fhall be as brief as I may, with eafe to my confcience, and no injury to the matter.

§. II. That unlawful felf in religion, that ought to be mortified by the cross of Christ, is man's invention and performance of worship to God, as divine, which is not fo, either in its inftitution or performance. In this

great

great error, thofe people have the van, of all, that attribute to themselves the name of Chriftians, that are moft exterior, pompous, and fuperftitious in their worfhip for they do not only miss exceedingly, by a fpiritual unpreparedness, in the way of their performing worship to God Almighty, who is an eternal fpirit; but the worship itself is compofed of what is utterly inconfiftent with the very form and practice of Chrift's doctrine, and the apoftolical example. For whereas that was plain and fpiritual, this is gaudy and worldly: Chrift's moft inward and mental; their's most outward and corporeal: that fuited to the nature of God, who is a fpirit; this accommodated to the most carnal part. So that instead of excluding flesh and blood, behold a worship calculated to gratify them: as if the business were not to present God with a worship to please him, but to make one to please themfelves. A worship dreffed with such stately buildings, and imagery, rich furniture and garments, rare voices and mufic, costly lamps, wax-candles and perfumes; and all acted with that most pleasing variety, to the external fenfes, that art can invent, or coft procure as if the world were to turn Jew or Egyptian again; or that God was an old man, indeed, and Christ a little boy, to be treated with a kind of religious mafk, for fo they picture him in their temples; and too many in their minds. And the truth is, fuch a worship may very well fuit fuch an idea of God: for when men can think him fuch an one as themselves, it is not to be wondered, if they address to him, and entertain him in a way that would be most pleafing from others to themselves.

§. III. But what faid the Almighty to such a sensual people of old, much upon the like occafion? Thou thoughtest I was fuch an one as thyfelf, but I will reprove thee, and fet thy fins in order before thee. Now confider this, ye that forget God, left I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver. But to him that ordereth his converfation aright, will I fhew the falvation of God".' This is the worship acceptable to

Pfal. 1. 21, 22, 23.

b

him, To do juftice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God,' For he that fearcheth the heart, and tries the reins of man, and fets his fins in order before him, who is the God of the fpirits of all flefh"," looks not to the external fabrick, but internal frame of the foul, and inclination of the heart. Nor is it to be foberly thought, that he, who is cloathed with divine honour and majefty, who covers himself with light, as with a garment, who ftretches out the heavens like a curtain, who layeth the beams of his chambers in the deep, who maketh the clouds his chariots, and who walks upon the wings of the wind, who maketh his angels fpirits, and his minifters a flaming fire, 'who laid the foundation of the earth, that it should

not be moved for ever,' can be adequately worshipped by thofe human inventions, the refuge of an apoftate people, from the primitive power of religion, and fpirituality of chriftian worship.

§. IV. Chrift drew off his difciples from the glory and worship of the outward temple, and inftituted a more inward and fpiritual worship, in which he inftructed his followers, Ye fhall neither in this moun'tain, nor yet at Jerufalem (fays Chrift to the Samaritan woman) worship the Father. God is a fpirit, and they that worship him, muft worship him in fpirit and ' in truth'.' As if he had faid: for the fake of the weakness of the people, God defcended in old time, to limit himfelf to an outward time, place, temple and fervice, in and by which he would be worshipped: but this was during mens ignorance of his omniprefence, and that they confidered not what God is, nor where he is. But I am come to reveal him to as many as receive me. And I tell you that God is a fpirit, and he will be worshipped in fpirit and in truth. People must be acquainted with him as a fpirit, confider him, and worship him as fuch. It is not that bodily worship, nor thefe ceremonious fervices, in ufe among you now, that will ferve, or give acceptance with this God that is • John iv. 21, 24:

Mic. vi. 8.

a fpirit:

a fpirit: no, you must obey his fpirit that ftrives with you, to gather you out of the evil of the world; that by bowing to the inftructions and commands of his fpirit in your own fouls, you may know what it is to worship him as a spirit; then you will understand, that it is not going to this mountain, nor Jerufalem, but to do the will of God, to keep his commandments; and commune with thine own heart, and fin not, take up thy cross, meditate in his holy law, and follow the example of him whom the Father hath fent.

§. V. Wherefore Stephen, that bold and conftant martyr of Jefus, thus told the Jews, when a prifoner at their bar for difputing about the end of their beloved temple, and its fervices, (but falfly accused of blafphemy) Solomon, (faid Stephen) built God an house,

howbeit, God dwelleth not in temples made with • hands; as faith the prophet', Heaven is my throne, • and earth is my footftool; what houfe will ye build me, faith the Lord? Or what is the place of my reft? Hath not my hand made all these things?' Behold a total overthrow to all worldly temples, and their ceremonious appendences! The martyr follows his blow upon those apoftate Jews, who were of thofe times, the pompous, ceremonious, worldly worshippers: Ye • ftiff-necked and uncircumcifed in heart and ears, ye do always refift the Holy Ghoft; as did your fathers, fo do ye.' As if he had told them, no matter for your outward temple, rites, and shadowy fervices, your pretenfions to fucceffion in nature from Abraham, and by religion from Mofes; you are refifters of the fpirit, gainfayers of its inftructions: you will not bow to its counfel, nor are your hearts right towards God: you are the fucceffors of your father's iniquity; and though verbal admirers, yet none of the fucceffors of the prophets in faith and life.

But the prophet Ifaiah carries it a little farther than is cited by Stephen. For after having declared what is not God's house, the place where his honour dwells,'

Acts vii. 47-51;

• Ifa. lxvi. 1, 2.

immedi