knowledge Chrift for God, and continually blafpheme him we crucify him with our oaths, and outrage him by our behaviour. We confefs, he is the way that leads to life, by his example and precepts; and yet we neglect to imitate that, and to comply with thefe. He will reprove, i. e. convince us of fin; not indeed of infidelity, because we have not believed in him; but of negligence and folly, in fquaring our actions not by our belief, but by our paffions; in being Chriftians by profeffion, and bad ones in behaviour. O my Saviour! I believe thou art my God who created me, as well as my Saviour who redeemed me. To thee I ftand obliged for my being, and my redemption. Send down upon me thy Holy Spirit, not to condemn me as a finner, but to comfort me as a true penitent let him enable me to defend thy faith with my blood, and to follow thy footfteps in fpight of tempta tion. EPISTLE of St. James, Chap. i. Verfe 22. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own felves. 23. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24. For he beholdeth himself: and goeth his way, and ftraightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. he being not a word, this man 25. But whofo looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, forgetful bearer, but a doer of the fhall be bleffed in his deed. Vol. II. D 26. If 26. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own beart, this mans religion is vain. 27. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father, is this, To vifit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unfpotted from the world. T The MORAL REFLECTION. HERE were, it seems, in St. James's time (as well as in ours) fome hereticks, who, to draw in profelytes, placed man's juftification in faith alone, and condemned good works as unneceffary. In this epiftle, he cautions all the faithful against this dangerous error; and affures them, they deceive themselves, if they think to enter heaven without the practice of good works: But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own felves. It is not fufficient to believe all Chrift revealed, unless we also practise all he taught. He obliges us to fubmit our wills to the laws he impofes, as well as our understandings to the mysteries he reveals. He is our great Mafter, and will have the two nobleft faculties of man pay him homage : And tho' he could exact this acknowledgment without a promise of a reward; yet he has been pleased, out of his goodness, to reward our obedience with a happiness as great, as it is lafting. Thofe, I fpeak to, are not guilty of this error; but he mentions another, from which fome perhaps may not be be exempt; who, because they frequent the church, hear fermons, and expofitions of fcripture, with pleasure and appetite; because the beauty of virtue raises tranfports of admiration, and the deformity of vice starts of horror in them; perfuade themselves they poffefs all virtues in perfec tion, and hate vice to extremity. But St. James fuppofes we hear fermons on the excellence of virtue, and the foulnefs of fin, without practising that, or seriously flying this: Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. A conviction and admiration of the beauty of virtue is easily raised, when we find no oppofition; but when we come to the practice, nature revolts, and this repugnance wipes off the favourable impreffion, and raifes as difadvantageous ideas, as the first were pleafing. St. James afcribes this to the want of a fincere and ferious confideration of the capital truths of our religion: If any be a bearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way; and ftraightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. The apoftle would fay, that the gospel is a glafs, which we must confult to know our defects, by comparing our lives with the inftructions we find; and that he, who only confiders himself flightly, and as it were in paffing, is like to reap no profit by the comparifon: He goeth his way, and ftraightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. We must not therefore be negligent hearers, or fuperficial readers of our duty: we must not go to fer. mons, to pass our time, but to hear our obligation; nor now and then turn over books of devotion to entertain our curiofity, but to kindle piety. We must by a conftant reading, hearing and meditation, imprint Chrift's laws in our hearts and me mories; and daily compare what we do, with what he commands: and this will eafily perfuade us not only to be hearers, but doers of the word; and to be true Chriftians in practice, as well as in fpe culation. For when we daily confider the punishment God has prepared for finners, and the reward he promises virtue; we fhall eafily refolve to avoid that, and to embrace this: when we feriously reflect on what Chrift has done, and what he has fuffered for us; who will not be moved to make a return of gratitude, and to love that infinite Being, who has been fond of us to fuch a degree, as to ftoop, even to affume our nature with all its infirmities (fin excepted) and to facrifice on a cross, for our fakes, that life he took in the womb of his virgin Mother? It is almoft impoffible for fuch reflections not to raise fentiments of love in the moft obdurate heart and when once we love him, we fhall without pain obey his commands, and even follow his counfels. For nothing feems hard to one that loves, and thus, in St. James's phrafe, we fhall not be forgetful bearers, but doers of the word. And what follows, but a beatitude for our reward? This man shall be bleffed in his deed. O! that we would but give half the time to the reading of pious books, we idle away, or fpend on profane authors! that we gave but half the attention to thofe that teach us our duty, and move us to comply with it, we do to those that laugh at goodness, and ridicule piety! What a progrefs fhould we make in virtue? How 'near fhould we come to the perfection our religion demands, and Chrift requires? With what peace of conscience fhould we live? With what content should we die? But alas! It is our misfortune to mifplace our care, and to take more to heart thofe things that lead us to our ruin, than those that secure our falvation. St. James not only affures us, that faith alone will not justify us, but he fpecifies thofe vices we muft fly, and thofe virtues we must practise. First, we must bridle our tongue, and keep it within the bounds bounds of decency, and charity. If any man feem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Without this caution, our religion is ufelefs, our piety falfe; and thofe deceive themfelves, who think to be faved without the government of this fmall, but unruly member. And tho' your faith be strong enough to remove mountains, if it be not enlivened by charity, you are of no value in the fight of God. Tho' I have all faith, fo that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing, I Cor. xiii. 2. In the first place therefore, purge your heart of all diforderly paffion, and your tongue will eafily be brought within the bounds of restraint, and difcipline; for this always follows the inclination of the heart, and pours out the corruption that lurks within by this the heart difcharges all the ill humours that oppress and stifle it: so that, if jealousy, envy, hatred, lie within, the fymptoms will feize upon the tongue, and break out into detraction and calumny. Secondly, Take not up little ftories, to relate them to the perfon they concern; this is a common fault even among thofe, who pretend to a more than ordinary piety. But let them not deceive themselves: thofe, who give their tongues this liberty, are far from being virtuous; their piety is counterfeit; their religion vain: This man's religion is vain. How difpleafing fuch a practice is to God, he has declared in the fixth chapter of the proverbs after a most expressive manner. These fix things doth the Lord bate: yea, feven are an abomination unto him: a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood: an heart, that devifeth wicked imaginations; feet that be fwift in running to mischief: a false witnefs that speaketh lyes, and him that foweth difcord among D 3 |