both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles and gifts of the HOLY GHOST, according to his own will?

In these words are contained,

I. First, the intrinsic goodness and excellency of the thing itself, which is rejected.

A slight acquaintance with the gospel of CHRIST is sufficient to impress upon the mind of every man some idea of its importance; and as this should naturally incline those who possess this advantage to search deeper into its high discoveries, the neglect of this duty is generally attended with a corresponding carelessness, either as to its promises or its threatenings, and a deeper engagement with present things. For it is, when viewed in its whole extent, in its divine origin, its gracious purpose and effectual means, it is, when considered in its application to the condition of man, that we discern what the gospel really is, and learn that it is truly a great salvation.

It is a salvation from sin and misery, from the power and tyranny of the devil, and from the punishment of eternal death. Sin, in its own nature, independent of its being an obstinate disobedience to the revealed will of God, is in itself every way unreasonable and inexcusable; because it is opposite to the light of reason, the dictates of natural conscience, and the agreeing opinion of all wise and good men; because it is contrary to every idea we can form of the perfections of GoD, destructive to the public welfare of mankind, to the health of our own bodies, to the peace of our own minds, and to the order, quiet, and comfort of society. The love and practice of sin is the subjecting our reason to vile affections, to inordinate and brutish appetites, to inflamed and ungoverned passions, than which there cannot be a more abject state of slavery imagined for a rational being. To speak after the manner of men, how contrary to the dignity of man to see and approve what is good, and yet not be able to prevail with ourselves to practise it; to be sensible of the destructive consequences of sin, and yet, through the strength of evil habits, to continue under the power and dominion of it; to feel ourselves deprived of our present happiness, and of our best hopes of what is to come, to travel through life loaded with and conscious of guilt, to lie down in death.

overwhelmed with remorse and despair, which every impenitent sinner must do, and yet to continue to cherish such vicious dispositions and practices, as are the only causes of all this misery, is evidently the most dreadful condition that can be.

Now to have a way proposed to us, my hearers, of being delivered from this body of sin into the glorious liberty of the children of God, of breaking the chain which binds every fallen creature to this body of death, to have a method laid before us of being rescued from guilt and fear in life, from horror and despair in death, and from everlasting burnings in eternity, and to be put into a way of securing a quiet conscience, the peace of GOD through life, hope and composure in death, and eternal life in mansions of glory for ever and ever, this is the offer of a great salvation. And evident it must be to the equity of our own minds, that whoever shall neglect this offer is absolutely inexcusable, and justly deserves to fall into that misery from which he would not accept deliverance. Was there, indeed, any other way to accomplish this work, had we a choice in the means of deliverance from the power and the punishment of sin, the case were different; but as this is not so, as salvation is altogether of grace, as there is no other name or means under heaven given unto men whereby we must be saved, only the name of JESUS CHRIST of Nazareth, and the means revealed in the gospel, the guilt and folly of neglecting it is hereby infinitely increased, because it is treating God's offered mercy and favour with contempt, and adding ingratitude to rebellion against his revealed will, and is therefore worthy of the severest punishment. For

II. Secondly, the further consideration that the gospel is an express and positive revelation of the will of God, is a very high aggravation of the sin of neglecting so great salvation.

He that, on the information of the gospel, desires not to be delivered from the dominion of sin, and acquires no thirst after a life of righteousness, for that very reason does not deserve to be saved from the punishment of sin, and is, in his very nature, unqualified for the rewards of holiness. But when to this preference of sin, there is added, moreover, a direct contempt of GOD, the reasonableness of leaving such person to himself,

and of finally punishing him for his sin, is increased into a necessity, because GoD must and will maintain the honour of his supreme dominion, and vindicate upon all such despisers the insult offered to the purity and holiness of his divine attributes. When GOD, in the exercise of his mercy and love, has declared unto men his will by an immediate revelation, when he has given his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. When he has offered pardon to sinners upon their sincere repentance, vouchsafed them the assistance of his HOLY SPIRIT, to enable them to fulfil this and every other duty enjoined upon them, and promised them eternal life as the reward of their faith and obedience; when, moreover, the wrath of GOD is, by the gospel, most expressly revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men; after all this, to continue still to despise so great salvation—what is it but with a high hand to exalt ourselves against GoD-an avowed despising and contemning his authority—an actual daring of his vengeance, and saying, in so many words, we will not have this man to reign over us. And is this the language of all present who have not embraced the gospel, who have not said to the world by their professed subjection to its holy requirements, that they are on the LORD's side, or who are walking unworthy of such profession? Yes, my brethren and hearers, thus heaven interprets the language of your actions, of your course and conversation in the world. Whatever you may think, whatever you may intend hereafter, if you are now unknown to the gospel, by an open confession of the LORD JESUS CHRIST before men, you are unknown to GoD in any saving sense, and unentitled to the hope of the gospel; you are neglecters of this great salvation, purchased at so high a price, so freely offered to you, so earnestly pressed upon you, and pregnant with such infinite consequences. For on this mighty interest no neutrality can be permitted.—IIe that is not for me is against me, saith the LORD. And this is confirmed to us by a variety of considerations. For, if sinning barely against the law of nature, the law written in the heart, was sufficient to consign sinners of this sort to unavoidable destruction, well may we ask, How shall we escape if we continue to neglect this great salvation, and to sin against the

law of nature and revelation united. As many as have sinned without law, shall also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law, shall be judged by the law. If the servant that knew not his LORD's will, who had no express revelation of the will of God, was nevertheless to be beaten with stripes, because he did things in themselves worthy of stripes, how much more severely must they expect to be punished, who do the same things in direct opposition to the express will and known command of GOD? Are there any present, then, who know this and yet neglect the gospel? How shall they escape? Are there any present who know not the conditions of the gospel? GOD forbid! But lest there should be such a one, and to refresh your memories, hear them now-Repent and believe the gospel; repent and be converted every one of you, that your sins may be blotted out; except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish, for God now commandeth all men every where to repent, because he hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness, by that man whom he hath ordained: We must all stand before the judgment seat of CHRIST, that every one may receive according to the deeds done in the body, whether they be good or whether they be evil. If, therefore, after that the clearest light is come into the world, and none under the gospel can plead ignorance of his duty, men will still neglect this great salvation, there being no excuse left, no alleviation of their condemnation is to be

expected. They must perish for ever.

III. Thirdly, the dignity and excellency of the person by and through whom this salvation is proposed to us, is a further aggravation of the sin of rejecting it. It first began to be spoken by the LORD.

The dignity of the person by whose interposition any favour is procured, and by whom it is transmitted, shows both the greatness and importance of the thing itself, and the love and condescension of the original author of it; and the neglecting it in this case, implies not only folly, contempt, and rebellion, but, moreover, the greatest obstinacy also which no authority can prevail over, together with the basest ingratitude, which no kindness can overcome. And surely, my friends and hearers, whoever is guilty of this complicated opposition to God, all of VOL. II.-39

which is implied in the neglect of this great salvation, must be confessed to deserve most justly the severest of punishments. This is what our Saviour compelled the Jews to acknowledge, and made them condemn themselves for it with their own mouths, in the parable of the householder, who, having planted a vineyard and let it out to husbandmen, first sent his servants to receive the fruits of it; and when the husbandmen had resisted and slain the servants, he afterwards sent his own son to them, saying, Surely they will reverence my son; but him also they resisted and slew--whereupon, when our Saviour appealed to the Pharisees themselves to judge what it was fit for the lord of the vineyard to do unto those husbandmen, they immediately replied, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and let out his vineyard to other husbandmen, who shall render him the fruits in their seasons. Unwarily, thus, they passed a just sentence against themselves, that for rejecting the gospel preached by CHRIST himself, they deserved a severer condemnation than their fathers, who had before rejected the preaching and admonitions of the prophets.

And may not a similar condemnation be, in like manner, drawn from the mouth of every soul under the gospel who neglects this great salvation? Is it not, in fact, a refusal, by such, of the fruits of the vineyard to the great Householder, through his only Son? And is not this the very application St. Paul points us to when he says, now all these things happened unto them for ensamples, and they are written for our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come. Christians are now the LORD's vineyard, gospel lands are his inheritance, and if any of us refuse the fruits in their season, we bring ourselves into the same condemnation, and must perish in the same miserable destruction.

The argument in favour of the gospel, from the superior dignity of the Revealer, is frequently applied by the apostle in this epistle. In the words immediately before my text, he uses it to enforce the duty of embracing the gospel. If the word spoken by angels was steadfast, saith he, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation, which at the first began