this doctrine in the world, by weak and inconfiderable means, against all the power and oppofition of the world; the deftruction of Jerufalem, and the difperfion of the Jewish nation, according to our Saviour's prophecy, befides many more that might be mentioned. And, which is a mighty advantage to us, we are free from thofe prejudices against the perfon of our Saviour and his doctrine, which the Jews, by the reverence which they bore to their rulers and teachers, were generally poffeffed withal; we are brought up in the belief of it, and have drunk it in by education; and if we believe it, as we all profess to do, we have all the obligation and all the arguments to repentance, which the Jews could poffibly have from the miracles which they faw; for they were means of repentance to them no otherwise than as they brought them to the belief of our Saviour's doctrine, which called them to repentance.

So that if we continue impenitent, the fame woe is denounced against us that is against Chorazin and Bethfaida; and we may be faid with Capernaum, to be lifted up to heaven, by the enjoyment of the most excellent means and advantages of falvation that any people ever did; which, if we neglect, and ftill continue wicked and impenitent under them, we may juftly fear, that, with them, we fhall be thrown down to hell, and have our place in the lowest part of that dismal dungeon, and in the very centre of that fiery furnace.

Never was there greater caufe to upbraid the impenitence of any people, than of us, confidering the means and opportunities which we enjoy; and never had any greater reafon to fear a feverer doom than we have. Impenitence in a Heathen is a great fin; elfe how should God judge the world? But God takes no notice of that, in comparifon of the impenitence of Chriftians, who enjoy the gofpel, and are convinced of the truth, and, upon the greateft reafon in the world, profefs to believe it. We, Chriftians, have all the obligations to repentance, that reafon and revelation, nature and grace, can lay upon us. Art thou convinced that thou haft finned, and done that which is contrary to thy duty, and thereby provoked the wrath of God, and incenfed his juftice

againft

against thee? As thou art a man, and upon the stock of natural principles, thou art obliged to repentance. The fame light of reafon which difcovers to thee the errors of thy life, and challengeth thee for thy impiety and intemperance, for thy injuftice and oppreflion, for thy pride and paffion; the fame natural confcience which accufeth thee of any mifcarriages, does oblige thee to be forry for them, to turn from thy evil ways, and to break off thy fins by repentance. For nothing can be more unreafonable, than for a man to know a fault, and yet not think himself bound to be forry for it; to be convinced of the evil of his ways, and not to think himself obliged, by that very conviction, to turn from it, and forfake it. If there be any fuch thing as a natural law written in mens hearts, which the Apostle tells us the Heathens had, it is impoffible to imagine, but that the law which obliges men not to tranfgrefs, fhould oblige them to repentance in cafe of tranfgreffion. And this every man in the world is bound to, though he had never feen the bible, nor heard of the name of Chrift. And the revelation of the gofpel doth not fuperfede this obligation, but adds new ftrength and force to it: And, by how much this duty of repentance is more clearly revealed by our blessed Saviour in the gofpel; by how much the arguments which the gofpel ufeth to perfuade men, and encourage them to repentance, are greater and more powerful; by fo much is the impenitence of those who live under the gospel the more inexcufable.

Had we only fome faint hopes of God's mercy, a doubtful opinion and weak perfuafion of the rewards and punishments of another world; yet we have a law within us, which, upon the probability of thefe confiderations, would oblige us to repentance. Indeed, if men were affured, upon good grounds, that there would be no future rewards and punishments, then the fanction of the law were gone, and it would lofe its force and obligation; or, if we did defpair of the mercy of God, and had good reafon to think repentance impoffible, or that it would do us no good, in that case there would be no fufficient motive and argument to repentance: for no man can return to his duty, without

re

returning to the love of God and goodness; and no man can return to the love of God, who believes that he bears an implacable hatred against him, and is refolved to make him miferable for ever. During this perfuafion, no man can repent. And this feems to be the reason, why the devils continue impenitent.

But the heathens were not without hopes of God's mercy, and upon those small hopes which they had, they encouraged themselves unto repentance; as you may see in the inftance of the Ninevites, Let them turn every one from his evil ways, and from the violence that is in his hands. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not? Jonah iii. 8, 9. But if we, who have the cleareft difcoveries, and the highest affurance of this, who profefs to believe that God hath declared himself placable to all mankind, that he is in Chrift reconciling the world to himself, and that upon our repentance he will not impute cur fins if we, to whom the wrath of God is revealed from heaven, against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, and to whom life and immortality are brought to light by the gofpel; if after all this, we ftill go on in an impenitent course, what shall we be able to plead in excuse of ourselves at that great day? The men of Nineveh shall rife up in judgment against fuch an impenitent generation, and condemn it; because they repented upon the terror of lighter threatnings, and upon the encouragement of weaker hopes.

to us;

And therefore it concerns us, who call ourselves Chriftians, and enjoy the clear revelation of the gospel, to look about us, and take heed how we continue in an evil courfe. For if we remain impenitent, after all the arguments which the gofpel, fuperadded to the light of nature, affords to us to bring us to repentance, it thall not only be more tolerable for the men of Nineveh, but for Tyre and Sidon, for Sodom and Gomorrah, the most wicked and impenitent heathens, at the day of judgment, than for us. For, because we have stronger arguments, and more powerful encouragements to repentance, than they had, if we do not repent, we fhall meet with a heavier doom, and a fiercer damnation. The heaVOL. VIII.

B

then

then world had many excufes to plead for themselves, which we have not. The times of that ignorance God winked at: but now commands 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 crdained, whereof he hath given affurance unte all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

SERMON

CLXXIV.

Of the immortality of the foul, as difcovered by nature, and by revelation.

2 TIM i. 10.

But is now made manifeft by the appearing of our Saviour Jefus Chrift, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light, through the gospel.

The firft fermon on this text.

HE defign of the Apoftle in thefe two epiftles to Timothy, is to direct him how he ought to demean himself, in the office which he bore in the church; which he does in the first epistle: and to encourage him in his work; which he does here in the fecond in which, after his ufual falutation, he endeavours to arm him againft the fear of thofe perfecutions, and the fhame of thofe reproaches, which would proba bly attend him in the work of the gofpel, ver. 8. Be not thou therefore afhamed of the testimony of the Lord, nor of me his prifoner; but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gofpel, according to the power of God, who hath faved us, and called us with an holy calling as if he had faid, The God whom thou ferveft in this employment, and by whofe power thou art ftrengthened, is he that hath faved and called us with an holy calling, that is, it is he who, by Jefus Chrift, hath brought falvation to us, and called us to this holy profeffion; not according to

our

our works, that is, not that we, by any thing that we have done, have deferved this at his hand, but according to his own purpofe and grace, that is, according to his own gracious purpofe, which was given us in Chrift before the world began, that is, which from all eternity he decreed and determined to accomplish by Jefus Chrift; but is now made manifeft by the appearing of our Saviour Jefus Chrift; that is, which gracious purpofe of his is now clearly difcovered by our Saviour Jefus Chrift's coming into the world, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

Which words exprefs to us two happy effects of Chrift's appearance: 1. The abolishing of death; and, 2. The bringing of life and immortality to light. In the handling of thefe words, I fhall,

Firft, Open to you the meaning of the feveral expreffions in the text.

Secondly, Shew what our Saviour Jefus Chrift did towards the abolishing of death, and bringing to light life and immortality.

For the first, I shall fhew,

I. What is here meant by the appearing of Jefus Chrift.

II. What by the abolishing of death.

III. What by bringing to light life and immortality. I. What is here meant by the appearing of our Saviour Jefus Chrift. The fcripture ufeth feveral phrafes to exprefs this thing to us. As it was the gracious defign of God the Father, fo it is called, the giving of his Son, or fending him into the world. John iii. 16. God fo loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. Gal. iv. 4. In the fulness of time God fent his Son. As it was the voluntary undertaking of God the Son, fo it is called, his coming into the world. In relation to his incarnation, whereby he was made visible to us in his body, and likewife in reference to the obfcure. promifes, and prophecies, and types of the Old Teftament, it is called his manifeStation, or appearance. So the Apostle expreffeth it, 1 John iii. 5. Te know that he was manifefted to take away our fins; by which we are to understand primarily

B 2

his