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But where shall I begin? If our irreligion arise from ignorance and want of education in spiritual knowledge, to teach again the first principles of the oracles of God; to me it is not grievous, and for you it is safe. It is morally impossible, that men should lead such diffipated lives, should so wholly devote themselves to what is falsely deemed pleasure, were they but possessed of a warm and constant perfuafion, that a Being of infinite wisdom is witness to their tranfactions. Let the character of the times, therefore, be my Apology; if imitating the benevolence of the author of my text, I write, these things unto you, and undertake to demonstrate them, that you may from henceforth have joy in rational religion, and that your joy may be complete: We shall therefore call for your attention to the following particulars: namely,

FIRST, that there is a Being, whose wisdom is infinite, and whose power is equal to his wisdom.

SECONDLY, that every man shall receive from his Creator, either a glorious reward, or an exquisite punishment in a future state, and that for ever and ever.

THIRDLY, the divine authority of the sacred scriptures. And LASTLY, the truth and safety of the Christian religion. These subjects are absolutely and indispensably necessary to be considered by all persons; in as much as our whole eternity must take its colour of happiness or misery in proportion as we are influenced by them.

Admit that the generality of our hearers have already a speculative conviction of these truths; yet when we consider that mankind are almost as generally agreed in acting repugnantly to fuch principles, it can never be improper, or unseasonable, to remind those, who need not be informed, to remind them that religion is a practical science, and that knowledge in the head, without grace in the heart, and obedience in the life, will but encrease their condemnation. But should there be men hardy enough to be immoral upon principle;

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ciple; to make a practice of blafpheming the tremendous God of heaven and earth, and to fet at nought his holy word; should there arise wretches, so daringly impious, as to erect a standard of defiance against omnipotence; to make a mock at fin, and laugh at religion; should there be others, who, notwithstanding they profess themselves difciples of the blessed Jesus, yet practise the duties of Christianity, if they practise them at all, with the utmost coldness and indifference; while there are such, -fuch as these, amongst us, can the. philanthropist be filent ?-Will he not find himself constrained to exert every power and faculty of his foul, - to be instant, in season and out of season, to represent the deplorable folly, the extreme. danger of their proceedings.

Would to God! your knowledge of the world would permit you to indulge-your hope that this age does not abound with many under this predicament! You cannot but know, that not only the abandoned and licentious, who, by their writings and conversation endeavour to undermine the motives of morality, and openly practice all manner of vice and wickedness; but even some fober persons are weak enough to subscribe to those pernicious: tenets of theirs, which introduced and cherished it;-that there are men with one foot in the grave, who are foolish and daring enough to maintain with zeal and warmth so destructive a caufe; that too many frequent our churches, not to grow better by what they shall hear but to misrepresent religion, ridicule the preacher, and criticise his arguments. If this be fact, and that it really is, we are perfuaded every man of understanding in this assembly will acknowledge and lament, -shall we be intimidated to defert the banner of the great captain of falvation ?--No; it is but a fresh call for proportionable zeal and courage on our parts to defeat their malevolent designs, and to vindicate the glory of truth, in order to confirm the weak, and recal such theep as are either thus lost, or. run aftray. A word in season, how good is it! How forcible are right words!-It argues no over-weening opinion of our own abilities,

lities, to suppose, that by God's bleffing on them, they may be effectual to the breaking down the strong holds of infidelity, and bringing into subjection every thought to the obedience of Jesus Chrift: and who knows but conviction, like lightening, may flash upon the dark bosom of ignorance and unbelief? - Who knows, but that fome who come here, according to custom, with no expectation of profit or improvement; not dreaming that they shall add to their knowledge virtue, or correct one vice they have indulged themselves in ;-Who shall say, but they may be induced to enquire into the state of their fouls ? That they may meet with fomething, which may give them a new turn; and while they feek only an amusement may find that which may prove of infinite advantage to them?

It is a truth as notorious as it is melancholy, that there are men fo entirely attached to their pleasures, that they will not allow themselves the least time for reflection on any other objects; - never admit a thought of, or pay the least regard to, the God who made them, and are utter strangers to the excellency of their own natures, and the inestimable value of their souls, the welfare of which ought to be almost their only concern; -a concern, in comparison of which all that now engages their attention is vain, empty, infignificant as the play of children,-lighter than vanity itself.

It is in a great measure owing to this infatuating attachment, that our social conversations are so frequently disturbed by the fuggeftions even of Atheism itself.- ATHEISTS! - You may well be alarmed at the expression; but those who live without God in the world are too numerous a tribe, and too widely dispersed to have escaped the observation of any among us. - The only explanation that can be offered, in a case so incredible in speculation, seems to be, that they attain to that daring height of foolishness and impiety, not by the use of reason, but by the filence and fuppreffion of it; not by exerting, but by stifling the free exercise of their rational faculties.

culties. Every day's experience demonstrates, that to indulge impure affections is to impair the powers of the mind. I beseech you, says the Apostle, "Abstain from fleshly lusts, which war againft "the foul :" Not only procure its destruction hereafter, but destroy its faculties here. Wherever, therefore, these are the general objects of pursuit, general infatuation may be expected. Although we cannot argue, we may fin ourselves into those heights and depths of foolishness, Atheism. - Ye genuine patriots, tremble for your devoted country! Here an insatiable love of pleasure is the characteristic of the times.

It is true, indeed, there are but very few, who will acknowledge themselves Atheists; but there are multitudes, who, if you will give credit to their actions; if you will attend to their difcourse, will convince you that they are practically so, at least. - There have been, we all know, many specious names contrived by which the ignorant and unwary have been seduced; and in order to gain the friendship or applause, or even admiffion to a set of impious men, there have been those, who have given into the most horrid blafphemies; have discoursed of an Almighty Being with greater irreverence, than they would of any earthly prince; and without any seeming concern, robbed him of every attribute, till they have represented him just such a God, as their base fears would with him. Of these mistaken, and ill-judging men, we shall take notice at another time; at present we shall only disclose some of the reasons, or rather the follies, which have induced them to embrace such dark and erroneous notions.

The first and principal one is this: they are confcious to themselves of that vast load of guilt, which they have contracted; and are tempted, by their hopes of avoiding the judgments of the Almighty, to distrust, if not deny his justice and providence. - To wish a thing to be false is only the first step towards believing it to be fo

Some,

Some, indeed, will give their thoughts a little larger latitude with regard to God and themselves; will acknowledge a Deity, and confess that he has bestowed on man an immortal foul; that he is the all-wife governor of the universe; and that it is our bounden duty, as well as interest, to obey him: but when they consider, that there are Heathens, Jews, Turks, and Christians dispersed all over the habitable world, and different nations all of different faith; that each of these conceive their own way of worship pureft; and that the religion they profess gives them the best and surest title to salvation; these like some timorous travellers at a cross-way, inftead of going forward in the right path, by the guidance and good conduct of their judgment, stand still confounded and surprised; and in that labyrinth of thought, conclude, that all strike into one common road at last.

If these men would but exercise their reason, and diftinguish between truth and falsehood, godliness and impiety, with the fame care and circumspection only, as a common tradefman, between profit and loss, they would readily difcern, by natural conclusions, the true religion from the false; and the strait-way, which is pointed out to them by the finger of God himself, in order to their safe arrival at eternal happiness, from the crooked paths of perverse and wilful finners.

If these men are miferable and unhappy from their state of doubt and uncertainty, as you must immediately allow they are ;. what must those be, who professing themselves members of the christian Church; who constantly in the most solemn and public manner, assenting to all the articles of its most holy faith; yet, by their unguarded lives, too evidently demonstrate, that their devotion is merely formal; who publish to others, indeed, that the kingdom of heaven is at hand; and yet by their practice shew,, that they esteem this world their continuing city; who are ambitious, perhaps, of being reckoned saints, heirs of God, and joint heirss