o$ Peter's Denial of his Mailer, S E R M. cence, the honour and felicity, wherein they V. were made, but fuffered themfelves to be milled by the infiduous arts and falfe repre- fentations of a fubtile and malicious enemy. But, to confine ourfelves particularly to the prefent condition of human nature ; no man, I think, wants to have it proved that we are all liable to failures. Where is the man, who does not, to the conviElion of all that are near him, and narrowly obferve his behaviour, carry the plain marks of moral infirmity about him ? and yet they fee but a finall part of his faults. The moft ufeful difcoveries of this kind, are thofe which every one might make in himfelf by a careful attention, having within us the candle of the Lord, our own felf - confcious fpirits, which fearch the inmoft parts. We might there, in a multitude of inftances, difcern the rife of fin, the conceptions of lull, as St. ,aznes calls it, or the lower fenfitive part of our nature, comprehending our appetites and paflïons ; its progrefs darkning the under - flanding, engroffmg the attention, thereby producing an infenfibility to the molt im- portant things of religion, and our true ra- tional happinefs : fo that the exerçife of our rational
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