The Dang,er of Profperity. Love makes the Chriflians faithful and obfcquious ro Chrifr, and to prefer his Honour inco1~parably before the J>refent World. . The. Martyrs of the divinc1l Courage, were animated by dus holy .AflcC:hon: they loved 110! t~Jeir lives unto the deatb, but chearful~y offered them as a Sacrtficc to his Pratfc. Love kmdlcd in them a facrcd Vehcmcnce, m defpifing aJJ the glittering Temptations of the World. Love infpir'd them with a victorious Patience, to blunt the edge of Cruelty. They never repented the choice of his Religion, but r~joiccd when h!s Glory was fer forth by their Ignomin¥, and when _rheir L~vc _ro Chnil: appea r' cl in irs_ radian~.y and ~igour through their_ Sufietin,gs._ Love IS the Pnnc1plc of Conjlancy, by \vluch Rehgwn rctgns on Ea_rth, and IS crownd m Heaven. On the contrary, when Riches, Honours, and Pleafurcs,_ are the Idols_ of Mens HeadS and Hearts, the chief Objects of their Efleem and Affcctwns, rheyw!ll iacriiice their Souls rather than lofc the World, their dear Felicity. Therefore Sr. 'John earnefrly dehorts Chrifl ians, L rrJe not t);e World, neither the tbiltgs that are in the World. if atry Man /rn;e the World, t/;e Lrn;e of the Father is not in him: they arc utterly inconfifi:cnt; partly becau(C the Heart cannot be intircly iCt upon contrary ObjeCts, and pardy becauiC love to the one requires what is directly contrary to love to the other. From hence Sr. James vehemently upbraids carnal ProfelTors, Te Adttlterers, mtd Adultreffis, knoiV ye not tEat ~J.~tff~?e ~::::, r:J~1)' e;r;:J~~~~d~;~(,c~~%'e~~~ ~;':r~~~~,:/;'ifP~t!::n~far1~: and tho' wnh the dtfllonour and dtiplca{ltrc of God, he wtll by Irreligious compliance fecure his temporal lnterdl:s. The pure refined Truth of the Gofpel, that has pail: the fiery Trial, he will corrupt a11d embafe by carnal -r:cm1~er:unents : the precious Trut~t fo dear!y bought by the Blood of the Martyrs, he wdl vdely feJJ for the things of tlus World. Nay of a Profelfor, he wdl by degrees turn Perfecutor of rhofe who frcdfafrly own the iruth. The Love of the World fo frrangely inchancs and infects the Mind, that a falfe R~fi.gion which a Man did abh?r. from, yet when recommended by 1Ccular Advan-: rages , wdl appear tolerable, then ehgtblc, rheh neceffary; and confequcntly the divine 7ruth mull: be fi1pprefi: that contradicts it. There arc fi.1ch frequent Examples of this in every Age, that to infifr upon many par- ~J~~~~::~~nM~~l ~~:~ ;z ~~~~~fi~~ ~dd;~~rt~r~i~r~e~1u~fi r:~h~st~~~~~ h~:,~~r~~~ rain Eternal Life, when commanded to give all his Eflate to the Poor, and to follow Chrifl : he would not gain at fo dear a rate Celejliallreafures, tut went away forrowful. Where-: upon our SaYiour declares with folemnity to hi s DifCiples, Perily I fay u11tO you, that a ric/; fl'/an ]ball bardly enter into tbe Kingdom of Hea1Jer.. We read of two Tribes of the lfraelites, that chofC their Inheritance on this fide Jordan, and would not have a.1l1arc in the Laud of Cnnaan : thus the earthly-minded prefer the ptefent World, the Object of thc1r choice and love, before the heavenly Cdnaan. The Ecclefiafti~al Hiflorian relates, E.:ife6. Ii~. ~. that in the time of PerfCcution by Dt cius, the rich Men among the Chrifi:ians were moll: cafily and mifcrably foil'd: the Love 9f the '\o\'orld was a dangetous earnefr i;1 their Hearts, of their revolting back ro Pagan Idolatry, and the Bondage of Satan. And in the tun~ of the Arian_Pcrfecunon, how many who by t~teir Titles and OJ!ice were ~peelally ob!Jged to 6e valtant for the iruth, alld to contend earuefl/y for the Fazth; yet dtd accommodate thctr Profefiion to thctr afpiring Ambmon and greedy Avancc? The Standard oftheir Religion was the pitch of the State: they had a politic!<. Faith, and appear d ~1ther Or~l10dox or Arian, as the p~blick Favm~r flun'd upo1~ Truth or Hcrcfy. they rob'd our Saviour of the Honour of Ius, Deity (0 djlonijhment ') rather than part \Vtth rl~e1r belo,·ed ~tgmnes and Rtches. So powerful arc humane Refpects in thofe who mwd e3rthJy tlungs. Great force is rcquifite to pluck up a Tree that has its Roots fpread and deeply £1frned in the Earth; and it cannot be fa entirely icparated, l:iur that parr of the R_oors wtll be broken : thus when the Affections are deeply. fer in rhe World, and by PJcarures and Rtches fafrned to tt, how hard.ly JS tt tent from tt! evety Fibr~ of the Heart is broken with forrow. As Lots Wife, when by an Angel forc'd our of Sodtim, yet cafl a lingring affectionate Look after it, and was rum' d into a Pillar of Salt. The Separation is as bitter as the Poffeftion is fweet: and none are more. unwillingly divorc'd from the World, than rhofe .who enj<>y the confluence of earthly Hapinefs. Now whe1i fecular Inrerefr ourwe1ghs Dmy,. when apparent Danger induces to deny the iruth of Chr•fl;. how ternblc and ul!avo•dable will be the Puniflm)ent of that Diiloyalry ! Our 5~, lOur s thrcatnt~g t ~ u.mvcrtal; Wh.ofoever Jb.all t!e;zy me before Men, bim will I deny be~ M.:t. '"· ':1· fore.my Ji_ather 1vlucb ts m F-Ieaven. A mofr nghreous and dreadful Retribution; They dellJc~ hun as their Lord, and he denies them as his Servants. They ufurp'd the Title of C.mfl1ans, ~he Rclanon of Ius DtfC!ples, and 111 the [all Day he. will pubhekly .Mown them. W.lCn that fad Sentence ilrnll come from their Judge, D'eJ!art ye cn1j'ed, I T r 2 know
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