The fure Trial of Vprightnejs. to the Comman? ofour Saviou:,Make y~ur fel'Ves F~iends of :he Mammon of Unrighteoufoe[s d~~af'/:;./N~';;!e ~~~h;~i~r:::~~;;:d'~~l~~~t~fs ~·~:;~~~ Z~~~ti:e~0uf~~~ :'"i rupt Men, as if he would be bnb'd to pattomzc rheir Wickcdnels. And in otlorCafcs, thus monlhoufly Carnal Men bend the Rule of Rectitude to the Obliquity~~~ their De~r~s. ~hey .are w~lhng to de~e1ve thcmfclves, a11d unagme that only Minifrcrs of a prcctfer frram Will ternfie them wuh eternal Judgment for one retained Sin . the ~cfi.rc ~nd arc apt to believe fuch a Mercy, as will bring rh.cm to Heaven with their Sirfs 111 rhctr Bofoms. But the Apofl:lc warns us, Be not decuved, God is not mocl-ed; as a Man fo•vs, fo jhall he reap. There arc fure and tender Mercies for the Upright; ~ut !lrict and certain Ju!lice for . the Wicked. Smcenry IS fo amiable and pleafing 111 Gods Eyes, that he gracioufly pa~ !7~h~on. 15 · fcs by many Infirmities upon that account. It is H1id of Afa, that his Heart was pe;ftll alL !Jts days, and notwirhfi:anding fome grofs Faults, God accepted him. Bur when the Heart is corrupted by the Love of fon:e pleafanr or profitable Sin, it renders a Perfon with the mofl: fpecious Services odious m God's fight. In fhorr, indulged known Sins that Men habitually commit in hopes of an eafie Abfolution, are not rhc Spots of God's Children. 'Tis fo directly contrary to the Divine Nature, to that holy ingenuous Fear of offending our heavenly Father refulting from it, that only the Wicked arc capable of ruch a difpofiuon. Prefumptuous Su~s are a contumeliOUS abufc_ of Divine Mercy and Pfal. ll5 · 4· exafperate that high and tender Atrnbure to the confufion of Smners at the Jatt.' Do good, 0 Lord, unto th'!fe that be good, and t() them that are uprig,bt in Heart. As for [uch as turn ajide to their crooked Ways, the Lord jha/1 lead them forth witb the Workers of !niqu11y. z, We may, by Divine Grace, fubdue the !lronge!l Lulls, that from our Nature and Temper, or from Cufi:om, and the Inrer~fi:s of the Carnal State have rule over us. The New Covenant alfures Believers, that Sm fhall not ~ave Dominion _over tbem, becaqfe they are not under the Law but under Grace. The Law !lnctly forbids Sm, bur the Gofpel furmfhes with fi:rcngth to fubdue it. 'Tis true, mhercnt Corrupuon has fo devefied Men of fj>iritual Strength, that they cannot free themfelves from the Power and Infection of Sin : And when any Luft is fomented by Temptations, and has been frequently grariJied, 'tis more l1ard to be fubdued. The Apoille fpeaks of fome, whofe Eyes were full of Adultery, tbat could not mrft from Sin: They were in a fl:ate of Carnality, and lov'd to be fo. When Lufi: is imperious, and the Will fervile, Men cannot wean themfelves from the poifon'd Brea!ls. This difabi!ity confi!ls in the depraved ob!linacy of the WiU, that aggravates their Sin and )udg. menr. Yet fo fooliih arc Sinners, as to ufe this Plea to make them excufab!c for. their habitual Lulls: Confcience checks them,and fome faint Defrres they have to avoid their Sins, but they cannot change their Natures. They colour Liccntiouihefs with the pretence of Neceflity: they complain of their Chains, to let loofe the Reins of their exorbitant Defires in a courfe. of Sin. Bur natural Corruption that involves us under Guilt, cannor make us innocent. 'Tis true, if in our original Condition, rhc humane Will had been fiamp'd by t'ate\vith an unalterable inclination to Sin,we could not have been guilty: For ~~(q ;b:e~u~a - :l~~~~e{U'e~,~~ ~~ft~~~~-~{, ~i!%tJfi:~~'th;~::~~i~~~0~r~ a~~t~:~ 31~eb~~~~;~ell~~' ~~~~r~~ ~:~r~~~:i~bJ~: t~~~ffh%~~~~~~~~%a~a~~c~~la~~:~i~;t~~r~~l~;n~r~~;pab~ ~~t~~';lr:~~o~tf !~w~~~~ len.s. pline, and by coming near t? Reafon, ~a~e a little i~li tatton of Liberty, they are reward· cd or punifhcd. Bur Man m the conditton wherem he was created, had p~rfed: freedom, becoming the Dignity of the reafonable Creature, and was enrich' cl wtth all the Graces of which Origimf Righteoufnefs was compounded: The harmonious Orders, and coherent Difpofitions of the Soul and Body qualified him for his Duty. But m the !late wherein his voluntary Sin has funk him, the Body is often di!lempcr'd by the annoyance of the Mind, and the Soul pays an un~at~ral a_nd injurious Tribure ro the vicious Appetites of the Body : And when Corruption IS he.ghrned by Cu!lom, and the natural Propenfity inflam'd by Temptations, any Lull becomes more Irrefifhble : So that without a new Nature infpir'd from Above, they cannot refcue themfelves from rhc Bondage of Sit1. . . . . . . Now the moral Impotence in Men to vanqutfh thetr Lulls, though It wdl be no Apology at the Day of Judgment, yet it will difcourage them from making refi!lence : for who will attempt an impoffibi1ity? Defpair of Succefs relaxes the active Powers, curs the Nerves of our Endeavours, and blunts the edge of Indu!lry. 'Tis related of the Weji-Jndians, that upon the lit!l Incurfion of the Spaniards into their Countr};,~~~~(
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