NECESSITY OF DILIGENTLY never do too much. For our assistance in the service of God, all the world are our servants. The sun, moon, and stars, attend us with their light and influ- ence. The earth; with all its furniture of plants and flowers, fruits, birds, and beasts ; the sea, with its inhabitants; the air, the wind, the frost and snow, the heat and .fire, the clouds and rain ; all wait upon us while we do our work. Yea, the angels are all our ministering spirits.(o) Nay, more, the patience of God doth wait upon us; the Lord Jesus Christ waiteth, in the offers of his blood ; the Holy Spirit waiteth, by striving with our backward hearts; .be- sides the ministers of the gospel, who study and wait, preach and wait, pray and wait, upon careless sin- ners. And is it not an intolerable crime for us to trifle, while angels and men, yea, the Lord himself; stand by, and look on, and, as it were, hold us the candle while we do nothing? I beseech you Chris- tians, whenever you are praying, or proving trans- gressors, or upon any duty, remember what assistances you have for your work, and then judge how you ought to perform it. The principles we profess are that God is the chief good ; and that all our happiness consists in his love, and therefore it should be valued and sought above all things; that he is our only Lord, and therefore chiefly to be served ; that we must love him with all our heart, and soul, and strength ; that our great business in the world is to glorify God, and obtain salvation. Are these doc- trines seen in our practice ? or, rather do not our . works deny what our words confess ?But however our assistances and principles excite us to our work, we are sure we can never do too much. Could we do all, we are unprofitable servants ;(p) much more when we are sure to fail in all. No man can obey or serve God too much. Though all superstition, or service of our own devising, may be called a being righteous over much ; ,yet as long as we keep to the rule of the word, we can never be righteous too (o) Heb. i. 14. (p) Luke xvii. 10.
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