ing hi s Wiil, he did not" ant external declarative Glory, being infinitely haj>PY in himfelf, and there could be no fupe riour Po~v~r ro_conil:ram htm. ~nd that .wluch renders our Maker's Goodnefs more free and obhgtng, ts the Con!ideratwn he mtght have created Millions of Men, and left us in our native Nothing, and, as I may fo !peak, loll :1:1d buried in perpetual Darlmefs. New, what was God's end in making us? Certain ly it was becoming his In fi nite Underfianding, that is, to communicate df his own Divine FulnefS, and to be aCtively glorified b:f intelligent Creatures. Accordingly 'tis fokmn Acknowledgment of the Reprefentattve Church. TJ,ou a:t worthy, 0 Lord, to Rev. f · u recei1Je Glory, and Honour, a11d Power: For thou haft created aU Thmg,s, andfor ti!J fleaJure they we:e created. Who is fo void of ratio~al Sentiments, as not to acknowled.ge 'tis our ind1fpcnfahlc Duty, Our reafonable Ser'VIce, to effer up our fe!ves a11 intire !ivtng Sacriftce to his Glory? What is more natural, according to the Laws. of ~ncorrupt Nature (I might fay, and of corrupt Nature, for the Heathens praCl:1fed It) than that Lov~ lhotJ!d corrcfpond with Love ; as the one defcends in Benefits, the other fl10uld afcend in Thankfiiinefs. As a polilh'd Looking.glafS of Steel, ilrongly reverberates the Beams of the Sun fl1ining upon it,without lofing a fpark ofLight,thus theunderflandingSoul f!Jould refleor the AffeCtion of Love upon our bleffed Make~in Reverence, and Pra~!c, and Thankfulnefs. Now Sin breaks all thofe f.1cred Bands of Grace and Gratitude, that engage us to love and obey God. He is the juil Lord of all our Faculties IntelleCtual and Senfitive,and the Sinneremplop them as Weapons ofUnrighteoufnefs againfb h im. He preferves us by his powerful gracious Providence, which is a renewed Creation every Moment, and the Goodnefs he ufes to us, the Sinner abufes .agai~!l: him. This is the moQ unworthy, fl10mefu l and mon!lrous Ingratitude. This makes forgetful arrd unthaok:ul Men, more brutifl1. than the dull Ox, a11d the .flupid AjJ, who fcrve thofe that feed them; nay, finks them below the infenf1ble part of the Creation, that invariably obfcrves the Law and Order prcfcribed by the Creator. Al1onifl1ing Degeneracy! Hear 0 !-leavens, give Ear, 0 Earth ! I have nourifoed.and brougbt up Children, and they have rebelled agai11jl me, was the Complaint of God h1mfe\f. The confiderate Review of th is, will melt us into Tears of Confufion. . 2d!;. 'Twas the unvaluable Goodnefs of God to give his Law to Man; for his Rule, botlun refpcct of the matter of the Law, and_his end in giving it. ( 1.) The matter of the Law, this, as is forecited from the ApofUe, iJ holy, jujl, and good. It contains all ,lhings that are honeft, and ju.fl, and pure, and love~, and of good Re-: {:;:fe~;~t~f~h:r:e~f~~~~~ ~~e;:ua:f~~~~tfs: igi~~~i~~~~t:n~~ ~;~n1,"h~~~~~eb~~~ confider'd before. (2.) The end of giving the Law. God was plcas'd upon Man's Creation, by an illu- !lrious Revelation to fl1ew him his Duty, to write his Law in his Heart, that he might not take one ilep out of the Circle of its Precepts, and immediately fin and perifl1, HIS gracious Defign was to keep Man in his Love; that from the Obedience of the reafonable Creature, the Divine Goodncfs might take its rife to reward him. This unfeigned and excellent Goodnefs, the Sinner outragiouOy defpifes : for what greater Contempt can be ~Xjrefi: againfi a wntten Law, than the tearing it in pieces, and trampling it under foor? And this conilrucrively the Sinner does to the Law of God, which ;J~~t1'J!J',t ~~~d~:~}o~!}~~~!o~~a~~ver of it. T!JtiS the Commandment thllt was ordairld Rom. 1· ro1 (3.) Sin is an .e,1(t~cam vilifying of God's Goodncfs, in preferring Carnal PleafUres ' to his Favour, and €ommunion with.him, wherein the Life, the Fel icity, the B.e.aven of the reafonable Creature c6nfii1s. God is Infinite in •11 poilible PerfeCtions, }\1'1-fuf!icient to make us comploat!J: and eternally happy: he difdains to have any Competitor, and reqmres to be fupream m our ,E'Reem and AffeCbons :the reafon of this IS fo evident by Divin? and Naturali:-i~ht, that. ' tls·needlefs to fpend many words about it. 'Tis an Obfcrvatton of St. A«f/itJ , That rt was a Rule amongjl tbe Heathews, that a wife Man ,. Om'fltt Dm fbould worfbip all their Deities. The ~~mans were fo inf:itiable in Idolatry that they c~t~n~ouOt{.tfent to Fore1gn Cou ntri~. to bring t~~~'gods of fever~l Nati?ns: an unpolill~'d Stone, a ~:e7'~u;.U:./'" tame Serpent, that were reputed Demes, they rccetved With great Solemnity and Re- (~emum tHi verence. B~t the true God had no Temple, no Worfi1ip in Rome, where. there was a ~?;~:~:~J~/uf Pautheo11 ded icated to the Honour of.a~l ~he fa lfe gods: The Re~f~n he g1\:es ' of it is, . dic~nt , bujK& • • ~~~:n~\;.~r~~~~~d;n~'1n~i~ly0fo)~~Js ~~~~~ff;~~~\~~ c~f'~n;ni~; ,~~h~~~;,~~~~e!r~v~l~d~ f.0 ::E:iS ~n~ beftdcs IH.m IS 111finitely debating, and provokt!Jg to h ts dread Majefiy: N,:Qw Sin fecoltvotuem. m 1t.s N~tur~ 1s a C:onverfi<;Z: from.God to the Creature_; ~nd wl~atever _rhe. Tcmptarion ~~E·~:a~;~: be, 10 ywldmg to It, there 1s figmfied, thlt we choo{c fomct!Hng befo re his ·Favour. 11. Sin
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