Semi. X. The Ch; iftian Life, a Life ofFaith. 79 Cafe of Perfecution for Religion, there is no real Intereft of this World, but it may be as well promoted and purfued to as great Advantage, nay, ufually to 'a far greater, by him that believes thefe Things, and lives accordingly, than by any other Perfon : For the Belief of the Rewards and Punifhments of another World, is the greateft Motive and Encouragement to Virtue ; and as all Vice is naturally attended with fome Temporal Inconvenience, fo the Pra&ice ofall Chri-- ftian Virtues Both in its own Nature tend both to the Welfare of particular Per- fans, and to the Peace and Profperity of Mankind. But that which ought, to weigh very much with us, is, That we have abun- dantly more Affurance of the Recompence of another World, than we have of ma- ny Things in this World, which yet have a greater Influence upon our Allions, and govern the Lives of the moft prudent and confiderate Men. Men generally hazard their Lives and Eftates upon Terms of greater Uncertainty than the'Affu- rance which we have ofanother World. Men venture to take Phyfick uponprobable Grounds of the Integrity and Skill of their Phyfician ; and yet the want of either of thefe may hazard their Lives : And Men take Phyfick upon greater odds ; for it certainly caufeth Pain and Sicknefs, and doth but uncertainly procure and re- cover Health ; the Patient is fore to be made fick, but not certain to be made well ; and yet the Danger of being worfe, if not of dying, on the one hand, and the Hope of Succefs and Recovery on the other, make this Hazard and Trou- ble reafonable. Men venture their whole Eftates to Places which they never faw ; and that there are fuch Places, they have only the concurrent Teftimony and Agreement of Men ; nay, .perhaps, have only fpoken with them that have fpoken with thofe that have been there. No Merchant ever infiffed upon the Evidence of a Miracle to be wrought, to fatisfy him that there were fuch Places as the Eq/l and Weft-Indies, before he would venture to trade thither : And yet this Affurance God bath been pleafed to give the World of a State beyond the Grave, and of a ble{fed Immortality in another Life. Now what can be the Reafon that fo flender Evidence, fo fmall a degree of Af- furance will ferve to encourage Men to feek after the Things of this World with great Care and Induftry ; and yet á great deal more will not fuffice to put them effectually upon looking after the great Concernments of another World, which are infinitely more confiderable ? No other Reafon ofthis can be given, but that Men are partial in their Affe&ions towards thefe Things. It is plain they have not the fame Love for Godand Religion, which they have for this World and the Advantages of it ; and therefore it is, that a lefs degree of Affurance will engage them to feek after the one, than the other; and yet the Reafon is much ftronger on the other fide è For the greater the Benefit and Good is, which is offered to us, we fhould be the more eager to leek after it, and { hould be content to venture upon lets Probability. Upon exceffive odds, a Man would venture upon very final( Hopes ; for a mighty Advantage, a Man would be content to run a great Hazard ofhis Labour and Pains upon little Affurance. Where a Man's Life is concerned, every Sufpicion of. Danger will make a Man careful to avoid it. And will no- thing affright Men from Hell, unlefs God carry them thither, and {hew them the Place ofTorments, and the Flames ofthat Fire which (hall never be quenched? I do not fpeak this, as if thefe Things had not abundant Evidence; I have (hewn that they have ; but to convince Men how unreafonable and cruelly partial they are about the Concernments of their Souls, and their Eternal Happinefs. 2. Suppofing thefe Things to be real and certain, they are of infinite Concern- ment to us. For what can concern us more, than that eternal and unchangeable State, in which we muff be fix'd and abide for ever ? If fo vaft a Concern will 'not move us, and have no Influence upon theGovernment ofour Lives andAnions, we do not deferve the Naine of reafonable Creatures. What Confederation can be fetbefore Men, who are not touched with the Senfe of fo great an Intereft, as . that of our happy or miferable Being to all Eternity ? Can we be fo folicitous and careful about the Concernment of a few Days ; and is it nothing to us what becomes of us for ever ? Are we fo tenderly concerned to avoid Povertyand Dif- grace, Perfecution and Suffering in this World; and {hall we not much more flee from
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