Serm.CLIV. Of theNcce'/Jïty ofgoodWorks. 359 that under a great pretenceof Religion Men fhould be deftitute of all goódnefs, and .abandoned to all wickednefs and vice, Having a Form of Godliñef, bait defiyíng the Power ofit, 2 Tim. 3. S. And tho' things have been much better fince that happy Reformation from the corruptions:and errors of Popery, yet even among Preteftants the maliceand craft of the Devil hath prevailed fo far, as to undermine, in a great meafure, the ne- ceffityof a good life, by thofe lufcious Do&rives of theAntirromiáns, concerning free Grace, and the juftification of a finer merely upon aconfident perfwafion of his being in a Rate of grace and favour with God, and corifeqúently that the Go- fpel difchargeth Men from obedience to the Laws of God, and all manner of ob- ligation to the Virtues of a good life; which Dottrines, how falfe and abfurd fo- ever in themfelves, and pernicious in their confequences, did not onlyprevail very much inGermany, a little after the beginning of the Reformation, but have fince got too much footing in other places, and been too far entertained and cherifh'd by fome good Men, who were not fufficientlyaware of the error and danger of them. But bleffedbe God, the Doarine of our Church, both in theArticles and Homilies of it, hath been preferved pure and free from all error and corruption in this Mat- ter on either.hand,. afferting the necefiity of good Works, and yet renouncing the merit of"them in that arrogant fenfe, in which the Church of Rome does teach and affert it ; and fo teaching Juftification by Faith, and the free Grace of God inJells Chrift, as to maintain the indifpenfable neceffityof the Virtuesof a good life. And thus I;have done with the firfl Reafon, why it is fo fit and neceffary to prefs frequently upon Chriftians the indifpenfible necef ity.of theVirtues of a góod Life, viz. becaufe Men are and have ever been fo very apt to deceive themfelves in this matter, and fo hardly brought to that wherein Religion mainly confifts; viz. the practice of real goodnefs. I (hall bebrief upon the II. Reafon, namely, Becaufe of the indifpenfible neceffityof the thing to render us capable of the divine Favour and Acceptance, and of the Reward of eternal life. And this added to the former,. makes the. Reafon full and ftrong. For if Men be fo apt to deceive themfelves in this matter, and to be deceived in it be matter of fuch.dangerous confequence, .then.it is highly neceffary to inculcate this' frequently upon Chriftians, that no Man may be miftaken in a matter offo much danger, and upon which his eternal happinefs depends. Now if Obedience to the' Laws of God, and the praftice of Virtue and goodWorksbe neceffary to our con- tinuance in a date of Grace and Favour with God, and to our final Juftificatiorl by our abfolution at the great day, if nothing but Holinefsand Obedience can qualifie, us for the bleffed fight of God, and the glorious Reward of eternal Happinefs 3 then it is matter of infinite confequence to us, not to be miftaken in a matter of fa great importance; but that we work out our Salvation with fear and trembling, and give all diligence to, make our calling andelelion-fore, by adding to our faith and knowledge, the virtues ofa good life; that by patient continuance in well-doing, wé feek for glory ;' and honour, and immortality, and eternal life; and that we fo de- mean our felves in all holy converfation andgoodnefs, as that we may with comfort and confidence wait for the blefJed hope, and the glorious appearance of the great God, andour Saviour7efus Cbr ; who gave himfelffor us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, andpurifie to himfelf a peculiar people zealous ofgood works: That this is indifpenfibly neceffary to our Happinefs, I have in my former Difcourfe (hewn at large, from the great end and defign of Religion in general, and of the Chriftian Religion in particular, from the whole Deign and Dottrine of the Goz fpel, from the confiant tenour of the Bible, and from the Nature and Reafon of the thing. I -know it hath been the great deign of the Devil and his Inftruments, in all Ages, to undermine Religion, by making an unhappy feparation and divorce be- tweeen Godlinefs and Morality, between Faith and the Virtues of a good life ; and by this means not only to weaken and abate, but even wholly to deftroy the force and efficacy of the Chriftian Religion, and to leave Men as much under the power of the Devil and their tufts, as if there were no filch thing as Chriftia- 5 pity
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