SERMON XXIII. SZg 'defile these souls of ours with the meanesses of this life which Christ bath cleansed in so rich a laver ? He hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father. Let us now and then ask ourselves and enquire, is our language and behaviourbecoming such illustrious names, such titles,-such honours, as are put upon us bythe Father and the Son ? 4. Again, let its review our profession ; What is our calling What is our design ? What is our hope ? Arewe not born from above ? Are we not pilgrims and strangers here ? Do not we profess to seek a better country, that is, a heavenly ? Do we not live for heaven and immortality ? How unbecoming is it then for christians to be perpetually light, and vain; and frothy ? How unbecoming our holy and heavenly calling, and our everlasting hopes ? If we are children of the light and of the day, let us not live as though webelonged to the night and dark- ness : Let us not sleep, nor trifle as others do, but watch and be sober. And especially if our natural temper be sanguine and sprightly, and incline to assume vain airs, there is more need of constant watchfulness over theheart and life, anda bridleupon the tongue, lest we should speak indecencies, and be guilty of folly and madness. [Here this sermon may be divided.] The last thing I designed, was to propose somedirections in order to cure the levity of themind, and to maintain such a decent gravity in the courseof our life as becomes the gospel. Direction I. Let us meditate often on the most sublime and the most awful parts of christianity ; and through the assistance of the Spirit ofGod, these will be effectual guards against this vanity of temper. The sublime truths of christianity demand our frequent re- view. Let us often rise high in our thoughts, and let our faith look far backwards to the eternal ages before this world was. Let us contemplate the love of God the Father, in contriving our salvation, before he stretched abroad these heavens, or laid thefoundations of this earth. Let us think of the condescension of his mercy, when he chose fallen perishing sinners to be the ob-. jeçts of his everlasting love. Let us dwell upon his compassion to man, when he appointed his own Son to take flesh upon him, and to become our Mediator and sacrifice. Let us survey with holy wonder the various glories of the Son of God, by whom and for whom all things were made, who upholds all things by the word of his power, and who is the express image of his Father. Let us behold him consenting to hide all these honours behind a veil of flesh and blood, walking the streets of Jerusalem, and travelling on foot through the villages of Israel, attended
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