expect, what must be the fate of thefe men? Doubtlefs that they fhall fuddenly confume, perish, and come to a fearful end.

A time must come when the fecrets of all men shall be laid open, when many of those actions which have perhaps fo dazzled, and aftonished us with fpecious appearances of grandeur, will be difcovered to have sprung from the meanest and moft felfifh motives: a place muft one day be vifited, where every thing will put on its true and native colour, where the hypocrite and his hope must perish together. The time may come when he who has been efteemed and refpected for his goodnefs and piety by weak and fhort-fighted men, may be punished for his wickednefs by the juftice of an all-feeing God, when many perhaps of those who have been canonized for faints in this world, may inherit the portion of finners in the other.

Since then, my brethren, the practice of this vice is attended with fuch fatal confequences both to others and to curfelves; fince its advantages are so few and so uncertain, and the guilt of it fo heinous and offenfive, what remains that can poffibly perfuade us to a continuance in it?

What but the fatal influence of a corrupt world, and the bad example of a licentious age? Hypocrify is fashionable, and therefore we purfue it; and for the fame reason, we might be flanderers, infidels, atheifts, murderers, adulterers, guilty, in fhort, of every human vice; the world indeed is fcarce any thing but hypocrify,

The

The refinement and ingenuity of modern times, has invented as great a variety of dif guifes to hide the foul, as of habits to cover and adorn the body; the face is no longer the index of the mind, nor the tongue the interpreter of the heart; almost every feature is ftudied, and every gefture marked out, and determined, and diffimulation is fo univerfal, that were it not for that artless fimplicity which youth fometimes prefents to us, we should be almoft inclined to difpute that fuch a virtue as fincerity were left amongst us, and be ready to cry out with the holy pfalmift, that faith and truth were departed from among the children of men.

We are befet with falfehood and hypocrify on every fide: what are all our paffions, but fo many bafe, delufive hypocrites, who pretend to be tow pleasure and happiness, and then miferably deceive and betray us; who, like Satan, firft fawn upon and cajole, and when they have us in poffeffion, deftroy and torment us?

But will this plead in our favour with those men whom we have betrayed?. Will it procure our padon from that God whom we have of fended? Whilst we are fo proud of deceiving others, we are in reality, only deceiving our felves. Inftead of amaffing a goodly treasure, as we fondly imagine, we are only contracting a debt, that debt which we owe to truth and virtue, and which God, who is their faithful fteward, will not fail one day to require at our hands.

Let

Let us then shake off the chains of that tyrant, custom, and be no longer the flaves of paffion and prejudice; the road of truth and fincerity is fmooth and eafy, but the labyrinth of falfehood is full of crooked and perplexing intricacies; her ways are not ways of pleasant. ness, nor can they ever be the paths of peace.

Let us reflect that God is always fincere towards us, and therefore we fhould be fo to him; that it would be ingratitude to deceive him if we could, and that it is the height of folly to attempt it when we cannot.

Let us then beware of the leaven of the Pharifees, which is hypocrify: Let us always ftick to truth and fincerity; the voice of nature requires it at our hands, the God of nature de. mands it; it is unprofitable to diffemble, and therefore we should neglect it; it is mean, and therefore we should despise it; it is wicked and deftructive of our intereft, and therefore we should avoid and deteft it.

I cannot conclude this difcourfe better than by a caution against hypocrify:-In all our connections with each other, be open, honeft, and ingenuous, never appearing, or pretending to be what we are not; never lie, flatter, or deceive; never profefs friendships which we do not feel; boaft of virtues which we have not; deny or conceal those vices and frailties which we have.

So fhall we gain truft and confidence from our neighbours-an inward fatisfaction and complacency from ourselves-the esteem, love, and affection of all good men here—the pardon, approbation, the applaufe, and the reward of God himself hereafter,

SERMON

ON THE SACRAMENT.

SERMON

XLVIII.

I CORINTHIANS XI. 24.

This do in remembrance of me.

As a ferious attention to, and frequent par

ticipation of the Holy Communion hath ever been confidered as a very important article of our religious duty, and on which our eternal falvation doth greatly depend, it cannot I think be too often, or too warmly recommended to all, and by all, and especially by those who are appointed by their office and ministry to deliver God's holy word and commandments. As often therefore, and as fully as it hath been already spoken to by men of the greatest piety, learning and abilities, it is no lefs my duty alfo, to exhort you to the practice of it. I propose therefore in the following difcourfe to lay before you, first, The great usefulness and excellence of this divine inftitution; and fecondly, The obligations which we all lie under to comply with it.

First then, In regard to its great use and excellency: Such is the amazing bafenefs and ingratitude of mankind, that though the leaft and moft trifling injuries done to them, are very feldom, even long after they have been

done,

done, either forgot or forgiven; benefits on the other hand, frequently conferred, are for the moft part quickly and eafily buried in oblivion. Our Saviour therefore, who well knew that nature which he had assumed, after a life spent in the fervice of man, wifely forefaw that his fervants, like others, when their mafter was gone away from them, would become every day more and more neglectful of thofe commandments which he had left behind him, and in a long tract of time, perhaps, utterly forget every thing which he had done for them; to the end, therefore, that we fhould always remember his exceeding great love in living and dying for us; he inftituted and ordained holy mysteries as pledges of his love, and for a continual remembrance of his death, to our great and endless comfort, as often as we eat this bread and drink of this cup, we do fhew the Lord's death till he come; this do, fays he, in remembrance of me.

The religion of Chrift, none can object to, as loaded with positive inftitutions. Surely his yoke (if fuch we may term it) is eafy; his burthen, if fuch we will efteem it, is extremely light. He might have faid, ye fee how I afflict and torment myself for your fakes; how I have fafted and prayed: go therefore, lafh and torment yourselves, abftain from food and nourishment, take no pleasure, receive no comfort, feek nothing but forrow, acquaint yourfelves with nothing but grief, do this in remembrance of me: but instead of this, he only impofeth on us this light and easy labour; a task