of their fex, to be difcreet, chafte keepers at home, to adorn themfelves in modeft apparel, fhamefacedness and Sobriety; nor poor women leave it to the rich to at tend at the worship and service of God.

Great men must be eminent for true poverty of spirit, and people of a low and afflicted. state muft greatly rejoice in God.

THE man of ftrength and power is to forgive and pray for his enemies, and the innocent fufferer that is chain'd in prifon, muft with Paul and Silas, at midnight fing praises to God. For God is to be glorified, holinefs is to be practis'd, and the spirit of Religion is to be the common fpirit of every Christian in every ftate and condition of life.

FOR the Son of God did not come from above, to add an external form of worship to the feveral ways of life that are in the world; and fo to leave people to live as they did before, in fuch tempers and enjoyments as the fashion and fpirit of the world approves. But as he came down from heaven, altogether divine and heavenly in his own nature, fo it was to call mankind to a divine and heavenly life; to the highest change of their whole nature and temper; to be born again of the holy Spirit; to walk in the wisdom and light and love of God; and be like him to the utmost of their power; to renounce all the most plaufible ways of the world, whether of greatnefs, bufinefs ar pleasure; to a mortification of all their most agreeable paffions; and to live in fuch wisdom, and purity and holiness, as might fit them to be glorious in the enjoyment of God to all eternity.

WHATEVER therefore is foolish, ridiculous, vain, or earthly, or fenfual in the life of a Chriftian, is fomething that ought not to be there, it is a spot and a defilement that must be washed away with tears of repentance. But if any thing of this kind runs thro' the courfe of our whole life, if we allow our felves in things, that are either vain, foolish, or fenfual, we renounce our profeffion.

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FOR

FOR as fure as Jefus Chrift was wisdom and holinefs, as fure as he came to make us like himself, and to be baptized into his fpirit, fo fure is it, that none can be faid to keep to their Chriftian profeffion, but they, who to the utmost of their power live a wife and holy and heavenly life. This, and this alone, is Christianity, an univerfal holiness in every part of life, a heavenly wisdom in all our actions, not conforming to the fpirit and temper of the world, but turning all worldly enjoyments into means of piety and devotion to God.

BUT now if this devout state of heart, if these habits of inward holiness be true religion, then true religion is equally the duty and happiness of all orders of men for there is nothing to recommend it to one, that is not the fame recommendation of it to all states of people.

fr it be the happiness and glory of a bishop to live in this devout fpirit, full of thefe holy tempers, doing every thing as unto God, it is as much the glory and happiness of all men and women, whether young or old, to live in the fame fpirit. And whoever can

find any reafons, why an ancient bishop fhould be intent upon divine things, turning all his life into the higheft exercifes of piety, wifdom, and devotion, will find them fo many reafons, why he fhould to the utmoft of his power do the fame himself.

IF you fay, that a bishop must be an eminent example of Chriftian holiness, because of his high and facred calling, you fay right. But if you fay, that it is more to his advantage to be exemplary, than it is yours, you greatly mistake. For there is nothing to make the higheft degrees of holiness desirable to a bifhop, but what makes them equally defirable to every young perfon of every family.

FOR an exalted piety, high dovotion, and the religious ufe of every thing, is as much the glory and happiness of one ftate of life, as it is of another.

Do but fancy in your mind what a spirit of piety

you

you would have in the beft bishop in the world, how 3 you would have him love God, how you would have him imitate the life of our Saviour and his apostles, how you would have him live above the world, fhining in all the inftances of a heavenly life, and then you have found out that fpirit, which you ought to make the spirit of your own life.

I DESIRE every reader to dwell a while upon this reflection, and perhaps he will find more conviction from it, than he imagines. Every one can tell how good and pious he would have fome people to be; every one knows how wife and reasonable a thing it is in a bishop, to be entirely above the world, and be an eminent example of Chriftian perfection: As foon as you think of a wife and ancient bishop, you fancy fome exalted degree of piety, a living example of all those holy tempers, which you find defcrib'd in the gospel.

Now if you ask your felf, what is the happieft thing for a young clergyman to do? You must be forc'd to answer, that nothing can be fo happy and glorious for him, as to be like that excellent holy bishop.

If you go on, and ask what is the happiest thing for any young gentleman or his fifters to do? The anfwer must be the fame; that nothing can be fo happy or glorious for them, as to live in fuch habits of piety, in fuch exercifes of a divine life, as this good old bishop does. For every thing that is great and glorious in religion, is as much the true glory of every man or woman, as it is the glory of any bishop. If high degrees of divine love, if fervent charity, if fpotlefs purity, if heavenly affection, if conftant mortification, if frequent devotion be the beft and happielt way of life for any Christian; it is fo for every Christian.

CONSIDER again; if you was to fee a bishop in the whole course of his life, living below his character, conforming to all the foolish tempers of the world, and govern'd by the fame cares and fears which go

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vern vain and worldly men, what would you think of him? Would you think that he was only guilty of a small mistake? No: You would condemn him, as erring in that which is not only the most, but the only important matter that relates to him. Stay a while in this confideration, till your mind is fully convinc'd, how miserable a mistake it is in a bishop, to live a careless, worldly life.

WHILST you are thinking in this manner, turn your thoughts towards fome of your acquaintance, your brother or fifter, or any young perfon. Now if you fee the common courfe of their lives to be not according to the doctrines of the gospel, if you fee that their way of life cannot be faid to be a fincere endeavour to enter in at the ftraight gate, you fee fomething that you are to condemn in the fame degree, and for the fame reasons. They don't commit afmall mistake, but are wrong in that which is their all, and mistake their true happiness, as much as that bishop does, who neglects the high duties of his calling. Apply this reafoning to your felf; if you find your felf living an idle, indulgent, vain life, chufing rather to gratify your paffions, than to live up to the doctrines of Chriftianity, and practise the plain precepts of our bleffed Lord, you have all that blindness and unreasonableness to charge upon your felf, that you can charge upon any irregular bishop.

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FOR all the virtues of the Chriftian life, its perfect purity, its heavenly tempers, are as much the fole rule of your life, as the fole rule of the life of fhop. If you neglect these holy tempers, if you don't eagerly afpire after them, if you do not fhew your felf a vifible example of them, you are as much fallen from your true happiness, you are as great an enemy to your felf, and have made as bad a choice, as that bishop that chufes rather to enrich his family, than to be like an apoftle. For there is no reafon, why you should think the higheft holiness, the moft heavenly tempers, to be the duty and happi

nefs

nefs of a bishop; but what is as good a reafon, why you fhould think the fame tempers, to be the duty and happiness of all Chriftians. And as the wifeft

bishop in the world, is he, who lives in the greatest heights of holiness, who is moft exemplary in all the exercises of a divine life, fo the wifeft youth, the wifeft woman, whether married or unmarried, is fhe, that lives in the highest degrees of Chriftian holiness, and all the exercises of a divine and heavenly life.

CHA P. XI.

Shewing how great devotion fills our lives with the greatest peace and happiness, that can be enjoy'd in. this world.

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OME people will perhaps object, that all these rules of holy living unto God in all that we do, are too great a reftraint upon human life; that it will be made too anxious à ftate, by thus introducing a regard to God in all our actions. And that by depriving our felves of fo many feemingly innocent pleasures, we shall render our lives dull, uneasy, and melancholy.

To which it may be answer'd:

Firft, That these rules are prefcrib'd for, and will certainly procure a quite contrary end. That instead of making our lives dull and melancholy, they will render them full of content and ftrong fatisfactions. That by these rules we only change the childifh fatisfactions of our vain and fickly paffions, for the folid enjoyments, and real happiness of a found mind.

Secondly, That as there is no foundation for comfort in the enjoyments of this life, but in the affurance that a wife and good God governeth the world,

fo.