It might be fomewhat Excufable, juft after the Time of Confufion by the great Rebellion, to fall into the way of Moral Orations, and Effays: Good Men had then been furfeited with hearing nothing but the fanctified Phrafe of the Gospel in People's Mouths, while they faw none but Acts of Rapine and Violence in their Hands, and thought they cou'd not take a better Course to Reformation, than by Counselling them to have lefs of Religion and the Grace of God in their Talk, till they fhew'd more of Moral and Social Virtue in their Actions. And, hence, their frequent Lectures of Morality. But, this Method of Teaching, efpecially with Omiffion, for the moft Part, of Points properly Chriftian, cou'd not be long Convenient: In Fact, it foon prov'd hurtful: The People were generally Sick with the fame Loathing; and, to avoid that Extream of Enthufiafm, (as many of their Fathers had before done the Other of Superftition) they refolv'd to have nothing that cou'd be thought to carry the leaft Air and Appearance of any thing like it; and, fo fell back into every Negation of Chriftianity. How far they have been furnifh'd with Arguments to countenance the feveral Delufions they have fallen into fince, from the moralizing Inftructions of fome, who, I hope intended no fuch thing, wou'd be ungrateful to me to Remark. But every Body who will obferve, muft fee, that we have now almoft run our full Length in Pagan Refine

ments;

ments; and, that (if we do not quit these Vanities, and betake ourselves, tho' with less Ornament and Flourish, to fpeak things becoming found Doctrine) Arians, Pelagians, &&& Socinians, and Deifts, Armies worse than of Locufts! will bear down all before them, and 74 we cannot long fubfift as Chriftians. Therefore, t Let us not any longer feek to establish every one his own Wisdom; but, let us renounce ourJelves, and diligently study, and humbly fubmit ourselves to be guided by, the Wisdom of GOD reveal'd to us in his Word the Holy Scriptures. And,

May the All-Powerful and Gracious God (who caufed his Light to fhine out of Darkness) Shine in upon our Hearts, to give to us the Light of the Knowledge of the Glory of God; which glorious Light, taking off that Veil of the Covering, expelling thofe Mifts of Error and Ignorance, otherwife caft over all Flesh, is now irradiated upon all that do believe from the Face of Jefus Chrift, by his Holy Spirit. To whom, with the Father, and the fame Spirit, be afcrib'd all Power, and Riches, and Wisdom, and Honour, and Glory, and Bleffing, by every Creature in Heaven, and on the Earth, and under the Earth, both now and for ever. Amen.

I thought I had here made an End: But, Reading the Difcourfes and Supplement thus far, a few Days before I defign'd to commit them to the Prefs, with a Friend, to whose

good

good Principles and Judgment I pay a great Deference; he told me, there were fome Expreffions in them, on the Subjects of God's Jufficient Grace and Man's Free Agency, against which he thought fome Friends of the Clergy wou'd take Exceptions; to which I answer'd him, Then what muft alfo be my Apology, hereafter, to fuch Friends of the Clergy (if any fuch there be) that I had taken due Care to guard the Truth in relation to thefe Points, by inferting fatisfactory Diftinctions in proper Places upon them; that it wou'd at least appear to every attentive and impartial Reader, that I had advanc'd nothing on those Heads but what I found warranted by express Authority of Holy Scripture, and for which I had alfo produc'd that Authority for my Juftification; and that, therefore, if this were disagreeable to any, I fhou'd be forry for it, but cou'd not help it; that if, by any Books or Writings now in Vogue, fome of the Clergy had been led to think otherwise on thefe Subjects, than is Reveal'd in Holy Scripture, it must be their Part to Confider, and, on better Information from that Word which must be Decisive both to them and me, to correct their Mistakes; but, that I can have no Allowance, (out of refpect either of Perfons or commonly receiv'd Notions) to advance one Tittle on thefe, or any other Subject of Revelation, contrary to what is Reveald. I hereto added, that what I had deliver❜d on these, as well as on the main Subject

of

of my Difcourfes, was agreeable to what our first, Reformers Taught, and to those Articles and Homilies, which both they and I have Subfcrib'd, and, by fo Subfcribing, are properly diftinguish'd as Minifters of the Church of England; and that, therefore, if any Friends of the Clergy, as aforefaid, fhall cenfure me on that Account, they will make themselves doubly culpable. 1ft, As Chriftians, in advancing or admitting Tenets contrary to the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift. And, 2dly, as Paftors of the faid Church of England, in contradicting fuch their own Subfcriptions. Thus far I ventur'd in my Defence to my Friend, then, from a general Knowledge and Remembrance of the main Tenor of our Homilies only, without having particularly con sulted, or indeed fo much as thought of, what was, or was not, ftated in the fame, while I was compofing these Difcourfes: But, reflecting fince, on what had paffed in that Converfation, I thought it might be proper, for my fuller Apology to the Reader, purposely to go over the Homilies on Repentance, good Works, &c. to fhew in a more particular manner, by Citations from the Homilies themselves, how I have in the Discourses above, as to all the main Points, fallen into the fame way of Explanation, that those Fathers of our Church, who were the Compofers of those excellent Sermons, had, fo long before me done; and, that I can, therefore, have no reasonable Caufe F

to

to fear the Cenfure, but may well hope for the favourable Opinion, and kind Encouragement of all found Chriftians and true Paftors of our Church, in my difinterefted Endeavours to ferve the common Caufe of Catholick Chrif tianity, and of our National Church.

And, what I fhall cite from the faid Homilies, may be difpos'd under two principal Heads, viz.

ift. Of our Natural and Spiritual Powers, and, of Salvation by Chrift, in general.

2dly. Of the Virtue or Grace of Repentance, the Subject of the above Difcourfes, in particular. And,

ift. Concerning our Natural Powers, and the Power of Regeneration by the Holy Spirit in us; in the firft Part of the Sermon for Whit-Sunday, p. 209. we find they have faid"it is the Holy Ghoft, and no other Thing "that doth quicken the Minds of Men, stir"ring up good and godly Motions in their "Hearts, which are agreeable to the Will and "Commandment of GOD, fuch as otherwife "of their own crooked and perverfe Nature they should never have. That which is "Born of the Spirit is Spirit. As who fhould

fay, Man of his own Nature is Fleshly and "Carnal, and Corrupt and Naught, Sinful and "Difobedient to GOD, without any spark "of Goodness in him, without any virtuous

or godly Motion, only given to evil Thoughts and wicked Deeds. As for the Works of

"the