cafes, it equally ferves to prove the corruption and finfulness of human nature.

Now, as what hath been faid plainly proves the impurity of man in his natural state, so his mifery and liableness to punishment may also be proved, both as a natural consequence of his finfulness, and even more plainly by itself. There is not only a confiderable degree of actual mifery in the world, but plain prefages of more to follow it in the world to come. Need I take up much time in enumerating the feveral miferies and calamities incident to human life? Are not oppreffion and injury from one another, poverty, fickness, pain and death, the plain fruits of fin, and visible tokens of God's difpleasure? Man, with some marks of superiority and excellence of nature, is even, by means of his fuperiority, his knowledge, and forefight of his own fufferings, more miserable than any other of the creatures that is equally fubject to the stroke of death.

To the whole, I fhall only fubjoin one confideration more, which is applicable to both parts of the argument-I have often thought, that the natural terror and fear with which men are poffeffed, of the presence of God, or any remarkable token of his power, is nothing elfe but an indication of guilt, or an apprehenfion of wrath.'

You may fee fome incidents in fcripture, from which it is natural to conclude, that when God

makes

makes any visible manifestation of his glory, or fends any of his angels or minifters from heaven to earth, those who are prefent are filled with the utmost dread and terror.

Thus, in the relation given of God's appearance upon Mount Sinai, it is faid, And fo terrible was the fight, that Mofes faid, I exceedC ingly fear and quake.' See another example in Ifaiah Then faid I, Woe is me, for I am 6 undone, because I am a man of unclean lips; ' for mine eyes have feen the King, the Lord

of Hofts.' And in the New Teftament, in the Apostle John,- And when I faw him, I fell at his feet as dead.'

And is not this always the cafe, in all ages, that upon any remarkable appearance of an inhabitant of the other world, or even when any fuch thing is falsely apprehended, the inhabitants of this world are filled with extraordinary terror? What is this do you imagine, but consciousness of guilt, and apprehenfion of vengeance?

Innocence has no enemy, and it has nothing to fear. We are all in much the fame cafe with Adam, immediately after his first tranfgreffion; when he heard God's voice in the garden, he < was afraid, and fled, and hid himself.'-We read of no fuch fear poffeffing him while he retained his innocence; but as foon as he had finned, he began to dread an avenging God.

From

From all this, then, I would conclude, that reafon accords with fcripture, in faying, that • all have finned and come short of the glory of God that man in a natural state is • wretched, and miferable, and poor, and blind, and naked.

SERMON

SERMON III.

An Inducement to come to Chrift.

Rev. iii. 17.

Because thou fayeft, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knoweft not that thou art wretched, and miferable, and poor, and blind, and naked.

H

AVING, in a former discourse, proved and illuftrated this truth, that all mankind are by nature in a state of fin and mifery, under the bondage of corruption, and liable to the wrath of God:-I proceed now to the fecond thing propofed, which was to fhew you, that being brought to a lively sense and genuine conviction of this, is the firft, and a neceffary step to the faving knowledge of God in Chrift.

On this I fhall not need to spend much time, as it is fo exceedingly plain, both in itself, and from what hath been already faid.-It is, how

ever, necessary to set it clearly before you, in order to lay a foundation for the improvement of the fubject.

If the doctrine of Chrift, and of him crucified, proceeds upon the fuppofition of our finful and miferable condition by nature, then surely it can neither be valued, embraced, nor improved; and indeed, I think hardly understood, by those who know not this their natural ftate. What Christ hath done, and promifes to do in our behalf, is defigned as a remedy for our diftreffed condition; and therefore, till the diftrefs is known, the remedy will be fet at nought. If a physician fhould offer his care and skill for the recovery of a man, who efteemed himself in perfect health, would he not deride the propofal, fo long as he continued in that opinion? If any man fhould offer a charitable supply of clothes and food to one, who imagined himself immensely rich, and gloried in his riches, would he not look upon it as the groffeft infult?

<

Juft fo is the gospel treated by all fuch as fee not their misery. What is the fubftance of the gofpel? To you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the fons of men. Behold! I preach to you "Chrift crucified, a Saviour, fuited to your ne'ceffities, able to fave to the uttermoft, all that

come to God through him. He is well fitted " to be a Mediator between you and your offen'ded maker. He hath offered himfelf up, a facrifice to the juftice of God, for your fins, by