christian virtues is so detached from the others, fubfifts fo entirely alone, as not to need the influence and the concurrence of the rest, and in return not to lend them vitality and force? How amicably are they not all abforbed in one another? What faithful and infeparable companions they are! Which can we practise, without at the fame time rendering ourselves more willing and dextrous in the practice of the reft? Are they not all in union? Do they not all lead hand in hand to perfection, to happiness? Haft thou ever, my christian brother, haft thou ever attended the public worship, engaged in prayer, or other exercises of devotion with understanding and fentiment, without feeling thyfelf enlivened and invigorated to the several duties of justice, of philanthropy, of fidelity in thy station and calling? Haft thou ever enjoyed the pleasure of beneficence, of generous, christian beneficence, without feeling stronger emotions of love for that God, who has made thee capable of it, and granted thee this pleasure to enjoy? Haft thou ever got the mastery of thyself, haft thou ever with an honest and truly christian heart facrificed any thing to thy brethren or to the general welfare, without more energetically feeling the noblenefs, the dignity of human nature, and encountering all the difficulties of fimilar or other cafes with renovated courage? Haft thou ever willingly and faithfully fulfilled thy duty, without thence acquiring fresh defire and ability for the fulfilment of every other duty? Do not therefore all the divine command

ments,

ments, all the duties, all the virtues mutually fupport and advance each other? Canft thou therefore on the path of christian rectitude ever make one step in vain? Does not every one bring thee nearer to the goal? Must not every one make thy progress on that path more eafy to thee? But the more certain the consequences, the greater and more apparent the utility of any occupation, the more easy must it always prove to us. We can never earnestly labour at our correction and amendment without fuccefs, we can never be diligent in the practice of virtue and piety without the greatest advantages both in variety and in degree; and the longer we practise the one and the other, the more delightful is the confequence, the richer and greater the benefit we reap from it.

No, contemplating the matter on whatever fide we will, in itself it is not difficult, it is eafy, it is to the intelligent, to the good man a real fatisfaction, to keep the divine commandments, to lead a virtuous and godly life. We can never, but by our own fault, be deficient either in knowledge, or in ability, or in motives, or in affiftance and resources to that purpose, we may easily take a view of the whole bufinefs; it is confiftent in all its parts; all of them reciprocally support and advance each other. Does it notwithstanding still seem grievous to thee, o man, to do that which is lawful and right; doft thou notwithstanding deem the divine commandments a heavy yoke and an oppreffive burden: it is then thine own

fault,

fault, by thy erroneous conduct thou makeft that burdenfome which in itself is really light. Indeed if thou wouldst be virtuous and devout, and yet wilt not use the means for becoming fo, wilt not be vigilant over thyself, wilt still avoid filent reflection, and live in continual diffipation; indeed if thou arbitrarily feparatest one virtue from another, if thou wilt keep one commandment and tranfgrefs another, if thou refolveft to-day to obey the will of God and tomorrow the cravings of fenfuality, or the commands of the world; indeed, if thou facrifice thy beft years and abilities to the service of vanity and fin, if thou submit to be manacled and deprived of thy liberty by vice, and think it time enough to become virtuous and godly when thou art defcending into the vale of years, with declining faculties, in the most unfavour able circumstances: yes, then it must affuredly be difficult, then it will perhaps be impoffible for thee to do it. But is not that thy own fault? Are these difficulties implicated in the thing itself? Proceed they not entirely from thy erroneous and criminal conduct? Wherefore, my dear friends, let me exhort you never to put afunder, what God, what the nature of things, have fo indiffolubly joined together. Require not to attain the end, without the use of all the

proper means. Flatter not yourselves with the fond conceit, that you will reach the prize, unless you refolutely walk the way that leads to it. That the obfervance of the divine commandments may be eafy to you, obferve them truly, obferve them all, obferve

4

observe them with unremitted affiduity and constant care. And ye who are yet in the bloom of life, in the full vigour of your faculties, are still in poffeffion of your native liberty and courage, oh neglect not to profit by these propitious circumstances, devote yourselves betimes and entirely to virtue and piety, learn to keep the commandments of God, ere ye are intangled in the fnares of fin and vice, enter the path of christian integrity, ere ye have fatigued and debilitated yourselves in the mazes of folly and the devious turnings of iniquity. How eafy, how agreeable will it then be to you, to walk that path, how much farther will ye proceed on it, to what benefits and felicities will it conduct you both in the present and in the future world! Yes, to you the ways of virtue will indeed be ways of pleasantnefs, and all her paths be happiness and peace.

SERMO N. XXXIX.

To whom, and in what refpects, the Obfervance of the divine Commandments is and feems grievous.

GOD, thou art righteous, thou art essential benig

nity and love; but we have often reason to be confounded before thee. Thou leavest us in no want of any thing, that can give us pleasure and ability in goodness, that can alleviate the discharge of our duty, the obfervance of thy commandments, that can affist and impel us in our efforts after perfection and happiness. Nature and religion, internal energies and external refources; our own experience and that of others combine together for rendering that occupation eafy and pleasant to us. And yet we fo frequently complain of the obftacles and difficulties that we meet with in it! And yet we proceed fo tardily on the road of duty and virtue, dẹviate so often from it, and so often lose sight of the glorious prize to which it leads! O God, how unworthy do we thus render ourselves of the capacities, the abilities, the fuperior endowments, which as thy children, as chriftians, thou haft vouchsafed us! How unworthy of the glory and felicity to which

VOL. II.

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thou