ed from either fide, you will probably incur the resentment of both: or, if you think to keep the good will of both by trimming, making each believe that you are on their fide: befides the bafenefs of the practice, which muft fet a man at irreconcileable variance with himfelf, you must live in a perpetual fear of a discovery; and when you are detected, both will hate you worse than they do each other.--Nay, in the

4th place, Should you give up the idea of obtaining univerfal favour, and content yourfelves with pleafing a few; yet fuch is the mutability of mens' tempers, that your fuccefs, even in this limited attempt, is very precarious, For how variable is the mind of man? ever shifting about, and alternately pleased and displeased with the fame thing. When you have spent the best of your days in building upon this fand, one blaft fhall throw down the laborious fabric in a moment. For difficult as it is to gain the favour of men, it is ftill more difficult to preserve it, or to regain it when it is loft. Serve them as fubmiffively as you can, yet fome crofs accident, fome failure in gratifying their unreasonable expectations, may fuddenly turn all your honours into difgrace, and leave you to complain, as Cardinal Wolfey did, "Had I ferved God as "faithfully as man, he would not thus have "forfaken me in old age." my Nay, the per

verfeness of many is fo great, that they require contradictions ere they will be pleased. If John come fafting, they fay," he hath a devil:" if Christ come eating and drinking, they fay, "Be"hold a man gluttonous and a wine-bibber, a

If your

"friend of publicans and finners." judgment and practice be accommodated to your fuperiors, fome will call you fupple and temporifing: if it be otherwife, you will perhaps be reproached as difcontented and feditious.

Thus, you fee, that it is impoffible to please all men or even any confiderable number of them at one time. Nor have we caufe to wonder at this, when we confider, that our bleffed Saviour himself, notwithstanding his perfect innocence and wisdom, was more reviled than any man. Can you do more to deserve the favour of men than Chrift did? or can you expect to please those who are difpleafed with God himself? For is not God daily difpleafing men in the courfe of his providence? and what is there that they quarrel with more bitterly than with his word? In fine, how can we expect to please any number of our fellow-creatures, when we cannot even please ourfelves conftantly? And for the truth of this, I appeal to your own experience. You must be fingular indeed, if you never fall out with yourfelves; I mean fingularly inattentive (to give it no harfher name), for with the beft I am fure there is too often just cause for it. If then we are not able to preferve our own esteem at all times, how can we expect to preferve the approbation of other men!

And now what is your judgment upon the whole? Is not man-pleafing both a mean and fruitless attempt? Is it wife to have for your aim a thing fo difquieting, and fo very precarious? Is it not by far the wifer course to seek the approbation of God, who trieth your hearts, whom

you

unto the end.

you please most effectually when you purfue your own beft intereft? He is not variable in his affections, like men. Whom he lives, he loves "Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things prefent, nor things to come, nor height, "nor depth, nor any other creature, fhall be "able to separate us from his love, which is in "Chrift Jefus our Lord."

"

Let me then address you in the words of this fame Apostle on another occafion, "Ye are bought with a price, be not ye the fervants of men. Remember what our Lord faid to his, disciples, while he was on earth; on earth; "One is your Master, even Chrift." To him you owe all your homage: him only you are bound to please. And is not his favour a fufficient portion? Did he fuffer, and bleed, and die, that your hearts might be his, and will you refuse him that which he hath fo dearly bought? Where can you find a better Mafter, or one that you can be fo certain of pleasing, if you apply yourselves to it? He requires no contradictory or impracticable fervices. He hath left you in no uncertainty about your duty. You need not fay, "Wherewith "fhall we come before the Lord? He hath fhew"ed thee, O man, what is good, and what he requires of you," even in his written word, which he hath given to be "a lamp to your feet, and a light unto your paths." He makes alfo the moft gracious allowances for your infirmities. The willing mind is accepted by him; and although through weakness fall short of your own good purposes, yet he will fay to you as he

you

did to David, when he purposed to build him an houfe," It was well that it was in thine "heart.'

Who then would not apply himfelf to gain the approbation of fuch a Mafter? This aim, well established, would be a conftant principle of holy obedience, and make us to abound in all those fruits of righteoufnefs, which are through Chrift to the praise and glory of God. Let this henceforth then be our fole ambition, to approve ourfelves to him, by whofe fentence our final condition must be determined. And let it be our conftant request at the throne of grace, that God by his almighty Spirit may exalt our fouls above every mean and fordid view, and enable us always fo to fpeak and act," not as pleafing men, but God, who trieth our hearts."Then the peace of God, which paffeth all understanding, fhall keep our hearts and minds through Chrift Jefus and amidst all the changing fcenes of life, we fhall have this for our rejoicing, even the teftimony of a good confcience, that in fimplicity and godly fincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our converfation in the world. Amen.

SERMON

SERMON
O N XI.

ACTS xi. 23.

-And exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord.

IT is

T is not eafy to conceive a more complete or amiable character than that which is given of Barnabas in the following verfe: "He was a

good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of "faith." And as a good man, out of the good treasure of his heart, bringeth forth goods things; fo this faithful minifter of Chrift, who had been fent by the church in Jerufalem to vifit the new converts at Antioch, having feen thofe real effects. of the grace of God among them, of which he had formerly heard the agreeable report, was filled with joy, and, like a true "fon of confo

lation," which his name fignifies, he "exhort"ed them all, that with purpose of heart they "would cleave unto the Lord."-My defign in difcourfing from these words, is,

ift, To explain the exhortation contained in them; 2dly, To enforce it by fome motives and arguments; and, 3dly, To offer fome directions. which, through the bleffing of God, may be ufeful to thofe who are defirous of complying with it.

I BEGIN with explaining the exhortation contained in the text.-And,