spiritual exercises and performances, upon which I chiefly build my hopes of happiness, my preaching, praying, and communicating, would all become a snare and a curse to me: yea, and Christ Himself, Who came into the world to bless and redeem me, if I walk not in His fear, believe not in His Gospel, or give not glory to His Name, will Himself be a curse and condemnation to me. So that I may say of every thing I have, or enjoy, or expect, all these God has made curses to me, because I have not blessed and glorified Him in them. Oh! who would not tremble and be wrought upon by these threatenings? Who would not fear Thee, O King of nations, Who art thus terrible in Thy judgments? Who would not love and obey Thee, Who art so gracious in Thy promises? Teach me, I beseech Thee, so to place my fear upon the former, that I may still fix my hope upon the latter, that though I fear Thy dreadful curses, yet I may never despair of Thy tender mercies.

RESOLUTION VI.

I am resolved, by the grace of God, to arm myself with that spiritual courage and magnanimity, as to press through all duties and difficulties whatsoever, for the advancement of God's glory, and my own happiness.

Christianity is well termed a warfare, for a warfare it is, wherein no danger can be prevented, no enemy conquered, no victory obtained, without much courage and resolution. I have not only many outward enemies to grapple with, but I have myself, my worst enemy, to encounter and subdue. As for those enemies which are not so near me, by the assistance of God's Spirit, I can make pretty good shift to keep them at sword's point. But this enemy that is gotten. within me, has so often foiled and disarmed me, that I have [2 Sam. 22. reason to say, as David did of his enemies," it is too strong [Ps. 18.17.] for me:" and as he said of the chief of his, "I shall one [1 Sam. 27. day fall by the hands of Saul;" so have I too much occasion

18.]

1.]

to say, I shall one day fall by myself, as being myself the greatest enemy to my own spiritual interest and concerns. How necessary is it then that I should raise and muster up

all my force and courage, put on my spiritual armour, and make myself strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might! I know I must strive before I can " enter in at the [Luke 13. 24.] strait gate;" I must win the crown before I can wear it, and be a member of the Church militant before I be admitted into the Church triumphant. In a word, I must go through a solitary wilderness, and conquer many enemies, before I come to the land of Canaan, or else I must never be possessed of it. What then, shall I lose my glory to balk my duty? Shall I let go my glorious and eternal possession to save myself from a seeming hardship which the Devil would persuade me to be a trouble and an affliction? Alas! if Christ had laid aside the great work of my Redemption, to avoid the undergoing God's anger and man's malice, what a miserable condition had I been in! And therefore, whatever taunts and reproaches I meet with from the presumptuous and profane, the infidel and atheistical reprobates of the age; let them laugh at my profession, or mock at what they are pleased to call preciseness; let them defraud me of my just rights, or traduce and bereave me of my good name and reputation; let them vent the utmost of their poisonous malice and envy against me, I have this comfortable reflection still to support me, that if I suffer all this for Christ's sake, it is in the cause of One Who suffered a thousand times more for mine, and therefore it ought to be matter of joy and triumph, rather than of grief or dejection to me: especially considering, that "these my light afflictions, which are [2 Cor. 4. but for a moment, will work out for me a far more exceed- 17.] ing and eternal weight of glory." Upon the prospect of which, I firmly resolve, notwithstanding the growing strength of sin, and the overbearing prevalency of my own corrupt affections, to undertake all duties, and undergo all miseries, that God in His infinite wisdom thinks fit to lay upon me, or exercise my patience in.

RESOLUTION VII.

I am resolved, by the grace of God, so to be angry as not to sin, and therefore to be angry at nothing but sin.

The former part of the resolution is founded in the

Eph. 4. 26. express command of St. Paul, "Be ye angry, and sin not;" and the latter is an explication of, as well as an inference drawn from it. For if anger be not only lawful, but a duty, as is here supposed, when it does not involve us in sin, the only difficulty is to know how that passion ought to be qualified to justify the exercise of it without being guilty of sin: and the circumstances or qualifications required for this are, first, that it be placed upon a due object; and, secondly, that it do not exceed its proper bounds.

Now, as nothing can deserve my anger, but what is disagreeable to my nature, and offensive to the Author of it, so nothing but sin can properly be called its object. The chief thing that I am to aim at in my actions, is the honouring, serving, and pleasing of God; and how can I serve and please God in being angry at any thing but what I know is displeasing to Him? I may be scorned, reproached, and vilified among my equals, or accused, condemned, and punished by my superiors; and these are treatments that are but too apt to raise and transport men into anger and revenge: but then, before I suffer this passion to boil up in me, I ought to consider, whether I have not behaved myself so as to deserve this sort of treatment; if I have, then there is no injury or injustice done me thereby, and therefore I ought not to be angry at it: if I have not, I must not be angry at the persons who act thus falsely and unjustly against me, but only at their sin; for to speak properly, it is not the person that offends me, but the sin. And this, not because it is injurious to me, but because it is offensive and displeasing to God Himself; for to be angry at any thing but what displeases God, is to displease God in being angry. Whenever, therefore, I receive any affronts or provocations of this nature, I am resolved, by God's grace assisting my endeavours, never to be moved or troubled at them, further than they are in their own nature sinful, and at the same time abstracting the sin from the persons, to pray for the pardon of those that are guilty of it; and not only so, but, according to the command and example of my Saviour, even to love them too.

But how shall I be sure to be angry at nothing but sin, and so not to sin in my anger, when every petty trifle or

cross accident is so apt to raise this passion in me?

Why,

the best method I can take, is that which the wise man directs me to, "Not to be hasty in my spirit," but "to Eccles. 7.9. defer my anger" according to "discretion." So that when- Prov. 19.11. soever any thing happens that may incense and inflame my passion, I must immediately stop its career, and suspend the acts of it, till I have duly considered the motives and occasions that raised it. And as this will be a very good means to regulate the object of my anger, so likewise the measure of it for he that is slow to wrath takes time to consider, and by consequence puts his passion under the conduct of his reason; and whoever does so, it will never suffer it to be transported beyond its proper bounds; whereas he whose anger is like tinder, that catches as soon as the spark is upon it, and who uses no means to stop its spreading, is presently blown up into a furious flame, which, before it is extinguished, may do more mischief than he is ever able to repair; for no man knows whither his anger may hurry him, when once it has got the mastery of him. In order, therefore, to prevent the fatal consequences of this passion, I now resolve never to speak or do any thing while I am under the influence of it, but take time to consider with myself, and reflect upon the several circumstances of the action or object it arises from, as well as the occasion and tendency of it; and as oft as I find any thing in it displeasing to God, to be regularly angry at that, to correct, rebuke, and reprove it with a zeal and fervour of spirit suitable to the occasion, but still to keep within the bounds of the truly Christian temper, which is always distinguished by love and charity, and exercises itself in meekness and moderation. And O! what a sedate and contented spirit will this resolution breed in me! How easy and quiet shall I be under all circumstances! Whilst others are peevish and fretful, and torment themselves with every petty trifle that does but cross their inclinations, or seem to be injurious to them, or fall into the other extreme of a stoical apathy or insensibility, I shall, by this resolution, maintain a medium betwixt both, and possess my soul in peace and patience."

66

[Luke 21.

19.]

ver. 8.

HAVING thus far cleansed the fountain of my heart, with regard to my thoughts and affections, which are the immediate issues of my active soul, the next thing incumbent upon me is to regulate my outward conversation, both with respect to my words and actions. As to the first, the Holy Jam. 3. 6. Scripture assures me, that the tongue is " a world of iniquity," and again, that “it is an unruly evil, which no man can tame." But is it indeed so unruly? then there is the more occasion to have it governed and subdued; and since that is not to be done by man alone, it is still more necessary that I should call in the assistance of that Divine Spirit that gives this character of it, first to fix my resolution, and then to strengthen me in the performance of them. I stedfastly purpose to imitate the royal Psalmist in this particular, and to "take heed to my ways, that I offend not with my Job 27. 3, 4. tongue." Yea, I am resolved, with holy Job, that "all the while my breath and the spirit of God are in my nostrils, my lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit." But since it is such an unruly instrument, so very difficult to be bridled or restrained, do Thou, O God, Who first madest it, enable me to get the mastery of it: "Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and keep the door of my lips," that, with St. Paul, "I may speak forth the words of truth and soberness," and make this unruly evil a happy instrument of much good. Which that I may do,

Ps. 39. 1.

[Ps. 141. 3.]

[Acts 26.

25.]

Eccl. 5. 3. ver. 7.

RESOLUTION I.

I am resolved, by the grace of God, never to speak much, lest I often speak too much, and not to speak at all, rather than to no purpose.

It is the "voice of fools that is known by the multitude of Prov. 10.19. words." In which there are "divers vanities," and "sin" too, whereas he that refraineth his lips is wise. This is that piece of Christian wisdom which I am now resolving to