Give me leave to add this one thing more : —
Fourthly. That a delight in obedience unto God by Christ, in the ways of his own appointment, is a great evidence that we have chosen Christ, and he us; — chosen him as our king, prophet, and priest. The ways of the worship of God in his church and ordinances, are the ways and worship of God in Christ, which he hath appointed. Take these things abstractedly and in themselves, and we should be apt to say of them, as was said of Christ, " There is no beauty in them, nor glory, that they should be desired." There is much more outward beauty and glory in other ways, that Christ hath not appointed. But if we love the ways Christ hath appointed, because he hath appointed them, then we choose those ways because we have chosen him to be our king ; and that is it which gives them beauty and life. And when the ways of Christ's appointment grow heavy and burdensome to us, we are weary of them, and are willing to have our neck from under the yoke,— it is a sign we grow weary of him who is the author of them; and this is a great sign that we never made a right and sincere choice of him.
Many other things might be offered as evidences of sincere closing with Christ ; but these are some which have been of use to me : and I hope they may be so unto some of you.
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DISCOURSE III.
Question. What concern have we in the sins of the day wherein we live?
Answer. All sins may be referred to two heads: — First, Irreli- gion. Secondly, Immorality.
First. Irreligion ; and that may be reduced to two heads, — athe- ism and false worship : you may add, also, particularly, the contempt of all instituted worship. It takes up much of the sins against the first table ; however, at present I shall only speak of the first of them : —
As to atheism, then, it may he no age can parallel that wherein we live, considering all the ways whereby the atheism of man's heart may discover itself. For, take it absolutely, and in the seat of it, it is found only in the heart of man; unless some one or other prodi- gious instance breaks out sometime, as we have had in our days: hut otherwise, " The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God." The heart is the seat of atheism. But we consider the ways whereby this atheism may and doth manifest itself: —
(1 .) By horrid, cursed, blasphemous swearing ; which is a contempt of the name of God. And when did it ever more abound in this nation?
(2.) By reproaching of the Spirit of God. Perhaps this is the peculiar sin of the nation at this day ; and that the like hath not been known or heard of in any nation under the sun.
(3.) By scoffing at all holy things; — at the Scriptures, — at every thing that carries a reverence and fear of God; so that a man who dares profess a fear of God in what he doth, makes himself a scorn.
(4) Contempt of all God's providential warnings is another proof of atheism. Never had a nation more warnings from God's provi- dence, nor ever were they more despised. These things, brethren, are not done in a corner ; they are perpetrated in the face of the sun. The steam of them darkens the whole heaven, and they abound more and more every day.
Secondly. Shall we go to the other head, — namely, Immorality, — and see how it is there? It would be an endless thing, to go over the sins that reign among us : oppression, blood, uncleanness, sensua- lity, drunkenness, — all to the height, raging and reigning in the na- tion. I mention these things as a matter to be bewailed before the Lord by us this day ; and we ought to be affected with the considera- tion of them.
Unto this great prevalency and predominancy of sin in the whole
366 CONCERN OF CHRISTIANS
nation, there is added a strange and unspeakable security. The truth is, men were a little awakened one while in the nation. When the judgments of God — the pestilence, the fire, the sword, and, the year after, another warning from heaven — were upon us, then there was a little awakening, like a man out of a dead sleep, that lifts up his head, and rubs his eyes for a time. But I can say this, that it is now towards forty years since God enabled me to observe something in the world ; and, to my knowledge, I never observed this nation in that state of security wherein it is at this day. For, even in former times, there were warnings continually that God had a controversy with the nation ; and those that had any fear of God spake one to another about it ; and we saw and found their warnings were not in vain. But here is now a general security. Men complain of straits, want, poverty, and the like ; but as to any thing wherein God hath to do with the world, either my observation doth greatly deceive me, or I never saw, I think, so general a security as at this day in this nation. And this security hath reached us all, — even the churches of God themselves.