greatest character that is given of Moses, the darling and favourite of God, is, that he was very meek, above all the men that were upon the face of the earth, Numb. xii. 3. Thus also the character of Cornelius, by which he was so endeared to God, is, that he was a just and devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway, Acts x. 2. And, in a word, the general character of those whom God accepts is, In every nation, he who doth righteousness is accepted of God, Acts x. 35. Thus moral goodness is the great stamp and impress that renders men current in the esteem of God; whereas, on the contrary, the common brand by which hypocrites and false pretenders to religion are stigmatized is, their being zealous for the positives, and cold and indifferent as to the morals of religion. But so our Saviour characters the Pharisees; Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, which yet was a positive duty, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, ye strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel, Matt. xxiii. 23, 24. plainly implying the morals of religion to exceed the positives in weight and moment, as much as a camel does a gnat in bulk. Since therefore moral goodness is always mentioned as the great character of God's favourites, and the neglect of it, out of a pretended zeal to the positive duties of religion, is always recorded as a mark of the most odious hypocrites; this is a sufficient argument how high a value God sets upon the moralities of religion.

VI. And lastly, another evidence from scripture, that moral goodness is the principal part of religion, is, that at the great account between God and us, his main inquisition will be concerning such actions as are morally good or evil. For so, Rom. ii. 6. we are told, that God will render to every man accord ing to his deeds: to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for honour and glory and immortality, eternal life: but to them who are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, tribulation and wrath, indignation and anguish. And accordingly, Enoch, as he is quoted by St. Jude, verse 14, 15. declares this to be the occasion of the Lord's coming with thousands of his saints, viz. to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him; all which are matters of fact against the eternal rules of morality. And our Saviour himself, in that popular scheme and description he gives of proceedings of the day of judgment, plainly declares, that one of the principal matters he will then inquire into, will be our neglect or observance of that great moral duty of charity towards the poor and needy, Matt. xxv. 31-46. which is a plain evidence, that our obeying or disobeying the eternal laws of morality is that by which we do most please or displease God; since it is upon this that he will most insist in his final arbitration of our eternal fate. For since his last judgment is only the final execution of his laws, we may be sure, that whatsoever it is that be will principally insist on in his judgment, that is the

principal matter of his laws. And now having sufficiently proved the truth of the proposition, I proceed to the reasons of it; upon what accounts it is, that God hath made moral goodness the main and principal part of our religion. The chief reasons of which are these four.

First, Because it is by moral goodness that we do most honour him.

Secondly, Because it is by this that we do most imitate him.

Thirdly, Because it is by this that we advance to our own happiness.

Fourthly, When all our positive duty is ceased, this is to be the eternal work and business of our nature.

I. God hath made moral goodness the principal part of our religion, because it is by this that we do him the greatest honour. It is an excellent saying of Hierocles, Τιμὴν ποιεῖται τοῦ ἀνενδεοῦς ἡ τῶν ὑπ ̓ ἐκείνου προτεινομένων ἀγαθῶν ὑποδοχή. οὐ γὰρ τιμήσεις τὸν Θεὸν διδούς τι αὐτῷ, ἀλλ ̓ ἄξιος τοῦ λαβεῖν τὰ παρ' ἐκείνου γινόμενος : "The best honour we can do to a self-sufficient being is to receive the good things he holds forth "unto us; and therefore it is not by giving to God "that you honour him, but by rendering yourselves

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worthy to receive of him ;" for, saith he,"OσTIS TIμặ τὸν Θεὸν ὡς προσδεόμενον, οὗτος λέληθεν οἰόμενος ἑαυτὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἶναι κρείττονα : i. e. “ Whosoever gives honour to "God as to one that wants, doth not consider that he thereby sets himself above God." For by his own self-sufficiency he is infinitely removed above all capacity of want, and so can never need any additional contributions of glory and happiness from his creatures. For glory being nothing else but the resplen

dency of perfection, which always reflects its own beams upon itself, wherever there is infinite perfection, (as to be sure there is in the nature of God,) there must an infinite glory proceed from it; and therefore being infinitely glorious in himself, it is impossible that any thing we do should add any further glory to him. So that if we would truly honour and glorify him, it must not be by giving to, but by receiving from him. Now the best thing we can receive from God is himself; and himself we do receive in our strict compliance with the eternal laws of goodness. Which laws being transcribed from the nature of God, from his own eternal righteousness and goodness, we do by obeying them derive God's nature into ours. So that while we write after the copy of his laws, we write out the perfections of his being; and his laws being the seal upon which he hath engraven his nature, we do, in obeying them, take impression from him, and stamp his blessed nature on our own. For all those virtuous dispositions of mind which we acquire by the practice of virtue are so many genuine signatures of God, taken from the seal of his law, and participations of his nature. For so holiness, which consists in a conformity of soul with the eternal laws of goodness, is in scripture called the signature or impression of the Spirit of God, whereby we are sealed unto the day of redemption, Ephes. iv. 30. and such as do righteousness are said to be born of God, 1 John ii. 29. which implies their deriving from him, who is their divine parent, a divine and godlike nature, even as children do their human nature from their human parents. So that by the practice of moral goodness we receive from God the best thing

he can bestow, viz. a divine and godlike nature; and consequently by so doing we render him the highest honour and glory. For since we can no otherwise honour him but by receiving from him, we doubtless do him the greatest honour when we receive himself, by partaking of the perfections of his nature, which are the greatest gift he can communicate to us. Herein, saith our Saviour, is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit, John xv. 8. Μόνος γὰρ οἶδε τιμᾷν ὁ προηγουμένως ἱερεῖον ἑαυτὸν προά ywu, saith the aforenamed philosopher; i. e. he only knows how to honour God who presents himself a sacrifice to him, carves his own soul into a divine image, and composes his mind into a temple for the entertainment of God, and the reception of the divine light and glory. It is then therefore that we best honour God, when by the practice of true godliness we conform our wills and affections to him; and derive into ourselves his nature and perfections. And should you erect to him a temple more magnificent than Solomon's, and load his altars with hecatombs of sacrifices, and make it perpetually ring with psalms and resounding choirs of hallelujahs, it would not be comparably so great an honour to him, as to convert your own souls into living temples, and make them the habitations of his glory and perfection. For he values no sacrifices like that of an obedient will, delights in no choir like that of pure and heavenly affections, nor hath he in all his creation an ensign of honour so truly worthy of him as that of a divine and godlike soul; a soul that reflects his image, and shines back his own glory upon him. Wherefore, since it is by the practice of moral goodness that we receive God, and copy his nature into