viour doth sufficiently and effectually oblige us all to a constant attendance upon the public ordinances. For as we are Christians, and profess ourselves to be his disciples, we are all bound to follow him: he commands us here and elsewhere to do it; and certainly there is nothing that we can be obliged to follow him in, more than in the manner of his worshipping God. And therefore, whosoever out of any humour, fancy, or slothfulness, shall presume to neglect the public worship of God, he doth not only act contrary to Christ's example, but transgresses also his command, that enjoins him to follow that example. What they who are guilty of this will have to answer for themselves, when they come to stand before Christ's tribunal, I know not. But this I know, that all those who profess themselves to be Christians, should follow Christ in all things that they can, and by consequence in this particular; and that they sin who do not. But in whatsoever other things we may fail, I know the generality of us do herein follow our Saviour's steps, that we are usually present at the public worship of God; but then I hope this is not all that we follow him in, but that as we follow him to the public ordinances, so we do likewise in our private devotions, yea, and in our behaviour both to God and man; which that we may the better do, I have endeavoured to show wherein we ought especially to follow Christ, in being obedient to our parents, subject to our governors, lowly to the lowest, loving and charitable unto all; as also in growing in wisdom and the knowledge of God, in contemning the world, in devoting ourselves wholly to the ser vice of God, in resigning our wills to his, in loving of him, in trusting on him above all things else, in daily praying unto God, and frequenting his public ordinances; to which I may also add, in denying ourselves, and taking up our crosses, which he himself hath done before us, as well as required of us. What now remains, but that seeing the steps wherein our Saviour walked, we should all resolve to walk together in them? And I hope that I need not use arguments to persuade any to it; it is enough, one would think, that Christ himself whose name we bear, expects and commands it from us. And in that the sum of all religion consisteth, in obeying and following Christ, the circumstances of whose life are recorded on purpose that we may imitate him to the utmost of our power, not only in the matter but manner of our actions; even in the circumstances as well as in the substance of them. But this I dare say we all both know and believe, -even that it is our duty to follow Christ; and therefore it is a sad, a dismal thing to consider, that among them that know it there are so few that do it: but even those that go under the name of Christians themselves, do more generally follow the beasts of the field, or the very fiends of hell, rather than Christ our Saviour. For all covetous worldlings that look no higher than earth, and all luxurious epicures that labour after no other but sensual pleasures, whom do they imitate but the beasts that perish? And as for the proud and arrogant, the deceitful and malicious seducers of their brethren, and oppressors of their neighbours, all backbiters and false accusers, all deriders of religion, and apos tates from it, they are of their father the devil, and his works they will do. And if all such persons should be taken from amongst us, how few would be left behind that follow Christ? Very few indeed! but I hope there would be some. And O, that all who read this would be in the number of them, even that they would all from this day forward resolve to come as near our blessed Saviour in all their actions, both to God and man, as possibly they can; which if we once did, what holy, what happy lives should we then lead ! How should we antedate both the work and joys of heaven! And how certain should we be to be there ere long, where Christ that is the pattern of our lives here will be the portion of our souls for ever! Thus I have shown what Christ requires of those who would be his disciples, enjoining them to deny themselves, take up their cross and follow him. And now I have done my duty in explaining these words, it is all my readers' as well as mine to practise them, which I heartily wish we would all resolve to do: and I must say it highly concerns us all to do so, for we can never be saved but by Christ, nor by him, unless we be his disciples; neither can we be his disciples, unless we do what is here required of And therefore, if we care not whether we be saved or not, we may think no more of these things, nor trouble our heads about them; but if we really desire to come to heaven, Jet us remember He who alone can bring us thither, hath told us, that "we must deny ourselves, and take up our cross, and follow him." us. THOUGHTS ON OUR CALL AND ELECTION. "MANY are called," saith our Saviour, Matt. xxii. 14. "but few chosen." O dreadful sentence ! who is able to hear it without trembling and astonishment! If he had said, that of all men that are born in the world there are but few saved, this would not have struck such a fear and horror into us; for we might still hope that though Turks, Jews, and heathens, which are far the greatest part of the world, should all perish, yet we few in comparison of them, who are baptized into his name, who profess his gospel, who enjoy his ordinances, who are admitted to his sacraments, that all who are called to him, might be chosen and saved by him; but that of those very persons who are called, there are but few chosen: what a sharp and terrible sentence is this? Who can bear it? Especially considering by whom it was pronounced, even by Christ himself. If a mere man had spoken it, we might hope it was but a human error; if an angel had uttered it, we might think it possible he might be mistaken; but that Christ himself the eternal Son of God, who is truth, and infallibility itself, that he should assert it; that he who laid down his life to redeem ours, that he who came into the world on purpose to call and save us, that he in whom alone it is possible for us to be chosen to salvation, that he should say, "Many are called but few chosen," this is a hard saying indeed, which may justly make our ears to tingle, and our hearts to tremble at the hearing of it. And yet we see our Saviour here expressly saith it, and not only here, but again, Matt. xx. 16. Whence we may gather, that it is a thing he would have us often think of, and a matter of more than ordinary importance, in that he did not think it enough to tell us of it at once, but he repeated it in the same words again, that we might be sure to remember it, and take especial notice of it, that " many are called but few chosen." In which words, that we may understand our Saviour's meaning aright, we must first consider the occasion of them in this place; which in brief was this: Our Saviour according to the custom that obtained in those days amongst the wise men of the East, delighting to use parables, thereby to represent his heavenly doctrine more clearly to the understanding of his hearers, in this chapter compares "the kingdom of God to a certain king that made a marriage for his son, and sent his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding." Where, by the king, he means the eternal God, the universal Monarch of the world, who intending to make a marriage between his Son and the church, styled the spouse of Christ, he sent to his guests before bidden, even the Jews, the seed of Abraham his friend, and at that time his peculiar people. But they not hearkening to the first invitation, he sends to them again. Yet they still made light of it, having it seems, as we most have, other business to mind, and therefore went their way, some to their farms, others to their merchandize. By which our Saviour intimates, that one great reason why men accept not |