from the Oracles of God, David fays, Pfal. 45 13. The Kings Daughter 1 all Glorious within, that is, in Spiritual Endowments of inward Vertues and Graces, but the nicety of thefe we speak of, is to be all Gay & Glorious without: we fear that too maz ny fuch spend more of the Sabbath morning in drefs fing their Heads, than preparing their Harts: I will not fay but it may often fall to be true, that fronti nulla Fides, i, e, there is no Faith to be given to Faces, for fome may look out very demure and de. vote like at a Sermon, whole Hearts in the mean time may be as far from God, as the others Ears and Eyes from the Minifter, Matth. 15. 8, 9. however they who kyth affected vanity & lightness in their Geltures are more Culpable, for the fhew of their Countenance doth witnefs against them, If. 3. 9. read to the clofe of the Chapter: Surely feeing we bave a Holy God to do with in publick Temple-Wor hip, who fees our Hearts, and obferves all our Gec ftures, we ought to carry in His Prefence with much Reverence and godly Fear; and we should ra ther defign in going to Church to fee the King in His Beauty, than to fee or to be feen of one another, Pjal, 27. 4.

5. Obferv. Are there not fome who come to the Mercat (and fo to the Church) to meet upon a Tryft about Burnefs, and thus they make an Ex. change of the Temple of the Lord, fuch deferve ick Lathes of a Scourge of Cords.

6. Obfru Are there not fome who come to the Mercat to Steal or cut a Purse, and for the fame Errand no doubt feme go to Church, where the

bave the conveniency of a Cloud, for the better ma naging of their Deigns; and by the way let me te you be in the Kok who will, for fuch an end a this in a literal fenfe, the toul Spirit will be fure to be prefent for fealing away the good word of God our of your Hearts, and to pick up Heavens Pearls als falt as Chrift le's them fall; Matth, 13. 4. 19.

Now O Chriftian I beseech thee whenever tho art minded to come to Chrifts Mercats,fee that thou be honelt hearted and religious in thine Aims and Ends, earnestly panting after the enjoyments of Je fus in the Sanctuary, tingly defiring to be edified, to get Sin and Daty difcovered, and thy Heart quick Bed, enlarged and established in Gods Ways; and fee alfo that thou be in good earneft to Buy and make a Bargain with the Son of God,

OR

SECTION VIII,

R we may take the fourth Propofition in these Terms, many a time our Lord Jesus opens His Shop and fells no Wares; i, e. He reveals & offers His Gospel grace, and yet is not welcomed nor en tertained with cordial Buyers or Bargainers. Ifai 49,4. Then I said I bave laboured in vain il have spent my Strength for nought and in vain. See alfo Luke 13 34. Rom.10 21. And let me tell you this is aftrange thing, that the best of Wares fhould go fo ill off, & flick fo long in the band of the Merchant, therefore it is worth our inqueft to know what may be the probable Reasons of this; ye may take our Gueffes thereanent in thefe following Particulars,

1, Reafin

Reafon. Why Chrifts Wars go fo ill off, many fit at home and will not go to Church, which is Challs Mercat place; fome out of Laziness ly in their Beds perhaps one half of the Lords Day, and for the other balf they are not difpofed to go out ; others again will not venture on a fhowre, or upon the cold air, and fo forth of a hundred frivulous Ex: suf and Shifts they have to keep at home, & thus negle& precious Opportunities of Ordinances and Bargaining with Chrift, but O how unreasonable and facrilegious are fuch Souls, who rob God of His due, and grudge Him that fmal portion of time that He has referved for Himfelf; The God of all things might in His abfolute unaccountable Pleasure, bave confecrated & challenged fix days of feven to Hime felf, and ordained but one of leven to us, and we fhould have been equally obliged to observe those fix, as now but one, yet (o indifcreet and ungrate are we, that even the one which is due unto God, we grudge to employ it intirely in His Service, and father are ready to convert, either the whole or apart thereof to our own carnal ungodly ufes. And herein further does our folly and unreasonableness appear, that the religious work of the Sabbath, as it concerns God, fo our felves too, for this is the great bufinefs of the Lords day, as to worship and ferve God, fo to treat and bargain with Chrift for Heaven, for Happinefs, and the eternal Interefts of our Souls, the grand concern whereof are of more moment and confequence, than all our other Inte refts and Cares whatsoever.

Reaf Why Chrifts Wares go (o ill off, few dif

cern or underitand the true Worth and Value of them, ignoti nulla cupido, People are little moved to feek or like the thing they know not, 'tis the report and reprefentation which the Understanding gives of the worth and lovableness of the Object, that (ways the Will or engages the Affections un to a purfuance of it: Chrifts Offers of Heavens Riches to the Children of Men prove often like the cafting of Pearls before Swine who trample on them, & a dunghill Cock will pick up a grain of Corn, and ferape from him a rich Diamond, being ignorant of the worth of the one, and the other being more guftie to his appetite; fo fpiritual things do not fuite with the fenfual appetites of carnal Men,they relish no fweetness in Chritt, they fpy no Beauty or Vir tue in Him wherefore He should be fought for or valued; but the intelligent Spiritual Merchant, who knows the true Worth of Chrift and His Grace, will eil all that he bath to buy the Pearl of Price, Mat 13.46

3. Reaf. Why Chrifts Wares go fo ill off, few feel their need of them; alas! people lay not to beart what hearts they have, devoid of all good, poffeffed of all ill, which lays them under an abfolute ne ceffity of improving and imploying Chrift, elfe they will perish in their poverty, and die wretched,nak ed, blind: O! the plaguie ftupidity and ignorance of the most part, whereby they are kept infenfible of their greatest wants and needs, which was the unhappy Cafe of the Laodiceans in our Text, Rev. 3.17 And thou knoweft not that thou art wretched &c. O infatuated Sinner if thou kneweft thy necef Gries and wants; thou wouldeft more fenfibly feek

Kunto

into Jefus, and baften to Comply with His Coun. fel, to bay of him thofe fpiritual neceffaries, that he graciously offers, and thou undoubtedly needeft. If thou wert apprehensive that the Avenger of Blood is near to give the fatal frock, thou wouldst find thy need of making speed to the City of Refuge, if thou didst feel thy fpiritual Plagues, Sores and Sickneffes, thou wouldst find tby need of a Phyfici an; but as the Prophet fays Hof, 4. 6 My People are defroyed for lack of Knowledge, the want of the knowledge of our wants is one of the greateft Reafons of our Ruine; O feck unto God to make thee fenfible of thy needs.

4. Rf Why Chrifts Wares go fo ill off, few are content to come up to the full Price, fome are fo foolish as to lose a Pearl for a penny ; lome would part with a few Lufts,but not with all; fome would be at the pains of a few Duties, but they have not an impartial refped to all Gods Commandments; fome would part with a moyetie of their Eftates and Goods for Chrift, but they will not run the rifck of lofing their all for him, nor are refolved to refilt unto the blood friving against in: Herod came a great length, but he would not part with his Herodiar; the Young man in the Gospel bad fair for Chrift, but he would not quite with bis Treasure of pon Earth, for a better Treafure in Heaven, though it pinched him fare that the price ran fo high

5. Reaf. Why Chrifts Wares go foll off many are better pleafed with the Devils Wares than with Chrifts, and are fooner w heedled to bargain with Satan, than perfwaded to buy from Chrift; bence