you Vol. I. ticks and Subtilties of Man fhall be miferably exploded and expos'd, and the Lord alone fhall be exalted in that Day? Then fhall Electors and Elected appear before the Fudgment-Seat of Chrift, and give an Account of your Truft, and then fhall ye all receive according to what have done in the Body, whether it be good or evil, Ah! Day joyful to the Righteous, but dif mal to the Wicked! I will add one short Remark, and I have done. The Language of the Text feems to me to be wholly Me taphorical, confifting of Military Terms: This indeed fuggefts to us that Reforma tion is a work wherein you must expect to be encounter'd with great Oppofition and many Difficulties, But let no Man's heart fail him for this; The Caufe is the Lord's, and whoever engages in it, fights under the Banner of God, enjoys the Prayers of good Men, the Ministry of Angels, and the Aid of the Holy Spirit; and may with a holy Affurance ufe the words, and expect the Succefs which Mofes did when the Ark fet forth. Arife, O God, and let thine Enemies be fcatter'd; Let them alfo that bate thee flee before thee, The 277 The Reward of Righte oufness. Ser. 10. JOHN XVIII. 36. T Hough our Saviour came not into the World to Embroil and Deftroy, but to fave that which was loft, not to Enflave and Opprefs, but to redeem Mankind from the Bondage of Sin; and all those evils both Temporal and Eternal which muft needs attend it, and though he advanc'd and carried on this defign by the demonftration of the Spirit and of Power, by the most furprising Miracles, by but a little lefs-furprising Wisdom, and by an unfpotted purity of Life; yet fee what human nature is, when fermented by Prejudice and Paffion, by a blind Zeal and Faction: The moft perfect virtue could not secure him from Reproach, and Calumny; nor a boundless Charity from Hatred and Perfecution: At firit they reprefented him either as a Madman or Demoniack, or as a Vol. I. Wine-bibber or a Glutton, a friend to Publicans and Sinners; converting one while the ftrictness of his Virtue, and the warmth of his Zeal, another while his very Goodness and Charity, his Gentleness and Sweetness into a Crime; but afterwards when their Rage, and Jealou fie, their Envy and Malice increas'd with his Reputation and Authority, they now form defigns not only against his Honour, but his Life too: They bring against him another fort of Accufation, they charge him with Treafon and Rebellion, with an Ambitious defign to undermine the Power of Cefar, and fet up himself for a King; and fo confequently that his Humility was only a popular Artifice, his Virtue only a Disguife for his Ambition, and all his Miracles but fo many Cheats and Impo ftures, Serving to promote this one End. To this accufation (for I meddle not now with the former) our Saviour an fwers in my Text, that he was a King indeed, and that a Kingdom did expect him, but a very different one from that of Cefar's: That the Grandeur of this World was a thing beneath him, Ambition too mean a paffion for his Soul; he had, he confess'd a defign upon Mankind, but it was only to make 'em Wife, to to make 'em Free, to make 'em Good, Ser. 1o. to make 'em Great and Happy; in a word to make 'em sharers with him in a Kingdom, Incorruptible, and Undefiled, that fadeth not away, referved in Heaven, for him and all fuch as would imitate him, and adhere to him. This is a short account of theSense and Reason of these Words, My Kingdom is not of this World. I defign not to confine them to a Perfonal Vindication of the Honour or Sovereignty of our Lord; but to extend their Sence fo far as to give all the faithful followers of Chrift, an intereft in them; and this you will acknowledge I have a fufficient warrant to do, when you call to mind that the Kingdom of Chrift and of Chriftians is one and the fame: that the whole Tenour of the Gofpel affures every man that he has in his degree and proportion, the fame joy, the fame Crown and Reward, fet before him which Chrift had. Thus Eph. 2. 6. St. Paul tells us, God has rais'd us up, and made us fit together with Chrift in heavenly places. Thus our Saviour Rev. 3. 21. To him that overcometh will I grant to fit with me in my Throne, even as I alfo overcame and am fet with Father, in his Throne: And Luke 12. 32. Fear not little Flock, for 'tis your Father's my good Vol. I. good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. The Doctrine then that I will obferve to you from thefe words, is this, That there is a great and Glorious reward for all Righteous and good Men. Now to illuftrate and fortify this propofition, and to imprint it as deeply as I can upon your minds, I will make good thefe two or three things. 1. That Religion cannot be its own reward, 2. That this prefent World cannot afford us a fufficient one. 3: 3. That how wonderful and furprizing foever an Eternal Kingdom may feem to us, jet have we fufficient grounds to expect nothing lefs, in reward of a Righteous Life. ward. 1. Religion cannot be its own Re 'Tis on all hands allowed, that Vertue ftands in need of an encouragement, and the Reafon of this is very Evident: Human Nature is corrupt and frail, and Temptations numerous and ftrong; vertue confequently must frequently confift in Inftances of Mortification and Self-denial, and muft contend with much Oppofition and great Difficulties: God therefore with infinite Wisdom and Goodness accommodating the Gospel to our state and nature, has taken care to furnish us with an abundant confolation and |