fure, he will never fave that man who defpifeth his ordinances, or wilfully neglects to make ufe of them, although administered by men of like paffions with himself.

I will only mention one other great blefsing of a standing ministry. Ye (faith our Saviour) are the falt of the earth; that is, Ye are defigned to preferve the world, as much as poffible from corruption, as falt does other bodies; and by that means prevent the judgments of God from falling upon them.

And it is most certain, (I wish we had not too fad a proof of it amongst ourselves) it is moft certain, that the more the minifters of God are despised, and the ordinances of God neglected; where church difcipline is either contemned or discountenanced; there iniquity will abound, the kingdom of Satan will be re-established; and, as fure as we live, judgments will follow.

Thus I have fet before you fome of the many bleffings, as well as the works of a minifter of God. It is true thefe bleffings would be more vifible, if every minister of God would faithfully perform what his duty requires of him, and what he folemnly pro¬ mifed at his ordination.

But then confider, good Chriftians, that the perfonal failings of men do not make void the commiffion they have received from God. Even a civil magiftrate, in things lawful, is to be obeyed, because he has authority from

above, though he fhould not be regular in his private life. It is the commiffion, the power, the business he is fent about, and the authority that fends him, which we are to look at, and not the failings of the man.

Be affured of it, therefore, Christians, if you on your part do not hinder God's graces and bleffings from falling upon you, God will certainly vouchfafe them to you upon the prayers of his own minifters, and through the ordinances by them administered.

'Do not,' faith Maimonides, fay, what availeth the bleffing of this fimple priest? for the bleffing does not depend upon him, ' but upon the most holy God, who has ordained him to bless you.'

You fee, therefore, the great profaneness of those who go about to prostitute the ordinances of God, by making them the common bufinefs of all Chriftians.

Well then, if the minister of God does, with a real effect, blefs all those that are difpofed to receive his bleffing, and repair to the church to receive it; how unhappy are they who, for their fins, are shut out of the church, as well as they who deprive themselves of the bleffing of God, by wilfully abfenting from the publick ordinances!

Little do Chriftians confider what they lose by doing fo.

You have seen, good Christians, our work and our burthen. You are, or may be, par

takers

takers of the bleffings of our ministrations.Let us befeech you, not to add to our burthen, which is great enough, God knows, if we perform it as we fhould do;-do not add to our trouble, by defpifing our miniftry, or make it useless to yourselves, by your ungodly lives.

When you remember that we are Chrift's minifters, remember alfo, that the master is always difhonoured when his fervants are flighted.

It has always been the devil's aim to dif countenance, by his agents, the ministers of the gofpel; he knowing very well, that bad as the world is, it would be ten times worse, if there were none to stand in the gap, none to tell men their duty, none to keep up order and discipline.

Suffer yourselves, Chriftian brethren, to be inftructed-to be admonished-to be reproved, by thofe that are in Chrifts ftead. And if any of you fhould have the misfortune to fall into fins inconfiftent with Christianity and falvation, fuffer yourselves to be reformed by godly difcipline; and blefs God that he has appointed a fure way, if it is not your own faults, of restoring you to peace and pardon.

And if the duties of Chriftianity, or the difficulties of our proper callings, affright us, let us call to mind that fcripture question, Who can dwell with everlasting burnings? and all the difficulties we fear will vanish.

In fhort; this is the time in which we are to choose what we are to be, and where we must be, to all eternity.

Christians may flatter themselves, that their falvation is in their own hands; and that they can make their peace with God when they please:-they will find to their coft that they have a work to do, and to finish, even before they come to die.

It is an exceeding great comfort to the ferious part of the living, when they can lay their dead friends in the grave, in fure and certain hopes of a bleffed refurrection.

And bleffed be God, that this is the cafe before us. This good man's life, as a Chrif tian, has been unblameable;-as a paftor, for threefcore years, laborious and exemplary;always refident upon his cure, always contented with his condition, and never eager to increase his work and his burthen, at the hazard of his foul.

But his life, his virtues, and his character, are fo well known, not only to this congregation, but to this whole land, that I shall not injure his memory, by recounting only a part of them.

One would only with and hope, (if the evil tempers and times we are fallen into did not difcourage us from hoping for it) that he may have many followers, as a Chriftian, as a miniJer of Chrift, as a neighbour, and as a friend;

in

in all which capacities, he has most worthily difcharged himself.

And now his good name and his good works do follow him; and all we must follow him very foon, either with or without thefe witneffes of our behaviour in this world.

I have but one word or two more to add. First, to you, my brethren; and it is to put you, and myself, in mind of a truth which we fhall all believe when we come to die;that is, that our final fentence will, in a great measure, depend upon the faithful difcharge of our ministry. What is our hope, faith St. Paul, What is our hope, or joy, or crown, or rejoicing? Are not ye in the prefence of our Lord Jefus Chrift at his coming? that is, all the hope we fhall then have, of our being. accepted of God, is this,-That we have faithfully discharged our duty to the flock over which the Holy Ghoft hath made us overfeers. The care of our flocks must be our glory or our fhame, our crown or our condemnation.

And with you, good Chriftians, who are our flock, I would leave this wholfome admonition of the apoftle: We beseech you, brethren, to know, that is, acknowledge, thofe which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; and to efteem them very highly for their work's fake; for it is they that muft give an account; that they may do it • 1 Theff. li. 19.

f 1 Theff. v. 12.