Again, Is it not evident that Jesus Christ has had but little share in your thoughts and affections? Do not the things of this perishing world gain the pre-eminence? Have you not a thousand thoughts of a thousand trifles, for one affectionate thought of Jesus, the darling of his Father? Have you not been generally thoughtless of him all your lives? Take the time that is nearest to you as a specimen, which surely you have not yet forgot. Recollect now how many affectionate thoughts you have had of him the week past, or even upon this sacred morning, when you had this solemn worship immediately in view. May not even this short review convince you that you are guilty of the most absurd and unreasonable thing in the world; a thing which appears so improbable in an abstract view, that one would hardly believe you would venture upon it; I mean neglecting the Son of God, who has visited our world upon such designs of love?

Again, Is Jesus Christ the favourite subject of your conversation? Is his dear name the sweetest sound your lips can pronounce? And do you love to sit with his few friends in our guilhearts ty world, and talk over the wonder of his love, till your burn within you, like the disciples in conference on the way to Emmaus? Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh ; and were he uppermost in your hearts, he would have a proper share in your conversation. Or if you should mingle in a company (and such company is every where to be found) where prudence would not suffer you to dwell upon this darling subject, would the restraint be painful to you, and would his love, like a smothered fire in your hearts, struggle to break out, and vent itself-vent itself at least in some retired corner in his presence, if you could not enjoy the pleasure of letting it flame out in the society of his creatures? But, alas! is not this the reverse of your true character? Are you not disgusted, or struck silent as soon as the conversation takes this turn? With horror I think of it-to converse concerning Jesus Christ is generally deemed needless, impertinent, or ostentatious, by creatures that profess themselves his disciples, redeemed by his blood! And does not this horrid guilt fasten upon some of you?

Farther, are not your hearts destitute of his love? If you deny the charge, and profess that you love him, where are the inseparable fruits and effects of his love? Where are your eager desires and pantings after him? Where is your delight to converse with

Does not

him in his ordinances? Where your anxiety, your zeal, your earnest endeavours to secure his favour? Where is your conscientious observance of his commandments? For he himself has made this the test of your love to him; then, says he, are ye my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. John xv. 14. And again, If any man love me, he will keep my words. John xiv. 28. the evidence, from this inquiry, turn against you? Are you not convicted in your consciences, that if these are the inseparable fruits of love, you are entirely destitute of it? Is it not evident to yourselves, that your own pleasure, your own worldly interest, your honour or ease, is the general rule of your conduct, without any regard to his will?

Inquire farther, Have you learned to intrust your souls in his hands, to be saved by him entirely in his own way! Or do you not depend, in part at least, upon your own imaginary goodness? Do you not wonder and start at the doctrine of grace, and secretly disgust it! Does it not appear strange to you, to be told, that after all your good works, God will deal with you entirely as guilty sinners, void of all goodness, and have no regard at all to your supposed merit in the distribution of his mercy, but entirely to the righteousness of Jesus Christ? Are you not utter strangers to that exploit of faith which casts a poor guilty depraved soul, void of all goodness, upon the mere mercy of God, through Jesus Christ, who justifies the ungodly? For this purpose the Son of God came into the world; and you do not give him a proper reception, but wickedly reject him as well as the Jews, unless you thus intrust yourselves to him.

The evidence grows upon me as I proceed; and I cannot but wonder you do not perceive it yourselves. Can any thing be more plain than that you make light of Christ! that you choose to have as little to do with him as possible! that you have no delight in his service! Does not your own consciences now tell you, there are this and that, and a thousand things, that you have more pleasure in! Do not your hearts fly off from him, whenever they are urged to approach him!. When you are a little awakened with a sense of your guilt and danger, and ready with eager eyes to look about for a Saviour, alas! how naturally do you relapse into carelessness and security! How soon do you drop your purpose of seeking after him with unwearied endeavours, till you find him! how ready are you to take up with any thing in his stead! A little repentance and reformation are sub

stituted in his place. You would rather get ease to your consciences from any quarter than from him. Like Judas, you sell him for a few pieces of silver; that is, you would rather part with him than give up your over-eager pursuit of earthly things.

A thousand such facts might be easily produced, which sadly prove that the blessed Jesus does not meet with that reception from multitudes among us which his character demands. Indeed their not being easily convicted of sin is an evidence they are guilty; for if they had a real regard for him, they would be concerned to inquire how the case stands, or how their hearts are disposed towards him. And a little honest inquiry would soon lead them into the truth.

And now I have a few questions to propose to such of you as are guilty of neglecting the Son of God, or have never given him that reception that might justly be expected of you; questions of the utmost importance, which I beg you would put home to your own hearts.

The first is, do you not think that by thus neglecting the Lord Jesus, you contract the most aggravated guilt? It is the Son of God, his only Son, his well-beloved Son, that you neglect. And must not the Father resent it? Do you not touch his honour in a very tender point? and will he not muster up all the forces of omnipotence to avenge the affront! Since you neglect him, whom the Father loves; him, whom all the heavenly armies adore; him, whom all good men upon earth treat with the highest honour; since you neglect a person of infinite glory and dignity, your rightful Sovereign and only Saviour, how deep is your guilt! what a horrid exploit of wickedness this! neither heathens nor devils can sin up to such a pitch devils cannot, because no Saviour was ever provided for them, or offered to them; and heathens cannot, because a Saviour was never revealed to them. You stand without a rival by your horrid pre-eminence in guilt. To you may be applied the words of Jesus, as well as to the unbelieving Jews: If I had not come and spoken unto them, they would not have had sin; that is, they would not have had sin of so aggravated a nature; but now they have no

cloak for their sin, John xv. 22. they are utterly inexcusable; for they have both seen and hated me and my Father. John xv. 24. The next question I would ask you is, must not your punishment be peculiarly aggravated, since it will be proportioned to your guilt? To be punished not only for sins against the law of

nature, but against revelation, against the gospel of grace, against the love of a crucified Saviour-how dreadful must this be! He that despised Moses' law, died without mercy, says St. Paul: of how much sorer punishment (sorer than dying without mercy! O terrible!) suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God. Heb. x. 29. You may make light of this now, but O! it will not prove light in the issue. Here let me mention a most alarming consideration: The love that God bears to his Son is the great source of all our hopes : it is because he loves him, that he accepts of his atonement for our sins; it is because he loves him, that he forgives and loves believing sinners for his sake; it is because he loves the head, that he shews such favour to the members; but as to such as neglect his Son, even the love which the Father has for him, becomes a source of peculiar terror, and prompts him to signal vengeance. "If he infinitely loves his Son, he must infinitely resent it to see him neglected and slighted by others. If he loves him he will avenge the affront offered him; and the more he loves him, the more severely he must resent and avenge it." How wretched then is their condition, upon whom even the love of God for his Son calls aloud for vengeance! and how signal will the punishment be, that the Father's love for his Son will inflict upon the despisers of him!

The third question I would propose to you is, How do you expect to escape this signal vengeance, if you still continue to neglect the Lord Jesus? Answer the apostle's question if you can: How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation? Heb. ii. 3. You cannot expect Jesus will be a Saviour while you treat him thus and if he refuse, to whom will you turn ?-What angel or saint can saye whom he is determined to destroy? If he be against you, who can be for you? Remember the text the Father sent his Son last into the world. He comes last, and therefore if you reject him, you need not look for another Saviour. You must take him or none : take him or perish forever.

I would further ask you, If your guilt and danger be so great, and if in your present condition you are ready every moment to be ingulfed in everlasting destruction, does it become you to be so easy and careless, so gay and merry! If your bodies were sick, you would be pensive and sad, and use means for their recovery: if your estates were in danger, you would be anxious till they were secured if you were condemned to die for a crime against civil government, you would be solicitous for a pardon. In short, it is

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Rejection of Christ most unreasonable Iniquity.

natural for man to be pensive, anxious, and sad, in circumstances of danger; and it is shocking to the common sense of mankind, to see one thoughtless and gay in such circumstances. Can you be easy under such a load of guilt? careless under a sentence of condemnation? and negligent, when the possibility of deliverance is set before you? I would not willingly see you sorrowful and dejected but when your case calls for it, when your temporal sorrow may be medicinal, and save you from everlasting pain, when it is as necessary in your circumstances as sickness at the stomach in the operation of physic, then I cannot form a kinder wish for you, than that your hearts may be pierced and broken with penitential sorrows. You have, in your manner, commemorated the birth of a Saviour this Christmas; that is, you have danced and caroused, and sinned to his honour. But now I come after, and demand in his name another kind of reception for him: I call you to the sorrowful work of repentance, for your ill treatment of him. Instead of such mirth and extravagance, would it not have been more proper for you to have listened to St. James's advice, Be afflicted, and mourn and weep: let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy into heaviness. Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God; that mighty hand which can crush ten thousand worlds, and which is lifted up against you to revenge the quarrel of his beloved Son. Can you return home this evening as thoughtless and merry as usual? Well, your career will soon be at an end: your vanity and trifling will soon be over. Perhaps, as Jeremiah denounced to the false prophet, this year thou shalt die; Jer. xxviii. 16, and O! that will ingulf you in everlasting sorrows.

Therefore what would you now think of making one honest trial, before it be too late, to obtain an interest in that Saviour whom you have hitherto neglected? O! will you not make trial, whether the disaffection of your hearts towards him, inveterate as it is, may yet be subdued by divine grace? whether he, who prayed with his dying breath, even for his murderers, will not have mercy upon you? whether the virtue of his blood is not still sufficient to cleanse you from all sin? O! will you give up the matter as desperate, before you make a thorough trial?

Your case is indeed very discouraging, but it is not yet hope. less; if I thought it was, I would not say one word to you about

* This Sermon is dated Jan. 16, 1758,