larger view, and humbly hope that my younger brethren in the ministry may be in some measure excited and encouraged hereby to do their part toward the revival of decaying piety. It is expressly with this view and design, that my worthy friend Mr. David Some, in Leicestershire, published an excellent sermon last year, the perusal whereof I would heartily recommend to all my brethren.

The following exhortation to the people was delivered in several discourses to the congregation which I serve in the gospel; and I would hope it has made some serious impressions on the minds of those who heard it, since it had been much desired that they might have a review of it by the assistance of the press. Among the many motives which may be urged upon the consciences of our hearers, in order to awaken them to strengthen the things that remain and are ready to die, I thought it not improper to borrow some arguments for this purpose from their own profession as protestant dissenters, and as separating from the established worship of the nation: And this I have done without entering into a detail of all the grounds of our practice, or vindicating the cause of nonconformity, which has been sufficiently performed by other writers. While we quit all the outward advantages of the national establishment by worshipping in separate assemblies, it is presumed, in the nature of things, that we do it, or at least that we should do it, upon the prospect of some better advantages for religion; and we hereby also lay ourselves under special obligations to make the best improvement of these real or supposed advantages.

But this particular motive relating to the dissenters is pursued only in the middle part of that discourse. The first and the latter sections of it are of equal concern and importance to protestants of every name and party: The sense and style are suited to common understandings: Novelties and elegancies are less needful, where the writer's whole aim is to charge and impress the conscience with the plain rules and duties of practical religion. And may the Spirit of God, by his heavenly influences, render what was designed sincerely for the revival of real godliness amongst us all, effectual to attain this blessed end!

There is no party of christians whatsoever, who have liberty to choose their own way of worship, but pretend they are blessed with some special advantages for the service of God, and their increase in piety or virtue beyond their neighbours, and these pretended advantages lay them under proportionable obligations of duty: A great part of this address, which I have made to our people, tends to enforce every sort of engagement upon their consciences, and to excite them to superior degrees of holiness; and it is the sincere desire of my soul, that our brethren of the church of England also may improve to the utmost all their public privileges of every kind, for the increase of virtue and religion. May every denomination of christians in the land maintain a holy emulation with each other, which of us shall run swiftest in the course of the christian life, and make the most eminent advances toward the heavenly world! Amen.

AN

HUMBLE ATTEMPT,

&c. &c.

AN EXHORTATION TO MINISTERS.

WHEN true religion falls under a general and remarkable decay, it is time for all that

are concerned to awaken and rouse themselves to fresh vigour and activity, in their several posts of service. If the interests of piety and virtue are things fit to be encouraged and maintained in the world, if the kingdom of the blessed God among men be worthy to be supported, surely it is a necessary and becoming zeal for every one who hath the honour to be a minister of this kingdom, to take alarm at the appearance of such danger; and each of us should enquire, What can I do to strengthen the things which remain and are ready to die, as well as to recover what is lost? Let my brethren therefore in the ministry forgive me, if I presume at this season to set before them a plain and serious exhortation. It was prepared for a public solemnity, wherein an esteemed young friend and brother entered into the ministerial office; and upon this account I have used much more freedom in the language than I could ever pretend to justify on any other occasion. It was in the name of my reverend brethren then present, as well as in my own, that the exhortation addresses him in the manner following:

You have this day devoted and dedicated yourself to the service of Christ in the ministry of the gospel, and particularly for the edification of this church. Your brethren in the ministry have also done all that they can do toward the dedicating and devoting you to the same sacred service, by the various solemn transactions of the day; and now we entreat, we exhort, we charge you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and in the words of the great apostle, that you take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfil it; Col. iv. 17. While we are endeavouring to press this charge on your conscience, we would speak also, each of us, to our own souls, and renew the awful charge upon ourselves. We would call to mind our own vows and engagements this day, and revive our decaying and dying zeal in this sacred and important service. What I have to say on this subject shall be contained under four general heads:

I. Take heed to your own personal religion, as absolutely necessary to the right discharge of the ministerial office.

II. Take heed to your private studies and preparations for public service. III. Take heed to your public labours, and actual ministrations in the church. IV. Take heed to your conversation in the world, and especially among the flock of Christ over which you preside. Bear with me while I enlarge a little upon each of these.

SECTION I.

OF A MINISTER'S PERSONAL RELIGION.

I. TAKE heed to your own personal religion, especially to the work of God in your own heart, as absolutely necessary to the right discharge of the ministerial work. Surely

there is the highest obligation on a preacher of the gospel to believe and practise what he preaches. He is under the most powerful and sacred engagements to be a christian himself, who goes forth to persuade the world to become christians. A minister of Christ who is not a hearty believer in Christ, and a sincere follower of him, is a most shameful and inconsistent character, and forbids in practice what he recommends in words and sentences. But it is not enough for a minister to have a common degree of piety and virtue, equal to the rest of christians; he should transcend and surpass others. The leaders and officers of the army under the blessed Jesus should be more expert in the christian exercises, and more advanced in the holy warfare, than his fellow-soldiers are supposed to be; 2 Cor. vi. 4. In all things approving ourselves (saith the apostle) as the ministers of God in much patience, &c. and I may add, in much of every christian grace. A little and low degree of it is not sufficient for a minister; see therefore not only that you practise every part and instance of piety and virtue which you preach to others, but abound therein, and be eminent beyond and above the rest, as your station in the church is more exalted, and as your character demands.

The world expects more from you, your own conscience requires more of you, and Christ your Lord both requires and expects much more religion to be found in you, who are the leader, than in the rest of the flock, since your advantages are much superior to most of theirs. Your time and life are in a special manner devoted to the things of God and religion, and the heavenly world: Your particular calling as a minister is much nearer akin to your general calling as a christian, than that of the rest of mankind; and you ought to improve it for the advancement of your christianity. You are more disengaged from the busy cares and embarrassments of this life than other christians, that you may have your heart and soul more entirely employed in things that relate to the life

to come.

Your daily duty calls you to be more conversant with the word of God, with the rules of piety and the gospel of salvation: The precepts which require universal godliness, and the promises that encourage it, are better known to you, and your mind is better furnished with them, or at least it should be so. You are obliged to copy out the life of Christ more exactly, that you may be an example to the flock in every thing that is holy. Your temptations to a vain and worldly spirit, and a sensual temper of mind, are much fewer than those of many other men, whose hearts and hands are necessarily busied in the affairs of the world, and who are more frequently constrained into the company of sinners. Now since your helps in the way to heaven, both as to the knowledge and practice of duty, are much greater than what others enjoy, and your obstacles and impediments are in some instances less than theirs, it will be a shameful thing in you, as it is a matter of shame to any of us, to sink below the character of other christians in the practice of our holy religion, or even if we do not excel the most of them, since our obligations to it, as well as our advantages for it, are so much greater than others. Take heed therefore to your own practical and vital religion, as to the truth, reality, and evidence of it, as to the liveliness and power of it, as to the growth and increase of it.

I. Take heed to your own practical religion, to the truth and reality of it, and the clear and undoubted evidence of it in your own conscience. Give double diligence to make your calling and election sure. See to it with earnest solicitude, that you be not mistaken in so necessary and important à concern; for a minister who preaches up the religion of Christ, yet has no evidence of it in his own heart, will lie under vast discou

ragements in his work; and if he be not a real christian himself, he will justly fall under double damnation. Keep a constant holy jealousy over your own soul, lest while you preach to the eternal salvation of others, yourself become a cast-away, or disapproved of God, and for ever banished from his presence; 1 Cor. ix. 27. Call your own soul often to account; examine the temper, the frame, and the motions of your heart with all holy severity, so that the evidences of your faith in Jesus, and your repentance for sin, and your conversion to God, be many and fair, be strong and unquestionable; that you may walk on with courage and joyful hope toward heaven, and lead on the flock of Christ thither with holy assurance and joy.

II. Take heed to your own religion, as to the liveliness and power of it. Let it not be a sleepy thing in your bosom, but sprightly and active, and always awake. Keep your own soul near God in the way in which you first came near him, i. e. by the mediation of Jesus Christ. Let no distance and estrangement grow between God and you, between Christ and you. Maintain much converse with God by prayer, by reading his word, by holy meditation, by heavenly-mindedness, and universal holiness in the frame and temper of your own spirit. Converse with God and with your own soul in the duties of secret religion, and walk always in the world as under the eye of God. Every leader of the flock of God should act as Moses did, should live as seeing him that is invisible; Heb. xi. 27. III. Take heed to your personal religion, as to the growth and increase of it. Let it be ever upon the advancing hand. Be tenderly sensible of every wandering affection toward vanity, every deviation from God and your duty, every rising sin, every degree of growing distance from God. Watch and pray much, and converse much with God, as one of his ministring angels in flesh and blood, and grow daily in conformity to God and your blessed Saviour, who is the first minister of his Father's kingdom, and the fairest image of his Father. Such a conduct will have several happy influences towards the fulfilling of your ministry, and will render you more fit for every part of your public minis

trations.

1. Hereby you will improve in your acquaintance with divine things, and the spiritual parts of religion, that you may better teach the people both truth and duty. Those who are much with God may expect and hope, that he will teach them the secret of his covenant, and the ways of his mercy, by communications of divine light to their spirits. The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and he will shew them his covenant; Psalm xxv. 14. Luther used to say, that he got more knowledge in a short time by prayer sometimes, than by the study and labour of many hours.

2. Hereby you will be more fit to speak to the great God at all times, as a son with holy confidence in him as your father, and you will be better prepared to pray with and for the people. You will have an habitual readiness for the work, and increase in the gift of prayer. You will obtain a treasure and fluency of sacred language, suited to address God on all occasions. Hereby you will gain a freedom and interest in the throne of grace, and become a more powerful intercessor for your people, under the influence of Jesus the great Intercessor,, who is ever near the throne; and be sure you improve your interest in heaven, for the edification of those committed to your care.

3. Hereby you will be kept near to the spring of all grace, to the fountain of strength and comfort in your work: You will be ever deriving fresh anointings, fresh influences, daily lights and powers, to enable you to go through all the difficulties and labours of

your sacred office.

4. Hereby, when you come among men in your sacred ministrations, you will appear, and speak, and act like a man come from God; like Moses with a lustre upon his face, when he had conversed with God; like a minister of the court of heaven employed in a divine office; like a messenger of grace who hath just been with God, and received instructions from him; and the world will take cognizance of you, as they did of the apostles, that they were men who had been with Jesus; Acts iv. 13.

5. This will better furnish you for serious converse with the souls and consciences of men, by giving you experimental acquaintance with the things of religion, as they are transacted in the heart. You will learn more of the springs of sin and holiness, the workings of nature and grace, the deceitfulness of sin, the subtilty of temptation, and the holy skill of counterworking the snares of sin, and the devices of Satan, and all their designs to ruin the souls of men. You will speak with more divine compassion to wretched and perishing mortals; with more life and power to stupid sinners; with more sweetness and comfort to awakened consciences, and with more awful language and influence to backsliding christians. You will hereby learn to preach more powerfully in all respects for the salvation of men, and talk more feelingly on every sacred subject, when the power, and sense, and life of godliness are kept up in your own spirit. Then on some special occasions it may not be improper to borrow the language of David the prophet, and of St. Paul and St. John, two great apostles, though it may be best in public to speak in the plural number, We have believed, therefore we have spoken; what we have heard and learned from Christ, we have declared unto you; what we have seen and felt, we are bold to speak; attend and we will tell you what God has done for our souls. You may then at proper seasons convince, direct, and comfort others by the same words of light and power, of precept and promise, of joy and hope, which have convinced, directed and comforted you; a word coming from the heart will sooner reach the heart.

SECTION II.

OF A MINISTER'S PRIVATE STUDIES.

THE second general head of exhortation relates to your own private studies: Take heed to these, that you may better fulfil your ministry. Give yourself (saith St. Paul to Timothy) to reading, to meditation, that your profiting may appear to all; 1 Tim. iv. 13, 15. These private studies are of various kinds, whether you consider them in general, as necessary to furnish the mind with knowledge for the office of the ministry; or in particular, as necessary to prepare discourses for the pulpit.

1st. Those general studies may be just mentioned in this place, which furnish the mind with knowledge for the work of a minister; for though it is known you have passed through the several stages of science in your younger years, and have made a good improvement in them, yet a review of many of them will be found needful, and an increase in some (so far as leisure permits) may be proper and useful, even through the whole course of life. Among these, some are necessary to improve the reasoning faculty, to teach us to distinguish truth from falsehood, and to judge aright concerning any subjects that are proposed to us; such are the art of logic, which gives us rules for judging and reasoning, and some of the speculative principles of the mathematics, particularly the