SERMON II. THE PROFITABLENESS OF GODLINESS. I TIM. iv. 8. -But Godliness is profitable for all things. How generally men, with most unanimous confent, are SERM. II. Φεῦ, δύο ὀβο δύνασθον Plut. devoted to profit, as to the immediate scope of their defigns, and aim of their doings, if with the flightest attention we view what is acted upon this theatre of human affairs, we cannot but difcern. All that we see men fo very serious and induftrious about, which we call bufi- Prov. xiv. nefs; that which they trudge for in the ftreets, which 23. they work or wait for in the shops, which they meet and siya crowd for at the exchange, which they fue for in the hall, πανταχοῦ. and folicit for at the court, which they plough and dig Ariftoph. for, which they march and fight for in the field, which they travel for at land, and fail for (among rocks and ftorms) upon the fea, which they plod for in the closet, and dispute for in the schools, (yea, may we not add, which they frequently pray for and preach for in the Church?) what is it but profit? Is it not this apparently, for which men fo eagerly conteft and quarrel, fo bitterly envy and emulate, fo fiercely clamour and inveigh, fo cunningly fupplant and undermine one another; which ftuffeth their hearts with mutual hatred and spite, which tippeth their tongues with flander and reproach, which often embrueth their hands with blood and slaughter; for which they expose their lives and limbs to danger, for SERM. which they undergo grievous toils and drudgeries, for II. which they distract their mind with cares, and pierce their heart with forrows; to which they facrifice their present ease and content, yea, to which commonly they prostitute their honour and confcience? This, if you mark it, is the great miftrefs, which is with fo paffionate rivality every where wooed and courted; this is the common mark, which all eyes aim, and all endeavours ftrike at; this the hire which men demand for all their pains, the prize they hope for all their combats, the harvest they seek from all the year's affiduous labour. This is the bait, by which you may inveigle moft men any whither; and the most certain fign, by which you may prognofticate what any man will do: for mark where his profit is, there will he be. This fome professedly and with open face, others flily ,and under thin veils of pretence, (under guise of friendship, of love to public good, of loyalty, of religious zeal;) fome directly and in a plain track, others obliquely and by fubtile trains; fome by fordid and bafe means, others in ways more cleanly and plaufible; fome gravely and modeftly, others wildly and furiously; all (very few excepted) in one manner or another, do clearly in most of their proceedings level and drive at a. This practice then being fo general, and seeing that men are reasonable creatures, that it is fo cannot surely proceed from mere brutishness, or dotage; there must be fome fair colour or femblance of reason, which draweth men into, and carrieth them forward in this way. The reafon indeed is obvious and evident enough; the very name of profit implieth it, fignifying that which is useful, or conducible to purposes really or seemingly good. The gain of money, or of fomewhat equivalent thereto, is therefore specially termed profit, because it readily fupplieth neceffity, furnisheth convenience, feedeth pleasure, Omnes ad affectum atque appetitum utilitatis fuæ naturæ ipfius magifterio atque impulfione ducuntur. Salv. ad Eccl. Cath. 2. II. satisfieth fancy and curiofity, promoteth ease and liberty, SERM. fupporteth honour and dignity, procureth power, dependencies, and friendships, rendereth a man fomebody confiderable in the world; in fine, enableth to do good, or to perform works of beneficence and charity. Profit is therefore so much affected and pursued, because it is, or doth feem, apt to procure or promote fome good defirable to us. If therefore a project should be proposed to us very feafible, and probable to fucceed, in pursuance whereof affuredly we might obtain great profit; methinks, in confiftence with ourselves, and conformably to our usual manner of acting, we should be very ready to embrace and execute it. Such a project it is, which in my text, by a very trufty voucher and skilful judge of fuch things, and one who had himself fully experimented it, is propofed; which in itfelf is very practicable, so that any of us may, if we have a mind to it, and will be at the pains, throughly compass and carry it on: which will exceedingly turn to account, and bring in gains unto us unfpeakably vaft; in comparison whereto all other defigns, which men with fo much care and toil do pursue, are very unprofitable or detrimental, yielding but fhadows of profit, or bringing real damage to us. It is briefly this, to be religious or pious; that is, in our minds steadfastly to believe on God, (such as nature in fome measure, and revelation more clearly, declareth him,) in our hearts earnestly to love and reverence him, through all our practice fincerely and diligently to obferve his laws. This is it which St. Paul affirmeth to be profitable for all things, and which it is my intent, by God's help, to recommend unto you as fuch; demonstrating it really to be fo, by representing fome of those numberless benefits and advantages which accrue from it, extending to all conditions and capacities of men, to all ftates, all feafons, and in effect to all affairs of life. It hath been ever a main obstruction to the practice of piety, that it hath been taken for no friend, or rather for an enemy, to profit; as both unprofitable and prejudicial 1 SERM. to its followers: and many femblances there are counteII. nancing that opinion. For religion feemeth to fmother or to flacken the industry and alacrity of men in following profit, many ways: by charging them to be content with a little, and careful for nothing; by diverting their affections and cares from worldly affairs to matters of another nature, place, and time, prefcribing in the first place to seek things spiritual, heavenly, and future; by disparaging all fecular wealth, as a thing, in comparison to virtue and spiritual goods, very mean and inconfiderable; by checking greedy defires and aspiring thoughts after it; by debarring the most ready ways of getting it, (violence, exaction, fraud, and flattery,) yea, ftraitening the best ways, eager care and diligence; by commending strict justice in all cafes, and always taking part with confcience when it clafheth with intereft; by paring away. the largest uses of wealth, in the prohibition of its free enjoyment to pride or pleasure; by enjoining liberal communication thereof in ways of charity and mercy; by engaging men to expofe their goods fometimes to imminent hazard, sometimes to certain lofs; obliging them to forfake all things, and to embrace poverty for its fake. It favoureth this conceit, to obferve, that often bad men by impious courses do appear to thrive and profper; while good men feem for their goodness to fuffer, or to be no wife vifibly better for it, enduring much hardship and diftrefs. It furthereth the prejudice, that fome perfons, void of true piety, or imperfectly good, (fome dabblers in religion,) do not from their lame, flight, and superficial performances, feel fatisfactory returns, fuch as they did prefume to find; and thence, to the defamation of piety, are Mal. iii. 14. apt to say, with those men in the Prophet, It is vain to ferve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hofts? Yea, that fometimes very pious men, being out of humour, and somewhat discomposed by the urgent preffures of affliction, the disappointments and croffes incident to all men here in this region of trouble, are apt to II. 9. XXXV. 3. complain and exprefs themfelves diffatisfied, faying with SERM. Job, It profiteth a man nothing that he should delight himfelf with God. What advantage will it be unto me, and Job xxxiv. what profit shall I have, if I be cleanfed from my fin? or with David, Verily I have cleanfed my heart in vain, and Pf. lxxiii. washed my hands in innocency: for all the day long I have 13, 14. been plagued, and chaftened every morning. To these confiderations, difadvantageous in this respect to piety, may be added, that the constant and certain profits emergent from it (although incomparably more substantial, and to the mind more fenfible than any other) are not yet fo grofs and palpable, that men, who from being immerfed in earth and flesh are blind in error, dull of apprehenfion, vain and inconfiderate in their judgments, tainted and vitiated in their palates, can discern their worth, or relish their sweetness. Hence it is that so many follow the judgment and practice of thofe in Job, who fay Job xxi. unto God, Depart from us; for we defire not the knowledge 14, 15. of thy ways. What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him? For voiding which prejudices, and the recommendation of St. Paul's project, I fhall, as I said, propose some of those innumerable advantages, by confidering, which the immenfe profitableness of piety will appear. And first, I fhall mention thofe confiderations, which more plainly do import universality; then shall touch fome benefits thereof, seeming more particular, yet in effect vastly large, and of a very diffufive influence. I. First then, we may confider, that piety is exceeding ufeful for all forts of men, in all capacities, all states, all relations; fitting and disposing them to manage all their respective concernments, to discharge all their peculiar duties, in a proper, just, and decent manner. Col. iv. 1. It rendereth all fuperiors equal and moderate in their Eph. vi. 9. administrations; mild, courteous, and affable in their converfe; benign and condefcenfive in all their demeanour toward their inferiors. Correfpondently it disposeth inferiors to be fincere and Eph. vi. 5. |