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Men of Judah, and the Inhabitants of Jerufalem, because we have finned against thee.

But unto the Lord our God belongeth Mercy and Forgiveness, though we have rebelled against him; neither have we obeyed the Voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his Laws which he fet before us.

O Lord, according to all thy Righteousness, we befeech thee, let thy Anger and thy Fury be turned away from thy City Jerufalem, thy holy Mountain; Becaufe for our Sins, and the Iniquities of our Fathers, Jerufalem and thy People are become a Reproach to all that are about us.

Now therefore, O God, hear the Prayer of thy Servants, and caufe thy Face to fbine upon thy Sanctuary.

O God, incline thine Ear and hear: Open thine Eyes, and behold the City which is called by thy Name.

O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do. Defer not, for thine own fake, O our God: For thy City, and thy People, are called by thy Name.

And whilft Daniel was thus praying and confeffing his Sins, and the Sins of his People unto the Lord, and fupplicating for his City Jerufalem; behold the Angel Gabriel was fent unto him from the Lord, with the glad Tidings that God had heard his Prayer for Jerufalem, and that it fhould be built, and the Lord would dwell in it.

O may we all thus Faft and Pray, as Daniel did, and may God Almighty give us fuch a Return of our Prayers, Amen, O God, for Jefus Chrift his fake: To whom, &c.

SER

SERMON IX.

Preached at

St. GILES's in the Fields, On the Twenty-eighth of June, 1691.

PHIL. iv. 8.

Finally, Brethren, whatsoever Things are True, whatfoever Things are Honeft, whatsoever Things are Juft, whatsoever Things are Pure, whatfoever Things are Lovely, whatsoever Things are of good Report; if there be any Virtue, and if there be any Praife, think on thefe Things.

Have the Two laft Lord's Days, made I it my Business to treat of this Text, in a Way that I have thought did moft

tend to the informing your Judgments: And to that Purpose, I have raised several Obfervations, and drawn several Inferences from it.

I mean now to treat of it in another way, and apply myself wholly to the preffing you to the Practice of it.

And indeed, the Nature of the Sermon I am to make, doth call for this from me. / For

For I am now to take my leave of you: this being the laft Time, in all probability, that I fhall preach among you as your Minifter: And therefore, I fuppofe, good Advice and Exhortation, will more become me, at this Time, than a clofe Difcourfe upon a Text.

And yet my Text doth afford Matter enough, without ftraining it for fuch a Purpose: Nor, indeed, do I know a Text in the Bible, that I could more willingly pitch upon to leave with you as the last Advice I would give you, and as the Sum and Conclufion of my Preaching among you; than thefe Words of St. Paul, I have now read to you.

Let me, therefore at this Time, addrefs my felf to you all, as the Apoftle here did at the Conclufion of his Epiftle to the Philippians, Finally, Brethren, what foever Things' are true, &c.

Here are a many great Things recommend-, ed by the Apostle to our Thoughts and Purfuit. If we would make a Diftribution of them, I believe they will all naturally enough fall under thefe Four Heads. For the Things here recommended, are not fo many as the Words by which they are expreffed, there being feveral Words ufed in this Enumeration, that are of the fame Importance, and feem to exprefs much the fame thing.

The Four Heads I would reduce them to, are thefe,

I. A conftant Adherence to the true Religion.
II. Honesty and Juftice in our Dealings.
III. A Life of frict Purity, in Oppofition to
Senfuality and Lewdnefs.
IV. The

IV. The adorning the Doctrine of God we do profefs, by the conftant Practice of every other Thing that is Virtuous or Commendable, or well thought of by Mankind.

This, as I take it, is a fair Account of the Parts of this Text; and these I fhall make the Heads of my following Exhortation.

I begin with the Firft: Finally, my Brethren, whatfoever Things are true, think on thofe Things. The Truths that St. Paul here exhorts them to think on, are undoubtedly the Truths of the Gofpel of Jefus Chrift, which he had delivered to them. Thefe he would have them to think upon, and perfift in, and never to be prevailed upon by any Temptation to depart from them.

Let me now apply this Advice of his to you. It is the particular Bleffing of God to this Kingdom, and an ineftimable Bleffing it is, that he has not only vouchfafed us the Light of his Gofpel for many Years, but he has alfo taken. Care that the Truths of it fhould be delivered to us with greater Purity and Sincerity, and freer from the Mixtures of Error than to moft, I was going to fay than to any other, People in the World.

If it lay in your way to make Obfervations concerning the State of Religion in other Countries; nay, or but to read the Accounts, that are given of it; I am fure you would be convinced how exceedingly happy we of this Church are, above all the Churches in Chriftendom.

O therefore, let us all firmly adhere to the Truths we have been taught; to the Truths we have hitherto made Profeffion of: And let us

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firmly adhere to that Church which hath held forth thefe Truths to us, and taught us this Profeffion.

We do not pretend that any Church is infallible, and therefore not ours: But this we dare Say, and we can Juftify; That if we take our Measures concerning the Truths of Religion from the Rules of the Holy Scriptures, and the Platform of the Primitive Churches, the Church of England is undoubtedly, both as to Doctrine and Worship, the Pureft Church that is at this Day in the World; the moft orthodox in Faith, and the freeft on the one hand from Idolatry and Superftition, and on the other hand from Freakishness and Enthufiafm, of any now extant.

Nay, I do farther fay, with great Seriousness, and as one that expects to be called to Account at the dreadful Tribunal of God for what I now fay, if I do not fpeak in Sincerity, That I do in my Confcience believe, that if the Religion of Jefus Chrift, as it is delivered in the New Teftament, be the true Religion (as I am certain it is:) Then the Communion of the Church of England, is a fafe way to Salvation, and the fafeft of any I know in the World.

And, therefore, I do exhort you all in the Name of God, ftedfaftly to hold and to perfevere in this Communion.

Here you have the Things that are True. Think of them, and embrace them Heartily; and Live and Die in the Profeffion of them. This is the Doctrine I have always Taught you, and by the Grace of God, I mean to practise accordingly.

II. The

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