Evil of Sin; and the fecond is the Evil of Mifery; and against both these Christianity doth ftrongly arm

us.

First, for the Evil of Sin, which upon feveral Accounts is injurious to Mens Souls; it overthroweth the Order and Oeconomy of their Natures, inflaving their Reason to their Paffions and Appetites; as it difcomposeth the Tranquillity of their Minds, by infpiring them with wild and inconfiftent paffions; and it disturbeth the Peace of their Confciences, by fuggefting black Thoughts, and horrible Reflections to them; thefe and several other ways is Vice injurious to our Souls. And therefore 'tis the Defign of Christianity to arm us against this great Evil, to fecure and defend us against all the Weapons of Unrighteousness. Hence the Apostle telleth us, that the Grace of God, that is, the Gospel, was revealed from Heaven, for this very end,to teach us to deny allUngodliness and worldly Luft, and to live foberly,and righteously, and godly in this prefent World, Tit. 2. 11. and St. John telleth us, That for this purpofe the Son of God was manifefted, that he might

destroy

3.

deftroy the Works of the Devil, 1 John 8. this was the Errand of the Son of God into the World, and the Defign of that incomparable Religion he taught, to destroy the Works of the Devil And indeed if we confider what an effectual courfe Chriftianity taketh to defend us against Sin, we must confefs it to be the most excellent Armour in the World; for

1. First, It reftraineth us from it by the pureft Laws: The Laws of Christian Religion have made fo great a Gulph between our Sins, and feparated us from them by fuch an infinite Distance, that it is impoffible for them to come at us, or for us to go to them, whilst we perfevere in our Obedience to them; for they do not only forbid us that which is really evil, but do alfo command us to abstain from all Appearances of Evil, and do remove us fo far out of the Territories of Sin, that they will not permit us to approach the Borders of it; and left we might unhappily go farther than we should, they forbid us to go as far as we may, and will not allow us fo much as to come within the Skirts, and Suburbs of Ini

quity. For in moral Actions the diftance is frequently so small between the utmost of what is lawful, and the nearmost of what is finful, that there are very few Men in the World can fet a Rule to themselves, Hitherto may I go and no farther; and therefore without any infallible Guide to point out to them the juft and particular Limits of lawful and unlawful, Men can hardly be fecure, whilft they dwell upon the Frontiers and Neighbourhood of Sin; and therefore the Gospel commands us, at least to endeavour to keep at distance from finning, and not come near the Pitch, left we be defiled by it; neither doth it only restrain us from outward A&s, but also from inward Inclinations to Evil; we must be so far from murdering our Brother, that we must not hate, or with ill to him; fo far from practifing Rapine and Oppreffion, that we must not fo much as covet our Neighbours Poffeffions; so far from acting Adultery, that we must not look upon a Woman to luft after her: Thus the Laws of our Religion you see do strike at the very Root of Sin, and choak the very Springs from

whence

whence those bitter Streams derive ; and do not like other Laws meerly restrain our outward Practice, but alfo lay Reins upon our Defires, and extend their Empire to our free-born Thoughts. In this refpe&t therefore Christianity doth most effectually arm us against Sin, as it reftraineth us from it by the pureft Laws that ever

were.

Secondly, By diffwading us from it with the most prevailing Arguments. There is no Article of the Christian Faith, but is a copious Topick of Motives to Virtue; and if Men would but take the Pains to extract from each their proper and juft Inferences, and to ponder thofe great Obligations to Gratitude and Duty which the feveral Articles of their Religion do devolve upon them, Christianity muft neceffarily do Wonders in the World, and work ftrange Alterations in the Lives and Manners of Chriftians; for there is no Stone that it leaveth unturned, nothing within us that is capable of Perfwafion but it addreffeth to; to win upon our Hope, it propofeth to us a Happiness fo extenfive, that we can neither defire,

nor

nor imagine beyond it; a Happiness that is equal to the utmoft Capacities of our Natures, and parallel to the longest Duration of our Beings; that hath not the leaft Tang of Mifery in it, no bitter Farewel nor appendant Sting to it, but is all Quinteffence compofed of the purest Extracts of Joy and Pleasure. What greater Motive can be urged to diffwade us from finning than the Hope of fuch a Happiness as doth fo infinitely out-bid all that Vice can proffer us, and is weighty enough to preponderate all its Temptations, though all the World were in the counterballance? But if we are fo wedded to our Lufts that no Hope of Advantage will difingage us from them; Christianity thunders against them all the dreadful Threats that are capable of fcaring us into fober Purposes; it denounceth unquenchable Fire, and eternal Vengeance against all Unrighteoufness and Ungodlinefs of Men, and allarms our Fears with all the inconceivable Horrors that an everlastingHell menaceth; and that this may not fcare us only from open Prophaneness into clofe and fecret Hypocrify, it affureth us

that