are, he can subdue them. He therefore can answer our prayers; and as a loving father we hope he will. His then will be the glory. Whatever God does is for his own glory; and if we are disposed to give him all the glory of what he does for us, we may hope that our petitions will be granted. This kingdom, this power, this glory, are for ever; he will never want the power to help; and if we are saved, we shall never cease to give him praise.

The force of the whole prayer lies in the first and last` words of it-Our Father, and Amen. In the first, we apply to God in Christ, as reconciled to us; in the last, we set our seal to the whole, and say Amen: so let it be; so we humbly hope, it shall be for Christ's sake.

APPLICATION. How awfully is this prayer abused! Ignorant people use it as a kind of charm; and think it enough to say the words, without considering the meaning. O beware, as you love your souls, of mocking God by thoughtless praying. Can you call him a father, while you obey the devil? Will you say "hallowed be thy name, and yet you profane it daily? What do you care for his kingdom, while you belong to another! or talk of God's will without wishing to do it? Do you not forget him when you eat and drink? Are you not careless about the forgiveness of your sins, adding daily to the dreadful debt; and perhaps living in malice and wrath? How can you pray that God will not lead you into temptation, when you run wilfully into the way of it; frequenting the alehouse, the playhouse, the fair, the wakes, and the company of the lewd, the profane, and the drunken? Dear fellow-creature, permit me to say, that thus contradicting your prayers by your life, you cannot expect to be heard: nay, God may justly say to you at last, "Out of thine own mouth will I condemn thee, thou wicked servant." But God forbid ! Think over this prayer before you use it again; and beg of God to enable you to use it with understanding and sincerity, that the rich blessings asked for in it may be yours, and God be glorified in your everlasting salvation.

Those who are "born of God," and have "the spirit of grace and supplication," teaching them to pray, will not confine themselves at all times to these words; yet they may be used with great comfort and edification. God is

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your father; he is more disposed to give than you to ask ; plead that dear relation. Let his glory be your first desire; the increase of his kingdom your highest wish. Let his will be done in love, by saints below as well as those above: then fear not to depend on his providence for daily supplies. "There is forgiveness with him, that he may be feared;" and he that is for us is greater than he who is against us. Though surrounded with snares, his sheep are in his hand; and they shall be kept by his power, through faith, unto salvation. Then shall prayer be turned into praise; and all the ransomed of the Lord shall unite in full chorus, and say," Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen, and Amen."

SERMON XV.

THE DANGER OF FORMALITY AND HYPOCRISY.

Matt. vii. 21.-Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of Heaven; but he that doeth the Will of my Father, which is in Heaven.

E have before us an eternal world, in which there

are but two states, the one inexpressibly happy, the other inconceivably wretched; and in one of these each of us must very soon be fixed.-But, in which ?—Is it possible we can be indifferent about knowing in which, when an hour, a moment, may place us in one of them? Perhaps you will say, How can a person know? I answer, it may be known; clearly known by the word of God; for in the scriptures the characters of saints and sinners are exactly drawn. It is plainly laid down who shall go to heaven, and who shall go to hell; and having this rule, we are often exhorted to try ourselves by it; "to examine ourselves whether we be in the faith; and thus "to make our calling and election sure." The words of the text are of this nature : and you will remember that they are the words of Jesus Christ, who is to be our judge: so that the same lips, which declared this to us, will pronounce upon each of us the sentence of life or death. O that we may now learn, what all the world shall then learn, that true religion does not con

sist in words, or pofessions of regard to Christ, or in gifts, or zeal, or usefulness; but in doing the will of God from the heart.

I. We learn from these words, that at the great day there will be an earnest desire in many to enter into the kingdom of heaven. By the "kingdom of heaven" is sometimes intended the kingdom of grace in the church of Christ on earth; but here it means the state of glory above, where Jesus shall reign in all his divine glory, and all his subjects enjoy perfect bliss. That this is referred to appears from the next verse-" Many will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord." In that day; it is not said in what day: nor was there any need to say what day; for all the disciples of Christ know what is meant by it. They are often thinking on that day, when they shall "see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great glory;" "when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with all his mighty angels in flaming fire." This is called the great day; a day of the greatest grandeur, a day of the greatest joy, and a day of the greatest terror. It is also called the day of the Lord, and the day of Christ. This is man's day; yea, the devil's day; when sinners triumph, and Satan reigns; but the triumph of the wicked is short, and the prince of this world shall be judged.

O how careless are most people now about this great day. Scoffers abound in these latter times, and say, "Where is the promise of his coming?" Now and then, indeed, a just concern has prevailed for a season; as under John's ministry, "the kingdom of heaven suffered violence, and all men were for pressing into it." When a nation has been frightened by an earthquake or a plague, multitudes have been alarmed for a while. A few years ago thousands followed Mr. Whitefield into the open fields

to hear the word; and we have read of great awakenings in America and other places. O that we could now, seethe same! O that now when the judgments of the Lord are abroad in the earth, this sinful nation would learn righteousness.

But O, how will it be when the day comes? How will it be when the trumpet shall sound? What terror will seize the heart of the wicked man! Ay, he will say, Is the VOL. I.

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dreadful day come at last; the day I so often heard of, so often laughed at! O my folly! O my vain and hurtful lusts! For what have I lost my soul! For the sake of my business, my pleasures, my companions, I have lost my soul, my heaven, my all. Ó that I never had been born! But, perhaps, recovering himself a little, he may say-Am not I a christian; was I not baptized and confirmed, and did I not take the Sacrament? Lord, Lord, open to me; but it will be too late; the door is shut: many will then seek to enter in, but shall not be able. The judge will profess unto them, I never knew ye; depart from me, ye workers of iniquity. And this leads us to observe in the next place, that,

II. A mere profession of religion will then be found insufficient. The judgment of men carries it now; but it is a small matter to be judged of man's judgment. Man looks only at the outward appearance, but the Lord searcheth the heart; and he will then make the result of his search public. The young man may now rejoice in his youthful lusts and pleasures: he may walk in the ways of his heart, and in the sight of his eyes; but let him know, and O that he may consider it, that "for all these things, God will bring him into judgment." Eccles. xi. 9. Yea, God will bring every secret thing into judgment; what is spoken in the ear in the closet shall be proclaimed on the house-top; and then shall the secrets of all hearts be made manifest. Then shall many that were first be last; and many that were last shall be first. Then shall the hypocrites be detected and exposed. Then shall a separation be made between the tares and the wheat; between the sheep and the goats; between the foolish and the wise virgins. Then shall he say to poor vain formalists, I never knew you, &c. But let us more particularly examine the pretensions of these people.

• It should seem that they used to pray; they used to say, Lord, Lord! It is certainly a bad sign for any one that he does not pray; and it is generally a good sign when a person does pray; but it is not a certain sign of ་ grace. The wicked sometimes pour out a prayer when God's chastening is upon them." Afflictions will sometimes extort prayers and yows, and many duties of religion; but when the

affliction is over, there is an end of their devotion; and they return to their sins, as the dog to his vomit. So there may be transient convictions of sin, and terrific fears of hell, especially in the time of sickness and apprehension of death; and these may lead not only to a temporary reformation, but to doing many things, as Herod did when he heard John gladly, and as numbers of persons in popish countries who do penance for their sins; but there may be all this, and much more, while men remain workers of iniquity.

Again, these people appeared to be zealous in religion, as the repetition of the word, Lord, Lord, seems to intimate; and we find in the next verse, that they "prophesied in the name of Christ." Most of the prophets, especially the stated prophets, were "holy men;" but some especially of the occasional ones, as Balaam, Saul, and Caiaphas, were wicked men. So were some of the first preachers of Christianity: and so are many now. This is an awful word for the carnal clergy of any church, and wicked preachers of any denomination; and it shews that zeal for religion is no proof of sincerity in it.

These men did more still: "they cast out devils in Christ's name." When Christ was upon earth, and for some ages after, the devil was permitted to possess the bodies of men; but Christ and his apostles were able to cast them out; and so did common Christians for a long time after, by the mention of his name. But this and other extraordinary gifts were not confined to real Christians; wicked professors sometimes did it, and here, we see, boasted of it, and pleaded it; but the plea is not admitted. Other "wonderful works" they also did; for so the Lord permitted, in order to promote the spread of Christianity; but what availed all this, while the devil was not cast out of their own hearts, and the wonderful works of God's grace had never been wrought in their own souls? Men may be famous and useful in the church, yet, after all, be "castaways."

These people also professed obedience to Christ; they called him Lord. He is "Lord of all." He has all power in heaven and earth; and to him every knee shall bow. But it is to no purpose to call him Master, and