SERMON imbelle fine itu," fall harmless at our feet. What hath been offered, establishing, as I have endeavoured to do, the doctrine of a Providence, particular as well as general, inculcates by practical confequence the Christian fortitude of trust. If the world be of God's creation, what He created with power, He must govern with exactness: and therefore we may rest affured, there must be a meaning in the permiffion, a propriety in the tendency of every event. On this perfuafion let us repofe with fubmiffive and patient truft, that whatever incidents of affliction or surprise occur; they are founded in design, and their end is expedient. An unerring fuper-intendant ordains, an all-pervading eye obferves, and omni-prefent power directs them, To that adorable power let us look up; affured, that though in this mixt state of things evil be unavoidable, that evil, God can and does attemper with appen dages III. dages of good, fupplied by fecret means; SERMON those means conducted, with infinite wisdom and defign, with every poffible attention to the deferving. SERMON IV SERMON Pfalm xcv. 6. O come let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker: for He is our God, and we are the people of his pasture. IN evidence, that the world was origiIV. nally made by a Being infinite in wif dom and power; and that a power, no lefs perfect than that which made the world, directs, governs and upholds it in that harmony and regularity, which is fo confpicuous through the whole range of created beings; the arguments adduced have, I truft, been found to approach very near to demonftration: as a truth deducible from thefe doctrines, my IV. my next fubject of enquiry is the obli- SERMON gation of religious worship. And in this investigation my defign: is firft to confider at large the general propofition. Secondly, to examine the principle, that lifts up the pious heart to Heaven in prayer. And in the third and last place to evince the clofe connection, that God Almighty hath ordained between religion and the focial duties: fo close, that without the former, civil fociety could not fubfift. I. First, then as to the general obligation of religion. A capacity to discover that there is a God, who made and preserves us and that we are not able to do the one or the other of ourselves, indifpenfably requires us to love, honour, and serve that Maker and Preferver in every instance F 4 and SERMON and action of our lives. For as long as IV. we regard existence as a bleffing; so long do we acknowledge ourselves indebted to the giver and preferver of life. Now as we are able to infer an obliga tion for a benefit received; fuch fufficiency of knowledge in us, in regard to the benefits, we have from our great Creator received, is of itself a true and proper foundation for religious worship: and every creature capable of making fuch an inference, as every reasonable creature is, becomes therefore fubjected to the duty of gratitude; and from a conscious fenfe of gratitude to God flow the duties of religion. Thus conclufive is natural reason, in proving the necesfity of religious worship among all be ings, who poffefs a degree of intelligence equal to that of man. And experience confirms that in fact, the propriety of which reafon evidences to us in theory. For among all nations, be their notions more or lefs refined, religious |