passionate Regard to him in all his Suf-* ferings, and Studious endeavours to Remove them; Fidelity and Amity, in Reproving him for his Vices and in Exhorting him to Virtue, in Correcting his Miftakes, and Supplying the Defects of his Knowledge; Earneft Defires and Conftant Labours, to Secure his Right and Redress his Wrongs, to Guard him from the Mischiefs of Calumny and to Advance his Juft Character, to Support him in his Difficulties and to Relieve his Wants; and, A Readiness and Delight in Contributing, by all poffible methods, to his Happiness in This and a Future State. Thus may we Teftify, that we are Adorned with Charity; A Grace Superiour even unto Faith and Hope; And, in what Respects it is fo, I shall proceed in the

II. Second place Briefly to represent. It hath been observed, that in fome Texts of Scripture, Faith denotes and implies the Intire Condition of Salvation; And there can be no Comparison, but that of Equals, betwixt True Charity and Faith, in This acceptation of it. But when Faith

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Faith is taken Strictly, in either of the other Two Significations of it, the Reafons of giving Charity the Preference to it are very Plain.

Though a firm Affent to the Truths Revealed in the Scripture be Neceffary, yet it is not Sufficient to the Attainment of Life. Thofe Qualifications which are Neceffarily required in a Believer, do not Neceffarily flow from his Belief. Faith affects a man's Understanding alone; Charity Corrects and Governs his Will and Affections: He may Poffibly yield the moft ftedfaft Affent to the Scriptures, without Conforming his Life unto them; But Charity renders him Conformable to the Will of God, and Useful to Men, and fills up the Measure of his Duty to Both. Faith is the Ground of all his Acceptable Obedience; Charity is the Completion of it. The Immediate advantages of a man's Affent to the Scriptures do Terminate in Himfelf; The Benefits of his Charity do extend to all Other men, who are within the reach of his Beneficial Influence. Faith may be found without Any Good Works at all; But Every Good

Work is the Immediate Effect of Charity. And if we measure the Different Excellencies of these Virtues by the Duration* of them, the Pre-eminence of Charity is very Clear. Extraordinary Faith, or, the Faith of Miracles, befides that even in the times when it was vouchfafed, it was Neceffary only to a Few perfons, and Sufficient to the Salvation of None; thofe Times of its vouchfafement were very short, and it ceased in the first Ages of the Church. And That Faith, (an Affent to the Scriptures) which is a Duty of Univerfal Obligation, will cease together with our Liyes; when the Obligation of Duties will Ceafe, and be fucceeded by the Reward of them. But Charity never faileth: The Extent of it is Equal to the Duration, not only of the Earth but of Heaven. 'Tis our Duty in This, and will be our Eternal Employment in a Future State. And how Excellent muft That virtue be which is of Everlasting Continuance, and the

+ Vide Chryfoft.

* Chryfoft. in Ep. 1. ad Cor. Homil. 34. & Gregor, Nyffen. de Anim. & Refur. Homil, 6. in Ep. ad Tit.

Continuance of which will be the Support and Supply of our Everlasting Blifs?

Most of these Reasons of Preferring Charity unto Faith, are likewife Reafons of its Preference unto Hope, and are fo eafily Applicable, that they need not be Repeated. This Difference indeed is obfervable, that whereas Charity is not the Source of Faith, but the Confequence of it; Hope is the Immediate Confequence of Charity, and directly derived from it. Our Affurance that there is a Future ftate of Happiness prepared forGood men, is purely owing to our Faith; But the Hope of being our Selves Admitted into that State, arifeth Immediately from our being Conscious to our felves, that our Faith is Followed and Crowned by Charity. Faith, ftrictly speaking, cannot, as to its proper Acts and Exercise in the Understanding, be either Caufed or Improved by Charity; but Charity gives both Rife and Improvement unto Hope. And, on This account, Charity is, in a greater Degree, Preferable to Hope, than to Faith. For though Faith without Charity be Imperfect, yet

we

we may have Faith, from which Charity is to arife, before that Happy Effect be Actually drawn from it; whereas Hope can neither be Increas'd nor Begun without Charity. A man cannot but Love Happiness fo as to Defire it, and a good opinion of Himself may lead him on to fome Expectation of it; but, if he hath not Charity, That Expectation must prove Vain, and That Defire fink into Everlafting Despair. True Faith and Hope are Neceffary and Divine Endowments; But, without Charity, there is no colour of Confolation in the One, nor of Juftification by the Other.

It remains, that we should proceed to fome Application of this Difcourfe. And First, Since a Stedfaft Faith is no lefs Neceffary to Salvation, than a Holy Life; It highly concerns us, to hold fast the profeffion of our faith without wavering. If it Must be, and that Moving occafion of our Sorrow and Pity cannot be avoided,, that Evil men and Seducers fhall wax worfe and worse, deceiving and being deceived: Nevertheless, Continue thou in the

2 Tim. iii. 13, 14, 15.

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things.