upon being Chriftians, without living as be comes Chriftians.

Let him therefore, who thinketh he ftandeth, that is, high in God's favour because he is a Christian, take heed left he fall; as the Ifraelites did in the wildernefs, and never fet their eyes upon the Land of Promife, which they fo much defired.

When we hear the account of the strange behaviour of the people of Ifrael, while God was bringing them out of flavery, in order to make them happy in a land of their own, we cannot but wonder at it; we are apt to think it impoffible, that people fhould fee fo many miracles wrought in their favour, and yet fhould diftruft, at every turn, the power, the wisdom, and the goodness of that God who wrought them.

And yet fo it was: and the Pfalmist expreffeth his wonder after a most elegant manner: They were disobedient at the fea, even at the Red Sea; at the very place where God had faved them by the greatest miracle that ever man had feen.

In fhort; their whole life was one continued miracle. They had their meat from heaven, their garments waxed not old, their enemies fell before them, the vifible judgments of God fell upon them over and over for their fins, and yet they were disobedient. The conclufion of all was, that God was fo provoked by their unworthy behaviour and ingratitude,

ingratitude, that he fuffered very few of them ever to enjoy the land of Canaan, which he had promised to give them.

But you will fay, What is this to us? Why, I will tell you the apoftle fhall tell you,These things. were written for our admonition, for a warning to us, to let us know how God has ever dealt, and for ever will deal, with those that defpife his mercies, and forbearance, and long-fuffering.

In fhort, as the goodnefs of God to those that obeyed him amongst the Jews, was a figure of the favour and loving-kindness which he bears to all others that love and fear him; fo the severity of God to that whole nation, in fuffering fo few of them ever to fet foot on the promised land, is a figure of that severity with which he will deal with wicked Chriftians; he will for ever shut them out of heaven, of which Canaan was a figure.

But we are apt to think, that we are not fo blind and stubborn, and hard-hearted, and wicked, as the Jews were. People are apt to think, that the world is now civilized, and that Chriftians are not fo liable to God's judgments as heretofore. I would to God it were fo; but really it is not. Many that call themfelves Chriftians can make a fhift to be as wicked as either Jews or Heathens.

Obferve the malice and envy with which one Chriftian purfues another, rejoicing in the ruin and mifery of their fellow-creatures;

Laying fnares for one another in all manner of business; fcarce any fecurity from another man's word or oath;

All things carried by power, or interest, or craft;

The rich oppreffing the poor, because it is in the power of their hand to do it; and the poor envying the rich, instead of helping them by their prayers to heaven;-

Parents educating their children after such a manner, as will ruin them as certainly as if they intended their ruin, teaching them to love the world with all their heart and foul, inftead of renouncing it; fuffering them to content themselves with a form of religion, without the power;

Paftors as little concerned for their flocks committed to their charge, as if in truth they were fo many beafts, whofe fouls must die with their bodies.

In fhort; if the Jews were disobedient to God, fo are Chriftians; if they were ungrateful, fo are we; if they were within the covenant of mercy, and yet lived as ill as thofe that were strangers to the covenant and promifes, fo do Chriftians, who have yet greater things to fear and hope for, than ever they had; if they were delivered from the bondage of Egypt, by the mighty hand of God, and yet as foon forgot the mercy as it was over, even fo Chriftians, who have been delivered from a greater tyranny and bondage than that

of

of Pharoah, do yet forget the mercy, and defire to return to the flavery of fin and death.

In one word; The Ifraelites in Egypt and in the wilderness are exact figures of Chriftians in this world, and in their paffage to the next, except in this one thing,-that God, being wearied as it were and provoked by their backflidings, did at last swear that none of them, who had fo ungratefully abused his favours, should enter into the place of reft defigned for them.

In this one thing we are happier than they, in that we have it yet in our power to work out our falvation; to appeafe our God by repentance, to avert his judgments by returning to our duty, and to fecure to ourselves a fhare in his promise of heaven and happiness eternally.

What faith the apostle to Christians on this head? To-day, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts; for as the promises, and mercies, and affiftances, and rewards, to Chriftians, far exceed thofe which God made to the Jews; fo the punishment which wicked Christians will meet with, will be infinitely greater than any they had to fear.

So very little reafon have Chriftians to value themselves upon the better covenant, and better promises, and better means of grace, which God has afforded them, if they do not make a better use of them.

Let us all, therefore, seriously confider this portion of holy fcripture, and what befel the Jews for their frequently provoking God by their fins; that is, that at laft God for ever shut them out of Canaan.

Let us alfo fear, left a promise being made us of entering into heaven, any of us should come short of it; ever remembering, that the people of Ifrael had the fame God, the fame promifes, the fame law, that we have:-And this advantage we have which they had not; we may learn by their example not to provoke God too far, left he treat us with the fame severity he did them,-left he shut us for ever out of the heavenly Canaan.

To conclude:-A chriftian name, a chriftian faith, the chriftian covenant, the christian facraments, will not fet us one step nearer heaven, without a chriftian life. So that the cafe of Christians is far from being better than that of Jews and heathens, if they are not careful to lead a christian life.

SERMON