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II. This is a great vindication of our religion, that it can bear the light, and is ready to fubmit itfelf to any impartial trial and examination: we are not afraid to expofe our religion to the publick view of the world, and to appeal to the judgment of mankind for the truth and reasonablenefs of it: Truth loves to come abroad and be feen, being confident of her own native beauty and charms, of her own force and power to gain upon the minds of men and on the contrary, it doth justly draw a great fufpicion upon any religion, if it decline the light; and nothing can render it more fufpected, than for the teachers of it to make it their great care to keep people in the dark about it; or, if they chance to peep into it, and to efpy the defects of it, to awe them by the extremity of danger and fuffering, from declaring against thofe errors and corruptions which they have difcovered in it, I do not know two worse figns of the falfhood and corruption of any church or religion, than ignorance and an inquifition: thefe two are fhrewder marks of a falfe church, than all the fifteen marks which Bellarmine hath mustered up are, to prove the church of Rome to be the only true Chriftian church. Methinks their church and ours differ like Egypt and Goshen, in the time of the plague of darknefs: only in this they differ from Egypt, that God fent the plague among them, but the church of Rome affects it, and brings it upon themfelves; a darkness fo grofs that it may be felt; and to make it more thick and palpable, they impofe upon men the belief of direct nonfenfe, under the grave venerable pretence of mystery, as in their doctrine of tranfubitantiation. And the great defign of the inquifition, is to awe men from reading the fcriptures, and from fearching into, and examining the grounds of their religion, because they think they will not bear the teft. This is the condemnation of that church, that when light is come into the world, they love darknefs rather than light, because their doctrines and their deeds are evil.

III. And lastly, This gives us the plain reafon why fome in the world are fo careful to fupprefs and

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137 conceal the truth, and to lock up the knowledge of it from the people in an unknown tongue, and do fo jealously guard all the avenues whereby light and knowledge fhould enter into them; because their doctrines and defigns, and deeds are evil, and they are afraid they fhould be difcovered to be fo. This is the true reason why they love darkness rather than light for the church of Rome are wife enough in their generation, to understand that nothing but the darknefs of their fhops can hinder people from difcerning the falfeness of their wares; they have feveral things to put off to the people, which cannot bear the trial of a clear and full light. What elfe makes them conceal the word of God from men That great light which God hath fet up in the world, to be a lamp to our feet, and a lanthorn to our fteps? It is not to keep out herefy, but light and truth. When they cannot be ignorant that God has fet up this candle on purpofe to enlighten the world, why do they put it under a bushel, but that they are guilty to themselves, that feveral of their doctrines and practices will be discovered and reproved by it?

What makes them in the face of the world to conceal from the people the fecond commandment, in their ordinary catechifms and manuals, but left the people fhould come to understand that God had exprefly forbidden the worship of images? We do not conceal thofe texts, feeding sheep, and upon this rock will I build my church, for fear the people fhould difcern the Pope's fupremacy and infallibility in them, but are content to run the hazard of it, and let them find them there if they can.

And then why do they mask the publick fervice of God, and the prayers and devotions of the people in an unknown tongue, but that they are afraid they fhould understand the grofs fuperftitions and idolatry of many of them. If they, mean honeftly, why do they caft fuch a mift about their religion? Why do they wrap and cover it all over in darkness, but that they are heartily afraid, that the more people understand it, the worfe they will like it ?

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Ser. 246. The truth is, their doctrines are evil, and their deeds are evil, and plainly condemned almost in every page of the Bible; and therefore it is a dangerous book to be fuffered in the hands of the people; and there is hardly any thing which the church of Rome contends against, with more stiffnefs and zeal, than letting the people have the fervice of God, and the holy fcriptures in a known tongue. When the office of the mafs was not many years fince, by fome Bishops and others in France, tranflated into the vulgar tongue, for the benefit of the people, how did the then Pope Alexander the VIIth thunder against them for it, calling them that did it fons of perdition, and condemning the thing as if it had been the wickedeft thing in the world, and had directly tended to the overthrow of the Chriftian religion?

And then for the ufe of the holy fcriptures in the yulgar tongue, they have put that under fo many locks and keys, that the greateft caution in the world is ufed in the permiffion and allowance of it to any particular perfon: the Prieft hath not po wer to do it, it is only the Bifhops that can grant this liberty; and they do it very rarely, and only to thofe of whom they are very fecure, and this po wer fince that time again revoked; fo that the gofpel, which before our Saviour's appearance was a myftery, hid from ages and generations, continues fo ftill to the common people of the church of Rome, and is under a thicker veil, more muffled and hid from the people, in an unknown tongue, than it was to the Jews, under the obfcure prophecies, and dark types and fhadows of the Old Testament. So that though Chrift be read in their churches every day, as Mofes was to the Jews in their fynagogues, yet he hath a veil upon his face as Mofes had. Wo unto you Scribes and Pharifees, hypocrites, for ye fout the kingdom of heaven against men, and neither enter in yourselves, nor fuffer thofe that would enter to go in. The people of the church of Rome are indeed to be pitied, who are kept in ignorance against their wills; but the governing part

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of that church are without excuse, who, to cover their errors and corruptions, hide the fcriptures from the people, love darkness rather than light; this therefore is their great condemnation.

Witnefs the black and hellish design of this day t, fuch as never before entered into the heart of man, to have ruined a whole kingdom at once in its Prince and reprefentatives; and by a cruel fudden blow, to have taken away the lives of the greatest and moft confiderable affembly in the world. They muft needs love darkness and hate the light, who have fuch defigns to carry on, and fuch deeds of darkness to justify and make good; they had need to fupprefs, and, if poffibly they can, to extinguish, not only that revealed truth of God, but even the great principles of natural religion, the belief of a God, and a judgment to come, that attempt such things.

Time was, when in defpite of the cleareft evidence in the world, they did confidently deny that any fuch defign was laid by thofe of their religion, but that it was a contrivance of fome minister of ftate, who drew in a few rafh and hot-headed perfons of defperate fortunes into it, and then betrayed and dif covered them: but when the late popish plot broke out here, then they were contented to own the gunpowder-treafon, because they that were executed for it, did confefs it, that they might with a better colour bring themselves off from this, which was fo conftantly denied by those who were condemned and executed for it: But this was but a fhift and artifice to blind the clear evidence of this latter confpiracy, which preft fo hard upon them: and fince that, because they are afraid it is ftill believed, they have used all imaginable arts, and have taken a great deal of pains to wash this black-a-moor; yet the negro is a negro ftill, and I doubt not but they are fill at work, carrying on the fame defign, which if God do not mercifully fruftrate and difappoint, is like at laft to involve this nation in great mifery and confufion,

+ Preached November 5. 1684.

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But the Lord reigneth, therefore let the earth rejoice, and the multitude of the ifles be glad thereof: He that fitteth in the heavens laughs at them, the Lord fhall have them in derifion. There are mauy plots and devices in the heart of man: but the counsel of the Lord that shall stand. And if we would but live up to the light which we enjoy, and adorn our reformed religion by an holy and unblameable converfation; if we would avoid those bloody and rebellious ways, which are so natural and fuitable to their religion, and fo contrary to ours, and fo fcandalous to all religion; if we would break off our fins by repentance, and put an end to our foolish differences and divifions, by returning to the ancient peace and unity of this once happy and firmly compacted church, we have no reafon yet to defpair, but that God would return to us in mercy and loving kindnefs, and think thoughts of peace towards us, and preferve the best religion in the world to us, and our pofterity after us.

Now unto him that hath delivered us fo often, and fo wonderfully, and doth deliver us, and we trust will fill deliver us; to him be honour and glory, praife and thanfgiving, for ever and ever. Amen.

SERMON CCXLVII..

True liberty, the refult of Chriftianity.

JOHN viii. 36.

If the Son therefore fhall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

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HE meaning of these words will beft appear by confidering the occafion of them, which was this. Upon our Saviour's preaching to the Jews, many believed on him; whereupon he

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