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ed thou waft under guilt and in great danger? Waft thou convinced of the exceeding finfulness of fin, how abominably filthy it made thee in the fight of an holy God-how guilty in the fight of a just God, and how utterly helpless it has left thee in thyself? Did this conviction follow thee? Waft thou made deeply and thoroughly fenfible, that thou can't do nothing for thyfelf, but haften on thy ruin? Such is thy captivity to fin, all the powers and faculties of thy foul and body are in fuch bondage to it, that thou canft do nothing but ferve it, yea thou art fuch a willing flave, that it God leave thee to thyself, thou wilt go on finning through time, and finning through eternity.

Didft thou never fee thyfelf in this ftate? The fcripture declares, that thou art by nature a child of wrath-and doft not thou believe the word of God? Are its threatenings an idle tale? What! art thou ftill asleep in the arms of fin, in the midft of the thunder of the vengeance of God-ftill dreaming of happiness in the ways of fin, which God affures thee in his word will lead thee to deftruction. O defperate delufion! May God deliver thee from it. May the eternal Spirit accompany his own meffage and fend it to thy

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heart" Awake thou that fleepest, and ❝arife from the dead, and Chrift fhall give thee light."

If thou haft been made sensible of thy danger, what thinkeft thou of Christ? If thou haft feen thyfelf a loft finner, who is to fave thee? To whom, or to what doft thou look for help? To man," or to God; to thyfelf, or to Chrift? To thy works, or his? Is Chrift become thine only object? Examine with care: for there is but one right way to the city of habitation. "I am the way," fays Jefus. Be affured, there is falvation for thee in no other. Nothing can wash thee clean, but the atoning blood of Jesus. Nothing can justify thee, but his righteoufnefs. His all-fufficient grace alone can keep thee in the way to heaven. He alone can present thee spotless there before the throne. Every other hope will dis appoint thee but hope in Jefus. One day all the reft will prove refuges of lies. If thou buildeft on them now with confidence, they will fail thee at the bar of God. Thou wilt then find, that other foundation can no man lay, than that is laid, which is Jefus Chrift.

If thou art enabled to build upon this rock, happy art thou. Hail, thou that art highly favored: The Lord is with

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thee. He has encouraged thee to place the whole weight of thy falvation upon the work of Jefus, who is Immanuel, the creator and the supporter of all worlds, visible and invisible. Trust in him, and be not afraid: For he is almighty to fave. And he has given thee his infallible promifes to fatisfy thee, that in him thou art fafe from all thy fins and from all thine enemies. O how establishing are his own words! Thus he fpeaketh to thee

"Whofoever cometh unto me, and hear"eth my fayings, and doeth them, I will "fhew you to whom he is like: He is "like a man, who built an house, and

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digged deep, and laid the foundation "on a rock, and when the flood arofe, "the ftream beat vehemently upon that. "house, and could not shake it: For it "was founded upon a rock." How happy is thy ftate! Thou art come to him at his bidding, thou haft heard his fayings, and art doing them in faith: Survey thy fafety and bless the Lord. Thou art the wife man, who builds on a foundation contrived by infinite wisdom, and fupported by almighty power: "Behold,

fays the Father, I lay in Sion for a "foundation, a stone, a tried stone, &c.”. The Father chofe his co-equal Son, on G whom

whom he would build his whole church; he is therefore called an elect foundation; and fure, as fure as God can make it, his will and word, his arm and love fecure the foundation and every thing built upon it. Try it again and again, and thou wilt find how fure it is. This is another of its divine excellencies-it is a tried foundation, none ever built on it and were. confounded. Believers have made trial of it in every age, and it always answered their hopes: Indeed how could it fail them? For the divine architect has fo ftrengthened every part of his ftructure, that the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. How precious then is this foundation! To them that believe he is pre"cious." All the beauties and pleafures in heaven and earth are to be found in his fulness, and in the creature only as a drop out of the ocean. Unfearchable riches are his So are eternal glories. Bleffed is the man who is living upon this fulness: While he is receiving out of it grace for grace, O how precious is Jefus ! efpecially while he is hoping to receive out of the fame fulness the glory that is to be revealed: For he fhall not be dif appointed of his hope; becaufe "the righteous hath an everlasting founda

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❝tion." He is built upon the rock of ages, and is kept there by the power of God.

happy, thrice happy believer. Again furvey thy mercies-see how many-how great they are to thy body-to thy foul -family, church, national merciesfure and covenant mercies. Who is like unto thee faved by the Lord? The Father is thine with all his love. The Son is thine with all his falvation. The holy Spirit is thine in all his offices, to comfort, to ftrengthen, and to fanctify thee, to lead thee fafe by his council, till he bring thee unto glory. And this is alfo thine with its richeft bleffings-eternal life is the free gift of God to thee through Jefus Chrift thy Lord. O what has God done for thee! faved from deferved deftruction, and faved with fuch a falvation, fo wrought out for thee, fo fecured to thee, and for ever, what could God do more? Now thou haft learned the fubject of praise, and canft make sweet melody with these words" I waited pa"tiently for the Lord and he inclined "unto me, and heard my cry: He "brought me up alfo out of the hor"rible pit, out of the miry clay, and fet

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my feet upon a rock, and established my goings: And he hath put a new

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