LVII.

SERM. happiness and glory might appear to others, even to all such creatures as He for that purpose hath made capable of reflecting upon Him, and of beholding and admiring that transcendent glory which shines forth in His creation and government of the world.

This therefore being the great end which Almighty God is pleased to propose to Himself in all His works, so far as any of His creatures contribute any thing towards it, they may be properly said to serve Him: for so far they do His work, and are subservient to Him in accomplishing the design which He Himself carries on in the world in this sense all things in some measure serve Him, because all [Ps. 19. 1.] things some way or other tend to His glory. "The very Heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth His handy work."

But as for reasonable and free agents, endued with understandings to know, and with wills to choose what to do, although God will serve Himself by every thing they do, by making it conduce at last to His honour; yet they cannot be said to serve Him any further than as they choose and design to set forth His honour, and to express their acknowledgment of His greatness and glory; which is the only way whereby it is possible for His creatures to magnify or glorify Him their great and all-glorious Creator.

Thus it is that the glorified Saints and Angels always serve God in Heaven, by owning Him for their Maker, and continual Benefactor, extolling His power, and confessing His goodness and bounty to them: as when they prostrate Rev. 4. 11. themselves before Him, and cry out, "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created." And when they call upon one another, and upon all the creatures in the world, to praise Him, saying, “Hallelujah, praise ye the Lord." This is to serve God indeed, when they do the work which He hath set them, and answer the great end for which He made them; punctually and cheerfully observing whatsoever He commands them in order thereunto.

But it is not so with us poor mortals upon earth, who generally live as without God in the world, hurried about

with divers lusts and passions, whereby all true sense of God, is almost stifled among us; and we are so far from serving God, that we commonly forget that we have any God to serve: but we have certainly the same obligations upon us to serve God upon earth, as the Saints and Angels have in Heaven: and though we cannot do it so well as we ought, we ought to do it as well as we can, by making it our constant care, study and endeavour, that He may be better known, sanctified, adored, and glorified in the world, and particularly in the place where we dwell. And whatsoever we do, that conduceth any thing to this end, He is pleased to accept of it, as of service done to Himself, in that we thereby, according to our weak capacities, promote His great and holy design in the world; as we are expressly commanded to do. 1Cor.10.31. Now that we may rightly apprehend how it is possible for us thus to serve the Almighty Creator and Governor of the world, we must further observe, that as whatsoever He doth Himself, so whatsoever He commands us to do, is for His own glory; which is the ultimate end of all His laws, as well as of all His works. And therefore all who sincerely obey and do what He hath commanded, may be properly said to serve Him, not only in that they thereby declare their acknowledgment of the justice and goodness of His laws, and of His power and authority over them; but likewise in that they do those things which He Himself hath prescribed and appointed for the advancement of His honour and glory in the world.

As for example, He commands you to love, and fear, and trust, and believe on Him, for the honour of His goodness, and justice, and power, and truth. He commands you to be sober and temperate, for the honour of His image that He hath enstamped upon you, and for the better fitting and disposing both your minds and bodies to honour Him. He commands you to be meek, and patient, and thankful in all conditions, for the honour of His wisdom and love, in whatsoever happens to you. He commands you to be humble. and lowly in your own eyes, for the honour of His supreme authority and absolute dominion over you. He commands you to be bountiful, and kind, and merciful to others, for the honour of that bounty, and kindness, and mercy, which He

H

SERM. shews to you.

LVII.

He commands you to be just and righteous in all your dealings, for the honour of that justice and righteousness which appears in all His works, and to manifest to the world, that you really honour and prefer His love and favour before all things in it.

Thus we might easily shew that whatsoever God commandeth, He therefore only commandeth it, because the doing of it tends to His honour; and therefore they who do what He commandeth, do ipso facto serve Him, in promoting the great end which He aims at in whatsoever He doth. But to demonstrate this more fully and clearly to you, I shall instance more particularly in some plain and necessary duties, and shew how truly and properly we may be said to serve God in the performance of them.

For this end we may first observe, that the Most High God hath always had, and ever will have His Church in the world, and hath instituted several offices and duties in it, on purpose to keep up the knowledge of Himself amongst men. Insomuch, that it is only within the pale of the Church, that He is known, or worshipped, or honoured upon earth as He ought to be. Hence therefore all that enlarge, or defend, or do any thing sincerely in the behalf of God's Church, may be truly and properly said to serve Him, in that they contribute towards His being better known and honoured upon earth, than otherwise He would be. And hence it is, that God Himself frequently calls Moses His servant, because he settled; David His servant, because he reformed; and Zerubbabel His servant, because he restored, the Church. And so for the Apostles and first Disciples of our Blessed Saviour, who preached His Gospel, and propagated His Church upon earth, they truly served the Most High God in it, in that mankind was thereby instructed in the right knowledge of Him the only true God, and of Jesus Christ whom He hath sent, and were taught how to give Him that honour which is due to His sacred Name. Upon which account, they also are called the servants of God, and the servants of Jesus Christ.

The same may be said of all at this day, who are any way instrumental in planting or propagating the Church among infidels, or bringing them over into it: and particularly they,

who take all the care, and do what they can, that Negroes and other infidels in any of his majesty's dominions, or foreign plantations, or elsewhere, be taught the principles of the Christian religion, baptized, and so brought into Christ's church, that they may worship and honour God there, they are plainly serviceable to Him in a very high degree. And so are they too, who vindicate or defend the Church against Jews, Turks, or Heathens, its implacable or open adversaries; or else from real heretics or schismatics, its domestic and private enemies, who endeavour to undermine and corrupt it with opinions and practices contrary to the doctrine of the Gospel: for seeing it is only in Christ's Holy Catholic Church, that God is truly honoured and worshipped, whatsoever is done for that, is done for God Himself, and is an eminent piece of that service, which we owe to Him our great Lord and Master. And therefore our gracious sovereign, as he is the "defender of the faith," and of the Church established among us, upon that, as well as many other accounts, he is truly the servant of the Most High God. And so are all they who under him, assist in the supporting and upholding of our Church in its doctrine, discipline and worship for hereby it comes to pass, that the knowledge of the true God is preserved, His prayers celebrated, and His worship duly performed among us.

To these may be added likewise, all such as contribute towards the building, repairing, adorning, or better fitting places for the public worship of God; or towards the maintaining and encouraging His Ministers, who instruct and assist the people in the performance of it. For such places and persons, being wholly set apart for that purpose, whatsoever is done for them as such, is done for the keeping up of God's honour and worship in the land; and therefore they that do it (as all ought, according to their power), may be properly said to serve God in it.

And as for the duties performed in such places, they make up so great a part of that service which we owe to God, that they have got the name almost wholly appropriated to themselves, being commonly called Divine Service; and very properly too. Whatsoever is there done, by the appointment of our Church, being so contrived and ordered, that it

LVII.

SERM. most clearly sets forth the glory of God, as being a plain and public acknowledgment either of His greatness and power over us, or else of His goodness and mercy to us.

[James 1. 17.]

[Eph. 5. 19.]

When we confess our sins to God, and declare our hearty and unfeigned repentance for them, we thereby own His authority to give us what laws He pleaseth, and His justice and goodness in those which He hath given us, that we were bound in duty and conscience punctually to observe them all; and therefore having broken them, we confess ourselves to be but as so many guilty malefactors before Him, the Judge of all the World.

When we beg His pardon, and consequently receive absolution from Him, by the hand of His Minister, we thereby testify our acknowledgment that we lie in His mercy; that it is in His power only, to discharge and absolve us from our sins, and to remit the punishment which is due unto us for them; and that He will do it according to the promises which He hath made to mankind in Jesus Christ our Lord.

When we pray unto Him, and to Him only for grace, or peace, or any thing we want either for our souls or bodies, for ourselves or others, we thereby profess and discover our belief and persuasion, that He is the Author and Giver of every good and perfect gift, that we have nothing but what we receive from His gracious and bountiful hands, and that He, and none but He can save or deliver us from any evil, or give us any thing that is truly good for us.

And if in our praying, much more in our reading and singing of "psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs,” or anthems (which make up a considerable part of our public devotions), we set forth His honour and glory, they being all composed and contrived on purpose to express our sense, and declare our acknowledgment of His greatness and goodness in Himself, and of the great and good things which He hath done for us: by which means, we of the Church Militant here on earth, join with the Church Triumphant in Heaven, in praising and extolling His great and glorious Name; and so in serving of Him.

Besides praying and praising God, we never come into His house, but we have some part of His Holy Word read, and sometimes explained to us: which in the Minister who