CORINTH was a famous city of Greece; in which the gospel was introduced and established by the Apostle Paul. There he exercised his ministry for a year and six months at one time, besides his occasional visits afterward. There his ministry was attended with great success. All this appears, as from other passages in the New-Testament, so particularly from Acts XVIII. 9, 10, 11. ‘Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision. Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace. For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee, to hurt thee; for I have much people in this city. And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.’ To this church planted by the apostle himself, he wrote two epistles, of which this from which our text is taken is the last. At the close of this epistle, he takes his final leave of this church, in the affecting words of the text. As if he had said, And now, brethren, after all my acquaintance with you, which has been mutually so agreeable and profitable; after all my la­bours among you, which God has been pleased so greatly to bless; and after my repeated visits and epistles to you; I bid you an affectionate and final farewell. I ardently wish you prosperity in every respect; and particularly that you may ‘be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace, and then the God of love and peace shall be with you.’

WHAT I propose in this discourse, is to consider the se­veral parts of this farewell of the Apostle, to the Corinthians.

1. HE wishes them to be perfect.—We are not to un­derstand here absolute, sinless perfection. This is not attain­able in this life. "There is not" even ‘a just man upon earth; that doth good and sinneth not.’ Eccles. VII. 20. "And who can say, I have made my heart clean; I am pure from my sin:" Prov. XX. 9. "Who can bring a clean thing, out of an unclean? Not one." Job. XIV. 4. But if any man has attained to perfection in this life, he is a just man upon earth, that doth good and sinneth not: he is pure from his sin: he is a clean thing brought out of an unclean; in direct contradiction to the scriptures just quoted.

IF any person ever has attained to perfection, in this life we may surely suppose, that some of the Saints mentioned [Page 3] in scripture, were favored with this privilege. Therefore let us search for perfection among the most distinguished Saints of both the old Testament and the new. Noah, Dan­iel and Job are in scripture mentioned as eminent Saints and as peculiarly beloved of God. Let us attend to them dis­tinctly. Noah, tho' distinguished from the rest of the world, in being saved from the flood and in being employed as a preacher of righteousness to the old world; and tho in the main he walked with God; yet was overtaken with gross intemperance, as you cannot but remember.—Job, was indeed an eminently good man, so that there was none like him in all the earth, and for a long time he persevered in his patience, under various most distressing afflictions, brought on him in a rapid succession, and for a long time he conduct­ed himself in the most humble and pious manner, ‘falling down to the ground and worshipping;’ saying, "naked came I out of my mother's womb and naked shall I return.

The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; and bless­ed be the name of the Lord:" and when he was insulted by his own wife, because he still retained his integrity, and refused to curse God and die, he made the following most proper and pious answer. ‘What? shall we receive good at the hand of the Lord, and shall we not receive evil.’ Yet to show, that there is no man, upon earth, tho really just and upright, who liveth and sinneth not; Job at last had his patience exhausted, so that he "opened his mouth & curs­ed his day."

WITH regard to Daniel, tho no particular gross sin, is in scripture recorded concerning him, yet we have no reason to suppose, that he was more perfect, than the other two saints, with whom he is classed in scripture, as a distinguished fa­vorite of God.

ABRAHAM was the father of the faithful, and the friend of God; yet he was not sinless: he fell into polygamy and lived in it for a long time.—As to David, in general a man after God's own heart, you know the great sins into which he fell.

MOSES was a distinguished saint, and the meekest of men: yet he transgressed at the waters of Meribah, so that he was shut out of the good land. But let us come to the new testament.

THE eleven apostles, from their constant attendance on the preaching and miracles of our Lord, and from their daily conception and intimate intercourse with him, were under great advantages for Christian edification. Yet they fell short of perfection. For when the multitudes from the chief [Page 4] priests and elders, came with swords and stones, to take Je­sus, his disciples "all forsook him and fled."

PAUL was the great Apostle of the gentiles, was ‘not a whit behind the very chiefest Apostles;’ was ‘a chosen vessel to God, to bear his name before the gentiles, & Kings, & the children of Israel;’ and appears to have done more to spread the gospel in the world, than any of the other Apostles; yet according to his own testimony, he came short of perfecti­on; Phil. III. 12—15. ‘Not as tho' I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.’ This you see is an ex­press confession of his own imperfection. The same thing is manifest from this, that when the Apostle ‘would do good, evil was present with him;’ and that ‘he had a law in his members warring against the law of his mind, and bringing him into captivity to the law of sin, which was in his member.’—This surely is not the de­scription of a perfect man.—If it should be said, as it has been said, that the apostle is here describing his state before his conversion and not after; I answer, that in the same con­text, and even in the next words he declares, that he ‘de­lighted in the law of God, after the inward man; & that with the mind he served the law of God;’ which no un­converted man does; because ‘the carnal mind is enmity against God, and is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.’ And if it were otherwise; if an unconverted man could delight in the law of God, after the inward man, he could and would of course delight in God himself, & love him sincerely. And if he could serve the law of God; he would of course serve God himself. And what is there more difficult in any part of religion, or more distinguishing of its truth and genuineness, than the sincere love and service of the law and of God himself? Indeed this is the root of all true religion and virtually constitutes the whole.

THUS we have taken a view of the most eminent Saints of scripture, and find none among them all, who profess to have attained to perfection; and concerning most of them, we find evident proofs of imperfection. They manifestly fell short of sinless perfection.

IF this be so, it may be said; if sinless perfection be not [Page 5] attainable in this life; what does the apostle mean in our text; when he exhorts the Corinthians to be perfect?

I ANSWER, he doubtless means the same as is intended, when it is said of Job, that ‘he was perfect and upright, and one that feared God and eschewed evil.’ By what has been already observed, it appears, that Job was not sinlessly perfect, as he cursed his day. It must mean therefore, that he was a truly good man, a sincere servant of God, a real saint.

IN the same sense we are told, ‘All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for re­proof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly finished unto all good works.’ This means either the same sincerity, to which Job attained, or a perfection of furniture, a being thoroughly furnished to all good works: and the latter clause may be understood as explanatory of the former.

IN this sense the apostle Paul, after his express renuncia­tion of perfection, as to himself; yet assumes it to himself and some of his fellow Christians; as you may see in Phil. III. 15. ‘Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you:’ plainly shewing, that the apostle uses the word perfection in a very different sense, when he assumes it to himself, from that in which he had used it, when he renounced it.

THEREFORE when the apostle in the text exhorts us to be perfect, he exhorts as to the perfection of Job, to the integri­ty and sincerity of vital Christianity: he exhorts us to live up to our profession, to live in Character, to be real and exem­plary Christians.

II. The apostle tells the Corinthians, to be of good com­fort.—Good comfort naturally follows from the perfection before described. If we be real Christians, humble penitents and cordial believers in Christ: If we live in character, and make proper proficiency in our Christian course, leading an exemplary life, so as to adorn the doctrine of God our Savi­our; no doubt we shall enjoy comforts.—There is peace and comfort in the very exercise of Christian grace. The carnal mind is enmity against God, not subject to his law, neither indeed can be. Therefore so long as we are in our native state of depravity, we are in a state of warfare and opposition to God. The carnal or native mind of man is opposition it­self to God: and such a temper of mind is directly opposed to peace and comfort. Isai, LVII. 20, 21. ‘The wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters [Page 6] cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.’ But no sooner is the heart changed by divine grace, than instead of enmity, reconciliation, submis­sion, and cordial and supreme love to God are introduced and established in it. Of course then it enjoys peace and comfort. Cordial submission and reconciliation are in their very nature placid, peaceful and comfortable.

AND as peace and comfort are implied in the first ex­ercises of the new convert; so they increase as he increases in grace. The very knowledge of God, of his law and of divine truth, affords him delight and comfort, and the more his knowledge is increased, the more are his delight and comfort, increased. The same may be said of his increase in humility, submission to God, complacency in him, faith in Christ, and every other grace. The very existence of sanctification in any person, and especially as it will produce good fruit both in heart and life, is attended with comfort and happiness. ‘The ways of wisdom are, in their own nature, ways of pleasantness, and all her paths peace.’

BESIDES this, sanctification is the evidence of our justifica­tion, and in this view is attended with additional comfort. You are not to imagine, my brethren, that you are to obtain evidence of your pardon and justification, by any immediate revelation from heaven, by any suggestion thrown into your mind, that you are pardoned and accepted by God; or by any text of scripture brought to your thoughts however sud­denly, unexpectedly & undesignedly by yourselves. All such grounds of comfort and belief that you are pardoned, are de­lusive. The word of God gives not the least warrant to trust to such grounds of comfort. Where in all the scripture, do you find it said, that they who have an involuntary suggestion, that they are converted & pardoned, are in reality converted & pardoned. Where do you find it said, He that has a text of scrip­ture unexpectedly coming to his mind, importing that his sins are forgiven, is really forgiven of God?—The scriptural eviden­ces of conversion & forgiveness, are such as these; "He that believeth & is "baptized, shall be saved;" "repent ye therefore and be "converted, that your sins may be blotted out;" ‘I love them that love me, & those that seek me early shall find me;’ ‘Hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts;’ ‘We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren;’ ‘If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;’ ‘Ye are my friends, if ye do what­soever I have commanded you.’—These evidences imply [Page 7] sanctification of heart and life: and to depend on any thing else, than what implies sanctification as an evidence of our justification, is unwarrantable and delusive.

I HAVE insisted the more particularly on this, because it has pleased the great head of the church graciously to visit you with the effusions of his holy spirit, hopefully to bring some of you to the saving knowledge of the truth, and to awaken and convince others: and to be informed what is the proper evidence of a real conversion, is at such a time peculiarly ne­cessary. I wish you to apply what I have now said on this subject to the faithful and candid trial of yourselves.

To be perfect, then in the sense already described, affords comfort, not only as it implies a placid and peaceful temper of mind toward God, complacency in God &c. but as it af­fords evidence, and the only real evidence, of our acceptance with God, and of our sure title, by the promises of the gos­pel, to the future eternal inheritance of heaven and glory.

THIS must certainly be a great source of comfort to every Christian. Thus he enjoys peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. On his part he is at peace with God, as by regeneration, his heart is reconciled to God and subjected to his will: and God on his part is at peace with him, as for Christs sake he is reconciled to him, pardons his sins adopts him and makes him an heir of himself.—What a source of comfort must these things be to the real Christian!

BESIDES, in this way he enjoys peace of conscience. Just so far as a man is sanctified, sin, the very foundation of the accusations of an angry conscience, is prevented or removed: and to be sure in consequence of sanctification, the foundation of accusing and condemning himself as an enemy to God, a rejecter of Christ and an unconverted sinner, is removed: Therefore in the same respects, he has a foundation to enjoy peace of conscience and comfort in his own mind.

NOR is this all: the true Christian is comforted by all the promises of the gospel, that Christ will never leave nor for­sake any of his real disciples; that he will be with them al­ways, that he will so defend them that none shall be able to pluck them out of his hand; that he will support and protect his church even to the end of the world, so that the gates of hell shall not be able to prevail against it; that he will increase and promote true religion in the world; that Satan's kingdom shall be over thrown, that Christ shall generally reign on the earth and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole hea­ven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most high God, that the whole earth shall be full of the knowledge of [Page 8] the Lord as the waters cover the seas; and that finally the kingdom of grace, which took its original from heaven, shall be transplanted to heaven, its native soil, and shall, there eter­nally flourish in perfect rest, peace, holiness, and happiness, to the glory of God the Father.

ALL these considerations are replete with comfort to real Christians. No wonder then they are exhorted to be of good comfort. They have reason of comfort, under the greatest afflictions and persecutions, that ever they are called to en­dure.

III. THE apostle exhorts the Corinthians to be of one mind.—This is of great importance in every community, and es­pecially in every Christian church or society.—They ought to be of one mind in several respects.

I. As to their articles of faith.—Articles of faith, or at best articles of infidelity will naturally govern the temper and practice. He who believes there is no God, will not love and worship him. He who believes that Christ is not the Saviour, will not trust in him for salvation. He who be­lives not in a future state of rewards and punishments, will not prepare for it. He who believes not the gospel to be true, will not be anxious to comply with it. He who believes that there is nothing in religion, will not embrace, love and practise it. If then any people be not of one mind in these respects, how can they walk together?

OR if they differ in things on which the very existence of all religion does not depend; still even this diversity of senti­ment produces discord and is very hurtful. For instance, if some believe the total depravaty of human nature, but others believe that we naturally have some good principles in us: If some believe the sovereignty of divine grace, that God has a right to cast off all men & would do them no injury, if he should make them eternally miserable; while others believe either that no man deserves eternal misery, or that those who are moral & attend on the means of grace, ought not to be finally rejected: If some believe the entire and total dependance of man upon God, and his grace; while others think we haven self-determing power in our wills, which is entirely sufficient for repentance and all the exercises of religion: If some believe the great importance, usefulness and necessity of public worship on the sabbath; while others think they can spend the sabbath as profitably at their own homes: If some believe the necessity and indispensable obligation of a virtuous and pious education of their children while others are im­pressed with no such ideas: If some believe themselves bound [Page 9] to submit cheerfully to the expence necessary to support both the public worship of the sabbath, and the schools necessary for the due education of their children, but others grudge every part of this expence: you cannot but see, that this diversity of sentiment must work disorder and confusion, and finally, tend to the ruin of any society.

II. THEY ought to be of one mind in their aims & ends.—What if some aim at the glory of God, others at their own glory and applause? What if some aim at the promotion of true religion and the interest of Christ, and others, at the promotion of their own interest merely? What if some are willing to deny themselves and their own interest or applause, for the sake of Christ and his cause, but others set up them­selves as supreme, and make religion itself subservient to their private ends? It is manifest, that the religious concerns of such a people cannot proceed with success. As soon as ever religion proves not to be subservient to their applause, their ambition or their private ends, a part of them forsake and oppose it; they oppose therewith, oppose Christianity and oppose Christ himself. And how can we expect any good to the cause of religion and virtue, in such a course of things as this?—This shows the necessity of being of one mind.

III. It is equally necessary that a people be united in their measures to support or promote religion—suppose all the in­dividuals of any community are agreed to aim at the divine glory and the advancement of virtue and piety; yet if they pursue different paths and take different measures, to secure these ends; if one be of Paul, and another of Apollos; if while all are wishing to settle a minister, one choose to set­tle this man and another that, and each be fixed in his own measures; what can be done in this case? The great end will doubtless be lost.

IN these things there must be mutual condescension; and hereby in the case now described there can be condescension. It is supposed, that all are seeking the same end: and when the generality are agreed in the measures to secure this end; for instance the settlement of a particular minister; and wise men in the society and out of it, judge it best for the society, that he should be settled; hereby in this case one or two in­dividuals should rather condescend and fall in with the wishes of the society in general, than that the society should submit to them, or be broken in pieces. Unless there be condescen­sion in some such cases, no people can enjoy peace and success in their religious concerns.

[Page 10] IV. THE apostle exhorts the Corinthians to live in peace.—Peace follows of course from what the apostle had before enjoined. There is no danger, that they who agree in the articles of their faith and religious sentiments, in their aims and ends, and in their measures to obtain those ends; will fall into contention concerning religion. And how happy is re­ligious peace! How comfortable to the church and society! How comfortable to their minister! How favorable to the advancement of the knowledge of the truth, to the love and practice of it! and to the increase of true and real religion! On the contrary, how disagreeable is it to live in contention! How uncomfortable to the church, to the society and to the minister! How unfavourable to the increase of religious knowledge, virtue and piety! It is directly op­posed to both morality and piety, and cannot proceed from them, but from the want of them; or rather from that which is directly opposed to them. ‘Whence come wars and fightings among you? Come they not hence, even from your lusts which war against the spirit?’

BUT however uncomfortable and hurtful contention is, we may expect it, unless we be of one mind in the formentioned respects. If every one be strenuous for his own peculiar opinions, his own ends and his own measures, there can be no peace in any society. And there is great danger of this from various causes.—One source of danger is the natural liberty and independence of man. As every blessing and privilege is capable of abuse, so this is true with regard to personal liberty. As men feel themselves free and in many respects independent; some are apt to indulge this indepen­dence in adopting peculiar opinions, and in pursuing peculiar ends and peculiar measures. Some from vanity effect singu­larity. They wish to distinguish themselves, and they can­not do it any other way so easily as by setting up for peculiar opinions, ends or measures. Thus they effect to show them­selves wiser than other men—The head of a party is always distinguished, and to be in such a situation is flattering to human vanity. From this motive some put themselves at the head of a party however erroneous: and to gratify their ambition, they will rend the society to which they belong, in pieces, and destroy all peace, all order, and all good.

V. On certain conditions, the apostle promises the Corin­thians, that the God of love and peace would be with them. The conditions are, that they be perfect, of good comfort, of one mind, and that they live in peace.—And if we comply with these conditions, God will be with us in several respects.

[Page 11] I. He will be with us by the presence of his grace in our hearts. All who comply with those conditions, are truly gracious persons, are the subject of divine grace communicat­ed in sanctification, by the holy spirit of God, and God by his grace and Holy Spirit habitually dwells in them. In this respect he never leaves them nor forsakes them, but is with them to the end of their lives.

II. If we comply with the forementioned conditions, God will be with us, in the way of divine consolation. This is the natural consequence of the former particular. It is im­plied in what has been already said, that divine grace is com­forting in its very nature, as it implies love to God, to the law of God, and to our Lord Jesus Christ; as it implies faith, truth and hope in Christ, and as it implies love to mankind; all which are agreeable, pleasant and comforting emotions; That it is comforting, as it implies the subduing of native de­pravity, which is ever turbulent and opposed to peace and comfort; and as it gives evidence of future grace and sup­port here, and of eternal glory hereafter.

III. ON the same conditions God will be with us in the way of protection. He will keep us even as the apple of his eye: he will never leave us nor forsake us, and never de­liver us up into the hands of our spiritual foes, who seek our ruin. As he really is, so he will act as the captain of our salvation, and afford us the most effectual aid, in times of need. Nay, he will make all things to work together for our good; for this is his express promise to them that love God. And tho' we may fall into various temporal evils, from these we shall be recovered, and those evils themselves shall be made to work together for our good.

IV. GOD will be with us to build us up in faith and holi­ness. ‘The path of the just is as the shining light, which shineth more and more unto the perfect day.’ We need the same communications of grace to build us up in holiness, as in the first instance to regenerate our hearts: and this we shall receive on the conditions specified in the text.

V. GOD will be with us, to prepare us for glory and to receive us to it. He will never suffer any who are once the subjects of grace, to fail of glory. ‘Whom he did fore know, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son; & whom he did predestinate, them he also call­ed; and whom he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified.’ ‘Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or fraud? [Page 12] Nay in all these things we are more than conquerors, through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, not height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’

I SHALL now apply these general observations to the pre­sent occasion.—For several years past, I have been with you labouring in the ministry, endeavouring to instruct you in the great and most important doctrines of the gospel, to in­culcate the duties, to excite you to the practice of it, and to warn you against every error, sin and vice. My connec­tion with you has been peaceful, agreeable, & of late I hope successful. I expected to continue & spend the rest of my days with you. And as the proposal of my leaving you was no ob­ject of my seeking; so it has been attended with great anxiety concerning my duty. As the best expedient in the case, and the most likely means of obtaining light as to my duty, the whole question concerning my removal has, as you well know, been submitted to a council mutually agreeable to us both. You know the result of the council; it was their un­animous opinion, that it was my duty to accept the call, which invites me to leave you, and your duty to acquiesce.

HAD they decided, that I ought to continue with you, I should have complied with their decision, in a conviction, that in that case I should enjoy for more ease; more leisure, more retirement and more opportunity to prosecute my favourite study of theology, to indulge many agreeable propensities and to enjoy many of my most agreeable friends, whose society must be lost by my removal. And now that they have decided it to be my duty to accept a call to a distant place, I feel myself obligated to comply with their decision, tho' with great re­luctance to leaving this dear people, especially at the present juncture, at which it has pleased the great head of the church to afford his influences among us; and in the prospect of la­bour, anxiety, responsibility and perhaps difficulty, in the undertaking to which I am invited. Yet since it is by pro­per judges decided to be my duty, I shall take upon me this arduous service, and discharge the obligations of it, according to my best ability, looking to God to assist and support me.

SINCE we must part, what is more proper, than we part as Paul, and the Corinthians did? After the example of the great apostle of the Gentiles, I do certainly most ardently wish you to be perfect, to be of good comfort, to be of one mind and to live in peace; and that you may be animated so [Page 13] to do, by the motive, that then the God of love and peace shall be with you.

You have heard what has been said concerning the necessi­ty of unanimity and peace among yourselves. And I dare say you realize it. Formerly, you experienced the ill effects of dissentions. Let this your experience warn and guard you against every thing of the like kind in future. ‘Remem­bering your affliction and your misery, the worm wood and the gall; let your soul still have them in remembrance, and be humbled in you.’ Let me beseech you to withstand the beginning of dissention. It is ‘like the letting out of water; once let out, it is hard to be stopped again, and the longer it runs, the deeper and wider channel it wears, Therefore leave off contention before it is meddled with.’

YOUR union among yourselves, as well as your kind treat­ment of me, since I have been connected with you, has been a source of happiness to me. I shall always remember you with affection, gratitude and kindest benevolence. It is a most happy circumstance, that since we must part, we part not only with peace, but with entire mutual friendship. This is a singular case of the dismission of a minister from his peo­ple. That you have acted in this whole affair with so much candour, with so many and so unequivocal testimonies of af­fection to me, and regard to the council which has dissolved our connection, has been often noticed to your honor. I hope the mutual friendship, which has uninterruptedly sub­sisted between us, will ever continue, and that we shall sin­cerely remember each other in our prayers.

As your minister is now about to leave you, I sincerely pray and hope that in due time God will send you a good minister of Jesus Christ a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost; and that under his faithful ministry much people may be added unto the Lord. And as it has pleased God lately to visit you with the influences of his Holy spirit, to the revival of true religion among you; I presume you will not be contented to live long, without so important a blessing, as a Christian minister. If you have tasted, that the Lord is gracious, you will not be willing to live without the preach­ing of the gospel and stated worship on the sabbath. As new born babes you will desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.

I HOPE, Brethren, that in settling a minister, you will be attentive to two things, that he be found in the faith, & that as far as you can judge, he be a man of true piety. If he be not found in the faith, he will lead you & your children into [Page 14] error and false religion: and this error and false religion will naturally descend to future generations, and may prove fatal to thousands.—And if he be not a man of true piety, with what sincerity can he act in any part of his ministry? As he will not be friendly to Christ or his cause, he will not re­lish the truth, nor heartily engage to promote it. If he do not directly oppose true religion, which is the most favour­able supposition; still being a blind leader of the blind, he & his hearers will likely both fall into the ditch.

BUT if you shall settle a good and faithful minister, you will, so far as you yourselves are rightly disposed, rejoice in him and in his ministrations; you will have peace and be e­dified in the most holy faith; and you will have reason to hope, that God will bless his labours among you, and extend the good effects of such a ministry to generations yet unborn.

How happy will you be under such a minister! How hap­py will all your friends be on your behalf! And how happy shall I be, to hear of your prosperity!

AND now, Brethren, I am to take my leave of you. When Paul took leave of the elders of the church of Ephasus, ‘they all wept sore, and fell on Pauls neck and kissed him, sor­rowing most of all for the words, which▪ he spake, that they should see his face no more.’ How it may be with us, brethren, whether we may ever be permitted to see each others face again in this world, God only knows. Therefore ‘final­ly, brethren, farewell.’ It is my hearts desire and prayer for you, that you may prosper in all your real interests; that you may prosper in your several lawful secular concerns; that you may prosper as a society, increasing in numbers, wealth and reputation, and be regarded as a truly respectable people, by all around you.—That you may be prospered as a church, established in the faith and order of the gospel, re­ceiving "daily additions of such as shall be saved."—And that you may prosper as individuals that every careless sin­ner among you may be thoroughly awakened and convinced; that every unregenerate sinner may be renewed by divine grace: and that every real Christian may ‘grow in grace & in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.’—In one word, that your souls may be in health and pros­per".

To this end, let me beseech you all to improve the present favourable opportunity. Now God is shedding down his kind influences among you, to the awakening and conviction of many and the hopeful conversion of some. Now then is an happy opportunity to obtain the grace of God. ‘Now [Page 15] is the accepted time; now is the day of salvation.’ Should any of you live through such a time as this, and resist the peculiar and strong motives, which are now exhibited, to be­come reconciled to God; it is not likely, that the weaker mo­tives of ordinary times will have much effect upon you. But you are in the hands of a sovereign God, to whom you have forfeited every blessing, and who therefore has a right to have mercy upon you, or to leave you to perish in your sins. You are dependent on his sovereign grace. Own this your de­pendence; and expect help from no other source. Accept the offered grace of God, and lose not that infinite blessing, by neglect or delay.

‘TAKE heed to yourselves, and to all the flock, which God hath purchased with his own blood.’ Take heed, ‘that after my departing grievous wolves do not enter in a­mong you, not sparing the flock; and that of your own­selves men do not arise, speaking preverse things, to draw away disciples after them.’—‘Brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all them, which are sanctified.’ May the God of love and peace be with and bless both you and me respectively; may he watch over, protect and prosper us in our several lawful ways; and may he especially replenish our hearts with his grace & love. And when we shall have served our generation according to his will; may we meet with joy and mutual congratulation before our common judge, be acquitted and accepted by him, and so may we be forever with the Lord.