SERMON XXXVII.

PSALM XXV. 13.

THE SECRET OF THE LORD IS WITH THEM THAT FEAR HIM.

THESE words feem to imply some spiritual fecret, which every one cannot find out, and which is to be found out only by thofe, who fear the Lord. And yet at the fame time, it appears to be a fecret very open to every one.-Let us examine this feeming contradiction. Let us firft enquire what this fecret is-Secondly, why it is called a fecret -and thirdly, how it is to be found out.

We enquire first, what this fecret is.-Now from the tenor of the pfalm, from which the text is taken,

this great fecret appears to be nothing more than the well-known truth, that the happiness of man confifts in the fear of God: and indeed we fhall find this truth inculcated among the first pieces of inftruction in every religious book we meet with. It is the fubject of the minifter's difcourfe-of the father's advice -and of the tutor's lectures. Even the heathen philofopher, tho' he could not so well inform us, in what the happiness of man confifted, knew enough of this fecret to be convinced, that it did not confift in the enjoyment of the things of this world.

In the writings of the old teftament this fecret is very clearly revealed. Holy Job, in the beginning of the nineteenth chapter, fhews how well he was acquainted with it, when the candle of the Lord fhone upon his head-when he walked by its lightand when the fecret of the Lord was upon his tabernacle.-David's acquaintance with this fecret is fhewn in numberlefs paffages of his pfalms; and Solomon has written almoft a whole book on the fubject.

Again, when we open the new teftament this great fecret appears to be unfolded ftill more plainly. There almost in every page we are more or less affured, that the paths of religion are alone the paths of happiness.

Fewer

Fewer words might have fhewn, that this great fecret, which is only that the happiness of man confifts in the fear of God, hath been known, and witneffed to by all in every age, who pretended to religion. Whence comes it then that David calls it a fecret? It seems fo far from being a fecret, that no truth can be more generally acknowledged. This is the fecond point I propofed to confider.

Now there are two ways of acknowledging a truth. Nothing is more common than to acknowledge a truth, and yet fuffer that truth to make no impreffion upon us. In that case, the truth in fact is not acknowledged. Do you act upon it?-No.-Then you only talk about it. Thus you fometimes hear a man talk about prudence, while he is fquandering his eftate; and cant about religion, while every action of his life is a breach of its precepts.

We have a strong inftance in the cafe of Judas Ifcariot, of a man's poffeffing a truth, which has no influence upon his actions. Judas, we are told, took great offence at the perfon, who anointed our Saviour's head with a rich ointment. So precious a commodity, faid he, might have been fold for a confiderable fum, and given to the poor? From

fuch

such a speech, one should have thought the charitable difpofition of Judas flowed out more than that of any of his fellow-difciples. But we are mistaken. It was a fentiment, that came only from his lips his heart never felt it. We read in the next verse, that he had, in fact, no regard for the poor: but was a thief, and carried the bag; which he wished to fill as much as he could, that he might convert it to his own use.

And

Thus with regard to the fecret of the Lord, we are ever ready to acknowledge, that we ought to truft in God, rather than in the world for our happinefs; but we acknowledge it too often only as Judas did the virtue of charity; it comes only from our lips it does not influence our actions. when this is the cafe, however we may impose on ourselves, we certainly have not gotten at the fecret of the Lord.-Take a view of mankind in general: (I do not mean the abandoned part of mankind, for they are out of the question) but of those who pretend to religion; and you will too often see them engaged in all the business, the bustle, or pleasures of life, and little else going forward from morning till night. And yet many of them are very decent people-mighty religious; and go conftantly to church. It is a pity they can

not

not find out the fecret of the Lord. In fuch company however we need not feek it. Let us then look for it among the wife, the thoughtful, and the prudent. Under a ferious deportment, and the demureness of religion, ftill we see such a conftant attention to worldly happiness-fo much anxiety about worldly good-fo much fear, and distress about worldly evil, that it is beyond the power of charity to fuppofe this heavenly fecret is perfectly discovered even here.

But as the trueft conviction in this point muft arise from ourselves-instead of looking into the practice of others, and supposing what they feel, let us examine our own breafts, and obferve what fymptoms we find there of having discovered this great fecret.

In fome happy moment, when your heart rejoices-when your spirits are raised beyond their common flow-ask yourselves what it is, that gives you fo much joy? Is it, that you feel the transports of religion? Is it the teftimony of a good confcience, that raifes in you the joyful hope of acceptance with God? Is it the contemplation of those joys, which eye hath not feen, nor ear beard? Or is it (let us examine fairly) is it the expectation of fuccefs in fome worldly business?