A SERMON Preached in the Parish-Church of St NICHOLAS, IN THE City of BRISTOL, August the 27th, 1691. BEING The ANNIVERSARY FESTIVAL OF THE Natives of that City. By THOMAS CARY, M. A. and Vicar of the Parish of St Philip and Jacob, in the City of Bristol.  
LONDON: Printed for Thomas Wall, Bookseller in Bristol. 1691.   

To the Worshipful Sir John Dudelstone, Kt. PRECEDENT: THE OFFICERS, And the Rest of the SOCIETY OF THE NATIVES OF THE City of BRISTOL.  
Honoured Countrymen,  
THE Discourse which had lately your Audience, now offers itsself to your View, it was composed for you, and doth by Right belong to you. The Design of it is, by beating down the Price of the World, to persuade you to make such a good Use of it, while you live in it, that you may go out of it with comfort. GOD hath blessed many of you with ample Estates, it is your Duty to return him a Tributary Acknowledgement by a Generous Charity: That these Meditations may be serviceable for this End, is the hearty Prayer of,  
Honoured Countrymen, Your most Humble Servant, THOMAS CARY.   
LUKE xij. xv. And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. 
THE occasion of these words, was an improper Petition presented to our blessed Lord, by one who came to hear his Doctrine, while he was discoursing on a Divine Subject, a certain Worldling who minded Earth more than Heaven, interrupted him with this unseasonable address: Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me, vers. 13. Perhaps, apprehending Christ to be the promised Messiah, and mistaking the Messiah (as the Jews generally did) to be a Temporal Prince, he desired him to exercise his Authority in this Case.  
Our Saviour (whose Kingdom is not of this World) would not invade the Office of the Civil Magistrate, or intermeddle with Matters Foreign to his Commission, He said unto him, who made me a judge, or a divider over you? vers. 14.  
The Son of God came not from Heaven to settle men's Estates, but to save their Souls; he was not sent to be an Arbitrator in our Worldly Concerns, but to execute the Office of a Mediator between God and Man; not to compose Differences about Temporal Rights, but to reconcile GOD to Man, and Man to GOD.  
However, our blessed Lord, who improved all Opportunities of doing good, takes advantage from hence to strike at the Root from whence this Interruption grew; he doth not directly fall on the Person who disturbed him in his Discourse, but obliquely reflects on the cause of it. The Covetousness of this Man's Heart indisposed him to attend to our Saviour's Doctrine, and therefore our blessed Lord cautions the whole Auditory against this sin: And he said unto them, Take heed and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.  
The words contain these two Particulars:  

I. A Caution: Take heed and beware of covetousness.  
II. An Argument to enforce it: For a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.   
I. A Caution: Take heed and beware of covetousness. Covetousness is an inordinate desire of worldly Riches; the Root from whence this and all other Vices grow, is evil Concupiscence in the Heart, Sensual Lust receives distinct Names from its different Objects; if Honour be its Object, it is then called Ambition; if Pleasure, Voluptuousness; if Riches, Covetousness, or to use the Apostle's Expression, The love of money, 1 Tim. 6. 10.  
All desire of worldly Riches is not Covetousness, Men must labour in their Callings, be provident in their Expenses, and lay up for their Families: Industry is not Sin but Duty. To increase an Estate by honest means and endeavours, is so far from being culpable, that it is a singular commendation; but the desire of worldly Riches is then sinful, when it is immoderate, and whenever our Love of the World exceeds its proper bounds, it is the Sin of Covetousness. Let us then consider in what cases the desire of Temporal Things is immoderate, and then we shall find out the Nature of this Sin.  
1. The desire of Riches is immoderate, when the World alienates our Hearts from God and our Duty; when we love the World more than God, prefer Carnal before Spiritual Riches, labour more for our Bodies than our Souls, and for the World neglect God's Service, and our Etenral Concerns, than we are guilty of the Sin of Covetousness; such a love of the World is inconsistent with the love of God: No man can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other; ye cannot serve God and mammon, Matth. 6. 24. Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world: If any man love the world, the love of the father is not in him: for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye; and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world, 1 Joh. 2. 15, 16.  
2. The desire of Riches is immoderate, when Men use unjust means to enrich themselves, when they exchange their Souls for the World, and have so seared their Consciences as to use Fraud, Perjury, Oppression, or any other dishonest Practices to increase their Estates. All these unlawful Methods are Evidences of a covetous Heart.  
3. The desire of Riches is immoderate, when it distracts the Mind with perplexing Cares: Excessive Sorrows for the Losses and Disappointments Men meet with in their worldly Concerns, rebellious Murmur against the Providence of the Almighty, Envyings and Repine at the Prosperity of our Neighbours, anxious and disquieting Thoughts concerning Futurity, and despairing Fears about the Events of our Endeavours, are certain Indications of the Sin of Covetousness; it is in Scripture opposed to Contentment of Mind in every state of Life, and a secure Confidence in the All-sufficiency of God: Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee, Heb. 13. 5.  
4. The desire of Riches is immoderate, when it is inconsistent with the Graces of Charity, Mercifulness, and Liberality. He that hath not a Heart to give to the Poor, when God furnisheth him with means and opportunities, is a covetous Man.  
The Covetous love the World above all, pursue it with Violence, stick not at any Methods to attain their Ends, employ it to bad purposes, keep it with trouble, and lose it with despair.  
Having thus explained the Nature of this Sin, I come now to discover the Evil of it.  
1. Covetousness is an idolatrous departure from the All-sufficient Creator, to the insufficient Creature. Whatsoever a Man sets his Heart most on, labours most for, spends the greatest part of his time in quest of, delights most in, trusts most to, and values himself most upon, that is his God: the ambitious Man's God is Honour, the Epicure's Pleasure, the Gluttons the Belly, and the Covetous Man's Riches; the World is the Idol he adores, because the gain of it is his ultimate end; therefore the Apostle calls Covetousness Idolatry, Col. 3. 5.  
The Covetous Man's Heart is wholly departed from the Lord; with the Children of Israel he forsakes the true God, to worship a Golden Calf; with those in the Parable of the Gospel-Banquet, he prefers his Farm or his Merchandise before his God and Saviour; he knows no God but Gain, no Paradise but an earthly Patrimony; Bonds and Mortgages from Men, are with him of greater Value, and a better Security than the precious Promises of God; give him Earth here, he cares not for Heaven hereafter, neither will he part with an Estate in hand, for the Kingdom of Glory in reversion. The Rich Man in the Gospel could boast much of his Morality, yet he had not learned so much Self-denial: Go thy way (saith Christ) sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: but he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved, for he had great possessions, Mark 10. 21. Our blessed Lord took occasion from hence, to declare the difficulty of Salvation to those that are covetous, by proportioning it to the passage of a Camel through a Needle's eye: How hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God? It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God, vers. 24, 25.  
The Covetous Man's Practices demonstrate the infidelity of his Heart; he is always laying up on Earth, because he believes not that there is an Heaven; his restless pursuit after Temporal Riches, is an argument he expects no other Satisfaction than what this World can afford; his continual Labour for the Body, is an evidence he thinks his Soul shall die with it; he that believes in earnest that he hath an immortal Spirit to be happy or miserable forever, will not wholly neglect his better part, and lay out all his care on that which must perish; the Covetous Man would not forsake God for the World, did he not apprehend to be a greater Good: Mammon is the only Master he serves, Worldly Gain the only Good he desires, and Worldly Loss the only Evil he fears.  
Covetousness incapacitates the Heart to perform any Religious Duty after a Spiritual Manner: How can he pray devoutly, whose Heart is devoted to the World? How can he profitably hear the Word of God, whose Ears are never attentive but to the Sound of Gain? whose Thoughts are on his Worldly Affairs? No! the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful, Mat. 13. 22. The most Divine Discourses can no more affect his Heart, than the most Melodious Music doth the Ear of a Beast. When our Saviour exhorted to Charity, the Pharisees who were covetous heard all these things, and they derided him, Luke 16. 14. How can he value the love and favour of God, the Language of whose Heart is, Let my Corn and Wine increase, and let God lift up the Light of his Countenance upon whom he please? How can he bless God for his Mercies, whose unthankful Heart is not satisfied with too much, but always ravenous after more? God and the World are so contrary in their Natures that both cannot have our Hearts, the love of the one, doth imply a contempt of the other; it remains therefore, that a Covetous Man is a profane and graceless Person, without God in the World.  
2. Covetousness is an Argument of a base and sordid Nature: It lodgeth only in narrow Souls, and earthly Spirits, a generous Mind disdains to entertain this filthy Lust; the Covetous Man acts from and for Self, he is unprofitable both to Church and State, and useless in every relation; he hath not a Heart to prefer the Public Good before his Private Interest.  
Of all Persons in Humane Societies, the Covetous are most unfit for Public Offices. How unqualified are they for the Power of Judicature, who never want Hearts, when they have Opportunities of taking Bribes? Covetousness perverts Justice either from fear of displeasing some great Personage, or from hope to oblige him. To what base Flatteries; to what servile Compliances; to what slavish Drudgeries, doth this Vice expose Men? That Mind cannot be free and ingenious which is enslaved with the Love of Money: Magistracy is never more disgraced than when misplaced on Covetous Men; this sin is inconsistent with that State and Grandeur that should keep up the Honour of it: exact Justice, and a generous Charity tend more to secure it from Contempt, than all the Ensigns of Authority: Liberality, and Hospitality, render it more honourable than Swords and Maces, or a tedious Train of Attendants; and therefore Jethro advised Moses to provide for Magistrates, Able men, such as fear God: men of truth, hating covetousness, Exod. 18. 21.  
The Covetous Man is at the best but a Slave in a Mine of Ore, a Captive in Fetters of Gold, the Jailor, rather than the Injoyer of his Estate: This Vice bows down the Soul towards the Earth, hinders its flight to Things above, and eclipseth it, by interposing the World between it and Heaven.  
The first sin was Pride, this cast Angels out of Heaven; the next to that, was an Affectation to be as Gods, to know Good and Evil; this cast our first Parents out of Paradise; these sins are very great, and cannot be sufficiently aggravated; but they were sins of a more generous nature than this of Covetousness; they aspired to be greater than they were, but the Covetous Man debaseth and lesseneth himself; they would have raised themselves higher towards Heaven, but the Covetous Man stoops lower towards the Earth, as if he lay under the Curse of the Serpent, Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life, Gen. 3. 15.  
3. Covetousness is a most cruel and unnatural Vice: It fills the Head with Cares, the Heart with Sorrows, and the Mind with Fears; What discontents at Providence; what melancholy damps; what excruciating thoughts do torture the Minds of Covetous Men? Covetousness is a sin and a punishment together, a Vulture in the Heart, a Wolf in the Breast, a Serpent in the Bosom, it oppresseth the Spirits, drieth up the Radical moisture, depauperates the Blood, degradeth the Soul, and consumes the Body: a Covetous Man starves at a Plentiful Table, thirsts in Rivers of Water, and is poor in the midst of abundance; he lives in want of what he hath, and in this is most miserable, that he only knows the Cares and Sorrows, not the Comforts of being Rich: For what hath a man of all his labour, and of the vexation of his heart wherein he hath laboured under the sun? For all his days are sorrows, and his travel grief; yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night, Eccles. 2. 22, 23. Nature is contented with a little, but the cravings of a Covetous Mind are boundless; Rivers of Potable Gold will not quench this Hydropic Thirst, Crowns heaped up to Heaven cannot satisfy this Ambition; Contentment renders little much, but Covetousness makes much but a little.  
4. Covetousness is a sin of prodigious folly: Were it lawful to make Satyrs and Invectives against any Persons, it would be against the Covetous; their Vices may be exposed to shame and contempt, although their Persons ought to be pitied; For what folly is it to hoard up that with care and sorrow, which is good for nothing but to be enjoyed? Or to sweat and labour all our Lives for those things we must leave for ever in a moment? What an unprofitable bargain is it, to gain a transitory World, with the loss of an immortal Soul? What madness to render our Lives uncomfortable, by denying ourselves those Blessings God hath plentifully given us to make them comfortable?  
We laugh at Children when we see them fond of gaudy Rattles, and gilded Trifles; the Covetous Man doth act the Child's folly in a higher Sphere, he is taken with Gold, not for its use, but for the value the World hath put on it, he admires it more for its lustre, than its convenience; it is only the fancy that giveth such a great worth to this Metal; were it not for Custom, a Bar of Iron would be as precious as a Wedge of Gold: where Shells are used for Money, they are as serviceable as Plate is among us. Gold and Silver are of no other use, than as they serve to purchase the Necessaries and Conveniences of Life, and therefore are never to be desired for their own sakes.  
5. Covetousness is the root of all evil: The Schoolmen reckon up seven Branches growing from this Prolific Root, 
Aq. 2da. 2dae quaes 118.  Treachery, Fraud, Unfaithfulness, Perjury, Discontent, Violence, and unmercifulness. And St. Paul saith expressly, They that will be rich fall into temptation, and a snare, and many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition: for the love of money is the root of all evil; which while some have coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows, 1 Tim. 6. 9, 10.  
I shall briefly enumerate the principal Vices that do necessarily attend Covetousness.  
1. Uncharitableness. Covetousness makes Men hard hearted, cruel; and insensible of the Miseries of others; the greatest Objects of Pity, make no impression on their Affections, their Ears are deaf to the most clamorous Necessities, the Tears of Widows and Orphans affect not their obdurate Hearts; where this sin reigns, there is always a savage, barbarous, and unmerciful Nature.  
He whose whole work it is to heap up, will not spare any thing: So far are the Covetous from supplying the Poor, that it is well if they do not oppress them; the rich Glutton in the Parable, would not afford so much as the Crumbs his Dogs did eat, to poor Lazarus, he found more mercy from the Dogs that licked him, than from their Covetous Master. Churlish Nabal surfeited himself, but denied Food in extremity to David and his Company: the hands of a covetous Man are never open to give, but to receive.  
The Uncharitableness of Covetous Men is a demonstration of the Infidelity of their Hearts; God commands us to give to the Poor; he sends daily Objects to the Doors of the Rich, and hath promised to reward Charity both in this Life, and that to come, but the Covetous do not believe a promising God, or will not take his Word; they prefer a small Interest on Earth, before Bags that wax not old, Treasures that fail nor, a Hundred-fold in this life, and in the World to come life everlasting.  
2. Oppression. The Covetous Man measures Good and Evil by Profit and Loss; Just and Unjust are, with him, but vain Notions, Right and Wrong are with him, but insignificant words. Whence come Rapine and Violence, Oppression of poor Neighbours, Invasion of other men's Rights, breach of Contracts, litigious Suits of Law, secret Undermine of one another, false Weights and Balances, fraudulent Bargains, come they not from men's covetous Hearts? The Covetous Man forestals the Market, engrosseth the Blessings of God, and contracts the largeness of his immense Bounty; his Coffers are the bottomless Pit, wherein the unmeasurable Plenty of God is lost; his Barns are full, when the Poor want Bread to stop their Mouths from Complaints.  
3. Inhumanity. When this sin grows predominant, it makes Men unnatural in denying themselves the Conveniences of Life; sometimes they starve their Families while they live, that they may leave them rich when they die; the Curse of God is on such covetous Persons, he judicially suffers them to be infatuated by this base Lust, or else they could not be so cruel to Themselves and their Relations. Then I returned and saw vanity under the sun: there is one alone, and there is not a second: yea, he hath neither child nor brother; yet there is no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, for whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? this is also vanity, yea it is a sore travel, Eccl. 4. 7, 8. So again, There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men: a man to whom God hath given riches, wealth, and honour: so that he wanteth nothing for his soul of all that he desireth, yet God giveth him not power to eat thereof; but a stranger eateth it: this is vanity, and it is an evil disease, Eccl. 6. 1, 2.  
4. Many Doctrinal and Practical Errors spring from Covetousness. This impure Lust blinds the Understanding, and clouds the judging Faculty; he can never have the due exercise of his Reason, who is addicted to an immoderate love of worldly things; the Judgement is biased to believe those Doctrines to be true, and those Practices good, which tend to our Temporal Interests, be they never so false and evil, when Covetousness prevails in the heart. St. Paul saith, That while some coveted after money, they erred from the faith, 1 Tim. 6. 5. St. Peter hath foretold, That there shall be false teachers, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies; even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction: and many shall follow their pernicious ways, by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of: and through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you, 2 Pet. 2. 1, 2. They are farther described: Having an heart exercised with covetous practices, and loving the wages of unrighteousness, vers. 14, 15.  
For an instance of this, we need go no farther than the present Church of Rome; many erroneous Doctrines, and unchristian Practices among the Papists were first invented, and are since maintained to gratify the covetous desires of their Clergy: their pretended Supremacy, Infallibility, Purgatory; their Canonization of Saints, Jubilees, Pilgrimages, Prayers for the Dead; Indulgences and Dispensations flowed from this Spring: these Doctrines have no foundation either in Revelation or Reason; they tend only to support the external glory and greatness of that Church; and they are fond of them for the same reason that Demetrius, and the Craftsmen were of Diana, and her Silver Shrines: Sirs, ye know, that by this craft we have our wealth, Act. 19, 25.  
The Roman Church by selling Indulgences for past Sins, and Dispensations for Sins to come; and by exposing Masses to sale, to deliver Souls out of Purgatory, appears to be the Mystical Babylon mentioned in the Revelation of St. John; for this Church only answers the Character of trading in the souls of men, Rev. 18. 13.  
6. Covetousness is a damnable Sin. St. Paul dissuades the Corinthians from having any society with a covetous Brother: If any one that is called a brother be covetous, with such an one, No! not to eat, 1 Cor. 5. 11. And he rangeth the Covetous among those that shall not inherit the kingdom of God, 1 Cor. 6. 10. Covetousness is inconsistent with a state of Grace, and therefore must be mortified before we can attain to a state of Salvation. He who is fond of this visible World is unprepared for the invisible; How unfit are they to live in a World of pure Spirits, who mind only earthly things? Our Souls must be weaned from this World, and live above it, before they can be qualified for a better; a contempt of this by a Spirit of Heavenly-mindedness, must train us up for that. In Heaven there are no Houses or Lands, Gold or Silver, Food or Raiment, and therefore a sensual Worldling could not take any pleasure in it: there are spiritual riches, intellectual Delights, holy Pleasures, there is not one thing proper for the animal life, and therefore the state of it doth not suit a carnal Soul. He who here relisheth no Pleasures but those of sense, shall not only lose that World he was fond taken with, but also be condemned to a World of unspeakable Misery, where he shall curse his Folly for giving away his Soul for this.  
2. An Argument to enforce the Caution, Take heed and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.  
Sensus est admodum popularis, vitam non juvari ex eo quòd quis plus in bonis habeat quàm satis sit ad naturae desideria: saith Grotius upon the Text; that is, the sense is very obvious, a Man's Life is not supported by those things which are more than will suffice to satisfy the Desires of Nature, no Man hath truly any more than he enjoys of the good things of this life, Water in the Brook quencheth not the Thirst, Corn in the Barn satisfieth not Hunger, Gold in the Bag supplieth not our Necessities, Nature is preserved, the Body comforted by those things we use and enjoy, not by those we keep and possess, a moderate portion of the good things of this Life is enough for use and enjoyment, and therefore we may be happy without abundance; the comfort and conveniency of Life doth not consist in abundance, but in a competency, and therefore we should not covet more than enough; Superfluities are more than we can use, and why should we fond desire them? Worldly Riches are desirable, not for their own sakes, but for the purposes and conveniences of life, and therefore we have enough of them, when we have as much as we can use and enjoy.  
That the happiness of Humane Life doth not consist in the abundance of worldly things, I shall evince by these following Considerations.  
1. Abundance of worldly things is unnecessary: The happiness of life consists in a sufficiency, not in superfluities, we may live very comfortably with a little, and miserably with much, Nature is satisfied with a competency of Food and Raiment, and Happiness consists in the satisfaction of our natural Desires, not in gratifying our extravagant Lusts; Nature is easily satisfied, but Lust never; a Seemless Coat will keep us as warm as a Princely Robe, Water quencheth the Thirst better than Wine, Sleep is as sweet in a Cottage, as in a Palace, plain Food satisfieth Hunger, and is more wholesome than delicious Meats: rich Apparel, generous Wines, stately Houses, and splendid Entertainments, serve only to gratify the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life: and therefore Agur a Man much celebrated for his Wisdom, prefers a Competency before either of the Extremes, Riches or Poverty: Give me neither poverty nor riches, feed me with food convenient for me, Prov. 30. 8. If the happiness of life consisted in abundance, than all that abound would be happy, but every day's experience convinceth us of the contrary.  
2. Abundance of worldly things cannot satisfy covetous desires. Nature hath Bounds, Lust none; the World hath Limits, Covetousness is unmeasurable: The Riches of both the Indies transported hither, would not content a covetous Heart: this Lust is as unsatiable as Hell and the Grave, he that is not satisfied with a competency, neither would he be with abundance: He that loveth silver, shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance, with increase: this is also vanity, Eccles. 5. 10.  
God hath given us infinite Desires, that we might direct them towards an infinite Good; he made the Soul of Man uncapable of satisfaction but from an infinite Good; it is God's Royal Prerogative that he alone can satisfy an immortal Spirit; when we direct our infinite Desires to God, we pursue our proper satisfaction, and when we are united with God we attain it, than our Desires are terminated; we employ them for that Noble End they were intended, and attain that infinite Good which was designed for them; but when we turn our Desires after worldly things, they cannot meet with any satisfaction; the reason is, because there is no proportion between the Subject and the Object; the World, though it be very large, yet it is but finite, and a finite World can no more satisfy infinite Desires, than a drop can contain the Ocean: again, the Soul being an immortal Spirit, whatsoever satisfies it must run parallel with its duration; but the whole World must shortly be dissolved, and the Earth, and all the Works that are therein must be burnt; How then can a perishing World satisfy an immortal Soul, that must survive infinitely the duration of it? It remains therefore, that the Soul cannot be satisfied, but by an infinite and eternal Good; it may make many vain Experiments, but is never at rest, till it fix upon its proper Centre God.  
3. Abundance of worldly things exposeth to great Temptations and Troubles. Great Estates are gained many times with the loss of the Soul, more valuable than the whole visible World; they that have them are subject to immoderate Cares, and liable to great Disappointments: When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: And what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes? The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep. There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun; namely, riches kept for the owners thereof, to their hurt, Eccles. 5. 11, 12.  
The greatest Crowns have Thorns as well as Jewels in them, a glorious Sceptre is also weighty, Magistracy itsself is but an honourable Burden; Great Men are liable to the Envy of Great Persons; whosoever sits upon the highest Pinnacle of worldly Honour, is in this more miserable than the meanest, that he is liable to a greater fall. Contentment is oftener found in a Cottage, than in a Palace; Quietness is oftener clothed in Rags than Robes; Worldly Pomp and Grandeur, only make it possible to be more extremely Unfortunate; Happiness is more in Solitude and Retirement from the busy World, than in the crowded Courts of Kings.  
Agur had much reason on his side, when he preferred a Competency before either of the Extremes; he deprecated Riches, least being full he should deny God, and say, Who is the Lord? and poverty; lest he should steal, and take the name of his God in vain, Prov. 30. 9  
He desired rather to steer a middle Course, or to be placed in a middle Station, than to run the hazard of either of the Extremes; certainly he who is blessed with a competent Portion of the good Things of this Life, and hath a holy Soul in a healthy Body, is the happiest Man on Earth; he is not seated on the top of the Mountain so as to fear a Storm, nor in the bottom of the Valley so as to fear an Inundation, he is not so high as to be afraid of a Fall, nor so low as to be trampled on; he is not so great as to attract envy, nor so little as to provoke contempt; he hath enough to maintain him while he lives, and to bury him when he is dead. Again: Abundance exposeth Men to many destructive Lusts; Riches betray Men to Pride, Luxury, Sensuality, Ambition, and Contempt of God and Religion; the Rich are careful and troubled about many things, and neglect the one thing needful; they seldom think of God, their Souls, the invisible World, and a Future Account, because they are well pleased to continue here; the Pleasures of this World benumb the Powers of the Soul, exalt Sensual Appetite; render the Way to Heaven more difficult, and dull Men asleep in a Carnal Security.  
4. Abundance of worldly things is of little use to the Soul: They serve only for the purposes of the Body, be joyful in the day of prosperity: Religion allows innocent Mirth, and sober Festivals: It is good and comely for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him, for it is his portion: every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour, this is the gift of God, Eccles. 5. 18, 19  
But then God's Blessing must go with the use of the Creatures, else they cannot render Life happy and comfortable; he is truly rich, who hath God's Blessing on all that he hath, whether he hath much or little: A little that a righteous man hath, is better than the riches of many wicked, Psal. 37. 16. The blessing of the Lord it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it, Prov. 10. 22. There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth: and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty, Prov. 11. 24. When Daniel had only Pulse to eat, and Water to drink, yet because God blessed his Meals, his countenance appeared fairer and fatter in flesh, than all the children which did eat the portion of the King's meat, Dan. 1. 15.  
2. The happiness of Humane Life consists in the resignation of ourselves, and all that we have to God.  
Then we are truly happy, when we are fully persuaded of the Providence and All-sufficiency of God, are the Objects of his peculiar Care, and can entirely give up ourselves to his wise Conduct. The only way to satisfy our desires, is to keep them within bounds: the only way to have our own wills, is to make God's will our will; he that desires nothing but what pleaseth God, always obtains what he desires; it is not possible to bring up worldly things to our carnal desires; but we may by the assistance of divine Grace bring down our desires to our present Enjoyments thus did St. Paul, I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content: I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: , and in all things I am instructed, both to be full, and to be hungry, both to abound, and to suffer need: I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me, Phil. 4. 11.  
An unsanctified heart is unsatiable, and he that hath unsatiable desires can never be happy, because he can never obtain his desires. Self-will opposeth God's will, and so can never be satisfied, because God's will contradicts it; and his will must be done, whether we will or not; God's will overrules all, and then we obtain our wills, when they are subjected to the will of God. When God gave the Children of Israel Manna from Heaven, they were not contented with Angel's Food, they murmured against his Providence; an evident demonstration, that Bread from Heaven will not stop the mouth of an unsanctified Man from murmuring against God; the unholy, are always unthankful.  
Suppose God should spread before us all the Treasures of the World, and give us liberty to take what we would, could we do better than to refer ourselves to the Alwise God, and desire him to choose for us? If we believe him to be All-sufficient, Wise, Good, and Faithful, we must conclude him to be fittest to distribute to every Man his Portion; we cannot be better provided for, because he knows what is most convenient for us, we cannot be more secure, than under the guidance of infinite Wisdom; to acquiesce in the will of God, is to discharge ourselves of all troublesome thoughts, because it is to cast all our care on him who careth for us: the insufficient Creature is then most self-sufficient, when it goes out of Self into the All-sufficient Creator; Self is a vain Idol, that deceives all that depend on it, God is an all-sufficient Good to all that rely on him, an unreserved Resignation of ourselves to God, is the great ground of true Content, every Dispensation of Providence is welcome to him who believes, that all good and evil things come from his hand, and submits his will to the will of God; a will resigned up to God, doth not only submit to him by a passive Patience, but actively concur with his Providence, believing that state of Life to be best, which God judgeth fittest. When we have this Principle of Contentment within ourselves, our hearts are at rest, we are satisfied with the present, and may cheerfully rely on God for the future; we are then prepared for every Condition of Life; because he whose will is swallowed up in the will of God, doth always choose what God sends: it sweetens Afflictions, mitigates Sorrows, and increaseth Joys; when we can command our desires, a little will serve to render this Life comfortable; in short, we cannot be happy without content; we cannot be content, unless we have our wills; we cannot have our wills, any other way, than by making GOD's will our will, and therefore without a hearty resignation of ourselves to God, Humane Life cannot be happy.  
3. The happiness of Humane Life consists in doing good. Riches are good or evil, as the Man is that enjoys them, they are not laudably good, or criminally evil in themselves; but we make them good or evil by our management of them; they are never to be desired, but for those uses for which they were intended; in a good Man's hands they afford means and opportunities of acting many excellent Virtues, as Charity, Liberality, and Hospitality; in a wicked Man's hands they are but the Vigour of Vice, the Fuel of Lust, the Snates of the Devil, at the best but a Talon wrapped up in a Napkin.  
Let us make a good use of God's Blessings, and then we shall be happy here and hereafter. The end of life is to do good, all comfortable Reflections come from good Actions; good Works justify our Faith, Charity to the Poor will sanctify the Blessings of God to us, we cannot do better, than in giving to God what he hath bountifully given us, this is to make an Offering to God, of what others make an Idol. To do good is to imitate the highest Perfection; to be Benefactors to the Poor, is to resemble our heavenly Father: But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again, and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the highest: for he is kind to the unthankful, and to the evil: be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful, Luke 6. 35. It is the Character of Christ the Son of God, That he went about doing good: let us imitate him, as we have opportunity in doing good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith: to do good, and to communicate forget not, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased, Heb. 13. 16.  
The more good we do, the more peace shall we have in our own Souls, the more favour with God, the more comfort when we reflect on our past Lives, the more assurance of Heaven when we come to die, and the greater reward in glory unto all eternity: Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy: that they do good, and that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate, laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life, 1 Tim. 6. 17, 18.  
To do good, is to live up to that Noble End for which we were born, and to act according to the Dignity of our Being's. He who comes into the World, and goes out of it again without doing any good, is born in vain, and may be reckoned rather among the dead than the living; yea, he is as useless as if he had never been.  
Riches are a Talon committed to our charge by God, he expects we should employ this Talon to good Uses. The Rich are God's Almoners whom he hath chosen to distribute his Bounty. He gave not Riches that Men should rust in Idleness, and surfeit with Luxury, but that we might have opportunities of doing good. Nothing can procure a greater Reputation either with God or Man, than Charity to the Poor; to build an Alms-house is the best way to perpetuate our Memories; Liberality commands Honour and Respect; the only lawful way to grow Popular, is to keep an hospitable Table; to  the Naked, is to give the richest Livery; to seed the Hungry, to give drink to the Thirsty, to visit Prisoners, and redeem Captives, is a glorious and Godlike Work.  
Doing good doth affect the Mind with rational Pleasures, it is a degree of Heaven to look back upon a Life full of good Works; a reflection upon a good Action is as grateful to the Soul, as Meat to an hungry Stomach: It was Job's Comfort in his Adversity, that he was charitable in his Prosperity: I delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him. The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me, and I caused the windows heart to sing for joy: I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame, I was a father to the poor, Job 29. 12, 13.  
When God had finished the Works of his Creation, he rested with delight and satisfaction, when he saw that all that he had done was good: And when we have served our Generations by doing good, what a pleasure will it be to reflect upon our past Actions? it will be a Jubilee of Joy to us, when we are going off the Stage of Life, to be assured we acted our parts well while we were on it.  
The increase of worldly riches increaseth sorrow; the pleasures of Sense are short-lived, and leave a sting behind; worldly Honour is a Wind that will either blow a Man down, or puff him up; but good Actions give a sincere Joy, solid Satisfaction, and a lasting Peace: If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul, then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness shall be as the noonday: and the Lord shall guide thee continuelly, and satisfy thy soul in draught, and make fat thy bones, and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water whose waters fail not, Is. 58. 10, 11.  
Charity (my Honoured Countrymen) is the Work of this day; it were not worth our while to meet, unless in order to collect for the Poor; while we feast, it is most improper to suffer them to starve. Let us then ennoble our Society by our generous Charity, let us signalise ourselves to our Fellow-Citizens by our liberal Distributions. Let us give to the Poor in our Health, for Charity on a dying Bed is not so acceptable to God; it is no great Virtue to give that away, which we cannot keep any longer, or to surrender that which will be taken from us by force. If we are charitable in our health, the Poor will pray for us; but if our Charity doth not commence till after Death, their Prayers are vain, and therefore cannot do us any good; let our own hands be the Executors of our Charity while we live, and then a Deathbed Charity will be rendered acceptable.  
Let us consider the uncertainty of all things in this World, thou who now aboundest, mayst shortly be reduced to want. Fortune storms a losty Castle, and passeth over a low Cottage; a blustering Wind shakes the top of a tall Cedar, while the humble Shrub remains unmoved; an ambitious Mountain that aspires up to Heaven, is sooner thunderstruck than the Valley. Let then the Rich sympathise with the Miseries of the Poor, because they are subject to them: Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body, Heb. 13. 3.  
4. The happiness of Humane Life consists in a good Conscience towards God and Man.  
Without Peace with God all Temporal Blessings are but Vanity and Vexation of Spirit; there can be no Calm within, when God is angry without; and when the Mind is uneasy within, the whole World cannot give the least Contentment. A good Conscience crowns the Blessings of God with Comfort, it is the Soul's Health, and the Body's Cordial; the Salt that seasons Earthly Blessings, and makes them relishable; it gives Joy in Sorrow, Comfort in Afflications, and is a hearty Friend in the Day of Adverisity. Whether we are Rich or Poor, we can carry nothing out of the World with us, but a good or an evil Conscience, one of those will abide with us for ever. Holiness is the life of the Soul, and a good Conscience its proper Comfort: As he that is in Health will feed on ordinary Diet with delight, while the sick Stomach loathes the most delicious Meats, so to a good Conscience the worst Condition is pleasant, but to an evil Conscience all worldly Pleasures are but vexatious Torments.  
A good Man will be contented with much, or with little, or with nothing, because he finds a full satisfaction in the All-sufficient God. Life is then happy, when we can look backward without shame, and forward without fear, when we can expect Death with Comfort, and meet it with Courage: when we can meditate on the Terrors of Judgement, without being afraid of them, and have a sense of our Reconciliation with God by Christ. A good Conscience will make our Beds easy, and our Pillows soft; it will fortify us against the Fears of Death and Judgement, and revive our Souls, when our Bodies languish under our last Pangs.  
God only, and his Grace content us in every State, God being immutably the same, he that enjoys him hath always enough. In all the Ebb and Flow of the World, a good Man is fixed upon a solid Foundation, because the Object of his happiness is not subject to change: Godliness with contentment is great gain: and godliness is profitable to all things, having the promise of the life which now is, and that which is to come, 1 Tim. 4. 8.  
Let us not then seek Happiness from the vain and empty World; its Pleasures are deceitful, fugitive, and fading; its Comforts are allayed with Sorrows, its Joys are mixed with Grief, its fairest Days have their Clouds to darken them. The World is of little use to the Soul while it lives in it, and of no use at all when it goes out of it: it is confined to the Body in this state of Probation, to prepare itsself for a blessed Eternity, and then to go hence, and dwell in a World of Spirits; separate Souls have no use of any thing that worldly Riches can purchase; How then do they debase their Souls who make them Slaves to their Bodies? How do they undervalue them, who give them away for the World?  
Time is but an Instant if compared with Eternity, our Lives are but a Point, if compared with the whole Line of Time; our pleasant Hours are but a Moment, if compared with our whole Lives: What folly is it then to part with our Souls for fading things which we must leave when we die, and may leave before? Temporal things are to be used, not enjoyed; God is the Object of fruition, the World of use; the World may have our hands, God ought to have our whole hearts: But this I say brethren, the time is short, it remaineth that both they that have wives, be as though they bade none; and they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoyeed not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not; and they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away, 1 Cor. 7. 29, 30.  
When the Disciples admired to our Saviour the magnificent Buildings of the Temple, he diverted them with this Consideration: See ye not all these things? Verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down, Mat. 24. 2. So when we are tempted with the Riches of this World, let us fortify ourselves with this meditation, See ye not all these things? they shall shortly be found no where, but in the Ashes of an Universal Dissolution.  
To conclude: Let us seek happiness there where only it may be found. God only is the proper satisfaction of Spirits, the Home of Souls, and the Centre on whom alone they can rest: Let us then present our Hearts to God, make his Will our Rule, and imitate him in holiness; there is no true happiness without Union with God by Faith and Love; let us then serve him with pure hearts, adore him with all the powers of our Souls, meditate upon him, and live to him, and then when this World shall be dissolved, we shall have a Building of God, a House not made with hands, eternal in the Heavens.  Now to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, Three Persons and One Eternal God, be all Honour, Glory, Love, and Adoration, henceforth, and for evermore, Amen. 
FINIS.