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Show The Preface to VoL,J, Paffion in tbt NatU of Religion. It i.r impatient, FrOVJarJ, .Angry t111J. Rc. vengeful. It can Slander, Quarrel, Belt, Plunder '!11_d kill too, and all for God's Sake. il!tU! their Zeal it tbt Exc#[e of rbetr Cho(er; and for the mofl Part, tbofetbat are captivaud with tt, are worfe Ltverr, than tbofe they fo evily treat; and at /Jcfl, }bow moll bujie an~ !conc~rned about the out, fide of Religion. David fJUU zca/orH, ~111 not af:er tbu Sort; for tbo" be tells tn that his Zeal for God's Houfe had eaten hJm up, yet he neverfaid it bod eatC1l up bit Nelgbbo11rr. -That /11rio11s Zeal it flriO!y forbid bJCbrift, tM Great Lord of the Chriftian Religion. It will therefore do 111 no Hurt. if we tr] our oum Spirits, and fee with ~bat Spirit.r we profefs Religion and nil for it? Tb~y that afl not from Religion, can never a[/ rightly for Religion ; thttr Spzrits mufi be wrong; Itt their Ztalfwell 41 bil 41 Mountai111, thei~ Fai~h . can !lever rel11ave one: They build upon the SJnd, and tbt Fall of tbtzr Buddmg wrll be at /aft, tttzcrrihlt to thuilfe/vts, a1 tbtir ;gnorant Zral made it formrrly burdtnfom to othcr1. Welt then, where jhall roe pitch the Nature and BufintjJ a/Religion, under tbt variom Notions and ShJpes we find it wean among Men, and that plainly nnd intelligibly? .dnd with our Anfwtr to tbil, Itt 111 conclude this Pre[act. Religion, in tbt Judgment of rhi1 Autbor, is Living up to what a Man knows of the Mind of God, and attending diligently upon that Light in hirnfelf, which gives him that Knowledge of his Duty. This i1 tbe G1jt of God by Chrift, that en!ighttm e\'ery Man that comes into the lVorld. tbir i1 the Talent that Men art entrufled uitb, to improv~ to the Saving of their Sou!J. And the .Apofl!e ttll1 u1, that whatfoe\•er may be -known of God, is manifeft in them, by this Light, bumtfe whatever makes manifeft is Light, Ptrufe John 1. 9· Cap. 3· 21. Rom. 1. 19. Ephef. 5· 13, 14. He thtzt Jmow1 and aoqutJints bimfelf with tbi1 Holy Light m bimft/f. that comu by Cbrifl the grtat Light of the World, and brings hi; Deed.r and Tbougbu to it, an~f. uares bi.t Dejiru and WiiJ, according to the .Mtmifefiatiom and DirtOions o it; wiiJ approvt him [elf a Di(cipJe oj Cbrijl, a Lover of RtligiM, and tbert ore a Religiou.r Man indeed : The Nature and End of Religion being our Con ormity to the Will of God, which the .Apojl!e tx· pound1 to be our Sanflifitation, and that cannot be, till we receive tbiJ Holy Leaven, in our Je!ves, by flJbicb the whole Lump of Man comu to be leavened: Man, in Body, Soul, and Spirit\ Man, throughout; Man to he a New Man; for fo tbt JJpojlolital Do8rint inflrufls us: That lU we have long born the Image of the Earthly, fo we may come to bear the Image of the Heavenly Man, the Lord from Heaven : And like him, to be Heavenlyminded. .And tfuly that i1tbe Maw I rogu/d cboofe to njfociatt my fel/ with. a"d tb~ Church, Society, or Ptoplt., robofe Communion I would prefer, tbat are Follov.•tr.r and Children of this L·ight of ]eju1, Who dejlitult of pompous Worfoip, and of ttdiou1 and Di.ffie'll!t Cretd.r, r'efolve 11B into an humble and daily Wstcb and Obedience to tbi1 Lr!,bt of Chriit, in the Confcicnce, bot btU to their Worjhip to God, and Co11VtrfatiO'If among Men. whatroer rbe Unjufl unthinking World iJ pte~f ed to judie of. them. 1jhall detain the Read a no longer from the Boak it ft!f. He •ilJ find Virtue ttnd Charity tbt great Tendency o[it. .And tho' it may be objdled by fame, that much of tbt Service of it i1 over, becapfe the Current of Perfecnrion is ftopt; they are ttndtr a .great .lUi flake: The Service of it i1 not over; t»@/d'it were: For Debt~uchtry, of alJ Spru, wa1 never more impudent nnd epidcntical ~ and a.r great UnchantablenelS fliU apptan among People. Their Hand1 nrt in fome .Meafur~ flopt or diverted, but their Tong11e1 art not, for t1Jey mere never mort on Fire a.t:ttin{l one another; and we ktJOw out of the .Abundance of tbt Heart .the MoutbfpeakJ. TOey do ~not only whifper,' hut .rail and thre:Jt~n on~ 41101ber; and to be [arc; Religion mufi be much of tbt En6gn of thtlf JJnrmofity: There/orr tzll Vice be fupprejl, and &hunt ion bthtlttr pr(!'l)i~ed for~ 1rnd Prefumption and Violence exring.t~ijhtd, tbat fo Virtue, HumilltY and Charity, may prro.1il among us, th11 Treadfe will he {erviuab!t: Horf.tvtr ~~e. art nQt to me~if«re our Duty by Sucafn But if it jhall pll-nje ·JllmJgJ'!J. VoL: I. . An Addrefs to Proteftantr: God to favour tbt honejl Purpofe of tb A 7~ 1 mal have thofe dejirab/e EffeOJ where it :om~!h~tewitb bi~ B~effing, that it 1679· re;oyce, and God foal/ have the Glory f h. , ifAurhor w,IJ exceedingly ~ bu People, wbo i1 Worthy for roer. 0 t u, a.r 0 all other the Strvice.r Of - The Author's Premoniti~n. READER, GReat Book.r ftidom find &adtrJ and . , fuch: For the motion of .J.ffi · · tt may Ot the 1imes may rnuler this upon the Htt/1 of Writing and tb:Jr.r .1s l[o fwi[r, tlhlt .A.Oion tread1 bard ieop!t bad rather converfe ~itb tb {/ ~ 'hie Time left to read: Btjide.r ore to Men in Bujinif.t. Thi.r Refted~J1ng tfian tje D~ad, and fruh all Book; grown thm under my Hand. g111 b !." 10~ at 'fa. aunted me, the TraO being and t!Jtfulto our yet fo mu~h need~dCi~t: at 1 have w~ir to he bdtb true and takmg Encouragement /Jy the k · d R n~ Ecclefiaihcal Reformation , ~ddre..ffu I made, I rifolved to let ';~ 0 ~beptron. 1 f~m~ former Effay.r anJ zng Content.r, thou mayfl readily turn tftba uP. UJJt h~ht.r Care, that by prefix"' ly concern thee, or btjl juit and anfwer t~ t:;uj,.y~cb may more immediate._ The CONTENTS. PART I. §. t, J. H B Introdultion. :Five Great d C . B . . reilion of the Civil Ma iftrat~n rymg ' 115 0~ the Times, Under the Cor.~ !he ~~n: 0 '!Vhoredom and Fornicatio~ §. . Or S· 2• <?f the Sm of Drunkennefs. s. 3· or tn LJvmg, m Furniture. §. $• Of the EvJof G the: Evd of Luxury, and Excefs in Apparel ~utfmgand Blafphemy. §. 1• Of the Sin of fumhng. §. 6. Of the Horrid Sin of Oaths: r;1ftrates for Redrefs of thofe £vils. The firft Ml anenefs: §. I. An Addrefs to the Mao( the Gwtrnmtnt : li.xamples of Kingdoms Nat" tlve t~ ;Is Add~fs. vi:z. The Prt{ti'V6tirm Vrrtue, and overthrown by Vice Ej Th li IOnsan eople enlted by the Prallice of •f Pofttrif!. §. JO. TheT~ird 'andi:ft M~ti~o~d:.!?tiYetothis~ddrefs, vi:z.TheBttu.ft• o lS Alil.drefs, vu, 1/Je Gllry of God. PART II. §. t. prve Capital 'Evils that relate to the Eulfil/1· . the Firft Capital Evil. 'llit· Opinions pafrmg'f: ~A!th of thefe Kingdoms. §. 2. 0£ A_MifunittfiAndinloftbeNarureof'rbtGof.l . r a.~t. §.3.0fthefecondEvil, tlurd Evil, viz. A debafinc of the r,.1,: Val: F•uA, ~d Miftdet Ahout it. §. -4-, Of the mifbking the very end of Chrift's Comin e of MorAII!f under Pre~nceof higher Thin s man Authority aboye Reafon and Truth, g.§ §6 ~O?f hthefi~ourth .Evil, vit. Preferrin~ ~u: loru. Of the Nature, Difference, aad Limilsof c· ~I end th Evd, ~rop~~gAtiolf oj FauA 111 An Appendix of t~e Caufes and Cure of Perfecutio~.'1 a Ecclef:aftlcaiAut~omy. An ADDRESS to PRoTESTANTs upon the Prefent Conjun&ure. The Firfi PART. Seaion '· Th• lntrodumon. A1y Friends and Country-men. JFr6'a~\~e~avde~ that hhere is; God, and that he is Holy, Juft and Good. carelefs of us bu~';h! c~nftaen~Obfiur felvfes toThim, and that ~e is no: J erver o our h:oughrs and AChons; and Z z z z thar Part I . ~ Sell. r. |