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that fprang up fo haftily among the Rocks SER M. for Want of Root, as haftily withered away and decay'd; fo Men that with fuch fudden Sallies of Thought, refolve to believe, as apprehending no Difficulties to lie in their Way; These Men, I fay, as fuddenly forget or change their Refolutions for Want of their being duly fixed in their Minds. They begin to build before they fit down to count the Coft; before they know whether they are able to finish, Luke xiv. 28. They refolve upon Religion before they confider the Duties it enjoins, and the Reftraints it lays; before they enquire whether they have Strength and Conftancy to go through it. Being therefore only apprized of the Advantages of a Chriftian Life, and not of its Difficulties ;, no. Wonder if as foon as the Difficulties appear, they give Way to what they had taken no Care to be armed against. In Times especially of Perfecution and Difcouragement, (which the Scorching of the Sun in this Parable intends, compare Rev. xvi. 8.) it can hardly be expected, but that they must be offended and ftumble at the Word, who embrace it only as the Gospel of Peace, and are not aware of what our Saviour has graciously foretold them, that it will sometimes also bring them in Danger of Fire and Sword.

And

SERM.
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And thus we have confidered two Sorts of Ground that is ill manur'd, or not duly prepared to receive the Seed: The third Sort, which is equally unprofitable, remains still to be fpoke to, and that is the Ground which is overrun by Briars and Thorns, by Rubbish and Weeds that choak the Seed, and hinder it from bringing any Fruit to Perfection. It fuffers indeed the Seed to spring up, and the Blade to expand; and fo makes a Show as if a Harveft would enfue: But then the Weeds, which lay hidden and lurking in the Ground, rife up after it, exhaust the Moisture of the Earth from the Roots of the true Seed, and prevent its answering the Expectations of the Sower. Now this again (according to our Lord's Interpretation) intends thofe Men who hear the Word, and attend to it too, and strive in fome Measure to apply it feriously, that fo it may not be spoken in vain. But then when the Effects of their receiving the Word fhould really be feen; their Bufinefs or Diverfions, their worldly Concerns or their trifling Amusements interfere, and will not suffer it to have the true and intended Effect. For when they have beard the Word (faith our Lord) they go forth and are choked with the Cares of this World, with the Deceitfulness of Riches,

and

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and with the Pleasures of this Life, which, to- SER M. gether with the Lufts of other things that enter in, binder them from bringing forth any Fruit to Ripeness and Perfection. This, I doubt, is what needs no Proof: Too many of us, I fear, feel the Strength and Force of the Parable, and readily affent and fubfcribe to the Truth of it. For I would willingly hope that the Seed of the Gospel, which I endeavour, as duly and as diligently as I can, to propagate amongst you, takes Root and springs up in many of your Hearts, and often brings forth fome good Designs to cultivate and encourage it. But then, alas! yourselves can witnefs, how often again these Designs have been blafted, by the Revival of your innate Appetites and Defires to the Pomps of the World, to the Pleafures of Life, and the Gratifications of Senfe; which immediately feize and engage the whole Attention of the Mind, and will not fuffer the good Impreffions that have been made upon it to proceed any further. For as Thorns and Briars have ever been the natural Product of the Earth, fince the Curfe was laid upon it for the Sin of Man; fo have perverfe and depraved Inclinations been the natural and genuine Product of the Mind, ever fince the Time that Man

fell.

SER M. fell.
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And therefore as it cannot be otherwife fuppofed than that Weeds, which the Ground of itself produces, fhould prevail over good Seed, which, before it grows, must be fown and cultivated with Labour and Toil, except due Care be taken to suppress and keep the Weeds under: So neither can we imagine but that the worldly and luftful Dispositions of the Heart, which are natural to it, must prevent it from bringing any holy Resolutions (which must be inftilled and engrafted) to Ripeness and Perfection, unless a proper Care be taken to check fuch Inclinations at their first Appearing; which leads me to the

III. THIRD general Head of my Discourse, under which I am to fhew, with what Diligence and Care those that hear should receive the Word, in order to receive it with Fruitfulness and Succefs. And here we have Light fufficient to direct us from the Description which our Lord gives of those who hear as they ought to do, in his Explanation of the Parable before us. They (faith he) which receive the Seed into the good Ground, are they which hearing the Word with an honest and good Heart, understand it, and keep it, and bring forth Fruit with Patience. Now this

Character

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Character which our bleffed Lord gives of the SER M. profitable Ground, may poffibly be defigned to answer to the threefold Character of the barren Ground which we have fpoke to before.

For First, They which receive the Seed into good Ground are explained to be those who understand it and keep it, in oppofition to those who received the Seed by the Way Side and immediately lost it. This then was defigned to teach us, that in order to hear and receive the Word with Fruitfulness and Succefs, we must not only hear, but attend to it too, and fix it deeply and seriously in our Minds. We must not let our Hearts and -Thoughts lie exposed, like the common Way, to every Paffenger that happens to come by; nor fuffer the next trifling or wicked Imagination to deface any good Impreffion we receive. For we are mistaken if we suppose that religious Truths convey themselves to our Understandings by any forcible Means, or by any Ways different from what other things do. No surely; it must be by a ferious Application of Mind, by a careful Remembrance, and by frequent Reflection, that things fpiritual and divine, as well as things common, must be faftened upon us.

For