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In my text he difcovers a temper of moft distinguished excellence; a temper, my Reverend Fathers and Brethren, which I hope we shall not barely applaud, but earnestly covet and endeavour, by the Grace of God, to poffefs.

To unfold the peculiar excellence of this temper, and to illuftrate the importance of it to the minifters of Chrift,-are the purposes aimed at in the following difcourfe.

THE first thing that demands our attention is the amiable temper expreffed in these words: Now we live, if ye fland fast in the Lord.

The general meaning of the paffage is ob vious: It contains an obliging and fpirited declaration of the Apostle's good-will to the Chriftians at Theffalonica. But if we attend to his fituation when he wrote this epiftle, and place ourselves in the circumstances of thofe to whom it was addreffed, we fhall feel an emphafis in the word now, that gives a furprifing addition both to the tenderness and dignity of his fentiment and expreffion.

Had the time referred to been a feafon of profperity; had Paul, in the height of worldly felicity, meant no more than to affure the Thef falonians, that, amidft all his affluence, he kindly remembered them; and though at prefent beyond the need of wifhing any thing for himfelf, yet that the report of their stedfaftnefs, and the hope of its continuance, had made a confiderable addition to his happiness, and heightened his relish of the good things he pof

feffed:

feffed even upon this fuppofition, I apprehend, the particle now would juftly be deemed emphatical, and worthy to be accented.

But with what force muft it ftrike us, when we find that it refers to a feason of adverfity.

Paul at the time of writing this epiftle, was a poor, afflicted, folitary man; banished from his friends, living among ftrangers, labouring with his own hands for a fcanty fubfiftence, and deftitute of almost every earthly comfort.

All this the Theffalonians knew full well. With grief they had beheld his fufferings in their own city, when " the unbelieving Jews, "moved with envy, took unto them certain "lewd fellows of the bafer fort," and raised fuch an uproar, as obliged them to fend him away by night into Berea; they further knew, that the fame unbelieving and envious Jews, upon hearing that he preached with fuccefs at Berea, had followed him thither alfo, and fo inflamed the multitude against him, that he found it neceffary to retire as far as Athens, to get beyond the reach of these unrelenting perfecutors.

Judge then with what emotion they would read this strong, this endearing profeffion of his concern for their welfare; they who, under God, owed their Conversion to his ministry, and to whom as I just now observed, his past fufferings on their own account, and his prefent diftrefs, were perfectly known.

He had told them a little before, that the bittereft ingredient in all his afflictions, was the apprehenfion he had, that his fufferings might have a tendency to shake their faith, and to prejudice

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prejudice their minds against the gospel of Chrift: "For this caufe," fays he, "I fent to know

your faith, left by fome means the tempter "have tempted you, and our labour be in vain. "But when Timotheus returned, and brought "us good tidings of your faith and charity, we "were comforted over you, in all our affliction and diftrefs, by your faith.' And then he adds, "For now,' even at this prefent time, diftreffed and afflicted as we are, yet " now we "live, if ye ftand faft in the Lord."

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Here then the pureft zeal for the honour of his Mafter, and the most generous love to the fouls of men, are happily united, and feelingly expreffed in the native language of a warm and upright heart.I fay, the pureft zeal and the moft generous love; for no tincture of selfishness appears in either: if Chrift is glorified,-if men are faved,-Paul obtains his utmost wifh; his happiness is independent of every thing elfe; he enjoys all that in his own eftimation is worthy to be accounted life, if his fpiritual children ftand faft in the Lord.

And is not this a temper of most distinguished excellence? When I called it amiable, I only fpoke the half of its praife: it hath a dignity, as well as a beauty belonging to it, fuperior to any thing that is commonly celebrated by that name among men. Would we behold heroifm in its fairest and most exalted form, inftead of looking. for it among those whom the world hath styled heroes, we fhall fucceed far better if we turn our eyes to Paul of Tarfus.

Where shall we find fuch determined courage, fuch cool intrepidity, and contempt of danger,

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as in this good and faithful foldier of Chrift? "Behold," faid he to the elders of the church at Ephefus," Behold, I go bound in the spirit "unto Jerufalem, not knowing the things that "shall befal me there; fave that the Holy Ghoft "witneffeth in every city, faying, that bonds "and afflictions abide me. But none of these

things move me, neither count I my life dear "unto myfelf, fo that I may finish my courfe "with joy, and the miniftry which I have re"ceived of the Lord Jefus, to teftify the gospel "of the grace of God." Acts xx. 22.

With what invincible fortitude did he triumph over adverfity in every frightful shape! with what noble freedom, and independence of fpirit, did he exult amidst those fufferings of which human nature hath the greatest abhorrence! "Even unto this hour," fays he, in his letters to the Corinthians, "we both hunger and thirst, " and are buffeted, and have no certain dwelling-place: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things "unto this day. We are troubled on every

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fide, yet not diftreffed; we are perplexed, but "not in despair; perfecuted, but not forfaken; "caft down, but not deftroyed:as deceivers, " and yet true; as unknown, and yet well "known; as dying, and behold we live; aş "chaftened, and not killed; as forrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many "rich; as having nothing, and yet poffeffing " all things."

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And what was it that fupported and enlivened his mind, under fuch a load of complicated diftréfs? Hear the account he gave of it to Timo

thy,

thy, which exactly agrees with the declaration in my text: "I endure all things for the elect's "fake, that they alfo may obtain the falvation "which is in Chrift Jefus, with eternal glory." 2 Tim. ii. 10. Paul denied himself for the good of others, and cheerfully renounced every temporal intereft to promote the eternal happiness of men.

With what a graceful mixture of majesty and meekness does he appeal to the Theffalonians, in the foregoing part of this epiftle!" Our ex" hortation was not of deceit, nor of unclean"nefs, nor in guile: but as we were allowed "of God to be put in truft with the gospel, " even fo we speak, not as pleafing men, but "God, which trieth our hearts. For neither at "any time ufed we flattering words, as ye "know, nor a cloak of covetoufnefs; God is "witness: nor of men fought we glory, neither "of you, nor yet of others. But we were gen"tle among you, even as a nurse cherisheth her "children: fo being affectionately defirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto

you, not the gofpel only, but our own fouls "alfo, because ye were dear to us, For what is "our hope, our joy, our crown of rejoicing? are not even ye, in the prefence of our Lord Jefus Chrift at his coming? for ye are our "glory and joy."

And what can attract our love, what can merit our esteem, what can excite our admiration, if fuch a temper doth not? A temper which, to all the magnanimity of the hero, unites all the piety and benevolence of the faint.

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