that our hearts should be as pure, and our conduct as unblameable, as those of our infinitely holy God, requires no proof. The allowance that we are but too ready to makes for ourselves is alone sufficient to prevent our putting so rigorous a construction on the words of our Lord. In this case our prejudices themselves, which so often mislead us, will guard us against any mistake of the sense of scripture.

God, who made us, and who knows our frame, well knows that we are not capable of living perfectly sinless lives. Unsteady and fluctuating as our minds are, our thoughts will be running after improper objects, and in a greater or less degree will draw our affections after them; and thus we, in a manner, unavoidably contract guilt. The world, moreover, abounds with temptations to vice; and as we cannot avoid being exposed to them, and they flatter our appetites and passions, they can hardly fail to excite improper desires at least, though it may not proceed to the actual commission of any crime. But, certainly, we cannot indulge sinful thoughts, or cherish the least desire of any thing that is forbidden, without violating the purity of our minds, and deviating from perfect innocence.

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This would be the case were we ever so circumspect, attentive to all our thoughts, words, and actions, and though we should do all this without any intermission. But this extreme circumspection is, in fact, impossible, and what the usual state of our minds and thoughts will not ad mit of. Besides, who is as circumspect as he might be. Alas, farther than this, in many things we all offend, without excepting the very best of men, those who come the nearest to the perfection

We likewise learn from the scriptures, as well as from observation and experience, that perfection is not to be expected of man. What may is there that doeth good, and sinneth not. Ecc. VII, 20. With this limitation we are no doubt to understand the general characters that are given of good men in the scriptures, though no particular faults be recorded of them, as of Abraham, who is called the friend of God, David, who is said to have been, a man after God's own heart; Job, who is called a perfect and upright man; Zachariah, and Eliza. beth, who are said to have walked in all the ordi nances of God blameless; Nathaniel, who is called by our Saviour a man without guile. And when he himself, who is said to have been without sin,

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was

was saluted with the appellation of good, he disclaimed it; saying, there was none good, meaning perfectly good, but one that is God; before whom, in order to give us the highest idea of the purity of his nature, it is said that even the Heavens are not clean, and that he charges his angels with folly. Job. IV. 18.

On many accounts, therefore, we may be satis fied that absolute sinless perfection was never ex, pected, and could not have been required of us. God is not so unreasonable a master as to demand of us more than he knows we are able to perform On the contrary, he is ever ready to make every possible allowance for the frailties and infirmities of our nature; and nothing but what is purposely and habitually indulged can render us obnoxious to his displeasure.

The proper meaning and intent, therefore, of this precept must be this, that we ought to set no bounds whatever to our virtuous attainments; fixing to ourselves no standard of excellence, short of that of the Divine Being himself. Leav ing every thing that is behind, we should, with the apostle, be ever pressing on to what is before us, (Phil. III. 13.) to something that we have not yet attained. Whatever progress we have made in

virtue,

virtue, it should be our care to be continually adding to it; and without ever imagining that we have wisdom or virtue enough already, we should endeavour to grow wiser and better, so as to improve our natures, and consequently our capacity for happiness, to the utinost.

To this end it will be of great use to us to propose to ourselves as perfect a model as possible, to which we may compare ourselves from time to time, in order to form a judgment of the improvements we make. This model we should frequently contemplate, as a rule to walk by, or a pattern to copy after, without thinking ourselves absolutely obliged to attain the same perfection. It is, therefore, rather useful as a rule, than obligatory as a command. ano Abriebai yv"antided Tops Now, what could be more properly recom mended for this purpose than the imitation of the Divine Being, to all intelligent and moral agents; he being the most perfect of this class. For in these respects, viz. in intelligence and a capacity for moral conduct, we are formed in the image of God. God alone is, in these respects, absolutely perfect. In the imitation of him, therefore, we are in no danger of being misled, so as to copy after any error, or defect, instead of what

is excellent. But this I shall enlarge upon under the next head of my discourse, which was,

Secondly, to consider the reasons why the imitati on of perfect goodness is thus recommended to us, rather than such degrees of it as are attainable by us. On the first view of the subject, it would seem more reasonable, and advisable, to endeavour to imitate only what was within the reach of our capacity; and that to aim at any thing confessedly above our reach, would only tend to discourage us, and consequently hinder our proficiency, But if we consider the nature of man, to whom this precept is given, we shall see it in another light; Forno a Lossings, of Lauovi

1st. Had any thing less than absolute perfeotion been proposed to us, such is the vanity and self conceit to which men are subject, that many would easily have imagined they had already attained to it; and thus a stop would be put to their further improvement. We see every day how apt men are to think too well of themselves. They overlook what is most faulty, what gives them pain to look upon, but dwell upon what is good, and praise worthy, in their dispositions and actions. By this means it comes to pass that their virtues, by being often contemplated, are magnified

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