preferring; but to the perfon having the power of doing, of forbearing to do, according as the mind fhall chufe or direct. Our Idea of liberty reaches as far as the power and no farther. For wherever Refraint comes to check that Power, or Compulfion takes away that indifferency of ability on either fide to act, or to forbear acting, there Liberty, and our notion of it, prefently ceafes.

"Sect. 11. We have inftances enough, and often more than enough in our own bodies. A man's heart beats, and the blood circulates, which it is not in his power by any thought or volition to ftop; and therefore in refpect of these motions, where reft depends not on his choice, nor would follow the determination of his mind, if it fhould prefer it, he is not a free Agent. Convulfive motions agitate his legs, fo that though he wills it never fo much, he cannot by any power of his mind ftop their motion, (as in that odd difeafe called Chorea Sancti Viti,) but he is perpetually dancing: he is not at liberty in this action, but under as much neceffity of moving, as a stone that falls, or a Tennis-ball ftruck with a racket. On the other fide, a palfy or the flocks hinder his legs from obeying the determination of his mind, if it would 'thereby transfer his body to another place. In all these there is want of Freedom, though the fitting ftill even of a paraly tic, whilft he prefers it to a removal, is truly voluntary. l'oluntary then is not oppofed to Neceffary; but to Involuntary. For a man may prefer what he can do, to what he cannot do; the ftate he is in, to its abfence or change, though Neceflity has made it in itfelf unalterable.

“Sect. 12. As it is in the motions of the Body, fo it is in the thoughts of our minds; where any one is fuch, that we have power to take it up, or lay it by, according to the preference of the Mind, there we are at Liberty. A waking man being under the neceflity of having fome Ideas conftantly in his Mind, is not at liberty to think, or not to think; no more than he is at liberty, whether his Body shall touch

any

any other, or no: but whether he will remove his contemplation from one Idea to another, is many times in his choice; and then he is in respect of his Ideas, as much at Liberty, as he is in refpect of bodies he refts on: he can at pleasure re

But yet fome Ideas

move himself from one to another. to the Mind, like fome Motions to the Body, are fuch, as inf certain circumflances it cannot avoid, nor obtain their abfence by the utmost effort it can use. A man on the rack, is not at liberty to lay by the Idea of Pain, and divert himfelf with other Contemplations: and fometimes a boifterous Paffion hurries our Thoughts, as a Hurricane does our Bodies, without leaving us the liberty of thinking on other things, which we would rather chufe. But as foon as the Mind regains the power to flop or continue, begin or forbear any of thefe motions of the Body without, or Thoughts within, according as it thinks fit to prefer either to the other, we then confider the man as a free Agent again.

"Sect. 13. Wherever Thought is wholly wanting, or the power to act or forbear according to the direction of Thought, there Neceffity takes place. This in an Agent capable of Volition, when the beginning or continuation of any action. is contrary to that preference of his mind, is called Compulfion; when the hindering or stopping any Action is cof trary to his Volition, it is called Refraint. Agents that have no Thought, no Volition at all, are in every thing neceffary Agents."

[To be continued.]

An Account of the PASSIONS, or NATURAL AFFECTIONS: extracted from Dr. Watts.

Of COMPLACENCE and DISPLICENCE.

HE third fort of Love and Hatred are Complacence

14. THE

and Difplicence. If the object be fuited to give pleasure, the love I feel to it is called Complacence or Delight. If this Complacency rife high, it is called Fondness.

VOL. V.

Eee

There

There is a Fondnefs which is very innocent between kindred or the nearest relations, and which, in general, is called Natural Affection.

As an agreeable Object gives Complacency or Delight; so a difagreeable one raifes Difplicence, Diflike, or Difguft. If Difplicency rife to a high degree, we call it Abhorrence; and fometimes by a metaphor, Loathing. Where the disagreeablenefs between the perfon and the object is wrought into the very conftitution, it obtains the name of Antipathy.

Of DESIRE and AVERSION.

15. We proceed now to the Passions, which spring chiefly from Benevolence and Complacence, and their contraries. Here the first pair that occur are Defire and Averfion. When we look upon an Object as good, and possible to be attained, our Defire goes out toward it. When we look upon an Object as evil, which may poffibly come upon us, it awakens Averfion.

But in our animal natures there are fome Propenfities or Defires that arife without any exprefs ideas of the goodness of their Object, fuch as Hunger and Thirst. These we generally call natural Appetites. In the fame manner there may be Averfions which arife before our mind exprefsly conceives the Object to be evil or difagreeable. But those Averfions only are proper Paffions which arife firft from the Mind, confidering the Object as evil.

If our Defire be not violent, it is called a fimple Inclination: when it rifes high, it is termed Longing. When any Object raises our Averfion to a great degree, it is ufually named Loathing or Abhorrence. If we are constrained to do or fuffer evil contrary to our Inclinations, this awakens a fort of Averfion, we call Reluctance or Regret.

There are several objects of Defire (efpecially if the Defire be immoderate,) which give a diftinct name to the Paffion itself. Defire of the pleasures of fenfe is called Senfuality: Defire of honour, power and authority among men, is called Ambition defire of riches is called Covetousness.

[To be continued.]

A SERMON

THE

A SER M 0

[By Dr. CUDWORTH.]

On 1 John it. 3, 4.

[Continued from page 374.]

N

HE great defign of God in the gospel is, to clear up this mift of fin and corruption which we are furrounded with, and to bring up his creatures out of the Shadow of Death, to the Region of Light above, the land of Truth and Holinefs. The great mystery of the gofpel is to establish a God-like frame and difpofition of fpirit, which confifts in Righteousness and true Holinefs, in the hearts of men. And Chrift who is the great and mighty Saviour, came on purpose into the world, not only to fave from fire and brimflone, but alfo to fave us from our fins. Chrift hath therefore made an expiation of our fins by his death upon the cross, that we being thus delivered out of the hands of these our greatest enemies, might ferve God without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life. The end of the whole gospel is, not only to cover fin, by spreading the purple robe of Chrifl's death and fufferings over it, but to convey a powerful and mighty fpirit of holiness, to cleanse us and free us from it. And this is a greater grace than the former, which ftill go both together in the gofpel; the free pardon of fin in the blood of Chrift; and the delivering us from fin, by the Spirit of Chrift dwelling in our hearts.

Our Saviour Chrift came (as John the Baptift tells us) with a fan in his hand, that he might throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into his garner and to burn up the chaff

Eee a

with

with unquenchable fire. He came (as the prophet Malachi fays) like a Refiner's fire, and like Fuller's foap; to fit as a refiner and purifier of filver, and to purify all the fons of Levi, and purge them as gold and filver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.

The first Adam, as the Scripture tells us, brought in a real defilement, which like a loathfome leprofy, hath overspread all mankind and therefore the fecond Adam must not only fill the world with a conceit of holinefs, and mere imaginary righteoufnefs: but he must really convey fuch an immortal feed of grace, into the hearts of true believers as may prevail fill more and more in them, till it have at laft quite wroughtout that poifon of the Serpent.

And cannot God fave us from our fins? Have the Fiends of darkness then, thofe poor forlorn fpirits, that are fettered and chained up in the chains of their own wickednefs, any ftrength to withstand the force of infinite Goodness, which is infinite Power? Or do they not rather fkulk in holes of darkness, and fly like batts and owls, before the approaching beams of this Sun of Righteoufnefs? Is God powerful to kill and to destroy, to damn and to torment? And is he not powerful to fave? Nay, it is the fweeteft flower in all the garden of his 'Attributes, it is the diadem of his crown of glory, that he is Mighty to fave: and this is far more magni ficent for him, than to be filed Mighty to destroy. For that, except it be in a way of juflice, speaks no power at all, but mere impotency; for the root of all power is Goodness.

Or muft we fay, laftly, that God indeed is able to rescue us out of the power of fin and Satan, when we figh and groan towards him; but yet fometimes, to exercife his abfolute authority, his uncontrolable dominion, he delights rather in plunging wretched fouls down into infernal night and ever. lafting darkness? What fhall we then make the God of the whole world? Nothing but a cruel and dreadful Erinnys, with curled fiery faakes about his head, and firebrands in his

hands,