GOD has granted us the Honour and Privilege of being Chriftians, and has thereby called us unto Holinefs. The Times of the Heathen Ignorance, St. Paul tells the Athenians, Acts xvii. 30. God winked at; the Divine Mercy waited to be gracious to them, and did not fo feverely obferve, nor fo immediately punish their Wickedness, as it deferved; but he now commandeth all Men every where to repent; and unless they do fo, and set themfelves to make Returns of Duty and Holinefs, fuitable to that Glorious Light which he has given them, the greater, far greater, will be their Condemnation another Day, and their Punishment more intolerable; according to our Saviour's own Rule, Thofe Servants which knew their Lord's Will, and did not act according to it, shall be beaten with many Stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him Shall be much required. Luke xii. 47, 48.

Laftly, THE Light we enjoy, and the many unspeakable Advantages of it, should teach us to have a compaffionate Senfe of the Miseries of all thofe unhappy Creatures, who either ftill fit altogether in

Darkness, and want the Light of the Gofpel of CHRIST for their Direction; or who having been in Part enlightned with it, do yet ftill want many Affiftances for the perfecting that excellent Work, which is fo happily begun among them.

THE former we may, and it is our Duty to do it, Affift with our Prayers to GOD for them, that he would, in his infinite Mercy, and in his due Time, by Ways fuited to his infinite Wisdom and Goodnefs, bring them in to be Partakers of that great Bleffing which we enjoy. There are many Glorious Things faid in the Holy Scriptures, concerning the Gentiles, which do not, I confefs, feem to me to have had their full Completion as yet. The Calling of many of them by the Preaching of the Gofpel into the Church of CHRIST, was indeed a very gracious and aftonishing Act of God's Providence to them, and was worthy therefore to be fet forth in many lofty Expreffions by the Prophets; but ftill all that has hitherto come to pass, seems to me to be very far fhort of what is promifed in thofe Places, where it is faid, That all the Ends of the Earth

Earth fhall fee the Salvation of God; and to CHRIST the Son of GOD is promifed, that God will give him the Heathen for his Inheritance, and the utmoft Parts of the Earth for his Poffeffion, Pfal. ii. 8. And in that remarkable Place of Malachi, Chap. i. 11. From the rifing of the Sun, even unto the going down of the fame, ny Name Shall be great among the Gentiles, and in every Place Incenfe fhall be offered unto my Name, and a pure Offering, for my Name fhall be great among the Heathen, faith the Lord of Hofts. And in many other Places to the fame Purpose. I fay what has been hitherto done in Favour of them, seems not to come up to what is promised, fince we know very well, that there are many, very many Nations, that still remain in the groffeft Darkness and Ignorance of Heathenism; and there may be many more ftill which we never heard of, nor know any Thing at all of them; and therefore, furely it becomes us, who know the Value of this Bleffing, to become most humble and earnest Petitioners at the Throne of Grace, that GOD would haften in his Time the fo often promifed Mercy, that all the Heathen fhall praise him.

A s

As to those Nations, which having been in Part enlightned with the Holy Gospel of CHRIST, but do ftill want many Affiftances for the perfecting the excellent Work which is fo happily begun among them; thofe especially, for which this fo Honourable and Worthy Society is concern'd: Give me leave to crave your Patience a little longer, while I fay fomething of what I think may with great Reafon be expected, fhould be the Behaviour of the People of this Nation towards them.

THERE are, as you have often heard, on the like Occafion, in his Majefty's Dominions abroad, the Plantations in America, vaft Numbers of Perfons, who, as to the State of Religion among them, were but till very lately, when it pleafed GOD to put into the Heart of his late Majesty King William, of Glorious Memory, to erect a Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, (which was in the Year 1701) Ifay, many of these were till then in a most deplorable Condition, as we may well imagine, when in a vaft Tract of Land, far greater than all England, Scot

land,

land, and Ireland together, there were fecer Churches, than are in the very leaft Diocese of this Kingdom, about 100 in the whole, as has been obferv'd by a late Reverend Prelate, on the like Occafion with this. So that till this Charity took Place, many of the Colonies among them muft needs have been deftitute of all Sorts of Provifion for the Exercife of any Religion at all, in publick at least, and much more of any Inftruction in the True.

SINCE that Bleffed Work began to take Place, great has been the Change of the Face of Religion in that wide and before uncultivated Countrey. Many more Churches have been built, and many Miffionaries Sent to teach them the Way of God more perfectly. Schools have been fet up for the Inftruction of the younger Sort, and to bring them up in the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord; and many of the barbarous ignorant Indians, both the Neighbours to these, and thofe that have been made ufe of for the Service of the Plantations, have been inftructed in the Knowledge of God and his Christ, and brought into the Chriftian Fold by Baptism.