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and fhalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor fpeaking thine own words: then fhalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will caufe thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. lvi. 2. Bleffed is the man that doeth this, and the fon of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the fabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil. Mark ii. 28. The Son of man is Lord also of the fabbath. See alto Luke vi. 5. Luke xiii. 10. He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the fabbath. Acts xiii. 42-44. When the Jews were gone out of the fynagogue, the gentiles befought that these words might be preached unto them the next sabbath-day.-And the next fabbath-day, came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. xvi. 13. On the fabbath we went out of the city by a river-fide, where prayer was wont to be made; and we fat down, and spake unto the women which reforted thither. xviii. 4. He reafoned in the fynagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and Greeks. Rev. i. 1o. I was in the fpirit on the Lord's day. Acts xx. 7. On the firft day of the week, when the difciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them. John xx. 19. Then the fame day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were fhut, where the difciples were affembled, for fear of the Jews, came Jefus, and stood in the midft, &c. I Cor. xvi. 2. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in ftore, as God hath profpered him.

3. Againft goiping. 1 Tim. v. 13. Withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers alfo, and busy-bodies, fpeaking things which they ought not. I Theff. iv. II. Study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.

4. Against speaking evil. Tit. iii. 1, 2. Put them in mindto speak evil of no man.

5. Against buying or felling goods which have not paid the legal duty. Matt. xxii. 21. Then faith he [Jefus] unto them, Render, therefore, unto Cæfar the things which are Cæfar's. See alfo Mark xii. 17. Luke xx. 25. and Rom. xiii. 6, 7.

6. Against bribery in elections. Ifai. xxxiii. 15, 16. He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppreffions, that faketh his bands from holding of bribes, &c. he fhall dwell on high; his place of defence shall be the munition of rocks.

7. Againft contracting debts without being able to pay them. Rom. xiii. 8. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another. Lev. xix. 13. Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour. I Theff. iv. 36. This is the will of God,-that no man go beyond and

defraud his brother in any matter; because that the Lord is the avenger of all fuch, as we also have forewarned you, and teftified.

SECTION XVI.

Of the Inftruction of Children.

HAT fhall we do for the rifing genera

Quest. Wation?

Anfw. 1. Let him who is zealous for God and the fouls of men begin now.

2. Where there are ten children whofe parents are in fociety, meet them an hour once a week; but were: this is impracticable, meet them once in two weeks.

3. Procure our inftructions for them, and let all who can, read and commit them to memory.

4. Explain and imprefs them upon their hearts. 5. Talk with them every time. you fee any at home. 6. Pray earnestly for them: And diligently inftruct and exhort all parents at their own houfes.

7. Let the elders, deacons, and preachers, take a lift of the names of the children; and if any of them be truly awakened, let them be admited into fociety.

8. Preach exprefsly on education: "But I have nɔ gift for this." Pray earneftly for the gift, and use every

other means to attain it.

NOTE S.

The proper education of children is of exceeding great mo iment to the welfare of mankind. About one half of the human race are under the age of fixteen, and may be confidered, the infants excepted, as capable of inftruction. The welfare of the states and countries in which they live, and, what is infinitely more, the falvation of their fouls, do, under the grace and providence of God, depend in a confiderable degree upon their education. But, alas! the great difficulty lies in finding men and women of genuine piety as inftructors. Let us, however, endeavour to fupply thefe fpiritual defects. Let us follow the directions of this fection, and we shall meet many on the day of judgment, who will acknowledge before the Great Judge, and an affembled uni¬

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verfe, that their firft defires after Chrift and falvation were received in their younger years by our inftrumentality. In tow.s we may, without difficulty, meet the children weekly, and in the plantations advise and pray with them every time we visit their houses: Nay, in the country, if we give notice that at fuch a time we fhall spend an hour or two in fuch a house with those children who fhall attend, many of the neighbours will efteem it a privilege to fend their children to us at the time appointed. But we must exercise much patience, as well as zeal, for the fuccessful accomplishment of this work. And if we can with love and delight condefcend to their ignorance and childishness, and yet endeavour continually to raise up their little minds to the once dying but now exalted Saviour, we fhall be made a bleffing to thousands of them.

But let us labour among the poor in this refpect, as well as among the competent. O if our people in the cities, towns, and villages were but fufficiently fenfible of the magnitude of this duty, and its acceptableness to God-If they would establish fabbath-schools, wherever practicable, for the benefit of the children of the poor, and facrifice a few public ordinances every Lord's-day to this charitable and useful exercise, God would be to them inftead of all the means they lofe; yea, they would find, to their present comfort and the increase of their eternal glory, the truth and fweetness of those words, "Mercy is better than facrifice," Matt. ix. 13. and xii. 7. and Hof. vi. 6. But there is fo much of the cross in all this! O when fhall we be the true followers of a crucified Saviour!

The following fcriptures enforce the prefent duty: Gen. xviii. 19. I [Jehovah] know him [Abraham] that he will command his children and his household after him, and they fhall keep the way of the Lord. Deut. vi. 6, 7. These words, which I com mand thee this day, shall be in thine heart. And thou fhalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and fhalt talk of them when thou fitteft in thine house, and when thou walkcft by the way, and when thou lieft down, and when thou rifeft up. Prov. xxii. 6. Train up a child in the way he fhould go; and when he is old he will not depart from it. Mark x. 14. Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not. 2 Tim. iii. 15. From a child thou hast known the holy fcriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto falvation, which is in Christ Jesus.

N. B. We particularly recommend our fcripture-catechism for the ufe of children.

SECTION XVII.

Of employing our Time profitably, when wę are not travelling, or engaged in public Exercifes.

Que. 1. WHAT general method of employing

our time would you advife us to ?

Anfw. We advife you, 1. As often as poffible to rife at four. 2. From four to five in the morning, and from five to fix in the evening, to meditate, pray, and read the fcriptures with notes, and the closely practical parts of what Mr. Wefley has published. 3. From fix in the morning till twelve (allowing an hour for breakfat) read, with much prayer, fome of our best religious tracts.

Quest. 2. Why is it that the people under our care are not better?

Anfw. Other reasons may concur; but the chief is, because we are not more knowing and more holy.

Quest 3. But why are we not more knowing?

Anfw. Becaufe we are idle. We forget our first rule, Be diligent. Never be unemployed. Never be triflingly employed: neither spend any more time at any place than is ftrictly neceffary." We fear there is altogether a fault in this matter, and that few of us are clear. Which of us fpends as many hours a day in God's work, as he did formerly in man's work? We talk, talk or read what comes next to hand. We muft, abíolutely muft, cure this evil, or betray the caufe of God. But how? 1. Read the most useful books, and that regularly and conftantly. 2. Steadily fpend all the morning in this employment, or at leaft five hours in four and twenty. But I have no tafte for reading." Contract a tafte for it by ufe, or return to your former employment. "But I have no books." Be diligent to fpread the books, and you will have the use of them.

NOTE S.

We have already enlarged fo much on the public and private duties of minifters, that on the limited plan and laconic mode we have adopted in these annotations, it may not be necessary to say much more on this fubject. We would just recommend to our ministers and preachers, agreeably to the directions given in this fection, much reading and ftudy. We have various ranks of men to deal with, and as far as poffible fhould be prepared for. them all; that as fcribes inftructed unto the kingdom of heaven, we may, like unto a man that is an householder, bring forth out of our treasures things new and old. See Matt. xiii. 52. A taftefor reading profitable books is an ineftimable gift. It adds to the comfort of life far beyond what many conceive, and qualifies us, if properly directed, for very extenfive usefulness in the church of God. It takes off all the miferable liftleffness of a fluggish life; and gives to the mind a strength and activity it could not otherwife acquire. But to obtain and preserve this tafte for, this delight in, profitable reading, we must daily refift the natural tendency of man to indolence and idlenefs. And when we confider the aftonishing activity of the enemies of revealed truth, to diffeminate their pernicious doctrines, we must allow that it be hoves every minifter of Jefus Chrift, not only to be able to "give an answer to every man that afketh him a reason of the hope that is in him, with meekness and fear," (1 Pet. iii. 15.) but to answer and filence the most fubtle arguments of the profeffed enemies of our adorable Lord. "Till I come," fays St.Paul, GIVE ATTENDANCE TO READING," I Tim. iv. 13. Heb. vi. II, 12. We defire-that ye be not flothful. See also Ephef. v. 16. Col. iv. 5. 2 Tim. ii. 15. and iv. 13.

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SECTION XVIII.

Of the Neceffity of Union among ourselves.

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ET us be deeply fenfible (from what we have known) of the evil of a divifion in principle, ipirit, or practice, and the dreadful confequences to ourfelves and others. If we are united, what can stand before us? If we divide, we fhall destroy ourselves, the work of God, and the fouls of our pe ple.

Quest. What can be done in order to a closer union with each other?

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