It encourages us along in duty, we grant, from the hope of reward, and dissuades us from sin, by fear of misery. And hence some infidel writers whose attacks against it, have been read, with great avidity, have taken occasion to say that it is a mercenary, and selfish religion; and therefore, unworthy of God to institute or man to receive. Nothing can betray their partiality more, or exhibit in a more conspicuous light their unfairness, and their ignorance of the nature of this system or religion than to bestow upon it, the epithets of _mercenary_ and _selfish._ They tell us that the excellence and glory of Virtue should be the only motive to persuade us to embrace it in our hearts, and to pursue it in our lives: that INTERESTED motives, or motives drawn from the rewards of virtue, or ill-effects of vice, are unworthy of God to use with us; and only build up a SELFISH system.----Why _interested_ motives are made use of by the Supreme Being to persuade us to accept of the offers of the Gospel is a question of some importance, and seems incumbent on me here to discuss. And that the hearer may gain satisfaction he is requested to attend to the following remarks.
1stly. The supreme inherent excellence of Virtue, or moral goodness would perhaps be the best and most suitable motive to be used with angels, or beings who had never apostatised from God. Because they could perceive all its richness and worthiness. As it is the most noble, so with them it might be the most influential. They, it will be granted, have a clear and direct view of the nature and of the charms of holiness. It shines before them, in all its native splendor, and is possessed and exercised by them, without any mixture of evil. They see all the loveliness of Virtue, and actually experience a fulness of joy from it. And of course it will have all its due weight with them. But man is plunged in sin and guilt.--And is guilty because sinful. These, _sin_ and _guilt,_ intercept, as an intervening cloud, his vision of the glory and excellence of Virtue. He cannot therefore be so _entirely_ influenced by them. For what is not fully perceived cannot operate as a motive in all its weight and importance. Besides, this is a state of probation and trial; and man, accordingly, is treated in the Gospel as in such a state. And if he were not treated as in such a state, he would not be treated either justly or truly, either according to the nature, or the fitness of things.