A sermon preached upon the much lamented death of our late gracious sovereign Queen…

Let us consider Men and Angels, that in Nature are more excellent than other Creatures. The first Man in the Perfection of Paradise was mutable, his natural Life was in a continual Flux, and to be preserved by the Fruits of the Garden. If he had persevered in his Obedience, after a short Immortality on Earth, he had ascended to Heaven alive in his entire Person, but he must have been changed in his Ascension, for Flesh and Blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. He had Strength to stand, but was free to fall; and that Freedom to Evil was a Branch of Imperfection. There is a woeful Proof of this in his rebellious Disobedience, for which he lost more in a Day than his Progeny can recover to all Ages. The Angels are superior Spirits, yet they were charged with Folly, that is, a Slipperiness and Mutability from which God alone is entirely exempt. The Elect Angels, who ⟨p. 12⟩continued faithful when such mighty Numbers were false, and deserted their Duty, (and fell from their original Purity and Glory) are not absolutely unchangeable: their Confirmation and Stability is from the continual Irradiations and Influences of Divine Grace, that preserve their Minds from Error, and their Wills from irregular Desires, and consequently they cannot sin, nor forfeit their Felicity; for all Sin proceeds from Error in the Mind, and Disorder in the Will.

Let us consider Men and Angels, that in Nature are more excellent than other Creatures. The first Man in the Perfection of Paradise was mutable, his natural Life was in a continual Flux, and to be preserv'd by the Fruits of the Garden. If he had persevered in his Obedience, after a short Immortality on Earth, he had ascended to Heaven alive in his intire Person, but he must have been changed in his Ascension, for Flesh and Blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. He had Strength to stand, but was free to fall; and that Freedom to Evil was a Branch of Imperfection. There is a woful Proof of this in his rebellious Disobedience, for which he lost more in a Day than his Progeny can recover to all Ages. The Angels are superiour Spirits, yet they were charged with Folly, that is, a Slipperiness and Mutability from which God alone is entirely exempt. The Elect Angels, who ⟨p. 12⟩continued faithful when such mighty Numbers were false, and deserted their Duty, (and fell from their original Purity and Glory) are not absolutely unchangeable: their Confirmation and Stability is from the continual Irradiations and Influences of Divine Grace, that preserve their Minds from Error, and their Wills from irregular Desires, and consequently they cannot sin, nor forfeit their Felicity; for all Sin proceeds from Error in the Mind, and Disorder in the Will.