which such a man ought to take. — Like him, we are upon our way to the presence of a Ju€^. We shall all stand at the bar of God. — ^Like him, we have an adver- sary. The holy law of God is against us, and contrary to us, and its demands must be satisfied. — Like him, we ought to give diligence to get our case settled, before it comes before the Judge. We ought to seek pardon and forgiveness before we die. — Like him, if we let our oppor- tunity slip, the judgment will go against us, and we shall be cast into the prison of hell. Such appears to be the meaning of the parable in the passage before us. It is a vivid picture of the care which men ought to take in the great matter of reconciliation with God.
Peace with God is by far the first thing in religion. We are bom in sin, and children of wrath. We have no natural love towards God. The carnal mind is enmity against God. It is impossible that God can take pleasure in us. "The wicked his soul hateth." (Psal. xi. 5.) The chief and foremost desire of every one who professes to have any religion, should be to obtain reconciliation. Till this is done, nothing is done. We have got nothing worth having in Christianity, until we have peace with God. The law brings us in guilty. The judgment is sure to go agaiQst us. Without reconciliation, the end of our life's journey will be hell.
Peace with God is the principal thing which the Gospel of Christ offers to the soul. Peace and pardon stand in the forefront of its list of privileges, and are tendered freely to every one that believe on Jesus. There is One who can deliver us fi^m the adversary. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that beUeveth.