the Lord to Joshua : and says he not the same to us, " Lo, I am with you alway, even to the end of the worlda?" Now, imagine a soldier with his commander and his prince always at his side : would he not be stirred up by that to acts of valour, which, in the absence of such a stimulus, he would be unable to put forth ? Know, then, that your God is ever with you ; and with you, not only as a Witness of your actions, but as a Helper, to strengthen you, to uphold you, to combat with you. What encouragement can you desire beyond tins ? Hear his own words, addressed to every soldier in his army : " Fear not, for I am with thee ; be not dismayed, for I am thy God : I will strengthen thee ; yea, I will help thee ; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness V What matters it, then, how many there may be against you ? If they were as numerous as the sands upon the sea-shore, you may boldly say, " There are more with you than with them." In fact, " If God be for you, who can be against you?" They may assault you, and boast of their triumphs ; but they can do nothing, but in accordance with his will, and in subserviency to his designs.]
3. The assurance he gives us of ultimate success —
[" Then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and thou shalt have good success." You are persecuted ; you are im- prisoned ; you are put to death : but are you vanquished ? Was the Saviour overcome when he was put to death ? Did he not " by death overcome him that had the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver those who, through fear of death, were all their lifetime subject to bondage?" "He was the stone which the builders rejected: but, is he not the Head- stone in the corner?" Know, then, that you are not to estimate victory by the present and temporary effects, but by the ulti- mate and everlasting results. Be it so; you are sorely op- pressed, and your enemies are exulting over you : but God's word is not broken : for tribulation is the way to glory ; and the cross precedes the crown. Only be content to suffer with Christ ; and be assured you shall speedily be " glorified together0."]
Address —
1. Let none expect victory without conflicts —
[What shall we say of the religion of your enemies ? Has it any resemblance to the religion of the Bible ? Are they hated for righteousness' sake? No: the world cannot hate them, because they are of the world. You, on the contrary, are hated purely because you will conform yourselves to the
a Matt, xxviii. 20. b Isai. xli. 10. c Rom. viii. 17.