only alternative between that and the taking his portion in " hell-fire," is no pleasing sound in his ears, notwithstanding it proceeds from the meek and lowly Jesus0.
Least of all is he gratified with precepts that strike at his besetting sin. The proud man does not delight to hear the workings of pride delineated ; nor the covetous man the evils of covetousness depicted ; nor the gay and dissipated the folly of their ways exposed; nor the self-righteous man the delusive nature of his hopes declared. No, they are all ready to deride the statements that condemn their ways, just as the Pha- risees derided our Lord, when he had unveiled their covetous and hypocritical devices ; " The Pharisees were covetous (it is said), and they derided him." The hearts of these people rise against all such doc- trines ; and with no little bitterness they exclaim, " In so saying, thou reproachest nsd."
The true Christian, on the contrary, approves and loves all the commands of God ; both those which are evangelical, and those which are moral.
He loves those which are evangelical. It is no grief to him to be told, that he must renounce all depend- ence on his own righteousness, and rely entirely on the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is rather with the most heaitfelt delight that he hears those gracious commands, " Look unto me, and be ye saved ;" " Come unto me, and I will give you rest ;" " Believe on me, and have everlasting life." " He esteems these precepts to be right ;" he feels them to be exactly suited to his necessities : he knows, and is assured, that his own righteousness is only as " filthy rags ;" and that in any other garment than the robe of Christ's righteousness, it is impos- sible for him to stand in the presence of a holy God. He sees also that this mode of justification before God is the only one which can consist with the ho- nour of God's justice, and with the demands of his law. Hence whatever opposes this way of salvation, " he hates ;" yea, he shudders at the very thought of
c Mark ix. 42 — 48. d Luke xi. 45.