relation to our own experience : for there is much hypocrisy in the human heart; and " a hypocrite, even though his excel- lency mount up to the heavens, and reach unto the clouds, will be detected by God, and will perish for ever, like his own dung ;" so that his former admirers, with a mixture of surprise and grief, will say, " Where is hem?" The apostate too, however eminent his profession may have been, will share the same fate. The man who turns back, " turns back to inevitable and everlasting perdition";" and plunges himself into deeper misery than he would ever have experienced if he had never known the way of righteousness at all0. Seeing, then, that so many must perish, is it not of vast importance that we ascer- tain our true character, in order that we may know what doom we are to expect? Yes, beloved, to all of you I would most affectionately say, " Judge yourselves, that ye be not judged of the Lord."]
2. To realize in our minds the terrors of that
day—
[St. Paul, "knowing the terrors of the Lord, persuaded men p." And we, too, should meditate upon them, in order to stimulate our souls to a holy activity in the ways of God. Consider how many millions of our fellow-creatures will in that day " call upon the rocks to fall upon them, and the hills to cover them from the wrath of that Lamb," whom here they neglected and despised'1! What " fearfulness, too, will sur- prise the hypocrites," who indulged the vain conceit that their specious conduct would find a happier issue ! and with what bitter cries will they exclaim, " Who amongst us can dwell with the devouring fire? Who can dwell with everlasting burnings1?" In vain will they knock at the gate of heaven, crying, " Lord, Lord, open to us ;" since they were content with the lamp of outward profession, without the oil of true grace in their hearts s. Some will venture even to expostulate with God, as though they had been hardly treated : " Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works ?" But they will be repelled with that indignant reproof, " I never knew you : depart from me, ye who wrought iniquity'." O, the millions, the countless millions, that will perish in that day; all of them "drinking of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his in- dignation, and be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb ;
m Job xx. 4—7. n Heb. x. 39. ° 2 Pet. ii. 20, 21.
p 2 Cor. v. 11. i Rev. vL 15 — 17. r Isai. xxxiii. 14.
* Matt. xxv. 3, 11, 12. « Matt. vii. 22, 23.