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140

THE UNHOLY TRAITORS TO CHRIST,

or like a whited sepulchre, fair without, but within full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. To such the Son of God declares, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."

ביי

§ 8. Without holiness you would act the part of the worst of traitors to the Son of God. When Judas betrayed him, he professed affection and friendship, and kissed him, and said, "Hail, Master!" while he pointed him out as the prey of cruelty and scorn. The inconsistent professor of the gospel really imitates Judas. He hails Christ as his Master and Saviour; while he exposes the cause of Christ to contempt and reproach, by his ungodly life. In the world, religion is scorned through him; in his own family, it is hated through him. The world and his family think, If this is religion, we are as well or better without it. Satan injured Christ, but Judas must help him. So Satan opposes the progress of the gospel, and injures the religion of Jesus, but other Judases must help him now, or he would labour in vain to throw a shade over the bright glories of Christianity. He leads these insincere or careless professors of the gospel into dishonesty, or lying, or drunkenness, or some other crime; and then an outcry is raised against the religion of Jesus, through their wickedness, that are really strangers to religion and traitors to the Lord Jesus Christ. Accordingly, such persons are described as enemies "to the cross of Christ."a How terrific a description of any that have professed subjection to Jesus! ENEMIES TO THE CROSS OF CHRIST. The crossGod's grand instrument of saving mercy. The cross of Christ -where shines the brightest display of heavenly love. The cross of Christ-man's only refuge; the sinner's only hope. The cross of Christ-the means by which that blessed sufferer would subdue the world; and these, even while they profess subjection to his sway, enemies to his cross. Dreadful cha

racter!

(z) Matt. vii. 21-23.

(a) Phil. iii. 18.

AND ROBBERS OF GOD.

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§ 9. Without holiness you would rob God of his right, and violate your own most solemn engagements. You are not your own; but God claims your services, your love, your life; yet to be inattentive to holiness, is to deny him all he claims. It is a great crime to rob a man of his property, but it is a far more atrocious one to rob God of his glory; and not merely to rob him of his right, but to blacken the villany, by giving to the world, and sin, and Satan, the time, talents, and obedience which God claims. And all this wickedness is, in a professor of religion, rendered still more wicked, because it is connected with the violation of the most solemn engagements. Is not that man thought a poor, perjured wretch, who swears allegiance to his country and king, and then deserts and fights against both? Is he not deemed still more vile, if to perjury and desertion he adds treachery? and while he acts as his country's enemy, wears her colours, and professes to be a friend? Such, or a still more wretched and wicked being, is he, who professes the gospel, and slights the holiness by which it is adorned. He, who perjured by the violation of all his solemn engagements to God, has deserted his station, and is treacherously serving the devil while he professes to fight under the banners of Jesus.

§ 10. Without holiness you would contribute to defeat the benevolent labours of others, and render injury to the church of Christ, as real as that offered by the most bitter persecutors. Suppose you knew a profane scoffer, that made it his business to counteract the zealous labours of some faithful minister, would you not think him a miserable and dreadful instance of human depravity? would you not tremble at the prospect of his impending destruction? Ah, my friend! ministers of the gospel have worse enemies than profane scoffers. Unholy professors much more effectually defeat their labours, than all the scoffers upon earth. When those, who are strangers to the power of the gospel, behold its professors as careless, as slanderous, as fond of worldly vanity, as resentful, or as covetous and worldly-minded, as themselves; when they see little or no difference, in conduct, disposition, and temper, between a professor of religion, and moral persons, who profess it not, they infer that religion is an empty name. And when they see conduct openly flagrant in its professed disciples, they infer that all professors are alike, and that all profession

142

THE UNHOLY SUPPORT SATAN'S EMPIRE,

of religion is hypocrisy. It is true this is an unjust inference, but it is a common one; and they who give occasion for it, more effectually than scoffers or infidels, hinder men from embracing the gospel of salvation. And doing so, they act the same part as the most bitter persecutors. At what did they in reality aim, but to support paganism or antichrist, and to keep mankind from the true way of life and peace? For what end but this were their dungeons, their racks, and flames occasionally employed? And this end the inconsistent professor of religion, by his unholy deportment, daily promotes. Some who have began to seek the way of peace, disgusted by his conduct, give up the pursuit; and he quenches in their hearts the little spark of grace, occasions them to resist the Holy Spirit, contributes to their damnation, and becomes a partaker of their sins. Others, always careless, from the same cause, are sealed up under carelessness and impenitence of heart.

§ 11. While leading a careless or unholy life, the inconsistent professor of religion really imitates the devil, upholds his kingdom, and most effectually does him service. He imitates Satan. That enemy of God and man, it is said, can appear as an angel of light; but he is a devil still. So he who professes religion while he does not practise it, may appear in his conversation a child of God; but he is still a child of Satan. He upholds the kingdom of the wicked one. Satan endeavours to uphold that kingdom, by preventing men from discerning the worth and excellency of the gospel. The holy Scriptures declare this. Who so successfully hinder mankind from discerning the real nature of religion, as its unholy professors? Religion, as exhibited in the lives of some of its faithful followers, is a fair and beautiful form, adorned with graces so divine and heavenly, that it is sufficiently powerful, if not to captivate every heart, yet to extort respect and admiration even from its foes; but the religion of an unholy professor of the gospel, when seen, like a hideous monster, excites abhorrence and disgust; and mankind are ready to exclaim, If this is religion, we are better without it. Thus are they hindered from discerning its heavenly excellences; and taking a monster for it, are prevented from seeing its eternal worth. The unholy man or woman that occasions

(b) 2 Cor. iv. 3, 4.

AND CAUSE INCALCULABLE MISCHIEF.

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this mischief, is indeed one of the most faithful servants of the wicked one. The profligate cannot so effectually serve Satan as the hypocrite. The profligate is like an enemy without the walls of a fortress; he appears in his true colours, and men are aware of him; but the unholy professor is like a treacherous wretch, that has crept into the fortress only to betray it. A drunkard, a dishonest man, a liar, a miser, out of the church of Christ, can never render Satan half the service they can render him when within its walls.

§ 12. If you profess religion and neglect holiness, you may be a source of mischief and misery for ages and ages. It is impossible to tell where the evil of a sinful example, or even of one sinful action, may terminate. One open crime, and much more an unholy life, in a professor of religion, may be a means of propagating vice and misery, and dealing to many death and damnation for generations to come. How easily may this be the case, when a young person is influenced by such causes to neglect the Saviour. The impressions he felt are destroyed, his desires are quenched, and his soul is undone. But he, perhaps, becomes the head of a family. Had he followed Jesus, his children would have been trained up for God; but now their eternal welfare is slighted, and they rise up heathens like their father. Perhaps the same course of irreligion and vice is acted over again by their descendants, and again by theirs, each new generation copying the example of the former. This is not uncommon. Thus sin and misery are propagated from age to age. And that professor of the gospel, who by his crimes prevented the ancestor of such a family from following the Saviour, is, in an awful degree, a cause of all this sin and misery! Ah! how watchful should a Christian be, that no one at the judgment-bar may be able to stand forth and say, "My ruin is owing to that sin, by which you wounded your friends and disgraced your profession; but for that I should have sought the Saviour, but through that I pronounced religion hypocrisy, and neglectful of it lived and died."

§ 13. Neglecting holiness you would expose others and yourself to that awful woe, which the Lord has denounced against those, who slight his gospel on account of the sins of others, and against those who are the cause of this neglect.

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NECESSITY OF FOLLOWING AFTER HOLINESS.

"Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh." Let the unholy professor of religion tremble at this heavy woe, denounced by such gentle lips!--this woe which, heavier than a mill-stone round the neck, will sink him in a direful ocean of eternal wrath. O, let the unholy professor of the gospel meditate terror, while he meditates on these words, "Woe unto that man by whom the offence cometh."

§ 14. Such are a few of those awfully momentous motives, that urge the Christian to make advancing holiness his fervent desire, his incessant pursuit, his daily prayer. If you would improve life's little span; if you would glorify God and honour Christ; if you would recommend religion to mankind, and lead them to the abodes of bliss, you must follow after consistent holiness. Without it, the more zeal you display for the gospel, the more mischief will you do. If you would not be shut out of heaven; if you would not be another Judas, another traitor to the blessed Saviour; if you would not defeat the labours of gospel ministers, more effectually than is done by bitter persecutors; if you would not rob God of his right; if you would not lie to God, and become a poor perjured wretch; if you would not uphold the kingdom of the devil, carry on his designs, and be his most faithful servant; if you would not contribute to spread sin and misery and damnation for ages to come; if you would not expose others, and yourself, to one of the most tremendous woes ever denounced from heaven against sin and sinners; if you would not commit all these hideous sins; if you would not do all this complicated mischief; in short, if you would not be a pest to earth, an enemy to the cross of Christ, a friend of the devil, an agent of hell, and a curse to yourself, you must follow after holiness.

(c) Matt. xviii. 6, 7.

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