Page:Great duty of confessing Christ before men, stated and recommended.pdf/21

21 done at the day of judgment, and choose that religion which will support us through life, with all its changes, at death, with all its terrors, and in the day of the Lord, with all its solemnities!

III—INFERENCES.

1. That the work of Christ is honourable and glorious. Christ is a glorious person, and his work must be very honourable. The highest orders of creatures adore him without end, in heaven; cover their faces in his presence, and reckon it their supreme felicity to be employed in his service. In some cases the worker honours the work, but in religion the worker is ennobled by the work. How glorious is our Master, how pleasant his service, and how great the reward! Who would not say, ''Thine are we, O David! and on thy side thou son of Jesse: Peace be to thee, and to thine helpers, for thy God helpeth thee.'' Compared to this, every other employment is despicable and paltry; every other honour is disgrace; and all other pleasures are stale and insipid. O taste and see that our God is good! 2. That Christ hath every reason to be ashamed of us, but we none to be ashamed of him. God is not ashamed to be called our God, and shall we be ashamed to be his people, or to avow ourselves such! It is an eternal wonder that Christ ever appeared on our side, and did and suffered, what we should have done and suffered, and yet could not; and it is almost an equal wonder, to hear of sinners that are ashamed of this glorious person! 3. That the spirit of a church is known from her testimony and confession. If these are tests of her orthodoxy, then, having orthodox standards, her administrations should be scriptural and pure. The spirit of a society is not known to the world, or to sister churches, if it has no creeds and confessions, or testimonies. The Bible is not the testimony of the church, it is the testimony of God to men. The