Page:Sermons by John-Baptist Massillon.djvu/312

 souls that  the  Spirit  of  God  relieth,  and  taketh  delight  in  his  working wonders;  on  the  contrary,  "  he  despiseth  the  presumptuous sinner,  and  knoweth  him  afar  off."

Thirdly. The grace  of  conversion  which  you  so  confidently  expect, is,  as  you  know,  the  greatest  of  all  gifts. Nevertheless, as  you know still  better,  there  is  scarcely  a  sinner  more  unworthy  of  it than  yourself;  unworthy  through  the  nature  of  your  disorders,  of which  you  alone  know  the  infamy  and  the  enormity;  unworthy through the  lights  and  inspirations  you  have  a  thousand  times  misused;  unworthy  through  the  favours  of  the  mysteries  and  of  the truths which  you  have  always  neglected;  unworthy  through  the sequel, even  of  your  natural  inclinations,  which  heaven,  at  your birth, had  formed  so  happy  and  so  tractable  to  truth,  and  which you have  turned  into  melancholy  means  of  vice;  unworthy  through the iniquitous  derisions  which  you  have  made  of  piety,  and  those impious desires,  so  injurious  to  the  truth  of  God,  which  have  a thousand  times  led  you  to  wish  that  all  we  say  of  a  future  state  were a fable;  lastly,  unworthy  through  that  profound  security  in  which you live,  which,  before  God,  is  the  worst  of  all  your  crimes. Now, I ask  nothing  here  but  equity;  if  only  a  single  sinner  were  to  be excluded  from  that  grace  of  conversion  which  you  expect,  you  would have every  reason  to  dread  that  the  exclusion  fell  upon  you,  and that you  were  to  be  that  single  child  of  curse,  separated  as  an  anathematized from  all  his  brethren. But, if  almost  all  be  deprived  of that  blessing,  ah! my dear  hearer,  ought  you  to  reckon  upon  it  as secure? And what  have  you  but  a  superabundance  of  sins  to  distinguish you  from  others? If the  hope  of  the  presumptuous  sinner perish in  general  with  himself,  can  you  suppose  that  your  salvation shall be  accomplished  by  the  same  way  in  which  all  others  perish? I know  that  we  ought  never  to  despair;  but  humble  confidence  is very  different  from  presumption:  humble  confidence,  after  having tried all,  counts  upon  nothing,  and  you  depend  upon  all  without having ever  tried  any  thing. Humble trust  considers  the  mercy of the  Lord  only  as  the  supplement  of  the  defects  of  penitence, and you  make  it  the  refuge  of  your  crimes;  humble  trust,  with fear and  trembling,  awaits  the  pardon  of  those  faults  it  hath  lamented, and  you  coolly  expect  that  those  should  be  forgiven  of which  you  never  mean  to  repent. I know,  and  I  again  repeat,  that  we ought  never  to  despair;  but  were  it  possible  that  despair  could  be  legitimate, ah! it would  be  when  hope  is  presumptuously  encouraged.

But age  will  mellow  the  passions,  says  inwardly  the  sinner  here: enticing opportunities  will  not  always  come  in  the  way;  circumstances more  favourable  for  salvation  will  occur;  and  what  is  at present  impossible,  shall  one  day  perhaps  be  done  when  a  thousand actual impediments  shall  be  removed. My God! in this  manner doth the  unfortunate  soul  deceive  himself;  and  it  is  through  an illusion  so  palpable  that  the  demon  seduces  almost  all  men,  the wisest as  the  most  foolish,  the  most  enlightened  as  the  most  credulous, the  great  as  the  common  people. For, say,  my  dear  hearer, when you  promise  yourself  that  one  day  the  Lord  shall  at  last  have