Page:The New View of Hell.djvu/210

 his ruling love—we must rely on One who alone is able to deliver; we must look to Him and pray to Him who hath "all power in heaven and on earth." No one ever was or ever can be delivered from a state of bondage to evil or the love of self, without first desiring to be delivered. And a sincere desire for deliverance, implies a perception and acknowledgment of the low state in which we are, and from which we seek to be delivered.

But the desire alone, however intense, is not enough. Prayer for deliverance, however earnest, is not enough. Confession of our clearly discerned selfishness and sin, however penitent, is not enough. Necessary as all these are, they are of no avail without a life of practical obedience to the Divine precepts. "Not every one that saith unto me. Lord, Lord," says the great Teacher, "shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." We enter into the kingdom of heaven, just in the degree that we enter into that state of love to the Lord and the neighbor, which is the essential thing in that kingdom. And we enter that state by keeping the commandments, that is, by doing the heavenly Father's will; and a part of this consists in shunning, as sins against Him, the things which are contrary to his will.

To come out of darkness, is to come into light. To escape sickness, is to enjoy health. To get rid of weakness, is the same as coming into the possession of strength.