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ask my readers if they ever read in the scriptures that an impenitent, obdurate man who fears not God nor his word, who is earthly, sensual, and devilish and lives according to his lusts can be a child of God and a joint heir of Christ? (a) you must answer, no. But he that with all his heart ceases from evil and learns to do well, to him in the whole scriptures, the grace of the Lord is proclaimed. Thus the prophet says: wash ye; make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes, cease to do evil, learn to do well, seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now let us reason together, saith the Lord: Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool, (Isaiah 1.) And again. But if the wicked will turn" from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions which he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him. (Ezek. 1, 8.) And further, search the whole scriptures, the true instructions and testimonies of the holy prophets, evangelists and apostles; and you will find it clearly stated how this godly repentance is to be performed in sincerity; and that without it no one can receive grace, or enter into the kingdom of heaven. (b) In short, as far as in us lies, we teach repentance from the word of the Lord, in order that ye may destroy those carnal lusts which war against the soul, (1 Pet. 2;) crucify the flesh with its lusts and desires, (Gal. 5`;) refrain from conformity to this world, (Rom. 18.;) subdue the love of this world and the things therein, (John 1;) put off the old man with his deeds, and put on the new, which is renewed in knowledge, after the image of him, that created him, (Col. 5;) put off old Adam with his whole nature and deceitful lusts, such as pride, avarice, unchastity, hatred, envyings, gluttony, drinking, idolatry, and that ye put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness, whose fruits are faith, love, hope, righteousness, peace, joy in the Holy Ghost. (Eph. 4; Gal. 5; 1 Cor. 13; Rom. 14.) In suffering be pa tient, merciful, compassionate and chaste; and hate and rebuke

(a) The impenitent are destitute of hope. (b) Understand this of those who have ears to hear and hearts to understand, and not of innocent children.

all sin. Entertain a cordial zeal for God and his word. (a) I repeat it again, this repentance must be sincere, fruitful, acceptable to the Lord and according to his word. He that receives this grace, and retains it to the end, may rejoice and thank God, for the end thereof is eternal life. But he that rejects it and desires it not, be he warned that the end is eternal woe. (b)

Beloved, do for once lay it to heart, what it is, and what the consequences will be, to willfully transgress the commands of the Most High. Adam and Eve ate but once of the forbidden fruit, which the Lord had commanded them not to eat, (Gen. 3;) and the earth was cursed. In the sweat of his face, Adam was doomed to eat his bread all the days of his life. Eve and her daughters must bring forth in pain and be in subjection to their husbands. Both were driven from Paradise, and, with all their race, placed under the sentence: Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return. There was no forgiveness, no consolation. But the Eternal Word, God's eternal Son, came from the high heavens-assumed human nature, suffered hunger, temptation, misery, the cross and death, for the redemption of man. Oh beloved, if this single transgression was so great before God, what shall become of those who proudly despise the holy word, the covenant, the will and command of the Lord; who do not confess, nor desist from their sins, though they are full of iniquity from the crown of the head to the souls of the feet. (c) Cain was cursed and became a vagrant upon earth, because he so enviously slew his innocent brother Abel. (Gen. 4.) Alas, what will become of those who at the present day without compassion, persecute, plunder, and murder the pious Abelites, who, with warm and sin cere hearts, seek Christ and eternal life.(d) The ancient world was drowned in the waters of the flood, because the sons of God looked upon the daughters of men, that they were fair, and took to themselves wives of all which they choose." And also, because they would not be reproved by the spirit of God, for every imagination and thought of the heart was evil continually. (Gen. 6; 7; 8.) Reflect upon the lusts with which the marriages of the present day are contracted; Yea like horses and mules, without the fear of God.

(a) The true work and fruit of repentance. (b) Without true fruits of repentance no one shall see eternal life. (c) Oh ye impenitent! repent. (d) Oh ye mighty of the earth look at the examples of old.

(Job. 6.) How the Holy Ghost is reviled, slandered and grieved, and how they all walk in the perverted way which leads to hell. Sodom and Gomorah with the surrounding cities, were burned up with the fire of the furious wrath of God, and cast into the abyss of hell, on account of their pride, wantonness, cruelty and abominable crimes. (Gen. 18, 19; Ezek. 16.) Alas! what will befall those miserable men in the great and terrible day when the Lord will appear in his glory those miserable men, whose pride, covetousness, debauchery, pomp, tyranny, blood, thirsty adultry, fornication, papal abominations, no heart can conceive, no tongue can express or describe. (Rom.1; 1 Tim. 1.)

Koran, Dathan and Abiram, though they were the seed of Abraham, and some of them born of Levi, yet because they revolted against Moses and Aaron, and entered uncalled, into, the sacerdotal office, they and all their company, were sunk into the earth alive. (Numb. 16.) Reflect, what will ultimately befall our Korites, or what they have to await, who have never acknowledged God, much less, have been sent by him. Their service and calling are not from God, nor according to his word, but, as the scriptures teach, are from the infernal abyss, and are of the dragon and the beast, (Rev. 9, 13, 17,) who mislead so many miserable souls by their seducing doctrines, Babylonian sorcery, and hypocritical lives, and not only despise, but persecute, crucify and kill Christ-the righteous Moses and Aaron. Moses, the faithful servant of God, could not enter the promised land, only because he was once faint hearted, and doubted the word of the Lord, (Num. 4;) how much less shall this unbelieving, faithless, perverted stiff necked generation, enter the eternal promised land of glory, who not only disbelieve, but despise the word of the Lord the delightful gospel of Christ. They hate it bitterly, and persecute it; trample the blood of Christ under foot, stop' their ears against the truth, and refuse to be taught by any means, either by truth or the unblamable lives of the saints, or by the innocent blood of the worthy witnesses of Jesus, which has been shed, and, in many countries flowed like water, O ye miserable men, who commit so much evil, and are such loathsome objects before God, take heed, to the word of the Lord. (a) Cleanse yourselves, purify your

(a) Oh son of man prepare to repent, it is high time.

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hands and unbelieving hearts, and do not longer despise God's grace with your vain boastings, and say not, Abraham is your father, (James 4;) or that you are children of God, that Christ died for you; that you trust in his mercy. (a) Trust not to lies, says Jeremiah the prophet. Say not here is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, for it avails nothing that Christ died, and that we are called by his name, if we do not possess a sincere and powerful faith in Christ Jesus, and exercise unfeigned love and lead an obedient, pious, unblamable life. God's mercy, says the scriptures, is towards his saints, and his care is over his chosen. (Wisd. 4.) The hope of the wicked is in vain, (Wisd. 5.) The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry, (Ps. 33; 1 Pet. 3;) Ye are my friends, saith Christ, if you do whatever I command you, (John 15.) Therefore we pray and exhort you again to reform yourselves. He is the same unchangeable God. (Math. 3; James 1.) He is a strict, jealous, and rigid punisher of all wickedness, yea, a righteous judge of all ungodliness, and every evil work. He visits the iniquities of the fathers upon the children, until the third and fourth generations of them that hate him; on the other hand, he is gracious, kind and merciful unto thousands of them that love him and keep his commandments. (Ex. 20.) Oh reader, reader, beloved reader, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Heb. 10.) The time is fulfilled, now is the accepted time-now is the day of salvation. (Mark 2; Cor. 6.) The kingdom of heaven is at hand, would you inherit it and enter into it? You must reform, not only in appearance, as the hypocrites do, but as sincere penitents, with all your heart and with all your powers, and bring forth good fruit. (b) If not, you must be cut off and cast into the fire of fierce wrath. (Matt. 3; Luke 3; John 15.) Imo, nisi resipueri'e3, omnes similiter, peritites, (Luke 13.) (i. e.) unless ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

(a) The boast of the ungodly is vain. (6)Repent: the axe is laid at the root of the tree.

(21)

OF FAITH.

Is the third place, we teach with Christ, and say "Believe the gospel." Mark 1. (a) That gospel is the glad tidings, and promulgation of God's grace to us-ward, and of the forgiveness of our sins through Christ Jesus. Faith receives this gospel through the Holy Ghost, and does not look upon former righteousness or unrighteousness, but the believer hopes, (Rom. 4,) and with the whole heart, depends upon the grace, word and promises of the Lord. He knows that God is true and that his promises are sure, (Ps. 51, 14, 4;) whereby the heart is renewed, converted, justified, made pious, peaceable and joyous. (Rom. 3, 5; Gal. 2.) He is born a child of God, (John 1,) approaches with full confidence to the throne of grace, (Heb. 4,) and thus becomes a joint heir with Christ, a possessor of eternal life. (John 7; Rom. 8; 1 Tim. 1.)

Believers awaken in time. They hear and believe the word of the Lord. They weep over their past unworthy life and conduct. They desire medicine, help, and advice for their sick souls. (Mat. 26.) To such, Christ, who is the comforter of all troubled hearts, says, "Believe the gospel." That is, fear not; rejoice and be comforted: I will not punish you, but will heal you, comfort you, and give you life. (Isai. 41.) A bruised reed I will not break, and smoking flax I will not quench; but I will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was weak, I will seek for what was lost. (Ezek. 24; Mat. 11.) For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. (Mat. 9; Luke 2; John 1; 1 John 1.) According to the good pleasure of my heavenly Father, I came into the world, and by the power of the Holy Ghost, I became a visible, tangible and dying man; in all points like unto you, sin excepted. (Heb. 4; Luke 2; Phil. 2.) I was born of Mary the spotless virgin; I came down from heaven, proceeded from the mouth of the Most High; am the

(a) Take heed what the gospel says.

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