242 APPEARANCE BEFORE GOD [BERM. XIV. other world hereafter ; and this in order to awaken the sinner, and toencourage the true christian. There are twogreat future appearances before God, the one atjudgment, and the other in glory in heaven: The one belongs to all men, the other only to the saints. /And now that I may divide my discourse aright, and give to every one their portion, I would beg leave chiefly to apply our general appearance before God at judg- ment, to those who are unconverted, and, in a state bf sin; for we have reason to fear there may be some such among us : And I will apply the blessed appear- ance before God in heaven to 'convertedsouls, to whom only it belongs: These are the persons who have faith and lóve, and are in some measure prepared to appear and ,worship there. ) First then, Let us consider our appearance before God in judgment. It is trdle, at the moment of death our souls immediately stand before God to be judged,. as well as our souls and bodies united, shall stand together there in the great day of the resurrection ; yet I shall not make any distinction of these seasons now, lest I should multiply particulars; but shall treat of them together, to awaken the secure and sinful worshipper, who appears before God here in the form of devotion : And to put him in mind he must ere long stand before God in an- other manner than now he does, and, to set his thoughts at work to compare one_with the other in these particu- Iars ; 1. The sinner now appears with some degree of will- ingness in the presence of God, then it is under a terri- ble constraint. AWicked man may be willing to come to public ordinances for many carnal ends, as to comply with his superiors, to follow the custom of the family . iwere he dwells, to gain reputation among men, to satisfy the cries of awakened conscience; for his con- science, pefliaps, will not be easy without the perform- ance of some duties; and so he makes use of divine worship, and his public appearances before God, as a kind ,-of" opiate, to stupify an uneasy conscience, and therefore he has some inclination and willingness to come before Godhere on earth but at death, andat the general resurrection, he must appear whether he will or no. lieb. ix. 27. It is appointed for all.men once to die, and after 1
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