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Q34
APPEARANCE BEFORE
GOD.
[SEI}M.
RIII.
this
salvation,
I
surrendered
myself
as
the subject
of
his
saving
grace:
And though
now
I
behold
God
in the
same glorious
and dreadful attributes
as before,
and
behold myself
still defiled
and
sinful,
yet I humbly dare
appear
before
him
daily and hourly, for
Jesus
is
my
in-
tercessor,
he
is
my
propitiation,
he
is
the Lord
my
right-
eousness,
and
my
God
sits
upon
a mercy
-seat sprinkled
with the
blood
of
this
heavenly sacrifice. My
sins
are
.many
and
great,
and
the
matter of
my
daily
groaning;
I
hear
the threatenings and
curses
of
his
holy
law,
but
they
affright
me
not
from
his
presence;
for
in
the name
of
my
Mediator
I
come, who
hath borne
the curse
for
me
:
With humble penitence, and
with
a
lively
faith,
I
draw
near
to
a
reconciled God, and
give
eternal thanks
t2,
Reconciler."
(IV.
Remark.
What
a
blessing
it
is
to
have many
houses
of
God
in the
nation
where
we dwell,
and
those
houses
of
God near
us?
God
may
say to
us,
as
to
Is-
rael,
Deut.
xxx.
12.
Say
not,
who shall
ascend
into
heaven
to
bring the
word to
us,
that
we
may
hear it
?
Or,
who
shall
go
over the sea?
&c.
for the
word
is
very
nigh to
us.
We need not travel
so
far
as
the Jews,
three
times every year, to public
worship;
and yet they went
from
strength
to
strength
;
till they
appeared
before
God
in
Zion,
Ps.
lxxxiv.
7.
Consider
some
nations where
God
is
not
worshipped
aright, and
hath
no dwelling
-
place consider
how
far
some
poor creatures
come even
in this
island, many miles from
their
own
dwelling,
to
appear
before
God
in
his
ordinances
;
but God
seats
his
throne,
as
it
were
at
our doors
;
there are
many syna-
gogues
of
God
in
our
land, for
us
to
appear
before
him,
and
many
near
us,
in the city
where
we dwell,
and near
us
too
in
this place of retirement.
How
valuable, a privilege
is
it
to dwell
in
a religious
family, in
a
house
of God,
where
there
is
a church
in
the
house,
as
Phil.
ver.
2.
where
we
often
appear
before
God
?
How gladly would many persons (who
are
in
.
better
circumstances in the world than
some
of
us
enjoy)
exchange those
better
circumstances
for
spiritual
advan-
tages such
as we
have
;
But
some
of
you
perhaps
may
say,..
"
We may
be saved
without
so
much religion, with-
,
out
so
much ado
about
the worship
of
God
in
families
or
in
churches."
Let
me tell
you,
if
a religious
family