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ISO
TIIE
PRIVILECE
OP
TEE
[GERM.
XL.
win
the
hearts
or
their children
to
God,
to
persuadethem
to
accept
of
the grace
of
Christ,
and snatch
them
as
brands out
of
the burning.
Let
friends and
dearest
rela-
tives,
let
masters
and rulers
of
families, lay
hold
on
every
just
occasion
to
speak
of
the things
of
God
to those
that are near
them.
Life
is
the
only time to
express
our
zeal for
God, and
love to souls, in such
a manner
as
this.
When
we
pray,
"
Thy kingdom come,"
we
should
awaken
our endeavours
to
gain
some new
subjects
to
Christ.
Come,
let
us
all engage
our
own consciences in this
sacred and compassionate
work, while
we
consider,
that
"
to -day
is
the accepted
time, now
is
the
hour of
salva-
tion."
God
may
put
an end
to
our
own lives,
or the
lives
of
our
friends
to-
morrow, and
either their death
or
ours
will
prevent
this
sort of
work for
ever.
Then
we
can speak
no more,
or
they can
hear
us
no
more
:
They
will
be
for ever
out of
the reach
of
our
compassionate
desires to
save them.
We
may
send our bitter
sighs,
and
our
fruitless groans,
after
them, when they
are
gone
down
to
darkness
without
hope
;
and
we
may
feel
the
inward anguish
of
a sharp and painful repentance,
while,
through
our
neglect,
and their
own folly
and
wickedness, they
are cursing the
day
of
their birth,
and
crying out,
in full
despair,
under
the
torture of
divine
vengeance.
X.I.
Another
grace
which
can
be
exercised
only in
this life,
is,
holy zeal,
and boldness
in
the profession
of
.christianity, with
courage
in
suffering
for Christ. These
are virtues
that
belong only
to
our mortal
state
;
these
are made
necessary
to the saints,
by
the opposition
that
is
raised against
true
religion
by
the
men
of
this
world.
Here
in this world,
"
they
that
will live
Godly
in
Christ
Jesus, must
suffer
persecution
;" 2
Tim, iii. 12.
Our
Saviour
himself, in
the
first
publication
of
his own gos-
pel,
" endured
the
contradiction of sinners
against
him-
self," he sealed
his
doctrine
with his own blood,
and
has
given
his
followers
a
glorious example
of
a
suffering
zeal
and
holy
fortitude.
Imitate
him
who
"
endured
the
cross,
and
despised
the shame
;"
Heb.
xii. 2,
3.
This sort
of
virtues doth
not
belong to the heavenly
state
;
for there
is
no
opposition
made
to
truth
and
holi-
ness
:
There
are no such trials
of
our
zeal
and
courage