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BERM.
XXXI.)
OR
REMEDIES AGAINST FEAR.
16
Thus
I
have given you
variety
of
instances both of ac-
tive and passive valour, as they
are
to
be
exercised
in
the
christian
life
:
I
fear they are too many for the best and
boldest of
us
to
practise, even
under
all
our
advantages.
But
in
order
to
render
them
a little more
easy
to chris-
tians, the following
motives and
directions
may
give
some
assistance
under
the influence
of
the
blessed
Spirit. And
these
shall
be the
subject
of
the
next
discourse.
THE
RECOLLECTION.
And
now,
O
my
soul,
it
is
time to
turn
thy thoughts
inward;
and enquire,
how
much
of
this discourse
is
suited
to
thy own case
?
Thou
acknowledgest there
is
a
God,
but
art
thou
not sometimes ashamed
to call
upon
him in
the morning
for his
presence
all
the
day,
lest
thy
compa-
nions should
know
thou
hast
been upon
thy
knees
?
Hast
thou courage to
ask a
blessing
on
thy food in the place
where others deride the
practice
Thou
hast
learned and
thou
hast
believed
the religion
of
Christ,
but
hast thou ever
yet
had courage enough to
make
a solemn
and public profession
of it? Hast
thou
ever
yet
publicly given thy
name up to
Christ
as
one
of
his subjects, and
joined
thyself to
his
visible
kingdom'
amongst
men
?
Or
art
thou
only
a
believer
in
secret,
ashamed to make profession
of
thy faith,
by
joining
thy-
self
to some
christian assembly?
If
this
be
thy
state,
thou
hast
now
a loud
call
to
add fortitude
to thy faith,
and
assume
christian courage
to
profess the sacred name
in
which
thou hast
believed.
Or art
thou
a
professor
of
this holy religion
?
Thou
hast
listed
thyself
under
the
banner
of
Christ,
in
these
days
of
liberty and peace, and
while
thou
dwellest
among
.
those
who
encourage
thy
faith and
profession.
But en-
quire into
thyself,
bast
thou such
a love to the gospel, as
to glory
in
it even
amongst
infidels, who make
it
the ob-
ject
of their
mockery
and reproach
?
Has
this divine
religion
so
deep
a
root
in
thy
heart,
as
to
bear and resist
the
storms
.of
the world,
and
to
stand
firm
and
flourish
still
?
Hast
thou courage
to
declare thyself
a disciple
of
the
cross,
and a professor
of
a crucified Saviour, when
thou shalt
happen
to
be in the
company
of
those who
blaspheme
him
?
Hast thou
obtained
holy
boldness enough
to
practise
virtue
-
when
it
is
out
of
fashion,
and'eanst
thou refuse
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