292 CHRISTIAN MORALITY. The light of nature tells us, that he is not only our ((Creator, and our Father in this sense, but he is our Lord and Governor also. And he has knowledge, and he has Trower to answer. and fulfil this high character and station. he great God who looks into our hearts, who sees our souls through and through, he knows what our inward senti- ments are while the falsehood is on pur lips; he remembers what our engagements and contracts are while we renounce and break them; he hates deceit, lying, and falsehood; and all the civilized notionshave ever supposed that he will avenge it with peculiar judgments. it is upon this supposition of an all-knowing and avenging power, that oaths are administered in all countries which are reformed from utter barbarity. An oath is appointed to be the confirmation of truth in what we say ordo. Therein God himr self, with, all his knowledge, his power and his terrors, is called 'upon to bear witness to what we speak, and to be an avenger of perjury and falsehood. surely we might. venture to say, that a day will come when the great and holy God will shew himself terrible to liars and deceivers, if we had nothing but the light of Rature to tell us so. II. If we consider our relation to mankind, truth will ap- pear to be a necessary duty. Man is a sociable creature, he is made to love society ; but no society can be maintained without truth: All falsehood therefore is inconsistent with the social nature of mankind, and consequently it becomes contrary to the law and light of nature. Without truth we should all become deceivers to one another, every man a liar to his neighbour. No contracts would be of any force ; no commerce could be maintained ; none of us would be able to trust another, nor could we live safe by those that dwell nearest to us. He that indulges himself in lying, takes away his own cre- dit, and gives sufficient occasion for his neighbour npt to believe him, even when he happens to speak the truth ; for a man that will lie and deceive sometimes, how can we tell that he is not dealing, deceitfully with us, even when he professestö be most faithful and true ? And children shouldtake notice ofthis, that if once they indulge the sin of lying, there is nobody will ever be- lieve what they say. A liar is sue'(an abandoned character amongstmankind, that though there are too many who deserve the naine, yet every one is ashamed of it. It is esteemed a reproach of so heinous and hateful a nature for a man to be called a liar, that sometimes the lifeand the blood ofthe slanderer has paid for it. The veçy nature of man resents it highly, for it iorplics in it, that a map
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