Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, vols. 13–63

In anticipation of the Communion service that is to follow this service, [The Scripture exposition always took place before the sermon waspreached—EOD] l et us read once more the story of our Lord's agony and arrest, as recorded in the 22nd Chapter of the Gospel according to Luke. Probably we are all familiar with the narrative of the event which happened on that dreadful night. May the Holy Spirit teach us what He meant!

Verse 39. And Jesus came out and went, as He was known, to the mount of Olives; and His disciples also followed Him. The garden of Gethsemane had often been the place of our Lord's private prayer and it was, therefore, well selected as the scene of His fierce struggle with the foe. Where we get strength from God in private, it may often happen that we shall have to endure our greatest conflicts. Singularly enough, it is said that the Jews had a custom of taking the red heifer to the Mount of Olives before it was sacrificed, as if they set forth in that very act, the leading of Christ Jesus into Gethsemane and the bringing Him back again with His raiment all red with His own blood. We might alter the Prophet's words a little and ask, "Who is this that comes from Olivet, with dyed garments from Gethsemane?" and the Divine Sufferer, Himself, might answer, "I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save."

40. And when He was at the place, He said to them, Pray that you enter not into temptation. He knew what sore temptation meant and He was about to feel it at its utmost. And He, therefore, exhorted His disciples to pray even as He had formerly taught them in the model prayer, "Lead us not into temptation."

41-43. And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, saying, Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me: nevertheless not My will, but Yours be done. And there appeared an angel to Him from Heaven, strengthening Him. This is so plain a proof of Christ's condescension as a Man that it has overwhelmed some persons. They can hardly understand how it could be true. Therefore, I believe this 43rd verse is omitted in some versions of the Scriptures and there have been several learned men who, while they could not disprove the existence of the verse in the most ancient manuscripts, have yet labored hard to cut it out, since they thought it too great a stoop for Christ to take. But, my dear Friends, in this condescension of our Lord we learn how truly He was bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. Doubtless, we receive much strengthening from angels—"Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" And why should not Christ, who was in all things made like His brethren, also be strengthened by an angel?

44. And being in an agony He prayed more earnestly: and His sweat was, as it were, great drops of blood falling down to the ground. The Greek has the idea of the stretching of the sinews—Christ prayed to the very stretching of His nerves and sinews. As when men wrestle for their lives, so did Christ in prayer strain every power of mind and body that He might prevail. Luke alone describes this dread scene of Christ's agonizing even to blood, but there is no doubt whatever, from this passage, that our Lord Jesus did actually sweat blood—not something like blood, but blood itself—and that in great drops and in such quantities that it did not only adhere to His flesh and stain His garments, but there was such an abundance of it that in great drops it fell down to the ground.

45, 46. And when He rose up from prayer, and was come to His disciples, He found them sleeping for sorrow, and said to them, Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation. Our Lord was Himself so smarting under the pain of fierce temptation that He would have His disciples pray even to an agony that they might not be led into it. And oh, if you and I have to pray that we be not led into temptation, how much more should we be instant in supplication when we are in the furnace of temptation! Then, indeed, if we restrain prayer before God, we shall be in an evil case.

47. And while He yet spoke, behold a multitude, and He that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him. It is a remarkable fact that we do not read in Scripture that any other of our Lord's Apostles—not even John—ever kissed the Savior! It seems as if the most impudent familiarity was very near akin to dastardly treachery. The eleven would have thought it a high honor to be allowed even to kiss Christ's feet, but Judas, having lost respect for his Master, it was no very great descent for him, first to sell his Lord, and then to betray Him with a kiss. Mark you, Brothers and Sisters, our Lord Jesus Christ is generally betrayed thus. How, for instance, do men usually begin their books when they mean to undermine the Inspiration of Scripture? Why, with a declaration that they wish to promote the truth of Christ! There is the Judas-kiss and the betrayal comes quickly afterwards. How is it that Christ's name is often most grossly slandered among men? Why, by those who make a loud profession of love to Him and then sin foully as the chief of transgressors!

48. But Jesus said to Him, Judas, do you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?Christ might put that question to many of His nominal followers in the present day—"Do you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?"

49. When they which were about Him saw what would follow, they said to Him, Lord, shall we strike with the sword? There is always that tendency, even among Christian people, to get their hands on a sword, but a good man's hand is never more out of place than there! When he has his hands clasped in prayer, or placed upon the promises of God, then it is well. But a Christian with his hand upon his sword is something like an angel putting forth his hand to iniquity.

50-53. And one of them smote the servant of the High Priest, and cut of his right ear. And Jesus answered and said, Suffer you thus far. And He touched his ear and healed him. Then Jesus said to the chief priests, and captains of the Temple, and the elders, which were come to Him, Have you come out as against a thief, with swords and staves? When I was daily with you in the Temple, you stretched forth no hands against Me: but this is your hour and the power of darkness. "This is the time when I am given up, on the one hand to the temptations of Satan—the power of darkness—and, on the other hand, to you. 'This is your hour.'" And, as beasts that prowl in the darkness are generally the most ravenous and fierce, so were these chief priests and captains and elders most determined in seeking the blood of Christ! Paul afterwards wrote that none of the princes of this world knew the hidden Wisdom of God, "for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory." It was the darkness of their minds that led them thus to hunt the only Savior of sinners to His death. Satan himself would scarcely have had a hand in crucifying Christ had he understood that by that very Crucifixion, Christ would break the old serpent's head forever!

54. Then they took Him and led Him, and brought Him to the High Priest's house. And Peter followed afar off For which he is not to be altogether blamed. I do not find that any other disciple followed Christ so near as Peter did. John was, probably, even farther off at first. Yet, dear Friends, you and I may rest assured that if we follow Christ afar off, it will not be long before we deny Him! Those disciples who are ashamed of their Master, who never come out and openly confess their faith in Him, have the seeds of treachery already sown within them. O Brothers and Sisters, be bold and cleave close to Christ, for this is the way to walk securely!

55. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them. "Evil communications corrupt good manners." Get up, Peter, and run away! What business have you sitting there? Better be in the cold, far off from evil company, than in the warm in the midst of sinners.

56. 57. But a certain maid beheldhim as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, andsaid, This man was also with Him. And he denied Him, saying, Woman, I know Him not! See how the most courageous are often cast down by the very slightest means? The tongue of a poor feeble woman is too much for this valiant Peter who said that he never would deny his Master, even though he should die with Him.

58-60. And after a little while another saw him, andsaid, You are also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not. And about the space of one hour after, another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with Him: for he is a Galilean. And Peter said, Man, I know not what you say. Matthew and Mark tell us that to prove this statement, and to make it quite clear that he was not a follower of Christ, he began to curse and to swear, as if the best evidence that he was not a Christian would be afforded by his cursing and swearing.

60, 61. And immediately, while he yet spoke, the cock crew. And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. How that look must have pierced Peter through and through!

61-64. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, Before the cock crows, you shall deny Me thrice. And Peter went out, and wept bitterly. And the men that held Jesus mocked Him, and smote Him. And when they had blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face, and asked Him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that struck You? Upon this passage a good man well observes that one of these days Christ will answer this taunt. With His unerring finger, the Judge of All shall point them out and say to each one, "You are the man." There are many of you, perhaps, who are committing sin in private and you think it is not known. You are almost ready to ask the question of Him whom you look upon as a blindfolded God, "Who is it that struck You?" Ah, but He sees you all the while! He reads the secret thoughts of your hearts and the day will come when He will let you know that nothinghas escaped His all-seeing eyes!

65. And many other things blasphemously spoke they against Him. The Lord bless to us all the reading of this sad, sad story! Amen.

"Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were there, how they dwelt carelessly, after the manner of the Sidonians, quiet and secure; and there was no magistrate in the land, that might put them to shame in anything; and they were far from the Sidonians, and hadno business with any man...And they took the things which Micah had made, and the price at which he had, and came to Laish, to a people that were quiet and secure: and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burned the city with fire. And there was no deliverer, because it was far from Sidon, and they hadno business with any man." Judges 18:7,27,28.

I HAVE for this evening's discourse what some of you may consider to be rather an amazing text. Let me, therefore, begin by briefly stating the circumstances surrounding it.

The tribe of Dan found its portion to be rather too small, so the people held a council to decide what was to be done. They resolved to send a small body of men to spy out the land—these spies came, in due time, to a place called Laish, which they found to be inhabited by certain people who dwelt there carelessly, in supposed security, "after the manner of the Sidonians." They were attacked without any notice and the tribe of Dan took their territory and added it to their own. I do not, in the least degree, commend the action of these people. What I have to do with the narrative is to use it for the purpose of drawing from it lessons suited to the present time.

I suppose that these people, who were living at Laish, were originally a colony of Sidonians, and they had settled in a very fat, fertile valley—according to the tenth verse, a place where there was no lack of anything. They did not care to trade with others, they were not at all an enterprising or busy people. Finding every luxury growing out of their own soil, they had no care to do business with any other men whatever. They kept no guard or watch, for, although they knew that, in common with all the other inhabitants of the land of Canaan, they had been doomed to fall by the sword of Israel, yet the Israelites had been very slow in conquering the country. Many years had passed since Joshua had died. Many judges had come and gone and they had never been troubled. Therefore they rested in perfect ease, neither drilling themselves, nor exercising any warlike arts, but feeling altogether secure, living luxuriously in a fools' paradise. It was so, for, all of a sudden, these Danites, giving them no notice whatever, fell upon them, cut them up, root and branch, burned their city and took the land for themselves.

I am not going into the moral of this business—how far Dan is to be blamed. I am simply going to use this incident as the picture of a very common condition which is to be found among the sons of men—which condition is a very dangerous and false one, and will end, unless the Grace of God prevents it, in the destruction of those who are thus carnally secure.

I. First, let us notice THE CONDITION OF CARNAL SECURITY INTO WHICH CHRISTIANS SOMETIMES FALL.

If they fall into such a condition as that, they may rest assured that it is one of great danger. Let me describe it to you. Here is a man who is a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. In times long gone by he struggled hard to get his feet upon the Rock of Ages and, at last, he obtained a firm footing and there he stood in blessed security. For some time, perhaps even for years, he has been free from all doubts and fears—and also free from all internal struggles and conflicts. He almost thinks that the devil is dead, or, if not, that the devil in him is dead, that sin has become so broken and bruised in his nature that it will never rise again, or cause him trouble! He rejoices and continues to rejoice, but it may be that in the course of time the dry rot of self-satisfaction will begin to show itself. The man would not say, with the Pharisee, that he thanks God he is not as other men, but there is something of that sort of feeling within his heart. He entered into full assurance of faith at the first, but that full assurance has begun to rust into confidence in self. And now, no longer emptied from vessel to vessel, his sin remains in him. No longer tossed upon the waves, he makes little or no progress towards the heavenly haven—his ship's keel upon the ocean is still amidst a calm, but the fear is that the calm will grow into stagnation—and the stagnation into corruption. God save the man to whom a calm, itself, becomes more dangerous than a tempest! I think you must know some people of that kind. Perhaps if some of you look in the mirror, you may see at least one person of that sort! The Sidonians mentioned in our text had no dread of warfare, or the sound of the trumpet, or the crash of arms—and self-confident professors are in much the same condition.

You noticed, also, about these Sidonians that they had "no magistrate in the land." I think I have known some persons who may have possessed a conscience, but if so, it had gone to sleep. I have great fear for religious men with sleepy consciences and it is really amazing what mischief may be done by men who seem to be heartily religious, yet whose consciences have gone soundly asleep. There are some ungodly men who would tremble to do what some professing Christians do without any qualms of conscience! God save you, dear Friends, from such a state of heart as that! We ought to long for a holy sensitiveness of conscience. We should wish to have it tender as the apple of the eye, so that the very least touch of sin should startle and amaze us! We are all too apt to grow a skin over our conscience and, after a time, it gets to be callous and we need to have it wounded and kept open like a fresh raw wound, so that the least speck of sin may cause it intense anguish! We are never what we ought to be except we are in that condition! Yet I have known some professors who have been so long at ease in Zion that the moss has grown over their conscience and you can scarcely get at it so as to awaken it to a sense of sin!

These Sidonians, next, had no care at all about other people. We are told twicethat they "had no business with any man." Are there any people who are called Christians who are of that sort, and have no concern, or very little concern, about the souls of others? They say that they care about the heathen, for they have subscribed five shillings towards sending a missionary to lay down his life on a foreign shore! They care about the people who are dying at home, for they spoke to someone about the Sunday school a little while ago, and they said a kind word for the City Mission! They have never done anything by way of teaching children, or visiting the poor and needy—you could not expect it of them, of course. They are such men of business—they have so many matters to attend to that you could put into a small thimble anything they do for the cause of God. They take little or nothing for the Lord out of the full river of their life's force, so far as the good of their fellows is concerned. They have "no business with any man."

Years ago they were very active workers—at least, they tell us so. In some dim remote past, almost forgotten, they did try to take up Christ's Cross and to bear His yoke, but now they are gentlemen at large, supernumeraries, who have entered upon a period of dignified rest—Sidonians, having no business with any man! Some of these people never join a church, for they do not care about its responsibilities. They are going to Heaven, so they say, yet they are trying to get there without walking in the King's Highway, but sneaking behind the hedges and taking rest whenever they can. They will not enter the Palace Beautiful, nor join the caravans of pilgrims that march together, with their Great-Hearts leading them and fighting giants on the road. We still have this sort of Christians about. I call them Christians, but God alone knows whether they are His or not.

These people also live, like the Sidonians did, without any fear of invasion. It is not at all likely that they will ever fall into gross sin, at least so they say. Young people, of course, have strong passions and theymay fall into sin, but these old, experienced people are not likely to be carried away by temptation. Some people are very foolish and they may be caught by the subtlety of the old serpent, but these good old professors are wonderfully wise. Indeed, it is quite a wonder that one small head can carry all they know! They are so deeply experienced that if they were to die, half the experience in the church would die out with them! So excellent are they that, with regard to their yielding to temptation and falling into sin, it is quite impossible! Of course, the young folk had better pledge themselves to total abstinence because drink would be a temptation to them, but these good people can drink just a sufficient quantity and no more, they have such control of themselves! Of course, young men and women had better keep away from doubtful places of amusement, but these old people are so supremely good that if they were living in the devil's camp, their hearts would still be in Heaven! They can be trusted anywhere!

Perhaps you enquire, "Does anybody seriously believe this what you have been saying?" Anybody seriously believe it? Why, yes, some of you do, only you do not put it into words and if I were to point you out and say that you believed it, you would flatly contradict me. But you do, all the same. There are many professing Christians who live as if they were beyond gun-shot of the enemy and were quite safe and secure. They say, spiritually, "Soul, take your ease, you have much goods laid up for many years—eat, drink and be merry." And all the while they are in imminent danger of falling into the very worst forms of sin, proving apostates, after all, showing the rottenness of their profession, letting all see that their religion is nothing better than a painted disguise to go to Hell in—but not a work of God in the soul by which that soul is really and truly saved. A friend told me that the other night, as she sat in this Tabernacle, there spoke with her a person who is a regular frequenter of this House of Prayer and who said that she was without sin, that she did not know that anything preached here at all suited her—and that she believed I was well aware that she did not require any admonitions or exhortations.

She was glad to hear me earnest about sinners, but she was not a sinner—she had not been a sinner for a long time and any exhortations that were directed to sleepy saints, she felt were very proper, but they did not belong to her. In fact, she only came because it was a proper thing to come, but she did not expect to get anything for herself out of the services—she had advanced far beyond that point. Well, I do not know where you are, my good Sister, but you are the very person to whom I am now speaking! You superlatively good people who think you do not need any warning are the exact persons I am most anxious to warn. Remember Cowper's lines—

"He has no hope who never felt a fear. And he that never doubted of his state, He may, perhaps—perhaps he may—too late." He that is, as men say, so "cock sure," may find himself lost after all. He may be but a dotard and a dreamer, notwithstanding all his confidence. I would rather go to Heaven doubting all the way than be lost through self-confidence. I would rather cry out in the bitterness of my spirit, "Am I sincere or not?" and cry it out every day, than write myself down among the blessed and, at last, wake up and find myself in Hell!

There is a holy fear which must not be banished from the Church of God. There is a sacred anxiety which puts us to the question and examines us whether we are in the faith—and it is not to be laughed at as some would do. It is all very fine to say, "Believe that you are right, and you are right," but if you believe that you are right and you are, all the while, wrong, you put yourself beyond the probability of ever getting right! He who believes himself to be saved when he is not is likely to shut the door of salvation in his own face and to perish self-excluded. God save us from that fatal folly! I would blow the trumpet of warning even in Zion! I would sound an alarm in God's holy mountain! May you and I never get beyond spiritual conflicts, beyond striving against our corruptions, beyond hating the garment spotted by the flesh! May we never get beyond a holy filial fear and a grave anxiety that in all that we do we may be pleasing and acceptable in the sight of God! If not, we may get to be like these Sidonians dwelling carelessly in their city of Laish—and one of these days destruction may enter our gates when we little expect it.

II. Now I change the theme to speak of THIS CONDITION OF CARNAL SECURITY IN THE UNSAVED and to address those who know that they are not converted, and who make no profession of religion whatever. There are some of these who live very carelessly and who are very difficult to awaken to a true sense of their peril.

Let me describe this condition as it is found among many unsaved persons. Our text tells us that when the spies came to Laish, they "saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt carelessly." That is the way with the carnally secure— they are careless. As long as they can enjoy the present, they are quite indifferent to all thoughts of the future. Many of you see no further than your hand can reach. Multitudes of men restrict their vision to that which might be seen by an ox or a sheep. If there is enough grass in the pasture, the ox is satisfied. Indeed, he does not look over the whole pasture, for if there is but grass near his nose, it is enough for him. And, oh, the multitudes of London, and of England, and in the world at large, whose only questions are, "What shall we eat? What shall we drink? With what shall we be clothed?" They live as if they would never die, or as if, when they died, they would die like dogs and that would be the end of them. This spirit breeds carelessness about their lives, about their thoughts, about prayer, about all holy things. They ask, "What is all that to us? It may do very well for some people to be religious, but we have to work hard from morning to night and we cannot think about these things at all." They would reduce themselves, if they could, to the level of swine! They are as careless as the beasts that perish. Perhaps, my dear Hearer, that word, "careless," describes you.

And, connected with this carelessness, there is, next, a great quietness from all trial. It is not so with many of you, for you are sorely vexed with troubles, sickness, poverty, or bereavement. You seem to be always afflicted and you may always thank God if you are! It is evident that He has not given you up and left you to sleep yourselves to destruction. But there are certain persons who appear to have no troubles. Their path is wonderfully smooth, they have all that heart can wish, they touch nothing without prospering. They are contented and well they may be, for it seems as if Providence had determined to make them rich! And yet what do I see before me? A bull locked in the stall! Would I rejoice to be that bull? No, for I know why it is thus fed—it is fattened for the slaughterand already I see the pole-axe lifted in the air and about to descend upon the poor beast! And many a man who is indulged with everything that he can desire is nothing better than a fattened bull doomed to die! Yet many care not about that—they are quite satisfied if they can enjoy themselves today—as for tomorrow, it must take thought for the things of itself.

Meanwhile, these same people are quite secure as to the future. A funeral perhaps startles them for a moment. The passing bell has a strange tone to their ears, but, for the most part, they put away all thoughts of death. They are young, or they are robust—they will not soon die and, therefore, should they even think of it? And, as for that Great White Throne, and the Judgment Seat, and the assembled worlds, and the rocking earth, and the blazing Heaven—well, it is only preacherswho talk about those things! They put their fingers in their ears and will not listen to our warnings—and go their way to their farms and to their merchandise—and let the future take care of itself. This is the horrible condition of multitudes of mankind that, with the best possible reasons for being concerned about the future, they resolve that they will not wake up to it, but that, like these men of Laish, they will dwell "quiet and secure."

The trumpet is sounding, the adversaries are marching from Dan, they have already encamped on the way! Men of Laish, why do you gird yourselves for the dance and for the feast—the sword of the enemy will soon be at your throats? And, O you men of London, you men of this world, how can you make mirth and sport while the day of your doom hastens on and Death, on the pale horse, rides so fast towards you and judgment follows at his heels? Yet I may say what I will, but, with the most of men, I shall but waste my breath, for they dwell so carelessly, and wrap themselves up in their ease!

These people of Laish, it seems, were also free from all restraint "There was no magistrate in the land." It is a perilous thing for any of us to know no restraint—especially for that young man who, in a few days, is coming into possession of a large fortune and will then have his full swing. Oh, if I could get hold of his hand, I would wet it with my tears while I urged him not to court ruin with his fingers jeweled with the mercies of God! To turn the blessings of Providence into stones to throw at Him who gave them to us is base ingratitude, indeed! I pray that the young man, instead of acting so, may begin a new and better life and so use his substance for the Glory of God. We are all impatient of control, but nothing can be worse for some men than to have no voice to check, no language to upbraid, no tender wife or gentle friend who will administer a kind rebuke. But there are such, and there may be such here who are all the more confident and stolid because there is no conscience yet awake within them—and nobody to serve as a conscience for them. "There was no magistrate in the land."

And, once more, these people at Laish were self-contained. "They had no business with any man." There are some persons who are all the more hard to get at because they do not want to be interfered with. If anybody were to speak to such a man about his soul, tonight, he would say, "Don't you bother about me! Leave me alone, I can take care of myself." But he who takes care of himself generally has a fool for a keeper! All of us need some help from others and those of us who receive most help thank God for all that we get.

Yet once more, according to verse 10, these people at Laish had "no need of anything." They had all that heart could wish. I daresay that while I have been describing them, some of you have half envied them. Of course you do if you are of the same nature as they were! But the day shall come when some of us will bless God for poverty and for sickness because we shall get to Heaven by such help—while others will have to curse themselves because they turned their health, their vigor and their wealth into occasions and opportunities for sin! If we could, we would escape all trial, but we would be very unwise to do so. If, by falling down upon my knees, now, I could prevail with God so that there should be no poverty to the drunk, I dare not pray the prayer! Or that there should be no disease to the unclean man, I dare not pray the prayer! Or that there should be no punishment to the thief, I dare not pray it! It is, after all, best for society that sin should be followed by chastisement, and it is best for us all that we should be drawn to God, or driven to Him, by the troubles and trials of this mortal life, rather than that we should now be set in the slippery places of ease and, by-and-by, be cast down to destruction! Oh, that I could say a word that would make you easy-going men, who have all you can desire, begin to tremble amidst your plenty—lest eternal ruin should follow the greatness of God's bounty!

III. So now, thirdly, I want to speak briefly upon THE EVILS OF THIS CONDITION OF CARNAL CONFIDENCE in which an ungodly man is perfectly at his ease in a dying world.

The first result of it is that warnings are unheeded. Preach, Mr. Preacher, and preach your very heart out, but this man does not care a bit about it all, for he is perfectly at ease and happy—nothing ever stings him into anxiety! He never wakes at night to cry to God for mercy. He never dreams of judgment, not he! His companions sing that "he's a jolly good fellow" and he thoroughly enjoys himself. Just so. Yet he has no God, no Christ, no hope! He trifles with eternal things and makes this world his all. Alas, all our most solemn warnings are lost upon him!

What is worse, all the mercies of God are lost on him. What is the use of bidding him wash in the Fountain opened for sin and uncleanness? He does not feel that he is foul. Why present him with garments of righteousness? He does not know anything about his iniquity. Why talk to him of a Physician? He feels no sickness. Why point him to a Savior? He does not believe that he is lost! Oh, how I wish that the pangs of contrition would strike through ungodly men and women in this house! Dear Master, fit Your sharp arrows to Your bow and wound them now! Fill this house with stricken souls that will cry mightily for You! Then shall they have You! Then shall they rejoice in You! But men miss these choice mercies of God because they are self-contented and carnally at ease.

The further result is that, as year follows after year, the heart grows stiil harder In the young man there once was a little feeling, but now in the gray head there is none. You might have impressed him when he was a boy at his mother's knee, but you cannot influence him now. He does not believe anything you say, for he is case-hardened—the devil has fitted on him a coat of mail which seems to even turn the edge of the Sword of the Spirit. Ah, miserable man!

And in this man, worse still, great sin is being prepared. He may not yet have sinned grossly against the laws of his country or of society, but where there is such fuel as this hard heart and stolid will, the devil will not be slow to bring the flame! I look on some self-confident men and read their terrible future in their present assurance. And I would say to each one, as to another Hazael, "I know what you will do. You have been moral and excellent, but the day will come when, having cast off all fear of God, you will do what it would horrify you to hear of now." The man asks, "Is your servant a dog, that he should do this great thing?" No, you are not a dog, but if you were, it would be better for you than to be what you are! No man knows how much of devil there is asleep in him—and no man may dream that he is secure from the worst of evils unless he comes to Jesus, gets a new heart and puts himself into the keeping of the One who is better and stronger than himself. Then he will be safe, but short of that all his fancied security is ruinous to the last degree!

I do not know all to whom I am speaking, but I am convinced that I am preaching directly to some of you. Whether you are in the top gallery, or downstairs, or close around the platform, I do not know, but the Lord, the Searcher of all hearts, knows for whom this message is intended. Let us, each one, take it so far as it bears upon our case. Wake, you sleepers, wake! Why sleep? Sin besets you all around. If you have not fled to Christ for salvation. If you have not received a new heart and a right spirit, give no sleep to your eyes nor slumber to your eyelids till these things are set right by the power of the Holy Spirit—and you are saved from the wrath to come!

IV. Now, finally, I have to notice THE GREAT DANGER OF THOSE WHO ARE CARNALLY SECURE. Notice the horror of their doom. These poor careless Sidonians, enjoying themselves, setting no watch, bearing no shield, wielding no sword, rested in fancied security, till, all of a sudden, the swords of their adversaries cut them in pieces and they were destroyed! What I dread most about some men is the change which will come upon them from their present state of ease. "Oh, it is all right, Sir!" says one. "It is all right. I feel perfectly happy." An unsaved man may be in the very article of death and yet be quite at ease because his conscience has been so heavily drugged that it does not awake even in his death moments. But it will awake, it will awake! There is no opium that can send your conscience into an eternal slumber, else you might venture to die with your sins uncleansed. But it will awake, and oh, the awful change from the fools' paradise to the fools' perdition, from playing with trifles to find that there are no trifles, but that everything is real, earnest, serious in that dread world into which your soul will plunge when God says to you, "Return," and your spirit shall return to God who gave it! I dread the change for you who are now carnally at ease.

And, further, when I think of the doom which will ultimately come upon careless souls, I dread that sense of self-deceiving which comes upon men. If they went to Hell merely by virtue of a Divine decree, it would not be such a Hell to them. But to go there by their own folly—this is a fire that can never be quenched! This is a worm that never dies! Such a man will have to say, "I brought myself here. I was warned. That preacher in the Tabernacle spoke to me on that October night as best he could—in rough words, but real earnest—and he bade me awake and escape from the wrath to come, but I said, 'Leave me alone!' Like the sluggard, I turned over to the other side and said, 'A little more sleep, a little more folding of the hands,' and now I am in Hell! I shut myself in here! Those iron bolts I fastened by my own folly! These fires I kindled and the terrible truth burns in my conscience that I, myself, supplied the fuel for this flame." O Sirs, I do pray you, commit not everlasting suicide by resting at ease and peace when there is no rest and no peace, for, "there is no peace, says the Lord, to the wicked."

There is a short, sad sentence in the 28th verse—"There was no deliverer." When the Danites were at the gates of Laish, "there was no deliverer." Thank God there is a Deliverer, now! There is a Savior for sinners! Come, guilty souls, and trust yourselves with Jesus! Free, full and immediate pardon is proclaimed to all who trust Him. Submit to His dear will. Look to His blessed wounds and live! But if your ears refuse the language of His Grace. If you despise the invitations of His mercy, there will come a time when there shall be no deliverer, no deliverer, NO DELIVERER in Heaven, or earth or Hell—no deliverer—nothing but the sword and the fire, the just and righteous wrath of God which you have, yourselves, obstinately incurred.

Then there came back upon these people of Laish, in their death agony, the fact that they had no business with any man and, therefore, nobody pitied them. Nobody came to their rescue! They had no business with any, so none had any business with them—and they died, "unwept, unhonored, and unsung"—only remembered by preachers who, like myself, try to turn their doom into a warning and a lesson for others! You self-contained people who have no business with anybody and do not want anybody to interfere with you. You who do not wish to be warned and would resent anyone's touching you on the shoulder and asking you if you are saved—thus shall it be with you in the evil day—no man shall have any business with you! Shame and everlasting contempt will be the portion of that man who boasted that he could take care of himself, but who found, at last, that he had no deliverer and no man to care for his soul! My dear Hearers, may God save you, every one of you! Could I look you in the face and wish anything else for any one of you but that you might find eternal salvation in Jesus Christ? No, I could not have any other desire than that! Do you not also wish it for yourselves? Now, a wish is half a prayer—make it a whole one! Breathe this brief prayer to God—"Lord, save me."

Then listen to this Word of Grace which has the message of salvation in it—"Look and live." Jesus died upon the Cross that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but should have everlasting life. He is lifted up before you, now, that you who have been bitten by the fiery serpent of sin may look to Him, as Israel in the wilderness looked to the brazen serpent—and in that looking, you may be healed. As I shall meet you in that Day of Days for which all other days were made. As I shall make one of the vast throng that will be gathered before the Judgment Seat of Christ, I pray you, bear witness to me, in that day, that I have spoken honestly and faithfully and fearlessly—certainly in no smooth and flattering terms—to every one of you! And if you perish I shall be clear of your blood in that great day. If you will not have Christ and will be damned, you must. But it shall not be without my crying to you, "Turn you, turn you, for why will you die?" "Turn you, turn you," says the Lord God, Himself! Turn them, O Lord, by Your Grace, for Jesus' sake! Amen.