1

even your own repeated faults, my brethren, prove that reafonings of this nature are not uncommon. But how knowest thou, too prefumptu-. ous mortal! that the decree will not be fent forth against thee, when thou art lifting up thy hand in Sin, when thou art rioting in Excess ? Death may feize thee, as thou art plundering thy neighbour, as thou art tracing bloody fteps thro' fecret paths, as thou art deftroying his reputation, and murdering his good fame. A death bed repentance is at beft uncertain; but how furely would thy deftruction be fealed, fhould the laft hour, which awaits us all, come upon thee unawares! What horror and anguifh would be then thy portion!-But I draw a veil over the tremendous Scene, and God grant that no one among you may ever experience the reality of fuch a state!

The Cafe of the penitent thief

upon

upon the cross has been thought to refemble theirs, who, in the hour of death, begin to perceive their miftaken conduct, and hope to atone for a long life of wickedness, by a fhort moment of repentance. Let us fee how far the parallel will hold.

Of the two thieves that were crucified with the Lord of life, one of them, hardened in Iniquity, and unawed even by his present miserable condition, railed on, and reproached him but the pious conduct of the other added greatly to the folemnity; of the Scene. When he beheldi Chrift in the fame condemnation with himself, crucified, by the Ro.. mans, rejected by his own countrymen, deserted by his friends and. Apoftles, dying and diftreffed, and, yet doing no miracle to atteft his, Innocence and divinity, but meekly fubmitting like a Lamb to the Slaughter.,

K 3

*Taylor's Life of Chrift. p. 3. Sect. 15.

Slaughter, and praying, in the midft of his Agonies, for his unrelenting Executioners, with fincerity of heart confeffes- and who that has the feelings and reafon of a man but must confefs him to be his King, his Lord, his Saviour? The other Criminal addreffes him with cool deliberate farcafm-" If thou be Chrift, fave thyself and us." Το which the penitent replies with this moft juft rebuke, "Doft thou not "fear God, Jeeing thou art in the Jame condemnation? The Society "of mifery ought to have made thee "modeft, and the company of others, "so much better than thy felf, fuffering the fame punishment, ought to "have taught thee Humility. As for ourselves, we indeed fuffer justly, "for we receive the just reward of our fins, but this man hath done nothing amifs."

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We have here that confeffion and grounds of Faith, which procured

the

Lament

the penitent Thief that gracious promise from the Lord. ing his unworthinefs, he fubmits patiently to the inflicted punishment. This was all he could do in his preTent Situation. It is more than probable that he had never heard before of the doctrines of Jefus, and.. therefore could have had no opportunity of embracing his religion.An Apology, you, unhappy Chriftians! can never make, who have been taught from your Infancy, and might have learned, the precepts of the Gofpel.-Having thus addreffed. his fellow fufferer, he turns to Christ, as to his true deliverer, the laft and only port where he can hope for fafety-Lord, he cries, remember me, when thou comeft into thy kingdom. He begs only for a remembrancehe knew himself fo finful, that he dared not ask for more. But Chrift, who was not ignorant of the fincerity of his prefent profeffions, grants him all that he could with, and

much

much more than he could defire. Hear the kind answer of the bleffed Redeemer-" Verily I fay unto thee, to-day shalt thou be with me in paradife."

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The Thief had" acknowledged "a world to come, had owned Chrift publickly, prayed to him, hoped in him, pitied him," and therefore our Lord, who, as the Author of the Epiftle to the Hebrews obferves, had proved himself to be " a merci. ful High Prieft, because he was touched with a feeling of our Infirmities," admitted him, in these peculiar circumstances, to participate his Joys.

See ye, here any Encouragement for delay in the important duty of repentance? The parallel does not hold in any one particular. "And until all these things fhall, in thefe

• Heb. ii. 17. + ibid. iv. 15.