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"Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: IX. Iijj0n fff Cfeamiar in How deep, and how just a reproach did the prophet cast upon the tribes of Israel, when he addressed to the assembled multitudes on Mount Camel, that memorable interrogation, " How long halt ye between two opinions ? if the Lord be God, follow him ; but if Baal, follow him." From this it appears they were in a state of indecision, in reference to the most momentous question in the universe, not wholly satisfied that they were doing right in worshipping Baal, yet not sufficiently resolute to abandon his service. What a criminal, what a degrading, what a wretched state of mind ! Not decided whom they would acknowledge to be their God ! to whom they would pay divine homage ! But is this state of mind, my dear children uncommon ? By no means. To how many of the youth who attend .our places of devotional resort, could we address, with propriety, the same question, " How long halt ye between two opinions ?" How many are there who can go no further than Agrippa, when he said to Paul, " Almost thou persuadest me to bea Christian." Almost! Only almost persuaded to be a Christian ! What a melancholy thought! In the last chapter you saw in the character of Inconstans, an instance of this indecision. Did you admire it ? Impossible. What was wanting ?— Decision. But what do I mean by decision? " A fixed purpose, not made in haste, but with much deliberation ; not in our own strength, but in reliance on the grace of God; without delay, and at all risks, to seek the salvation of the soul through faith in Christ, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present evil world." It includes an inflexible severity of conviction, that this is the one great thing we have in this world to do, and such a concentration of all the energies of our soul in this mig... --This text refers to the Paperback edition."
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