but the right road can end there. The wrong road must lead to
the wrong place.

Then the man gets disturbed and terrified in his mind, and tormented
with fears, as the text says. He knows that the day of judgment is
coming, and he has no boldness to meet it. He shrinks from the
thought of death, of judgment, of God. He thinks--How shall I meet
my God? I do not love my neighbour. I do not love God; and God
does not love me. The truth is, that the man cannot love God even
if he will. He looks on God as his enemy, whom he has offended, who
is coming to take vengeance on him. And, as long as we are afraid
of any one, and fancy that they hate us, and are going to hurt us,
we cannot love them. So the man is tormented with fear; fear of
death, fear of judgment, fear of meeting God.

Then he takes to superstition; he runs from preacher to preacher;
and what not?--There is no folly men have not committed, and do not
commit still, to rid themselves of that tormenting fear. But they
do not rid themselves of it. Sermons, church-goings, almsgivings;
leaving the Church and turning Dissenters or Roman Catholics;
joining this sect and that sect; nothing will rid a man of his
superstitious fear: nothing but believing the blessed message of
the text.

And what does the text say? It says this,--'God is love.' God does
not hate thee, He loves thee. He willeth not thy death, O sinner,
but rather that thou shouldest turn from thy wickedness and live.
Thy sins have not made Him hate thee: but only pity thee; pity thy
folly, which will lead on the road to death, when He wishes to put
thee on the road to life, that thou mayest have boldness in the day
of judgment, instead of shrinking from God like a guilty coward.
And what is the way of life? Surely the way of Christ, who _is_ the
life. Live like Him, and thou wilt not need to fear to die. So
says the text. We are to have boldness in the day of judgment,
because as Christ is, so are we in this world. And how was, and is,
and ever will be, Christ in this world? Full of love; of brotherly-
kindness, charity, forgiveness, peace, and good will to men. That,
says St. John, is the life which brings a joyful death; for God is
love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

Oh consider this, my good friends. Consider this; lest when you
come to die the ghosts of all your sins should rise up at your
bedside, and torment you with fear--the ghosts of eve