NEGLECT OF CHRIST, THE KILLING SIN BY GEORGE WHITEFIELD

NEGLECT OF CHRIST, THE KILLING SIN.NOTE:GEORGE WHITEFIELD IS A LITTLE UNCLEAR IN THIS MESSAGE WHAT HAPPENS TO INFANTS IN WOMB OR OUTSIDE, BUT IT IS VERY CLEAR TO US AS JOHN Q. PUNLIC OF AMERICA: ALL PARENTS CAN HAVE HOPE THAT THEIR BABY WENT TO HEAVEN SINCE NONE OF US KNOW WHETHER OUR BABY IS ONE OF THE ELECT, BUT WE CAN BE ASSURED THAT EVERY BABY THAT IS OF THE ELECT WILL INDEED BE SAVED FOR JESUS’ FATHER ‘S WILL IS , THAT JESUS IS TO LOSE NONE THAT WERE GIVEN TO HIM BY HIS FATHER BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD FROM CONCEPTION TO WHATEVER AGE THEY MIGHT LIVE TO BE, EVEN A DEATHBED CONVERSION LIKE THE THIEF ON THE CROSS AN IN THE WOMB CONVERSION LIKE JOHN THE BAPTIST. IT IS THAT SIMPLE!!!EXCERPTS FROM GEORGE WHITEFIELDS’S SERMON. “And ye will not come to me, that ye may have life.”John v. 40.“THE great apostle of the Gentiles, after he had set before the Hebrews thegreat cloud of witnesses of Old Testament believers, exhorts them to lookhigher, even to Jesus, the common Saviour, and that not transiently, butearnestly and constantly, in his mediatorial character of humiliation, asenduring unheard-of, unparalleled contradiction of sinners against himself;“Lest (says he) ye be weary, and faint in your minds.” If we had not suchan example set before us, and brought to us by the Holy Ghost in a suffering hour, we should never hold out to the end. This was not the contradictionof the openly profane and scandalous, those that were without, so much asfrom those that were within the pale of the church, even those to whomwere committed the lively oracles of God, who had not only the very Biblein their own hands, but were set apart to explain it to others. That the wordsof our text were spoken to them, appears from the preceding verse, in whichhe bids them“Search the scriptures;” as a person digs for a mine, orsearches from some hidden treasure. The word Bible, or book, which I havein my hand, is well applied to the holy scriptures, because it is the book ofGod, written by him, that is, by his order, and by those who were inspiredby him for that end; and yet, of all writings in the world, these are mostneglected! God has condescended to become an author, and yet people willnot read his writings. There are very few that ever gave this book of God,the grand charter of salvation, one fair reading through: though we professto have assented to the truth of scripture, as our Lord said, “In them wethink we have eternal life,” yet most read them as they would aproclamation, a romance, a play, or novels, that help only to bring them tothe devil, but choose not to read God’s book, which is to be our guide toglory; “they are they (says Christ) which testify of me.” Lord God, convertand change our heartsWhen I talk of lovingthe world, I mean an inordinate love. I may live in the world, and not liveupon it. My heart may be towards God: the love of the world is to berenounced, and therefore they will not come to Jesus Christ, they think, tillthey are going out of the world. If you are one of those who hate Christ, why,you are the man that will not come to him. Why, say you, does anybody hateChrist? Pray hold your tongue, for fear of discovering your ignorance. O, sayyou, God forbid I should hate him. But, my dear soul, learn from this timeforward, that every one of us by nature hates Jesus Christ: we sent thismessage to him; we will not have this man to reign over us; we hate himbecause he is despised, we hate him because of the appearance of the peoplethat are his followers, we hate him because of the narrowness of the way weare to pass in to him, because we must part with our lusts; we hate him becausewe must be nonconformists. I hate that rag of the whore of Babylon, O thatform of prayer, O all that stuff, I thank God I was born a Dissenter. 1 love tobe a Puritan. I do not love rites and ceremonies, no, not in the church; and yet…