"Seeing there is a God, let us firmly believe this great article of our Creed. What religion can there be in men, if they do not believe a Deity? 'He that comes to God must believe that He is.' To worship God, and pray to Him, and not believe there is a God, is to put a high scorn and contempt upon Him. Believe that God is the only true God: such a God as He has revealed Himself in His Word, 'A lover of right-
eousness, and hater of wickedness,' (Psa 45:7). The real belief of a Deity gives life to all religious worship. The more we believe the truth and infiniteness of God the more holy and angelic we are in our lives. Whether we are alone, or in company, God sees us; He is the heart-searcher. The belief of this would make us live always under God's eye--Psa 16:10: 'I have set the Lord always before me.'
"The belief of a Deity would be a bridle to sin, and a spur to duty; it would add wings to prayer, and oil to the lamp of our devotion. The belief of a Deity would cause dependence upon God in all our straits and exigencies--Gen 17:1: 'I am God all-sufficient'--a God that can supply all your wants, scatter all your fears, resolve all your doubts, conquer all your temptations. The arm of God's power can never be shrunk; He can create mercy for us, and therefore can help, and not be beholden to the creature. Did we believe there is a God, we should so depend on His providence as not to use any indirect means. We should not run ourselves into sin to rid ourselves out of trouble. . . . When men run to sinful shifts, is it not because they do not believe there is a God, or that He is all-sufficient?"
