The whole Book of Psalms, what is it but the blessed discovery that salvation is not merely in a place, or a state, not even in some ’beatific vision’ after men die; but in the Lord Himself all day long in this world; that salvation is a life in God and with God?  ’The Lord is my light, and my salvation, of whom then shall I be afraid?  The Lord is the strength of my life, and my portion for ever.’  This is their key-note.  Shame on us Christians, that we should have forgotten it for one so much lower.  ‘The name of the Lord,’ says Solomon, ’is a strong tower:  the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.’  Into it:  not merely into some pleasant place after he dies, but all day long; and is safe:  not merely after he dies, but in every chance and change of this mortal life.  My friends, I am ashamed to have to put Christian men in mind of these things.  Truly, ’Evil communications have corrupted good manners; awake to righteousness and sin not, for some have not the knowledge of God.’  I am ashamed, I say; for there are old hymns in the mouths of every one to this day, which testify against their want of faith; which say, ‘Christ is my life,’ ‘Christ is my salvation;’ and which were written, I doubt not, by men who meant literally what they said, whatever those who sing them now-a-days may mean by them.  Now what do those hymns mean by such words, if they mean anything at all?  Surely what I have been preaching to you, and what seems to some of you, I fear, strange and new doctrine.  And what else does the Church Catechism mean, when it bids every child thank God for having brought him into a state of salvation?  For mind, throughout the whole Church Catechism there is not one word about what people commonly call heaven and hell; not one word though ‘heaven and hell’ are now-a-days generally the first things about which children are taught.  Not one word is the child taught about what will happen to him after death, except that his body will rise again, and that Christ will be his Judge after he is dead as well as while he is alive:  but not one word about that salvation after he is dead, which is almost the only thing of which one hears in many pulpits.  And why, but because the Catechism teaches the child to believe that Jesus Christ is his salvation now, in this life, and believes that to be enough for him to know?  For if Christ be eternal, His salvation must be eternal also.  If Christ’s life be in the child, eternal life must be in the child; for Christ’s life must be eternal, even as Christ Himself; and that is enough for the child, and for us also.

And with this agrees that great text of Scripture, ’When the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.’  People now-a-days are apt to make two mistakes about that one text.  First they forget the ‘when,’ and read it as if it stood, ’If the wicked man turn away from his wickedness in this life, he shall save his