the road which leads to it?  And the Spirit of God, the Spirit of truth and right, tells them that they will not succeed:  for how can a man win happiness, save by doing right?  Every one shall ’receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.’  So says Scripture; and so say men’s own hearts, by the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit.  And therefore such men’s fear of death continues.  And why?  The text tells us the secret.  As long as we do not love God, we shall be tormented with fear of death.  And as long as we do not love our neighbour, we shall not love God.  We may try, as thousands have tried, and as thousands try still, to love God without loving their neighbour; to be very religious, and worship God, and sing His praises, and think over all His mercy to them, and all that he has done for them, by the death of His blessed Son Jesus Christ; and so to persuade themselves and God that they love Him, while they keep in their hearts selfishness, pride, spite, uncharitableness:  but they do not succeed.  If they think they succeed, they are only deceiving themselves.  So says St. John.  ’He who loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?’ But they cannot deceive themselves long.  You will see, if you watch such people, and still more if you watch yourselves, that if you do not love your neighbours in spirit and in truth, then those tormenting fears soon come back again, worse than ever.  Ay, whenever we indulge ourselves in hard words and cruel judgments, the thought of God seems darkened to us there and then; the face of God seems turned from us; and peace of mind and brightness of spirit, and lightness of soul, do not come back to us, till we have confessed our sins, and have let the kindly, the charitable, the merciful thoughts rise up in us once more, as, by the grace of Christ, they will rise up.

Yes, my friends, as far as I can see, people are filled with the peace of God just in as far as they are at peace with their fellow-men.  They are bright, calm, and content, looking forward with cheerfulness to death, and with a humble and holy boldness to judgment, just in as far as their hearts are filled with love, gentleness, kindness, to all that God has made.  They dwell in God, and God in them, and perfect love has cast out fear.

But if a man does not live in love, then sooner or later he will hear a voice within him, which whispers, Thou art going wrong; and, if thou art going wrong, how canst thou end at the right place?  None 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.