They did their work well, yet necessarily left it unfinished.  The victory was assured, though not in sight.  The death-stricken hand reached the blood-stained banner out to another to be carried forward.  This war still rages.  The supremacy of Jesus Christ is yet disputed; His royal rights are yet usurped by mortals; His Bride, the Church, still halts amid many opinions; the ordinances of grace are unblushingly corrupted; the teachings of the Gospel are adroitly doctored.  The attacking forces are active, determined, and numerous, as in the days of the martyrs.  The tactics differ, but the fight goes on.  Heavy, heavy are the moral obligations, that fall to the successors of those who gave their lives for the truth.  To recede would be cowardice, desertion from the ranks, perjury within the Covenant, treason against Jesus Christ.  Is this too strong?  Listen:  “If any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.”  Surely the times call for Christian soldiers; yea, heroes; possibly, martyrs.  Do Covenanters feel their obligations to the Lord?

* * * * *

Points for the class.

1.  How long did the persecution last?

2.  What is the estimated number of those who suffered?

3.  What significance is attached to the martyrs’ blood?

4.  How does it show the value of Gospel truth?

5.  In what manner does the blood cry for vengeance?

6.  How does it lay obligations on posterity?

LI.

The old blue banner yet.

The Covenanters in Scotland’s struggle for liberty carried a significant banner.  Letters of gold, on a field of blue, displayed the soul-stirring motto:  “For Christ’s crown and covenant.”

The men of the Covenant unfurled their colors with dauntless spirit, and went forth in the name of the Lord, conquering and to conquer.  And this is the victory by which they overcame the world, even their faith.

The Covenanters carried their banner as an emblem of the truth in Jesus Christ.  The Bible focussed its light in the burning words that flashed on their ensign.  These fathers accepted the Bible without reservation or apology, as God’s Book, inspired, inerrable, authoritative, the rock foundation of faith, and the supreme law of life.  They grasped the wondrous system of redeeming truth, as bearing on their own lives, on the Church, on the world, and on all generations to come.  They embodied it in their Covenant, and wove it into their flag.  They saw all Bible truth converge in Christ, the Only Begotten of the Father, the Mediator of the Covenant of grace, the crucified and risen Redeemer, the exalted Prince and Saviour; and on their banner they emblazoned their faith.  But while their profession was embroidered on their colors, their creed was pulsating in their