d, already, by thousands. When we
read the stories of the old martyrs who, in the heathen persecution,
died like heroes rather than deny Christ, and scorned to save
themselves by telling what they knew to be a lie, but preferred
truth to all that makes life worth having:--how many of them--I may
say the greater part of them--were poor creatures enough in the eyes
of man, though they were rich enough, noble enough, in the eyes of
God who inspired them. 'Few rich and few noble,' as the apostle
says, 'were called.' It was to poor people, old people, weak women,
ill-used and untaught slaves, that God gave grace to defy all the
torments which the heathen could heap on them, and to defy the
scourge and the rack, the wild beasts and the fire, sooner than foul
their lips and their souls by denying Christ, and worshipping the
idols which they knew were nothing, and worth nothing.

And so it may be with any of you here; whosoever you may be, however
poor, however humble. Though your opportunities may be small, your
station lowly, your knowledge little; though you may be stupid in
mind, slow of speech, weakly of body, yet if you but make up your
mind to say the thing which is true, and to do the thing which is
right, you may be strong with the strength of God, and glorious with
the glory of Christ.

It is a grand thing, no doubt, to be like Elijah, a stern and bold
prophet, standing up alone against a tyrant king and a sinful
people; but it is even a greater thing to be like that famous martyr
in old time, St. Blandina, who, though she was but a slave, and so
weakly, and mean, and fearful in body, that her mistress and all her
friends feared that she would deny Christ at the very sight of the
torments prepared for her, and save herself by sacrificing to the
idols, yet endured, day after day, tortures too horrible to speak
of, without cry or groan, or any word, save 'I am a Christian;' and,
having outlived all her fellow-martyrs, died at last victorious over
pain and temptation, so that the very heathen who tortured her broke
out in admiration of her courage, and confessed that no woman had
ever endured so many and so grievous torments. So may God's
strength be made perfect in woman's weakness.

You are not called to endure such things. No: but you, and I, and
every Christian soul are called on to do what we know to be right.
Not to halt between two opinions: but if God be God, to follow Him.
If we make up our minds to