It does not matter to me
whether men approve of what I preach, applaud my works, and honor my name or
not. I am not laboring for men, but for God. I am not desirous of man's honor,
but God's. With Paul, I say to those who oppose me and the gospel I preach,
"With me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of
man's judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. For I know nothing by myself;
yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord" (I Cor.
4:3-4). The success or failure of our labors shall not be determined by the
opinions of men; nor shall these things be known in time. God is our judge.
Those that honor him, he will honor. Those that seek his glory, he will
glorify. Those that faithfully serve him, he will vindicate. Eternity will set
things in their true light. Eternity will tell who has preached the gospel in
its purity and who has perverted it. Eternity will tell what God has been
pleased to accomplish by our labors. I am prepared to wait. To every Arminian,
to every preacher of free-will and human merit, I say, "I will meet you
before the bar of almighty God; and we shall then see who has preached the
truth." "Therefore judge nothing before time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness,
and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man
have praise of God." In eternity God will expose both you and me for what
we really are. In the light of his ineffable glory, he will expose your doctrine
and mine, your motives and mine.