Stephen Charnock on man having nothing to lose by believing in God but his lusts

[clawrence9008]

"But it were well that such would argue thus: if there be a God, and I fear and obey him, I gain a happy eternity; but if there be no God, I lose nothing but my sordid lusts by firmly believing there is one. If I be deceived at last and find a God, can I think to be rewarded by him for disowning him? Do not I run a desperate hazard to lose his favor, his kingdom, and endless felicity, for an endless torment? By confessing a God, I venture no loss, but by denying him, I run the most desperate hazard if there be one."

-- from The Existences and Attributes of God by Stephen Charnock (in Discourse 1: On God's Existence)