It 8 S E R 111 0 N S upon the Serm. llI; and gavehim G!ory and Honour, that your Faith and Hope might be in God. Heaven is poffe fled by our Head, and furely in our name, ,john 14. z. which is a lure pledge that the Membersfhall beglorified ; if our Head be railed, he will not leave his Members under the power of Death : He bath carried, our Nature into Heaven, our Flefh thither, and advanced ir to the Fathers right Hand in Glory, let us follow him, and we 1hall get thither alto. Well now, thefeare the grounds of Confidence, whereby we know that there is a Bleffed eftate referved for us. IL Hope for it. Next to a found belief of fach things, there muff be an earneft ex- pe&ation of them. For having a Promife, Hope waiteth for the accomplishment of the thing Promifed, and looketh out to fee it a coming. There is a twofold Hope ; the one nece afar y to Grace ; the other very profitable, but not abfolutely neceffary to the Life and being of a Chriftian. The one is the immediate effe& of regeneration, r Pet. 1.3. The other the fruit of experience, Rom. s. 4. The one dependeth upon the promifes of God, which are propofed to men, to beget in them an hope of the greateft good they can ex- peét from God : The other dependeth upon our own qualification. T he one is Antece- dent to ads of Holinefs, the other followethafter it, and refulteth from it. 1. An Antecedent Hope tberemuJt be, before the OM of the holy life can be pro- duced. For fince Hope is the principle of all humane endeavours, and actions, 'tis Hope that fers every Man awork in the world. The Merchant Tradeth in Hope, the Husband- man Ploweth in Hope, the Souldier fighteth in Hope; So 'tis Hope that fers the Chrifti- an awork. The Twelve Tribes ferve God inftantly day and night,that they may come to the Bleffed Hope. Before a Man can ingage in the Spiritual life, he mull have Rime Hope, and indeed this Hope dependeth upon the conditional offer of eternal life, according to the terms of the Gofpel. This conditional offer is very comfortable to hunger bitten Sinners, who do ferioufly mind their own happinefs. Of this Hope the Apoitle fpeaketh, Heb. 3. 6. Whofe Houle are we, if we hold fall the Confidence, and the rejoycing of the Hopefirm unto the end. This is the firft tait of the pleafures of the world to Come. 2. There it another Hope which cometh aftermath exercife in Godlinefs,which required; a great Diligence, Sobriety, and Watchfulnefs before we can have ir, 1 Pet, r. 13. and Heb. 6. 1 i. Wedelire that every one of you do thew the fame diligence to the full affurance of Hope unto the end, The firft Hope may tit accompanied with fome doubts of our Sal- vation, or the rewards of Godlinefs, ex parte nellri, as it belongeth to us, not ex parte Dei, as promifed by him : For this Hope apprehendeth all there as fure and ftedfafl, but our own qualification ii not fo evident. Ih fhort, the Conditional Hope is abfolutely ne- ceflary in all Chriftians, the latter is very definable, that we fhould have an affurance on our part, of the thing Hoped for, but that always cannot be. Now Hope Iheweth it- felf both by looking and, longing. 1. Looking. Hope is Often defcribed by that ad, 7ude 21. Looking for the mercy of our Lordlefue Chrill unto eternal life. So Tir. z. 13. Looking for the Bleffed Hope : and in manyother places; áorox& e, róbxtia 'rñewnoswe,firetching out the Head, Rom. 8.19. as Sefera's Mother and her Ladies looked through the Lattis. We fhould dwell more upon the thoughts of the world to come; and live in the conftant expe&ation of it : The vi- gour of the Spiritual life is abated, as this aá is abated. For when our thoughts of Hea- ven grow cold, heartlefs, raw, and unfrequent, we grow remifs in our Duty.. z. Longing. Can a Man believe Bleffednefs to come, and not long to injoy it, have an Houle above,and not corne at it ; defiringto be at home? The Saints are groaning,longing for it, Rom. 8. z3. z Cor. 5. z, 3, 4, 5. Mind and heart are both fetawork by Hope; a Taft will make us long for more. Ill. Prepare and diligentlyfeek after it lathe way of Holinefs. A Chriftians life is a continual purfuit, or feeking after eternal happinefs, He6.12. 14. Follow peace with all men, and Holinefs, without which no manJballfee the Lord, Col. 33 1. If ye be rifts: with Chrifl feekthe things which are above, Mat. 6. 33. Firfi, Seek, ffc: - This is his work and his bufinefs. Hiswhole life is a continual motion towards this eternal and glorious elate; every ftep anapproach nearer, Rom. t3. 1. and the nearer, the more earneft, quopropino. fruimur ; as natural motion is the fwifter, the nearer the center. Faith, and Hope fer all the wheels a going, Iprefs onward, becaufe of the high Prize of the Calling of God inChrifi, Phil. 3.14. fill getting more Grace, more fitnefs. We have no reafon to begrudge Gods fervice, when we confider what Wages he giveth. We do but talk of eternal life, not believe
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