188
THE .PRIVILEGE
OF
THE
[SEAM.. XL.
assured
of
the
full
performánce, merely because
his
bath
spoken
it.
.Then
we
give
honour
to God, such
as the souls
in
heaven
cannot
give him,
when
under
the
renewed exer-
cise
of
faith
and repentance
we
maintain
a
humble hope
of
the
pardon
of
sin
through
the promises
of
his gospel,
even though
our
iniquities
have
been exceeding great,
and
though
sin
is
every day working and striving against
our
best purposes,
and
too often bringing
us
under
fresh
guilt.
Then
we
glorify
our
blessed
Redeemer
so as
the saints
in heaven
cannot
glorify
him,
when
we
feel
our
consci-
ences
burdened
with
sin,
and yet maintain
faith and hope
of
acceptance
with
a great and
holy
God, through the
death, righteousness, and intercession
Of
a
person
whom
we
never
saw.
This
is
an illustrious
honour done
to
the
name, and
sacrifice, and
mediation of
the
Son
of God.
.
Then
we
give
glory
to
the
blessed
Spirit our enlight-
ener,
and
our
sanctifier, when in the midst
of our
own
errors
and
darknesses, and
in the
midst
of
difficulties
and
cavils
raised
by
men, we
trust
in his
promised
guid-
ance into
all necessary
truth;
when
we
walk on in
the
midst
of
temptations, waiting and hoping for
fresh
sanc-
tifying
influences, while
we
feel
and groan over the de-
ceitfulness and
the weakness of
our
own
hearts,
that
are
too ready
to
start
aside from
God
like a
broken
bow.
Then
we
honour God and
his
gospel
indeed,
when
we
hope
for
our
own final
salvation
through
the blood
of
the everlasting
covenant, having
fled
for refuge to the
hope that
is
set
before
us,
though
by
the
wiles
of
the
devil,
we
have been
under
strong temptations
to
despair,
and
sometimes have seemed to
be
forsaken
of
God,
as
Christ Jesus
was when
hanging
on
the cross:
It
was
then
that
he glorified his
Father
and
his
God,
by
the con-
stancy and
courage
of
his
hope, in such
a manner
as
he
was
never capable
of
doing
after
that
great
and dreadful
day;
and herein
his
poor
tempted
followers have been
noble imitators
of
their
Saviour and
their
Lord, and
have
held
fast their
confidence in divine mercy
in the
midst
of
sore
temptations, and
given
great
glory to
their
God
and
Father.
Nor
is
this
hope a vain, presuming confidence,
or a
bold fit
of
enthusiasm, for it evidences
its own heavenly