hope ; and if it hath no hope for heaven, it must of necessity have a hope for earth, such as it can afford. What can suit. an earthly heart better than an earthly hope? And that which is a man's hope, though poor and trifling, is highly prized, and with difiiculty parted with ; as we see in a man who is likely to be drowned, and hath only some weed by the bank-side to hold by, he will die with it in his hand rather than let go ; he will endure blows and wounds, r ither than loose his hold : nothing can take him from it, but that which he hopes may serve better to save him from drowning. Thus it is with a man whose hope is set upon the world, and whole happiness expected from thence. O how such an one hugs and hangs about the world ! You may as soon per- suade a fox to come out of his hole, where he hath taken sanctuary from the dogs, as such an one to cast off his hopes ! No, he is undone without this pelf and that honoin- ; it is that which he hath laid up his hopes in, and hope and life are kept in the same hand. Scare and threaten him with what you will, still the man's heart will hold its own ; yea, throw hell-fire into his bosom, and tell him this love of the world, and making gold his hope, will damn him another day, still he will hold to his way. Felix is an instance of this, Acts xxiv. 26. Paul preached an excellent sermon before him ; and though the preacher was at the bar, and Felix on the bench, yet God so armed the word that he trembled to hear the prisoner ' speak of righteousness, and judg- ment to come :' yet this man, notwithstanding his conscience was struggling with the fears of judgment, and some sparks of Divine vengeance had taken fire on him, could at the same time be sending out his heart on a covetous errand, to look for a bribe, for want of which he left that blessed servant of God in his bloody enemies' hands ; for it is said, ' he hoped that money should have been given him of Paul, that he might loose him.' But he missed his market ; for, as a sordid hope of a little money made him basely refuse to deliver Paul, so the blessed hope which Paul had for another world made him more honourably disdain to purchase his deliverance at his hands with a bribe. Section III. — This hope of salvation, where it is stedfast, makes the Christian active and zealous for God. It is called ' a lively hope,' 1 Pet i. .3. They are men of mettle that have it ; you may expect luore from him than many others, and not be deceived. Why are men dull and heavy in the service of God ? Tridy because their hopes are so. Hopeless and lifeless go together. No wonder the work goes hardly off hand, when men have no hope to be well paid for their labour. He that thinks he works for a song, will not sing at his work, — I mean forward it. The best customer is sure to be served best and first; and him we coiuit the best customer whom we hope will be the best paymaster. If God be thought so, we will leave all to do his business. This made Paul engage so deeply in the service of the gospel, even to lose his worldly friends, and lay his own life at stake ; it was ' for the hope of the promise,' Acts xxvi. 6. This made the other Israelites that feared God follow the trade of godliness so close : ver. 7, * Unto* which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come.' Mark, they are both instant and constant ; they run with full speed, stretching themselves forth as in a race, and this night and day ; no stop nor halting. And what is it keeps them in breath ? Even the hope that they shall at last come to that salvation promised. Nothing better to clear the soul of sloth and listlessness of spirit in the service of God than hope well im- proved and strengthened. It is the very physic which the apostle prescribes for this disease : Heb. vi. 11, 12, ' We desire every one of you to shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope imto the end, that ye be not slothful.'
Section IV. — Hope begets in a Christian a holy impatience after farther attainments, especially when it grows to some strength : the higher oiu- hopes of salvation rise, the more will our hearts widen themselves in holy desires: Rom. viii. 23, ' Not only they, but we ourselves also which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit the redemption of our body.' Methinks rejoicing would better become them for what they had already, than groaning for v/hat they have not. Who can better stay long for their dinner than they who have their stomachs stayed with a good breakfast? This would hold in bodily food, but not spiritual. No doubt the sweetness which they tasted from their first-fruits in hand did clieer their spirits ; but the thoughts of what was behind made them groan. Hope
AND TAKE THE HELMET OF SALVATION. 50 [