in this case. cry for the returning of the Holy Ghost as for life, as apprehending themselves lost if he return not, there is yet hope And it is by no means in the world to be thought of, that such are to abandon all hope; for that is to make devils of themselves above ground, and to create to themselves a present hell on this side hell. You are within the reach of the Gospel while you are on this side of the infernal regions; and it is a Gospel of grace, crying to you, Return,-return. These are they to whom I had reference in that word defeats; do not let your hope be destroyed by the defeats you have met with. But then, 2. There is another sort that I had a more distinct reference to in my thoughts, in using the word delays, in this direction, Take heed lest defeatments and delays destroy your hope. Now that of delays I meant in reference to such as have sat long under the Gospel, even to a grown age, and never have found any good effect by it; it hath wrought no change, made no impression. There may be many such, that were never vicious persons at all, never grossly vicious; but then they have lived in a place where some exercises of religion were a fashionable thing. They have had religion enough to carry them to a sermon on the Lord's day in some Christian assembly, and perhaps to engage in somewhat of family duties; perhaps so, but they have sat with mere formality the greatest part of a lifetime, under the Gospel, and never felt any real good by it, never expected any, never designed any; but come to a church, or a meeting-house, and spend an hour or two with the rest, in solemn attendances upon the worship of God, and never look after it more, (it may be,) till the week come about again. All their business is driving designs for this earth; "They mind earthly things," as the apostle's character is of them, of whom also he saith, " their end is destruction," Phil. iii. 18, 19. What it was to have their souls turned to God, to come to a solemn closure with Christ as their Redeemer and Lord, or to exercise themselves unto inward heart-godliness in any kind, they know not what belongs to it. It may be, they are just and upright in their dealings with those with whom they have to do; and they reckon that their justice towards men must expiate all their injustice towards God, their neglect of him, their slighting him, their casting him out of their thoughts, out of their fear, and out of their desires. This seems to be a very sad case, that a man should have lived all his days under the Gospel, and it hath never made any impression on him as yet: the Spirit of God hath not as yet sensibly breathed, so as, at least, to beget any permanent and abiding effect; here hath been a long deferring, a long delaying of taking hold of these souls to purpose; and it may be, now their long delay may make such persons think, No, there is no change to be hoped for, nothing to be expected, none to be looked for; I have sat so long, so many years, ten, twenty, or thirty, (it may be,) forty years, under the Gospel, under such a ministry, and never hath there been any such effect wrought upon me, and I do not think there ever will. Oh! take heed, lest the having any such work upon you deferred so long, do destroy hope that ever such work shall be done; for then again, all is lost if you be hopeless; if there be not a vital hope and expectation, from time to time, in such and such a word, that some good may be done in my soul, that I may hear somewhat that I may feel, that the word may yet drop that may have life in it, that may have power in it. If you do not hope for this, if you do not expect such a thing, you are, as much as you can, putting yourselves quite out of the way of being saved, or having the reasonable hope of it; for still I must say, you are not to expect a new Gospel, that God will save you without those necessary pre-requisites to salvation, without repentance, without faith, without conversion, and without sanctification. And therefore in the last place, Direction 12. That which I would lastly add, by way of direction to this sort of persons, is, that you would see to it, that though hope in these cases must not be thrown away, that yet it be qualified with such concomitants as are proper and suitable in such a case. They are such as these; I will but name them, that the next time my discourse may directly respect the other case, that of perse verance. 1. Prayer. Your hope in such a case as this must always be accompanied with prayer. It must be praying, supplicating hope. It is suitable to your case, if you hope to pray; and never hope without prayer. When we are exhorted to take to ourselves the "helmet," which we are told "is the hope of salvation," it is presently subjoined, praying always with all prayer and supplication," Eph. ví. 17. with 1 Cor. v. 8. These must be conjunct; if we hope, we must continue to pray. Give yourselves to prayer, to all prayer and supplication, otherwise we do (as much as possible) blast all our hope, and it can never be a helmet to us; it will betray our head, not cover it, not protect it. 2. Deep humility. Join deep humility with your hope. Let it be humble hope. Such a one should "put his mouth in the dust, if there might be any hope," Lam. iii. 29. And, 3. Self-loathing. Join with it self-loathing, self-abhorrence; not only of yourselves as mean creatures, but as vile and odious; and yet hope, join hope with that selfabasing temper, self-loathing of the publican: then will your sense be, (as his,) "God be merciful to me a sinner," who it is said at last went away justified and accepted. If you be fair in your own eyes, if your sense be that of the Laodicean church, "I am rich, and increased in goods, and have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, and miserable, and blind, and naked;" you have no place in you for that hope that will do you any good; but such self-reviling thoughts, "If I were perfect, yet would I not know my own soul, I would despise my life;" how well doth hope do in such a tempered spirit as this! How suitable a soil is this for that heavenly hope to grow and flourish in! And, 4. Watchfulness. Join to your hope watchfulness and vigilancy. Watchfulness may respect both God and yourselves. Watchfulness respecting God is exercised in continual looking towards him; when shall that happy time come? when shall any beam of light descend? when shall any influence of grace flow in? Watchfulness respecting yourselves is exercised in watching over a treacherous heart; and know, that whenever you are to design such a thing, as your own salvation, and so accordingly to hope for it, a main, and principal, and immediate object of your hope must be, that you shall be saved from yourselves; and thereupon indeed, it is a most self-contradicting hope, to hope I shall be saved, without hoping that sin shall be overcome. I shall gain the conquest at last over predominating corrupt inclinations, whether more grossly sensual ones, or whether avaricious ones, or ambitious ones, and the like; for do not you know, that our Lord Jesus Christ hath therefore his name of Jesus, a Saviour, because he was to save his people from their sins: and do you think you shall be saved, without being saved from yourselves, your sinful selves? This is to hope you shall be saved without salvation; this is to hope with such a hope, as wherewith you shall tear a thing from itself, to hope you shall be saved without being saved. If ever you are to be saved, you are to be saved from yourselves; and therefore, yourselves are to be the great object of your watchfulness, your continual vigilancy; watching over yourselves, as your worst and most dangerous enemy. I am to fear hell from myself, death from myself, a curse from myself; and lest I be a continual spring of all misery and wo to myself, there must be a continual watchfulness over ourselves, to repress all ebullitions of corrupt nature at the first. Oh this lustful heart! this proud heart! this ambitious heart! this sensual heart! A severe self-inspection into, and watchfulness over ourselves, is that which must be in conjunction with hope. Watch and hope, be sober and hope to the end. That spiritual sobriety carries vigilancy in it, a continual watchfulness over yourselves. And again, 5. Patience. This hope must be accompanied with patience. Doth not the context tell you so? "We are saved by hope, but hope that is seen is not hope: but if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." God is not bound to your time, he hath not come in yet; suppose he do not strike that stroke upon your heart this day, that is necessary to your being saved. Why hope that he will the next day, or the next after that: "If we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it." "Blessed is he that watcheth at the doors," that waiteth at the posts of wisdom's gates; "for he that findeth me, | tate creatures; saith the soul, I own myself to be such a findeth life, and shall obtain favour from the Lord," Prov. one; I am miserable, and lost for ever, if I do not return viii. 34. 35. I have not met with him that is to be the life of my soul yet; but I will wait, I will miss no opportunity, I will be always at the posts of wisdom's door, I may find him at last, who will be the life of my soul; and there all my hopes and all my concernments are involved and wrapt up together. And in the last place, 6. Diligence. You must join diligence with hope; an industrious, laborious diligence. It must be a working, operative hope, like that of the husbandman, who plougheth in hope, and soweth in hope, that he may be partaker of his hope, as the apostle's allusion is; so must you, as to this spiritual husbandry in which you must be engaged, you must strive in hope, and labour in hope. And if yours be not a hope that will put you upon striving and labouring, it is a dead hope, a useless hope; and such as can contribute nothing to your salvation. And so I have done with those directions that are requisite as to the former sort, the unregenerate and unconverted; the next will respect the other sort, and their case, to wit, that of converts, so as to influence their perseverance unto salvation SERMON XXV.* Rom. viii. 24. We are saved by hope. THE order of discourse upon this subject hath brought ne now at length to say somewhat, by way of direction, to those, who, being regenerate, and turned to God, are on their way towards him. That the principle of hope, which doth more especially belong to their regenerate state, may be improved by them, to their cheerful and more comfortable progress through the whole of their course and way to their end. We having spoken by way of direction to a former sort, and to a former case, to wit, to direct how hope may be improved, in order to conversion and regeneration itself: nor am I solicitous, that the course I have taken upon this subject hath obliged me to be long upon it; for I both consider the great importance of the subject, which I cannot but know, as you, any of you, may, and must, when you seriously bethink yourselves of it. And also, I know not that any have purposely and designedly treated upon this subject; that is, to show the necessary influence of hope upon the whole business of a Christian's life, from first to last, from the beginning of it till it end in eternal life. I shall repeat nothing of what hath been said by way of direction, in reference to the former case, to wit, to persons yet unregenerate, what improvement is to be made of hope in order to their regeneration, and their being born of God; to which nothing is more plain, than that it would never be, but as even then they begin to have hope God-ward. But my present and remaining business is to show the continual influence that hope may be improved unto for a Christian's progress, to help on those that are regenerate, and born to God, in their way to him. That so, upon the whole matter, you may see the new creature, it is from first to last a creature (as it were) made up of hope; its very make and constitution are suited to the state which it is successively made for. In this present state, while its great supports do lie in unseen and expected good things, there cannot but be a continual exercise of hope necessary from first to last; but in the other state, hope naturally turns into joy; when the things that were before matter of expectation, are now come to be the matter of actual fruition. In the mean time, its make and frame suit it to the present state of its case. That whereas, such as were before strangers and aliens to God, in a state of apostacy from him, they begin to be prompted and stirred up to look after God; as soon as any such instinct is put into them, it is put into them in a way of hope. God hath a design in hand to restore and recover aposPreached October, 18th, 1691. to God, and if God accept me not. I have hope I shall: I have hope he will. And so the soul is (as it were) begotten to God, even by the power of hope; and being reconciled, the great remaining expectation is, of being saved, of being brought to a safe and happy state at last. Hope runs through the course of such a converted, regenerate soul, even to the attainment of its end, which is actual salvation. And whereas the Gospel is the great and stated means by which souls are both begotten unto God, and enabled to adhere and cleave to him, even to the end; where that Gospel hath long been, there is great reason to think that God hath much such work to do; many such blessed effects to bring about upon souls; and that much such work is done that with us, God hath touched many souls, turned many hearts, implanted that new and divine principle in many, that will certainly end at last in eternal life. It is not to be thought (or at least one would be very loth to think or imagine such a thing) that a bright and blissful heaven should have been opened among us, so long, so continually, by the Gospel, whose design it is to bring life and immortality to light, that we, amidst all the impurities, and darkness, and wretchedness, of this our present state, should have such a glorious prospect given us, and set before our eyes; heaven opened in all the glories of it; (as in the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ it is;) and that we, after all this, should agree in it as our common sense and sentiment, that it is better always to dwell in this dungeon, so as to have no aspirings, no hope, directed upward, towards that glorious state of things; one would be loth (I say) to admit such an apprehension as this; that this should be our common sentiment, that it is better to dwell in a dungeon always, than amidst all that divine light and glory above, whither we are called, and whereupon the hope of our calling doth finally terminate; yea, and though we know that dungeon is to fall upon us ere it be long, and that they who have affected that dwelling, must certainly be overwhelmed with its ruin. It is meet for us to judge that there are sundry, whose souls God hath, by the power of his Gospel animated by his Spirit, possessed with another sense. And if there be many such, or any such, that are looking higher, that have their expectations and hopes placed upon some other sorts of things, things of a higher excellency and value than this lower creation can afford; the greatest care imaginable then must be had, that their hope be kept alive in strength and vigour; if it fail, if it should languish, if it were possible it should, and it were ever so certain, that it should never expire and fail; yet means must be used, that it may not; but (I say) if it should fail, (and the dread ought to be upon our spirits, that it may not fail, that it may never fail,) then are such poor creatures ingulfed again, sunk in, and swallowed up by the spirit of this world; and so exposed, and left to be involved with it in its fearful ruin. That it may not be so, and because it shall not be so with those that do peculiarly belong to God, and are the children of the kingdom, begotten to the eternal heavenly inheritance, all endeavours must be used that hope may be preserved and kept alive in them. And in order to it,pray take these following directions. Direction 1. See that your spirits be deeply and seriously engaged, and taken up in the meditation of that glorious state of things which you profess finally to hope for, and which you expect should be your eternal state. See (I say) that your spirits be deeply exercised in the meditation of that glorious state of things. The way to keep hope alive, is to keep its glorious, blessed object in view. The hope of the greatest things imaginable can never live, or be influential in any of us, if we do not preserve the remembrance, and have not the actual thoughts of them. If there be such a thing as the habit of hope yet left, it will be a languishing thing, and afford us no support: it will be as dead within us, if we have not frequent views of that glorious object of it; if we do not look towards that object, take it in its comprehension, and compass even the whole state of things, that we expect and hope for as our final and eternal state. I pray, let us labour, not only to realize but to fami- | baser and meaner inhabitants; it is but a very little, inconliarize to ourselves the unseen world. It is a shame that siderable part, incomparison of the ample and spacious we should be called Christians, and that our thoughts regions of the incircling heavens above, that seem all apshould be taken up chiefly, and principally, about things propriated to the heirs of the eternal kingdom. And then that are seen. Christian hope lies beyond and above 2. When you are laying before your eyes the object of those things; we forfeit our names while we confine our your hope, that that may be lively and strong in you; thoughts so much to that which is present and sensible. consider too the numerous multitude of the inhabitants of If in this life only we have hope in Christ, as Christians, those glorious regions, or, to speak collectively, of that we make ourselves the most miserable of creatures; we region of glory. It is true, in this little inconsiderable are made up of contradictions, we are in a continual war world of ours, we find the inhabitants are generally very with ourselves, we do not act and carry so consistently numerous; (as there will be more occasion to speak bye with ourselves as other men do, who do not pretend to and bye;) but, alas, what is this little perishable thing, (this Christianity we are more miserable than they. world of ours,) to the universe? And it is a very unreasonable foolish thought to think the nobler parts of the creation of God to be less destitute of inhabitants than our earth is. Do but turn up a clod of earth, and you see every little clod inhabited with somewhat or other that hath life in it, little insects and animalcula that have life in them. It is a foolish thought to think that the nobler parts of the creation of God should be less full of inhabitants, though still meaner the nearer this earth; but if you ascend higher, you are to suppose all filled with living inhabitants; and (as we have reason to apprehend) with creatures innocent and upright with God, angel-like creatures. And, that I may the more fruitfully enlarge upon this, as that without our hope is a languid and insignificant thing, and in a direct way to be reduced to nothing; let me desire you to give compass and scope to your thoughts about the invisible world, and the expected state of things, which is to be the great and final object of your hope. The context, which hath so immediate reference thereunto, would afford you very great help for the managing and directing your thoughts in the contemplation of the invisible state. You see it is spoken of a little before the text, under the notion of glory; a glorious state, a state of glory. "I reckon that the sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us," verse 18. And that glory is spoken of under the notion of an inheritance. They that are the regenerate sons of God, and now actually under the government of the Divine Spirit which begot them unto God; they that are so children, are also heirs, "heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ," verse 17. "That after having suffered awhile with him, they may be also glorified together with him." As to the invisible world, (that happy part of it, where "the heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ," have their eternal concernments lying,) that happy part of it is to be looked upon as a region of glory, all glory. And that you may give latitude and scope to your thoughts about this, which is the very hope of your calling, the final hope of it, I pray consider such things as these more particularly concerning it. Considerations to enforce this first direction. It is true many angels fell, many, if you consider them abstractedly; but take them comparatively, and we have no reason to think but that they were a very small part of the host of heaven, in comparison with them that stood, and retained their integrity; and if the upper regions be replenished with innocent creatures, full of the love of God, and of the knowledge of God, and who stand in absolute devotedness to him; then you must consider the blessed society, the society of the blessed, to be a most numerous thing. The innumerable company of angels, and the spirits of men made perfect; so that the angels that have fallen, and the apostate sons of men that shall not be recovered, and that finally persist in enmity against all the methods of reconciliation, though they will be numerous, yet a little inconsiderable number they must be, in comparison of all those glorious creatures that inhabit the more noble parts of God's creation: and it would make a man's 1. Contemplate the vast amplitude of that glorious re- hope revive, and spring, and flourish mightily in him, to gion, where you (if you be regenerate, and born of God, think of being ere long one of that vast and numerous asand heirs of the celestial kingdom) are to have your ever-sembly, that blessed glorious assembly, the innumerable lasting abode. Think (I say) seriously and often of the company of angels, and the spirits of just men made pervast amplitude of it, that you may give scope and room to fect. And, your thoughts; it is mean to be confined in our apprehensions of things to this little spot of our earth, wherein we breathe; think if you were ascending from it, if you were ascended but a little way, into how vastly larger and more spacious and roomy a region do you come but by a little ascent! but if you were ascended as high as our vortex, as the utmost confines of this vortex of ours, to which this earth, and the sun, and the moon, and other planets do belong; how inconsiderable a point is all this earth, in comparison of that vortex to which all these do belong? But if you were beyond that, beyond that circuit and those confines within which all this planetary region is limited; then how vastly spacious are all the supernal heavens above the regions in which the sun, and moon, and other planets, do move! So as we are even lost in the thoughts whither we should then go: and it is pleasant to be so lost. And to consider how despicable a nothing this earth of ours is in comparison; so as it may be lost, it may be consumed, and burnt up, and that it is an insignificant thing to the universe; no more than the burning of one single little cottage would be in a vast empire, containing two hundred and twenty-seven provinces as Ahasuerus's did; one that is an heir of heaven, and of the inheritance of the caints in light, when he thinks of the burning of this world, may say, What is it to me? my concernments lie not here, it is a despicable, inconsiderable trifle; it is no more loss to the creation and no more loss to me, than the dropping of a hair, one single hair. Labour to aggrandize to your selves so much as this comes to, of the object of your hope; to wit, to consider the vast amplitude of the region of glory; we must think with ourselves, that as to what doth more subside in this creation is baser and meaner fitter for 3. Consider, again, the high and admirable perfection of these blessed creatures, of whom you are to be one; their bodily perfections, (which are not nothing,) and their mental spiritual perfections, which are incomparably more, are to be considered. As to the former, the words immediately foregoing the text, do directly cast back our thoughts upon them, upon those perfections that are more properly corporeal, and that belong to the body: not only they, (that is, the rest of the creation,) but ourselves also, which have received the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting (which carries hope in it as you do well know) for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our bodies; for we are saved by hope. We that now dwell in these bodies so cumbersome, so tiresome, that are such an annoyance to us, and so great a depression to us; we are hoping, hoping for a time and state of things when these bodies are to have an entire, complete redemption from every thing which is gravanimous and burthensome to them, and by which they are gravanimous to our spirits, to ourselves; and it is by the hope of this, that we are saved. Here we are depressed and sunk very low; these bodies are prisons and dungeons to us; they are so, but we are saved by that hope of the day of our redemption; the redemption of our bodies, which is also the day of our adoption, or solemn adoption. I have told you upon this occasion formerly, of a double adoption among the Romans, private and public. It is the public adoption that is here referred to. In the private, every good soul is adopted when it is regenerate; but the public adoption, or the manifestation of the sons of God, (as it is afterwards called,) it is referred unto that day when all are to be visibly invested with their glorious bodies, conformed to the glorious body of our Lord Jesus Christ. To have such an agility of body as that it shall never be | dead in Christ are first raised and caught up into the clouds, a clog; such refined spirits that will never cloud our and do meet their Redeemer in the air, then are they ever thoughts, that will never obstruct the notions of the soul. with the Lord, (1 Thess. iv. 16, 17.) never out of his comAnd that shall be, with respect of aptitude to speedy mo- pany, though their company be so vastly numerous and tion, so little cumbersome, that, as Austin's celebrated ex-great; for he is the head of all principalities and powers, pression is, ubi voluerit animus, ibi protinus erit corpus; the head of all things to the church; and yet he must be wheresoever the mind wills or wishes to be, there the body every where present to every one, for they are all to be ever shall be in a moment. Its motions, and (for ought we with the Lord. And when so much is plainly enough exknow) its texture, (as that of the sun-beams,) gliding as pressed and declared to us, we need never trouble ourselves quick as a thought, this way or that; and (for ought we to think how it shall be; he that we know to have done so know) as fine; it being very easy to make the grossest great things already, can easily add to this all the rest; earth as fine as the purest ether, to him that made all things make himself present to those vastly numerous, innumeout of nothing; and since chemistry performs a great deal rable myriads of glorious creatures, that do every where this way by human art, much more may divine. delight in his presence, and cannot but externally do so. So as that these bodies that we are afterwards to inhabit, are said to be from heaven, the terrestrial to be all gone; for in this we groan, "earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house that is from heaven,” 2 Cor. v. 2. All of a piece with heaven, contempered unto heaven, the earthly house of this tabernacle, changed into such a one. 2. And it is very material, and seems to be glanced at in that which is said by our Saviour; "The righteous shall shine as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father," Matt. xiii. 43. The sun in the firmament is (as it were) the resemblance of a glorified body, and how near it may be of the same materials we cannot tell, all our earth being refined into so pure and celestial a matter. And, 3. And then, if you consider again the spiritual and mental perfections (which is incomparably a great thing) of the happy members of this glorious, blessed, numerous society. There you must understand his knowledge in perfection, his holiness in perfection, and his love in perfection. It cannot be expected that in this subject, I could stay to dilate upon every one; but it is a great thing to think of the matter of our own hope in this: I hope to be one of them, I hope to be such a creature, inhabiting such a mind, in such a body, to be one of those Isangeloi, (as they are called,) angel's fellows, equal to the angels of God: Oh! that we should have such things as these in view, and obvious to our thoughts, and yet have no thoughts about them, or few thoughts about them! Live with minds (as it were) confined to this earth, and continually grovelling in the dust of it! This is mean, this is dishonourable to our Father, who hath begotten us to a lively hope of a glorious inheritance; and it is most injurious to ourselves. To think that I shall have a mind, a spirit, ere it be long, (as mean and abject a thing as I now am,) all (as it were) composed and made up of knowledge, and of purity, and of love; what a glorious thing is that! And that I shall have a spirit inhabiting a body, (since I was made to join with a body,) that shall be no hinderance, no burthensome thing to me, no tedious, irksome companion to all eternity. And again, 4. Consider about this state, the universal harmony that must hereupon be in all this glorious, blessed society, as vastly numerous and extensive as it is through the spacious heavens, those regions of light and bliss; come wherever one will, the same order universally obtaining every where; all animated by one and the same spirit; for they "that sow to the Spirit, shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting," Gal. vi. 8. That immense almighty Spirit (as the living creature in the wheels) acting in every mind, be they ever so numerous, and never so vastly extended through the regions of light and bliss; all everlastingly under the dominion of the same blessed, almighty, and omnipresent Spirit; so that there is here among them, wheresoever they be, not one dissentient thought; all have the same sentiment, the same mind, the same inclination, and all centre in one and the same design: no jarring, no disagreement, no darkness, no obscurity, no error, muca more no animosity, having the least place in any member of that glorious society. And again, 5. Consider the glorious visible residence of our great Redeemer among them, who can render himself every where present, and every where appearing in conspicuous glory. How grateful and entertaining a thought must that be to them, who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity, that they are to be for ever with the Lord, when that happy season comes, that the Lord descends with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God; and the And to this also, the context here refers us, still leading us to the final object of our hope; they are to be the heirs of the eternal glory, as their inheritance; they are to be "joint heirs with Christ," they are to inherit with Christ, "and, after having suffered with him, are to be glorified together with him," verse 17; after we have suffered awhile; he and we having been suffering together, he and we shall be glorified together. And to the same purpose is that admirable contexture of discourse, 2 Cor. v. from the beginning of the chapter to the 8th verse; but I cannot stay to run it over with you. Take notice, I pray you, what you find there, in that 8th verse; we are confident, (saith he,) and willing rather to be absent from the body, (this terrestrial body,) not any body at all not altogether to be unclothed, but to be clothed upon; this terrestrial body being reformed, refined, clarified into another thing: for that body we are now in, this terrestrial body, we covet rather to be absent from it, and to be present with the Lord. According to that, Phil. i. 23. I desire rather to be "dissolved and be with Christ, which is far better." We are to be in his presence, and to have him present among us, as soon as we are loose from this base, mean thing, this vile body that we are now linked and clogged with. And the expressions are very observable, that are used in the mentioned place, 2 Cor. v. The words used, signify to be peopled with, or unpeopled or dispeopled fim. The expression of being present with the Lord, do........timate the Lord our blessed Redeemer to be the hea, e president of that dispeopled sort of people, whose ling is not with flesh; they do not inhabit and dwell... uch bodies as those are, in which we now dwell; and long (saith he) to be dispeopled from this bodily so.. f people; and to be taken into the communion of thaeople that dwell out of such bodies with the Lord; to be peopled with that people, of which he is the immediate, visible, glorious head; there I long to be. I would fain be absent from this body. I desire it rather, I choose it as a more desirable thing, to be dispeopled from this bodied sort of people; and to be peopled with them, to make one amongst them, who do people the glorious regions above, which are peopled with another sort of inhabitants, and with them do I covet and hope to dwell, and long to dwell. And then, 6. Consider too the Divine presence universally repienishing all, for in that everlasting state God is himself to be immediately all in all; and so all to be universally transformed into the image of that bright glory, which shines upon them from his blessed face, and all to inhabit that one and the same Divine presence, where there is fulness of joy, and where there are "pleasures for evermore," Psalm xvi. last verse. Oh! for such mean creatures as we, to have such a thing in hope, to make one in that glorious, celestial community, among whom, the blessed eternal God shall, by immediate communication, be all in all to every one! Every soul as full of God as it can hold, and be made capable of beholding unspeakably more, than we can now so much as conceive of; for the design is in our present state, (and very much by the influence of hope,) here to have us refining, and be made more capacious and larger vessels of glory. They that are to be vessels of mercy first, are to be vessels of glory afterwards; here they are to be gradually greatened and enlarged, (and very much by the influence of hope,) in order to their being more receptive vessels, that they may hold more, and be capable of larger and fuller communications from that immense fulness, that filleth all in all. And hereupon, 7. Consider the high satisfaction that every one of those And that is one direction to this purpose, to keep alive this hope, contemplate much, and as distinctly, and with as clear and formed thoughts as you can, the glorious object of it, the final and eternal state; and be ashamed of having such things in view, and of having so few, so unfre quent, and dull, and sluggish thoughts about such things. blessed creatures must have in himself, for there is to be a | diminution from it, to eternity. Therefore there is an imglory revealed in us (as a little above the text.) The possibility, an utter impossibility, that ever there should be context is full of accounts of the final object of our hopes, a cessation. and gives us frequent occasion to consider what it imports, and carries with it; "I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that she be cealed in us." Every one of these glorious creatures is to be glorious within. As it is said of the king's daughter, the spouse of Christ, "She is all glorious within," Psalm xlv. "She will be perfectly so; for he gave himself for his church, to sanctify it and to cleanse it, and to present it a glorious church, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing," Ephes. v. 25, 26, 27. And sanctification is implied to be the very beginning of that glory, the foundation of it. That glory consists in perfect sanctification. He gave himself for it, to sanctify and make it a glorious church; every one of it is then a glorious creature, and eternally glorious, by glory revealed in the Divine image shining in him, in perfect and consummate glory. That image which stands all in knowledge, and holiness, in the greatest amiableness, loveliness, and love that is possible. How infinitely satisfying must such a one's own frame, and the complexion and temper of his own mind, be to himself, when, through a boundless and immense eternity, one shall never have occasion to reflect upon one disorderly thought, or say I wish that thought had never been thought; never have occasion to reflect upon one irregular wish! Oh! the holy order and rectitude that will be within, when every faculty and every power shall be under the dominion of that Almighty Spirit of Divine light and grace; when it shall be as impossible to be the author of one wrong or misplaced thought, as it would be to any of us to be the author of another world, of a world that should be excentrical to this! What a satisfaction is this, and must be, when a person shall so everlastingly agree | with himself, as to have no war within him, nothing of reluctation, nothing of contrariety, against what he knows to be equal, and congruous, and fit, and comely: but every thing just as it should be. And then, thereupon, 8. The mighty complacency that such must take in one another; the everlasting complacencies that they must take in one another, when they are all alike, not equal; it is plain enough there will be different orders; but all alike, all of one mind, all of one sentiment, all conspiring in one and the same design. And then consider, 9. The pleasantness of their perpetual work, wherein they are all to be united; to wit, joyful and everlasting adoration every one pleased with another, upon this account that he knows him to be pleased with exalting God and the Lamb, for ever and ever; when every one knows his fellow to have the same pleasure that he hath in prostration, in falling down before the throne, in ascribing all praise, and dominion, and glory, to him that lives for ever and ever; the eternal Godhead, Father, Son, and Spirit. When the comeliness and equity of the thing recommends itself so fully to every mind, and all agree in one sense, "Worthy art thou, O Lord, to receive blessing, and power, and dominion, for ever and ever," and all say Amen, all proclaim their joyful amen. The vast and spacious heavens continually resounding with this sort of melody, all giving their joyful, grateful amens, to one and the same thing. And this eternity goes on, never wearisome, never grievous; because all this employment, and the exercise, is so suitable to the complexion of every one's mind, none can ever disagree to it, and all things do conspire and concur to make these associates in bliss, and glory, and adoration the most grateful company to one another. We experence something what pleasure and sweetness there is in conversing with such as are wise, and learned, and good, when these things are in conjunction; but when they are in perfection, in absolute perfection, oh, the pleasure that will be taken in being associated with such ones! Lastly, 10. The perfect assurances that all have of the perpetuity of their state, and that there shall never be an end of it. "The light afflictions that are but for a moment work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;" it can never lose its weight; there will be no detraction, no * Preached October 25th, 1691. SERMON XXVI.* Rom. vii. 24. We are saved by hope. But now go on with the further directions that are to be given for the mentioned end. Direction 2. That we compare with that expected heavenly state the present state wherein we are; and with the blessedness of the one, the wretchedness of the other. For if there be any ground for a better hope, there is nothing more likely to awaken it, (supposing we have such a ground before our eyes,) than to have our spirits effectually stung with the sense of the present evils wherewith we are beset, and with which we are continually infested. If we like our present state well, there is no place for hope, no room for it, or if it can have any place, it can have no effect; it will be a very faint, languishing hope, that we shall have for another state, if we are very well pleased with that wherein we are already; and therefore, as to our present state, we should bethink ourselves, and consider, whether, having such a future one in view as hath been represented already, as the ultimate, final object of our hope, we have reason to take up with that wherein we already are. And this we are manifestly led to by the context, which, when the text tells us, "We are saved by hope," doth conjunctly tell us, what the present state of our case is, in a two-fold respect; in respect of this world, in which we live; and in respect of these bodies, to which we are now confined. The former whereof draws our thoughts to consider the remoter evils which do beset us; and the latter, those nearer and more pressing evils which are closely and continually urgent upon us 1. In reference to the state of this world, can we think it a covetable thing, long to continue in such a world as this, when we have any ground in view, of a better hope, or the object of a better, represented to us? See how the state of the world is represented in what goes before, and which the text refers unto, that is, the creature (this inferior creation it must mean) is all subjected unto vanity, and is all groaning under the bondage of corruption, and travailing in pain together, until now. This being the case in this respect, saith the apostle, "We are saved by hope." We are here ingulfed in a world of miseries and sorrows; and all things round about, they are (as it were) in one degree or another, under a pressure and languor; do not we behold the creation drooping? This lower world in which we are, may be seen (as it were) hanging the head, that a languishment is upon all things, the shadow of death hovering over all in every part, and yet subjected unto this state in hope; hope being in reference to the inanimate or irrational part to be understood but objectively. It is subjected to this state of things, but in hope; there being a prospect that it shall be redeemed, shall be recovered, so as to partake of the glorious liberty of the sons of God, whose manifestation doth approach. Now, when all this world is hoping for a better state of things, shall not we hope? We that have received the first-fruits of the Spirit, as it afterwards follows: or what? is impurity, misery, and wretchedness, become so much our element, that we are content to live still there, whilst all things are (as it were) expressing a sense round about us, groaning and travailing; and we pleased, we only pleased, to remain in such a state as this is? But to look upon the state of things in this world more particularly, |