The saints anchor-hold, in all storms and tempests preached in sundry sermons, and published…

1. Lay a sure ground-work for this hope to be built upon. This is then done, when you know that your soul saith, the Lord is your portion. For, 1. This will assure your interest in God himself, who is an all-sufficient portion. When you can say, with David, The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of my Cup, Psal. 16. 5. you may comfortably add, as he did, in ver. 6. The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places: yea, I have a goodly heritage. 2. This will cause you to cleave to the Lord with purpose of heart, as Barnabas exhorted the Antiochians to do, in Acts 11. 23. For where a mans treasure is, there will his heart be also, Mat. 6. 21. As the needle in the Compass, being touched with the Load-stone, is in continual motion, till it points to the North; the reason whereof, some conceive, is, because in the North are Rocks of Load-stone, with which the needle so touched hath a sympathy: so the soul being touched by the spirit of faith, is in continual motion, till it points unto God in ⟨p. 171⟩Christ, that living Rock and true Load-stone, who draws believers to him by a spiritual sympathy which they have with him; as he said in Joh. 12. 32. I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. Then, and not before, they have true rest. Then they may say with David, Return unto thy rest, O my soul! Psal. 116. 7. 3. This will settle and strengthen your hearts against all distracting, discouraging, distrustful fears about future evils. For, things to come are yours, when you are Christs, 1 Cor. 3. 22, 23. The worst that can be-fall you, shall not loose that blessed union that is between God in Christ and your souls. Not sin past, for that is already pardoned; and therefore shall not condemn you hereafter, Rom. 8. 1. nor shall sin to come, have dominion over you,