2. The hope of a godly man is built upon experiences: Rom. 5.4. Experience worketh hope. A Believer can bring in a Catalogue of experiences; Psal. 119.65. Thou hast dealt well with thy servant. So can a Believer say, God hath dealt well with him: In several cases he hath had experiences of God; when his sins and tentations have been strong, God hath come in with Auxiliary Forces, and his grace hath been sufficient. When his heart hath been sinking under fears, God hath buoyed him up out of quicksands, and lifted up his head out of deep waters: Psal. 3.3. Thou art O Lord my glory, and the lifter up of my head. When his heart hath been dead in duty, the Spirit of God hath been sweetly tuning of his soul, and now he makes melody in his heart to the Lord, Ephes. 5.19. A godly man hath many signal experiences of Gods favour to him, and experience breeds hope: So that a godly mans hope hath a foundation, it is a well-built hope; that hope must needs stand strong, which stands with one foot upon a promise, and with the other foot upon an experience: But a wicked mans hope is tela aranea, a Spiders Web, he hath nothing to ground his hope upon, ⟨p. 586⟩his hope is an imposture, a golden dream; Isa. 29.8. It is as when an hungry man dreameth, and behold he eateth, but he awaketh and his soul is empty. The hope of a sinner is like a dying mans will, that hath neither seal set to it, or witnesses; in the will he promiseth to bequeath such a Manor and Lordship, so many thousand pounds to such a one; but the will being without seal and witnesses, it is null and void in Law; just such is the hope of a wicked man, his hope promiseth him great matters, that Christ is his, and all the privileges of heaven are his, but alas it is a mere delusion of his false heart; when things come to be examined, he wants both seal and witnesses; he wants the seal of the Word to confirm his Title, and the witness of the Spirit, Plurimi spe periclitantur; *this is a sad thing for a man to go to hell with the hope of heaven; [Greek or Hebrew].
2. The hope of a godly man is built upon experiences: Rom. 5.4. Experience worketh hope. A Believer can bring in a Catalogue of experiences; Psal. 119.65. Thou hast dealt well with thy servant. So can a Believer say, God hath dealt well with him: In several cases he hath had experiences of God; when his sins and tentations have been strong, God hath come in with Auxiliary Forces, and his grace hath been sufficient. When his heart hath been sinking under fears, God hath boyed him up out of quicksands, and lifted up his head out of deep waters: Psal. 3.3. Thou art O Lord my glory, and the lifter up of my head. When his heart hath been dead in duty, the Spirit of God hath been sweetly tuning of his soul, and now he makes melody in his heart to the Lord, Ephes. 5.19. A godly man hath many signal experiences of Gods favour to him, and experience breeds hope: So that a godly mans hope hath a foundation, it is a well-built hope; that hope must needs stand strong, which stands with one foot upon a promise, and with the other foot upon an experience: But a wicked mans hope is tela aranea, a Spiders Web, he hath nothing to ground his hope upon, ⟨p. 586⟩his hope is an imposture, a golden dream; Isa. 29.8. It is as when an hungry man dreameth, and behold he eateth, but he awaketh and his soul is empty. The hope of a sinner is like a dying mans will, that hath neither seal set to it, or witnesses; in the will he promiseth to bequeath such a Mannor and Lordship, so many thousand pounds to such a one; but the will being without seal and witnesses, it is null and void in Law; just such is the hope of a wicked man, his hope promiseth him great matters, that Christ is his, and all the priviledges of heaven are his, but alas it is a meer delusion of his false heart; when things come to be examined, he wants both seal and witnesses; he wants the seal of the Word to confirm his Title, and the witness of the Spirit, Plurimi spe periclitantur; *this is a sad thing for a man to go to hell with the hope of heaven; 〈non-Latin alphabet〉.
- *Aug.
