The safety of appearing at the day of judgement, in the righteousness of Christ

and the reason that now they venture themselves on Christ is not any self-excellency, for they come to him when they are at worst, when they see the plague of their own hearts; but is it because they are convinced of the safety that is in Christ: to them that believe Christ is precious, 1 Pet. 2.7. 3. Because they have comfortable and gracious hopes of glory: there be many flattering hopes of blessedness that ungodly men do entertain, that depend upon ⟨p. 115⟩their vain conceits; but the people of God have a gracious hope of glory: and the hopes of the people of God do principally depend on the conviction of these two things: 1. That there is safety in Christs righteousness; and then that they have an interest in it, have received it: their Faith of dependence arises from the conviction of the first, but their hope arises from both together: 'tis true that their hopes do rise from the belief of other promises of glory, together with a sight of the qualifications in the mselves that are mentioned in those promises: thus Saints have hope from those promises that are made to those that love God, that mortify sin, that love the Saints, that are patient under afflictions, &c. yet the fundamental promise of the Gospel is that which is made to believing in Christ: and the hopes of christians do principally arise from the conviction of Christs righteousness, together with our interest therein, 1 Pet. 1, 8. Believing ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Rom. 15.13. The God of hope fill you with joy and peace in believing. 2. This conviction is not the fruit of mens natural reason; natural reason tho advantaged with external revelation, cannot satisfy the heart that it is safe to appear in the righteousness of Christ: natural reason may work some conviction of this truth, and discover so much of it that a man may come to look upon it very rational and probable: but it cannot discover the certainty of it: flesh and blood can't reveal that: natural reason may make such a discovery of this truth, that they may be urged in conscience to believe in Christ, and condemned in conscience for not believing in him, that they may think those happy that do believe in him: that they judg those grossly erroneous that do deny ⟨p. 116⟩