communion with Abel; Ifhmael dwelt in the fame house with Ifaac; Judas was in fellowfhip with the Apoftles; and fo was Demas with the rest of the difciples.

There will be some bran in the finest meal, the draw net of the gofpel, catches bad fishes as well as good; the tares and the wheat grow together, and it will be fo till the harvest.God hath a church where there are no members, but fuch as are true members of Chrift: But it is in heaven; it is the Church of the first born. Heb. xii. 23. There are no hypocrites, no rotten unfound Profeffor, none but the spirits of just men made perfect. Matth. iii. 18. All is pure wheat that God layeth up in that garner; there the chaff is feparated to unquenchable fire.

But in the church on earth, the wheat and the chaff lie in the fame heap together: The Samaritans will be near of kin to the Jews, when they are in profperity; for while the church of God flourisheth in the world, many will join to it; they will feem Jews, though they are Samaritans; and feem faints, tho' yet they are no better than almoft Chriftians.

(9.) A man may have great hopes of heaven, great hopes of being faved, and yet be but almost a Chriftian. Indeed there is a hope of heaven, which is the anchor of the foul, fure and ftedfaft, Heb. vi. 10. It never mifcarries, and it is known by four properties.

First, It is a hope which purifies the heart, purges out fin, 1 John, iii. 3. "He that hath

this hope, purifies himself even as God is pure. That foul that truly hopes to enjoy God, truly endeavours to be like God.

Secondly, It is a hope which fills the heart with gladnefs: "We rejoice in hope of the glory of God," Rom. v. 2.

Thirdly, It is a hope that is founded upon the promise. Pfal. cxx. 6. As there can be no true faithwithout a promife, fo not any true hope. Faith applies the promife, and hope expects the fulfilling of the promife. Faith relies upon the truth of it, and hope waits for the good of it. Faith gives intereft, hope expects livery & feifin.

Fourthly, It is a hope that is wrought by God himself in the foul, who is therefore called, "The God of hope," Rom. xv. 13. as being the author as well as the object of hope. Now he that hath this hope, fhall never mifcarry: This is a right hope, the hope of the true believer, Chrift in you the hope of glory, Col. i. 27.

But then, as there is a true and found hope, fo there is a falfe and rotten hope; and this is much more common, as baftard pearls are more frequently worn than true pearls. There is nothing more common than to fee men big with groundless hopes of heaven. As, firft, a man may have great hope, that hath no grace; you read of the hope of hypocrites, Job xviii.

13, 14.

The performance of duties is a proof of their hope: The foolish virgins would never have done what they did, had they thought G 2 they

they should have been fhut out after all.

Many profeffors would not be at fuch pains in duties as they are, if they did not hope for heaven. Hope is the great motive to action; despair cuts the finews of all endeavours; this is one reason why the damned in hell ceafe acting toward an alteration of their state, because despair hath taken hold of them: If there were any hope in hell, they would up and be doing there. So that there may be great hopes, where there is no grace. Experience proves this; formal profeffors are men of no grace, but yet men of great hopes: Nay, many times you fhall find, that none fear more about their eternal condition, than they that have most cause of joy, and none hope more, than they that have moft caufe to fear. As intereft in God may fometimes be without hope, fo hope in God may be without intereft.

(2.) A man may hope in the mercy, and goodness, and power of God without eyeing the promise; and this is the hope of moft. God is full of mercy and goodnefs, and therefore willing to fave; and he is infinite in power, and therefore able to fave; why therefore fhould I not reft on him.

Now it is prefumption, and therefore fin, to hope in the mercy of God, otherwife than by eyeing the promife; for the promise is the channel of mercy, the pipe through which it is conveyed: All the bleffednefs the faints enjoy in heaven, is no other than what is the fruit of the promise relyed on, and hoped for

there

there on earth. A man hath no warrant to hope in God, but by virtue of the promise.

(3.) A man may hope for heaven, and yet not cleanse his heart, nor depart from his fecret fins: That hope of falvation that is not accompanied with heart purification, that is a vain hope.

(4.) A man may hope for heaven, and yet be doing the work of hell: He may hope for falvation, and yet be working out his own damnation, and fo perifh in his confidences. This is the cafe of many, "Male agendo fperant, & fperando pereunt:" Like the waterman, that looks one way and rows another.Many have their eyes on heaven, whofe hearts are in the earth: They hope in God, but choose him not for a portion: They hope in God, but do not love him as the best good, and therefore are like to have no portion in him, nor good by him; but are like to perifh without him, notwithstanding all their hopes, Job xxvii. 8. "What is the hope of the hypocrite, though he hath gained, when God takes away his foul?"

Now then, if a man may have great hopes of heaven, that hath no grace; if he may hope in mercy without eyeing the promise; if he may hope without heart purifying; if he may hope for heaven, and yet do the work of hell; furely then, a man may have great hopes of heaven, and yet be but almoft a Chriftian.

(10.) A man may be under great and vifible changes, and thefe wrought by the mini

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stry of the word, and yet be but almost a Chriftian, as Herod was: It is faid, when he heard John the Baptiit, "He did many things, and heard him gladly," Matth. vi. 20. Saul was under a great change, when he met the Lord's prophets, he turned prophet too.

Nay, it is faid, ver. 9. of that 1 Sam. x. that God gave him another heart. Now, was not this a work of grace? And was not Saul here truly converted? One would think he was, but yet indeed he was not. For though it is faid, God gave him another heart, yet it is not faid, that God gave him a new heart.

There is a great difference between (lebb aeber) another heart, and (lebb chadish) a new heart; God gave him another heart to fit him for a ruler, but gave him not a new heart to make him a believer: Another heart may make another man; but it is a new heart that makes a new man.

Again, Simon Magus is a great proof of this truth, he was under a great and visible change; of a forcerer, he was turned to a believer; he left his witchcrafts and forceries, and embraced the gofpel; was not this a great change?

If the drunkard doth but leave his drunkennefs, the swearer his oaths, the profane perfon his profanenefs; they think this a gracious. change, and their ftate is now good: Alas! Simon Magus did not only leave his fins, but had a kind of converfion; for he believed, and was baptized, Acts viii. 13.

Object.