The Warrant of a Sinner’s Hope in God
T
Were the believer asked, What is the ground of your faith and hope? He would instantly reply, with David, “I hope in his Word,” but this general answer implies several distinct truths, as, first, that the Scriptures are the Word of God; and secondly, that this Word contains a warrant of hope. We may regard the Word as the immediate warrant of a hope which rests on God himself as its supreme object, or in other words, the proximate ground of hope is God’s testimony, while its ultimate ground is God’s character. Persuaded that the Scriptures are the Word of God, the believer hopes, because he finds a warrant for hope there; and this Word he deems a sufficient warrant, because it comes to him on the authority of One who can neither err nor deceive, whose faithfulness is pledged in every promise, and his honour concerned in every declaration which it contains.