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<DATE>2009-04-29</DATE>
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<NAME>Lauren Proux</NAME>
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<P>REDEEMING THE TIME.</P>
<P>A SERMON PREACHED AT <HI>Pre&s;ton</HI> in <HI>Lanca&s;hire, January</HI> 4^t^h^. 1657. at the Funeral of the Honourable Lady, THE LADY MARGARET HO&V;GHTON.</P>
<P>Revi&s;ed, and, &s;omewhat Enlarged; and, at the impor|tunity of &s;ome Friends, now publi&s;hed.</P>
<P>BY <HI>ISAAC AMBROSE.</HI> Preacher of the Go&s;pel at <HI>Gar&s;tange</HI> in the &s;ame County.</P>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI> Printed for <HI>Rowland Reynalds,</HI> at the Sun and Bible, in the <HI>Poultrey.</HI> 1674.</P>
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<Q><BIBL><HI>Eph. 5.16.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Redeeming the Time.</P></Q>
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<P>_THE Apo&s;tle here gives many Le&s;&s;ons; exhorting 1. to love, <HI>Walk in love, as Chri&s;t al&s;o hath loved us:</HI> 2. To fly fornication,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>v.</HI> 1.</NOTE> <HI>But fornication, and all uncleane&s;s, or covetou&s;ne&s;s,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>v.</HI> 3.</NOTE> <HI>let it not be once named among&s;t you, as becometh Saints.</HI> 3. To avoid in|timate, dear, or familiar conver&s;e with gracele&s;s men, <HI>Be not,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>v.</HI> 7, 8.</NOTE> <HI>ye therefore partakers with them; for ye were &s;ometimes darkene&s;s, but now are you light, walk as Children of light.</HI> 4. To walk warily, exactly, circum&s;pectly, <HI>See then that ye walk circum&s;pectly, not as fools, but as wi&s;e.</HI> And this la&s;t he amplifies from an effect, which te&s;tifies a circum&s;pect, exact, and acurate walking, to wit, <HI>Redeeming the time,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>I am only to learn you &s;ome part of this la&s;t Le&s;&s;on; wherein you have 1. The in&s;truction it &s;elf, <HI>See that you walk circum&s;pectly.</HI> 2. The amplification of this in|&s;truction; and that is either from the rea&s;on binding to it, <HI>not as fools, but as wi&s;e;</HI> or from the effect te&s;tifying of it, <HI>Redeeming the time.</HI></P>
<P N="1">1. For the in&s;truction it &s;elf, <HI>See that ye walk circum&s;pectly, <GAP DESC="foreign">, exactly, preci&s;ely;</HI> no word fits the Greek better than this; it comes of two words, <GAP DESC="foreign">, which &s;ignifie to go to the extremity of a thing: <HI>we mu&s;t be willing to go to the utmo&s;t of every Command.</HI> To which purpo&s;e are tho&s;e precepts, to be <HI>hot in Re|ligion,</HI> Rev. 3.16. to be <HI>zealous of good works,</HI> Tit. 2.14. to be <HI>fervent in &s;pirit,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Rev. 3.16.</NOTE> Rom. 12.11. to <HI>&s;trive to enter in at the &s;trait Gate.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Tit. 2.14.</NOTE> Luk. 13.24. with an holy <HI>vio|ence to lay hold upon the Kingdom of Heaven,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Rom. 12.11.</NOTE> Matth. 11.12.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 12.24.</NOTE> But this is not the point I &s;hall now in&s;i&s;t on.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mat. 11.12.</NOTE></P>
<P N="2">2. For the rea&s;on binding to it, <HI>not as fools, but as wi&s;e.</HI> It points to us, that <HI>exactne&s;s, or preci&s;ene&s;s in holy walking is a fruit of true Wi&s;edom. Luther</HI> brings in the men of the World objecting again&s;t him, <HI>Num tu &s;olus &s;apis? Num &s;olus tu De<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter"> places?</HI> What? are you the onely Wi&s;e man in the World? do you onely plea&s;e God? The an&s;wer was ea&s;ie from this Text, that <HI>exact walking, or a &s;trict conver&s;ation, is the fruit of Wi&s;edom.</HI> But neither is this the point that I &s;hall in&s;i&s;t on.</P>
<P N="3">3. For the effect te&s;tifying of it, <HI>Redeeming the time.</HI> If I may open the words, 1. By <HI>time</HI> is meant <HI>oppertunity;</HI> which either it taken for the whole cour&s;e of our remaining life, or for &s;uch and &s;uch particular occa&s;ions as God doth offer to this or that particular duty; and both the&s;e may be under&s;tood here. 2. By <HI>Redeeming the time,</HI> is meant either the avoiding of &s;ome hinderances, which would take us off from the opportunity; or the recompencing of &s;ome former unfruitfulne&s;s, which hath been in the former part of our life: or a gaining, &s;treching, improving of time by embracing all the occa&s;ions of doing all the good we can do: and we &s;hall di&s;cover anon, that all the&s;e may be under&s;tood here. In the mean time we lay down this Po&s;ition as a nece&s;&s;ary, fundamental, Evangelical truth, that <HI>time mu&s;t be Redeemed</HI> Look to it all ye that fear God; herein will your &s;piritual Wi&s;edom, and exact walking appear, even in <HI>Redeeming the time.</HI></P>
<P>In the pro&s;ecution of this point, I &s;hall 1. give you the <GAP DESC="foreign"> 2. The. 3. The <GAP DESC="foreign">. And then come to Application.</P>
<P N="1">1. That time mu&s;t be redeemed, the very Heathens confirm it: 'Twas the &s;aying of one <HI>Pittacus,</HI> one of the &s;even Wi&s;e-men, <GAP DESC="foreign">, <HI>know time; lo&s;e not a minute. Theophra&s;tus</HI> had another &s;aying near to this, <HI>Sumptus pretio&s;i&s;&s;imus tempus: time is of pretious co&s;t. Pliny</HI> &s;eeing but his Nephew at lei&s;ure, taking &s;ome turnes in his walk, was &s;o very &s;trict, that he tells him, <HI>Non licet has boras perdere, he &s;hould not lo&s;e &s;o many precious hours.</HI> When <HI>Titus</HI> the Son of <HI>Ve&s;pa&s;ian</HI> who revenged,
<PB N="2" REF="3">Chri&s;t's blood on <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> returned victor to <HI>Rome,</HI> remembring one night that had done no good that day, he cryed out to his friends, <HI>Hen perdidi diem! O alas, I have lo&s;t a day!</HI> Little do we think of lo&s;ing time, and is not this our &s;hame? If &s;uch men without God and Chri&s;t, without Law and Go&s;pel, without all the promi&s;es of God and Chri&s;t in Law or Go&s;pel, could &s;ay thus much, how may they ri&s;e up in judgment again&s;t many of us? But we cite not them, as though we &s;tood in need of their learning;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Col. 4.5.</NOTE> the Apo&s;tles them&s;elves give it us in charge, <HI>walk in Wi&s;edom to|wards them that are without,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Heb. 3.13.15.</NOTE> <HI>redeeming the time, and exhort one another while it is cal|led to day, le&s;t any of you be hardened through the deceitfulne&s;s of &s;in.</HI> And again, <HI>while it is &s;aid to day,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Pet. 1.17.18.</NOTE> <HI>if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.</HI> And, <HI>pa&s;s the time of your &s;ojourning here with fear,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Pet. 4.3.</NOTE> <HI>fora&s;much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things,&mdash;but with the pretious blood of Chri&s;t.</HI> q. d. Chri&s;t redeemed you, and therefore you had need to redeem the time. <HI>For the time pa&s;t of our life may &s;uffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles.&mdash;&s;o that henceforth we &s;hould not &s;erve &s;in.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Rom. 6.6, Gal. 10.9.6.</NOTE>&mdash;<HI>or no longer &s;hould we live the re&s;t of our time in the fle&s;h to the lu&s;ts of men, but to the will of God.&mdash;Let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due &s;ea&s;on we &s;hall reap if we faint not; as we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men.</HI> It is <HI>Hieroms</HI> &s;aying upon the&s;e words, <HI>O how &s;hort is this race of my life? how &s;hort is this time now in hand?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Breve vitae Curriculum. <HI>&amp;c. Jeron. l 3.</HI> Comment.</NOTE> <HI>my &s;tudying, preaching, writing, correcting, reading, what it is but a gaining or a loo&s;ing of my time?</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. What is it to redeem the time?<NOTE PLACE="marg">John <HI>4.</HI></NOTE> I an&s;wer, it comprehends the&s;e par|ticulars.</P>
<P N="1">1. An avoiding any thing which would hinder us from taking the opportunity. If you ask, what are the&s;e hinderances? I an&s;wer, 1. Ignorance; many think they are not in &s;o &s;trait a manner to be accountable for time. It is a general opinion of the gro&s;&s;ely ignorant, that if they can but pa&s;s away in time without doing any harm (as they &s;ay) they are well enough; as if no account of time might be given at all: they are ignorant of this principle, that they <HI>are to improve, and to redeem the time.</HI> 2. Slothfulne&s;s; this makes men heedle&s;s, or carele&s;s of their time: As it is with the &s;lug|gard, <HI>Yet a little more &s;leep,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cor. 6.10.</NOTE> <HI>a little more &s;lumber, a little more folding of the arms is &s;leep.</HI> So it is with the idle per&s;on, <HI>Let this hour, and this day be &s;pent in doing nothing.</HI> O the many golden hours, and days, and years that many thou&s;ands &s;pend, and yet cannot give the lea&s;t account wherein either they have glorified God, or &s;erved their generations. 3. Love of fle&s;hly liberty: Alas, what care they for redeeming time who are &s;et on their lu&s;ts and liberties to &s;in? All the care they have, it is meerly to eat, and drink, and play: &s;en&s;ual plea&s;ures are the whole &s;tudy of the&s;e men, and if they can but enjoy them, let time &s;lip away as it will, they never re|gard it.</P>
<P N="2">2. A recompen&s;ing of &s;ome former unfruitfulne&s;s: <GAP DESC="foreign"> hath this interpretati|on, it is a redeeming (as it were) of that jewel of time that hath been formerly lo&s;t. As a travailer that hath long &s;tayed at an Inne, when he finds the night comming upon him, he mends his pace, and goes as many miles in an hour or two, as he did before in many. This me thinks comes neare&s;t to the word <HI>Redimo, to redeem,</HI> or to buy back again. It is taken (&s;ay &s;ome) from the cu&s;tom and practice of wi&s;e Merchants or Trade&s; men, who uie to buy their commodities while fit time of buying &s;erves, and while the market holds; and having haply had great lo&s;&s;es, or formerly &s;pent their time idly or unthriftily, they do by their after diligence &s;eek to redeem, and (as it were) to buy back again the time that is pa&s;t.</P>
<P N="3">3. An embracing of all occa&s;ions for acting graces, and doing good; and this agrees with the rea&s;on following, <HI>for the dayes are evil.</HI> q. d. Look to your &s;elves, for the&s;e are hard and di&s;mal times; now is much corruption, and great per&s;ecution, and the opportunity of good is exceedingly &s;traitned; and therefore it is very needful to catch at time, and to lay hold on an opportunity, both to exerci&s;e graces, and to be doing as much good as you may, while the time permitteth. <HI>I mu&s;t work the works of him that &s;ent me,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">John 9.4.</NOTE> <HI>while it is day,</HI> &s;aith Chri&s;t, <HI>the night cometh when no man can work:</HI> And,<NOTE PLACE="marg">John 12.35.</NOTE> <HI>yet a little while and the light is with you, walk while ye have the light, le&s;t dark|ne&s;s come upon you:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gal. 6.10.</NOTE> And <HI>as we have opportunity, let us do good unto all men, e&s;pecially to them who are of the hou&s;hold of faith.</HI> Mark the&s;e &s;ayings, <HI>while it s called to day; and while the light is with you; and while you have opportunity.</HI> Thus you &s;ee what it is.</P>
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<P N="3">3. But why mu&s;t <HI>time be redeemed?</HI> what nece&s;&s;ity for that? I an&s;wer&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. In re&s;pect of time pa&s;t. Alas, many a golden &s;ea&s;on have we lo&s;t, how many hours, and dayes, and months, and years have we &s;pent idly, and done little good? Is it not time then to lay hold of every opportunity to redeem time pa&s;t? When God brought us forth into this world, his commands were upon us to work in his vineyard, and to that purpo&s;e he de&s;igned to every one his time; <HI>thus many dayes, or months, or years &s;hall you every one live, and while you live be imploying the&s;e and the&s;e talents; it is my command upon all the &s;ons of men, in the &s;weat of thy face</HI> (i. e. of thy brow, or of thy brain) <HI>&s;hall thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 3.19.</NOTE> <HI>and why then do ye &s;tand all the day idle? why are ye not in the work; and e&s;pecially in the work of the Lord?</HI> Now if this be &s;o, that there is &s;uch a command, and that we have broke this com|mand at &s;uch a time, and &s;uch a time, is it not our duty, and is there not cau&s;e to redeem the time? A fellow that hath loytered a great part of the day in his bu&s;ine&s;s, and yet mu&s;t needs fini&s;h his work, will he not toyl and &s;weat at it towards night? will he not double his pains, and put all his &s;trength to it? So we, having not onely been &s;lack in our bu&s;ine&s;s about Gods &s;ervice, and &s;low in the way towards Heaven, but even for many yeares having perhaps run in a quite contrary cour&s;e, and done the Devils work, how &s;hould we now towards the night of our natural life, and in the conclu&s;ion of the &s;hort &s;pan thereof, &s;pare no paines, double our diligence, pre&s;s hard to the price of the high calling with an holy kind of violence, lay hold upon the Kingdom of Heaven, with all zeal, courage, and re&s;olution labour to redeem pa&s;t, be|cau&s;e it is pa&s;t? This our rea&s;on.</P>
<P N="2">2. In re&s;pect of time pre&s;ent: It is but a moment on which depends eternal bli&s;s or woe, if we have lo&s;t time pa&s;t, and if we do lo&s;e time pre&s;ent, we may be undone for ever. In this re&s;pect may we &s;ay of time, as <HI>Boaz</HI> &s;aid to his kin&s;man concerning <HI>Ruth, If you will redeem it, redeem it:</HI> never think of redeeming it tomorrow,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ruth. 4.4. 2 Cor. 6.2.</NOTE> or the other day; or hereafter; for no time is properly yours but the pre&s;ent time. <HI>Behold now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of &s;alvation:</HI> now while I am &s;peaking and you hearing; now ere the night be done or the next day comes on. Oh why &s;hould we trifle away the time which is properly ours, and promi&s;e to our &s;elves great things in a time which is none of ours?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Luk 19.42.</NOTE> When Chri&s;t mourned over <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> he bemoans it thus, <HI>If thou had&s;t known, even thou at lea&s; in this thy day, the things belonging to thy peace:</HI> So may I mourn over you, if thou had&s;t known, even thou <HI>at le&s;t in this thy day:</HI> when's that? while Mini&s;ters call and you hear, this is your day; and there|fore he that never heard effectually, let him hear now; it is now high time to awake out of that cur&s;ed &s;ecurity wherein you lie; the Lord is now come near, Chri&s;t Je&s;us is calling, mercy is intreating, and wi&s;edom is even hoar&s;e with crying after you, if you lo&s;e this time, this hour of grace, who knows whether ever you &s;hall enjoy &s;uch another &s;ea&s;on? Oh take time by the forehead! <HI>po&s;t e&s;t occa&s;io calva;</HI> it will be too late &s;oon. Now the Lord calls, and now it concerns us to be&s;tirr our &s;elves upon the&s;e grounds.</P>
<P N="1">1. Becau&s;e now <HI>are evil dayes;</HI> the very rea&s;on in the Text: the&s;e are the la&s;t times, which the Apo&s;tle calls <HI>perillous times;</HI> and why perillous?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tim. 3.1.2.</NOTE> <HI>For men &s;hall belevers of their own &s;elves, covetous, boa&s;ters, proud, bla&s;phemers,</HI> &amp;c. One would think it ra|ther an Hi&s;tory than a Prophecie of our dayes. Oh is it not time now, if ever, <HI>to reedeem the time.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. Becau&s;e now are dayes of light: notwith&s;tanding the evils of &s;ome or mo&s;t in compari&s;on, yet many glorious truths do now appear: the Devil, I know, now brings forth his ware, but withal God is now a communicating many ble&s;&s;ed truths. In re|&s;pect of us, our fathers before, and &s;ince the Reformation were in great darkne&s;s; the candle of God now &s;hines upon this Nation with extraordinary light: And what then? Why therefore it concernes us to <HI>redeem the time:</HI> This is the Apo&s;tles argument,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Act. 17.30.</NOTE> <HI>The time of this ignorance God winks at but now he commandeth every man every where to repent.</HI> This is another rea&s;on.</P>
<P N="3">3. In re&s;pect of time to come: I &s;hall in&s;tance onely in time of death, and time of judgment.</P>
<P N="1">1. Death is at hand, and then we cannot redeem the time: So the Preacher,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Eccle&s;. 9.10.</NOTE> <HI>What|&s;oever thy hand findeth to doe, doe it with thy might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wi&s;edom in the grave whither thou goe&s;t.</HI> q. d. If there be any thing to be done, if there be any duty God requires, doe it in life, for when death &s;hall come there &s;hall be no more preaching, praying, hearing.<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 38.18.19.</NOTE> <HI>The grave cannot prai&s;e
<PB N="4" REF="5">thee, death cannot celebrate thee, they that go down into the pit cannot hope for thy truth: the living, the living he &s;hall prai&s;e thee, as I do this day.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. Our doom for eternity of joyes or woes drawes on apace, and is even at the door. Then I am &s;ure, account mu&s;t be given for <HI>time,</HI> as well as for all other things. <HI>Come,</HI> will Chri&s;t &s;ay, <HI>give an account of thy &s;teward&s;hip, of all things done in the fle&s;h, and of every moment of time: how did&s;t thou &s;pend &s;uch a day, &s;uch a Sabbath? was not &s;uch a day &s;pent &s;infully, or very unprofitably, and was it ever redeemed?</HI> Here's a rea|&s;on indeed to force on us this duty. But of this and other rea&s;ons I &s;hall &s;peak more in the motives, when I exhort you to it.</P>
<P>Well then,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>&V;&s;e.</HI> 1.</NOTE> is it &s;o, that <HI>time mu&s;t be redeemed?</HI> this may reprove &s;everal &s;orts of per|&s;ons: as&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. The idle; that are &s;o far from <HI>redeeming time,</HI> that they are perpetually lo&s;ing time. This was the &s;in of <HI>Sodom, pride, fulne&s;s of bread: and abundance of idlene&s;s, was in her.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ezek. 16.</NOTE> Give me leave a little to lay open this &s;in. Surely this &s;in is the foun|tain of all &s;ins; by doing nothing we &s;hall be &s;ure to learn how to doe ill. It is &s;aid of <HI>Rome,</HI> that during the time of their Wars with <HI>Carthage,</HI> and other enemies in <HI>Africa,</HI> they knew not what vice meant; but no &s;ooner had they got the conque&s;t, than through idlene&s;s they came to ruin. Ru&s;t you know will fret into the harde&s;t Iron, if it be not u&s;ed; &s;o vice will infect the be&s;t heart, if given to idlene&s;s. Stand|ing Water is &s;ooner frozen than the running &s;tream; and he that fitteth is more &s;ub|ject to &s;leep than he that walketh; &s;o the idle man is far more &s;ubject to temptation than he that is profitably exerci&s;ed. Idlene&s;s is the Devils &s;pecial opportunity; and we have an in&s;tance in <HI>David's</HI> idlene&s;s, who at, that time, was &s;et on by the Devil to commit other &s;ins of Adultery and Murder. But this is a &s;in that very boyes in Schools can declame again&s;t; and if it were not that I &s;ee many among&s;t us &s;pend their time &s;o very unprofitably, I had not once named it. Oh think of it! If a Ma&s;ter &s;hould &s;et a light upon a Candle&s;tick, and give his &s;ervant food, and time, and all things convenient wherewith to work, yet when he comes to &s;ee if his task be fini&s;hed, he finds that the meat is wa&s;ted, the time is ended, the Candle to the very &s;ocket burned, and little or nothing of the work is furthered, how would &s;uch a &s;ervant excu&s;e him|&s;elf unto his Ma&s;ter? And is it not &s;o with many of you? God hath given you meat, drink, and time; he hath given you Candle, Fire. and matter; but what have you done? Is not the lamp of your life almo&s;t con&s;umed, and yet you have not fini&s;hed the work that was given you to doe?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Marth. 20.6.</NOTE> <HI>Oh why &s;tand ye here all the day idle?</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. The voluptuous: the&s;e mi&s;pend their time as ill as the former. <HI>They take the timbrel and harp and,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Job 21.12, 13.</NOTE> <HI>rejoyce at the &s;ound of the organ, they &s;pend their dayes in mirth.</HI> They wa&s;te the fat and marrow (as it were) of precious time, even the flower of their age, in froth and folly. Lord, that men &s;hould live upon earth, as Liviathan in the Sea, onely to take their &s;port and pa&s;time therein! We have &s;een the &s;ad Cata|&s;trophe of &s;ome who have led &s;uch lives; and I believe &s;till there is a generation of men, that except they be continually exerci&s;ed in variety of plea&s;ures, they are &s;ore troubled with <HI>time;</HI> what el&s;e is the meaning of all tho&s;e <HI>pa&s;&s;e-times</HI> (as they call them) but onely a concatenation of &s;uch delights as plea&s;e the fle&s;h, that <HI>time</HI> may not be ro tedious weari&s;ome unto them? Little doe the&s;e men con&s;ider that &s;aying of <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Pre&s;ens tempus non effundendi gaudu, &s;ed tri|bulationum <HI>&amp;c.</HI></NOTE> <HI>The pre&s;ent time is not for melting into mirth, but for lamentation and mourning; the Devil omits no time to hurt you, for he knowes his time is &s;hort; &s;till is he laying his &s;nares to intrap mens &s;ouls; he goes about like a roaring Lion to devour; he roars, and fumes, and fla&s;hes out fire again&s;t your Salva|tion;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Chry&s;. <HI>in cap.</HI> 5. <HI>ad</HI> Ephe&s;. <HI>Ser.</HI> 17.</NOTE> and doe you &s;it &s;till, and jovially je&s;t it out?</HI> Hark in your ears! <HI>the pre&s;ent time is not for mrith,</HI> &s;aith <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome;</HI> no, no, the pre&s;ent time is for vertuous actions, to do the great bu&s;ine&s;s for which you were born, to mourn, and &s;orrow, and &s;ue out your pardon, and not to &s;pend it in jollity, and fle&s;hly delights. If a con|demned man had two or three dayes granted him to &s;ue out his pardon, were that a time for plea&s;ure and &s;ports?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 2.17.</NOTE> Surely the &s;entence of death is upon all fle&s;h; <HI>In the day that thou eate&s;t thereof thou &s;halt &s;urely die;</HI> onely a little uncertain time is granted to &s;ue out our pardon in the name of Chri&s;t: why then doe you &s;lip away your time &s;infully, and will not redeem it?</P>
<P N="3">3. The godly them&s;elves: Alas, the be&s;t are &s;hort in this duty of <HI>redeeming the
<PB N="5" REF="5">time.</HI> Did not the Lord complain again&s;t his own people,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Jer. 8.7.</NOTE> <HI>the Stork in the Heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the Turtle, and the Crane, and the Swallow ob&s;erve the time of their coming, but my people know not the judgment of the Lord.</HI> Certainly God's own people doe not &s;o improve, as they ought, tho&s;e many gracious &s;ea&s;ons of love which the Lord affords them. O the omi&s;&s;ions of Duties, and commi&s;&s;ions of evils whereof we all &s;tand guilty! of how many good hours have we been ill Hus|bands? I &s;hall not need to reckon up our times of infancy when we knew nothing, nor of childhood when we knew very little, nor of youth when we knew not much of that we ought to know; but &s;ince our riper years, yea &s;ince the time of our re|generacy, how prodigal have we been of this precious commodity of <HI>time?</HI> tho&s;e that keep exact diaries can ea&s;ily tell you, <HI>&s;uch an hour lo&s;t, and &s;uch an hour ill &s;pent; this day I did little good, and the other day I &s;inned again&s;t my God.</HI> If in this ca&s;e I may &s;peak out my own experiences, I mu&s;t needs acknowledge that many and many a day I have lo&s;t &s;uch and &s;uch an opportunity, and now that evil days come thick up|on me, wherein I would gladly redeem my days, oh how flow and backward am I as yet in this Heavenly Duty! My dear brethern, I &s;hall not onely reprove you, but my &s;elf in this: <HI>O why art thou &s;o dull, and li&s;tle&s;s, and heavy, O my &s;oul? Awake, awake! &s;tirr up thy &s;elf, and with redoubled diligence fall to the work of redeeming time, while yet the time, the day, the &s;ea&s;on, the opportunity of grace, of Heaven, or of Sal|vation la&s;teth.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. Mu&s;t <HI>time be redeemed?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>&V;&s;e</HI> 2.</NOTE> why then let me exhort you by the meekne&s;s and gen|tlene&s;s of Chri&s;t to be in the exerci&s;e of this Duty. Oh <HI>redeem your time!</HI> avoid all tho&s;e hinderances that would take you off: recompence your former unfruitfulne&s;s by after diligence; embrace all occa&s;ions of acting grace, and doing good. I might dilate on all the&s;e particulars; but I &s;hall contract all in the&s;e very words, <HI>Redeem the time, oh redeem your time.</HI></P>
<P>The motives be&s;ides the former rea&s;ons may be the&s;e.</P>
<P N="1">1. Time is ever on the wing, and &s;tayes for no man. The Scripture is very full of this; we meet with many &s;imilitudes hinting at the &s;udden, invi&s;ible motion of time. <HI>My dayes are &s;wifter then a po&s;t, they fly away;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Job. 9.25, 26.</NOTE> <HI>they are pa&s;&s;ed away as the &s;wift Ships, as the Eagle that ha&s;teth to the prey.</HI> See how <HI>Job</HI> here multiplies com|pari&s;ons, that if we will not learn by the fir&s;t, we might learn by a &s;econd, or by a third: Goe we to the land, and there we &s;ee <HI>time</HI> on the &s;pur, in the &s;wift riding po&s;t; goe we to the Sea, and there we &s;ee <HI>time</HI> upon the wind, in the &s;wift &s;ailing Ship; goe we to the aire, and there we &s;ee <HI>time</HI> upon the wing, in the &s;wift flying Eagle. Hence the Ancients emblem'd <HI>time</HI> with wings, as if it were not onely run|ning, or &s;ailing, but flying. Oh how &s;ad it is to &s;ee men live as if time had leaden heels, and not &s;wift wings; or as if <HI>time</HI> would any time &s;tay our lea&s;ure, and not be gone. Be not deceived, you that are weary of <HI>time,</HI> either now <HI>redeem it,</HI> or you will one day cry out, <HI>What hath pride profited us? or what good hath riches with our vaunting brought us? All the&s;e things are pa&s;&s;ed away like a &s;hadow,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Wi&s;d. 5.8, 9.10.11, 12, 13.</NOTE> <HI>and as Po&s;t that pa&s;&s;eth by; or as a Ship; &mdash; or as a Bird; &mdash; or as an Arrow; &mdash; even &s;o we,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P N="2">2. As <HI>time</HI> is &s;wift, &s;o our time is &s;hort. The Heavens indeed are &s;aid to be of &s;wift motion, but of long continuance; but our <HI>time</HI> is otherwi&s;e. When the <HI>Co|rinthians</HI> propounded divers ca&s;es of con&s;cience, after &s;ome an&s;wers the Apo&s;tle gives them in this: <HI>But this I &s;ay, brethren, the time is &s;hort;</HI> or <HI>time is cut off:</HI> he alludes to Sea-fearing men that have almo&s;t done their Voyage, and begin to &s;trike &s;ail.<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 7.29.</NOTE> Time was in the beginning of the World that men might &s;ay, I may, by cour&s;e of Nature, live a matter of &s;ix, or &s;even, or eight, or nine hundred years; but now God hath &s;o ca&s;t out the time of our age, that &s;o &s;oon as we begin our Voyage, we are ready to &s;trike &s;ail: we have but a little <HI>time;</HI> If I &s;hould mea&s;ure it out, what is it but an Ell, a Span, an Inch, a Point? And is it not time then to <HI>redeem the time?</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. Time is not onely &s;wift and &s;hort, but nothing, I &s;ay a very nothing in com|pari&s;on. As &s;ome creatures are &s;aid to be nothing in compari&s;on of others. What is the Ant to the Elephant; or the Shrimp to the Whale? what is the whole body of the Earth to the body of the Heavens? So is <HI>our time</HI> as nothing to <HI>all time;</HI> and <HI>all time</HI> is as nothing to Eternity. <HI>David</HI> that found out a &s;hort di|men&s;ion
<PB N="6" REF="6">of his <HI>time</HI> con&s;idered ab&s;olutely,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 39.5.</NOTE> or in it &s;elf, <HI>Behold thou ha&s;t made my dayes as an hand-breath;</HI> yet he could find out no dimen&s;ion: little enough for his time compared with God, <HI>Mine age is as nothing before thee.</HI> God's being con&s;i&s;ts in one <HI>Eternal</HI> now; but mans <HI>time</HI> is divided into pa&s;t, pre&s;ent, and to come; three nothings, which being added together amount in the total to this Sum, <HI>Mine age is as nothing before thee.</HI> Oh that we would con&s;ider of this language of the Holy Gho&s;t! were it not enough, think you, to put us on this Duty of improving and trading our time while the time is ours, and while this &s;hort time la&s;teth?</P>
<P N="4">4. Though <HI>time</HI> be &s;wift and &s;hort, and as nothing in compari&s;on, yet is it a com|modity more precious than the Gold of <HI>Ophir.</HI> If herein we might hear lo&s;t Souls to utter them&s;elves, Oh what would they &s;ay? or what would they give for a little of that little time they had on earth? If the Lord by Divine and Extraordinary di&s;pen&s;ation would but grant them one months time to come hither again, and to make a new trial, do you think they would not prize this grant? would they not e&s;teem that little &s;hort Golden &s;ea&s;on of grace at an high and mighty rate? Would they not make u&s;e of every opportunity to lay hold of Heaven, and to e&s;cape tho&s;e fires wherein now they are burning, frying, and flaming? O yes! if you would then tempt them, &s;aying, <HI>Come, &s;pend this hour merrily;</HI> would they not an&s;wer; <HI>alas, we have but one months time to live here in this World, and then we mu&s;t either to Hell again, or if we improve our time well, we mu&s;t to Heaven; and what? &s;hall we trifle away this time of trial and of grace in offending God? &s;hall we ca&s;t away our Souls again to gratifie you, or to plea&s;e our own fle&s;h, for &s;o little a time as we have now to live? Oh God forbid! avoid Satan! avoid all Temptations! welcome now all tho&s;e me&s;&s;engers of Hea|ven that will bring us the glad tidings, the tenders, the offers of Chri&s;t and of Salva|tion! let not one &s;and in the hour-gla&s;s run, but let us be doing &s;ome good; let this hour be &s;pent in prayer, and the next in meditation, and the next in hearing of God's Word, and the next in the exerci&s;e of this and that grace, and &s;o on; but not one hour in &s;in.</HI> Why &s;urely thus would they prize and improve <HI>the time,</HI> that know by woful experience what it is to lo&s;e <HI>the time.</HI> And by this we may gue&s;s the worth of <HI>time;</HI> oh it is pretious &s;o pretious that if all the Earth were turned into Gold, it could not purcha&s;e one mi|nute of it. Me thinks this motive &s;hould work, and now that we have a little time, it &s;hould prevail with us to <HI>redeem the time.</HI></P>
<P N="5">5. Our <HI>time</HI> hath been a very &s;inful <HI>time.</HI> Ah my brethren, think over your Ig|norance, unbelief, worldline&s;s, covetou&s;ne&s;s, pride, malice, lu&s;ts, lukewarmne&s;s, impatience, di&s;contentedne&s;s, vain-glory, &s;elf love, wandring and wicked imagina|tions: in a word, all your pollutions, di&s;tempers, e&s;trangedne&s;s from God in the time of your unregeneracy; oh were not tho&s;e &s;inful, abominable, and rebellious times: or be it &s;o that your gracious God hath &s;ince tho&s;e times wrought in you ef|fectually his &s;aving grace, have you not &s;ince, then lo&s;t your fir&s;t love, or at lea&s;t grown remi&s;s, and cold, and lukewarm in it? Say then, &s;peak out your hearts and tell me, is it not time now to remember from whence you are fallen, and to repent, and to do your fir&s;t works? Ble&s;&s;ed Mr. <HI>Bolton</HI> hath a &s;aying, that <HI>if it were po&s;&s;ible that any uncomfortable pa&s;&s;ion were incident to a glorified Saint in Heaven, he would be &s;orry, and tran&s;ported with extream anger and indignation again&s;t him&s;elf that he was not a meer greedy ingro&s;&s;er (as it were) and improver of time for doing excellently upon Earth, and that every hour, e&s;pecially after his Conver&s;ion, was not Crowned with &s;ome rare and more remarkable exploit, with &s;ome more &s;pecial and noble &s;ervice for the glori|fying of that mo&s;t bountiful and ever-ble&s;&s;ed God, who hath now honored him with &s;uch un&s;peakable glory in the Kingdom of Heaven.</HI> But if no &s;uch pa&s;&s;ion is in glorified Saints, I am &s;ure we have all cau&s;e enough to loath our &s;elves in our own fight for our ini|quities, and for our abominations. O come, let this be a motive to &s;pur us on, and to quicken us in this duty of <HI>Redeeming the time,</HI> becau&s;e <HI>our dayes were evil.</HI></P>
<P N="6">6. The Scriptures &s;peak of a remarkable &s;et time of grace, <HI>a time of vi&s;itation,</HI> Luke 19.44. <HI>a time of Salvation,</HI> 2 Cor, 6.2. <HI>a time while&s;t God may be found,</HI> P&s;al. 32.6. <HI>a time when he holds out the Golden Seepter.</HI> E&s;ther. 5.2. a time wherein the Fountain runneth, and the &s;pirit proclameth, <HI>Ho, every on that thir&s;teth come ye to the Waters,</HI> I&s;a. 55.1. Thus <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> had her time; and all the &s;everal Churches in <HI>A&s;ia</HI> had their time; and now <HI>England, Scotland,</HI> and <HI>Ireland</HI> have their time; and if we mi&s;-improve this time, and walk unworthy of this grace and Go&s;pel of Chri&s;t, this time will have an end,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 95.11.</NOTE> this Sun will go down at Noon, and &s;et upon our heads. <HI>This
<PB N="7" REF="6">day, if you will hear my voice harden not your hearts,</HI> &s;aid God to I&s;rael; but they hard|ned their hearts, and therefore <HI>God &s;ware to them in his wrath that they &s;hould ne|ver enter into his re&s;t.</HI> If it be &s;o with us as it was with I&s;rael in the wilderne&s;s, we doe not know but this very day the Lord may clap an Oath upon our heads, that we &s;hall never enter into his re&s;t. Oh then that we would learn of the Ant, that ga|thereth her meat in the Summer time! Oh that while we have this time of grace, we would redeem the time in praying, reading, hearing, meditating, and trea&s;uring up the things belonging to our peace! This time is a &s;et-time that ha&s;tens away: and we cannot with <HI>Jo&s;hua,</HI> bid the Sun &s;tand &s;till. O then let us &s;ay, <HI>This is our time, and therefore what we will do for our Souls, we will do it now.</HI> Surely better it is to re|deem it now, than to wi&s;h in pain and torment for the time again when it is pa&s;t redemption.</P>
<P N="7">7. The time, is a coming, yea it is near, even at the door, when <HI>time</HI> &s;hall be no more. This is the voice of the &s;eventh Angel,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Rev. 10.5.6.</NOTE> <HI>And the Angel which I &s;aw &s;tanding upon the Sea and upon the Earth, lifted up his hand to Heaven, and &s;ware by him that liveth for ever and ever, that there &s;hould be time no longer.</HI> Who was this? a man? no, <HI>an Angel:</HI> and what, did he &s;ay it? no, <HI>he &s;ware it:</HI> how &s;ware it, by him&s;elf? no, he &s;ware it <HI>by him that lives for ever:</HI> and what? that time &s;hould be little? no, it &s;hould be no longer, <HI>time &s;hould be no more.</HI> Needs mu&s;t this <HI>time</HI> come, that hath all the&s;e circum&s;tances to confirm it. And what if this <HI>time</HI> &s;hould come even in your <HI>time?</HI> what if now the &s;eventh Angel &s;hould lift up his hand to Heaven, and take this Oath? If this <HI>time</HI> be far off as to the general Judgment (which I cannot think) yet &s;ure I am, and without all peradventure, that it is not far off to thee and me. It may be before this year, this month, this week, this night be done, that God may &s;ay to his Angel, <HI>Go to &s;uch a man, and &s;uch a woman, I will give them no more time; bring them hither, and here let them give an account what they have done with all their time, for I mu&s;t have a reckoning of all time pa&s;t.</HI> And then comes in, <HI>Imprimis,</HI> &s;o much time in Drinking and Revelling; <HI>Item</HI> &s;o much time in Idling, Sporting, playing, &amp;c. <HI>Oh,</HI> will God &s;ay, <HI>were the&s;e things I gave you time for? no, no, it was for Heaven and Sal|vation you had your time; and if that time be mi&s;-improved, away, away time, and now enter Eternity upon the&s;e Souls.</HI> Is not here a motive to make us look about us? Oh my brethren, now, now if ever, redeem the time, for anon time will be gone, and then &s;ucceeds eternity, eternity, eternity.</P>
<P>But what are the means for <HI>redeeming time?</HI> I an&s;wer.&mdash;</P>
<P>They are &s;o many, that I may have no time to enumerate the Particulars; &s;hall we in&s;tance in &s;ome? you mu&s;t pray, read, hear the Word, meditate, and watch o|ver your hearts with extraordinary indu&s;try; mortifie your members which are upon the Earth, as pride, covetou&s;ne&s;s, lu&s;ts, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> grow up in grace, clear up your eviden|ces again&s;t that day when all &s;hall &s;tand naked before that great and glorious Judge, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> And the&s;e, and all other Duties (of which anon) mu&s;t be done while the day la&s;teth. Here's a great work, and a little time; doth it not concern you to be&s;tir your &s;elves? If a man have much to write, and but a little Paper to write on, he mu&s;t write &s;mall, and thick, and clo&s;e as ever he can: So mu&s;t you do. I verily believe there's not one Soul among&s;t us but he may find out hundreds and thou&s;ands of &s;ins to repent him of; he may find out many and many a Particular Duty that he &s;hould be exerci&s;ed in from morning to evening, and from evening to morning; &s;o that 'tis a wonder how he can &s;pare any time at all for any thing el&s;e. Well then, up and be doing; lo&s;e not a minute, but be in the u&s;e and exerci&s;e of &s;ome of the&s;e Dutys. The&s;e are the means, and in the u&s;e of the&s;e means you may (by the Lords help and grace concurring) <HI>redeem your time.</HI></P>
<P>One Objection I would remove. <HI>It may be the day of grace is done, the gate of mercy is already &s;hut; and if &s;o, how is it po&s;&s;ible for me to redeem the time?</HI> I an|&s;wer&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. By way of Conce&s;&s;ion. I believe there is a day of grace indeed, and if that Sun &s;et, it will never, never ri&s;e again. <HI>If thou had&s;t known, even thou at lea&s;t in this thy day, the things belonging to thy peace, but now are they hid from thine eyes.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Luk. 19.4<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE> q. d. Now is the gate of mercy &s;hut, there is no means of grace or Salvation for ever hereafter to be hoped for. As there is no Market or Fair-day that la&s;teth alwayes; if the Coun|try will not come in, the Trade&s;-man will at la&s;t put up his wares: So the Lord's
<PB N="8" REF="7">&s;tanding may be open, and his &s;hop &s;et wide for &s;uch and &s;uch a time; but if Souls will not come in, and buy without mony and without price, he will at la&s;t put up his wares (all his jewels of grace) and then be gone.</P>
<P N="2">2. Though it be true that there is a day of grace, and that this day may &s;et; yet in re|&s;pect of us the Mini&s;ters of Chri&s;t, we cannot determine it; and therefore &s;o long as you live we call &s;till, <HI>oh repent! oh redeem your time!</HI> I may add, in re&s;pect of your &s;elves, <HI>it is not in you to know the times and &s;ea&s;ons which God hath put in his own power.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Act. 1.7.</NOTE> And the com|mandement of Faith &s;tanding in force on you &s;o long as you live, and thereforce you are &s;till to look to your Duty of <HI>redeeming the time.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. It may be this day, this night, this Sermon, this very hour may be thy day of grace. Hearken! is not Chri&s;t's Spirit now a knocking? is not Chri&s;t him&s;elf now offering mercy to thy Soul? <HI>O ye &s;ons of men that have mi&s;-improved your time, will ye now at lea&s;t in this your day he wi&s;e to Salvation? why now I call to your hearts; now I command you to open your everla&s;ting doors, that I, the King of Glory, may come in; oh let this be the time of love! Come, give me your hearts, and now redeem the time.</HI> Away, away with all objections, &s;cruples, cavils that may hinder this Duty, and now, even now, hearken to this voice of Chri&s;t, or of the Spirit of Chri&s;t, that your Souls may live.</P>
<P N="3">3. Mu&s;t <HI>time be redeemed?</HI> Then for &s;ome Rules or Directions how we mu&s;t redeem it.</P>
<P>Rule 1.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>&V;&s;e</HI> 3.</NOTE> <HI>A void we every thing that would hinder us from taking the opportunity.</HI> What tho&s;e things are you have heard before; as ignorance, &s;loth, and love of fle&s;hly liberty. Many other particulars might be enumerated, but chiefly and e&s;pe|cially foregoe we the&s;e.</P>
<P>Rule. 2. <HI>Repent we of all former mi&s;-improvings of our time.</HI> There is no other way of recompen&s;ing former unfruitfulne&s;s but by repentance and after diligence. This is the &s;cond table after &s;hipwrack; in this way we may redeem, or buy back again the time that is pa&s;t. The very word <HI>re&s;ipi&s;centia</HI> &s;ignifies <HI>to be wi&s;e again,</HI> after all our for|mer follies. Oh that ever any &s;hould be &s;o unworthy as to decry this godly-Go&s;pel-gol|den Rule.</P>
<P>Rule 3. <HI>Live we every day as if every day were the la&s;t day we had to live.</HI> This Rule or direction is &s;o comprehen&s;ive, that I mu&s;t needs break it into particulars. Sup|po&s;e then I were to begin this day, and that I look't on this day as the la&s;t day of my life, how &s;hould I redeem my time; or &s;pend this day? I an&s;wer.&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. My fir&s;t and morning-thoughts &s;hould be on God, or on &s;omething in order to his &s;ervice.<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 130.6.</NOTE> <HI>My Soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the Morn|ing.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 23.2.</NOTE>&mdash;<HI>O Lord be gracious to me. I have waited for thee, be thou my arm every Mor|ning.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 59.16.</NOTE>&mdash;<HI>I will &s;ing of thy power, I will &s;ing aloud of thy mercy in thy Morning.&mdash;It is good to give thanks unto the Lord.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 92.1, 2.</NOTE> <HI>and to &s;ing prai&s;es unto thy name, O mo&s;t high, to &s;hew forth thy loving kindne&s;s in the Morning.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 139.17.</NOTE>&mdash;<HI>How pretious are thy thoughs unto me O God, when I awake, I am &s;till with thee.</HI> Now the&s;e Morning-thoughts may be &s;pent either in a way of Meditation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 26.</NOTE> or of Prayer; and my Duties lie in both.</P>
<P N="2">2. I &s;hould meditate. I &s;hall not determine whether Morning or Evening may be more &s;uitable for &s;et, deliberate, and &s;olemn meditation? onely this I affirm, that ei|ther a &s;olemn, or an occa&s;ional meditation is a Morning-duty. In &s;ome &s;ort medi|tation and prayer &s;hould ever go together;<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 5.1, 2.3.</NOTE> and <HI>David</HI> thus, couples them, <HI>Give ear to my words, O Lord, con&s;ider my meditation, hearken to the voice of my cry.&mdash;My voice &s;halt thou hear in the Morning, O Lord, in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee.</HI> Now the&s;e Morning-meditations (if occa&s;ional or ejaculatory) may be on &s;uch Objects as the&s;e.</P>
<P N="1">1. Upon my fir&s;t waking I may think on that Morning of my Re&s;urrection, when the Lord will awake me from the du&s;t; it is but a while till the trump &s;hall &s;ound, <HI>Awake,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 29.19.</NOTE> <HI>and &s;ing ye that dwell in the du&s;t, for thy dew is as the dew of herbs; and then &s;hall the earth ca&s;t out her dead.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. Upon &s;ight of the Morning-&s;un I may think on that Sun of Righteou&s;ne&s;s that enlightens Heaven. The Sun that &s;hines on me was only created for this nether World, and yet how glorious is it? Oh then what light is there in that City above, that <HI>hath no need of Sun,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Re. 21.23.</NOTE> <HI>or Moon, or Star, for the glory of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. Upon the putting on of my apparel I may think on that garment of Righte|ou&s;ne&s;s where with my &s;oul either is or &s;hould be cloathed. Alas! what is this out|ward
<PB N="9" REF="7">Robe but a Rag, or at be&s;t an excrement of dead worms, of which I have little rea&s;on to be proud? But my Souls Robe is as a garment cut out of the Sun,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Rev. 12.1.</NOTE> and put upon me. <HI>And there appeared a great wonder in Heaven, a woman cloathed with the Sun.</HI> Oh that I may be cloathed with that Sun of Righteou&s;ne&s;s, or with that Right|ou&s;ne&s;s of the Son of God, that I may appear before God as I am in him, pure and &s;potle&s;s.</P>
<P><HI>I</HI> &s;hall not in&s;tance in any other objects of my Mornings meditation; onely if I find my &s;pirit mo&s;t active and fit for meditation at &s;uch a time. <HI>I</HI> &s;hould then go on, and &s;pare more time for &s;et, deliberate, and &s;olemn meditations.</P>
<P N="2">2. <HI>I</HI> &s;hould pray; and to this Duty <HI>I</HI> may joyn the reading of the Word. That this is a mornings Duty the Scripture is expre&s;s:<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 5.3.</NOTE> <HI>In the Morning will I direct my pra|yer unto thee, and will look up.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 88.13.</NOTE>&mdash;<HI>And in the morning &s;hall my prayer prevent thee.&mdash;And evening, and morning, and at noon will I pray, and crie aloud,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 55.17.</NOTE> <HI>and he &s;hall hear my voice.</HI> It is true, that Prayer and reading of the Word are two di&s;tinct exerci&s;es, yet that they mutually help one another is mo&s;t manife&s;t, and con|&s;equently are fit to be joyned together; for the word mini&s;ters matter of prayer, and is the ground of our petition, who have no promi&s;e to be heard, unle&s;s we ask ac|cording to God's word, 1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 5.14. And the fitne&s;s of the morning for the&s;e ex|erci&s;es is evident, not only becau&s;e the fir&s;t of <HI>time</HI> belongs unto God, but al&s;o the heart being then mo&s;t free from worldly thoughts, it is therefore fitte&s;t for Holy ex|erci&s;es; and withal, when in the beginning of the day the heart of man is &s;ea&s;oned with Holine&s;s, and with the fear of God, he &s;hall find him&s;elf the better fitted to walk humbly with God all the day after.</P>
<P N="2">2. All the re&s;t of the day till evening &s;hould <HI>I</HI> &s;pend my time in the Duties of my particular calling, nor know I the lea&s;t rea&s;on why any man in the world, high or low, rich or poor, &s;hould be herein exempted. <HI>Adam mu&s;t not eat his bread with|out &s;weat and labour. Abel was a keeper of &s;heep. Cain a tiller of the ground.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 3.19.</NOTE> <HI>Jabal was a Tent-maker. Jubal the father of &s;uch as handle the harp.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 4.2, 20.21, 22.</NOTE> <HI>Tubal Cain an Ar|tificer in Bra&s;s and Iron.</HI> All the the Patriarchs of I&s;rael were but Shepherds; and Je&s;us Chri&s;t him&s;elf was a plain Carpenter.</P>
<P>But you may object, may I not herein lo&s;e my time as to God's &s;ervice? One would think, if this were my la&s;t day I &s;hould do no other work but pray, or hear, or read, or meditate, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> I an&s;wer&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. I grant there are &s;uch times wherein God calls us extraordinarily to &s;uch &s;piri|tual Duties all the day long; as either in afflictions felt or feared, or in &s;ome &s;pecial mercies expected or received. And there are tho&s;e times we call the Lords dayes, wherein we are to do no work ordinarily but of a Spiritual nature And there are &s;uch times wherein God holds forth an opportunity of exerci&s;ing graces, or of doing good; and &s;o to embrace the occa&s;ion is one piece or part of our redeeming time.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gal. 6.10.</NOTE> <HI>As we have opportunity let us do good to all men.</HI> And <HI>your care of me hath flouri&s;hed again,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Phil. 4.10.</NOTE> (&s;aid <HI>Paul</HI> to his <HI>Philippians</HI>) <HI>but ye lacked opportunity.</HI> It &s;eems their care for the Apo&s;tle was intermitted for a &s;ea&s;on, for want of oppertunity to &s;end unto him, but now they put forth again as flowers in Spring. I doubt not but in &s;uch ca&s;es as the&s;e, we may, and mu&s;t for the time di&s;pen&s;e with our particular callings. Yet.&mdash;</P>
<P N="2">2. In my ordinary con&s;tant daily cour&s;e I am to be in the exerci&s;e of my Parti|cular calling, with which I may either mingle &s;ome actings of grace, or ejaculatory Duties, as &s;uddenly to look up to Heaven, and to behold the face of God, to whom I am to approve my &s;elf in my particular calling; or if they cla&s;h, I am &s;olely to follow my particular calling, and to leave other Spiritual actings till their appointed &s;ea&s;on. Nor do I herein decline God's &s;ervice. For 1. I follow my calling out of an awful re|&s;pect to the eye, pre&s;ence, and command of God, who hath &s;aid. <HI>Six dayes &s;halt thou la|bour:</HI> Yea I do what I do in civil bu&s;ine&s;s as the work of Chri&s;t, &s;o that I may &s;ay at that time <HI>now am I about the work of God, and of Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. Seeing my &s;elf thus working for him, I may ea&s;ily apprehend that for that time I honour God as much, nay more by the meane&s;t &s;ervile worldly act, than if I &s;hould &s;pend all that time in Prayer, Meditation, or any other Spiritual employment to which I had no call at &s;uch a time. It is noted therefore, by &s;ome, of <HI>Peter's</HI> Wives Mother, that when Chri&s;t had healed her of her Feaver, &s;he &s;at not down at Table with Chri&s;t in Communion with him, which (no que&s;tion) was &s;weet, but <HI>&s;he mini|&s;tred
<PB N="10" REF="8">unto them</HI> (i.e.) &s;he ran to and fro, and &s;erved him, and acted for him, where|in &s;he &s;hewed more love,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mat. 8.15.</NOTE> and gave him more honour, than if at that time &s;he had enjoyed Communion with him in a nearer way.</P>
<P>But I hear others object, May I not take up &s;ome little of this time in recreati|ons? what, mu&s;t I alwayes be on my calling? Is there not <HI>a time to every purpo&s;e un|der Heaven?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Eccl. 3.1, 4.</NOTE> <HI>a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer: There is indeed a time to recreate; but that time is then, I &s;ay onely then, when our bodies or minds are wearied with our other employments. O what a &s;ad thing it is to &s;ee many &s;pend a whole day, it may be a whole week in unnece&s;&s;a|ry &s;inful recreations! What, is this to <HI>redeem the time?</HI> or dare I thus &s;pend the la&s;t day of my life in this world? Surely, God's people that make con&s;cience of their Duties, &s;hould not meddle at any time with recreations (though in them&s;elves law|ful) without true cau&s;e, and a ju&s;t calling thereunto; nor &s;hould they u&s;e them any longer, nor to any other end, but only to quicken their minds, or to revive their bodies, that &s;o they may return with &s;ome light&s;omne&s;s and alacrity to their callings again. He that &s;pends his time lavi&s;hly in recreations, is like him who&s;e Garments are made of fringes, and his meat nothing but &s;auces. I am not a|gain&s;t recreations lawfully u&s;ed, but God forbid that we &s;hould trifle away our time (more worth than worlds) upon fooli&s;h, vain, empty, end unnece&s;&s;ary toyes.</P>
<P N="3">3. The evening &s;hould be clo&s;ed up with &s;piritual duties. If you ask what Duties? I an&s;wer.</P>
<P N="1">1. The evening is a time for prayer, <HI>Let my prayer be &s;et forth before thee as incen&s;e, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening &s;acrifice.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 141.2.</NOTE> To this of prayer I joyn read|ing the Scripture, and good books; for it is fit to clo&s;e up the day with the &s;ame du|ties wherewith we began it.</P>
<P N="2">2. The evening was <HI>I&s;aac</HI>'s time for meditation: <HI>And I&s;aac went out to meditate in the field at the even-tide.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 24.63.</NOTE> It may be in this Duty the morning is not &s;o &s;ea&s;onable for &s;ome tempers; but &s;hall the evening pa&s;s without &s;ome &s;piritual Holy meditations? Some conceive the evening to be the very &s;ea&s;on of &s;et and deliberate meditation; and in this ca&s;e how fruitful might I be in the u&s;e of that Ordinance of <HI>Looking unto Je&s;us, as he carries on the great work of our Salvation from fir&s;t to la&s;t?</HI> O that this Duty of meditation, either on that, or any other &s;piritual &s;ubject, were not &s;o neglected as it is by Chri&s;tians them&s;elves!<NOTE PLACE="marg">Jod. 1.8.</NOTE> The Lord gave <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> a charge, that he &s;hould <HI>mediate on his Law day and night;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 1.2.</NOTE> and <HI>David's</HI> character of the ble&s;&s;ed man is, that <HI>his delight is in the Law of the Lord,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 63.6.</NOTE> <HI>and in his Law doth he meditate day and night.</HI> And <HI>Da|vid</HI>'s own practice was to <HI>remember God upon his bed,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 4.15.</NOTE> <HI>and to meditate on him in the night-watches.</HI> And <HI>Paul's</HI> charge to <HI>Timothy</HI> was to <HI>meditate upon &s;piritual things, and to give him&s;elf wholly to them.</HI> Or if you'l have another proof for the evening-&s;ea&s;on, not only was it <HI>I&s;aac</HI>'s time, but <HI>David's</HI> time, <HI>Mine eyes prevent the night-watches, that I might meditate in thy word.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 119.148.</NOTE></P>
<P N="3">3. The evening is a &s;ea&s;on for &s;elf-examination. This is another glorious ordi|nance which many Chri&s;tians u&s;e occa&s;ionally, and again&s;t &s;ome good time; but to &s;et &s;ome time apart for this every evening, and that in con&s;cience, as they do for read|ing the word, and Prayer, where is the Chri&s;tian almo&s;t to be found? I am &s;ure it was <HI>David</HI>'s charge. <HI>Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be &s;till.</HI> And agreeable to this was his practice,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 4.4.</NOTE> <HI>I call to remembrance my &s;ong in the night,</HI> I <HI>com|mune with my own heart, and my &s;pirit made diligent &s;earch. Chry&s;o&s;tom</HI> on the&s;e words of <HI>David,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 77.6.</NOTE> <HI>What means this</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>commune with your own hearts upon your bed?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Po&s;t doenam, Chry&s;o&s;t. Ex|po&s;. in. <HI>P&s;a. 4.4.</HI></NOTE> thus an&s;wers him&s;elf, <HI>after &s;upper-time, when ye are going to &s;leep, and are ready to ly down on bed, and have great quiet and &s;ilence, without the pre&s;ence or di&s;turbance of any, then erect a tribunal for the con&s;cience.&mdash;And when neither friend di&s;turbs you,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Docuerant nos &s;aepe patres no|&s;tri, &amp;c. Do|voth. tom. <HI>1.</HI></NOTE> nor &s;ervants provoke you, nor multitudes of bu&s;ine&s;s do pre&s;s upon you, then take an ac|count of your life, what you have done in the day-time before.</HI> And <HI>Dorotheus</HI> layes it down as a rule which <HI>the Chri&s;tians of his time had learned of their fore-fathers, that in the evening they &s;hould que&s;tion them&s;elves how they had pa&s;&s;ed the day.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Biblioth. Pot<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">. <HI>p. 14.</HI></NOTE> Oh that Chri|&s;tians now would Sum up their accounts at the foot of every page, I mean, that they would call them&s;elves to &s;crutiny every evening when they are ready to compo&s;e them&s;elves to &s;leep, as to the little Images of Death!</P>
<PB N="11" REF="8">
<P N="4">4. The evening is a &s;ea&s;on to con&s;ider my Priviledges in Chri&s;t.<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 48.</NOTE> When <HI>David</HI> was ready for his Bed, <HI>I will lay me down in peace, and &s;leep</HI> (&s;aith he,) <HI>for thou Lord only make&s;t me dwell in &s;afety.</HI> See how he &s;peaks of <HI>peace, and re&s;t, and &s;leep, and &s;afety:</HI> all the&s;e were Priviledges. Me thinks it is a &s;weet conclu&s;ion of a good dayes work, and a ble&s;&s;ed farewel to the World if this evening were my la&s;t, and that immediately I mu&s;t go to God, to con&s;ider of &s;ome of tho&s;e glorious Priviledges in God and Chri&s;t. I might in&s;tance in my <HI>peace, and re&s;t, and &s;leep, and &s;afety,</HI> by vertue of a promi&s;e, or covenant of Grace; or I might in&s;tance in my <HI>Election, Redemption, Reconciliation, Adoption, Sanctification, Glorification:</HI> But becau&s;e the&s;e are commonly handled; <HI>and our communion with God and Chri&s;t; and the &s;pirit of Chri&s;t</HI> is the mo&s;t ravi&s;hing Priviledge in this World, my &s;oul carries me out for the pre&s;ent to pitch on this.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Dr. <HI>Owens</HI> communion God the Fa|ther, Son, and Holy Gho&s;t.</NOTE> One of our Worthies hath writ eminenly on it; and for a ta&s;te of his excellent work, the &s;weeting of my la&s;t thoughts with &s;uch an excellent &s;ubject, I &s;hall contract it thus,</P>
<P N="1">1. <HI>I would con&s;ider my communion with God the Father in love. This the Father pe|culiarly fixes upon the Saints; and this they are immediately to eye him in,</HI> God is love. <HI>Chri&s;tians walk of times with exceeding troubled hearts concerning the thoughts of the Father towards them; they are well per&s;waded of the Lord Chri&s;t and his good will; the difficulty lies in what is their acceptance with the Father, what is his heart towards them? Now here is the work of the Go&s;pel to di&s;cover the love of the Father: this is the will of God, that he may alwayes be eyed as being, kind, tender, loving, yea as the Foun|tain and Spring of all gracious Communications and fruits of love; and when Chri&s;tians apprehend this, that</HI> God is love, <HI>and &s;o re&s;t upon him, and delight in him as &s;uch, then have they communion with the Father in love.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Now for the exerci&s;e of my &s;oul in this ble&s;&s;ed communion, the directions are &s;uch as the&s;e.&mdash;</HI></P>
<P N="1">1. <HI>I mu&s;t eye the Father as</HI> Love. I <HI>mu&s;t not look on him as one that is alwayes angry; but as one mo&s;t kind and tender in him&s;elf, and as one that hath had thoughts of kindne&s;s towards his Saints from everla&s;ting.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. I <HI>mu&s;t &s;o eye the love of the Father, as to receive it by faith;</HI> I <HI>mu&s;t believe this love of God as for my &s;elf. Certainly his love is not mine, nor will it be mine in the &s;weetne&s;s of it, untill it be &s;o received. Either</HI> I <HI>mu&s;t know it, a&s;&s;ent to it, embrace it, and have all my affections filled with it, or it will be in vain as to my Communion with God the Father.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. <HI>This love mu&s;t have its proper fruit and efficacy upon my heart in a return of love to him again. To this purpo&s;e God loves, that he may be beloved: this is the return that he demands,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Pro. 23.26.</NOTE> My &s;on, give me thy heart, <HI>thy affections, thy love O the Priviledge of Saints! they have meat to eat that the World knows not of they have clo&s;e communion and fellow&s;hip with the Father; they deal with him in the interchange of love; &s;o that every one of them may &s;ay.</HI> If I have hatred in the World, I will goe where I am &s;ure of love; though all others are hard to me, yet my Father is tender and full of compa&s;&s;ion, I will goe to him, and &s;atisfie my &s;elf in him.</P>
<P N="4">4. I <HI>would con&s;ider of my communion with God the Son in grace. So the Apo&s;tle &s;peaking of our communion with him as Mediator, concludes his Epi&s;tles,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 6.23.</NOTE> The grace of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t be with you all. <HI>Not to mention any other grace,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gal 6.18.</NOTE> <HI>but his percha&s;ed grace of ju&s;tification, or acceptation with God the directions for this Communion are &s;uch as the&s;e.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ephe&s;. 6.24.</NOTE>&mdash;</P>
<P>I <HI>mu&s;t eye Chri&s;t's doings and &s;ufferings; not as for him&s;elf but for his Saints,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Phil. 4.23.</NOTE> <HI>and for their Righteou&s;ne&s;s.</HI> He was made under the Law,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gal. 4.4, 5.</NOTE> that we might receive the adopti|on of Sons, <HI>And</HI> he bare our &s;ins in his body on the Tree.<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 The&s;&s;. 5.28.</NOTE> <HI>This was the end of Chri&s;t's life and death, to work out a compleat Righteou&s;ne&s;s for believers,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">2 The&s;&s;. 3.18.</NOTE><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gal. 4.2.</NOTE> <HI>as to a perfect acceptati|on before God.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Pet. 2 24.</NOTE></P>
<P>I <HI>mu&s;t approve of this Righteou&s;ne&s;s of Chri&s;t as that alone which is ab&s;olutely com|pleat, and able to make me acceptable before God. Of this</HI> I <HI>am convinced, that if</HI> I <HI>die this night, there is a nece&s;&s;ity of a Righteou&s;ne&s;s, wherewith</HI> I <HI>mu&s;t appear before God; and if</HI> I <HI>have nothing to commend me unto God but my own Righteou&s;ne&s;s, oh how &s;hould</HI> I <HI>appear before his glory? there is no other name but Chri&s;t whereby</HI> I <HI>can be &s;aved; and there is no other Righteou&s;ne&s;s but Chri&s;ts whereby</HI> I <HI>can be ju&s;tified.</HI> Surely &s;hall one &s;ay, in the Lord have I Righteou&s;ne&s;s and &s;trength.<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 45.24.</NOTE></P>
<P N="3">3. I <HI>mu&s;t make an actual commutation with the Lord Je&s;us as to my &s;ins, and his Righte|ou&s;ne&s;s. And to that purpo&s;e</HI>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. I <HI>mu&s;t hearken to the voice of Chri&s;t calling me to him with my burthen,</HI> Come to me thou poor &s;oul with thy guilt of &s;in, for that is mine; this agreement I made with my Father from all Eternity, that I &s;hould come, and take thy &s;ins and bear them away; they were my lot, give me thy burden, give me all thy &s;ins, thou knowe&s;t not what to do with them, I know how to di&s;po&s;e of them well enough, &s;o that God &s;hall be glorified, and thy &s;oul delivered.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. <HI>&V;pon this
<PB N="13" REF="9">call I mu&s;t lay down my &s;ins at the Cro&s;s of Chri&s;t upon his &s;houlders. This is faiths great and bold adventure upon the grace, faithfulne&s;s, and truth of Chri&s;t, to &s;tand by the Cro&s;s, and &s;ay,</HI> Ah! he is brui&s;ed for my &s;ins, and wounded for my tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, and the cha&s;ti&s;ement of my peace is upon him: He is thus made &s;in for me; here I give up my &s;ins to him that is able to bear them; he requries at my hands that I &s;hould be content to throw my &s;ins upon him, and to this I con&s;ent.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. <HI>Having thus by faith given up my &s;ins to Chri&s;t,</HI> I <HI>mu&s;t draw nigh, and take from him that Righte|ou&s;ne&s;s which he hath wrought out for me: To this purpo&s;e he tenders him&s;elf and his Righteou&s;ne&s;s to be my Righteou&s;ne&s;s before God; and by my acceping of it,</HI> I <HI>compleat this bartering and exchange of faith, and come into communion with Je&s;us Chri&s;t, as to my ac|ceptation with God by grace.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 5.21.</NOTE> He was made &s;in for us, that we might become the Righte|ou&s;ne&s;s of God in him.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<P N="3">3. I <HI>would con&s;ider of my communion with the holy Gho&s;t in comfort.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">John 14.26.</NOTE> <HI>We read u&s;ually in the Go&s;pel that</HI> he is the Comforter.<NOTE PLACE="marg">John 15.26.</NOTE> <HI>Oh the conde&s;cen&s;ion of the Holy Gho&s;t! he wil|lingly proceedeth,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">John 16.7.</NOTE> <HI>or comes forth from the Father to be our Comforter; he knew what we were, and what would be our dealings with him; he knew we would grieve him, provoke him; quench his motions, defile his dwelling place, and yet he would come to be our Com|forter. Now for my communion with the holy Gho&s;t herein the directions are the&s;e.</HI>&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. I <HI>mu&s;t ask him of the Father in the name of Je&s;us Chri&s;t. This is the daily work of Believers; they look upon, and con&s;ider the holy Gho&s;t as promi&s;ed to be &s;ent, and in this promi&s;e they know lies all their grace, peace, mercie, and comfort; for by him &s;o promi&s;ed are the&s;e things communicated.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 11.13.</NOTE> <HI>O then how &s;hould</HI> I <HI>ask him of the Father, who is as ready to be&s;tow him on me, as</HI> I <HI>am to give my children bread?</HI> If ye being evil know how to give good gifs unto your children, how much more &s;hall your Heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to them that ask him?</P>
<P N="2">2. <HI>If comfort come,</HI> I <HI>mu&s;t learn to act faith di&s;tinctly on the Holy Gho&s;t, as the im|mediate efficient cau&s;e of all my comfort. It may be the Spirit is given, and be tenders, or admini&s;ters con&s;olations, but then I do not con&s;ider him as the Comforter, why &s;urely this grievs him: a lively faith will take notice of his kindne&s;s; upon every work of con&s;o|lation that</HI> I <HI>receive,</HI> I <HI>&s;hould write this Motto,</HI> This is from the Holy Gho&s;t, he is my Comforter, and the God of all my con&s;olation.</P>
<P N="3">3. I <HI>mu&s;t return prai&s;e and thanks, and honour, and glory, and ble&s;&s;ings to him on the account of tho&s;e comforts</HI> I <HI>receive from him. When</HI> I <HI>feel my &s;elf warmed with joy, &s;upported with peace, or e&s;tabli&s;hed in obedience,</HI> I <HI>&s;hould then a&s;cribe to him the prai&s;e that is his due. And this prai&s;ing of him is no &s;mall part of my communion with him.</HI></P>
<P>Say now, is not here a Priviledge worthy of my con&s;ideration? would not a thought of this,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 119.54, 25.</NOTE> and my acting in this, leave a &s;weet favour in my &s;oul when I am going to my Bed as to my grave?<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 63.5.6.</NOTE> <HI>David</HI> could &s;ay, <HI>Thy &s;tatutes have been my &s;ong in the hou&s;e of my Pilgrimage;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 149.5.</NOTE> I <HI>have remembred thy name O Lord in the night.</HI> And <HI>my &s;oul &s;hall be &s;atisfied as with marrow and fatne&s;s,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 26.9.</NOTE> <HI>and my mouth &s;hall prai&s;e thee with joy|ful lips.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Job 35.10.</NOTE> Ay, but when mu&s;t this be? He an&s;wers, <HI>When</HI> I <HI>remember thee upon my Bed;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 42.8:</NOTE> <HI>and meditate on thee in the night-watches.</HI> And he fa&s;tens it as a Duty upon all Saints,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al: 77: 6:</NOTE> <HI>Let the Saints be joyful in glory, let them &s;ing aloud upon their beds.</HI> And the Church re&s;olves upon it, <HI>With my &s;oul have I de&s;ired thee in the night, and with my &s;pirit within me will</HI> I <HI>&s;eek thee early.</HI> Surely <HI>it is God</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Elihu who giveth &s;ongs in the night.</HI> And <HI>in the night</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David</HI>) <HI>his &s;ong &s;hall be with me.</HI> And 'twas a ble&s;&s;ed remedy to his heavy Soul, <HI>I call to remembrance my &s;ong in the night.</HI> Oh that with &s;uch thoughts and con&s;iderations of my communion with God, and Chri&s;t, and the &s;pirit of Chri&s;t, for of &s;ome other Priviledge, I might every night go to my Bed! for then like the Philomele &s;hould I &s;ing in the night; yea then would <HI>my Soul be &s;atisfied as with Marrow and fatne&s;s, and my Mouth would prai&s;e him with joyful lips.</HI></P>
<P>I might in&s;tance in many other duties which would then be &s;ea&s;onable, but the&s;e are the main; and if this day were my la&s;t day, or if this night I mu&s;t &s;leep my la&s;t in this world, yet I &s;hould comfortably hope that in the doing of the&s;e duties in a &s;piritual manner, I had in good mea&s;ure <HI>redeemed my time;</HI> and that <HI>when I a|wake,</HI> though I never awake till the Re&s;urrection day, yet then &s;hould I &s;ee God face to face, and <HI>I &s;hould be &s;atisfied with his likene&s;s:</HI> P&s;al. 17.15.</P>
<P>I have now done; only before we part, I would &s;ay &s;omething of the decea&s;ed par|ty as to our edification, and &s;o an end.</P>
<P>You know I have been &s;paring in this way, becau&s;e of many abu&s;es, and e&s;pecially becau&s;e all promi&s;cuou&s;ly look for prai&s;es at their death, how&s;oever they &s;pend their life. But now God hath removed me from this pa&s;toral charge, and I &s;hall not here perform many of the&s;e la&s;t offices of love, probably never more than this; and there|fore at this time I &s;hall crave your patience and attentions to what may be &s;poken without any prejudice to truth or harm to you.</P>
<PB N="14" REF="9">
<P>The Duty I am pre&s;&s;ing on you, is to <HI>redeem the time;</HI> and this I believe of the decea&s;ed party, that &s;he <HI>redeemed her time.</HI> I &s;hall not &s;peak of her Birth, Education, Progeny, Nobility: <HI>Stemmata quid faciunt?</HI> Alas! what's all this to a Funeral-Sermon? Nor &s;hall I &s;peak of her youth or flouri&s;hing time; as I am a &s;tranger to it, &s;o I believe &s;he had, or might have her fail|ings in that time. The temptations of honour, riches, pro&s;perity, and youth are &s;tronger than mo&s;t imagine; and therefore prayed <HI>David, Remember not the &s;ins of my youth: P&s;al.</HI> 25.7. and all that are honourable may pray, <HI>Remember not the &s;ins of my honour, nobility, and greatne&s;s in the world.</HI> For my part I &s;hall not take notice of the&s;e things, or of tho&s;e times, but rather &s;peak of her <HI>redeeming the time,</HI> &s;ince that time that for&s;aking the World in great mea&s;ure, &s;he gave up her &s;elf in a more retired and &s;olitary way to &s;erve her God.</P>
<P>Now then if here I begin; She hath for the&s;e many years <HI>redeemed her time;</HI> as thus,
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. In life,</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. In Death.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<P N="1">1. In life, it will appear in her general and particular calling.</P>
<P>For the fir&s;t, ordinarily every Morning and every evening &s;he was exerci&s;ed in tho&s;e duties of Meditation and Prayer: This was her cour&s;e, not by fits and &s;tarts, but daily, in her plea|&s;ant Walks, or private Chamber, &s;he &s;pent both her early and later houres in Communion with God. Nor &s;peak I this by report onely, for of her goodne&s;s and bounty &s;he was plea&s;ed every Spring to invite me to her Hou&s;e, and by this meanes I was acquainted with her con&s;tant cour&s;e. Indeed I was the more willing to embrace her welcome, becau&s;e her Hou&s;e &s;eemed to me as <HI>a Colledge for Religion,</HI> or as a retirement from the noi&s;es and more frequeent Temptations of the World, and this gave her, and me, and all that plea&s;ed, an happy opportunity to continue our devotions without interruption. Some Books &s;he had for contemplation, others for an Holy conver&s;ation, others for meditation, others for devotion; of all &s;orts &s;ome, and of all the&s;e &s;orts &s;he made &s;ome u&s;e; but of all books for con&s;tant u&s;e and practice &s;he preferred the Bible, telling me often that other Books had their u&s;e and delight; till with often reading they became more ordinary, and then they &s;eemed to lo&s;e of their former lu&s;tre, glory, and excellency; but the Bible was in her often-reading ever fre&s;h, and green, and new: She found in it &s;till &s;uch per petual &s;treams of Holy, Heavenly, and Spiritual delights, that (as <HI>Teriullian</HI> &s;aid) &s;he could not but <HI>admire and a dore the fulne&s;s of the Scriptures.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. Ordinarily &s;he &s;pent the re&s;t of the day in her works of the needle, with her maids a|bout her: Or if other things of Hou&s;wifery had interpo&s;ed, &s;he was never &s;o tran&s;ported with honour, as to &s;corn her duty in the way of a particular calling. Well &s;he had learnt that idlene&s;s was the ru&s;t and canker of the &s;oul, the Devils cu&s;hion, pillow, chief repo&s;al, his very tide-time of Temptation; and therefore with con&s;cience and faithfulne&s;s &s;he was diligent in her particu|lar, as well as general, calling. Now and then &s;he would have vi&s;ited poor cottages, and re|lieved their nece&s;&s;ities; but ever was &s;he courteous to the Neighbourhood, and careful in the affairs of her own Hou&s;e. Take all together, and for ought I know &s;he might be a pattern to mo&s;t of the Ladies in our Nation, or at lea&s;t as a bright Morning-&s;tar among&s;t other &s;tars.</P>
<P N="2">2. She <HI>redeemed her time</HI> in death, or near her death; now indeed &s;he was taken off her par|ticular calling, and therefore this time &s;he &s;pent (as &s;he could for &s;ickne&s;s) in the exerci&s;e of &s;piritual duties, and &s;piritual graces. For duties &s;he was much in them, of which we &s;peak be|fore; and for graces &s;he &s;hined, and was mo&s;t eminent in &s;uch as the&s;e. As&mdash;</P>
<P N="1">1. In meekne&s;s: She was of a meek and quiet &s;pirit: &s;eldome have I &s;een her exorbitant in pa&s;&s;ions, but often have I &s;een her amid&s;t provocations quiet, meek, gentle, and ea&s;ie to be in|treated. In her &s;ickne&s;s &s;he carried it as a lamb; not a word of pa&s;&s;ion or peevi&s;hne&s;s i&s;&s;ued out of her lips, &s;o far as I ob&s;erved. The very Image of Chri&s;t was, in this re&s;pect, drawn fair with|in her, <HI>Learn of me, for I am meek: Matth.</HI> 11.29. Chri&s;t a meek Chri&s;t, and &s;he a meek creature.</P>
<P N="2">2. In humility, She was of high de&s;cent, and &s;prung of Royal blood; yet humble in heart, and lowly in &s;pirit. She never &s;corned the poore&s;t Creature, but often &s;tooped to wonderful conde&s;centions, as I conceived. In her &s;ickne&s;s, as well as death, &s;he laid her honor in the du&s;t. She was far from the opinion of them that think <HI>humility a deba&s;ement, and meekne&s;s a derogation from their repute;</HI> no, no, &s;he had othewi&s;e learned of Chri&s;t; humility was her Ornament, and therewith &s;he decked her &s;elf (in the Apo&s;tles language 1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 5.5.) or <HI>cloathed</HI> her &s;elf, both in health and in &s;ickne&s;s, when &s;he could put on no other cloathing,. Hence &s;he was &s;tiled by &s;ome, <HI>the humble harmle&s;s Lady.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. In patience, &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion, and contentedne&s;s of &s;pirit to be at God's di&s;po&s;al. She had a &s;ore &s;ickne&s;s, and becau&s;e of her former health it was to her the &s;orer. Of many years before &s;he had not layn &s;ick in Bed one day, but many a turn had &s;he took in her Walks and Gallery, and through much exerci&s;e in that way &s;he had the advantage both of her health and communion with God; but now the Lord laid her on a Bed of &s;ickne&s;s, not for a day, or two, or three, or four, but for a long while together. She that before had walked with God, was now God's pri|&s;oner; and &s;uch was the nature of the &s;ickne&s;s, that &s;he could not &s;tir nor move one foot, yet was &s;he patient and &s;ubmi&s;ive to God's hand; &s;he ki&s;&s;ed the rod, &s;he learnt the Churches
<PB N="14" REF="10">le&s;&s;on, <HI>I will bare the indignation of the Lord, becau&s;e I have &s;inned again&s;t him: Micah.</HI> 7.9. She never murmured not repined one whit, but as &s;he was taught, &s;o &s;he learnt and conformed to that frame of <HI>Eli</HI> and <HI>David, Lord here I am, do with me as &s;eems good in thine own eyes.</HI></P>
<P N="4">4. In faith. She was ever and anon, during her, &s;ickne&s;s acting faith, often &s;he acknowledged her own nothingne&s;s, vilene&s;s, wretchedne&s;s; that &s;he was of little faith, and of no ability, in re&s;pect of her &s;elf, to help her &s;elf. Indeed her weakne&s;s in faith, in grace, and in all performances was her con&s;tant complaint; and this made me to mind her of that promi&s;e, that <HI>he would not quench the &s;moaking flax, nor break the brui&s;ed reed, until he brought forth judgement unto victory: Mat.</HI> 12.20. Some others I have &s;een mo&s;t confident in their &s;ickne&s;s of &s;alvation, whom though I dare not cen&s;ure, beau&s;e unacquainted with their grounds, yet I ingenou&s;ly acknowledge that I like dearly of an humble, trembling, &s;elf-condemning frame. Sure I am, that they who are vile&s;t in their own eyes, are per&s;ons in whom God mo&s;t delighteth. I remember how <HI>Paul</HI> in Scrip|ture be&s;pattered him&s;elf, but are not tho&s;e pa&s;&s;ages his beauty-pots? Give me a man among&s;t you that will lick the du&s;t of Je&s;us feet, and I dare &s;ay of &s;uch a one, that Chri&s;t will take him into his armes, and lay him in his bo&s;ome: it was her condition, &s;he was all in confe&s;&s;ion of her &s;piritual poverty, yet &s;he ca&s;t her &s;elf into the ble&s;&s;ed-bleeding armes of Je&s;us Chri&s;t; yea &s;he lay at his feet crying, <HI>Lord, I believe, help thou my unbelief:</HI> and again,, I <HI>re&s;t upon Chri&s;t, and upon Chri&s;t a|lone for Heaven and Salvation:</HI> and again, <HI>Though the Lord &s;lay me, yet will</HI> I <HI>tru&s;t in him:</HI> and again, <HI>He hath delivered, and he doth deliver, and</HI> I <HI>tru&s;t in him that he will deliver me &s;till:</HI> and again, <HI>Hold out faith, and anon thou wilt come to vi&s;ion.</HI> This la&s;t word, <HI>hold out faith,</HI> was one of the la&s;t words &s;he &s;pake on that la&s;t day of her life.</P>
<P N="5">5. In her love to Mini&s;ters. Her heart was wholly &s;et on Chri&s;t; and as a true &s;ign of it, &s;he loved Chri&s;ts image, e&s;pecially in his Mini&s;ters. And now I &s;peak my own lo&s;s; among&s;t others &s;he was plea&s;ed to ca&s;t her affections on the unworthie&s;t of all my Ma&s;ters me&s;&s;engers. In her life|time &s;he preferr'd me to this place; the Lord made her the fir&s;t wheel of his providence in bringing me hither, and it was &s;ome trouble to her &s;pirit that I left this pa&s;toral charge before &s;he left the World. Indeed &s;he honoured all the Mini&s;ters of Chri&s;t, yea the very function it &s;elf for Chri&s;t his &s;ake. Oh how will &s;he ri&s;e up in judgement at the la&s;t day again&s;t tho&s;e that make it their work to reproach, vilifie, and contemn the di&s;pen&s;ers of Gods word:</P>
<P N="6">6. In her love and charity towards all. Many di&s;cords have been in the&s;e &s;ad times, and &s;he hath &s;uffered much im many re&s;pects, yet in her approaches near to the confines of Eternity, I de&s;ired her to forgive others, as &s;he de&s;ired God to forgive her; at which &s;he proclamed it very affectionately, that <HI>She freely forgave all the World; and &s;he de&s;ired all whom &s;he had offended to for|give her.</HI> Her children then kneeling about her, &s;he gave them a ble&s;&s;ing, as <HI>Jacob</HI> gave to <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> and his children: this ble&s;&s;ing was pronounced with that cheerfulne&s;s; heartine&s;s, and fervency of &s;pirit, that it melted hearts, and cau&s;ed aflood of tears round about, her Bed; in &s;o much that &s;he was forct to rouze up her &s;elf, and to be&s;peak them, as Chri&s;t did tho&s;e weeping women, <HI>Weep not for me, but weep for your &s;elves; why &s;hould you weep for me that am going to my Chri&s;t, and to tho&s;e joyes pre|pared by Chri&s;t?</HI> And then &s;he gave a charge; the &s;ubject of it was a relative, re&s;pective duty to be performed by brethren; it concern'd him mo&s;t who was <HI>the begining of her &s;trength, or the ex|cellency of her power: Gen.</HI> 49.3. and &s;o far as Ju&s;tice, or Religion calls, I pre&s;ume it will never be forgotten by him.</P>
<P N="7">7. In her de&s;ire to die, and to be with Je&s;us Chri&s;t, which was be&s;t of all. Sometimes &s;he cried, <HI>Oh when will that good hour come!</HI> And again &s;ometimes, <HI>Oh that I were di&s;&s;olved, that I might be with Chri&s;t!</HI> But telling her of her duty, that &s;he mu&s;t wait, for waiting was a po&s;ture fit for &s;ervants; <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 123.2. <HI>Behold as the eyes of &s;ervants look unto the hand of their Ma&s;ters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her Mi&s;tre&s;s, &s;o our eyes wait upon the Lord our God until be have mercy upon us.</HI> Why then (&s;aid &s;he) I <HI>will wait, why Lord</HI> I <HI>will wait until my change &s;hall come</HI> Only &s;he minded that promi&s;e, <HI>Heb.</HI> 10.37. <HI>For yet a very little while, and he that &s;hall come will come, and he will not tarry.</HI> One thing was her trouble, &s;he was afraid that her &s;trong heart would not yield without much &s;trugling to the &s;troke of death; of this &s;he told me and others once and again; her rea&s;ons were be&s;t known to her &s;elf, but &s;he prophe&s;ied truly; for indeed when death came to her heart, &s;he uttered &s;uch groanes that &s;he outgroaned all our pray|ers. At la&s;t death by degrees overcame the &s;trength of nature, and then &s;he calmly and quietly left the world in the mid&s;t of our prayers; ju&s;t in that pa&s;&s;age, that <HI>her &s;oul might be taken up by the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t into the Bridegroom chamber.</HI></P>
<P>You &s;ee now how &s;he <HI>redeemed the time</HI> in life and death. As Chri&s;t &s;aid to the Lawyer, &s;o I &s;ay to you, <HI>Go thou and do likewi&s;e,</HI> Luke. 10.37. It is but a while that all of you have to live, and therfore I be&s;eech you improve time, lay hold of every &s;ea&s;on to get to Heaven. <HI>Live every day as if it were your la&s;t on earth. Walk accurately exactly, circum&s;pectly, not as fools, but as w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;e, Re|deeming the time, becau&s;e the dayes are evil.</HI></P>
<CLOSER>Soli Deo gloria.</CLOSER>
<PB REF="10">
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
