3. That time is only yours which is spent well, in pleasing God, and doing good ; for that time is bought and redeemed which otherwise is lost to you. We lose all that time which is not spent in the love and service of God. Strictly and properly we are never said to live as long as we are alienated from the life of God. A man may abide long in the world, till he be eaten out by his own rust, or droppeth like rotten fruit ; but he cannot be said to live long ; as a man may be long at sea, but is tossed to and fro by the waves, yet he cannot be said to make a long voyage when driven back into the port out of which he came at first. The apostle saith, 1 Tim. v. 6, 'But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.' Her time is useless, lost as to all spiritual purposes. You are a loser by that day in which you have not done or received some good.
4. Time is not ours to dispose of at pleasure. A christian, when he giveth up himself to God, he giveth up everything that is his to God, time and strength as well as body and soul ; he hath nothing at his own dispose, so that he hath nothing that he is absolute master of to use it as he pleaseth : 1 Cor. vi. 15, ' Shall I take the members of Christ, and make them the members of a harlot ? ' My time is not mine, but Christ's. It is sacrilege to rob God of what is consecrated to him. My to ^rjv, to live is Christ, Phil. i. 21.
5. Time is a precious commodity, worth the looking after. The devil values it ; if he can cheat you of your time, he can cheat you of your souls ; for when conviction is strong, and all your prejudices are borne down, and his outworks taken, excuses and self-flatteries vanish. The last thing that he is loath to let go is time ; his game is to cheat you of to-day, and so of the next day. God saith, 'To-day,' Heb. iii. 13; and the devil saith, Not to-day, but at a more convenient season ; as Felix put off Paul, Acts xxiv. 25, 'When I have a more convenient season, I will call for thee,' as to be rid of a troublesome creditor, we promise future payment. Moclo et modo own liahent modum — the sinner's morrow will never come. In hell they know the worth of time. Dying men that are affrighted in conscience discover the passions of the damned. What would they give for one year, one month longer, yea, for one week, or one day more ! But all the wealth in the world will not purchase a day.
6. The present time is the best: Ps. cxix. GO, 'I made haste, and delayed not, to keep thy commandments.' Ludovicus Cappellus telleth us of a Jewish rabbin, who being asked when a man should repent, answered, One day before his death ; that is, presently, this day ; it may be your last in the world : ' Behold, now is the accepted time ; behold, now is the day of salvation,' 2 Cor. vi. 2. Heaven and hell is in
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the case ; heaven is to be gotten or lost. Speed is necessary. We are commanded to ' fly from the wrath to come,' Mat. iii. 7, and to ' fly for refuge, to lay hold upon the hope set before us,' Heb. vi. 18. Your business is to avoid everlasting death, and to prepare for everlasting life.
7. You have no time but what may be serviceable for some good use. There is no time wherein thou dost not enjoy some blessing to provoke thee to thankfulness, or hast not some sin to be mortified, or some good work to be done. David had his morning meditation, Ps. xix., and his evening thoughts : Ps. viii. 3, ' When I consider the heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained ; ' and his night meditations when he could not sleep : ' My reins also instruct me in the night season,' Ps. xvi. 7. When the rain falleth : Job xxxvii. 7, ' He sealetli up the hand of every man, that all men may know his work.' We have a great deal of work to do in a short time.
8. We have much work to do, therefore let us spend it in matters that most concern us. We all complain of the shortness of time, and yet every one hath more time than he useth well. We should rather complain of the loss of time than the want of time. Vitam non accepimiis brevem, sed facimus ; nee tarn inopes temporis sumus, quam 2:)rodigi. We do not want time so much as waste it ; much more might be done for God than ever yet hath been done, if we were serious and diligent. We make our lives shorter than they are by interposing so many unnecessary diversions, and spending so much time as we do in vanity and folly and needless recreations. Every man should call him- self to an account how he spendeth his precious hours: Isa. Iv. 2, * Wherefore do you spend your money for that which is not bread ? and your labour for that which satisfieth not ? ' What do I spend my time and labour upon ? Works of absolute necessity must be first done and most minded : ' One thing is needful,' Luke x. 42 ; this is unum necessarmm and unum magnum, the one thing and the great thing : Phil. iii. 13, ' This one thing I do ;' that is, that we may become better christians every day. Next to that, other things must be regarded in their order, and place, and according to their weight. In the general, use time well. If it be short, do not make it shorter by your negli- gence and improvident misspending of it. A thing that is hired for a while, it is a loss to us if it be not used and employed ; as a horse that is bargained for if he be kept idle, or money taken up at interest. So it is with time lent us by God for a while ; we pay dear for it if we use it not, and improve it not for God. It is good to see what advantage we make of time daily. One could say when he heard the clock strike, Now I have another hour to answer for. Many of the heathens pressed a review at night, tI irape^riv ; Wherein have I transgressed ? Seneca, quotidie a]md me causam dico, it was his practice still to arraign himself. What vice have I resisted ? what disease of the mind have I cured ? qua parte meUo7' e ? wherein art thou bettered and improved? In the story of the creation God reviewed every day's work, and saw that it was good. Surely these or such like should be our night questions. What have I done to-day ? what advantage have I made of time that I may not lose it ? what glory have I brought to God ? what good have I done to others ? wherein have I profited my own soul ?