[2.] Vain and sinful pleasures and carnal sports. These rob us of our time, not only as there is a great deal spent in them, but chiefly as they taint our hearts, that we never truly mind the glory of God nor eternal happiness: Isa. v. 12, 'And the harp and the viol, the tabret and the pipe, and wine are in their feasts ; but they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands.' "While men excessively abound in all manner of delights, nothing is to be seen or heard among them that is savoury or serious ; they give themselves wholly to a dissolute or voluptuous course of life. These cannot mind the improvement of time. Their principle is, Isa. xxii. 13, ' Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die.' Whatever they do, they are still losing time, for they look only to present things, and have no design of living with God in heaven: Job xxi. 13, 14, ' They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave. Therefore they say unto God, Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways.' Their carnal mirth excludeth all sense of the need of God or care of the world to come ; for this little vanishing pleasure they hazard eternal joys: Luke xii. 19, 'And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years, take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.' They are only taken up with sensitive or sinful joys, and so post on the faster to their eternal misery, till one moment puts an end to all their joy for ever. Now since these vain delights tempt us to slight God, and religion, and eternal life, and the preparations necessary, we must be the more careful.
[3.] Worldly distractions ; these divert our cares and thoughts from the most necessary things. Our worldly business ought to be minded with a due regulation and subordination to our great end. It is our work given us to do, but usually men are excessive : Ps. cxxvii. 2, ' Tliey rise early, and go to bed late, and eat the bread of sorrows.' They rack their minds, and waste their spirits, and make this their main care, as if time were only given them, and they were made for nothing else, but to get wealth and heap up treasure to themselves. No ; things indifferent must give way to things absolutely necessary, things less necessary to things more necessary, and all to things abso- lutely necessary : Mat. vi. 33, ' But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you ; '
37-i SERMONS UPON EPHESIANS V. [SeR. XX.
Luke s. 42, ' One tiling is needful' And therefore great things must be most minded by us, other things in a due proportion.
[4.] Vain company ; they steal a jewel from us they can never restore, which is our precious time. There are some sinful comjian- ions we are never likely to be the better for ; and if they be not likely to be the better for us, we must not be familiar with them, but slum them: Ps. cxix. 115, 'Depart from me, ye evil-doers, fori will keep the commandments of my God.' There are others who entertain us with idle chatting and censuring: 1 Tim. v. 13, 'And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house ; and not only idle, but tattlers also, and busybodies, speaking things they ought not ; ' that is, they fall into loose discourse, censuring and meddling with other folk's matters. Now in all these cases a christian should not be careful to please others to the wrong of his own soul. Non nasciticr aliis qui mortuus est sihi. He that is to die for himself, and give account for himself, is not born to humour others with the loss and prejudice of his great affairs. In the general the rule is, that we should spend time in nothing that must be repented of ; and all talk that is imper- tinent and inconsistent with our duty is of that nature.
Secondly, Why we must redeem the season.
1, Because all things are beautiful in their season. It is said, Ps. i. 3, that the good man ' is like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season.' Now fruit in its season is a carriage answerable to all providences : Mat. ix. 15, ' And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them ? but the days will come when the bride- groom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.' Ps. Ivi. 3, ' At what time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.' When fears are apt to surprise us, we are to establish our hearts with the fear of God. So Eom. xii. 15, ' Eejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep ; ' an allusion to the two gates of the temple, Quarum una erat sponsorum, altera lugentium, utrisque convejiieniia dicebant Levitce — Grotius.
2. Because the season may soon slip out of our hands : Gal. vi. 10, * As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, espe- cially to them that are of the household of faith.' Take and seek all occasions of doing good. To take the season relates to the necessitie3 of others ; to seek the season relates to our own capacity and ability ; both together bind the duty stronger on us. He may die, and you may be discouraged and disabled ; and therefore take the present opportunity, while it lasts, to do all the good you can. Suppose it be to relieve others' bodily necessities : Prov. iii. 28, ' Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to-morrow I will give, when thou liast it by thee.' We must^^ not defer a benefit. Some are like hogs, good for nothing till they are dead ; they will not part with anything till they are incapable of the use of it any longer. So for exhorting : Heb. iii. 13, ' But exhort one another daily, while it is called to-day.' So for serving public good : Acts xiii. 36, David, ' after he had served his own generiition by the will of God, fell asleep.' They that mind to do good in the world engage themselves in a warfare, and the loss of our season is no small part of the enemy's conquest.