The Crown and Glory of Christianity, Uses · Use and exhortation 3 · Objections · Objection 2
Object. Object. 2 But hereafter may be time enough to look after holineſs, I may yet purſue after the pleaſures and profits of the world, I may yet ſpend ſome years in gratifying mine own luſts, and in walking after the courſe of the world, I have time enough before me, and therefore ſome years hence may be time enough to look after holineſs. Now to this objection I ſhall give theſe Anſwers.
Firſt, Thou wilt not ſay that thou canſt be ſaved too ſoon, nor happie too ſoon, nor bleſſed too ſoon, nor pardoned too ſoon, nor in the favour of God too ſoon, nor out of the danger of wrath, hell, and everlaſting burnings too ſoon, and if ſo, then certainly thou canſt not be holy too ſoon; for thou canſt never be truly happie, till thou art truly holy: No man will be ſo fooliſh and mad, as to ſay, he may be rich too ſoon, and great too ſoon, and high and honorable in the world too ſoon, and in fa…r and eſteeme with men (eſpecially with great men) too ſoon; and why then ſhouldeſt thou be ſo mad and fooliſh, as practically to ſay that thou canſt be holy too ſoon? and yet thus much thou doeſt proclaime upon the houſe-top, when thou cryeſt out, hereafter, hereafter will be time enough to ſeek after holineſs. But,
Secondly, I anſwer, that 'tis thy wiſdom and thy work to ſet one may be againſt another;Eccl. 7.14. thou ſay'ſt now, that hereafter may be time enough to look after holineſs. O ſet another maybe againſt this may-be,Iſa. 55.6. and ſay, if I now neglect this ſeaſon of grace, it may-be I ſhall never have another; if I now ſlight the offers of mercy,Pro. 1.20. to the 33. Heb. 2.1, 2, 3. Luke 19, 41.—45. Gen. 6.3. it may be I ſhall never have ſuch offers more; if I now deſpiſe this day of ſalvation, it may be I ſhall never have ſuch another day; if I now withſtand the tenders of Chriſt, it may-be Chriſt will never make a tender to me more; if I now reſiſt the ſtrivings of the Spirit, it may be the Spirit will never ſtrive with my ſoule more, and then wo wo to me that ever I was borne. O don't put off God, don't put off thy ſoule, don't put off the thoughts of holineſs, don't put off eternity with may-bees,Heb. 3.18. leaſt the Lord ſhould ſweare in his wrath, that thou ſhalt never enter into his reſt: and ſeeing that thou wilt not ſuffer holineſs to enter into thee, thou ſhalt never enter into thy Maſters joy: O! why ſhouldeſt thou put off thy poor ſoule, ſo as thou wouldeſt not have God to put it off; thou wouldeſt not have God to put off thy ſoule with may-bees, as with a may-bee I will pardon thee, it may-bee I wilt lift up the light of my countenance upon thee, it may-bee I will change thy nature, and ſave thy ſoule, it may-bee I will fill thee with my Spirit, and adorne thee with my grace, it may-bee I will bring thee to my kingdome and glory; O thou wouldſt not have God to put thee off with ſuch may-bees, and why then ſhouldſt thou deale more hardly and cruelly with thine own ſoule, then thou wouldſt have God to deale with thee? But,
Thirdly, I anſwer, 'tis a cleare argument that thou art not truly nor throughly ſenſible of thy preſent condition and danger who thus objecteſt; wert thou but truly ſenſible of thy loſt and undone eſtate out of Chriſt, didſt thou but indeed know what 'tis to live one houre in a Chriſt-leſs and grace-leſs condition, didſt thou but ſee that wrath that hangs over thy head, didſt thou but reade the curſes that are pronounced in the book of God againſt thee, didſt thou but behold how hell gapes to devoure thee, didſt thou but ſee how farre off thou art from God, Chriſt, the Covenant,Acts 2.39. Ephe. 2.12. and all the glory and happineſs of another world; ah how wouldſt thou every day cry out, give me holineſs or I die, give me holineſs or I eternally die. The Patient that is truly ſenſible of his diſeaſe, will not ſay, hereafter will be time enough to ſend for the Phyſitian, nor the wounded man will not ſay, hereafter will be time enough to fetch the Surgeon, nor the condemned man will not ſay, hereafter will be time enough to ſue for a pardon, nor the needy man will not ſay, hereafter will be time enough to look for reliefe, nor the fallen man will not ſay, hereafter will be time enough to lift me up, nor the drowning man will not ſay, hereafter will be time enough to bring a Boate to ſave my life; now this is the very caſe of all unſanctified perſons in the world, and why then ſhould they cry our, hereafter, hereafter will be time enough to be holy. The Boare in the Fable being queſtioned why he ſtood wherting his teeth ſo when no body was neare to hurt him, wiſely anſwered, that it would then be too late to whet them when he was to uſe them, and therefore he whetted them ſo before danger that he might have them ready in danger. Ah Sirs, there is nothing more dangerous then for you to have your holineſs to ſeek, when temporal, ſpiritual, and eternal dangers are at your heels; there is no wiſdom to that which leads men forth to a preſent purſuit after holineſs, nor no hell to that for a man to have his holineſs to ſeek when he ſhould uſe it.
Fourthly, I anſwer, that the brevity, ſhortneſs, and preciouſneſs of time,Sumptus protiociſſimus tempus. Theophraſtus. calls aloud upon thee to purſue after holineſs without delay; time paſt is irrecoverable, time to come is uncertaine, the preſent time is the only time, and on this moment of time depends eternity; this very day is a day of grace, O that thou hadſt but grace to take notice of it; this very time is an acceptable time, O that thou hadſt but a heart to accept of it, and to improve it: he that hath a great way to goe, and a great deale of worke to doe in a little time, had not need to trifle away his time; and this is the caſe of every unſanctified ſoule; O the ſins that ſuch a ſoule has to repent of, O the graces that ſuch a ſoule has to ſeek, O the evidences for heaven that ſuch a ſoule has to ſecure, O the miſeries that ſuch a ſoule has to eſcape, O the mercies that ſuch a ſoule has to preſs after, &c. and therefore of all men in the world, it ſtands unſanctified perſons upon well to husband and improve their preſent time; O 'tis a dangerous thing to put off that worke to another day which muſt be done to day, or elſe thou mayeſt be eternally undone to morrow; the old ſaying was (Nunc aut nunquam) now or never, if not now done, it may be never done, and if ſo, then thou art undone for ever. Many ſinners are now in hell, who when they were on earth were wont to put off the motions of the Spirit by crying out, eras, cras, to morrow, to morrow. Time is ſo precious a thing that mountaines of gold and rocks of pearle cannot redeem one loſt moment; which that great Lady well underſtood, when on her death-bed ſhe cryed out,Queen Elizabeth. Call time againe, call time againe; a world of wealth for an inch of time: ah what a precious and gainfull commodity would time be in hell, where for one day to repent, yea for one hour to ſeek after holineſs, a man would give ten thouſand worlds, were they in his hands to diſpoſe of. Time is ſo coſtly a Jewel that few know how to value it and prize it at a due rate, witneſs that ſad and frequent complaint among many, O what ſhall we doe to drive away the time, come let's goe to Cards to drive away the time, or let's goe to Tables to drive away the time, or let's goe to the Taverne, and take a pint and a pipe to drive away the time, or lets goe and take a walke in the fields to drive away the time, &c. Thus moſt are laviſhly and profuſely prodigall of that precious time which is their greateſt intereſt to redeem. Time is a precious Talent, and the non-improvement of it God will charge upon men at laſt, as he did upon Jezabel, Rev. 2.21.eſpecially upon ſuch who trifle away, who play away, who idle away, yea who groſsly ſin away their precious time; how many are there like children, who play till their Candle be out, and then they goe to bed in the dark? ſo theſe play and foole away their precious time, till the Candle of life be out, and then they goe to their beds, they goe to their graves in ſorrow, yea they goe to hell in the dark.Drexellius. I have read of a young man, who living vainly and looſely, was very fea…ul of being in the dark, who after falling ſick and could not ſleep, cry'd out, Oh if this darkneſs be ſo terrible, what is eternall darkneſs? he that makes no conſcience of trifling away his precious time, ſhall one day experience the terribleneſs of eternal darkneſs. The Poets paint time with wings,Sophocles. Phocilides, &c. to ſhew the volubility and ſwiftneſs of it; O Sirs, if the one ſenſe of the brevity, ſhortneſs, and preciouſneſs of time, did but lye in its full weight upon your ſpirits, it would certainly put you upon a ſpeedy and earneſt purſuit after holineſs; O then you would never ſay, hereafter, hereafter will be time enough to ſeek after holineſs, but you would addreſs your ſelves to a fervent and a conſtant preſſing after holineſs as the one thing neceſſary, and be reſtleſs in your own ſpirits, till you had experienced the power and ſweetneſs that is in holineſs. But,
Fifthly, and laſtly, I anſwer, that 'tis the greateſt folly and madneſs in the world for thee to put off the great God and the great concernments of thy ſoule, ſo, as thou dareſt not put off thy Superiors: Where is the ſubject that dares put off a lawfull duty urg'd upon him by his Prince with a may-be, or with an hereafter it may-be I will doe it, or hereafter I will doe it? or where is that ſervant that dares put off his Lords preſent commands with a may-be, or with an hereafter it may-be I will doe it, or hereafter I will doe it? or where is the ingenious child that dares put off a preſent duty preſt upon him by his parents with a may-be, or with an hereafter it may-be I will doe it, or hereafter I will doe it? or where is the affectionate wife, that dares put off the juſt deſires and requeſts of her huſband with a may-be, or with an hereafter it may-be I will anſwer your deſires, or hereafter I will anſwer your requeſts? O Sirs, you dare not put off your Superiors with may-bees, or with hereafters, and how then doe you dare to put off the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, with may-bees and with hereafters? it may-be I will look after holineſs, it may-be I will ſtudy holineſs, it may-be I will prize holineſs, or hereafter I will preſs after holineſs, I will purſue after holineſs, hereafter I will follow hard after holineſs. O remember, that as there is nothing that do's more incenſe, inrage, and provoke a Prince againſt his Subjects, a Lord againſt his ſervants, a father againſt his child, and a husband againſt his wife, then the putting off of their ſervices and commands, with may-bees or with hereafters; ſo there is nothing that do's more incenſe, inflame, and provoke the great God, then to put him off with may-bees, or with hereafters,Pſal. 95.6. to the end. Heb. 3.7. to the end. as you may ſee by comparing the Scriptures in the margent together. And O that for time to come you would tremble at the very thoughts of a may-bee, and at the very mentioning of an hereafter, that ſo you may never put off the commands of God, to purſue after holineſs with a maybe, or with an hereafter any more. And let this ſuſfice for anſwer to this ſecond Objection.