Christian Directions, Chapter 20
CHAP. XX.
How to cloze the Day with God.
HAving shewed you how to walk with God all the day long, I come now to shew you how to cloze the day, and lye down with God in the evening.
The Directions may be brought to these two Heads.
1 Such as concern our behaviour in the Evening, before our going to bed.
2 Such as concern our behaviour at our going to bed.
I. The Directions which concern our behaviour in the Evening before we goe to bed, are these.
1 With-draw thy self into some secret and retired place, and there look back, and call to mind how thou hast spent the day; consider how thou hast performed the fore-mentioned Duties, belonging to the several parts of the day; call to mind what thy carriage hath been in secret, and what in company; how thou hast improved the one and the other;Optimus ille trapezita est qui quotidie vespere lucrum ac detrimentum computat. Climac. and whether thou hast discharged the duties of thy place, calling, and relations. As he is the best Trades-man, that every day in the evening taketh an account of his worldly losses and gains; so he is the best Christian, that every day in the evening taketh an account of his Spiritual losses and gains, whether he goe forward, or backward, in the ways of godliness. And therefore, as many Shop-keepers have their Day-books, where into they enter all their buyings and sellings, even all their worldly transactions, which they usually review in the evening: so will it be a point of Spiritual husbandry in us, every evening to review the passages of the day, and our transactions therein, which would tend exceedingly to the good and welfare of our souls. History tells us of many Heathens who were wont every evening to review the transactions of the day;Faciebat hoc quotidie Sextius, ut consumma…o die cum se ad nocturnam quietem recepisset, interrogaret animum suum; quod hodie malum tuum sanasti? cui vitio obstitisti? qua parte melior es? Senec. de Ira. l. 3. c. 36 Psal. 111. 4. as of Sextius the Roman Philosopher, of whom it is recorded, that every evening as he was going to bed, hee would question his soul, what Evil he had healed, what Vice he had withstood that day; in what regard he was better then before; an example worthy our Christian imitation, and a shame it would be to us to fall short of Heathens herein.
II. Call to mind the passages of Gods Providence towards thee, and treasure them up in thine heart and memory, labouring to make a right use of them. The truth is, it is an argument of a prophane and irreligious heart, to let the remarkable passages of Gods Providence pass away without any due observation of them; for as the Psalmist speaketh, The Lord hath so done his marvellous works, that they ought to be had in remembrance; and therefore it is thy duty, and will be thy wisdome, as in the day, to take notice of all the passages of Gods Providence towards thee; so in the evening to call them to remembrance, that they may take the deeper impression upon thee.
III. If thou hast been moved to anger in the day time,Ephes. 4. 26 let not the Sun goe down upon thy wrath; which is the counsel of the Apostle Paul, whereby he implieth such a speedy suppression of anger, that it may not sleep with thee, for saith he in the next verse, This is to give place to the Devil, Vers. 27.who, like the Lion that is greedy of his Prey,Quietis tempore ad animum ira cundi accedit, &c. Gregor. when the Sun is down creepeth forth, seeking whom he may devour; and in the night season, coming to the angry man in his bed, saith Gregory, he setteth before him the greatness of the wrong done unto him, and aggravateth the …ame, by all the amplifying circumstances thereof, to heighten up his anger to a revenge;Ut ira die orta cum die decidat. Ambros. in Ephes. 4. 26 and therefore saith the Apostle, Let not the Sun goe down upon your wrath; but if you have been moved un…o anger, it must not live past a day, lest in the day having conceived some displeasure, thou travel with revenge in the night, and in the morning bring forth some mischief or other; and therefore as we say of the Toad-stool. Oritur …o…itur.it grows up in a night, and dyes in a night; so should this poysonous weed of anger, dye on the day wherein it was born.
IV. Before thou goest to bed, be sure to offer unto God thine evening sacrifice of Prayer and Thanksgiving; this is hinted unto us under the Law, where the Lord required his Evening Sacrifice, as well as his Morning, Exod. 29 38, 39Now, this is that which thou shalt offer upon the Altar, two Lamb… of the first year, day by day continually; the one Lamb thou shalt offer in the Morning, and the other Lamb thou shalt offer at Even. This was the daily ordinary Sacrifice, which the Lord required under the Law, and therefore much more doth hee require a Morning and an Evening sacrifice of Prayer and Praises now under the Gospel. And truly, if thou shalt lye down in thy sins unrepented of, thou mayest happily awake with Hell flames about thine ears; and therefore farre be it from thee to presume to goe to thy bed, before thou hast offered unto God thine evening sacrifice of Prayer, and therein heartily begged the pardon and forgiveness of all thy sins, in and thorow the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ. Shouldst thou put off the performance of this duty till thou art in thy bed, as the practise of too too many is, it is very likely thou wilt fall asleep before thou hast made any great progress therein; and those prayers which thou makest in thy bed will prove but drowsie yawning prayers at the best; therefore bee sure to offer up thine evening sacrifice before thou goest into thy bed, and if conveniently thou canst, before supper, for by experience we find that our bodies are much more drowsie, and our spirits much more dead and heavie after supper than before.
Q. Whether a man finding his body drowsie, and his spirits dead and heavie, had better fall upon the duty of Prayer, or forbear it for that time?
Ans. Drowsiness of body, and deadness of heart, is no sufficient warrant for the omission of thine evening sacrifice of Prayer, but thou oughtest to …erform it notwithstanding, as well as thou canst, and that for these Reasons.
1 Because the Scripture giveth us no warrant for the omission of a bounden duty, because of some present drowsiness and indisposition thereunto, but doth rather expresly hold forth the contrary, enjoyning Christians to pray always, Luke 21. 36and to pray continually, Rom. 12. 12with sundry the like expressions: Which imply, as a frequent lifting up our hearts to God in ejaculatory Prayers, so a constant observance of our set times of solemn prayer.
2 As man that hath little or no appetite to his meat, yet by forcing himself to eat a bit or two, he begins to have a better stomack thereunto; so when a Christian hath no mind or disposition unto Prayer, but findes his body drowsie, his spirit heavie, and his heart dead; yet by forcing himself thereunto, though against his mind, doth many times find his affections …ickned, and his spirits raised up in Prayer; yea it is wonderfu… what quicknings and enlargements do many times come upon an adventurous soul, upon a soul that will adventure upon duty, against deadness, drow… ness, and such like discouragements; and therefore let not the drowsiness of thy body, nor the heaviness of thy spirit, so far prevail with thee, as to forbear and omit thy course of praying; But fall upon it, and for ought thou knowest, thou mayest feel and finde the lively quicknings and inlargements of Gods Spirit upon thy spirit in the performance thereof.
3 When a Christian feels and findes his body drowsie, his spirit heavy, and himself very indisposed unto the duty of prayer, yet hee may do it with much uprightness and sincerity of heart, that is, hee may do it in obedience to the command of God, as in the sight and presence of God, with a desire to approve himself unto God in the doing of it, and herewith hee may exceedingly comfort himself against deadness and drowsiness; for such is the excellency of this grace of sincerity, that it maketh all our services to be pleasing unto God, though they bee performed with deadness of heart, and dulness of spirit.
4 Though our prayers bee performed with much deadness of heart, and indisposition of body, yet being put up in the name of Christ, they finde acceptance with God in and thorow his Mediation and Intercession. Let us therefore put up our prayers in the name of Christ, and by Faith cast our selves and our services upon him, and then wee shall not need to doubt of Gods acceptance of them. Thus have I shewed thee the duties to bee performed by thee in the evening before thy going to bed.
I come now to the duties to bee performed by thee at thy lying down.
I. As thou art going to bed, take all occasions of holy and heavenly Meditations. To give you some hints,
As thou art putting off thy cloaths, think how it will not be long before thou beest stripped of all, and go out of the world as naked as thou camest into it; which Iob excellently expresseth, Naked saith hee,Job 1. 21 came I out of my Mothers womb, and naked shall I return thither; q. d. I came into the world destitute of cloathing, and of all outward comforts whatsoever; and naked shall I return thither, not into his Mothers womb again,Joh. 3. 4 for that is impossible, but to the grave, the womb of the earth, and common Mother of all; so that his meaning is, I shall go out of the world, as naked as I came into it.2 Cor. 5. 4 He…ce Death is called an uncloathing, because it strips a man of all his ornaments, not only of his apparel, but also of his honours, wealth, and riches.
How should the consideration thereof stir thee up to labour for the true riches, and spiritual cloathing, I mean the saving graces of Gods Spirit, and the robe of Christs Righteousness, and then thou shalt not goe out naked, but adorned and enriched.
As thou art laying thy self down in thy bed, let the bed mind thee of thy grave, thy sheets mind thee of thy winding-sheet, and thy sleep mind thee of death, for death is but a kind of sleep; sleep is a short death, and death is a long sleep: Hence Sleep and Death are often put the one for the other in Scripture,Deut. 31. 16 Dan. 12. 2Joh. 11. 11and death is often set out by sleep. That thou maist lengthen out this meditation, think of the several resemblances between Sleep and Death; as,
1 Men asleep are at rest, free from all trouble, from all toyl and travel; so the dead doe rest from their labours, as Revel. 14. 13. blessed are the dead which dye in the Lord, for they rest from their labours; that is, from their troubles and travails.
2 Men asleep rise again: so the body after it is dead and laid in the grave,Job 19. 25 shall arise again; death is but a sleep somewhat longer than ordinary.
3 Sleep refresheth the body of a man: so doth death the bodies of the Saints; for the body lieth down a weak, frail, mortal, corruptible body, but riseth a strong, glorious, immortal, and incorruptible body; so much the Apostle Paul plainly expresseth, where speaking of the resurrection of the body, he saith, It is sown in corruption, 1 Cor. 15. 42, 44.it is raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
4 Sleep oftentimes cometh upon a man unexpectedly: so doth death; for how many dye on the sudden, when they least of all looked for it; and therefore how doth it concern us to live in a continual expectation of, and preparation for death?
5 Sleep cometh acceptably to some men, so doth death to beleevers, who welcome death as their best friend next to Jesus Christ. Thus let thy sleep mind thee of thy death, and that not as farre off, but as near at hand, thinking thou mayest this night sleep the sleep of death;Cuivis potest accidere quod cuiquam potest. Sen. for how many have gone well to bed, and been dead before the morning? and that which happeneth unto one may befall another.
II. As thou art going to sleep, commend thy self, thy relations, wife, children, servants, and all that thou hast, into the armes of Gods protection, knowing, that they are safe whom the Lord keepeth.
And then labour to fall asleep as thou art meditating of some good thing, for then will thy sleep bee more sweet, thy dreams more comfortable, and thine heart will be in better plight when thou awakest.