Christian, Thus thou must reckon; so much time as I have lived to Christ, so much have I lived; and so much as I have lived to my self, so much I have lost. 'Tis not the Man but the Beast that lives, while we live below our reason, which distinguishes the humane life from that of Bruits. Now while we live not to God, we live utterly below our reason it self; which is sufficiently discovered in that God is the Author and End of Man. Doth not reason dictate that God should have the glory of his own work, and the Vessel should be to the Potters use? Doth any plant a Vineyard, or keep a Flock and not expect the Fruit or the Milk? 1 Cor. 9. 7. God hath made thee, O man, for himself, Prov. 16. 4. And hast thou the face of a man and dost not blush at this, to think that God should make and maintain thee in vain? If thou hast one grain of ingenuity thou wilt abhor the thought of this, that thou shouldst be in vain. Why, so much as thou art for thy self thou art for nothing. It may be thou livest a very busy life: but if thou actest not for God thou art all this while but busily doing nothing. Thou mayst sit down in the evening, and say, I have been all this day doing nothing. Thou wilt find ⟨p. 42⟩a blank in Gods Book for that day, nothing upon thine account: on this sad record, such a day spent and nothing done: God hath his Day-book and takes notice of all your carriages, how you rise and how you go forth to your labours, how you speak, how you eat, and whether you eye him and his glory in all, or look no higher then your selves. Luke 5. 5. We have been toiling all night and caught nothing. May not this be the sad complaint of many a man? I have been toiling all my life and yet I have done nothing; because what I did was not done unto the Lord. How would you take it of your servants, if coming home in the evening, you should find every one of them minding their own business, and pleasure, and your work left undone? Is it not, sad, sirs, that so many hours and days should pass over us, and we no nearer our end then ever we were before? Your little Children are busy from morning to night, and yet all the while have been doing nothing: And so are you when you are but seeking your carnal selves, and not serving and pleasing God in what you undertake.
Christian, Thus thou must reckon; so much time as I have lived to Christ, so much have I lived; and so much as I have lived to my self, so much I have lost. 'Tis not the Man but the Beast that lives, while we live below our reason, which distinguishes the humane life from that of Bruits. Now while we live not to God, we live utterly below our reason it self; which is sufficiently discovered in that God is the Author and End of Man. Doth not reason dictate that God should have the glory of his own work, and the Vessel should be to the Potters use? Doth any plant a Vineyard, or keep a Flock and not expect the Fruit or the Milk? 1 Cor. 9. 7. God hath made thee, O man, for himself, Prov. 16. 4. And hast thou the face of a man and dost not blush at this, to think that God should make and maintain thee in vain? If thou hast one grain of ingenuity thou wilt abhor the thought of this, that thou shouldst be in vain. Why, so much as thou art for thy self thou art for nothing. It may be thou livest a very busie life: but if thou actest not for God thou art all this while but busily doing nothing. Thou mayst sit down in the evening, and say, I have been all this day doing nothing. Thou wilt find ⟨p. 42⟩a blank in Gods Book for that day, nothing upon thine account: on this sad record, such a day spent and nothing done: God hath his Day-book and takes notice of all your carriages, how you rise and how you go forth to your labours, how you speak, how you eat, and whether you eye him and his glory in all, or look no higher then your selves. Luke 5. 5. We have been toyling all night and caught nothing. May not this be the sad complaint of many a man? I have been toyling all my life and yet I have done nothing; because what I did was not done unto the Lord. How would you take it of your servants, if coming home in the evening, you should find every one of them minding their own business, and pleasure, and your work left undone? Is it not, sad, sirs, that so many hours and days should pass over us, and we no nearer our end then ever we were before? Your little Children are busie from morning to night, and yet all the while have been doing nothing: And so are you when you are but seeking your carnal selves, and not serving and pleasing God in what you undertake.
