XVI. SER M tempt them to put an End to their Lives themselves, and fometimes bring them into the Hands of the Executioner. What a ftrange and unaccountable Proceeding is this! for Men to fin in hopes of Time to repent, and yet withal to commit fuch Sins, as of courfe will allow them no Time to repent in! How much better is the Pfalmift's Advice? How much furer the Method which he prefcribes ? What Man is he that lufteth to live, and would fain fee good Days? Keep thy Tongue from Evil, and thy Lips that they speak no Guile. Efchew Evil and do good, feek Peace and enfue it. The Eyes of the Lord are open to the Righteous, and his Ears are open to their Prayers. But the Countenance of the Lord is against them that do evil to root out the Remembrance of them from the Earth. But thirdly, is the general Term or Period of Life fixed by God? This fhould teach us not to extend our Hopes and Expectations beyond this Term; not to live as if we were immortal, or as if we had fome hundreds of ·Years before us. For if God has limited our Days to a Century, or a fingle hundred Years at most; (and which of us here that is capable of reflecting upon what I am saying, can propofe to himself half that Number of Years to XVI. to be now remaining?) It would be a Madness SER M. for us to flatter ourselves with the Hopes of exceeding that Time, except we could alter the Decrees of Heaven. Nor fhould we indeed (confidering the Years we have lived already) entertain any Hopes of any confiderable Number of Years that we have ftill to pass through. Men are very apt to promise themselves, or hope for a Life of threescore or fourfcore Years: But are as apt to forget that should they arrive to thofe Years at laft, twenty, or thirty, or forty, or fifty of them are already paft, and that they have only what remains to come. This is a Reflection that every one should make that is once arrived at the Age of thinking: He should obferve how Days and Weeks, and Months and Years fteal infenfibly upon him; fhould begin to think how little Time he has now to live; and therefore fhould haftily go about the work, which he ought to have entered upon, at his first setting out. But though this Reflection concerns us all; it more nearly concerns fuch amongst us, as are growing near, or perhaps have paffed, the common and ordinary Age of Man. It would be unpardonable in fuch, ftill to depend upon Years to come, when they have already attained to the ufual Period of Human XVI. SERM. Human Life, are in the Borders and Confines and in the very Quarters of Death, and have already (as a late excellent Divine expreffes it *) borrowed fome Years from the other World. If these good Uses be made of the Confideration of the Uncertainty and Shortness of Human Life in general; we fhall In the fourth Place be never troubled or concerned at either the Shortnefs or Uncertainty of our own in particular. We fhall no more complain that our Life is but a Span, though a Span that compaffes innumerable Sorrows. On the contrary we shall confider and apply each of these as a Remedy to the other. For does not the very Shortness of our Lives abate it's Miferies? And do not its many Miseries commend its Shortnefs?" Lord, we "confefs thy Decrees are juft, and ourselves "the Caufe of all our Miferies: We facri"fice our Youth to Sport and Folly, and r our manly Years to Luft and Pride: We fpend our old Age in Avarice and Craft, "and begin not to live till we are ready to "die. Then we bewail the Shortnefs of our "Time, when ourselves have prodigally * Sherlock on Death, p. 151. thrown "thrown it away. We lead a loose and SER M. perhaps are too few to grow rich; or to "fatisfie the Ambition of a haughty Spirit : "But to be taught the Love of God, and "the meek and humble Life of Jesus, re quires not fo much a Number of Years, "as the faithful Endeavours of a pious Mind. "Would we bestow on the Improvements "of our Souls, the Time we vainly trifle away; our Days would be fhort enough, "not to feem tedious, yet long enough to "finish our appointed Task." But neither, I fay, if the former good Ufe be made of the Uncertainty of Life in general, fhall we complain of our Ignorance of the particular Time and Manner of our own particular Deaths, as when and how it is we are to die. We shall rather, (provided we are duly prepared for it) reft fatisfied and content with the Thoughts, that come it when, or howfoever it will, it will moft affuredly prove our Gain. For [to fpeak a little more in the lofty Strains of the fame pious Soul,]. "If it be"fall us in our Age it will be a Haven of Repose, and ought to be welcome after so long a Voyage. If in our Youth, it will prevent XVI. SERM." prevent a thousand Miscarriages, a thousand Dangers of ruining our Souls. If by an ordinary Sickness, it is the Course of Nature; if by an outward Violence it is not without the Permiffion of Heaven. No "Matter how late the Fruit be gathered, if "ftill it go on in growing better; no Matcc ter how foon it fall from the Tree, if not blown down before it is ripe. Therefore, O most just but fecret Providence, who governeft all things by the Counsel of thy Will; whofe powerful Hand can wound and heal, lead down to the Grave and bring back again! Behold to thee we bow our Heads, and freely fubmit our dearest Concerns. Strike, as thou plea feft, our Health, our Lives; we cannot be safer "than at thy Difpofal. Only thefe few Requefts we humbly make, which O may thy Clemency vouchfafe to hear: Cut us not off in the midst of our Folly, nor suf"fer us to expire with our Sins unpardoned: "But make us, Lord, first ready for thy felf, then take us to thyself in thine own "fit Time. SER |