OF

THE INSTABILITY AND VICISSITUDE

OF

OUR PRESENT CONDITION.

HEB. XIII. 14.

FOR HERE HAVE WE NO CONTINUING CITY, BUT WE SEEK ONE TO COME.

I HAVE, in my course of life, had as many stations, and places of habitation, as most men. I have been in almost continual motion; and although, of all earthly things, I have the most defired reft, retiredness, and a fixed private station; yet the various changes that I have feen and found, the public employments that without my feeking, and against my inclination have been put upon me, and many other interventions, as well private as public, have made the former part of this text true to me in the letter, that I have had no continuing city, or place of habitation. When I had defigned unto myself a settled mansion in one place, and had fitted it to my convenience and repose, I have been presently conftrained by my neceffary employments to leave it and repair to another: and when again I had thoughts to find repofe there, and had again fitted it to my convenience, yet fome other neceffary occurrences have diverted me from it: and thus by feveral viciffitudes, my dwellings have been like fo many inns to a traveller; though of fome longer continuance, yet most of equal inftability and viciffitude. This unsettledness of station, though troublesome, yet hath given me a good and practical moral; namely, that I muft not expect my reft in this lower world, but must make it as the place of my journey and pilgrimage, not of

al

my

my repofe and rest, but must look further for that hap piness. And truly when I confider that it hath been the wifdom of God Almighty to exercise those worthies which he left as patterns to the rest of mankind, with this kind of discipline in this world, I have reason not to complain of it as a difficulty, or an inconvenience; but to be thankful to him for it as an instruction and document, to put me in remembrance of a better home, and to incite me to make a due provision for it, even that everlasting reft which he hath provided for them that love him; and by pouring me thus from vessel to veffel, to keep me from fixing myfelf too much upon this world below. But the truth is, did we confider this world as becomes us, even as wife men, we may easily find, without the help of any fuch particular difcipline of this nature, that this world below, neither was intended, nor indeed can be a place of rest, but only a kind of laboratory to fit and prepare the fouls of the children of men for a better and more abiding state; a school to exercise and train us up into habits of patience and obedience, till we are fitted to another ftation; a little narrow nursery, wherein we may be dressed and pruned, till transplanted into a better paradife. The continual troubles, and difcompofures, and fickneffes, and weakneffes, and calamities that attend our lives the shortnefs, and continued vexation occurring in them; and finally, the common examples of death and mortality of all ages, fexes, conditions of mankind, are a fufficient inftruction to convince reasonable men, that have the seriousness and patience to confider and obferve, That we have no abiding city here. And on the other fide, if we will give ourfelves but the leifurė to confider and obferve the great wisdom of Almighty God, that orders every thing in the world to ends fuitable and proportionable; the excellence of the foul and mind of man; the great advances and improve ments his nature is capable of; the admirable means the merciful and wife God hath afforded unto mankind, by his works of nature and providence, by his

word

word and inftructions, to enable him for a nobler life than this world below can yield, will eafily confefs that there is another state, another city to come, which becomes every good, and wife and confiderate man to look after and fit himself for. And yet let a man look upon the generality of mankind with a due and fevere confideration, they will appear to be like a company of mad or diftempered people. The generality of the world make it their whole business to provide for a rest or happiness in this world; to make these vain acquefts of wealth, and honour, and preferments, and pleasures of this world, their great, if not only bufinefs and happinefs; and which is yet a higher degree of frenzy, to esteem this the only wisdom, and to esteem the careful provifion for eternity, the folly of a few weak, melancholy, fanciful men: whereas it is in truth, and in due time it will most evidently appear, that those men that are most fedulous and folicitous touching the attaining of their everlasting reft, are the only true wife men, and fo fhall be acknowledged by thofe that now despise them. We fools accounted his life madness, and 'his end to be without honour. How is he numbered among the children of God, and his lot is among the Saints 1!'

When I come to my inn, I have this confideration prefently occurs to me: if my lodging be good and fair, the furniture fplendid, the attendance great, the provifions good and well ordered; yet I ftraight confider, this is not the place of my reft, I must leave it to-morrow, and therefore I fet not my heart upon it. And again, if my inn be but poor, my entertainment mean, my lodging decayed, I do not presently fend for painters, carpenters, and mafons, to repair or beautify it; but I content myself with it, and will bear with the inconveniencies, because I confider it will be but for a night, and to-morrow I fhall be gone, and poffibly come to my home, where I fhall be better convenienced. And although the truth is, that this world is little other

1 Wisd. v. 4,

than

than our inn to entertain us on our journey to another life; and our stay in it is many times very fhort, yea, our longest stay here in comparison of eternity, is infinitely more fhort than a night's lodging at an inn, in comparison to the longeft life here; yet it is a wonderful thing to obferve how much we are taken up with the concerns of this our inn; what a ftir we keep about it; what pains and coft we employ in it; how much of our time is laid out upon it, as if it were our only home. If our lot caft us upon a handsome lodging (as it were), and in it furnished with wealth, or glory, or honour, how we pride ourselves in it! how goodly we look upon ourselves! how happy we think ourfelves! what care we have to make it more rich, glorious and fplendid; and on the other fide, if our lot caft us upon the lower, meaner ftation; if we are poor, or fickly, or neglected, or under hatches; what a deal of impatience and discontent, and unquietnefs appears! Nay, though our lodging and entertainment in this inn of the world be pretty well, and will ferve till we take our journey; yet if it be not fo fine, and fplendid and rich, and comely as another's; if our meat be enough to fuffice nature; if our clothes enough to protect us from cold; if our houfe good enough to keep off the ftorms, and defend us from injuries, yet if these be not fo good as fuch a man's, or fuch a neighbour's, not fo good as my ancestors or relations; Lord! what a deal of unquietnefs, and complaining and envy, and impatience, and turbulency of mind there is in men! what defigns, and frauds, and plots, and underminings, and undue means men take to advance their own condition, and to depress others, and all this while never confider that which would easily cure the extravagance, as well of one hand, as of the other; namely, This is not my home, it is but my inn; if it 'be beautiful, fplendid, convenient; if my condition in it be wealthy, honourable, profperous, I will not fet my heart upon it, nor think any better of my felf for it; nor fet up my reft in it; it is but my inn,

'I must

.6

I must leave it, it may be to-morrow.

On the other

fide, if it be but poor, weak, infirm, ignoble, low, I will content myself, it is but my inn, it may ferve for my paffage. I fhall, it may be, leave it to-morrow, and then if I have taken that due care that becomes me in my provifion for my eternal state, I am ⚫ certain the cafe will be mended with me; however my ' inn be poor, mean, inconvenient, troublesome, it is but ' for a night, my home will be better; I have learned, that I have here no abiding city, but I feek one to 'come.' The benefits of the confideration of this text are many.

1. It will teach a man a very low esteem of this prefent world, and never to fet the heart upon it. Wilt thou Jet thy heart upon that which is not? It is not an abiding city: Either like the old feigned enchanted castles, it will vanish and come to little, while we think we have faft hold of it, or else we must leave it, we know not how foon. It is full of trouble and vexation when we enjoy it; and very unftable and uncertain is our stay in it. 2. But let it be as good as it will, or can be, this text tells of a city that is better worth our thoughts, an abiding city, a city that cannot be fhaken, where there are no troubles, no thorns, no cares no fears; but righteousness and everlasting peace and reft.

2. Confequently, it will teach us to seek that which is moft of value first and most, and make that our greatest endeavour which is our greatest concernment; namely, to feek that city that is to come, peace with God in Christ Jefus, and the hope of eternal life. It is true, while we are in this city that continues not (this inferior world), God Almighty requires a due care for externals, and industry in our employments, and diligence in our callings: It is part of that service we owe to God, to our families, to our relations, to ourselves; and being done in contemplation of his command, it is an act of obedience and religious duty to him. But this confideration will add this benefit even unto our ordinary employments in our calling, it will be fure to bring a bleffing