Page:Duty of redeeming the time in evil days, illustrated and enforced.pdf/22

22 Fourthly, Our days are evil, in regard they are days of threatened wrath and impending judgments. The clouds of wrath are hanging our heads, and we have many sad presages of a stroke. We many here notice three things.

1. The sins of the generations are come to a monstrous height. And as the progress thereof is somewhat unordinary, so it seems to shew that the cup of these nations is rear the brim.

2. The Lord's hand has been heavily laid on a nation abroad, from which these nations have taken an example of sinning, and the Lord may justly punish us accordingly.

3. Enemies are still busy in their contrivances to bring the nations into blood and confusion; and the increase of Popery, and the divisions in the nations on civil and sacred concerns, do expose us to be the more easy prey.

This calls aloud to the redeeming of time; and,

1st, To awaken out of sleep, and seriously to consider the signs of the time, the tokens of wrath gone out against us, that the day may not overtake us unawares, Matthew xvi. 3. We have had many warnings of an approaching stroke, but mercy has so often interposed for our delivery, that grace to improve them not coming along with them, we are generally more secure than formerly: and the more secure, the more likely is the stroke to be near: Thess v 3. “For when they shall say, Peace, and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travel upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape."

2dly, to prepare for a time of trial, Amos iv. 12, "Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel. The time should be improved as Nosh did his, Heb. xi. 7. “By faith Noah, being, warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house." And the best preparation is that, Micah v 5. "This man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian cometh into our land." Their case was sad in Noah's days who were without the ark; so when the Lord's anger goes through a hand, the case of those must be very sad who are out of Christ.