the Life, or Righteousness, and fo fhall we for ever live a Life of Comfort.

Remember thy LIFE-TIME. Thou hadít a time of Life upon Earth in the Body, as well as Lazarus; and there thou didst over-live him, and by his death fhouldft have been minded of thine own mortality, and of the preparation thou shouldft have made for thine own dying. Why did thou not then take the warning that was given thee, fo to fit thy felf for death, that dying thou mightst not have come into this place of torments? You had each of you a time granted you to live in upon the Earth. And you knew that it was no more but a time, which was, you were not told when, to have an end. That time you then had, was the time of probation and trial, the time of difcipline and learning, the time of preparation and exercife? You were both probationers for Eternity. Why then didit not then, as well as he, fo improve that time of Life as to make fure of an eternal life of joy and comfort? Should not this have been the great bufinefs of thy life-time, to work out thine own Salvation with fear and trembling? Why waft thou fo toolifh, as to let flip thy oppor tunity, and leave thy Work all undone till the night came wherein no man can work? Hadft thou not a Seed time, as well as Lazarus? And have you not now both of you your harvests; when you are to reap what you have fown your felves? What haft thou now to complain of but thy felf? Thou hadft a Life-time given thee, wherein thou mightft have learn'd the Way to Heaven, and mightft, if thou hadst pleas'd, have Walked with the Few in the narrow way that leads to Life; and might'ft have made thy felf friends of the Mammon of unrighteousness, which poor La

Zarus

zarus had not opportunity to do. Hadft thou not thy paft life-time given thee to this end, that in it thou mightft learn to live for ever? Was it not then thy bufinefs to exercise thy felf unto Godliness, that thou mightst have been made meet for the Inheritance of the Saints in light. Shouldft thou not, whilst living upon Earth, have had thy converfation in Heaven, and fo have made thy felf fure of not being Excluded out of this bleffed Society wherein thou now feeft us?

Remember, that thy life-time was thy Seed-time. And whatsoever a man foweth, that shall be alfo reap. He that foweth to his flesh, shall of the flesh reap Corruption; and be that foweth to the Spirit, fhall of the Spirit reap Life everlasting, Gal. 6. 7, 8. It is very fit and just, that every one fhould eat of the Fruit of his own Way, and be filled with his own Devices, Pro. 1. 31. What then wouldst thou have? Halft thou not that which grew up of the Seed which thou foweft? Haft thou not the wages thou hast been working for? Is not this the very thing thou haft taken much pains, and baft been labouring for all thy life-time? Waft thou not daily making provifion for the Flesh, to fulfil the Lufts thereof? Waft thou not all the while thou livedst gathering fuel for those flames which now torment thee? Was it not thy only care to treasure up unto thy felf Wrath against the day of wrath? Reap therefore what thou haft fown, and make the best thou canft of the treasure which thou haft laid up for thy felf. Thou haft no worse, how ill foever it is with thee, than what thou haft with much pains provided. Thou art thine own tormentor, and wait all thy life time kindling the fire wherewith thou art burnt, and which is now unquenchable by all the Water that Lazarus, or any other can bring thee.

Let

Let us all remember this, whilst we are on this fide the Grave, and whilst we live, think well for what we live. This life will foon expire, and yet how fhort foever it may prove to any of us, it is all the time we have to provide in for eternity. Let us therefore take heed, how we wafte any part of it, and let us carefully improve it all to our beft advantage. Now let us be fure to be always fowing good Seed, that we may for ever feed on that which is sweet and pleasant. If we have now our fruit unto holiness, the end will be eternal life.

Remember (faith Abraham) that thou in thy lifetime received thy GOOD THINGS. Many good things thou haft bad, which were all of them the good Creatures of God, and made for the good of Men. For Man's good they were made, but not to be Man's happiness. For Man's fupport and relief in his way to bleffednefs; but fuch as could not make him bleed. What canft thou name that thou wantedft! Was it wealth or honour, or pleasure, or health, or liberty, or what was it? Thou hadft not a few, but many good things, and that in fuch abundance, that thou hadft not only enough for nature, and for moderate delight, for thy felf, and for the use of thy family, but for many others, who might have been richly feafted on thy fuperfluities, if thou hadst had a heart as large as thine eftate, or the wifdem as well as grace to have done all the good thou mightft have done either to thy felfor others, with the many good things which thou received, Thou didst not in thy life-time fuffer hunger, and thirst, and nakedness, as Lazarus did. Thou waft not difeafed, and lame, and fore like him. Thou waft not reftrained in thy liberty of going whither,

and doing what thou hadst a mind to. Thou waft not driven to beg thy Bread, nor threatened and beaten for begging it; nor needeft thou to be bebolden to any Man for any of the good things of this World, but hadft all plentifully within thy felf, and might'ft have obliged many poor Souls which flood in need of thy bounty. How many hungry bellies might'ft thou have fill'd. How many naked backs might'ft thou have cloathed? How many poor Prifoners and Captives might'ft thou have ranfomed and releafed? How many poor People might'st thou have fet on work? How many fatherless Children might'ft thou have educated, and provided for. What an addition had this courfe made to thine honour on Earth, to thy happiness in Heaven? Such righteousness should have been had in everlasting remembrance. How would all thefe living monuments of thy Charity, have eternized thy Memory, ever praifing God for thee, and honouring thee as the faithful Steward of God, and his Inftrument of much good to them: How might the Prayers of fo many People daily fent up to Heaven for thee, have lengthen'd thy Days, and Profperity on Earth, and help'd thee forward to eternal happinefs? Thy Riches enabling thee to be rich in good Works, had thus help'd to make thee Rich for ever in the bleffing. of God. What a folid Foundation hadft thou thus laid up for thy felf, that thou might'ft lay hold on e ternal Life 1 Tim. 6. 19. But this precious Opportunity is quite loft, and now all thy good Things are quite gone for ever, nor either have they, or can they do thee any good, because thou hadft not a Heart to do good with them. Inftead of fo doing, Remember Son, how thou through thy vain Humor haft greatly hurt both thy felf and ma

ny

ny others with thefe good Things. How thou madeft it even thy Study to contrive which way to do much evil with much good. What elfe haft thou done with all thy good Things, but fed thy Pride, humour'd thy wantonness, pamper'd thy Body, nonrifh'd and strengthen'd thy Lufts, and arm'd thy Flesh to War against thy Soul, and the Spirit of God? Yea, thou didft not these things thy felf alone, but took'ft pleasure in those that did them. Thou fed'ft the Lufts of the Rich, instead of the Bellies of the Poor, and in the way which Pride and Vanity are wont to call Hofpitality, took'ft a pleasure in maintaining a fumptuous Table, for thy Trencher-Friends and Rich Neighbours and in fpite of the Command of the bleffed JESUS, left the Poor and Needy, fuch as Lazarus, to lie at thy Gate expecting no better Entertainment than to fhare in the allowance of thy Dogs. How didst thou play the Devil with thy good Things, tempting fuch as needed not thy Charity to intemperance with thy Plenty; and thofe that needed it, to curfe thy Hofpitality? With the variety and delicate curiofity of thy Table, thou fharpenedft the Appetites, of them, who otherwife might have fed foberly at Home, and wafted all that fhould have fed them, who had no Home to feed in. Was it not too much thy Recreation, to make Men firft naked with eating and drinking, and then to Sport thy felf in their nakedness? And now remember thy: Folly in thus abufing thy good Things unto Wantonness; and confider what Fruit thou hadst in thofe Things, which were indeed thy fhame, tho' thou gloriedt in it, and the end whereof thou now feelest to be Torment? The good Things which once thou hadft, are now not only gone, or left behind thee, but the cry of them follows thee to Hell; yea, they

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