I. EXPLICATION.

1. Spiritual sloth is threefold.(1) Resolving sloth is when a soul is settled upon its lees, and resolves to lie still, and never to stir in that momentous concernment of its own eternal salvation (Proverbs 26:14; Jeremiah 44:16, 17).(2) Delaying sloth; when a person intends to look after soul-concernments, but not yet (Proverbs 6:10).(3) Disturbing sloth is when a person doth intend and endeavour to walk in God's way; but sloth, as rust, hinders the wheels of his soul from coming to and running in the way of God.

2. Activity in duty is a victorious conquest over the great Goliath, sloth, and riding triumph in the way, work, and worship of God. There are three things which concur and contribute to complete this activity in duty: —(1) A straining and stretching of the soul to the utmost peg, and highest pin; a putting of it upon the tenter-hooks in service.(2) An unsatiable and unsatisfiable desire or longing for the effecting and accomplishing of a duty.(3) A constant and continual waiting and working until the duty be perfected.

II. COROLLARY. Every man and mortal hath some of the ass's dulness and sloth in him; and therefore I have brought a whip of ten strings to scourge this sloth and dulness out of us.

1. Keep a strict watch over your eyes at all times, especially when you are in duty. The eyes are the portholes that sin and Satan creep in at. It is accounted a great piece of charity to a man's body to close his eyes when he is dead: I am sure it is more charity to our souls to close our own eyes whilst we are living (Job 31:1).

2. Send sin packing, bag and baggage. Sin is the soul's sickness. Now, sickness makes men lazy, loath to stir.

3. Frequent a quickening ministry.

4. Make out to the Lord Jesus Christ, whose promise and office it is to make us active and vivacious (John 10:10).

5. Get quickening love to the ways of God.

6. By faith apply the quickening promises, and the promises of quickening.

7. Consider quickening considerations. They that are apt to faint and tire in a journey, carry about their bottles of water to quicken their spirits. Let these considerations be such bottles to you when you tire in the journey of a duty: —

(1)Consider how odious and abominable sloth is to man or God.

(2)Consider, sloth exposes you to all manner of sin, especially these two desperate and dangerous ones: —(1) Sordid apostasy.(2) Spiritual adultery.(3) Consider how impossible it is that creeping snails in God's way should ever get to their journey's end. "Fair and softly" goes far, but never so far as heaven. "The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence," etc.(4) Consider how equitable it is that you should be as active in the way of God as you were once in the way of sin and Satan (Romans 6:19).(5) Consider how you contradict your own prayers, your very Paternoster, wherein you desire God's will should be so done by you on earth, as it is done by the angels in heaven. Now, those winged Mercuries and messengers of heaven do speedily and spritefully execute the commandments of God.(6) Consider you lose the very soul and life of your duty if you do not perform it as for your life and soul.(7) Consider the infinite and wonderful glory, greatness, majesty of Him you appear before and approach unto in your duties.

(J. Simmons.)

     1466   vision
     5149   eyes

Psalm 119:34-37

     8150   revival, personal

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