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A man or woman will play with the child for awhile, but there is not enough good in this play to fill their souls, though it is fully adequate to the desires of the child.

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These things are not fully adequate to the desires of a man or woman. They have other matters in their heads than these, and businesses of a higher nature. And so it is in those that are not earthly- minded. Though they may be busied about the things of this world, yet they use the world as if they used it not. The things of the world are not adequate objects to their hearts.

A spiritual heart reserves the chief strength of it for higher things. I follow these things in the world, but I reserve the chief strength for a more desirable good. If a man has friends come to him, perhaps some of an ordinary rank come first. He makes ordinary provision for them, but if he has any choice things for entertaining, he reserves them for some choice friends that are coming.

So a man that is not of the world, though he may be busy in earthly things, yet the choice of his heart he reserves for things of a higher nature. I remember Tertullian had a speech of the Christians, how they ate and drank when they supped. But the other lays out all his strength as if he had nothing to do afterwards.

In this, an earthly and a spiritual heart are quite contrary. The Apostle would have godly men to use the world as if they used it not. Contrarily, an earthly-minded man uses spiritual things as if he used them not. An earthly-minded man will do some things that are spiritual. He will come and hear the Word, perhaps he will pray in his family and read a chapter, but his heart is not there. He does it as if he did it not, come and hears as if he heard not, and prays as if he prayed not. He does not make it his business to pray or hear. A spiritually-minded man does worldly things as if he did them not, in comparison to being busy in spiritual things.

Those he does with all his might. An earthly-minded man is like Corah, Dathan, and Abiram. We read that they were swallowed up by the earth. So, the truth is, the things of the earth, contentments, provision for themselves and families in earthly things, opens and swallows up the very hearts of earthly-minded men. Sixthly, suppose a man does not seem to be so strongly inclined to layout his whole strength and heart about earthly things.

Yet when any man or woman shall seek any earthly thing. While we look not at the things that are seen, for the things that are seen are earthly and temporal. We seek them in subordination. For instance, a man who is godly follows his business as other men do, but what is it that I e would have?

I can appeal to God in this, that even in following my business and all outward things, it is so that I might follow God in the use of means for the providing of such things as may enable me to serve him the more in my generation. This is my scope in what I do. But now on the other side, an earthly-minded man makes his scope to follow his business and look about the business of his calling that he might gain. He would get that he might get; he would have more that he might have more, and that he and his children might be somebody in the world.

It may be that he might have enough to have his will and lusts, and therefore he follows his business very intently, merely that he may get to satisfy the flesh. Yes, indeed, all the good things that he does, he brings them in subordination to earthly things. You may take it thusly, a spiritual man does not seek earthly things for himself, but an earthly man does. Or more fully, an earthly man is earthly in all that he does do, both in earthly and spiritual things, and a spiritually-minded man is spiritual in all he does, both in spiritual and in earthly things.

When an earthly man is in earthly things he is altogether earthly, he does not look at obedience to God in what he does. But because it is your duty and it is the place God has set you in, that is spirituality in earthly things. An earthly man is earthly in earthly things, and he is more earthly in spiritual things. When he performs spiritual duties, he has an earthly end in it, either to get esteem from men, or to cover some evil. Perhaps merely for form or fashion he does it in an earthly way, and it may be at most that he does it merely for his own quiet, to satisfy his own conscience.

Now a spiritual man is spiritual in earthly things. One of a spiritual mind is more heavenly and spiritual when he is about his calling, though it be the lowest, like cutting hedges, digging ditches, pulling ropes or lines, or using his axe or hammer. He is more spiritual at these than is an earthly man when he is praying or hearing, or receiving Sacraments. Certainly it is so, and it will be found to be so at the great day of judgment, when all the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed. That which we may add as a seventh is, that he is earthly in spiritual things.

I grant that the best of the saints may have some earthliness in spiritual things, but I speak of the predominance. The eighth thing wherein we may find an earthly-minded man is this, that he passes through many and great difficulties in matters of the earth, and they are very little to him. Though he toils a great deal in matters of the earth he is never weary because he is in his proper element. Therefore, let there be what difficulties there will be, which to another man would be very great, he makes them as nothing and, though there is much toil and labor, yet he is not weary.

Because he is in his own element. The fish is not weary with swimming, but a man is quickly weary. It is because the fish is in his element and the man is not. He will rise in cold mornings and go abroad, do anything in the world. What difficulties will men endure in storms at sea, and hazards there and troubles at land, and sit up late, and rise early, and toil themselves, and complain of no weariness or difficulties. But, let them come to spiritual things, to soul business that concerns God and their spiritual estates. Every little difficulty puts them aside and discourages them.

Every mole hill is a mountain in their way. It is very hard and difficult to read and pray. And so he complains of the difficulty of these things. To watch over the heart is a very difficult thing. To an earthly man, any spiritual thing is difficult and the difficulties discourage him. In spiritual things, oh how weary are they! But they can follow the business of the world from morning to night and never get tired. They can work like a horse and never be out of breath!

I wish you would try once to spend one Sabbath exactly and see what a weariness that would be to you. Resolve just one Sabbath to rise early in the morning, and to have your thoughts spiritual and heavenly as much as you can. Then get up and pray alone in your closet.

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Then read, and hear, and meditate, and mark what you hear. And when you go home, think of it and confer about it. And when you come again to attend on the Word, and so spend the whole day in hearing, reading, meditating, and conferencing about good things, calling your family to account, and praying again.

See how tiresome this will be to your hearts if they are carnal. However, a spiritual heart will call the Sabbath a delight. And the Sabbath unto such a one is no other than a type and forerunner of that eternal day of rest it shall enjoy in the kingdom of heaven. One that is spiritual counts the Sabbath to be a day of rest, but an earthly man is quickly tired in spiritual things.

He will give up his work and not go through it. We read in Nehemiah 4: If a man is an earthly- minded man, he will go through with his work. If he takes up worldly business, he will go through with it, for he has a mind to it. He is an earthly-minded man. But let him take on a spiritual work and he will lay it aside before it is half done! He will seldom bring to perfection any spiritual work. Because he has no mind to it, whereas, if the heart were spiritual and there were any spiritual work undertaken, such a one would go through with it until all was finished.

Another note the ninth particular which describes an earthly-minded man is this: I truly think this is meant in a special manner in this place, for the Apostle is speaking of those that opposed him in his ministry and that were enemies to the cross of Christ. Now, these mind earthly things, their minds are of an earthly temper, and therefore it is no wonder they do not savor those heavenly and spiritual truths that we bring to them, for their minds, being earthly, do only apprehend those things after an earthly manner. Now what was the great truth that the Apostle brought to the Philippians?

It was the way of reconciling the world to God, of making our peace with God, and of our justification through Jesus Christ. Now there is no point of religion more spiritual, heavenly, and divine, than the doctrine of reconciliation, and of justification by Jesus Christ. So that one who is of an earthly disposition, though he may be convinced of a necessity of pardon of sin and peace with God, yet apprehends the making of his peace with God and obtaining pardon of sin in an earthly manner.

He has carnal thoughts and apprehensions about his place with God and obtaining pardon of sin. He thinks it is the same way that one man obtains peace with another when there has been a falling out, and of getting pardon from another man that he has offended. He conceives it in an earthly way, he looks upon his making peace with God by something that he must perform.

But the free justification by the grace of God in Christ? As the prophet speaks in Isaiah 1: In the same way an earthly- minded man knows God, like an ox knows his owner, and the ass his master. The ox knows his owner since he brings him fodder daily, so an earthly-minded man has no other apprehensions of God but that God gives him good things in this world.

God makes his corn to grow or prospers his voyage. An earthly-minded man may rise so high as to have apprehensions of God as bringing good things unto him here on earth, but one that is spiritual and heavenly apprehends God as God.

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He does not look upon God merely as good in respect of the benefit he receives from God here, but he looks upon God as He is in Himself. He sees the face of God. The ox knows his owner. The ox knows the man that brings hay or provisions to him, but a man knows a man in another way.

He knows what the nature of a man is, what it is to be a rational creature. So one who is spiritual knows what God is in Himself; he sees the face of God, and understands what God is in another way than others do. The difference between the know ledge of God that a spiritual soul has, one who is pure in heart, and the knowledge of God that an earthly heart has, is just as different. As the ox knows the man that drives him to fat pastures, so an earthly man knows God gives him good things.

But a spiritual man knows God as one man knows another, not in the full excellency, but there is such a difference in some degree between the apprehensions of God in a spiritual heart and the apprehensions of God in an earthly heart. We might mention many other spiritual and divine truths that an earthly mind apprehends only in an earthly way. For example, consider heaven itself. How does an earthly mind apprehend that? He apprehends that he shall be delivered from pain and shall have some kind of glory, but he knows not what it is. He conceives it according to the way of the earth, some pompous, glorious thing, that he shall live in pleasures and not in pain, and so apprehends all the glory of heaven but in sensuality.

A spiritual heart looks at heaven in another way. He looks upon the enjoyment of communion with God and Jesus Christ in heaven, and living the life of God in heaven. Thus I have in these several particulars revealed what an earthly-minded man is. Oh, that you would lay your hands upon your hearts and consider how far these things reach you! But besides these, I have divers other arguments to convince the consciences of men and women that there is still much earthliness in them, but we shall treat them in order later.

The second head to consider is this: But to have an earthly mind? We do not think this to be such an exceeding evil. The Scripture calls it adultery. It is spiritual adultery in James 4: You that would abhor the thought of a temptation to adultery, yet you may commit spiritual adultery. A man or a woman may be an adulterer or adulteress before the Lord, though they never commit the act of uncleanness with another. Yet if their hearts are towards another, they are guilty of uncleanness, for Christ said that whoever looks on a woman to lust after her in his heart has committed adultery already.

That is, he has sinned against that command which forbids adultery. If a man lets his heart go after another woman more than his wife, and a wife after another man more than her husband, this is adultery before the Lord. So if our hearts go after anything more than the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom we profess to be married and who is our Husband, this is adultery in Scriptural terms.

Speaking of divers sins that should not so much as be named among them, as is becoming saints, he lists covetousness among the rest. And he adds this, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Now what is earthly-mindedness but covetousness, which is idolatry? A man or woman is an idolater who is of an earthly mind. Idolatry, which is a worshiping of sticks and stones, you all account to be a great sin; but do you and all others take heed of another idolatry that may be as bad, which is to have your hearts make the god of this world -the cursed mammon of unrighteousness -to be your God, to make the things of the earth to be your Christ by falling down and worshiping the golden calf of the world?

The voluptuous and drunkards make their bellies their God, and the unclean person makes his strumpet to be his goddess and worships that. Whatever your heart is most set upon, that is your God. Therefore, you must know, that this is the meaning of the Commandment, Thou shalt have no other Gods before Me. That is, you shall give Me, and nothing else, the strength of your soul. I am a God to My creature when I have its strength exercised about Me, to lift up Me as the highest good.

You bow your soul to that thing. Now the more base anything is that we make a God of, the more vile is the idolatry. When the Egyptians worshiped divers sorts of gods, they were accounted the most vile idolaters, whereas other heathens worshiped more excellent things: The Egyptians worshiped dogs, cats, onions, and vile things, and therefore their idolatry was vile. So, the more vile any thing is that men or women set their hearts upon, the more vile is their idolatry.

For a man to set his heart upon unclean lusts and to make them to be a god, satisfying those lusts, is abominable. To make any earthly thing a god to us is most vile for, of all the things of the works of creation that God has made, the earth is the lowest.

It is the basest and lowest thing and has the least beauty in itself, and it is the most dull and meanest element of all. To make earthly things to be a god to you is most vile. There are two particulars to open the evil of idolatry or earthly-mindedness. First, the evil of idolatry is in this: In letting your hearts go out to these things, you go off from God, and renounce the protection of God, the goodness and mercy of God.

You leave it all by this. It is a notable phrase. By going to idols, they went out from the protection of God whereas, while they were worshiping the true God, they were under the protection of God. But when they went to idols, they went from under their God, from under His protection.

So when you set your heart upon God and lift up the infinite First Being of all things as the Chief Good to your soul, you are under the influence of this grace and mercy, but when you depart from Him and make other things to be your chief good, you go from under His protection and from His goodness and mercy. Secondly, God is slighted and condemned when you choose to make the earth your god rather than the infinite First Being of all things. A man might despise his wife, an abominable sin, and choose to go to a Queen, the most beautiful woman in the world, forsaking his wife.

But to leave a Queen or Empress, who is the most beautiful woman upon earth, and to have the heart cleave to a base dunghill raker, would this not be a great show of contempt to the beautiful Queen? Yet it is so when you forsake the blessed, eternal God as your Chief Good, and choose the things of the earth. Therefore the prophet Jeremiah, in speaking of this idolatry, calls the heavens and the earth to be amazed at it. For my people have committed two evils, they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

So it is here. You forsake the fountain of living waters, the blessed God, and your heart cleaves to the dust. You seek your contentment and happiness in cisterns that can hold no water! Let the heavens be astonished at this horrible wickedness. Thirdly, earthly-mindedness is enmity against God.

You would hate to be found an enemy against God. The Scripture makes it to be enmity in the very text, James 4: As much as my heart or any of your hearts are against anything that is spiritual, so much mine or any of your hearts are enemies to God. Here, in this text, the earthly-minded men are made enemies to the cross of Christ, that is, enemies to the spiritual preaching of Christ and holding forth of Christ.

Indeed, if they would have mixed Christ and circumcision together, then they would have been content with it, but now this spiritual way of preaching Christ and being justified by faith alone, and Christian religion in its purity, was that which was not suitable to their carnal hearts, and therefore they were enemies to it. Earthly-mindedness makes us enemies to spiritual things. They can go up and down, and they do not care as long as they can go about their business, grow rich in the world and fare deliciously every day with Dives, making provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof.

There is an antipathy in their spirits against Jesus Christ and all goodness. And how can that stand with such workings as I have had before? Have I not cause to fear that I am but a hypocrite, a rotten professor? It is quite contrary to the very beginning of the work of grace, not contrary to the degrees only, but to the very beginning! The main work of God, at first, in working grace in the soul, is to disengage the soul from the creature. It is to take it off from the earth and from all creatures here below. It is naturally true that as we are of the earth, so we are earthly and have our spirits engaged to the things of the earth.

But then comes the work of grace upon the soul and takes it off, and discharges the heart from the earth.

A Treatise of Earthlimindedness

Therefore you find that Christ lays this in as the first lesson, He that will be My disciple, must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. It is all natural contentment, natural self, and sinful self. What is it for a man to be called? Give diligence to make your calling and election sure. To be called is this: There are other things in which the Chief Good consists. You were made for higher and better things than these.

God has nobler thoughts about mankind than merely to let him have a few contentments here in the earth.

Come away and look after higher things. Now how contrary is earthly-mindedness to the work of God in bringing grace into the heart? When God effectually begins to work upon the heart of a sinner, He causes a voice to be heard in the soul. You have been busying yourself about many things, but there is one thing necessary. Oh, come out of that way of yours which you are in. You can never be happy otherwise. You will be undone in it.

Surely such a one is not yet effectually called out of the world. The Lord disengages the heart from all creature comforts, and teaches the first lesson: Now, what is more opposite to self-denial and the taking up of the cross of Christ than earthly-mindedness? The text here says, They are enemies to the cross of Christ. A third thing in conversion is the resigning up of the soul to God as the Chief Good. The soul, upon the call of God, learns the lesson of self-denial and taking up the cross, and so being disengaged from the creature, now resigns itself to God as an infinite soul-satisfying good forever.

Now, you cannot but in the naming of this see how opposite earthly- mindedness is to it. Next we turn to the work of grace upon the heart, after the heart is convened and turned to God. First, grace brings a new light into the soul. A spiritual and divine light is set up in the soul upon the conversion of a sinner to God. But the earth, you know, is the dark part of the world, and earthly-mindedness causes darkness to be upon the spirit, as the interposition of the earth between us and the sun hinders the sight of the sun from us.

So the interposition that there is of earthliness in the soul of man between God and itself hinders the sight of God from the soul.

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There is a divine light set up in the soul, and God works grace that discovers things of a higher and more excellent and glorious nature, than those things were, which before the soul did so much cleave to. He that is in Christ is a new creature. Now, earthly-mindedness is opposite to the new creation of the soul. The first man is of the earth, earthly; and so it is apparent that you are still only in the stock of the first man, of the earth, who are an earthly-minded man. But the second man is the Lord from heaven. But now, you who are an earthly-minded man or woman are yet but a child of Adam, the first man, and so are of the earth, earthly.

This is opposed to grace, for grace works a new creation in the soul. Thirdly, grace is of an elevating nature. It raises the heart above itself and above the creature, yea, above the world; in some respect above angels themselves, above principalities and powers, above all created things. Grace is of a raising nature, but an earthly-minded man sinks down to low and base things. Fourthly, grace is of an enlarging nature.

It enlarges the heart, so that it cannot be satisfied with any earthly thing. Though God should give the whole world to a heart that has grace, this would not satisfy that heart. Because it is so enlarged by the work of grace. The work of grace is the divine nature, the image of God in the soul, and therefore makes the soul like God. The sixth thing wherein the danger of earthly-mindedness consists is this: O many of you cannot but be convinced in your consciences that you have not profited by the Word, and sometimes you will complain of the lack of profiting under the means!

O that you had hearts to look into the cause of it, as to why it is that you profit so little! It will appear that it comes from your earthly-mindedness. You bring a heart full of the world, full of dross, with you. It is no wonder that you do not see those spiritual, heavenly things that are in the Word when there is so much dross in your eyes. Summer travelers, traveling in the midst of dust and in company, do not have the freedom of their eyes to see things like they do at other times.

O many men come to the Word with their thick clay, and a great deal of filth that clams up their very eyes, and deadens their hearts in the hearing of the Word! Martha was encumbered with many things. So it is many times with those that come to hear the Word. Though they are in the presence of Christ and have the sound of the Word in their ears, yet their hearts are encumbered about many things. They are busied in the world even while they are hearing the Word. As you find in Ezekiel They sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, and they show much love with their mouth.

They will commend the sermon. They heard a man speak fine things, and bring excellent expressions to set forth the matter at hand, but their hearts are after the things of the earth, and after their covetousness. They had carnal, earthly, drossy hearts, and hence it was that no good came to them by the ministry of the Word. He that received seed among the thorns is he that hears the Word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches chokes the Word and it becomes unfruitful.

I beseech you to observe it: No, it is the deceitfulness of riches, and it chokes the Word. It may be, just when they are hearing the Word, if affects them. When these things come, they have worldly businesses, and their houses, and gardens, and comings in, and full tables, and all the delights that they have in the world. All these things come and possess the heart, so that the Word is choked. It cannot get down into the soul to sink in there and so to prevail in the soul to bring forth fruit. The Word is choked. You bring with you, and keep with you, and carry along with you, earthly minds, and hence it is that the Word prevails not with your hearts.

What do you lose through this earthliness? You lose the fruit of the Word that should save your souls. A spiritual heart, having received some one truth into it, later blesses God for it, and would not for ten thousand worlds have it otherwise than that he should have that truth preached unto his heart at such a time. Oh, he has cause to bless God for such a morning, for such a day, that he has such a godly pearl of great price presented to him!

But now, many of you, having your thoughts and hearts about some petty thing of this world, all those blessed truths that you hear from time to time, things that the very angels desire to pry into, are all choked and come to be unfruitful. Why did the young man who came to Christ to know what he should do to inherit eternal life receive no good?

The text says, he had great possessions. A man may, no doubt, be a rich man and yet a godly man, a holy man. But it was the heart, mixed with the earth which hindered the young man from embracing Jesus Christ. Young men are, for the most part, guilty of fleshliness rather than seeking after the riches of the world. Yet sometimes it has been the bane of some young men.

They were very forward when they were servants; oh, how precious was the Word to them! But when they got into the world and found the sweetness of it coming in, then the Word was choked in them, and they have lost the savour they had in the Word. They have lost the relish of the Word. It is not as sweet now to them as formerly it had been. If you had hearts to receive what is delivered, your hearts would tremble at the thought of this.

What shall I do so as not to be hindered in profiting from this Word? Whatsoever might hinder my profiting from Thy Word, I must take heed of it. Take heed of earthlymindedness. Many of your consciences cannot but tell you this. Sometimes any business will keep an earthly- minded man from coming to the Word, and when he does come, there is earth in his heart, and ears that keep him from attending upon the Word. When your thoughts are about earthly things in the hearing of a sermon, it may be that some truth passes by your soul that might have saved you eternally, and you have lost that opportunity which, perhaps, you shall never have again.

I will expand them in six particulars. You have the same Scripture as was used previously for the temptations and snare, 1 Timothy 6: First, it causes men to follow after things that are very vile and mean. It causes men to bestow the strength of their immortal souls on things that have no worth at all in them.

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If you should see men of excellent gifts spending their time on trifles and toys, like catching flies or chasing feathers, you would say that they had begun to be dull-minded. So the soul of man, capable of such excellency as it is -of communion with God, with the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost -to have its strength spent on such poor, trifling things that cannot profit in the evil day.

Oh, this is a foolish lust! Foolish lusts, or earthly-mindedness, cause you to be a servant to your servants. You would think a man is a fool who is a servant to his servants. Yea, is it not a great folly for a man to expect all his honors and respect to come from a servant rather than from any excellency in himself? Once he realized this, he would account it a great dishonor to himself. But an earthly heart puts itself into such a condition, since it is its greatest honor to have honors from its estate and riches.

Earthly men do not respect other men for any worth that is in them, or for any excellency of their own, but for their riches alone, which is to say that a man is not respected for himself, but for his servant! Take some men that have had estates, but are now deprived of them and have become as poor as almsmen or beggars. Who regards them now? But, let a man have grace and holiness, if he loses all and is made as poor as Job, yet he is one that the angels of heaven look upon with honor, and would glory in attending. This is the difference between the carnal, earthly heart, and the spiritual heart.

Earthly-mindedness brings a man into foolish lusts, for a man might have much more of the earth if he did not mind it as much as he does. For a man to mind the earth and to endanger himself in doing so, when he might have it better not to do so, is surely a foolish thing. For a man to bestow a great deal of labor on a thing, when he might have it with less labor, is surely foolish.

If you are one who belongs to God, you may expect God to bless you if you keep your hearts more spiritual. You might expect that God would grant you more of the good things of this world if you were less earthly-minded than you are. Were you to go on in your employment in obedience to God and commit it to God for success, you might be crowned with more success than you have been.

Now what a foolish thing is this? Suppose you sent a servant to buy something, and when he returned you asked him what it cost, and he told you that he paid ten times more than it is worth. You would think you had sent a fool to the market. So an earthly-minded man manifests himself to God, His angels, and all the saints, to be a fool. You bestow upon this world that which is a thousand times more worthy than the things of this world. You bestow upon this world that which might bring you to heaven. You might have gotten Christ, and heaven, and eternity.

Now for you to spend those thoughts and cares on that which you may never have for many men and women spend their souls on things of the world and never have them , this is a sad thing. Will this not be a folly? Will you not curse yourself hereafter for your folly? Whereas, had I spent time on things that concerned my soul and eternal life, I would have been more likely to have gotten those things. God does not fail men in spiritual things as He does in earthly things. A man may be as diligent as is possible in earthly business and yet miscarry.

But show me a man or woman that was ever diligent in seeking the things of God and eternal life who miscarried! You denied Your grace to me and, therefore, now I must be damned. But in the matters of the world, men do say this, that they have done all they could, labored and toiled, and yet for all this they miscarry. Oh, what a foolish thing is this, then, to toil and labor on that which is so uncertain, for is it not a foolish thing for a man to bestow all his estate on buying stones and that which will not afford him any benefit at all?

This folly is in the heart of man. Two of you might go to the Indies, where there are precious stones. And one might purchase a cargo of precious stones and other rich commodities, while the other, with an equal amount of money, lays out all his money on baubles and trifles. Both went out with the same amount, both came home loaded, but one came home with precious stones that made him and his posterity great, while the other brought home nothing but stones which made his neighbors scorn and jeer him.

O how would he tear his flesh for his folly in this matter! This will be the difference between men and women at the day of judgment for, the truth is, what is this world but a seafare? We are sailing in this world, with either a load of pearls, or with that which has no worth at all. When you live in the times of the gospel, there is a market for pearls, for those things that will enrich you to all eternity. One man bestows all the strength of his thoughts and heart on those things for which he shall be blessing God in the highest heavens to all eternity, and the other bestows his thoughts and heart on the things of the earth, loading himself down with thick clay.

There is a man or woman that shall be blessed for all of eternity, that shall join with angels and saints in the highest heavens to magnify the free grace of God in Christ. And there is another that, had he bestowed his thoughts and heart on the same things, he might have been blessed forever also, but he, minding the things of the earth, is a cursed fool and is the scorn and contempt of men and angels to all eternity.

Earthly-mindedness brings men into foolish lusts. Men of earthly minds think themselves the only blessed men and applaud themselves at home. Let men think what they will, but the Holy Ghost said that those lusts caused by earthly- mindedness are foolish lusts. It is folly for a man to do that which he must undo to gain. This is especially true of those earthly-minded men who have this earthliness so prevailing upon them as to get some earthly thing by some false ways.

Such men must undo all they have done. You have gotten so much of the earth in some cunning, cheating way, and you bless yourselves that you found out such a mystery of iniquity. This is a foolish lust. Because it must be done again. Either you must eternally be damned, or else you must restore as Zaccheus did, if you are able, even though it might make you impoverished. All the sorrow and repentance that can be will not be sufficient. You cannot be pardoned even with all your sorrow and repentance if you do not restore, if you are able, what you have gotten by means. I do not know that there was ever any minister of the gospel on the face of the earth who did not hold to this, that it was of absolute necessity to salvation to restore.

Unless you restore, you are willfully continuing in that sin. You do not only wrong the man the first hour, but as long as you keep anything that is his, you wrong him still. If you are able to restore and do not, simply because you are loath to part with so much money or so many goods, you willfully continue in the sin.

Now, no man or woman can truly repent of a sin and yet willfully persist in that sin. What a foolish lust is this, for a man or woman to get the things of this world in such a way that he must undo it all, though it is to his shame. O consider what a folly it is! You deceitful servants that spend away on your lusts that which you cheat your master of. Afterwards, when you come to set yourself up, you must restore what you have stolen, and it may be that a great part of your estate must be repaid by way of restitution. Therefore, what a foolish lust it is to be so set upon the things of this earth as to get them in an earthly way.

By earthly-mindedness, they lose the comfort of earthly things before they have them. For example, suppose a man or woman has troubling thoughts about the things of the earth. It may be that, by their inordinate thoughts, cares, and affections about some earthly things, they contract much guilt. Yet after this, perhaps, God gives them that earthly thing. I have it in my custody, but I got it dearly, it cost me such thoughts and cares and affections. I rather fear that God has given it to me in His wrath, because I got it in such a way.

Now all the comfort is gone and lost whereas, had it come in the way of God and had you given up yourself to God and let Providence bring such a comfort to you, you might have enjoyed much of God in it and blessed God for it. Oh, I have it from the love of God. The comfort of all is lost before it comes, you have spent so much upon it. Earthly-mindedness is the root of apostasy. The Apostle said that Demas hath forsaken me. What was the matter? Having loved this present world.

It was that which made Demas to be an apostate. What was Demas before this? Compare this Scripture with the Epistle to the Colossians, and you shall see what he was before this. Paul ranks Demas here among the famous professors of religion. The Apostle, writing to the Colossians, said, Demas greets you among the rest. The interpreters think it was the same Demas, and the word gives some ground for this. In Timothy, you find that he names Luke there, too.

It seems that Demas and Luke were two great associates. Paul mentions them together. When Demas had forsaken him, Luke still rode with him, and when Paul sends them the greetings of Luke, the beloved physician, he sends the greetings of Demas, too. But one was truly godly and, whatever sufferings Paul met with, one cleaved to him and would not forsake him.

He hath forsaken me. He has embraced this present world. Two men, both very ardent, and companions together, yet those that are godly, old disciples can savour one more than the other. Your earthly- minded men afterwards prove to be apostates. Usually, before their grand apostasy, they manifest some deadness and waywardness of spirit to that which is good. Yes, their spirits reveal them to be earthly spirits. They smell of the earth. Before a man dies, his breath will smell very earthy.

Those that have an intimate acquaintance with them before they apostatize smell their breath to be earthly in their duties, in their conferences. Oh, take heed of earthly-mindedness, lest it be the root of apostasy. When they were brought to the trial, they were base backsliders from God and His truth. Earthly-mindedness wonderfully deadens the heart in prayer. It sinks the spirits of men and straightens them out in spiritual duties.

Indeed, it defiles every duty of religion. Certainly, the vanity of which he speaks there means the things of the world, and by his eyes he means the eyes of the mind, chiefly working on the thoughts of his heart after earthly things. If you look at the 36th verse, he says, Incline my heart to Thy testimonies, and not to covetousness. Oh, Lord, let not my heart be inclined to covetousness, turn away my eyes from beholding. Lord, let not my thoughts be busied with such vain things, but quicken me in Thy Law. I have no quickness at all in my inward man when I come into Thy presence, and, by experience, I find this to be the reason that my heart is so drossy, because my thoughts and mind are set on earthly things that are vain.

As the dust of the earth is the most sluggish, dead element of all, so earthliness in the heart makes the heart sluggish, dead, and lifeless to any holy and spiritual duty. I appeal to your consciences in this. When you have let your hearts out after the things of this earth, and have been exercised in the world and in business, then when you have come to have communion with God, oh, how dead have you found your hearts! A drossy heart must be a dead heart in heavenly exercises. You complain many times of your vain thoughts in the performance of holy duties.

You cry out of dead spirits then, but here lies the cause. You have given yourselves up so much to the things of the world at other times, that when you come to converse with God, your hearts are so dead and dull. This is the ground of it, this is the great root of all, it lies here in your earthly-mindedness. Oh, how many prayers have been spoiled by an earthly heart! Whereas those who have spiritual hearts have enjoyed blessed communion with God at the throne of His grace, and have been sweetly refreshed, while you have gone with a dead heart and continued there, and come away with a dead heart without any quickness and life.

This is that which comes by your earthly-mindedness, which is such a restraint to duties. Earthly-mindedness is so great an evil, wherever it prevails, that it would be just of God that your name should be written in the earth. Those that are earthly-minded and have this prevailing upon their hearts, and who are not sensible of it, have cause to fear God lest He should write their names in the dust, yea, lest God already has written their names in the earth.

Then he goes on to describe the excellency of God and His sanctuary, A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary, etc. It is if he should say that there are a company of foolish vain men that seek after nothing but getting richer in the things of the earth, but a glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of Thy sanctuary. O Lord, we see an excellency in You, and in Your ordinances, and in Your sanctuary. O Lord, the hope of Israel, in whom there is such excellency, is there any that forsake You, who have so much excellency in Yourself, who are the hope of Israel?

O Lord, it would be just that their names should be written in the earth, that they should never come to partake of those good things that are in You, the excellent things that are in Your ordinances, and in Your Gospel. O those who have known God and the things of eternal life cannot but apprehend this to be a sad and grievous evil, to have their name Written in the earth! An earthly-minded man has the curse of the serpent upon him.

Upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat. You have the curse of the serpent, you grovel upon the earth, as it were, upon your belly. Your soul cleaves to the ground in a sinful way, and you feed upon dust. Earthly-mindedness is a dishonor to God and a scandal to religion. What, do you profess an interest in Christ, and are there no higher things to be had in God than the base things your heart is set upon?

What, do you hold forth the everlasting gospel in your hand to others, and openly profess to be nearer to God than others, and is there no difference between the workings of your heart and the workings of others after the things of this world? Oh, how does this darken the excellency of grace! If there is any grace at all, it very much clouds it. Like the mixing of earth and drossy stuff with pure metal takes away the excellency of the pure metal, so the mixing of the earth with the profession of religion blemishes the beauty and splendor of the profession of religion.

You will never be the man or woman who is likely to convince any by your conversation; you are never likely to be a means to draw any to the love of the ways of godliness, because there is so much darkness and earthliness in your conversation. You bring a bad report upon the things of God, as did the spies about the land of Canaan. Every professor of religion should endeavor to put a luster on religion, and to make the ways of God to be beautiful, amiable, and glorious in the eyes of all who behold them. But to give a lie about a gospel profession by your earthly conversation is a very great scandal to the name of Christ that is upon you, and to His gospel that you seem to stand up for!

Many that have had little religion in them have some kind of generosity of spirit, so that they scorn such base sordidness as some professors are given to. Let not those that have only common gifts of nature and education outstrip you that seem to be the followers of Christ. Away with that base, muddy, earthy, saving, pinching disposition.

It becomes none but Judas that carried the bag and betrayed his Lord and Master for eighteen shillings and four pence. Let me argue with you who have to deal with friends or neighbors who you are afraid do not have the power of godliness in them that you desire. You see they have much ingenuity, generosity, and a concern for the public good. Take heed of scandalizing such men, for certainly if such men could be brought to the love of religion, to the power and strictness thereof, had they the work of the Holy Ghost upon their hearts to humble them for sin, and to show the excellency of Jesus Christ, they would be glorious instruments in the church of God and the Commonwealth.

No, you should labor to walk so that they might see a beauty and excellency in the ways of religion by your conversation. Oh, it would be a thousand times better for you to be cut short of the things of this world, than that you should scandalize the ways of God, and the profession of the name and gospel of Jesus Christ. Earthly-mindedness exceedingly hinders preparation for death, and it is likely to make death very grievous and terrible when it comes.

We do not think that they were drunkards, following after taverns or ale houses, or reeling in the streets. But by this drunkenness, He means any excessive use of meat or drink, and professors of religion may be subject to that, to give themselves up too much to sensual delights and excess in the use of the creature. But besides that, though there are many that would abhor gluttony and drunkenness, yet the cares of this life take up their hearts. Therefore Christ said, Take heed to yourselves lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with the cares of this life. What evil would come from filling the heart with the cares of this life?

Mark, says the text, And so that day will come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come upon all them that dwell upon the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always. In the time of death, Christ comes particularly. There is a particular day of judgment at the day of death. It may likewise be applied to the time of any affliction. Then the evil of earthly-mindedness appears in this, that it hinders the preparation of the soul for affliction. Oh, earthly-mindedness will make your affliction grievous and heavy to you.

An affliction is a very grievous thing to an earthly spirit. If God comes to take away any comforts of this world because your heart cleaves so closely to them, there must be a rending of them from you, and that will put you to pain. A man that wears loose garments can easily put them off when he goes to bed at night, but if a man has a sore upon his body, and his inward garments cleave to the sore, when he pulls them off, it puts him to a great deal of pain.

Oh, then he cries out in his pain! But his conscience will trouble him in time of sickness, and then tell him how he has spent his time and strength of spirit on the things of the earth, when they should have been spent on more excellent things. What good is it that I shall leave so much more than my neighbor does, what great content is this to me when I am upon my sick and death bed? What comfort can I have in all the good things I have enjoyed? Yea, through the earthliness of my spirit, I have enjoyed little of them, yet I have troublesome thoughts.

But now death is likely to be to me as a strainer, that strains out the good and leaves the dross and the dirt behind it.

So all the good of the things of the world is gone, but the guiltiness that I have contracted upon my spirit with my immoderate care and affections is now upon my spirit. I remember a man that lived in a place not far from where I formerly lived who had a covetous, earthly spirit. Then he saw that he must be stripped of all.

He must bid an eternal farewell to all, no more houses, no lands, nor money. Oh, death is grievous to such a man! Now, what should the life of a Christian be but a continual preparation for death? Many of the heathens said of philosophy that it was but a preparation for death. It is a special excellency of Christianity that it is a preparative for death, and therefore you should let out your hearts to the things of this world, and be continually thinking of death, so that when God calls you to part from these things, you may do it with as much ease as a man who is going to bed casts off his loose clothes.

The grave is a bed to the saints where they fall asleep when they die, and so they may lay down all things and go to their sleep with ease and peace. And I have kept my heart close to God and faithful to Him. I can bid the world farewell now. As the world has done with me, so I have done with it. So long as my time was to work for God, God continued those things that this frail nature of mine needed. Now my work is done; farewell to the comforts of this world. I expect other comforts where I am going.

Earthly-mindedness is that which will bring destruction at last, as it will drown your soul in perdition. There are two texts for it. The first is here in this text. The Apostle says here, speaking of men who mind earthly things, their end is destruction. He joins both together: And the other place, for our purposes, is 1 Timothy 6: Some who are washing themselves in the Thames River go a little way at first, and then venture a little further and further, and at length, they are over their heads and ears.

There they are drowned and cannot recover themselves.

Main Content

So it will be with your hearts if you look not to them. You think you may venture so far to the things of this world. Are they not good and in themselves lawful? You get deeper and deeper into the world until, at length, you are plunged in over your head and ears before you are aware, and then you cannot recover yourselves. That man who gives his heart to the things of this world and thinks that he will go no further, I bet a hundred to one that once these things have taken up his heart, he gets more and more advantage, until this man is drowned in destruction and perdition.

A man or woman may be undone as much by earthliness and be damned and perish eternally as by adultery, drunkenness, murder, or any notorious sin. Do not deceive yourselves into thinking that because you keep from those gross and notorious sins that others live in, therefore you hope to be saved.