Man . . . Is of Few Days, and Full of Trouble
The sermon reminds us that life is short and fleeting, and that we should focus on seeking eternal things rather than being attached to temporary earthly pleasures.
C.H. Spurgeon reflects on the transient nature of life, urging believers to remember that earthly joys are fleeting and often accompanied by trouble. He emphasizes the importance of not becoming too attached to worldly possessions and relationships, as they are temporary and can be taken away at any moment. Spurgeon encourages a mindset that anticipates separation and loss, promoting a love that is aware of life's fragility. He reminds us that true joy is found in seeking heavenly treasures rather than earthly ones, as our time on earth is marked by suffering and sorrow. Ultimately, he calls for a focus on eternal joys, suggesting that the path of trouble leads us home to God.
Text
It may be of great service to us, before we fall asleep, to remember this mournful fact, for it may lead us to set loose by earthly things. There is nothing very pleasant in the recollection that we are not above the shafts of adversity, but it may humble us and prevent our boasting like the Psalmist in our morning's portion. "My mountain standeth firm: I shall never be moved." It may stay us from taking too deep root in this soil from which we are so soon to be transplanted into the heavenly garden.
Let us recollect the frail tenure upon which we hold our temporal mercies. If we would remember that all the trees of earth are marked for the woodman's axe, we should not be so ready to build our nests in them. We should love, but we should love with the love which expects death, and which reckons upon separations. Our dear relations are but loaned to us, and the hour when we must return them to the lender's hand may be even at the door. The like is certainly true of our worldly goods.
Do not riches take to themselves wings and fly away? Our health is equally precarious. Frail flowers of the field, we must not reckon upon blooming for ever. There is a time appointed for weakness and sickness, when we shall have to glorify God by suffering, and not by earnest activity. There is no single point in which we can hope to escape from the sharp arrows of affliction; out of our few days there is not one secure from sorrow. Man's life is a cask full of bitter wine; he who looks for joy in it had better seek for honey in an ocean of brine.
Beloved reader, set not your affections upon things of earth: but seek those things which are above, for here the moth devoureth, and the thief breaketh through, but there all joys are perpetual and eternal. The path of trouble is the way home. Lord, make this thought a pillow for many a weary head!
Sermon Outline
- The Fleeting Nature of Life
- The Impermanence of Earthly Things
- The Path to True Joy
- Seeking eternal things
- Focusing on heavenly joys
- Our health is precarious
Key Quotes
“Man's life is a cask full of bitter wine; he who looks for joy in it had better seek for honey in an ocean of brine.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“The path of trouble is the way home.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“Beloved reader, set not your affections upon things of earth: but seek those things which are above, for here the moth devoureth, and the thief breaketh through, but there all joys are perpetual and eternal.” — C.H. Spurgeon
Application Points
- Remember that all earthly things are temporary and can be taken away at any moment, and focus on seeking eternal things.
- Love your relationships and possessions, but love them with the understanding that they are temporary and can be taken away at any moment.
- Seek joy in eternal things, not in fleeting earthly pleasures.