Latest / Reformed Thinking / The Sin and Folly of Procrastination (Proverbs 27:1) | Jonathan Edwards

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The Sin and Folly of Procrastination (Proverbs 27:1) | Jonathan Edwards · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to the Deep Dive, where we unpack insights from key
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sources, turning significant ideas into, well, real
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understanding. Glad to be here.
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Today we're diving into a really potent concept from Jonathan
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Edwards. He's quite a figure whose ideas
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still shape thought today. Definitely a major voice.
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Our aim is to distill the core wisdom from his sermon,
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Procrastination or the Sin and Folly of Depending on future
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Time. It's a powerful piece.
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And right at the center is this verse from Proverbs 27.1.
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Boast not thyself of tomorrow, for thou knowest not what a day
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may bring forth. That first really sets the
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stage. So our mission here is to unpack
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Edwards call to live each day without depending on any other
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day. We want you to walk away with a
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clear sense of what that really means, what it helps us avoid,
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and maybe how it can bring a new perspective to your daily life.
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That's right. And Edwards, you know, he's such
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a key voice within Reformed theology.
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He's respected for his, well, his careful biblical
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interpretation and this remarkable ability he had to
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apply scriptural truths to just practical everyday living.
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It's not just abstract theology with him.
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Not at all, and you'll find this consistent theme in his writings
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on wisdom. It often comes down to making
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good use of time and opportunities.
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Which isn't totally unique to Edwards, is it?
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No, not at all. It's a concept that's deeply
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rooted in some foundational biblical passages.
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You think of Deuteronomy 32.29, which urges oh, that they were
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wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their
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latter end. Thinking about the end right
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from the start. Exactly.
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And then there's Psalm 90.12 asking God to so teach us to
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number our days that we may apply our hearts into wisdom.
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Numbering our days. Yeah, these verses really frame
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Edwards thinking. They show that a wise approach
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to life it starts with a sober awareness of our well, our
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finite existence and our ultimate destiny.
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So it's about how we Orient ourselves in time.
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Precisely recognizing that true wisdom isn't just intellectual,
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it's about how we position ourselves right now, making the
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most of the present moment God actually gives us.
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So let's get into what Edwards means by this central call
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living without dependence on tomorrow.
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He bases it right on that Proverbs first boasts not
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thyself of tomorrow. What does he mean by boasting?
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Because it sounds like just bragging, but it's more, isn't
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it? Oh, much more.
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Edwards is talking beyond just, you know, literally bragging
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about your future plans. OK.
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He means we should avoid speaking or even acting as
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though future time or certain specific events in the future
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are somehow ours, as if they're certain, like they're firmly in
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our possession. Like we own tomorrow.
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Yeah, exactly. Think about it it it it seems
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kind of illogical to claim ownership or certainty over
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something you don't actually control.
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Right, right, it does. And Edwards sees avoiding this
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as just a fundamental part of wise conduct.
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He's saying that when someone boasts of tomorrow, they're
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acting as if they literally have tomorrow on hand.
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Or at least they have some solid reason to rely on it to call it
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theirs. It's an attitude then.
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It's an attitude that presumes control where, frankly, there is
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none. His view is we ought to conduct
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ourselves every single day as if no other day can truly be
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depended upon. So approaching each day as a
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gift, not a guarantee. That's it.
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It's a challenge to our natural human tendency to project
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certainty onto a future that's just inherently uncertain.
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And Edwards gives a very clear reason for this right in the
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verse itself. He does.
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It's very straightforward. It's the second part, for thou
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knowest not what a day may bring forth.
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That's the core. That's the cornerstone of his
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whole argument. We simply aren't sure of
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tomorrow. We don't have any real hold on
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future time. We really don't know.
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We literally don't know if we'll even wake up to see the morning,
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let alone what that day might bring, what might unfold.
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That level of uncertainty. Yeah, This absolute uncertainty,
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Edwards argues, makes it entirely sensible, in fact truly
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wise, that we ought to behave ourselves everyday as if no
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other day can be relied upon. It's a call to be radically
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present minded. It is rooted in a sober, honest
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assessment of our human ability to control time, or maybe our
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lack of it. And it's not about being
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anxious, right? No, not about promoting anxiety.
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It's about fostering A realism that then shapes how we live.
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If we genuinely accept that each day is a gift without a
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guarantee attached, it fundamentally changes how we
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approach our choices, our duties, our interactions.
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OK, but Edwards knew this was a strong statement.
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He was careful about how people might take it, right?
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He offered some precautions. Yes, absolutely.
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He calls them needful precautions, which is a great
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term. He wanted to make sure we don't
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misinterpret this pre Stark council.
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So what are some of those key clarifications?
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Well, one really key clarification is that not
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depending on another day, yeah, is very different from
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concluding that you will not live another day.
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OK. That's important.
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Very. He points out we have strong,
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undeniable reasons for the first the uncertainty of life, but we
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don't have any certain knowledge, no specific
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information telling us when our death will occur.
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We don't know the date. Right.
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And if we were certain we wouldn't live another day, think
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about it, some of our current duties would just stop making
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sense. Well, the duty to make
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provisions for daily needs like food or shelter, that wouldn't
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apply anymore if today was definitely your last true.
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And conversely, other duties like giving final instructions
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or last council, those would become immediate, urgent
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obligations. But that's not the normal
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situation. Exactly.
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Edwards is addressing the general human condition where we
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just don't have that specific knowledge of imminent death.
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So it's about living with a general sense of uncertainty,
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not a specific expectation of dying today.
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That makes sense. So it's not fatalism.
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What about practical planning, then?
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Does this mean we shouldn't, you know, save for retirement or
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plant crops? Not at all.
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Edwards is very clear on this. This precept doesn't cancel out
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our ongoing duty to make sensible provisions for our
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practical needs. OK, good.
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We're still obligated to plow or sew in the spring so we have
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food for the winter or to, you know, lay up for future needs.
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He even points to the Ant in Proverb 6.6 as an example of
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foresight and diligence. The busy Ant, right?
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Edwards says neglecting that kind of sensible provision would
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be imprudent, even foolish. The Bible actually advises
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against laziness in these areas. So it's not about ditching all
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future planning. No, it's about shifting the
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basis of our plans. We plan with diligence, with
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wisdom, but without an absolute dependence on those plans coming
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true or on the time to execute them being guaranteed.
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We plan, but recognize it's ultimately in God's hands.
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That's it exactly. We make our plans recognizing
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that in the end, our breath and our time are not truly our own.
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So it's not about abandoning responsibility, but about the
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spirit of how we Live Today. What is that true spirit Edwards
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is after? The true spirit of this is well,
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even though we don't conclude we will die today, we are still to
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live every single day as conscientiously, as holy, as if
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we knew it were our very last. As if we knew.
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Yes, it means being as careful to avoid every kind of sin, and
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is diligent to perform every duty God asks of us, as if we
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knew our soul would be required of us that very night.
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We should take as much care to prepare a good account for our
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day, judge how we've used this day as if we knew we had to give
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that account before another day dawned.
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That really underlines a spiritual urgency for the here
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and now. It does.
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It's about present diligence, active watchfulness,
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faithfulness now, recognizing how precious and fleeting each
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moment God grants us really is. It cultivates this posture of
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readiness not just for some distant future, but for right
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now. OK, with that framework set up,
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the call and the clarifications, Edwards then really zeroes in on
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how we often fail to live this way.
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He highlights 2 main ways we engage in this boasting of
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tomorrow. Right, he breaks it down.
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The first one, maybe the most common, is boasting of specific
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future events acting like we can depend on certain things
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happening down the road. Yeah, pinning our hopes on
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specific outcomes. Edwards give some vivid examples
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here, like acting as though you're absolutely certain you'll
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get rich, or you'll definitely get that promotion, or you'll
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absolutely finish finish that big project later on.
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Right concrete plans treated as guarantees.
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He points straight to the rich man in the Gospel parable, the
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one who confidently promised himself many years of abundant
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goods. Remember him, soul, thou hast
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much goods laid up for many years.
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Oh yeah, the ultimate example of misplaced confidence.
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His confidence wasn't just in living longer, but in a very
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specific prosperous outcome within that assumed future.
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He had it all planned out. And he was totally sure it would
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happen just like he pictured it, setting his heart completely on
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it. It's that illusion of control
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over specific future circumstances that Edwards is
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really targeting here, isn't it? Absolutely.
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And this idea, this boasting about specific future events, it
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extends very directly into spiritual matters too, which
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Edwards address head on. How so?
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Well, he talks about depending on future advantages for your
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soul. OK.
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What does that look like? It might look like expecting
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God's Spirit to just, you know, show up again later when it's
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more convenient for you, or maybe deciding you'll get
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serious about seeking salvation, but only at some later date.
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The more convenient season trap. Exactly that.
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Hope for a more convenient season to really seek after God,
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or just presuming that God will be ready to hear your prayers
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and show mercy whenever you finally decide to get around to
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it. That sounds dangerous.
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It is, and Edwards includes a really stark warning about
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depending on having a significant opportunity on your
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deathbed to finally seek mercy. He says that's common but
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incredibly dangerous, a presumption that just lulls
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people into false security. Wow.
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OK, so that's boasting of specific events.
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What's the second category Edwards identifies?
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The second one is even more fundamental, really is boasting
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a future time itself. Just time in general.
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Yeah, simply acting as though you depend on your life
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continuing another day, presuming you'll still be alive
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here in this world tomorrow. It's a basic assumption that we
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simply will have more time. That seems almost built into US,
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doesn't. It it does, and Edwards connects
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this straight to the Apostle James.
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Chapter 4. James really calls out those who
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confidently plan their business trips and profits.
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Right, the one saying today or tomorrow we'll go to such a
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city. Exactly continue their year, buy
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and sell and get game. James confronts that head on,
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reminding them Where is ye know not what shall be on the Morrow,
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for what is your life? It is even a vapor.
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A vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
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Just like that, James stresses, the right way to think is to
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say, if the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.
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Acknowledging God's sovereignty over time.
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Completely. And Edwards quotes James's stark
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conclusion. But now you rejoice in your
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boastings. All such rejoicing is evil.
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This isn't just a mild caution. It's a critique of a fundamental
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arrogance that ignores how fragile life is and how God is
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ultimately in control of our time.
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OK, so to really get Edward's point, we need to understand why
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these ways of boasting are so unreasonable.
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It's not just morally wrong, it sounds like it's fundamentally
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out of touch with reality. That's a great way to put it.
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It is out of touch and Edwards gives a clear sufficient reason.
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We have no grounds of dependence on another day, period.
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No grounds at all. None.
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This applies both to those specific future events and to
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the simple fact of living another day.
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There's just no reliable foundation to assume we won't be
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an eternity before tomorrow morning.
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And why is that? What's the basis for that claim?
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Well, first he points to divine sovereignty.
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We have no promise from God that we will see another day.
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Our lives are entirely in his hands.
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Edwards puts it like this. He hath set out bounds.
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The number of our months and days are with him, nor hath he
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told them to us. God determines the length of our
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lives and He hasn't given us the schedule.
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Exactly so. To boast of tomorrow is
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implicitly to deny that truth. So that's God's control.
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What about the nature of life itself?
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Edward Hammer's this point home, too.
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Human life, even when it's long, is incredibly brief and nothing
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is more uncertain. It's a universal truth, he says,
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that people know not the day of their death.
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Nobody knows. Nobody.
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Edwards clarifies that even the wisest or most discerning people
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are just as uncertain about how long they'll live as anyone
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else. There's no special insight, no
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level of planning or intelligence that gives anyone a
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pass on this fundamental uncertainty.
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It's common to all humanity. I mean, it's not just when we
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might die, but how right the suddenness of it.
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Exactly. Edwards highlights how common
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sudden death actually is. Deaths that happened literally
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overnight before tomorrow morning are frequent.
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It happens all the time. It does.
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People often go from seemingly perfect health to death in
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minutes because of diseases that gave no warning or through
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accidents nobody saw coming. Many people go to sleep feeling
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fine and are found dead in their beds the next morning.
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So our health today isn't a guarantee for tomorrow.
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Not at all. Present health, youth, even a
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strong constitution, none of it offers any real shield against
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the sudden end. Edwards quotes job 21.231 Diet
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in his full strength to really emphasize that even the most
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vigorous aren't exempt. This fact alone should shatter
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any illusion we have of guaranteed long life.
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That is very sobering. So even if we desperately want
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to live or feel like we have important things left to do,
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that doesn't change anything. That's right, Edwards is
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explicit about this. Neither a strong desire to live
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longer, nor being unprepared for death practically or more
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importantly, spiritually, nor even being really useful to your
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family or community. None of that provides any basis
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for depending on the future. Death doesn't care about our
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plans or usefulness, no. Death tarries for no man,
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Edwards says. It comes when and to whom it's
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sent, striking regardless of preparedness or usefulness.
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He even knows that often the most useful men are cut down by
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death in the midst of their usefulness.
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Our personal hopes, our sense of responsibility, even how much
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good we do for others, none of it sways the divine appointment
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of our end. He just underscores God's
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absolute sovereignty over our very breath.
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And adding to this unpredictability, Edwards
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reminds us, we often can't even imagine how death might come.
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Indeed, he points out, we're vulnerable to countless
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unexpected accidents and diseases that could be failed
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before tomorrow comes things impossible to foresee or fully
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guard against. Even being careful isn't
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foolproof. No, Even great carefulness with
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our lives and health provides no sure foundation, Edward says.
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Death comes in many ways which were not thought of.
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He likens it to fish caught in an evil net or birds suddenly
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trapped in a snare, quoting Ecclesiastes 9.1.
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Man also knoweth not his time. So are the sons of men snared in
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an evil time, when it follows suddenly upon them.
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That imagery really drives it home.
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It does. It highlights the sheer
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unpredictability of our end, reinforcing how foolish it is to
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gamble on tomorrow. We live in a world full of
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unforeseen events, and Edwards uses that reality to press home
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the urgency of his message. OK, so Edwards then shifts
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gears. He gets really practical, almost
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uncomfortably direct, with what he calls serious inquiries.
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Questions for self-assessment, right?
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Asking how these hidden assumptions about tomorrow
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actually show up in our behavior.
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Yes, this is where it gets very pointed.
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Like he asks if we're setting our hearts too much on worldly
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enjoyments. Right.
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How much do we depend on them for happiness?
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He describes how placing our happiness on worldly things,
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possessions, experiences, letting our affections just flow
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towards them, fixing our desires so much on them that we, well,
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we can't really enjoy ourselves without them.
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He says that signals a dependence on many other days.
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His logic is pretty sharp there. Yeah, he argues.
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If these things couldn't be relied on for more than just
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today, they wouldn't be worth setting our hearts on, would
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they? They wouldn't be worth placing
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our fundamental happiness in. It's a penetrating test.
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If your peace crumbles when those things are threatened,
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you're likely assuming you'll have many tomorrow's to enjoy
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them. And this also shows up in how we
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express pleasure, right? Being overly elated.
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Exactly being very much pleased, even elated with the world's
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comforts, or constantly seeking out, you know, vain mirth and a
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jovial life that also suggests a reliance on more days than just
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today. Why is that?
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Edwards says if someone were truly sensible that death could
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put an eternal end to all their worldly bodily pleasures before
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tomorrow even arrives. That thought would instantly
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create a mindset far removed from levity and vanity.
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The seriousness of death would temper the joy.
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It would naturally temper that kind of unrestrained joy,
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leading to a more sober disposition.
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Not necessarily sad, but sober. And it also shows up in how we
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react to loss. Definitely when people are just
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crushed, really overwhelmed by losing temporal enjoyments or
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facing big disappointments, Edward says.
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That reveals their heart was truly set on those things.
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It shows what they were depending on.
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It shows they were acting as though they boasted of tomorrow,
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depending on those things continuing for a long time.
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If they didn't have that dependence, they would be so
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completely unsettled. Their comfort was just too
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heavily built on temporary things, not something stable and
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lasting. It's like a thermometer for what
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really holds our heart. OK, another sign Edwards points
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to is pride in our worldly circumstances.
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He asks a pretty direct question.
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Would anyone really think it's worthwhile to be proud of
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something that's only dependable for a single day?
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The implied answer is clearly no.
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So what does that mean for pride?
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Therefore, Edwards argues, being puffed up over a large bank
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account, or getting a promotion, or wearing fancy clothes, or
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even personal beauty that demonstrates a dependence on
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having those things tomorrow, or at least escaping death's power
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to ruin them. Because death levels everything.
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Exactly. Death brings all to a level.
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A person proud of their beauty, for instance, isn't truly
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grasping that death could instantly mar it, make the face
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ghastly. Someone who really cares about
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expensive clothes isn't truly aware their body might be
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wrapped in a simple winding sheet tomorrow, left to rot.
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That's stark imagery. It really underlines the
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foolishness, the misplaced confidence of that kind of
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pride. It reminds us all worldly status
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is incredibly fleeting. And Edwards extends this folly
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to envy and fighting over worldly stuff.
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Absolutely. When people envy others their
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wealth, their easy life, their social status or their
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pleasures, or when they get into arguments and fights over
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worldly possessions and comforts, Edward says.
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That reveals they've set their hearts on those things.
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They fail to genuinely recognize that these things just cannot be
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depended upon for another day. If they realize that.
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If they truly held that awareness, these worldly things
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would seem pretty insignificant. Certainly not worth getting
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envious or quarrelsome about. Is the complete opposite of the
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attitude Jesus recommends in Matthew 5.
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Remember to willingly give your cloak too, right?
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A total detachment from those things.
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It really highlights how deeply our hearts can get tangled up in
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what's only temporary. OK, moving into maybe more
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spiritually church behaviors, Edwards identifies resting easy.
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Feeling comfortable in an unsafe spiritual state is a really
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strong sign of presuming on tomorrow.
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This one feels particularly convicting.
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It truly is if a person finds themselves in a spiritual
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condition, say unconverted, exposed to eternal separation
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from God, and the even intellectually acknowledge that
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they must be delivered out of this state before they die.
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They know they need to change. Right.
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Yet they remain at ease, quiet in spirit about it today, Edward
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says. This clearly implies a
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dependence on being delivered another day, and therefore on
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seeing another day. Their lack of urgency betrays
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their assumption. Precisely.
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Edwards points out that people who feel secure in their fins,
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especially those who hear the gospel unless they're genuinely
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deceived by a false hope, are usually like that because they
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boast of tomorrow. They're counting on future
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opportunities. They depend on future
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opportunity, flatter themselves with hopes of living a long
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life, rely on good intentions for that more convenient season.
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But if there are truly no grounds to depend on a future
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opportunity, the infinite dread of being lost should utterly
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prevent such ease. It should compel immediate
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action. The very quietness in their
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spirit reveals that hidden assumption of more time.
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This connects right into another point he makes, neglecting
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duties that are absolutely necessary to be done before
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death. Not just any tasks, but things
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with eternal weight. Yes, the non negotiables.
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Edwards is saying if there's something absolutely necessary
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to be done sometime before death, and the person knows it's
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necessary, the neglecting to start it immediately, sincerely
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and with all their might, that clearly shows a dependence on
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getting it done later. It carries this face with it, as
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he puts it. It's obvious what they're
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relying on. Right.
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This includes things like thoroughly reforming your life,
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casting away every wicked habit, denying every lust, applying
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yourself to all your duties toward God and other people,
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beginning to make your spiritual life your main business.
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These are major life changes. They are, and for those maybe
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seeking salvation, but kind of half heartedly, it means not
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truly striving to enter the straight gate or being violent
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for the Kingdom of heaven, That biblical phrase Edwards uses for
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intense earnestness. Putting your whole effort into
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it. Exactly.
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And it also covers neglecting specific known duties like
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private prayer, paying old debts, confessing faults, making
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restitution for injuries. Delaying these essential things
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clearly betrays A presumption that you're guaranteed the time
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to do them later. And building on that, Edwards
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also talked about the opposite problem.
21:50
Yeah, doing things today that you know must be undone later.
21:53
What does he mean by that? This refers to committing
21:56
actions today that will require future undoing.
21:59
Things like cheating someone, giving into temptation and
22:02
committing a sin, or maybe backsliding from seriously
22:06
seeking God. OK Edwards argues that doing
22:09
these things implies a dependence on having a future
22:11
opportunity to undo them through repentance and correction.
22:14
You're basically banking on tomorrow to fix today's sin.
22:17
Exactly. He stresses that what's done
22:19
must be undone through genuine, thorough repentance in this
22:23
world while you're still alive. Otherwise you're ruined
22:26
eternally. He says plainly there will be no
22:29
undoing of them afterwards. They may be suffered for, but
22:32
never can be undone. So after death, it's too late to
22:35
fix it. It's too late, so choosing to
22:37
sin today is essentially betting on a tomorrow.
22:41
You don't possess to fix that sin.
22:44
It's a dangerous gamble with eternal stakes showing a
22:47
fundamental misunderstanding of the finality of death and
22:49
judgement. This leads right into another
22:52
dangerous presumption, relying on future repentance or God's
22:56
mercy as an excuse for sinning now.
22:58
Yes, this is a particularly perilous 1.
23:00
Edwards talks about people daring to commit sins or gratify
23:03
their desires based on the assumption that, oh, I'll repent
23:06
later and that God will just show mercy even for willful,
23:10
deliberate sins. Treating Grace like a get out of
23:12
jail free card. Pretty much, he says.
23:16
This shows a foolish dependence on future opportunity to repent
23:19
and a really dangerous presumption on God's mercy.
23:21
What's the risk? Edwards warns this behavior
23:24
risks provoking God to give you up to a sealed hardness and
23:27
blindness and to a most fearful damnation.
23:30
He reminds us God will glorify his justice as well as his
23:33
mercy. And he brings up the sobering
23:35
example of Esau, who found no place of repentance, though he
23:39
sought it carefully, with tears. A.
23:40
Stark warning. It's a stark warning against
23:43
treating God's grace as a future safety net for present
23:46
indulgence. That casual attitude can lead
23:50
straight to spiritual ruin. Another sign, Edward says, is
23:53
simply not making the most of the opportunities we have right
23:56
now in the present. Yeah, just letting present grace
24:00
slip by. He points out that feeling to
24:03
approach every Sabbath, every sermon, or every private duty,
24:07
like private prayer, as if it were your very last opportunity.
24:12
Well, that clearly shows you're depending on future
24:14
opportunities. Treating them like there will
24:15
always be another one. Exactly.
24:18
He says we should engage with strict diligence, guard our
24:21
thoughts, keep our hearts focused, strive in our duties,
24:24
use the spiritual means available to us as someone who
24:27
doesn't count on ever setting foot in God's house again or
24:30
hearing another sermon. That changes how you approach
24:32
worship. Completely and similarly, Edward
24:35
says, when engaging in social activities, doing business with
24:38
neighbors or interacting with our families, if we don't
24:40
consider these as potential, our last opportunities, it also
24:43
shows its dependence. We act as if there will always
24:46
be other chances, and that devalues the present one.
24:49
Edwards goes even further, suggesting that not diligently
24:53
examining our hope for salvation is also a sign of this
24:56
presumption. Yes, he does.
24:58
If someone has some hope, they're right with God, but they
25:01
aren't entirely sure. They're uncertain.
25:03
Right. They live with uncertainty, and
25:05
they don't strictly examine themselves, search the grounds
25:08
of their hope, or cry earnestly to God for clear evidence,
25:11
Edwards says. They're behaving like someone
25:13
who depends on tomorrow for that crucial spiritual certainty.
25:16
Their lack of urgency shows they assume they have time later.
25:20
It implies a belief in ample future opportunity to make their
25:25
calling and election sure. That biblical phrase about
25:28
confirming firming salvation? They feel they don't need to
25:30
resolve that uncertainty today. It's putting off the most vital
25:33
self-assessment imaginable. Edwards also makes a somewhat
25:36
surprising point about how, assuming we have lots of time
25:39
effects how we engage with other people meddling in their
25:42
concerns more than our own hearts state.
25:45
It's a fascinating insight, isn't it?
25:48
When people prioritize getting involved in the business or the
25:51
quarrels of others, Edwards suggests, they're implicitly
25:54
thinking they have a great deal of time, which they have to be
25:57
filled up, and so they want business.
25:59
They're looking for things to do because they assume time is
26:01
abundant. Exactly, he argues.
26:04
They depend on tomorrow and the day following, and next month
26:08
and next year. Yay many years to come, and this
26:11
shows they're neglecting the truly great affairs of their own
26:14
soul. The great deal of business at
26:16
home between God and your own soul.
26:18
Too busy looking outward to look inward.
26:20
Right. If we truly grasped how short
26:23
time is, Edward says, we'd have little leisure or inclination to
26:26
get deeply involved in other people's affairs.
26:29
We'd prefer to focus on our own spiritual condition and
26:31
relationship with God. Our external busyness can often
26:34
mask an internal spiritual idleness that's enabled by
26:38
assuming we have unlimited time. And very pointedly, Edwards
26:41
confronts getting deeply involved in party designs and
26:44
schemes what we might call partisan strife today.
26:47
Yeah, he doesn't pull punches there.
26:49
He argues that excessive engagement and that kind of
26:51
strife, forming schemes against others, driving to get your own
26:54
way, secret plotting, expressing envy, contempt, mutual reproach,
27:00
like ridiculing others. Oh, that political wrangling.
27:03
He says it signals that people boast themselves of tomorrow and
27:06
put death at a distance. Because death ends all that.
27:10
Completely, Edward starkly points out.
27:13
Death puts a definitive end to all those contentions and
27:15
schemes. It silences the loudest, most
27:18
critical, most backbiting tongues.
27:20
It dashes all their worldly designs.
27:22
He quotes Psalm 146. His breath goeth forth in that
27:26
very day. His thoughts perish.
27:28
Their plans die with them. Right.
27:30
Death tames even those who would bite and devour.
27:33
Seriously considering these truths would have a strong
27:36
effect on us, he argues, if we didn't constantly push the
27:38
thought of death far away. It's a call to prioritize
27:42
lasting concerns over fleeting worldly squabbles.
27:45
Finally, Edwards addresses this tendency to allow ourselves to
27:48
do things we suspect are wrong, or maybe try to convince
27:51
ourselves they aren't really evil.
27:53
Yes, that's subtle self deception.
27:55
This involves taking liberties with sinful practices, often
27:58
under some pretense that they're lawful or OK, things that a
28:02
person would by no means dare to do if they had no dependence on
28:06
living until tomorrow. If death felt imminent, they
28:09
wouldn't risk it. Exactly.
28:10
If death felt imminent, those practices would suddenly look
28:13
frightful, terrifying. They'd wish they'd never touched
28:15
them. This behavior, Edwards argues,
28:18
shows that the reason they allow themselves these things now is
28:21
precisely because they're putting death in a distance.
28:24
It's a gamble based on the illusion of future time to
28:27
escape consequences or maybe change later.
28:29
It's a dangerous gamble enabled by that illusion.
28:32
OK, so after laying out all these ways we presume on
28:35
tomorrow, all these pitfalls, Edwards pivots to the positive
28:38
council. What does it actually look like
28:41
to live without dependence on tomorrow?
28:43
It sounds like it leads to a radically different way of
28:45
being. It absolutely does.
28:47
First and foremost, Edwards asserts, God has hidden the day
28:52
of our death precisely to stir us up, to motivate us to be
28:56
always ready. The uncertainty is meant to keep
28:59
us prepared. Yes, he calls us to live like
29:02
those always waiting for their Lord's return, just as Christ
29:06
advises in Matthew 24, He uses that powerful analogy of a
29:11
faithful watchman. The watchman who doesn't dare
29:13
sleep. Right.
29:15
A wise watchman doesn't risk sleeping.
29:17
Trusting the enemy won't come. Instead, he behaves every hour
29:20
as someone who doesn't depend on any delay.
29:23
It's a call to constant vigilance, readiness for the
29:26
Lord's coming at any moment, and just a general preparedness for
29:29
whatever life throws at us. So it's about making today count
29:33
every single day. What does that mean practically
29:35
and how we live it? Means you should live every day
29:38
as conscientiously and as wholly as if you knew it were the last.
29:42
As if you knew that's the key phrase.
29:45
It is. It involves being as careful
29:46
every single day to avoid all sin as if your soul be required
29:50
that very night. It also means being just as
29:52
diligent to perform every duty God asks of you.
29:55
And being ready to give an account.
29:56
Yes, taking as much care to have a good account ready for your
30:00
race, judge how you've used that day is if you knew you had to
30:04
give that account before the next morning.
30:07
It's a deep focus on present integrity, present obedience,
30:11
and a real sense of diligence in every part of life.
30:14
This sounds like seizing every spherical opportunity right now,
30:16
not waiting. Indeed, true wisdom means not
30:19
depending on specific future events for your spiritual
30:22
growth. Edwards highlights the biblical
30:25
advantage of seeking Christ early.
30:27
Like Proverbs advises, he counsels us to do what our hand
30:30
findeth to do with our might, quoting Ecclesiastes.
30:33
Doing today's work today. Right.
30:35
And he points to Ecclesiastes telling young people to remember
30:38
their Creator in their youth. It's about grabbing hold of the
30:41
present spiritual opportunity, not putting it off for a more
30:44
convenient season or assuming God's Spirit will just stir you
30:47
up later. It's an urgent call to act now,
30:50
in the time we actually have. Edwards also advises a certain
30:53
detachment from worldly things. Not that we can't enjoy them,
30:56
but our core happiness shouldn't be rooted there.
30:59
That's a great summary. While some affection for an
31:02
enjoyment of worldly things is fine, true wisdom means not
31:06
setting your heart on them, not placing your fundamental
31:09
happiness in them, not letting your affections be consumed by
31:12
them. How does he freeze it?
31:13
Your voice to Paul in First Corinthians.
31:15
Rejoice in them as though you rejoice not.
31:18
The idea is, if that worldly source of joy were suddenly
31:21
removed, your fundamental fountain of joy should remain
31:24
unshaken. Your core happiness should rest
31:27
on something immovable, not on fleeting circumstances.
31:30
It's about holding worldly blessings lightly.
31:32
And this detachment effects how we express joy to avoiding that
31:35
excessive elation. Exactly.
31:38
Those acting wisely avoid vain mirth or being overly pleased
31:42
and elated with worldly enjoyments.
31:44
They recognize that a genuine awareness of death's potential
31:47
arrival naturally leads to a mindless, far removed from,
31:51
well, from superficial levity. That lightness just wouldn't be
31:55
possible if you truly believe death could end all your worldly
31:57
pleasures before tomorrow. It brings a sobriety, again, not
32:01
sadness, but sobriety to our experience of worldly good.
32:03
So a wise person isn't completely devastated by loss
32:06
then? That's right, Not being very
32:08
much sunk. As Edwards puts it, not being
32:11
overwhelmed by temporal losses or disappointments indicates A
32:15
fitting detachment. It shows that worldly enjoyments
32:18
weren't the foundation your comfort truly stood on.
32:20
If they were, you'd crumble when they're gone.
32:22
Exactly. If they were the foundation,
32:24
their removal would threaten your entire structure of peace.
32:28
This kind of resilience says a lot about where your real
32:31
comfort is found. It highlights a perspective that
32:33
values the eternal over the temporary.
32:36
Edwards extends this to humility, to A wise person
32:39
wouldn't boast about something that could disappear tomorrow.
32:42
Precisely. A truly wise person wouldn't
32:44
take pride in something only dependable for a day, and
32:47
awareness of death's imminent possibility and its power to
32:51
level everything actively prevents pride and wealth,
32:54
status, fancy clothes, or physical appearance.
32:58
Death makes those things seem trivial.
32:59
It does, Edwards reminds us. Death brings everyone to the
33:03
same level. A person proud of their beauty
33:06
isn't truly grasping that death's touch will destroy it.
33:10
Someone cherishing expensive clothes isn't fully a way their
33:12
body might be wrapped in a plain drought tomorrow, destined for
33:16
decay. This sober perspective just
33:18
dissolves the illusion behind worldly pride, revealing its
33:22
emptiness. And refraining from envy and
33:25
fighting over worldly stuff is also a mark of wisdom, according
33:28
to Edwards. Correct.
33:29
Envying others their worldly comforts or getting into
33:31
arguments over material things shows a lack of awareness that
33:35
these things cannot be relied upon for another day.
33:37
If you truly realize that, if you were truly.
33:39
Sensible of life's uncertainty, these things would seem
33:42
worthless in your eyes. Certainly not worth getting
33:44
envious or argumentative about. It aligns with that attitude.
33:48
Jesus recommends willingly giving your cloak to
33:51
demonstrating a deep lack of interest in the fleeting value
33:53
of worldly goods. It reveals a heart set on
33:57
something much more substantial. This brings us back to our
34:00
spiritual condition. What does wisdom say about being
34:02
comfortable if you're not actually sure you're right with
34:05
God? If you're in a spiritual state,
34:07
like an unconverted state facing potential eternal separation
34:10
from God, wisdom dictates you must immediately awake from the
34:15
sleep of sin. Feeling at ease in that
34:17
condition is irrational if there's no solid basis for
34:20
depending on a future opportunity for deliverance.
34:22
The danger is too great for complacency.
34:25
Edwards argues you should have no quietness in your spirit,
34:28
given the infinite dread of being lost.
34:31
True wisdom recognizes the absolute urgency of this and
34:34
calls for decisive action today, not tomorrow.
34:38
So absolutely no procrastination on necessary duties, especially
34:41
the spiritual ones. He insists on this if there's
34:44
anything absolutely necessary to be done sometime before death,
34:47
and you know it's necessary wisdom, counsel starting it
34:50
immediately, sincerely and with all your might.
34:53
What does that include? Thoroughly reforming your life,
34:55
casting away every bad habit, denying every sinful desire,
34:59
applying yourself to the whole range of duties towards God and
35:02
others, beginning to make your spiritual life your main focus.
35:04
And for those seeking salvation, but maybe lukewarmly.
35:08
For them, it means striving to enter in at the straight gate
35:11
and being violent for the Kingdom of heaven today, those
35:14
phrases convey an intense, zealous pursuit of God's purpose
35:18
now. No half measures.
35:20
No, and it also covers those specific known duties.
35:24
Private prayer, paying debts, confessing faults, making
35:27
restitution. These are obligations you just
35:30
can't put off without showing a disregard for the fleeting
35:32
nature of life. And this commitment to the
35:34
present also means promptly correcting things we've done
35:38
wrong. Yes, doing things today that
35:40
must be undone, like cheating, giving into lust, turning away
35:44
from seeking God. That implies A foolish
35:46
dependence on a future chance to repent and fix.
35:48
It you have to and do it while you can.
35:50
Edwards is clear what's done must be undone through sincere,
35:54
thorough repentance. In this world while you're alive
35:57
or you face eternal ruin, he says.
35:59
There will be no undoing of them afterwards.
36:02
After death, you only suffer the consequences.
36:04
You can't reverse the action. Wisdom demands immediate
36:07
spiritual course correction, recognizing the opportunity to
36:09
make things right is only now. And it's not just about avoiding
36:13
bad things or fixing them, but about how we use every moment,
36:16
every opportunity God gives us. Indeed, acting wisely means
36:21
approaching every Sabbath and every sermon, or every private
36:24
duty, like secret prayer, as if it were the absolute last
36:28
opportunity you'd ever have. Treating each one as precious.
36:31
Yes, when you go into social gatherings, consider it might be
36:34
the last opportunity of a like nature.
36:37
In all your dealings with neighbors, act as if you were
36:40
never to make another bargain. Behave in your families every
36:43
day as though you relied on no other day.
36:46
This mindset transforms every interaction, every act of
36:49
worship, every moment into a potential final act of
36:53
faithfulness, filling it with profound purpose.
36:56
So rather than getting caught up in distractions, Edwards pushes
36:59
us to focus inward, on our own spiritual state.
37:02
Precisely, Edwards argues You should much less meddle with the
37:05
concerns of others and be much more employed with your own
37:07
hearts. If you recognize how short time
37:10
is and the great affairs between God and your own soul, you'd
37:13
find a little leisure or desire to get entangled in other
37:16
people's business. Your focus would shift.
37:18
Your focus would naturally confine itself more to your own
37:21
private spiritual disciplines, your own inner thoughts.
37:24
It's a call to prioritize introspection and personal
37:28
spiritual work over external distractions or gossip.
37:31
This also applies to how we engage in bigger societal
37:34
disputes like political or party strife.
37:37
Absolutely. If you truly lived as if you
37:39
depended on no other day, Edwards says.
37:41
Your heart would be very much indisposed to engaging in party
37:45
designs, schemes, strife, secret plots, envy, contempt, mutual
37:51
reproach. Death puts that all in
37:52
perspective. It ends it all.
37:54
Death silences the loudest tongues, dashes the most
37:57
elaborate schemes. Edwards points out how death
38:00
brings peace among those who once fought bitterly.
38:02
He contends that if everyone acted without depending on
38:05
another day, we should be a peaceful, quiet people
38:08
considering this finality should lead to a much calmer, more
38:11
humble way of interacting. And perhaps one of the most
38:13
dangerous assumptions is banking on future repentance.
38:16
Without a doubt, Wisdom forbids doing things now with the
38:19
assumption that, oh, I'll repent later.
38:21
That's a foolish dependence on future opportunity and a
38:23
dangerously casual view of God's mercy.
38:26
Which can backfire badly. It can provoke God, Edwards
38:30
warns, to give you up to a sealed hardness and blindness
38:34
into a most fearful damnation. He brings up Esau again, seeking
38:38
repentance carefully with tears, but finding no place for it.
38:41
It's a stark warning. God's grace isn't an excuse for
38:45
ongoing sin or guaranteed fakes if we deliberately delay turning
38:49
back to Him. And finally, Edwards really
38:52
pushes us to make our spiritual standing clear and certain
38:55
today. No resting and uncertainty.
38:57
Yes, if you have sun hope of being accepted by God, but you
39:00
aren't sure. A wise person knowing they can't
39:02
depend on another day, would be very strict in examining
39:06
yourselves and searching the grounds of your hope, and would
39:08
not rest in an uncertainty. They'd want to know for sure now
39:11
they. Diligently seek clear evidence
39:13
of your interest in Christ and cry earnestly to God for it
39:16
today. Why?
39:18
Because they depend on no other opportunity to make their
39:20
calling and election sure than the one they have right now.
39:24
It's the ultimate call to present tense spiritual urgency,
39:27
making sure your most vital relationship is secure.
39:29
So Edwards concludes his sermon by painting this really clear
39:33
contrast, the grim results of ignoring this wisdom versus the
39:37
deep peace that comes from living by it.
39:40
Let's look first at the danger, the peril of neglect, he
39:42
describes. It sounds pretty bleak.
39:45
It is, he says, those who foolishly rely on another day.
39:49
And sadly, he suggests this is the bulk of mankind live all
39:53
their days without any true peace or rest of soul.
39:55
No real inner peace. No, they are in fact all their
40:00
lifetime subject to bondage through fear of death.
40:03
It's this constant low level anxiety.
40:05
And when death actually approaches.
40:07
When death becomes undeniable, they're thrown into a terrible
40:09
fright. They're confronted with a dismal
40:11
view of their past lives, their I'll improvement of their time,
40:15
and the sins they've been guilty of suddenly appear more
40:18
frightful to them than so many devils.
40:19
A terrifying review of life. And their look forward into
40:22
eternity is equally dismal. Their hearts shrink at the
40:25
thought of it. They approach God's judgement
40:27
seat like some of being dragged thither, wishing they could hide
40:30
in caves. And the consequences go beyond
40:32
just fear at the the end of life, right?
40:34
Oh yes, even more concerning that all the anxiety and
40:37
distress in this life is the ultimate outcome for most who
40:39
live this way. Eternal ruin.
40:41
Eternal perdition, he calls it, Yes.
40:44
Edwards explains. They flatter themselves they'll
40:46
see another day, then another, relying on that hope until
40:49
finally most are swallowed up in hell to lament their folly to
40:53
all eternity in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone.
40:57
That's incredibly stark. It is, and he uses the parable
41:00
of the foolish virgins from Matthew 25 to drive it home.
41:04
Remember, they trusted the bridegroom would be delayed,
41:07
were caught unprepared with no oil while they rushed off to buy
41:10
some. Those who are ready went in with
41:12
him to the marriage, and the door was shut against them.
41:15
They came back crying, Lord, Lord, open to us, but it was too
41:19
late. A sobering picture of missed
41:21
opportunity with irreversible consequences.
41:23
Exactly. Delay based on presumption has
41:26
eternal costs. But in stark contrast to that
41:29
dire warning, Edwards holds out the blessings, the encouragement
41:32
that comes from actually embracing this council.
41:35
What does that life of wisdom offer?
41:37
It really offers safety and peace, both in life and,
41:40
crucially, in facing death. Living without dependence on
41:44
tomorrow, Edwards says, is the way really and truly, to be
41:48
ready for death. Ready for anything?
41:50
Yes, to be fit to live or fit to die, to be ready for hardship,
41:53
for adversity, for whatever God in His Providence brings your
41:56
way. It fosters not just a general
41:59
habit of readiness, but an actual preparedness for all
42:02
changes, especially that final change.
42:04
That's the promise of genuine security.
42:06
And this readiness, it brings a kind of inner peace, doesn't it?
42:10
Absolutely, it leads to possessing your soul in a serene
42:13
and undisturbed peace. This mindset enables you to go
42:16
forward with an immovable fortitude of soul, ready to meet
42:20
the most frightening changes, face the toughest challenges and
42:23
be ready with unshaken confidence to well to triumph
42:27
over death whenever you meet him.
42:28
A solid foundation. Exactly such a person's heart is
42:32
fixed, trusting in God, like someone standing on a firm
42:36
foundation or whose home is the munition of rocks, a place of
42:40
absolute safety. This person is not afraid of
42:44
evil tidings, but can even laugh at the fear of the enemy.
42:48
It reflects a deep, unshakable inner stability.
42:50
It sounds like a path to true quietness, true assurance.
42:54
It is this lifestyle brings the quietness and assurance Isaiah
42:58
spoke of, where the work of righteousness shall be peace,
43:01
and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.
43:04
Always watchful, never surprised.
43:05
Like a watchman always watching, who won't be surprised when the
43:08
news comes that his Lord is arriving.
43:09
This is the way for you to live above the fear of death, Edward
43:13
says. Even if heaven and earth were to
43:14
shake, you could stand firm, unshaken, settle on a rock that
43:18
cannot be moved but lasts forever.
43:20
And it even has broader implications.
43:21
He thinks so. He even notes that if everyone
43:24
acted, every day is not depending on any other day.
43:26
We should be a peaceful, quiet people.
43:29
It points to the potential societal impact of this kind of
43:31
individual wisdom. So let's try to wrap this up.
43:34
What does this all mean for you listening right now?
43:36
Edwards presents this really compelling argument for, well, a
43:41
kind of radical presentism in our spiritual and moral lives.
43:45
Focusing intensely on today. Right.
43:47
It's not about ditching sensible planning for tomorrow.
43:50
That's a duty. It's about freeing ourselves
43:52
from the illusion that we control future time, especially
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when it comes to the really important matters of our souls.
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It's about living today as if today is all the time.
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You're guaranteed to seek and obey God.
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And what Edwards really calls us to is this daily posture of
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readiness. It raises a pretty sharp
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question for each of us doesn't if our lives really are just a
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vapor, like James says, how does that perspective actually
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influence our attitude toward the fleeting concerns of this
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world compared to the lasting matters of Our Calling and
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election? Does our daily walk match what
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we say we believe about eternity?
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Edwards really compels us to ask that question.
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Does how we Live Today truly match what we intellectually
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grasp about the reality of eternity?
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That's a challenging thought to end on.
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Thank you for joining us for this deep dive into Edward's
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powerful discussion on living without Dependence on Tomorrow.
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It's been a great conversation. We trust this deep dive has
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offered a helpful shortcut to gaining understanding on this
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vital topic.