'And they that use this world, as not abusing it.'
Therefore, "let those who buy be as though they did not possess." As Jeremiah 22:23 says, "You make your nest in the cedars," imagining that your condition will remain secure. Oh, beloved, let us not build our hopes or rest our confidence upon that which offers no true or lasting assurance in this world. "For the form of this world," as we shall further consider, "is passing away."
And consider this also: for "brethren" who have an inheritance in heaven to live and buy as though they would remain here forever— this is not fitting. The very word "brethren" is reason enough to moderate us. "Brethren," remember who you are. You have a heavenly inheritance. Therefore, buy as though you did not possess.
So much then for this fourth direction.
"Those who use the world, as not abusing it."
We may indeed use the world while we are in it, for we cannot do without the necessities of this life. While we are here, we belong to two realms—we are members of this present world, and yet we are heirs of a better world to come. We are bound by our relation to both.
Now, while we live in this present world, we must make use of its resources. How many things does this frail life require while we journey here below? As travelers, we must have provisions that assist us on our way to heaven. Travelers require necessities—this is not in question. Therefore, it is lawful and even necessary to use the world in many ways.
"As not abusing it."
Yet there is danger in the use of the world. The danger lies in becoming so attached in our affections to the things of this world that we forget the better world to come. Therefore, we must use the world in such a way that we do not abuse it.
How, then, should we use it?
Use the world as a means of laying a foundation for the life to come.
While we live here, let the things of this world serve to help us settle our accounts for eternity. Use the world in such a way that some grace is expressed in the very act of using it. Let our engagement with earthly things be such that when those things pass away, the grace we exercised in their use may remain. "The world passes away," but let us use it so that what we do by faith and love in the midst of it may endure.
Use the world to the honor of God, to the good of others, and to the increase of our eternal reward. Do not abuse it to the dishonor of God. Do not take God's blessings and turn them against Him. That is to abuse the world. Forget not the Giver. Would it not be an ungrateful act if a man, having been invited by a kind host, were to cast that very host out of his own house? Such is the case when one uses the things of the world in a way that turns God out of the heart— the very God who has given all.
Do not turn the things of this world into weapons against God or against others. Do not make them tools of injustice, or instruments to ruin others. Do not abuse them to your own hurt, to pierce your own soul, as the apostle says: "They have pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1 Timothy 6:10). This is to abuse the world—
when by its misuse we dishonor God, wrong others, or wound our own souls.
God has not given us the things of this life so that we might destroy ourselves with them. Therefore, along with the gifts themselves, let us earnestly desire grace to use them rightly—for that is better than the gifts themselves. Labor to use the world without abusing it, for we certainly shall abuse it if we do not have grace to use it well. Many possess the gifts of God but do not have God Himself, because they lack His grace. When we receive any of His gifts, we must seek also the grace to manage them well.
To His children, God always gives grace along with His gifts. He never bestows anything upon them apart from the grace to use it in a sanctified way. They are sanctified in all things, and all things are sanctified to them. "Use the world as not abusing it."
The reason is compelling: "The time is short." Why should we be excessive in our use of this world? For overindulgence is one way by which we abuse it. "The time is short." We shall be torn from these things whether we desire it or not. Therefore, let us begin to wean ourselves from them.
And again, "the fashion of this world passes away." Why should we dote upon a perishing form? All things here are fading, and a new form will come in their place. You, "brethren," who are heirs of a better world, use this world as those who understand it is not your true home. "Brethren"—he reminds them of their higher calling.
And thus I come to the final exhortation.