, 9 4 'Direaions tvhat part of our Bftates we Jhould de)Jote to cl>aritable ufes. dren, before the livu of others, yet the life of a poor nc:ighbour ( C~£ttrU p.tribur,) mufl be prefe . red and provided for, before the portiotu of your own children, and before the fupply of their toO:... rable wants: So that as long as there arc poor about you, that are in nc:ceft1ty of tood to fave the· live!, the porti~ns or comlicjf clothing of your_children, mufi rath~r be negleCted, than the poor ~~ fuficred to penfh. How elfe do !love my ne1ghbour as my {elf, rf l make fa great a diffmnce between my lCif and him~ · /'/ 5· Even the food and rayment, and other uccclfariu which a ChriOian ufctb himfclf, he muO ufc for. / God, and not for hi1 carnal filf at all; not takmg it as h1s own, which he may ufe at and for his own pleafure, but as part of his M..,jltrJ good!, which arc all to be ufcd only for hU fervicc. As a jt~ward, that when he gtveth every fervant his part, and taketh his own parr, ic is not as if it were primarily bi1 ow11, but as a {ervant, on the fame account with the rdt. So when I devote all that I ha~e toGod, I am fo fa'r from excepting my OWIJ part, even my food and ra)'mtnt, tltJt I do more confidentl~ i~rc~d the[trving ofGod with that, than with the rcH, ~eca~fe .it is more in mypoJrJer, and there IS m It more of my duty. The fame I may fay of that whtch IS giVen to our children and· other relations. 6. Ther~forc when more of the fervice and inttreft of God, lyeth upon your own, or your childrenr ufing of hts talents, than upon orher mens, you are bound ( for God, and not for your [elves, ) to re~ iain fo much the more to your felves and children. le is a fond conceit that a man is bound to g~ve all to others, tatlo1er than to him{elfor children, when it is mofi probable, that there others would do God lefs f<rvice with it, than himfrlf or his children would do : As fuppofc fuch a ma~ as Mr. Elliot in New England ( that devoteth himfelf to the Converfion of the Indian1) had riches when fome neighbour Mmifiers were poor, that are engaged in no fuch work; He that knoweth tha~ God hath given him a heart and an opportunity to do him more fuvice with it than another would do, is not bound w put it out of his own hands inw anothcts, that is lefs like to be a faithful im... l prover of ir. Ifyou have a Son of your own that is a Preacher of the Gofpel, and is more able and fcrviceable than other Mini£\ers in equal want, no doubt you have then a double obligation w re~ lieve your own Son before another ; as he is your Son, and as he is morcfervi.ceable to God. Ifother men are bound to {upply your want for the work... a14d intere(i of the Go[pet, .you are not bound to give away your own [upplyci, to the di{ahling you from your work, unlcfs when you fee a greater work or the pre{ent abfolute neceffity of othets, doth require it. ' 7·. lt is imprude~t and un[afe, and thetefore unlawful, ordinarily, to tye your felf unchang 11 bly for ~ommu~n.ce, to any one parucular way of ufing your efiatcs for God : As to vow that you will give 1t to Mtmfiers, or to the poor, or to Schools, &c. becaufe the changes may be fuch which God will make, as !hall make thlt way to be one year neceffary, which betotc was not, and fo change JOUr duty. We cannot prefcribe to God what way he (hall appoint us for the future, to ufe his ta· . lenrs in, His Word bids us prefer the greateft good ; but which is the grtatrft , his providtnce muO ~~ J 8. He that hath no more than is nt:cdfaty to the very prefervation of his own life and his f.rmi- · liu, is not bound to give to others ( unlefs in fome exrraordinary cafe, which callcth him to pre~ fer a greater and more publick good:) And he that harh no more than is needful, ro the comfortable fuppon of himfelf and family, is not 'bound to relieve thofe chat haven'? greater want~ than himfelf. And his own nccrffity is not to bemeafured meerly by what he ha.th, but by the u[e he hath for it: for a Magiftrate, or one that is engaged in publick works, may have as much need of many hundmJ 1 a year, as a private man of many p(lundJ, , 9· Thofc that have many children to provide for, or poor kindted that nature caftcth on them, cannot give: fo much ( proporcionably ) to other poor, as thofe are bound to do that have few or none ; for thefe are bound to give all, except their perfonal neceffaries, to publick, pious, or ,had– table works, becaufc God calleth not for it any other way. 10. To pamper the fleth, is a fin as well in the Rich, as in the Poor : The Rich therefore are bound //' not only to give all that the fiifl' can fpare, when its own inordinace defires are fatisfied, but to de~ ny themfclv<J, and mor;ifie the fiejh, and be good husbands for God, and fiudioufnefs to retren•h all unm.cetTary expences, and to live Laboriottjly and Thriftily, that they may have the more to do eood with. It is a great extenuation of the large£\ ·gifts, as to G0ds efieem, when they are but the leav~ ing1 ef the ficfh, and arc given out of mens abundance, and when we offer that to God, that co(teth HI nothing: As Chrilt doth purpofely dercr~ine the cafe, Lul{t 21. r, 2, 3, 4· cornp~ring the Rich mans giftr, w1rh the Widorvr two mittJ, he fa1d, Of a truth I [ay Hnto you, that thi1 poor TYidow bath cajl in more than they all: For aU thefe have oftheir abundance c.Jjl i1: unto the ojftriJtgJ ofGod; but. ]he of her penury> bath ea}! in aU the living that ]he h..d ( that is, aU the Oock fhe had before-htnd, though £he had need of it her felf.) Ic is a very confiderable thing in our Charity, how much mar~ tification and {tlfdenyal is cxprefTed in ir, and how much it cojfetiJ our own fiefh, to give: to others. And lherefore they that think they arc excufed from doing good to others, as long as tht)' have any need of it themfelvei, and will give nothing but what they have no need of( it being not ofabfolutt ne· crf!ity to their livCJ) do offC:r a facrifice ot no great value in the eyes of God. Whaf then (}ull we fay of them, that will not give even out of their abundance, and that which without any fuffering they may fpare. ~. / 1 i. Tho firf\ and principal thing to be done by one, that would give as God would have him, is, to ~T .get a tru!;• charitablt he~rt, .whfch containe[h all d~efe parts, · I· That w.c fee God .m h1s needy creatures, and m hts caufe or work that needs our help. 2· That
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