4$o Chap. 31. An Expoftticn upon the I3aok of Jo B. Verf. rty little from thole who have little is looked upon by God as a great deale ; But doe not thinke it enough to doe a little, when you have ability todoe much; Charge them that be rich ( faith the Apoftle, r Tim. 6. 18. ) that they doe good, and to (hew that it is not enough for them to doe a little Good, he adds, that they be rich ingoodworker, ready todiftribute, willing to communicate. Doe not difcharge your felves you that are rich from doing againe , becaufe you have once done ; fay not you need not cloath the naked, becaufe you have fed the hungry; They who thinks they have done enough, loofe the thanker ofall they have done. For as the Apoftle (r. Pet. I.6, 7.) fpeakes ofadding one grace to another, to vertueknowledge, and to knowledgepatience, and to patience brotherly kindnefre, and to brotherly kindne e charitie. Now(I fay) as we are toadde the a6ts of feverall graces, fo fe. verall at`ts of the famegrace together ; as you mull add to your vertuecharity, fo you mutt add charity to charity ; one way of charity to another, and one worke of charity to another in the fame way. Charity tomen is theLords worke, both becaufe the Lord workes it in us., and becaufe the Lordcommands us that worke. Now we mutt be (as theApoftle exhorts, r Cor. 15. 58. ) Stedfaf#andunntoveable, alwayet aboundingin the worke of the Lord. Todoe this worke ofthe Lord a little, is farce from a- bounding in it, and to doe it onceor twice, is as farre fromdoing it alwayes. We never abound in any worke ofthe Lord,ifwe fet our felves anyother bounds in doing it,then the Lord hath let us. Thebounds which the Lord bath let us are only thefe two;Firft, as we have opportunity ( Gal. 6, io.) Secondly, as wehave a- bility (2 Car. 16.2.) We mutt alwayes relieve the wants ofo- thers as we are able, and fometimes (as it was with the Churches ofMacédonia, 2Cor. 8. 2, 3.) abovewhat we are able. Fourthly , ?ob doth not fay, if I have feene this or that man perifh, or this or that man without covering, but, ifIhave feene any perifh, any without covering: As he was exercifed inall forts ofcharity, fo his charity was exercifed towards all forts of per- fons; As he did not excufe himfeffe from clothing the naked, be- caufe he fed the hur gry ; fo he did not excufe himfeffe from feed- ing and clothing this pooreand naked man, becaufe he had fed and clothed that or another. 'Tis our duty (fo farre as we are able) not to fee any want, not to fee anyperifh for cold or hun- ger,
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=