16. crifice for its neighbour's good: This, our Lord telleth SERM. us, is the greatest love that any man can exprefs to his XXVII. friend; and the highest inftance that ever was of charity John xv. was herein fhewed; the imitation whereof St. John doth 13. not doubt to recommend to us: In this, faith he, have we 1 John iii. known the love of God, because he hath laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our life for the brethren: John xv. and St. Paul, Walk in love, even as Chrift loved us, and 12. Eph. v. 2. gave himself for us an offering and facrifice to God: the which precept he backed with his own example; I, faith 2 Cor. xil. he, very gladly will spend and be spent for your fouls ; and, If I be offered upon the facrifice and service of your faith, I Phil. ii. 17. joy and rejoice with you all; and, Being affectionately de- 1 Theff. ii. firous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the Gospel of God only, but also our own fouls, because ye were dear unto us. 15. Reputation to fome is more dear than life, and it is worse than death to be held a malefactor, to be loaded with odious reproaches, to have an infamous character; yet charity will engage men hereto, willingly to sustain the most grievous obloquy and difgrace: for this the fame heroical Apoftles did pass through honour and dif-2 Cor. vi. 8. honour, through evil report and good report, as deceivers, and yet true:-for this they were made a spectacle to the 1 Cor. iv. 9, world, as fools, as weak, as defpicable;-were reviled, de- 10, 13. famed, made as the filth of the world, and offscouring of all things. For this St. Paul was content to fuffer, ws 2 Tim. ii. 9. xaxoũgyos, as a malefactor. So there was nothing which charity will not deny itself and lofe for the good of its neighbour. XI. It is a property of love not to ftand upon diftinctions and nice respects; but to be condefcenfive, and willing to perform the meaneft offices, needful or useful for the good of its friend. He that truly loveth is a voluntary fervant, and gladly will stoop to any employment, for which the need or confiderable benefit of him whom he loveth doth call. So the greatest fouls, and the most glorious beings, the SERM, which are moft endued with charity, by it are difpofed XXVII. with greatest readiness to ferve their inferiors. 1 Cor. ix. 19. Pfal. xci. 11. XXXIV. 7. This made St. Paul conftitute himfelf a fervant (we might render it a flave) of all men, abfolutely devoted to the promoting their interefts with his utmoft labour and diligence; undertaking toilfome drudgeries, running about upon errands for them. This maketh the bleffed and glorious angels (the principalities and powers above) vouchfafe to wait on men, to be the guards of all good men, to be miniftering fpirits, fent out to minifter for them who fhall inherit falvation: not only obedience to God enforceth them, but charity difpofeth them gladly to ferve us, who are fo much their Luke xv. 7, inferiors; the fame charity, which produceth joy in them at the converfion of a finner. 14. 10. VVT ἀγγέλων. John xvii. 5. 2 Cor. viii. 9. 27. This made the Son of God to defcend from heaven, and lay aside that glory which he had with God before the world was; this made him who was fo rich to become poor, that we by his poverty might be enriched; this made Luke xxii. him converfe and demean himfelf among his fervants, as he that miniftered; this made him to wafh his difciples' feet, thereby defigning inftructively to exemplify the duty John xiii. and nature of charity; for If, faid he, I, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, then ye alfo ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye fhould do as I have done to you. Matt. xx. 28. 14. Ifa. Ivii. 15. This maketh God himself (the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity) to condefcend fo far, as to be continually employed in carefully watching over, in providing for, in protecting and affifting us vile and wretched Pf. cxiii. 6. worms; for though he dwelleth on high, yet humbleth he (Pf. viii. 4. himself to Vehold the things that are in heaven and earth. Job vii. 17.) This maketh him with fo much pain and patience to fupport our infirmities, to bear with our offences, to wait for our converfion; according to that proteftation in the ProIfa. xlii. phet, Thou haft made me to ferve with thy fins, thou Haft wearied me with thine iniquities. cxliv. 3. 24. In conformity to this wonderful practice, whofe actions are the best rules and patterns of our deportment, charity SERM. should dispose us, according to St. Paul's practice, by love XXVII. to ferve one another. Gal. v. 13. Indeed it will not fuffer any man to look down on another with fupercilious contempt or neglect, as if he were unworthy or beneath our regard. It will incline fuperiors to look on their inferiors, (their fubjects, their fervants, their meanest and poorest neighbours,) not as Job xxxi. beasts or as flaves, but as men, as brethren; as defcend- 13, 14, 15. ing from the fame ftock, as partakers of the common nature and reafon; as those who have obtained the like 2 Pet. i. 1. precious faith; as heirs of the fame precious promises and glorious hopes; as their equals in the beft things, and in all confiderable advantages; equals in God's fight, and Eph. vi. 9. according to our Lord's intent, when he faid, One is your Matt. xxiii. Mafter, even Christ, and all ye are brethren; according to St. Paul's exhortation to Philemon, that he would receive Onefimus, not now as a fervant, but above a fervant, a Philem. 16. brother beloved in the Lord. Col. iv. 1. 9. Accordingly charity will difpofe men of rank in their behaviour to be condefcenfive, lowly, meek, courteous, obliging and helpful to those, who in human eye or in worldly state are most below them; remembering that ordinance of our Lord, charged on all his difciples, and enforced by his own pattern, He that is greatest among Matt. xxiii. you let him be your fervant. 11. Luke xxii. pares inve Love indeed is the great leveller, which in a manner 27. fetteth all things on even ground, and reduceth to a juft Amicitia poise; which bringeth down heaven to earth, and raiseth nit, aut up earth to heaven; which inclineth the higheft to wait facit. upon the loweft; which engageth the ftrength of the mightiest to help the weakeft, and the wealth of the richest to supply the pooreft, nws yévytai loórns, that there 2 Cor. viii. may be an equality; that no where there may be an ufe- 14. lefs abundance, or a helpless indigence. XII. Charity doth regulate our dealing, our deportment, our conversation toward our neighbour, implying good ufage and fair treatment of him on all occafions; for SERM. no man doth handle that which he loveth rudely or XXVII. roughly, fo as to endanger the lofs, the detriment, the hurt or offence thereof. Prov. xv. 26. Prov. xvi. Wherefore the language of charity is foft and fweet, not wounding the heart, nor grating on the ear of any with whom a man converseth; like the language of which the Wife Man faith, The words of the pure are pleasant words;-fuch as are fweet to the foul, and health to the bones: and, The words of a wife man's mouth are gracious; fuch as our Lord's were, xóyos xáρir, words of grace; Luke iv. 22. fuch as the Apostle speaketh of, Let your Speech be always iva da xágiv Év xápiti, with grace-such as may give grace to the hearers; being entertained, not with averfation, but with favourable acceptance. 24. Ecclef. x. 12. Col. iv. 6. τοῖς ἀκέεσι. Eph. iv. 29. 1 Cor. xiii.5. Its carriage is gentle, courteous, benign; bearing in it marks of affection and kind respect. Its dealing is equal, moderate, fair, yielding no occafion of disgust or complaint; not catching at, or taking advantages, not meting hard measure. It doth not fofter any bad paffion or humour, which may embitter or four converfation, fo that it rendereth a man continually good company. If a man be harsh or furly in his difcourfe, rugged or rude in his demeanour, hard and rigorous in his dealing, it is a certan argument of his defect in charity for that calmeth and fweeteneth the mind; it quafheth keen, fierce, and boisterous paffions; it discardeth those conceits, and those humours, from whence fuch practice doth iffue. Charity, faith St. Paul, oùx doxnμoveĩ, behaveth not itself unhandfomely; is not untoward, unfeemly, uncivil, or clownish in word, or in carriage, or in deed: it is in truth the most civilizing and most polishing difpofition that can be; nothing doth render a man fo completely genteel; not in an affected or artificial way, (confifting in certain postures or motions of body; (dopping, cringing, &c.) in forms of expreffion, or modifh addreffes, which men learn. like parrots, and vent by rote, ufually not meaning any thing by them, often with them disguifing fraud and ran- SERM. cour,) but in a real and natural manner, fuggefted by XXVII. good judgment and hearty affection. A charitable man may perhaps not be guilty of courtfhip, or may be unpractifed in the modes of addrefs; but he will not be deficient in the fubftance of paying every man proper and due refpect: this indeed is true courtesy, grounded on reafon, and proceeding from the heart; which therefore is far more genuine, more folid, more fteady, than that which is built on fashion and iffueth from affectation; the which indeed only doth ape or counterfeit the deportment of charity: for what a charitable man truly is, that a gallant would feem to be. Such are the properties of charity. There be alfo farther many particular acts, which have a very close alliance to it, (being ever coherent with it, or fpringing from it,) which are recommended to us by precepts in the holy Scripture; the which it will be convenient to mention. 1. It is a proper act of charity to forbear anger upon provocation, or to reprefs its motions; to refent injuries and discourtefies either not at all, or very calmly and mildly for Charity & Tapotúvėtai, is not easily provoked. Anger is a violent infurrection of the mind against a perfon, but love is not apt to rife up in oppofition against any; anger is an intemperate heat, love hath a pure warmth quite of another nature; as natural heat is from a fever; or as the heat of the fun from that of a culinary fire, which putteth that out, as the fun-beams do extinguifh a culinary fire: anger hath an ögeğis àμúvns, an appetite of revenge, or doing mifchief to the object of it; but love is innocent and worketh no evil. Love difpofeth, if our neighbour doth misbehave himfelf toward us, (by wrongful usage, or unkind carriage,) to be forry for him, and to pity him; which are paffions contrary to anger, and flaking the violences of it. 1.Cor. xiii.5. Verse 4. Verse 7. Rom. xiii. 10. |