תמונות בעמוד
PDF
ePub

SER M. pleafing, no oblation acceptable to God, conjoined XXI. with hatred, or proceeding from an unreconciled

24.

mind: for, If thou bring thy gift to the altar, and Matt. v. 23, there remembereft that thy brother bath aught against thee; leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift, faith our Saviour *.

I close up all with this corollary: that if we must live lovingly and peaceably with all men, then much more are we obliged to do fo with all Chriftians: to whom by nearer and firmer bands of holy alliance we are related; by more precious communions in faith and devotion we are endeared; by more peculiar and powerful obligations of divine commands, facramental vows, and formal profesfions we are engaged: our fpiritual brethren, members of the fame myftical body, temples of the fame holy Spirit, fervants of the fame Lord, fubjects of the fame Prince, profeffors of the fame truth, partakers of the fame hope, heirs of the fame promife, and candidates of the fame everlafting happinefs.

Now Almighty God, the moft good and beneficent Maker, gracious Lord, and merciful Preferver of all things, infufe into our hearts thofe heavenly graces of meeknefs, patience, and benignity, grant us and his whole church, and all his creation, to ferve him quietly here, and in a blissful reft to praise and magnify him for ever to whom, with his bleffed Son, the great Mediator and Prince of peace, and with his holy Spirit, the everflowing Spring of all love, joy, comfort, and peace, be all bonour, glory, and praife. And,

1 Theff. v. 23. 2 Theff. iii.

2 Cor. xiii. 11. Philip. iv. 9. 16. Heb. vii. Luke i. 79. Xaipes yàp on ouμ@wrig Moyixar Thr ζώων ὁ θεὸς, καὶ ἐκτρέπεται τὴν διαφωνίαν. Orig. c. Celf. 8. (p. 424.)

The

XXI.

The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, s E R M. keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love xx1. of God, and of his Son Jefus Chrift our Lord; and the bleffing of God Almighty, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft, be among you, and remain with you for ever. Amen.

[blocks in formation]
[blocks in formation]

The Duty and Reward of Bounty to the Poor.

PSAL. cxii. 9.

He bath difperfed, he hath given to the poor; his righteoufnefs endureth for ever, his horn fhall be exalted with honour.

A

S this whole Pfalm appears to have a double in- sS ER M. tent; one to describe the proper actions and af- XXII. fections of a truly religious or pious man; (of a man who feareth the Lord, and delighteth greatly in his com- v. 1. mandments;) the other to declare the happiness of fuch a man's ftate, confequent upon thofe his affections and actions, whether in way of natural result, or of gracious recompence from God: fo doth this verfe particularly contain both a good part of a pious man's character, and fome confiderable inftances of his felicity. The first words (He hath difperfed, he hath given to the poor) exprefs part of his character; the latter (His righteoufnefs endureth for ever, his horn fhall be exalted with honour) affign inftances of his felicity. So that our text hath two parts, one affording us good information concerning our duty, the other yielding great encouragement to the performance thereof; for we are obliged to follow the pious man's practice, and fo doing we shall affuredly par

*This Sermon was preached at the Spittal upon Wednesday in Eafter Week, A. D. 1671.

L14

take

SER M. take of his condition. Thefe parts we fhall in order XXII. profecute, endeavouring (by God's affiftance) fomewhat to illuftrate the words themfelves, to confirm

xi. 41.

the truths couched in them, and to inculcate the duties which they imply.

For the first part, He hath difperfed, he hath given to the poor; thefe words in general do import the liberal bounty and mercy which a pious man is wont to exercife; doing which doth in good part conftitute him pious, and fignally declareth him fuch; is a neceffary ingredient of his piety, and a confpicuous mark thereof. But particularly they infinuate fome things concerning the nature, the matter, the manner, and the object of thofe acts.

He hath difperfed, he hath given. Those words being put indefinitely, or without determining what is difperfed and given by him, may be fuppofed to imply a kind of univerfality in the matter of his beneficence; that he bestoweth whatever he hath within compass of his poffeffion, or his power; hisra vágxola, (the things which he hath) and his rà ivóla, (the things which he may) according to the prefcriptions of our Lord in the Golpel. Every thing, I fay, which he hath in fubftance, or can do by his endeavour, that may conduce to the support of the life, or the health, or the welfare in any kind of his neighbour, to the fuccour or relief of his indigency, to the removal or eafement of his affliction, he may well here be underftood to difperfe and give. Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, vifiting the fick, entertaining the ftranger, ranfoming the captive, eafing the oppreffed, comforting the forrowful, affifting the weak, inftructing or advifing the ignorant, together with all fuch kinds or inftances of beneficence, may be conceived either meant directly as the matter of the good man's difperfing and giving, or by juft analogy of reafon reducible thereto : fubftantial alms, as the most senfible and obvious matter of bounty, was ('tis probable) efpecially intended, but thence no nanner of ex

preffing

« הקודםהמשך »