8. If you have but daily bread enough to suffice nature, be content. Consider i» is not having abundance makes the life al- ways comfoitable ; it is not a great cage will make the bird sing : a competency may breed contentment, when having more may make one less content ; a staff may help the traveller, but a bundle of staves will be a burden to him. A great estate may be like a long trailing garment, more burdensome than useful. Many that have great incomes and revenues have not so much comfort in their lives, as some that go to their hard labour.
9. If you liave less daily bread, you will have less account to give. The riches and honours of this world, like alchymy, make a great show, and, with their glistering, dazzle men's eyes ; but they do not consi- der the great account they must give to God, Luke xvi. 2., " Give an account of thy stewardship." What good hast thou done Avith thy estate ? Hast thou, as a good steward, traded thy golden talents for God's glory ? Hast thou honoured the Lord with tliy substance? The greater revenues the greater reckonings ; tiiis may Cjuiet aiid content us, if we have but little daily bread, our account will be less.
10. You that have ])ut a small compe- tency in these out\vard things, your provi- sions are short, yet you may be content to consider how much you look for hereafter : (iod keeps the best wine till last. What tluiugh now you have a small ])ittaMce, and are led from hand to mouth ? aou look for
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an eternal reward, white robes, sparkliii^r crowns, rivers of pleasure. A son is con- tent tlunifrli Ills lather give Iiiin but now and then a little nioiu'v, as lonuf as lie ex- pects Itis lather should settle all his land upon him at last ; if God fjivc you but a little at present, yet you look for that glory which eye hath not seen : may not you be content ? The world is but a diversorium, — a great inn : if God give you sufficient to pay for your charges in your inn, you inav be content, you shall have enouiih when you come to your own country.
Quest. How may we be content, though God rut us short in these externals ; though we have hut little dadij bread and coarse ?
Ans. 1. Think with yourselves, some have been ninch lower than you, who have been better than you. Jacob, an lioly pa- triarch, goes over Jordan with his staff, and lived in a mean condition a long time; he had the clouds for his canopy, and a stone for his pillow. INIoses, that might liave been rich, (some historians say, Pha- raoh's daughter adopted him for her son,
because king Pharaoh liad no heir, and so Moses was like to have come to the crown,) yet leaving the honours of the court, in what a low mean condition did he live in, wlien he went to Jethro his father-in-law ? Musculus, famous for learning and jiiety, was put to great straits, he was jiut to dig in a town-ditch, and had scarce daily bread, yet content. Nay, Christ, \vlio was heir of all, yet for our sakes " became |>()or," 2 Cor. viii. 9. Let all these examples make us content.
A. 2. Let us labour to have the interest cleared between God and our souls. He who can say, " My God," hath enough to rock his heart quiet in the lowest condition. What can he want who hath El-Shaddai, the all-sufficient God, for his ])ortion ? Though the nether-springs fail, yet he hath the upper-springs ; though tlie bill of fare grow short, yet an interest in God is a pil- lar of support to us, and we may, with Da- A'id, encourage ourselves in the Lord our God.
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Mat. vi. 12. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
BEFORE I speak strictly to the words I shall take notice, ]sf. That in this prayer there is but one ])etition for the body, "Give us our (hiiiy bread," but two petitions for the soul, " Ftirgive us our trespasses," "lead us not into teuiptalion, bat deliver us from evil." Hence obsei've, that we are to be more careful for our soids. than for our bodies, — more careful for grace than for daily bread, — more desirous to have our souls saved, than our bodies fm]. In the law, the weijiht of the sanctuary was twice as big as the comnu)n weight, to typify that spiritual things must be of far greater weight witli us than earthly. The excellency of the soul may challenge our chief care ahout it.
1. The soul is an immaterial snl)stance ; it is an heavenly spark, lighted by the breath of God ; it is the more retined spiritual part of man, it is of an angelical nature ; it hath
some faint resemblance of God. The body is the more dreggish part, it is but the ca- binet, which though curiously wrought, the soul is the jewel ; the soul is near akin to angels, it is capax beatiluditds, capable of communion with God in glory.