But our kindness must be most to those that arc nearest God, to those of the family ' and household of faith,' Gal. vi. 10. To those that God loves most we must be most kind ; to whom God hath dispensed the greatest things, we should not deny the less.
Indeed, it is a hard matter to give wisely in those times, and not to abuse tlie sweet ailbction and grace of pity (it is an affection in all, but it is a grace in them that are good), because there are so many wretched people tlaat live without God, without church, without commonwealth, without marriage, without baptism, like beasts. If anything be an object of pity, certainly this is, that there are so many that carry God's image on them, that are God's creatures, and for aught we know, such as Christ died for, that they should be suffered to live irregular, debauched, and base lives, scandalous to the church and state. And without question, if things be not better looked into, these will be instruments of much mischief by God's just judgment ; because there be good laws that are not executed. The best mercy to such, is to see them set on work and to give them correction. But then for such as are beginning the world, that are poor, and cannot set up, and those that have the church of God in their families, that are ready to fall, and a little relief would keep them, that they fall not into inordinate courses, it is mercy to set them up and maintain them ; and also by upholding those that are in the ministry. There are many ways in the church and state. A wise man can never want objects of mercy and charity : as Christ saith, ' The poor you shall have alway with you,' Mat. xxvi. 11 ; but, as I said, we must labour for a spirit of wisdom to do good as we should, and not to feed drones, instead of bees.
The Spirit of God is frequent in pressing this point ; but this ai-gument in the text, it may melt any man's heart, and take away all objections,
* The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.'
If a man object, he that I should give to is an unworthy person ; do but think how worthy we were of the favour of Christ to us ? And then again, consider if there be any goodness in them, we give it to Christ in them, as Salvianus saith well (f), Christ doth hide himself under the person of the poor. The poor man reacheth out his hand indeed, but Christ receives that that we give, and they are Christ's exchangers ; for they take from us, and Christ rewards us with grace and increase of our substance here, and with glory hereafter. They receive it instead of Christ, and Christ begs in the person of the poor, in all jointly, and in every one particularly. Think of the grace of Christ to us, and then think Christ comes to me in the per- son of this or that poor man, and it will stir us up to this duty.
Ohj. But some will say, If Christ were on earth himself, I should be ready to do it to him.
Ans. Certainly thou wouldst not. You know the place. Mat. xxv. 45 :
* Inasmuch as you have not relieved these, you have denied it to me,' saith Christ. Let us not deceive ourselves ; for even as we would do to Christ if he were on earth, we will do to his poor members ; he hath made them his receivers.
Ohj. But I shall want myself : I have a family and children.
Am. It is the best way to provide for thy children, Ps. cxii. 3. God
526 THE church's kiches.
provides for tho posterity of the rigliteons bonntcons man. A man is not the poorer for tliscrect mercy. It is seed, as I said before. A poor man labours to bavo bis seed sown, because it returns plentifully. Let us bo sober, and abate of our superfluous expenses. Pride is an expcnder. And superfluous lusts, let us cut off from tbcm, tliat wo may bave somewbat for seed. Let us labour in an honest calling, that we may bave somewhat to give. Oh, it is a blessed thing to give ! It is a thing that must be gotten by use. Our souls must be exercised to it. And when we have gotten it, learn an art of giving ; we must exercise faith in it. And when wo come to die, it will make us die w'ondrous sweetly ; for when a man hath depended by faith and trust upon God's promise, that ' he that gives to the poor lends to the Lord,' Prov. xix. 17, and other like promises ; I have exercised liberality, and now I come to give up my soul to God, I believe that God will make good the promise of life everlasting ; I have believed his other promises before, and though I have cast my seed into the ground, that I saw it not, yet I have found that God hath blessed me the better in a way that I know not ; and now I depend upon the same gracious God, in the promise of life everlasting. We should labour to do this, that we may die with comfort. What is it that troubles many when they come to die ? Oh, they have not wrought out their ' salvation with fear and trembling,' Philip, ii. 12. They have neglected this duty and that duty ; they have been careless in the works of mercy, &c. The time will come that that which we have given will comfort us more than that w'e have ; we shall alway have that which we give, for that goes in bank : many prayers are made for us. We have the comfort of it here and when we die. What we leave, we know not what becomes of it.