poor by his sweet and attractive sermons he stirred up the hearts of others to relieve them The like we read of Saint Basil that in the time of a Famine he sold his Lands and all his other goods to relieve the poor and stirred up other rich Merchants by Scripture and sweet speeches to contribute to their necessities Thus having answered such objections as might lie in the way to obstruct and hinder your bounty and liberality at this your meeting I am come in the next place to give you some motives and arguments why you should take this present opportunity of provoking one another to good works for the publick benefit of our Country 1. Consider how much it may tend to the advancement of Gods glory when thanksgivings are returned by many unto God in your behalf The Italians boast that Italy is the Garden of the World and Tuscany the Garden of Italy How much trulier may I say that England is the Garden of the World For if Italy abounds with superfluities I am sure that England much more abounds with all manner of necessaries for the life of man It being a land as Palestine flowing with milk and hony which is the glory of all Lands and wherein God feeds us with the fat of the kidneies of Wheat Or if Italy abounds or exceeds us in temporalls I am sure England far exceeds in spiritualls being a Goshen whist the other is an Egypt A Land wherein through Gods infinite mercy we enjoy the light of the glorious Gospell of Jesus Christ whilst Italy sits in darknesse and in the region and shadow of death And as they call Tuscany the Garden of Italy I may call Warwickshire the Garden of England or England Epitomized in the Woodland and Fielden parts of it the one abounding with flourishing and fruitfull Pastures for Dairies the other with rich and fertill Arable Land for corn Yet this Garden in some places of it wants weeding and some tender Plants want nourishment and if God shall please to make you this day instrumentall for the promoting of either or both these works I may say with the Apostle Paul 2 Cor. 9. 12. The administration of this service will not onely supply the wants of the Saints but will be abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God in your behalf Give me leave therefore to bespeak you in the words of Cyprian Ne dormiat in Thesauris tuis quod Pauperi prodesse potest let not that sleep rust in thy Treasury which may be profitable to the poor And again Quod aliquando de necessitate amittendum est sponte pro Divina remuneratione distribuendum est That which a man must sometime necessarily part with Its wisdom for him to distribute it so that God may everlastingly reward him 2. Consider how exceeding advantagious your liberality in this kind wil be to your selves seeing hereby you make God your debtor Pro. 19. 17. He that gives to the poor lendeth to the Lord Yea Faeneratur Domino he lends upon Usury and the Lord binds himself to repay it and in that text gives him security under his owne hand for it That which he hath given will he repay him again The Hebrew word implies that he will do it fully and abundantly Mostly in this world but infallably in the world to come Quest But how doth the Lord use to repay such mercy and good works Answ. 1. With spirituall blessings Those that for conscience sake and in obedience unto God do such good works he will make them to abound in every grace Observe I beseech you what God by Solomon hath promised Pro. 11. 25. The liberall soul shall be made fat and he that watereth shall be watered also himself And what the Prophet Esay C. 58. 10 11. If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry and satisfiest the afflicted soul then shall thy light arise in obscurity and thy darknesse be as the noon day And the Lord shall guide thee continually and satisfie thy soul in drought and make fat thy bones And thou shall be like a watered Garden like a spring of water whose waters fail not And what by the Prophet David Psal. 112. 9. He hath dispersed he hath given to the poor his righteousnesse endureth for ever his horne shall be exalted with honor 2. With variety of Temporall blessings For God usually blesseth such 1. In their outward estate encreasing that Pro. 11. 24. There is that scattereth and yet encreaseth and there is that withholdeth more then is meet but it tendeth to poverty Bounty saith one is the most compendious way to plenty neither is getting but giving the best way to thrift For in works of mercy and charity our scattering is increasing no spending but a lending no laying out but a laying up Pro. 11. 24. The Emperor Tiberius the second being a valiant godly and liberall Prince the more bountifull that he was to the poor the more his riches encreased so that hee had such quantities of Gold Silver and pretious things as none of his Predecessors ever attained the like I suppose you are not strangers to that story of a certain godly and charitable Bishop of Millain who journeying with his servant was met by some poor people that begged an Almes of him The Bishop commanded his man to give them all that little mony that he had which was three Crowns But his servant thinking to be a better husband for his Master gave them but two Crowns reserving the third for their expences at night Soon after certain Noble men meeting the Bishop and knowing him to be a good man and liberall to the poor commanded two hundred Crowns to be delivered to the Bishops servant for his Masters use The man having received the mony ran with great joy and told his Master of it Ah said the Bishop what wrong hast thou done both to me and thy selfe Si enim tres dedisses trecent as accepisses If thou hadst given those three Crowns as I appointed thee thou shouldst have received three hundred As Melancthon relates the story And indeed such open-handed and openhearted Christians have more then once Gods word of promise for such an ample retribution Deut. 15. 7. If there be among you a poor man of any of thy brethren thou shalt not harden thy heart nor shut thy hand from thy poor brother ver. 8. but shalt open thine hand wide unto him ver. 10. Thou shalt surely give him and thy heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him because that for this thing the Lord thy God shall blesse thee in all thy works and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto And Psal. 41. 2. The Lord promiseth such a mercifull man that he shall be blssed upon the earth He shall not onely have the upper as before but the nether springs Hee shall be blessed with the dew of Heaven and with the fatnesse of the Earth And Psal. 112. 3. Wealth and riches shall be in
CHRISTIAN Good-Fellowship OR Love and Good VVorks Held forth in a Sermon preached at Michael's Cornhill London before the Gentlemen Natives of WARWICKSHIRE At their Feast November the 30. 1654. By Samuell Clarke Pastor of the Church in Bennet Fink London Manus Pauperum Gazophylacium Christi Who so stoppeth his eares at the cry of the poore he also shall cry himselfe but shall not be heard Prov. 21. 13. LONDON Printed for Thomas Underhill at the Anchor in Pauls Church-yard 1655. To the Right Worshipfull Sir Iohn Burgoin Sir Richard Temple c. and to the rest of his dearly beloved Country-men Citizens of London but borne in WARWICKSHIRE SIRS WHen your Steward 's made choice of me to this service I laboured to find out and pitch upon such a subject as might through Gods blessing bring most glory to him edification to your souls and advantage to our Native Country and whereby you might be minded of the Principall ends of your meeting And as the Lord was pleased to direct me to this ensuing subject so did he of his infinite mercy appear so far in his own Ordinance that there generally appeared in you a readinesse to concur in advancing those good works which were proposed to your Christian considerations It was intended that after dinner a generall subscription should have been promoted amongst you but by reason of the shortnesse of time and multiplicity of other businesses wherewith your Stewards were taken up it was not carried on amongst a fifth part then present Yet was there more done by those few then hath been done by any one County of England in their late meetings and amongst the rest of you Mr. John Howkins whose name I cannot but mention with honour though he is unknown by face to me subscribed four score pounds towards the placing of poor boies born in Rugbie Apprentices in London It's pitty so good a foundation should want its superstructure and therefore at the request of your Stewards though I never thought any sermon of mine worthy the Presse I have adventured to publish this hoping that the same goood word of God that so warmed your hearts in hearing may by the same blessing revive and quicken your affections in reading so as to perfect what was then so well begun amongst you The names of the Stewards who are to have the oversight in disposing of your monies I thought fit to set down at the end of this Epistle Men I hope without exceptions whose Prudence and Fidelity you need not to suspect in the ordering of it Amongst them Col. Thomas Clark at the Kings head within Algate is chosen Treasurer to whom if you please to send in what it shall please God to move your hearts to contribute to so good a work I doubt not but as many shall have the benefit so your own soules will find the comfort of it hereafter Let not any one say that this Sermon might have been preached in Rome or Spain where good works are in such request whilst they hope to merit Heaven by them No it will rather vindicate our Doctrine from their fowl and false aspertions whilst they call us Solifidians and charge us as if we preached onely Faith without good works whereas on the contrary we still call upon our hearers to shew their Faith by their fruits and tell them that Faith without works is dead and can minister no true comfort and therefore exhort them to grow up to fruitfulnesse which will sweetly seal up their calling to glory and virtue as the budding of Aarons Rod did his calling to the Priesthood yea we tell them that if they be new creatures they are created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that they should walk in them and that if Christ be their Redeemer he hath redeemed them from all iniquity and purifieth them to himselfe a peculiar people Zealous of Good works But I fear to exceed my limits and therefore my prayer for you all is that the God of hope wil fil you with all joy and peace in believing and make all Grace abound towards you that ye alwaies having all sufficiencie in all things may abound to every good work Amen From my study in Thridneedle street Dec. 19. 1654. I rest Sirs Yours in the service of your faith and to further your comfort and joy SAMUEL CLARK Old Stwards Col. Tho. Clark Treasurer Mr. Nicholas Enos Mr. William Hickocks Mr. Tho. Barnhurst Mr. Tho. Ashby Mr. Iohn Norris Mr. Edw. Iohnson M. Tho. Underhil New Stewards Col. Iames Drax. Mr. Tho. Hopkins Mr. Laurence Warkman L. Col. Tho. Randall Mr. Rich. Chandler Maior Raph Tasker Mr. Rich. Smith Mr. William Bridges Heb. 10. 34. Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works THese meetings of Country-men are no new thing though of late years they have been interrupted by reason of the sad calamities and distracted times which our sins had plunged us into They have formerly and may again be improved to a twofold benefit and advantage First that by acquaintance and society of Country-men love might be bred nourished and encreased amongst them Secondly That upon consideration of Gods goodnesse bounty and mercy to our selves here in this City we may take occasion to remember the place of our Nativity and provoke one another to think upon and do some good works which may conduce and tend to the publik benefit of the same Now these being the principall ends of our present meeting give me leave Dear Country-men to bespeake you as our Apostle doth his Country-men here in my Text Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works But that we may better understand the occasion of these words we must look back to what went before And wee shall find that the principall scope of the Apostle in the former part of this Epistle is to prove that Christ by his Priestly office and offering up himself a sacrifice to his Father hath fulfilled and also abolished all the Legall Sacrifices and purchased eternall Redemption for his people In the former part of this Chapter he sums up this Doctrine in few words and then tells us what sweet use may be made of the same As first that therefore we should be constant in the faith of Christ ver. 23. Let us saith he hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering 2ly That we should be sincere in mutual love in our private conversing together ver. 24. Let us consider one another to provoke unto love 3. At unity in publick Church-assemblies ver. 25. Not forsaking the assembling of our selves together as the manner of some is 4. Patient under the Crosse of Christ from ver. 32. to the end of the Chapter Verse 22. he had exhorted them to draw near unto God with a true heart in full assurance of Faith and ver. 23. To adhere unto and avow the Doctrine of Christ and that in times of tryall and
differences which are too rife even amongst Gods own people in this world when holy Grynaeus lay upon his death-bead he told a friend that came to visit him that he was going to that place ubi Luthero cum Zuinglio optime convenit where Luther and Zuinglius agreed well though they could never agree upon earth 5. In regard of the eternity of this grace it is that the Apostle 1 Cor. 13. 8. tells us that charity never fails and in this regard prefers it before Faith and Hope verse 13. Now abides Faith Hope and Charity but the greatest of these is Charirity 6. It 's a signe we walke by the light of Gods Word and spirit 1 Ioh. 2. 10. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light and there is no occasion of stumbling in him 7. This Grace is of God and sheweth that we are born of God 1 Ioh. 4. 7. Let us love one another for love is of God and every one that loveth is born of God 8. Without this Grace of love no duty is accepted though never so difficult or specious in the eyes of the World 1 Cor. 13. 3. Though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor and though I give my body to be burned and have not Charity it profiteth me nothing 9. Love will draw love from others Cos Amoris amor Love is the whetstone or Load stone rather of Love ut ameris Ama If you would be beloved of others you must love others Love is a coin that must be returned in its own kind the excellent properties of it are further set forth by the Apostle Paul 1 Cor. 13. 4. 5. c. Charity suffereth long and is kind c. But we must remember as was said before that love comes from God and therefore must be begged of God 1 Ioh. 4. 7. All these things considered will furnish you with arguments enough wherewith to provoke both your selves and one another to love Especially if on the contrary we do but remember what evills are attributed by the spirit of God to the contrary vice of hatred 1 Ioh. 2. 11. He that hates his brother is in darknesse and walks in darknesse 1. John 3. 15. Who soever hateth his brother is a murderer and we know that no murderer hath eternall life abiding in him 1 John 4. 4. 20. If any man say I love God and hateth his brother he is a liar For he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen And thus I have opened and proved the first part of my Doctrine I am come now to the second That it 's the duty of all Christians to provoke one another to good works Now in the prosecution of this Thesis or Position we shall dispatch three things First to speak something by way of explication Secondly by way of confirmation Thirdly by way of Application First for Explication we shall answer severall Queries As Quest What work may be called good Answ. There are three ingredients required to make up good works 1. They must be good materialiter or in the matter of them They must be such things as are either commanded or at least approved of by God Else he will say unto us Who hath required these things at your hands There are indeed many actions which glister much in the eyes of the World and yet are an abomination in the eyes of God As the Popish Fastings Pilgrimages Bead-prayers giving their Prayers to God by number not by weight of which I may say as the Apostle Col. 2. 23. Which things indeed have a shew of wisdom in Will-worship and humility and neglecting of the body and yet the Lord abhors them 2. They must be good quoad fontem they must proceed from a right principle A good heart a pure conscience and faith unfeigned 1 Tim. 1. 5. Now the end of the Commandement saith the Apostle is Charity out of a pure heart c. Charity we know is a work commended by God and yet it 's not accepted except it come from a good Fountain a good heart and a pure conscience For the same Apostle tells us Tit. 1. 15. Unto the pure all things are pure but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure because their mind and conscience is defiled He tells us also Heb. 11. 6. that without faith it is impossible to please God and therefore all works though materially good if done by unbelievers they are but splendida peccata as the Father said But specious and glittering sins 3. They must be good quoad finem They must tend to a right end viz. the glory of God in our own and the salvation of others Christus opera nostra non tam actibus quam finibus pensat saith Zanchy God doth not so much judhe of and weigh our works by the actions as by the ends The want of a right end made Cain's sacrifice and 〈◊〉 zeal and the Pharisees Fastings and Prayers and Almes abomination to the Lord who searcheth the heart and tryeth the reins and knows all our thoughts a far of Wee must therefore look well to our end in all our works and see that as the Sun puts out the light of the fire so the glory of God puts out all other selfish ends whatsoever Quest But what good works should we provoke one another to upon this occasion Answ. The most seasonable is at this our feast to remember the place of our Nativity the Country where we were born and to doe some good for that I shall humbly propose these good works to your Christian considerations First laying down this Position That the chiefest work of mercy is that which tends to the benefiting and enriching of other mens souls The Gospel indeed hath through Gods mercy been preached and professed in Warwickshire ever since the first reformation in King Edward the sixth his daies of glorious memory and many blessed Martyrs suffered there for the truth under that Marian Persecution which followed As sincere Sanders gracious Glover and many others I could also name unto you many famous lights set up in the Candlestick of Warwickshire in the reign of our three late Soveraignes besides such as are now there living So that that Country hath been a Goshen when many other parts of the Nation have been in a Cymerian and Egyptian darknesse Yea give me leave to tell you that which it may be you have not formerly taken notice of that in Warwickshire about the yeare of our Lord 1519. the little Park by Coventry was perfumed with the odours of six of the Saints bodies burned in it upon one day for their profession and perseverance in the truth Besides diverse others which suffered not long after So that it appears that before the name of Luther was heard of in the Christian world Religion was propagated in our Native Country Yet 1. Are there not some blind and barren places in the same
his house And Pro. 3 9 10. Honor the Lord with thy substance and with the first fruits of all thine encrease So shall thy barnes be filled with plenty and thy presses shal burst out with new wine 2. The Lord hath promised them safety and protection in perilous and dangerous times Ps. 41. 1 2. Blessed is he that considereth the poor The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble The Lord will preserve and keep him alive and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies Again Isa. 58. 8. The glory of the Lord shall be his rereward For his safety and defence against dangers Paulinus Bishop of Nola having consumed all his estate in redeeming poor Christian Captives at length having nothing left pawned himself for a certain widdowes Son but the Barbarians moved with his goodnesse and charity returned him home and many Captives with him freely 3. The Lord will support and comfort such with Divine consolations upon their bed of sicknesse when all worldly and creature comforts fail them and when such soul-ravishing comforts are more worth then all the world Psa. 41. 3. The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness Ps. 112. 4. unto such there ariseth light in darknesse v. 7. He shall not be affraid of evil tidings his heart is fixed trusting in the Lord Yea see that sweet promise Isa. 58. 9. Then shalt thou call and the Lord shall answer Thou shalt cry and he shall say here I am 4. You may hereby make God your debtor at death to send his blessed Angels to guard and transport your soules through the territories and regions of the Prince of the aier into Abrahams bosom According to the counsell of our Saviour Christ Luk. 16. 9. Make to your selves friends of the Mammon of unrighteousnesse that when you fail they may receive you into everlasting habitations Hereby indeed we shall do as the blessed Apostle Paul adviseth us 1 Tim. 6. 19. Lay up in store for our selves a good foundation against the time to come that ye may lay hold on eternall life And for our further encouragement let us remember what wise Solomon tells us Eccles. 11. 1. Cast thy bread up on the waters for thou shalt find it after many daies 5. Yea such liberall-hearted persons after death leave a blessed memoriall behind them and Solomon tells us Eccles. 7. 1. that a good name is better then pretious ointment yet that will leave a sweet sent in the room when it is removed How much more shall the name of such mercifull men be continued See it in the example of good Obadiah who took the Lords Prophets and hid them by fifty in a Cave and fed them with bread and water How sweet is the memoriall of that mercifull Proselit Cornelius whose prayers and Almes as they were had in remembrance before God So are they recorded in the sacred Scriptures to his everlasting commendations The like may be said of Dorcas and many others Our own Histories likewise furnish us with plentifull examples of this kind As of Master Bradford Georg Wiseheart Giles of Bruxels Doctor Tailor Master Fox Master Hooper and of later time the young Lord Harrington Mr. Wheatley of Banhury c. 6. Lastly God is made a debtor to such to blesse their posterities after them To such saith the Lord Is. 58. 12. They that shall be of thee shall build the old wast places thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach And Psa. 112. 2. His seed shall be mighty upon Earth the generation of the upright shall be blessed Neither do we want examples of Gods faithfull performance of this promise How well did Mephibosheth fare for the mercy which his Father Jonathan shewed to David And what said David to old Barzillai who had mercifully fed him and his wearied men when he fled from Absolon 2 Sam. 19. 38. The King answered Chimham thy son shall go over with me and I wil do to him that which shall seem good unto thee and whatsoever thou shalt require of me that will I do I shall onely adde one famous example of our own Queen Ann Bullen wife to King Henry the eighth was a very charitable woman she used to carry a little purse about her for the poor thinking no day well spent wherein some had not fared the better at her hand She also kept her maids and such as were about her in working and sowing garments for the poor and see how the Lord dealt with her in her onely child our renowned Qu. Eliz. whom the Lord wonderfully delivered from death in the Reign of her Sister Qu. Mary and after advanced her to the Throne preserved her from the rage of Rome Spain and the Devill giving her a long life and glorious Reign to the comfort of her friends and terror of her enemies And thus I have shewed you how by your charity and liberality you make God your debtor though non ex merito yet ex promisso not out of merit as the Papists teach yet by vertue of his promise which we use to say is due debt Now I proceed to give you some further Motives and arguments to quicken you to this duty 3. Wee should therefore take the present opportunity of doing some publick good for our Country because we know not how little a while we may enjoy our estates We have of late seen Civill Warr and plundering times wherein many of plentifull means have been suddenly brought to poverty and sure I am that the same sins which brought down those judgements are still common Yea I fear I may truly say that instead of amendment we wax worse and worse and our provocations are greater then formerly Why may we not then expect some sweeping and desolating judgement to be impendent over our heads and should we by a generall or some particular hand of God be emptied of that fulnesse which we now enjoy we shall then be disabled to do such good works though we would But me thinks I hear some objecting and saying that because we know not how little a while we shall enjoy what we have it s therefore good to make much of it whilst we have it and to lay up against a rainy day To which I answer that the spirit of God which is much wiser then we hath made the contrary inference Eccl. 11. 2. Give a portion to seaven and also to eight for thou knowest not what evill shall be upon the Earth And the Apostle Paul Gal. 6. 10. Bids us whilst we have opportunity to doe good to all men but especially to the houshold offaith 4. It 's the readiest and surest way to obtain mercy from God in our need if we carefully and conscienciously relieve others in their needs we have Christs own testimony for this Mat. 5. 7. Blessed are the
merciful for they shall obtain mercy And the same is largely held forth by the Prophet Isa. 58. from 7. to 13. as before 5. It will afford much inward peace and comfort For as light and influence accompanieth the Sun and as heat goes along with the fire and as every flower hath its peculiar sweetnesse So every good work carries meat in the mouth comfort in the performance Pro. 21. 15. It's joy to the just to doe judgement The like may bee said of works of mercy It will afford joy to them that doe them whereas cruelty and unmercifullnesse shall be a sting in the consciences and a dagger at the heart of those that are guilty thereof 6. God expects that like the Tree of Life mentioned Rev. 22. 21. we should bring forth fruit every moneth That wee should be like the Lemon tree that ever and anon sends forth young Lemons so soon as the other fal off through ripenesse Or like the Egyptian Figtree which Solinus speaks of which beareth fruit seven times in the year Or more perennis aquae Like Fountaines which continually send forth fresh streames of water But alas most Christians on the contrary are like unto the Cypresse tree that is fair and tall but altogether fruitlesse Or like that Figtree mentioned in the Parable Luk. 13. 6 7. A certain man said Christ had a Figtree planted in his Vineyard and he came and sought fruit thereon but found none Then said he to the dresser of his Vineyard mark the doom of such Behold these three years came I seeking fruit on this Figtree and find none Cut it down Why cumbreth it the ground 7. Lastly God will make honorable mention of such merciful and liberall persons at the day of judgement where your labour of love shewed to the poor members of Jesus Christ shall not be forgotten Mat. 25. 34 35. Come yee blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world For I was an hungred and yee gave me meat I was therstie and yee gave me drink I was a stranger and ye took me in Naked and yee clothed me I was sick and ye visited me I was in Prison and ye came unto me verse 40. In as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren ye have done it unto me Therefore it exhorts us all here present to improve this our meeting as the Apostle adviseth us here To provoke one another unto love and to good works But many think that it will be time enough for them to think of doing good works when they come to make their Wills before their death Truly I will not discourage men from this duty at any time But give me leave to tell you in the words of a Reverend Divine Good works saith he done at a mans death are like a dark-lanthome that gives light only to those that come after it but good works done in a mans life are like a torch that equally gives light both to those that go before and to those that follow after it Yea defer it not till another year as some would perswade for you know not whether ye may live till an other year Yea what saith the Apostle I am 4. 14. Ye know not what shall be on the morrow For what is your life It is even a vapour that appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away Take therfore the present opportunity as Paul exhorts you Gal. 6. 10. Non semper estas erit Summer will not last alwaies Post est occasio calva A pretious opportunity once lost may never be recovered again Bis dat qui cito dat He that gives speedily gives twice Remember Solomons advice Pro. 3. 28. Say not to thy neighbour goe and come again and to morrow I will give when thou hast it by thee Remember how gratefull a Sacrifice it is to God Heb. 13. 16. To do good and to distribute forget not for with such sacrifices God is well pleased Hence Cyprian Qui Pauperi Eleemosynam dat Deo suavitatis odorem sacrificat He that give an Almes to the poor offers a sweet smelling sacrifice unto God and the same Father tells us that Dives sine Eleemosyna arich man without alms is one of the great absurdities in the life of man And saith Gregory Nyssen There is no excuse for hardheartednesse For where can a rich man cast his eyes but he may behold objects for his charity As the husbandman casts some of his corn into a fruitfull soil whereby in due time he reaps with advantage So do you with your worldly blessings sow them in the bowells and on the backs of your poor Country-men members of Christ and in the day of Harvest you shall find a great encrease Onely by way of caution let me give you this advice Sow not sparingly For 2 Cor. 9. 6. He which soweth sparingly shall reap sparingly And he that soweth bountifully shall reap bountifully And Pro. 22. 9. He that hath a bountiful eie shal be blessed for he giveth of his bread to the poor Hence Eccl. 11. 2. Give a portion to seven and also to eight and verse 6. In the morning sow thy seed and in the evening withhold not thy hand But especially remember the words of our Saviour Christ Luk. 6. 38. Give and it shall be given unto you good measure pressed down shaken together and running over shall men give into your bosom For with the same measure you mete withall it shall be measured to you again Again Give not grudgingly Every man saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 9. 7. according as he purposeth in his heart so let him given â—ot grudgingly or ofnecessity For God loveth a cheerful giver Rom. 12. 8. He that sheweth mercy must do it with chearfulness They must be ready to distribute willing to communicate And for your further encouragement herein I am requested to give you notice that what God shall stir up your hearts to contribute at this time shall be faithfully imployed to good uses by your Stewards who will be accountable to you for the same at the next Feast Consider what hath been spoken and the Lord stirre up your hearts to provoke one another unto love and to good works Amen Errata Pag. 4. l. 34. r. Goliah's for Goliaths p. 5. l. 14. r. we are all of the same County p. 8. l. 36. r. judge for judhe FINIS Eph. 2. 10. Tit. 2. 14. Rom. 15. 13 Doct. Use Doct. Use Doct. Est ignis ab igne spiritus accensus Pros. Isa. 5. 8. Aa 2. 12. Mat. 6. 2. c. See my English Martyrologie pag. 64. Isa. 58. 10. See his life in my first part of Lives p. 97. Eodem p. 100. 2 Cor. â— 7. See my Mirrour in Charity Paulus Diaconus Ps. 112. 6. 9. 1 King 18. 13. Act. 10. 2 Act. 9. 36. See my Mirrour p. 117. c See her life in my 2d part of Lives Object Answ. Use 1 Tim. 6. 18