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A07203 Contentment in Gods gifts or some sermon notes leading to equanimitie and contentation. By Henry Mason parson of S. Andrews Vndershaft London Mason, Henry, 1573?-1647. 1630 (1630) STC 17604; ESTC S102845 26,914 126

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God hath given unto men a measure of good things and hath tempered their gifts with many other defects it is easie to see that they are both indebted to God for that which they have and stand in neede of his dayly favour for supplying of that which they want And consequently this different disposing of Gods gifts may teach us both to think humbly of our selves and thankfully of God 3 A third reason may be because God would give men occasiō of mutuall love charity each to other For if one man had all things hee would neither have neede to receive helpe from others not care to doe good unto thē of whom he had no neede But now that one man hath one abilitie and another man another abilitie and no man hath all nor any man nothing men are hereby made fit both to do good to others and to receive good from them back againe This the Apostle observed in the parts of mans body that the eye cannot say to the hand I have no need of thee nor the head to the feet I have no neede of you but that God hath so tempered the bodie together that there should be noschisme in the body but that the members should have the same care one for another 1. Cor. 12.21 24 25. And so we see it is for the eye seeth not for it selfe onely but for the whole body and the eare heareth not for it selfe but for all the other members and so the stomack doth concoct meate and the liver makes blood and the heart engenders spirits and the feet move themselves and each one doth his proper office not for his owne use but for the use of all the other parts and by this meanes every one enioyeth all the perfections that all the rest have And so it is in the civill bodie The King enacteth Laws constituteth Iudges mustereth souldiours it is not for his owne safetie onely but for the safetie of the whole Realme without whose welfare he could not long enioy his Crowne And so the Preacher studieth the Scriptures not onely to enforme himselfe but to instruct others and the Counsellor studieth the Law not onely that hee may plead for himselfe but more especially for his Clients and the Shoomaker maketh shooes the Tailorgarments and each artificer the worke of his calling that when they have done their worke they may disperse their own commodities abroad and by the sale of them supplie themselves with the commodities of other Trades wherein they have no skill And hereby it appeareth that there is great reason and much wisdome to be seene in this varietie and difference of Gods gifts it remaineth now onely that we make a right vse of it And it may serve us for two uses 1 We may learne contentation with our owne place and gifts and 2 We should set a due valuation of the gifts bestowed on other men without grudging or repining Vse 1 I. We should hēce learne to be contented with that place in which God hath set us with those gifts which God hath bestowed upon us For if God have disposed his gifts in different manner for such good and important reasons and more especially in such provident sort as is most for our owne advantage then wee have great cause to let God alone with his owne both wise and gratious dealing This lesson is most applicable to Murmurers and impatient people such as are discontented with their own lot grumble at the welfare of others Such were those Laborers in the Gospel who having received their full paie yet murmured against the Master of the house Mat. 20.11 because he had given as much to them that wrought hut one houre as he had done to themselves who as they say had borne the burden and heate of the day And such are they in our daies who grudge to see their equalls preferred thēselves sit still where they were or to see their neighbors thrive in wealth and themselves to goe slowly forward or to see others respected abroad when themselves are passed by and neglected And not unlike to these are they also who grudge against God because their places are meane and their maintenance too small for men of such parts and abilities Such men for stilling of their querulous natures should consider these three things 1 That they have no right to that which they do so greedily desire For all things are Gods and he may dispose them at his pleasure The earth is the Lords and the fulnesse thereof Psal 24.1 Every beast of the forest is his and the cattell that be upon a thousand hills Psal 50.10 The silver is mine and the gold is mine saith the Lord of hosts Hagg. 2.8 And thine saith David O Lord is the greatnesse and the power and the glorie and the victorie and the Maiestie for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is thine thine is the kingdome O Lord and thou art exalted as head above all 1 Chron. 29.11 And if all be Gods why doth man laie claime to any thing as his due Or if nothing be due to him why should hee grudge for want of that whereto he hath no right Sure it was a reasonable speech of the good-man of the house when he answered the grumbling Labourer Is it not lawfull for me to doe what I will with mine owne Mat. 20.15 And so if any of us shall murmure because others are advanced to offices when we sit still in our place below God may answer us with the like reason Is it not lawfull for mee to doe what I will with mine owne preferments And if any grumble because others grow rich when themselves remaine poore God may answer them It is not lawfull for me to doe what I will with mine owne riches And if againe they shall grudge because others are esteemed and themselves are neglected hee may answer Is it not lawfull for me to doe what I will with mine own honours And finally if our present state content us not but that wee grumble for more then God hath thought good to give he may still reply and the answer is full of equitie and reason Freind I do thee no wrong may not I doe what I will with mine owne And sure every man would thinke him a proud presumptuous Begger that should prescribe to his Benefactor what and how much hee should bestow upon him And therefore if any should grudge because he hath no more God may challenge him as an Incrocker upon his right 2 Malecontents should consider that the things which they have how small so ever they seeme are the free gifts of Gods mercy the least whereof themselves did no way deserve and for everie one of them they owe praises and thankesgiving For what hast thou saith the Apostle that thou hast not received 1 Cor. 4.7 and David when hee and his people had given liberally to the building of Gods house All things saith he come of thee O
upon the Creator who hath made him to be such And so and by the same reason I may say If any man contemne a plaine Christian because he is not quick-witted or an honest meaning man because he is not hot-spirited or a countrey bred man because he is not civilized or a Citizen because he is not of a Gentle race or an Artificer because hee is not in place of command or a Day-labourer because he is not free of the Citie c. every such scorner of his poore neighbour reproacheth God himself whose good pleasure it is as wel that some should bee in meane places as that other should have higher and all for the good of the Church and the honour of the Almighty And from hence it is that Iob saith that hee despised not the cause of his man-servant nor of his maid-servant whē they contended with him Iob 31.13 And ver 15. he giveth a reason for it For saith he did not hee that made me in the wombe make him and did not one fashion us in the wombe And in like sort should wee say and doe We may despise no mans place or calling as long as it is of Gods making But if wee have to deale with a servant or the poorest boy about the streets we must acknowledge him not only a creature whom God hath endued with an immortallsoule nor onely respect him as a Christiā whō God hath appointed to be heire of eternal life but also as a mēber of the cōmon-wealth or church who in his place may doe service for the common good And consequently we may deny no man the right that belongeth to such a place and calling And this againe is our dutie but where is our practise answerable therunto Surely Ahab thought Naboth unworthy of so good a vine-yard as might bee fit to make a Kings gardon And therefore hee and his Queene turned Naboth out of his inheritance nay took him away out of the world that they might enioy his possessions And so now a daies there be men that thinke lands and inheritances to be too good for an Hospitall and Lordships and Honors not to be sit for a cōpany of Students what say they should Almesmen doe with such dignities as may better beseeme a Lord or a Gentleman And so they do at least they would turne them out of their inheritances to feed upon the bare Common Againe the Prophets cōplaine of the Iudges of their time that they did not judge no● not the cause of the fatherlesse and the widow And so among 〈◊〉 if a poore neighbour should have a controversie with a rich merchant or a shop-keeper with an Alderman or a common subject with a Lord or a Privie Counsellor yee would easily ghesse which way the ballāce would be swayed It is seldome seen but that the greatnes of the person weigheth down the goodnes of the cause and the poore man is not permitted to enjoy the benefit of the Law the libertie of the Land where he liveth Againe Nathan telleth David in a parabolicall resemblance that a Rich man tooke away the only lambe which a poore man had that therwith he might give entertainement to his friend But in our daies wee finde it in reall performance that Great men doe not seldome take away the poore mans right to defraie their owne charges Nay our age proceedeth yet further in this impietie It may be seene in moe Parishes then one that Great men thinke their poore neighbours unworthy of any seate in the Church and thrust them out of their fathers house that thēselves may bee placed alone in the chiefest roomes a parallell example whereto I have not yet found either in Scriptures or in humane stories and I pray God it may spread no further thē to the distempered people of this corrupt age But howsoever our rule is If God have given us superioritie or eminēcie above others we may enioy it with Gods good will and liking but so as that wee forget not that our poorest neighbours are men are Christians are mēbers of the civil Body and therefore wee cannot without wronging of men and dishonoring of God denie them those priviledges which belong to such places And thus much for the first Note and the two points of doctrine arising from it Secondly Note 2 I note that though Peter and Iohn had their severall gifts and each not a little differing from other yet they quarrelled not one the other nor did one seeke to out-vie and obscure his fellow but like friends with one heart and minde they went out together they ranne both together and both of them came to the sepulchre and looked in and beheld what had happened and having done what they came for they departed like loving friēds to their own home By all which it appeareth that though they had differing gifts yet they had agreeing mindes and did ioyne together in seeking after Christ And hence the Observation is that Good Christians and true disciples of Christ must not breake the unity of the Spirit Obs 3 for any diuersitie of gifts Or more briefely thus Differēce of gifts should not breed in us distraction of minds The proofes that I will bring for further confirmation of this point are of two sorts 〈◊〉 such as conclude the point in the generall extent and 2 such as prove it by severall and particular instances I. Proofe 1 And first for generall proofes wee have a plaine place in the Apostle 1 Cor. 12.24 25. The words are God hath tempered the body together having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked that there should be us schisme in the body But that the members should have the same care one for another In these words we may note three things for our purpose 1 Gods workmanship in framing the naturall body he hath tempered it together saith the Apostle hee meaneth that as God hath made severall parts each of which hath its different office so hee hath fitted and if I may so speake hath sodered thē together in such sort as every one doth serve for the use and benefit of another 2 Gods wisdome in framing this temper that is he hath so tempered it that hee hath given the more abundant honour to that part which lacked .i. whereas some parts were of meaner use or lesse comely feature hee hath withall graced them with some other priviledge that may procure them as much honour For example If any part be noysome and unseemely to looke on he hath set that in such a corner as where it may bee hid and removed from the senses And if any part bee made to serve for a base or meane office he hath made it to bee of so much the more necessary use so that a man may better spare an eye or an hand or an eare thē the smallest sinke-hole by which the filth of the body is purged Thus God shewed great wisdome in tempering the whole body with some proportionable