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A53959
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A practical discourse upon charity in its several branches and of the reasonableness and useful nature of this great Christian virtue / by Edward Pelling ...
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Pelling, Edward, d. 1718.
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1693
(1693)
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Wing P1086; ESTC R21750
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75,615
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304
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Disease will seize them at the last and allow them some Time to prepare for another Life But what if they have not an Heart to Prepare themselves duly then though they may have Time 'T is possible for Men to Sin away the Grace of God and the Day of Salvation 'T is possible to harden the Heart so as to render it Uncapable of Good Impressions 'T is possible also to provoke the Holy and Just God to such an high degree as that he will refuse to Soften and Intender it and to listen to their Cries that would not call upon him while he was near They are dreadful Threatnings Prov. 1. from Vers 24. to Vers 30. Because I have called and ye refused I have stretched out my Hand and no Man regarded it But ye have set at nought all my Counsel and would none of my Reproof I also will laugh at your Calamity and will mock when your Fear cometh When your Fear cometh as Desolation and your Destruction cometh as a Whirlwind when Distress and Anguish cometh upon you Then shall they call upon me but I will not answer they shall seek me early but they shall not find me For that they hated Knowledge and did not choose the Fear of the Lord. This I fear is the usual Result of Habitual Wickedness and especially of Men's living in a course and habit of Uncharitableness because it is a Sin or rather a Complication of Sins so Diametrically opposite to the Laws of Jesus Christ and to the Spirit of his Religion that of all others now it seemeth to come the nearest to the very Sin against the Holy Ghost But suppose such People should at last express some Grief and Sorrow for their Wicked Temper and for those manifold Injuries and Mischiefs which are the usual Effects of Uncharitableness yet who can tell whether this Sorrow proceedeth from the Love of God and from a true Sense and Hatred of the Sin or whether it doth not come merely from an Apprehension of those Torments whereof their Consciences are now afraid If it be only the Fear of Punishment which extorteth those Expressions this is very consistent with an Evil Mind that would act over the same Sins again could they but renew their Lives And therefore this Sorrow is no better than Nothing in God's Account because it is not such a Godly Sorrow as worketh Repentance unto Salvation not to be repented of 2 Cor. 7. 10. Let it be granted Lastly That the Sorrow is Genuine and Sincere yet little Comfort can come by it to the Dying Person because he hath no Time now to try whether his Mind be changed indeed and whether he be become a New Man and a New Creature So that at the best his Case is very bad because though he be a True Penitent yet it is more than he knows and consequently neither can his Comfort be solid nor can his Hopes of Pardon be built upon a sure Foundation In such a Labyrinth of Misery doth an Uncharitable Temper plunge every inconsiderate Wretch that the Pleasure he takes and the Profit he gets by Acts of Malice and Revenge doth not countervail the Thousandth Part of those Calamities and Dangers he exposeth himself to unavoidably Therefore it deeply concerns us all to be Wise in time to mend in time to Subdue and Rectifie our Dispositions in time and to new-mould our Hearts into a Resemblance of that Holy and Excellent Being who is a God of Compassion the Father of Mercies the Author of Peace and the Lover of Concord Men may fancy what they please but I take it for a certain Truth that according as our Tempers are either Good or Evil so God loves or hates us and so our Portion will be at the last If any Man have not the Spirit of Christ that is the Disposition and Temper of Christ he is none of his faith St. Paul Rom. 8. 9. And what was Christ's Spirit but a Spirit of Love His Doctrines tended to Peace and Charity His Miracles were Charitable he shewed his Power as God doth in doing Works of Pity and Compassion He went about doing Good And when his Hands and Feet were now Nailed to the Cross and hindred from doing any more he employed his Tongue and Heart in a Work of the greatest Charity of all in sending up a Charitable Prayer for the Pardon of his Enemies Here then is the Pattern that we must follow if we expect any Benefit by his Crucifixion As often as we look on him whom they pierced we must have an Eye upon his Temper as well as upon his Blood and we must make the one our Example as well as lay hold on the other for our Peace In stead of seeking the Hurt or intending the Hurt or wishing the Hurt of any we must apply and set our Hearts as the Lord Jesus did to do every one all the Good we can and then are we his indeed To sum up all then in the Words of St. Paul Let all Bitterness and Wrath and Anger and Clamour and Evil-speaking be put away from you with all Malice Be ye Kind one to another and Tender-hearted Put on as the Elect of God Holy and Beloved Bowels of Mercy Goodness Humbleness of Mind Meekness Long-suffering forbearing one another and forgiveing one another If any Man have a Quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you so also do ye And above all these Things put on Charity which is the Bond of Perfectness And let the Peace of God Rule in your Hearts to the which also ye are called in one Body Amen O Lord who hast taught us That all our Doings without Charity are nothing worth send thy Holy Ghost and pour into our Hearts that most excellent Gift of Charity the very Bond of Peace and of all Virtues without which whosoever Liveth is counted Dead before thee Grant this for thine only Son Jesus Christ's sake Amen ALmighty and Everlasting God give unto us the Increase of Faith Hope and Charity and that we may obtain that which thou dost Promise make us to Love that which thou dost Command through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen ALmighty Father who hast Given thine only Son to Die for our Sins and to Rise again for our Justification Grant us so to put away the Leaven of Malice and Wickedness that we may alway serve Thee in Pureness of Living and Truth through the Merits of thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen O Almighty God who hast knit together thine Elect in one Communion and Fellowship in the Mystical Body of thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord Grant us Grace so to follow thy Blessed Saints in all Virtuous and Godly Living that we may come to those Vnspeakable Joys which thou hast Prepared for them that Vnfeignedly love Thee through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen FINIS
lost and damnable condition And yet this he did voluntarily and of his own accord when there was nothing in the World to move him to it but his own infinite Compassion and Tenderness only 2. The second thing that was Peculiar and New in the Love of Christ was that he was before-hand with his Enemies in these Expressions of his Goodness to them Ye have not chosen me but I have chosen you John 15. 16. And Herein is Love not that we loved God but that he loved us 1 John 4. 10. Meaning that this is a clear and astonishing demonstration of his Goodness that in transacting the mysterious business of Reconciliation he was pleased to have the first hand that he prevented us with his own early Offers and surprised us with Terms of Peace and Happiness when no such thing was either desired or expected or so much as thought of by the World But Thirdly That which was most peculiar of all most eminent and wonderful in the Love of Christ was his Dying for his Enemies There is not in the Old Commandment a Syllable of any Obligations to such an high degree of Charity as this is of laying down their Lives no not for their Brethren And one Reason of it is because length of Days and Temporal Felicity was the great Reward that was plainly and expresly promised under the Law to such as kept it And therefore they were not bound by any Principle of pure Charity to part for any Man's sake with that which was the greatest Blessing the Law could give them So that Christ's dying as he did the Just for the Vnjust was the sublimest act of Love that could be for greater Love than this hath no Man that a Man lay down his Life for his Friends John 15. 13. Only our Saviour's own Charity was far greater in laying down his most precious Life even for his Enemies His Commandment therefore that we should love one another as he himself hath loved us is altogether a new one such Charity was never before required of the World such Charity was never heard of before Charity of such a vast height and measure was quite a new thing Scarcely for a Righteous Man will any one die saith the Apostle Though peradventure for a good Man some would even dare to die Yet God commended his Love towards us it was infinitely beyond all the Charity that ever had been among Men in that while we were yet Sinners Christ died for us Rom. 5. 7 8. By what hath been thus briefly spoken we may now easily discern the true and genuine Nature of that Charity which is properly called Christian It is such a benevolent and tender disposition of Soul as inclines us to do not those Things only which the Laws of Common Justice require us to do but moreover all such kind and obliging Offices as becomes Creatures of the most compassionate Hearts and God-like Tempers To be affected with the sense of other Men's Wants as well as our own to pity them as our selves to wish and promote their Good with such unfeigned Desires and unwearied Endeavours as if our own Welfare were concern'd And because the Lord Jesus vouchsafed to express a common Love to us all we are to follow his most blessed Steps in expressing our Charity to Mankind as long as we live in the World to Bless and Pray for and to do good to our very Enemies to offer them Terms of Accommodation to give them Testimonies of a Reconcileable Temper to encourage and provoke them to be Reconciled by our own Example by shewing them our own Bowels and by letting them see how kind humble meek long-suffering and patient we our selves are and how ready to forgive them Briefly to have such ardent Affections unto all Men and especially to those who are of the Houshold of Faith as to serve them willingly not only with our Wishes and Labours and Substance but when need requires with our very Lives also Tho' Life be so dear a matter that Skin after Skin and all that a Man hath he will give for it yet upon great Occasions and in pressing Circumstances and for weighty and noble Ends to be ready as the Lord Jesus was to die for others after all other Services done for them this is to have that fervent and perfect and true Charity which the Christian Religion recommendeth to us above all Things II. 2. The Quality and Extent of Christian Charity being thus summarily Explain'd I proceed now in the second place to consider those Motives and Reasons which serve to make it Practical Now to digest this Matter into as clear a Method and under as few Heads as may be I shall propose these four Things in general to be considered 1. What great Good a Charitable Temper doth to a Man 's own Mind 2. How effectually it helps us to answer the Ends of the New Covenant 3. How near it brings us unto God even in this World 4. How it prepares and fits us for the Everlasting Happiness of another 1. What great Good a Charitable Temper doth to a Man 's own Mind Though a Crown of Righteousness a Glorious and Perfect Reward be laid up and reserved for us against the Day of Judgment yet all Virtue brings us something of a present Reward As it cleanseth the Spirit from the Corruptions of the World and from the Filthiness of the Flesh so it replenisheth the Soul with the greatest Satisfaction and Pleasure and by these means as well the Holiness as the Joy of a future State beginneth here Now of those Graces which at once purifie and delight the Mind a Spirit of Charity is One and perhaps the Greatest It rids the Soul of several Vices which affect the Conscience with the greatest Guilt and therefore must of consequence bring the greatest Plague Vices which Crucifie the very Soul and make every one his worst Tormentor as Pride Envy Malice and such like These are peculiarly called the Sins of the very Devil and therefore it is fit they should carry a Hell with them It is impossible for such scurvy Qualities to reign in a Breast where a Charitable Heart lies Kind Spirits are not wont to be Haughty Imperious and Tyranical especially towards those they really love Much less are they wont to be griev'd and afflicted at their Prosperity or to seek their Hurt Such Vices are altogether inconsistent with Charity and they always grow out of ill-nature like Nettles out of a Dunghil and methinks Men should shun them the rather because they always sting the very Mind that is their Nursery Hearts that are the proper and kindly Soyl of Virtue are never sensible of this Smart because they are free from the Causes of it and were the insides of Men to be throughly discovered I am confident it would be found that none are so easie and quiet within so satisfied in their Minds as those that have generous Affections for all Mankind If in such Breasts there