talking and an imperious spirit, despite of religion and contempt of poor persons'. At the best, it is a great temptation for a man to have in his power whatsoever he can have in his sensual desires: and therefore riches is a blessing, like to a present made of a whole vintage to a man in a hectick fever; he will be much tempted to drink of it, and if he does he is inflamed, and may chance to die with the kindness. Now besides what hath been already noted in the state of poverty, there is nothing to be accounted for but the fear of wanting necessaries, of which if a man could be secured, that he might live free from care, all the other parts of it might be reckoned amongst the advantages of wise and sober persons, rather than objections against that state of fortune. But concerning this I consider, that there must needs be great security to all Christians, since Christ not only made express promises that we should have sufficient for this life; but also took great pains and used many arguments to create confidence in us: and such they were, which by their own strength were sufficient, though you abate the authority of the speaker. The Son of God told us, his Father takes care of us: He that knew all his Father's counsels and his whole kindness towards mankind, told us so. How great is that truth, how certain, how necessary, which Christ himself proved by arguments! The excellent words and most comfortable sentences which are our bills of exchange, upon the credit of which we lay our cares down, and receive provisions for our need are these 2; "Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? which of 1 Jam. 2. 5, 6, 7. 2 Matt. 6. 25, &c. you by taking thought can add one cubit to his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field how they grow: They toil not, neither do they spin; and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Therefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore, take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, what shall we drink? or wherewithal shall we be clothed? (for after all these things do the Gentiles seek) For your heavenly Father knoweth that you have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself: sufficient to the day is the evil thereof." The same discourse is repeated by St. Luke': and accordingly our duty is urged and our confidence abetted by the disciples of our Lord, in divers places of holy Scripture. So St. Paul, "Be careful for nothing, but in every thing by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God"." And again, "Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy "." And yet again, "Let your conversation be without covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have; for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee: So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper." And all this is by St. Peter summed up in our duty, thus: " Cast all your care upon him, for he careth for you." Which words he seems to have borrowed out of the 1 Luke 12. 22-31. 2 Phil. 4. 6. 4 Heb. 13. 5, 6. 55th Psalm, ver. 23, where David saith the same thing almost in the same words. To which I only add the observation made by him, and the argument of experience; "I have been young and now am old, and yet saw I never the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging their bread." And now after all this, a fearless confidence in God, and concerning a provision of necessaries, is so reasonable, that it is become a duty: and he is scarce a Christian, whose faith is so little as to be jealous of God and suspicious concerning meat and clothes that man hath nothing in him of the nobleness or confidence of charity. Does not God provide for all the birds and beasts and fishes? Do not the sparrows fly from their bush, and every morning find meat where they laid it not? Do not the young ravens call to God and he feeds them? And were it reasonable, that the sons of the family should fear the father would give meat to the chickens and the servants, his sheep and his dogs, but give none to them? He were a very ill father that should do so or he were a very foolish son that should think so of a good father. But besides the reasonableness of this faith and this hope, we have infinite experience of it: How innocent, how careless, how secure is infancy? and yet how certainly provided? We have lived at God's charges all the days of our life, and have (as the Italian proverb says) sat down to meat at the sound of a bell; and hitherto he hath not failed us: we have no reason to suspect him for the future: we do not use to serve men so; and less time of trial creates great confidences in us towards them who for twenty years together never broke their word with us; and God hath so ordered it, that a man shall have had the experience of many years' provision, before he shall understand how to doubt; that he may be provided for an answer against the temptation shall come, and the mercies felt in his childhood may make him fearless when he is a man. Add to this, that God hath given us his holy Spirit; he hath promised heaven to us; he hath given us his Son; and we are taught from Scripture to make this inference from hence, "How should not he with him give us all things else?" The charge of many Children. We have a title to be provided for as we are God's creatures, another title as we are his children, another because God hath promised; and every of our children hath the same title: and therefore it is a huge folly and infidelity to be troubled and full of care, because we have many children. Every child we have to feed is a new revenue, a new title to God's care and providence; so that many children are a great wealth and if it be said they are chargeable, it is no more than all wealth and great revenues are. For what difference is it? Titius keeps ten ploughs, Cornelia hath ten children. He hath land enough to employ, and to feed all his hinds': she blessings, and promises, and the provisions, and the truth of God to maintain all her chidren. His hinds and horses eat up all his corn, and her children are sufficiently maintained with her little. They bring in and eat up; and she indeed eats up, but they also bring in from the store-houses of heaven, and the granaries of God: and my children are not so much mine as they are God's he feeds them in the womb by ways secret and insensible; and would not work a perpetual miracle to bring them forth, and then to starve them. : Violent Necessities. But some men are highly tempted, and are brought to a strait, that without a miracle they cannot be relieved; what shall they do? It may be their pride or vanity hath brought the necessity upon them, and 1 i. e. Servants. it is not a need of God's making: and if it be not, they must cure it themselves by lessening their desires, and moderating their appetites: and yet if it be innocent, though unnecessary, God does usually relieve such necessities; and he does not only upon our prayers grant us more than he promised of temporal things, but also he gives many times more than we ask. This is no object for our faith, but ground enough for a temporal and prudent hope: and if we fail in the particular, God will turn it to a bigger mer.. cy, if we submit to his dispensation, and adore him in the denial. But if it be a matter of necessity, let not any man by way of impatience cry out, that God will not work a miracle; for God by miracle did give meat and drink to his people in the wilderness, of which he had made no particular promise in any covenant and if all natural means fail, it is certain that God will rather work a miracle than break his word; he can do that, he cannot do this. Only we must remember that our portion of temporal things is but food and raiment: God hath not promised us coaches and horses, rich houses and jewels, Tyrian silks and Persian carpets; neither hath he promised to minister to our needs in such circumstances as we shall appoint, but such as himself shall choose. God will enable either thee to pay thy debt, (if thou beggest it of him) or else he will pay it for thee, that is, take thy desire as a discharge of thy duty, and pay it to thy creditor in blessings, or in some secret of his providence. It may be, he hath laid up the corn that shall feed thee in the granary of thy brother; or will clothe thee with his wool. He enabled St. Peter to pay his gabel' by the ministry of a fish; and Elias to be waited on by a crow, who was both his minister and his steward for provisions: and his holy Son rode in triumph upon an ass that grazed in another man's pastures: And if God gives to him the dominion, and reserves the use 1 i. e. Tribute. |