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the sickness of his ingrateful adversaries he clothed himself with sackcloth, he humbled his soul with fasting; he bowed down heavily as one that mourneth for his mother?'

Were not Elias, Jeremy, and other prophets as much concerned for the good of their countrymen as for their own, when they took such pains, when they ran such hazards, when they endured such hardships not only for them, but from them; being requited with hatred and misusage for endeavoring to reclaim them from sin, and stop them from ruin?

May not the holy Apostles seem to have loved mankind beyond themselves, when for its instruction and reformation, for reconciling it to God, and procuring its salvation, they gladly did undertake and undergo so many rough difficulties, so many formidable dangers, such irksome pains and troubles, such extreme wants and losses, such grievous ignominies and disgraces; slighting all concerns of their own, and relinquishing whatever was most dear to them (their safety, their liberty, their ease, their estate, their reputation, their pleasure, their very blood and breath) for the welfare of others; even of those who did spitefully malign and cruelly abuse them?

Survey but the life of one among them; mark the wearisome travels he underwent over all the earth, the solicitous cares which did possess his mind for all the churches:' the continual toils and drudgeries sustained by him in preaching by word and writing, in visiting, in admonishing, in all pastoral employments; the imprisonments, the stripes, the reproaches, the oppositions and persecutions of every kind, and from all sorts of people, which he suffered; the pinching wants, the desperate hazards, the lamentable distresses with the which he did ever conflict: peruse those black catalogues of his afflictions registered by himself; then tell me how much his charity was inferior to his self-love? did not at least the one vie with the other, when he, for the benefit of his disciples, was content to be absent from the Lord,' or suspended from a certain fruition of glorious beatitude; resting in this uncomfortable state, in this fleshly tabernacle' wherein he groaned, being burdened,' and longing for enlargement? Did he not somewhat beyond himself love those men, for whose salvation he wished

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himself accursed from Christ,' or debarred from the assured enjoyment of eternal felicity; those very men by whom he had been stoned, had been scourged, had been often beaten to extremity, from whom he had received manifold indignities and outrages?

Did not they love their neighbors as themselves, who sold their possessions, and distributed the prices of them for relief of their indigent brethren? Did not most of the ancient saints and fathers mount near the top of this duty, of whom it is by unquestionable records testified that they did freely bestow all their private estate and substance on the poor, devoting themselves to the service of God and edification of his people? Finally,

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Did not our Lord himself in our nature exemplify this duty, yea by his practice far outdo his precept? For, he who from the brightest glories, from the immense riches, from the ineffable joys and felicities of his celestial kingdom, did willingly stoop down to assume the garb of a servant, to be clothed with the infirmities of flesh, to become a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief:' he who for our sake vouchsafed to live in extreme penury and disgrace, to feel hard want, sore travail, bitter persecution, most grievous shame and anguish: he who not only did contentedly bear, but purposely did choose to be accused, to be slandered, to be reviled, to be mocked, to be tortured, to pour forth his heart-blood on a cross, for the sake of an unprofitable, an unworthy, an impious, an ingrateful generation; for the salvation of his open enemies, of base apostates, of perverse rebels, of villainous traitors: he who, in the height of his mortal agonies, did sue for the pardon of his cruel murderers; who did send his Apostles to them, did cause so many wonders to be done before them, did furnish all means requisite to convert and save them; he that acted and suffered all this, and more than can be expressed, with perfect frankness and good-will; did he not signally love his neighbor as himself, to the utmost measure? did not in him virtue conquer nature, and charity triumph over self-love? This he did to seal and impress his doctrine; to show us what we should do, and what we can do by his grace; to oblige us and to encourage us unto a conformity with him in this respect; for, Walk in love,' saith the Apostle, ' as

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Christ hath also loved us, and hath given himself for us;' and This,' saith he himself, is my commandment, that ye love one another as I have loved you;' and how can I better conclude than in the recommendation of such an example?

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Now, our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God even our Father, who hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation, and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and stablish in every good word and work.'

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SUMMARY OF SERMON XXVI.

MATTHEW, CHAP. XXII.-VERSE 39.

OBJECT of the preceding discourse stated: time did not then permit the consideration of an exception, to which the text, applied as a measure of our charity, is liable: namely, that in this case the precept will prove impracticable, such a love being romantic and imaginary; since who does, or who can love his neighbor in this degree? Nature and common sense seem to forbid it, &c. In answer to this objection it is said; Be it so, that we cannot attain to this degree of love; yet it may be reasonable that we should be enjoined to do so: reasons for this stated. But neither is the performance of this task so impossible or so desperately hard, if we take the right course and use the right means: for, 1. be it considered that we may be mistaken in our account, when we look on the impossibility or difficulty of this duty, before we have seriously attempted it: many things, very difficult at the first attempt, become easy by practice instances given. 2. Let us consider that, in some respects and in divers instances, it is very feasible to love our neighbor as ourselves: instances of this given.

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3. We see men inclined by other principles to act as much or more for the sake of others, than they would for themselves : instances of patriots and friends. 4. Those dispositions of soul which usually with so much violence thwart the observance of this precept, are not ingredients of true self-love, by the which we are directed to regulate our charity, but a spurious brood of our folly and pravity, which imply not a sober love of ourselves: this point enlarged on.

5. Indeed, we may farther consider that our nature is not so absolutely averse to the practice of such charity, as those may think who view it slightly, either in some particular instances, or in ordinary practice. Man having received his soul from the breath of God, and being framed after his image, there do yet abide in him some features resembling the divine original : this shown by our natural sympathy with distress and misery, by our admiration of pure benevolence, and contempt of sordid selfishness, &c.

6. But supposing the inclinations of a depraved nature do so mightily obstruct the performance of this duty in the degree specified, yet we must remember that a subsidiary power is by the divine mercy dispensed to us, able to control and subdue nature, and raise our faculties far above their natural force.

7. There are divers means conducive to the abatement of this difficulty, the issue of which may be safely referred to the due trial of them.

1. Let us carefully weigh the value of those things which immoderate self-love affects in prejudice to charity, together with the worth of those which charity sets in balance to them.

2. Let us also consider our real state in the world, in dependence on the pleasure and providence of Almighty God: the thought that we are members of one commonwealth, and of the church, under the government and patronage of God, may disengage us from immoderate respect to private good, and incline us to promote the common welfare.

3. There is one plain way of rendering this duty possible; which is, to make the welfare of our neighbor to be our own: which if we can do, then may we easily desire it seriously, and promote it with the greatest zeal; for then it will be an instance of self-love to exercise charity. Nor is this an imaginary cause, but one grounded in reason: this point explained:

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