SERM.cellent Effect, which the general Practice XIII. of this Virtue would have in the World' and the great Stress which our Saviour and his Apostles accordingly do constantly lay upon it, as being the Principal Part and the main End of Religion. 3dly, I fhall take Notice of the incredible Mifchiefs arifing to Mankind, from the Want of this great Virtue. And Laftly, I shall draw fome useful Inferences from the whole.

I. I AM to explain What That Virtue is, which the Apoftle here calls Charity: and What its oppofite Vice. And here it is evident at first fight to every attentive perfon, that the word in This place cannot poffibly mean, what in common Speech it is now generally used to fignify, Alms or Charity to the Poor. For it is expreffly diftinguished from That, in the very words of the Text itself: Though I beflow all my Goods to feed the Poor, and have not Charity, it profiteth me Nothing. Charity therefore must needs here fignify fome Virtue or good Habit, of a more general and extenfive Nature. And indeed the Apoftle himself diftinctly defines it, in the

verfes

RM.

verfes following my Text; Charity, fays SERI he, fuffereth long, and is kind; envieth XIII. not, vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up; doth not behave itself unfeemly, fecketh not her own, is not eafily provoked, thinketh no Evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the Truth; beareth all things, endureth all things; and fo on, ver. 4, 5, 6, 7. From this description 'tis evident, that by the Word Charity in the Text is expreffed That Chriftian Temper and Difpofition, That Love and Good-Will towards Mankind, which is the Great Foundation of All virtues; and concerning which the fame Apostle elsewhere tells us, that the End of the Commandment is Charity. Without this Good and Chriftian Temper of Mind, no fingle Action is valuable in the Sight of God: Though I beftow all my Goods to feed the Poor, and have not Charity, it profiteth me nothing: That is, Almfgiving, or the Act of any other Virtue, if it proceeds only from fome accidental Cause, and fprings not from a right Principle if it be accompanied with, and made fubfervient to, Designs of Pride and Ambition, of imperioufnefs and do

minion,

SER M. minion, of Party, Faction and worldly
XIII. Powers in matters of Religion; 'tis of No

Efteem in the fight of God. Where
Love and Goodness and Chriftian Temper,
are not the Governing Principle; nothing
is acceptable, no not even Almfgiving it-
felf. But where Love and univerfal Cha-
rity, (even That Love which St Paul de-
clares to be the fulfilling of the Whole
Law; Where This) is the Root; There in-
deed, one of its Faireft Branches, one of
the goodlieft Inftances and Effects of it in
particular, is Liberality towards our Poor
Brethren. From whence it has come to
pafs, that Charity, which properly figni-
fies univerfal Love and Good-Will, has by
frequent ufe been confined, to the parti-
cular fenfe of Charity to the Poor. And
Great indeed are the Promises which are
made in Scripture, to this fingle Branch
of Charity, in particular; It is stiled by
our Saviour, St Luke xvi. 9. a making to
ourfelves Friends of the Mammon of Un-
righteoufnefs, that when we fail, they may
receive us into everlasting Habitations.
Upon which Application of the Parable of
the Unjuft Steward, I cannot but obferve

I

by

by the way, that his remitting to his SER M.

Lord's Debtor, a part of their Debt, XIII. ought not to be understood (as it usually is) to have been a defrauding of his Lord; For 'tis only upon his former behaviour, that the Text charges him with Injustice: But in this laft Action, he seems to be reprefented as obliging his Lord's Debtors out of what He himself was ftill to account for: For which reafon,' our Saviour compares his fecuring to himself by a timely Bounty the Frendship of thofe Debtors, (he compares it) to Our laying

up

for ourselves, by works of Charity and Beneficence here on Earth, a treasure hereafter in the Heavens. Very Great things therefore, I fay, are indeed spoken in Scripture, concerning this particular Virtue of Liberality to the Poor. But 'tis evident This is not what is meant by the word Character in the Text, because 'tis expreffly distinguished in the from beftowing all our

words themselves,
goods to feed the

Poor. And indeed it deferves to be particularly taken notice of, that not only in This Text, but in all Other places alfo, without exception, through the whole New

XIII.

SERM. New Teftament; the word Charity never once fignifies the giving of Alms, but allways That Univerfal Love, That Chriftian Temper and Good-will towards All men, of which Alms-giving to the Poor is but one fingle Branch, or one particular Effect. And Many other Inftances there are, wherein the Signification of words in common Use being much changed by cuftom and courfe of Time, confiderable Errors and Mistakes are thence apt to arife among fuch as read the Scriptures carelcffly and without Attention: Which Errors can no otherwife be prevented, but by taking care to obferve, not the bare Sound of fingle Words, but the connexion and fenfe and meaning of the whole Dif courfe. To Him who thus reads and confiders with Attention, 'tis manifeft that the Charity, which the Apostle here fuppofes a Person may be wholly void of, though he beftores all his goods to feed the Poor; and which he at large defcribes, in the following part of this Chapter; 'tis manifeft, I fay, that the Charity here fpoken of, is That Chriftian Temper, That Univerfal Love and Benignity of Mind, which, in oppo

I