23 of this benefit. The evil spirits cry out: Jesu, thou Son of God, what have we to do with thee? 22 Sure indeed, they had nothing to do with Christ, but Christ had to do with them, to wit, to cast them out from men into the Swine. Questionless, saith Saint Austin, unless men did live like Swine, Satan could never enter into them. There are in us, saith Cassianus,2 many evil spirits, which we beseech him daily to cast out, as the spirit of pride, the spirit of fornication, and such other. Christ cast out seven Devils out of Mary Magdalene,24 and so many foul vices (as 1. Pride: 2. Covetousness: 3. Luxury: 4. Envy: 5. Wrath: 6. Incontinency: 7. Sloth :) doth his grace daily cast out from us, and still he is casting forth evil spirits. 6. Another testimony of his most loving affection toward the sons of men, was his often refreshing the hungry: for he would not send them away without refreshing, and specially in the Wilderness,25 a place otherwise far unfit to procure food for a multitude, and therefore he said onλayyvíčoμaɩ, misereor, I have compassion, yea, the bowels of compassion: This he spake when the people had now far to go, and therefore without relief might have fainted by the way. By all which the nature of the Son of God is discovered unto us, how much he tendereth man's welfare, and specially how ready he is to be helpful to all distressed persons, what infirmity soever they have either of body or soul. 7. Hence we learn, First of all to acknow 22 Luke 8. 29. Mat. 8. 32. 24 Luke 7. 38. Luke 8. 2. 23 Cass. de spi. iræ. 25 Mar. 8. 2. Mat. 15. 32. ledge his goodness: Secondarily, to have recourse unto him in time of need; and thirdly, to be merciful unto others by his example, who hath been merciful unto us. Nazianzen in his Oration, De pauperibus Amandis saith, quàm dissimiles Deo sunt Tyranni? It may be truly said, how unlike to the Son of God are unmerciful men? The Apostles of our Lord saw by his deed. and heard by his Doctrine, how much he would have them respect the necessity of the miserable.26 Beati misericordes, Blessed are the merciful, saith he, and if he say blessed, they are blessed indeed. It shall be said unto those naked-clothers, Come, receive the Kingdom prepared for you." 28 The holy Ghost compares our deeds of charity unto seed sown, They that sow plentifully, that is, do give plentifully.29 Now we know that after sowing, in time comes harvest, and when the harvest comes there are many for one, and the husbandman's sowing is recompensed: keep our seed by us, it will corrupt: cast it forth, we shall have increase. By this, here is a kind of giving, which may be called gaining. The rich man in the Gospel, cared for filling his barns, the Scripture calleth him fool,30 he never cared for filling the best barns, to wit, the bellies of the poor. We may not think, saith St. Chrysostom, that as God made rich men for the profit of the poor, so also God made the poor for the profit of the rich: Make you friends, saith the Scripture, of wicked Mammon," as if rich men 26 Luke 6. 36. 29 Gal. 6. 7. 27 Mat. 5. 8. 28 Mat. 25. 35. should one day find that the poor were their best friends, when they come to be received into everlasting habitations: for God, saith Gregory Nissen, seemeth for to make them Porters of heaven, Abraham and Lazarus," rich and poor, both together by the grace of God, and heed taken in time, shall rejoice together in the Kingdom of heaven. 32 What more praiseworthy in a Christian man, than where God hath blessed, Industry gathered, and frugality saved, there by charitable deeds of mercy, to pity the distressed case of others, seeing Christ accounteth this as done unto himself? When I was hungry, you fed me: 33 If this may not move us to be charitable and show mercy, good Lord what may? Whence it is, saith Nazianzene in the place before mentioned,34 that we live, that we know God, that we look for another world, and joys in the same? Who hath granted us to look up and behold the heavens, the Circle of the Moon, the multitude of Stars? Who hath given us the course of times and seasons, the spacious Air, the Showers, Fruits, Meats, Mansions, Laws, Ordinances, to contain us within the bonds of civil society? Who hath given us Lands, Hereditaments, Cattle, Goods, Possessions: but even he who would have us merciful unto others, as himself hath been merciful unto us? And therefore to conclude with the same Father: O man, give somewhat unto man, Nay, give something unto God: Then shall he say, Whatsoever you did to these, &c. He hath dispersed, saith the Psalm, and given unto the poor, his righteousness abideth for ever: 35 consider not so much what is dispersed, as see what abideth for ever. The sum is, we have heard what Christ did, here we learn what Christians ought to do. CHAPTER XIII. What we learn by the meekness of our Lord Jesus, in bearing reproaches of the world, and by his peaceable conversation in the same. W E read in the one and fortieth Chapter of Genesis, and at the fifth verse of the Chapter, that in the time of their distress, the people cried upon Pharaoh, Pharaoh said unto the people, Go to Joseph, and what he saith unto you do it : In our discomforts of the world, let us go unto Christ, he by his example and precepts will show us what we should do, or how meek we ought for to be, by his example; for when he wrought Miracles, it was said he was a Sorcerer, when he cast out Devils, that he casteth them out by Beelzebub, the Prince of Devils: when he sought the saving of souls, he was held a Seducer when he received sinners, he was a friend of sinners,' and so he was indeed, for never had sinners such a friend as CHRIST our Saviour was; when he healed the sick, he was a breaker of the Sabbath:2 in a word, while he was seeking to save them, they ceased not to malign him, according to that of the 35 Psa. 112. Prophet, They rendered me evil for good, and hatred for my good will Now, in all these contumelies he behaved himself meekly. So then we must learn by his example, how to bear the contumelies of this world, to wit, with a calm and quiet mind. We must learn it also by his precepts, who willed his Disciples to learn of him to be humble and meek, who pronounced them blessed, that endured to be reviled, and to be spoken evil of for his name's sake, and prescribeth a Sovereign medicine against all adversities incident to the life of man, saying, In your patience possess your souls.5 In going over the life of the Son of God, what else do we but find it a life of continual suffering, and not only that, but of mild suffering? For he was, saith the Prophet Esay, yea as a Lamb before the shearer, as a Lamb that opened not his mouth before the shearer. For behold we him in his passion, there shall we find his eyes full of tears, his mouth full of Gall, his ears full of contumelies, his head full of thorns, his heart full of sorrows, and amidst all, himself praying for his persecutors. At this time he is derided, He saved others, himself he cannot save: Nay, had he saved himself, he had not saved others, and because he would save others, he would not save himself. Again, they said unto him, Come down from the Cross, if thou be the Son of God: whence, saith Gregory, If Christ when he was reproached, had come down from the Cross, giving place to 3 Psa. 35. 12. 5 Luc. 21. 19. 4 Mat. 5. 11. 6 Isaiah 53. * Si tunc descendisset, nimium insultantibus cedens, virtutem patientiæ non ostendisset, &c. |