efficacy towards procuring God's favour, and in that refpect may be said to fave a foul from death, and to cover a multitude of fins.

Moreover, the benefit of this excellent virtue is the most lafting of any, being a continual fountain of living water, Springing up unto eternal life; the bread we thus diftribute to the poor and needy fhall never perish, and the water of this fountain given to a thirsty soul shall in no wife lofe its reward. It is the peculiar excellency of this virtue, that it never faileth; whereas the fashion of this world paffeth away, and all the glory and fplendor of it; even thofe exalted gifts and graces of the Spirit are not comparable to that of charity for perfection and duration; fome of which being long fince vanished, such as the gift of healing, miracles and languages; and others are to vanish at the end of the world, such as Faith and Hope, when there will be no further use or occafion for them: For whether there fhall be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they fhall ceafe; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away; and though Faith and Hope are faid to abide, that is, to continue with us in this world, yet Charity hath ftill the preeminence, being never to be out-dated, but to abide for ever; and now abideth Faith, Hope, Charity, these three, but the greatest of thefe is Charity.

III. I come now in the third and laft place to fhew you, that whofoever is thus liberal, and contributeth heartily towards this charitable good work, fhall notwithstanding have sufficient for himself, and need not be afraid of want or scarcity.

And here I would not have you to expect miracles, or think that the Almighty will fupport us in our wants with fome extraordinary help, after we have contributed fomething for his fervice, without any the leaft endeavour of our own; for this would not be true faith, but prefumption: but when we humbly rely upon God's good providence, and confcientiously perform the duties of our vocation, ufing no ill means to better our fortune, and praying for fuccefs; there we are fure GOD will provide, or fome way or other interpose for our relief: for though miracles are ceased, yet Providence is not; God's mercy and compaffion is ftill the fame, and will not fail to help the righteous; though not in that miraculous manner as heretofore, yet fo, that nothing may be expected without his divine favour and bleffing.

The readiest way therefore to arm ourselves against the uncertainty of fortune, and to secure the enjoyment of this prefent world, is this very method I am fpeaking of: For you know how that Solomon hath declared; that he that diftributeth of his fubftance, shall not lack; nay your pofterity fhall reap the benefit of thefe good actions: for the righteous is ever merciful, and lendeth; and therefore it is faid, that his feed is bleffed, Pfal. xxxvii. 26.

Again, it is one of the most infallible proofs of our having a true chriftian faith in this life, and is by Solomon required to be observed in confideration even of those temporal bleffings, that we are affured will proceed from it, abstracted from the profpect of the eternal reward. Honour the Lord with thy fubftance, faith Solomon, and with the first fruits of all thine increafe; fo fall thy barns

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be filled with plenty, and thy preffes fhall burst out with new wine. Whatsoever is thus charitably laid out, will turn to more account than if hoarded up, or employed in the most beneficial trade, intereft or refpondentia. A penny thus prudently bestowed is of infinite more value to us than all the abundant treasures of the East, or riches of the Indies.

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Not that this fhould be our chief inducement: for this would be to make merchandise of our charity, and gain our godlinefs; when we do it not out of a principle of obedience to GOD, and love to our neighbour, but to enrich ourselves there we cannot expect a reward. But whatsoever at any time is freely beftowed, upon a found principle and a right object, fhall undoubtedly be replenished with fresh fupplies, from that inexhaustible fountain of all goodness, from whence the abundance of riches flows. Give, and it fhall be given unto you, faith our Saviour, good measure, preffed down, and fhaken together, and running over, Shall men give into your bofom: for with the fame measure that ye mete withal, it shall be measured to you again; the liberal foul is faid to be made fat, and be that watereth fhall be watered himself. There is a fecret hand of Providence always attending, and a hidden conveyance continually recruiting the moft profufe liberality. An inftance of which we have in the widow of Sarepta, whose barrel of meal wafted not, neither did her cruife of oil fail, in the midft of scarcity, drought and famine.

The charitable perfon hath good reason from fcripture not only to hope, but to be affured, that what he giveth with an honeft and good heart, fhall by the unperceivable working of Providence

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Providence be taken from the heap, without leffening or diminishing, but rather increafing the ftore; Truft thou in the Lord, and be doing good; dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. All things fhall work together for our good, and inftead of fins, it fhall be added to build us up. So certain we may be of not lofing our money laid out after this manner, that God himself will be our furety, and ftand bound for the payment; He that bath pity on the poor lendeth unto the Lord, and that which he hath given will be repay bim again. The royal Pfalmift makes it his particular obfervation; I have been young, and now am old; yet faw I never the righteous forfaken, nor bis feed begging their bread. And what greater fecurity, what furer word of promise can there be given to man, than the unquestionable foundation of God's holy word? Let not any dif truftful thought therefore, or fear of being reduced, ever tempt us to draw back our hands from doing good: for no one did yet by any true act of charity ever came off a loser, even in this world.

And as to the ufe and excellency of our charity, we need not doubt of the suitableness of the object here before us; the contributing to a School for the teaching poor children, and inftructing them in the principles of the Chriftian religion. There is little good to be expected from fuch in these remote parts, as are grown old in fin, and habituated to error; their erroneous principles are already fo confirmed, and they themselves accuftomed to the ways of their forefathers, that they will not eafily be perfuaded to forfake them. But if we make trial upon the next fucceeding generation, and endeavour to

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form their tender minds to piety and virtue, feafoning them in their youth with the principles of Christianity; we cannot fail, through God's affiftance, of confiderable effects, we cannot fail of feeing our endeavours crowned with fuccefs.

Let me therefore in a few words recommend to you this good work from these following confiderations. Let us confider, in the first place, that the converfion of the Heathen and the enlargement of Chrift's kingdom here on earth, must be matter of great joy to all fuch as have any fenfe of religion, or with well to the Church; that the best return of gratitude we can make for the privilege which we chriftians enjoy, is to communicate this fame privilege to others, that thefe Gentiles alfo here converfant among us, may partake with us of the fame common benefit, and join with us in the worfhip of the fame GoD and Father of us all; remembring withal, that we ourfelves also were originally in the same condition with them; Aliens from the commonwealth of Ifrael, and ftrangers to the covenant of promife; living without hope, and without God in the world.

Again, let us confider, that it is our parts and duties, as much as lieth in us, to wipe off that old reproach, the want of common zeal for propagating the faith, which thofe of the Church of Rome have been often throwing at us; and to prevent at the fame time thefe poor deluded Heathens being made a prey to the Romish faith, that unfound part of the chriftian Church, and which fo induftriously compaffeth fea and land to make a profelyte. Let us fecure them betimes, by inftruction, to our own communion, that hath nothing corrupt or finful in it; that may boaft itself at this day the pureft and beft reformed Church in the whole world. K 4

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