3. WHICH is a great deal worfe, inveterate SER M. grudges are alfo inconfiftent with that love which XVII. we owe to our Chriftian brother. These strike at the very root of love, and tend to the ftarving and famishing the principle it self. Thus perfons lay up fomething in their minds against this or that fellow Chriftian, and there it fhall lie, corrode, work and fret, till it is the occafion of their doing him hurt; but it is much more mif chievous to themselves, and turns to their own far greater hurt and damage. Grudge not one against another, fays the Apostle, the judge is at the door. An intimation that this is a matter that will be brought before the judge. Here now is work for the judge when he comes, that fuch and fuch have allowed themselves to harbour grudges in their hearts, till they are grown old and turned into rankling and feftered fores within. AND certainly to a truly Chriftian Spirit that is it felf, and in a right frame, nothing will be more agreeable than to fay, "I would not for "all this world know or experience any thing "as a fettled grudge in my heart to any one "who or whatfoever he be; fo as to wifh that "his finger fhould ake, or that he should have "the least harm or hurt upon my account, or "for any difaffection he may bear or exprefs to "me." This now is a truly Christian spirit But to allow my felf to treasure up fuch things to let them remain, (altâ mente repofita, as it were) against fuch a man, is very much against this law VOL. I. 1 Jam. v. 9. X of VOL. of love. He has offended you; it may be you I. are as prone to offend him, or to offend another. IT is little confidered what is the true, the proper and right notion of the Chriftian Church, or the Churches of Chrift in general. They are hofpitals, or rather one great hofpital wherein there are perfons of all forts under cure. There is none that is found, none that is not difeafed, none that hath not wounds and fores about him. Now how infufferable infolence were it, that in an hofpital of maimed and difeafed persons, one fick or wounded man fhould fay; "Such a man's "fores are fo noifome to me, that I am not able 66 to indure the being neighbour to him?" Is it fit to talk thus in an hofpital where all are fick? Cannot fore, and wounded men indure one another, when they are all there for cure? Indeed if a perfon is ftark dead, apparently stark dead, it is not fit he fhould remain there to be an annoyance to the reft. But further, 4. A SECRET delight taken in the harm of another is yet worfe than the former. When thofe that call themfelves Chriftians, or to whom that name may belong, fecretly please themselves to fee inconveniencies befall this or that person, this, I say, is a horrid violation of the law of love. It is a most unnatural thing to rejoice in the harm of another. In the body, as the Apoftle intimates, when one member is fuffering, all the members fuffer with it. And to delight in the harm of others is as contrary to the spiritual nature, m I Cor. XII. 26. nature, which is diffused in the true body of SER M. Chrift, as if the head or any other member XVII. fhould rejoice that the hand or foot is put to pain. And 5. DIRECTLY oppofite to this, but no lefs inconfiftent with this duty of loving our Chriftian brother, is envy at the good of another. When I behold the good of another with an invidious, difpleafed eye, becaufe fuch a man is better than I am; or is better reputed, or reported of; or has better gifts, or parts; or there is more appearance of his grace; and he doth more good, or has more to do good with: Thefe are most infufferable things, moft directly contrary to love. 6. Most of all inconfiftent with this duty is hatred. This is directly contrary to it, and, in the tendency of it, aims at no lefs than the deftruction of the perfon himself. And how frequently is the cafe fo even among fome Chriftians, that nothing can fatisfy them but the destruction of those who differ from them! Nothing lefs than their deftruction will ferve their turn. This is a thing fo common and manifeft, as if it were quite forgotten that ever there was .fuch a portion of Scripture in the Bible as this; Whosoever bateth his brother is a murderer, and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him". And it is yet worfe, when the very reafon of that hatred is becaufe fuch and fuch perfons are better than themfelves: as it is with many profane perfons that go under the name of ChriX 2 1 John 111, 15. ftians, I. VOL. ftians, and yet hate Chriftians all the while for Christianity's fake; for living the Christian life, and obferving the precepts of their common Lord. As Cain did his brother Abel, because his works were evil, and his brother's righteous. To hut up all, 7. ANOTHER pofitive inftance of the violation of this law of love to our Christian brother (in the laft place) is bearing hardly on one another's confciences in matters of external form relating to religion. I fpeak this with refpect to private perfons, for fuch I fuppofe my hearers to be. That is, when they do in their own minds wifh, or any way within their own compass or capacity endeavour, that the confciences of fuch who differ from them may be hardly borne upon. It is very true indeed that the pretence of confcience, for apparent flagitious crimes, is a most wicked and blafphemous pretence. For that is to intitle God to my wickedness, or to charge hin with it; in as much as I cannot alledge confcience for any thing, but I muft in that cafe look upon it, and refer to it as Go D's fubftitute and vicegerent, and as doing his part within me. Therefore to pretend conscience for any thing that is in its own nature wicked and flagitious, is to caft all upon GOD; and to pretend that he hath injoined me to do fuch or such a wicked thing. But when the difference is about small matters, which are (as we faid before) extraeffential to religion, even by common confent; it is a great violation of love for Chriftians in this cafe to affect and defire to have those who diffent from them hardly dealt SER M. withal, and their confciences grievously impofed XVII. upon on this pretence, that they must be, in such forms and external modes of religious worship, just as themselves, or they are not to be indured. WE do not count it neceffary that it fhould be fo as to the natural body. For I look upon matters of external form in the Church, as I do upon the external vestments or coverings of our bodies. Now we do not think it neceffary, that every member of the natural body, should have a covering of the fame fhape, fize, and colour. And if this cafe were but confidered as it should be, and Christian love did but do its part (abftracting from what neceffity there may be by an authoritative fanction) we should not think it more neceffary, that every member in fuch a Chriftian community fhould be cloathed in external form alike, than that every part of the body fhould have the fame fort of garment; or, that for conformity's fake, a man fhould wear a cap on his foot as well as on his head. O |