much obliged to continue relieving those that continue in want, as you were obliged to relieve them once or twice. Had it not been in your power, you had been excused from relieving any person once; but if it is in your power to relieve people often, it is as much your duty to do it often, as it is the duty of others to do it but seldom, because they are but seldom able. He that is not ready to forgive every brother, as often as he wants to be forgiven, does not forgive like a disciple of Christ. And he that is not ready to give to every brother that wants to have something given him, does not give like a disciple of Christ. For it is as necessary to give to seventy times seven, to live in the continual exercise of all good works to the utmost of our power, as it is necessary to forgive until seventy times seven, and live in the habitual exercise of this forgiving temper, towards all that want it. And the reason of all this is very plain, because there is the same goodness, the same excellency, and the same necessity of being thus charitable at one time as at another. It is as much the best use of our money, to be always doing good with it, as it is the best use of it at any particular time; so that that which is a reason for a charitable action, is as good a reason for a charitable life. That which is a reason for forgiving one offence, is the same reason for forgiving all offences. For such charity has nothing to recommend it to-day, but what will be the same recommendation of it to-morrow; and you cannot neglect it at one time, without being guilty of the same sin, as if you neglected it at another time. As sure, therefore, as these works of charity are necessary to salvation, so sure is it that we are to do them to the utmost of our power; not to-day, or tomorrow, but through the whole course of our life. If, therefore, it be our duty at any time to deny ourselves any needless expenses, to be moderate and frugal, that we may have to give to those that want, it is as much our duty to do so at all times, that we may be further able to do more good. For if it is at any time a sin to prefer needless vain expense to works of charity, it is so at all times; because charity as much excels all needless and vain expenses at one time as at another. So that if it is ever necessary to our salvation, to take care of these works of charity, and to see that we make ourselves in some degree capable of doing them, it is as necessary to our salvation, to take care to make ourselves as capable as we can be, of performing them in all the parts of our life. Either, therefore, you must so far renounce your Christianity, as to say that you need never perform any of these good works; or you must own that you are to perform them all your life in as high a degree as you are able. There is no middle way to be taken, any more than there is a middle way betwixt pride and humility, or temperance and intemperance. If you do not strive to fulfil all charitable works, if you neglect any of them that are in your power, and deny assistance to those that want what you can give, let it be when it will, or where it will, you number yourself amongst those that want Christian charity. Because it is as much your duty to do good with all that you have, and to live in the continual exercise of good works, as it is your duty to be temperate in all that you eat and drink. Hence also appears the necessity of renouncing all those foolish and unreasonable expenses, which the pride and folly of mankind have made so common and fashionable in the world. For if it is necessary to do good works, as far as you are able, it must be as necessary to renounce those needless ways of spending money which render you unable to do works of charity. You must therefore no more conform to these ways of the world than you must conform to the vices of the world; you must no more spend with those that idly waste their money as their own humour leads them, than you must drink with the drunken, or indulge yourself with the epicure: because a course of such expenses is no more consistent with a life of charity than excess in drinking is consistent with a life of sobriety. When, therefore, any one tells you of the lawfulness of expensive apparel, or the innocence of pleasing yourself with costly satisfactions, only imagine that the same person was to tell you, that you need not do works of charity; that Christ does not require you to do good unto your poor brethren, as unto Him; and then you will see the wickedness of such advice. For to tell you that you may live in such expenses, as make t impossible for you to live in the exercise of good works, is the same thing as telling you that you need hot have any care about such good works themselves. How the imprudent use of an estate corrupts all the tempers of the mind, and fills the heart with poor and ridiculous passions, through the whole course of life; represented in the character of Flavia. T has already been observed, that a prudent and eligious care is to be used in the manner of spending pur money or estate, because the manner of spending ur estate makes so great a part of our common life, nd is so much the business of every day, that accordng as we are wise, or imprudent, in this respect, the whole course of our lives will be rendered either very vise or very full of folly. Persons that are well affected to religion, that eceive instructions of piety with pleasure and satisfacon, often wonder how it comes to pass that they make o greater progress in that religion which they so much admire. Now the reason of it is this: it is because religion ves only in their head, but something else has posseson of their heart; and therefore they continue from ear to year mere admirers and praisers of piety, with F out ever coming up to the reality and perfection of its precepts. If it be asked why religion does not get possession of their hearts, the reason is this; it is not because they live in gross sins, or debaucheries, for their regard to religion preserves them from such disorders; but i is because their hearts are constantly employed, per verted, and kept in a wrong state by the indiscreet use of such things as are lawful to be used. The use and enjoyment of their estate is lawful, and therefore it never comes into their heads to imagin any great danger from that quarter. They never re flect, that there is a vain and imprudent use of thei estate, which, though it does not destroy like gros sins, yet so disorders the heart, and supports it in suc sensuality and dulness, such pride and vanity, as make it incapable of receiving the life and spirit of piety. For our souls may receive an infinite hurt, and b rendered incapable of all virtue, merely by the use o innocent and lawful things. What is more innocent than rest and retirement And yet what more dangerous than sloth and idleness What is more lawful than eating and drinking? An yet what more destructive of all virtue, what mor fruitful of all vice, than sensuality and indulgence? How lawful and praiseworthy is the care of a family And yet how certainly are many people rendered in capable of all virtue, by a worldly and solicitou temper! Now it is for want of religious exactness in the us of these innocent and lawful things, that religion ca not get possession of our hearts. And it is in th right and prudent management of ourselves, as to the things, that all the art of holy living chiefly consists. Gross sins are plainly seen and easily avoided persons that profess religion. But the indiscreet an dangerous use of innocent and lawful things, as does not shock and offend our consciences, so it is dif cult to make people at all sensible of the danger of it. A gentleman that expends all his estate in sports, and a woman that lays out all her fortune upon herself, can hardly be persuaded that the spirit of religion cannot subsist in such a way of life. These persons, as has been observed, may live free from debaucheries, they may be friends of religion, so far as to praise and speak well of it, and admire it in their imaginations; but it cannot govern their hearts, and be the spirit of their actions, till they change their way of life, and let religion give laws to the use and spending of their estate. For a woman that loves dress, that thinks no expense oo great to bestow upon the adorning of her person, cannot stop there. For that temper draws a thousand other follies along with it, and will render the whole ourse of her life, her business, her conversation, her opes, her fears, her tastes, her pleasures, and diverions, all suitable to it. Flavia 16 and Miranda 16 are two maiden sisters, that ave each of them two hundred pounds a year. They uried their parents twenty years ago, and have since hat time spent their estate as they pleased. Flavia has been the wonder of all her friends, for er excellent management, in making so surprising a gure on so moderate a fortune. Several ladies that ave twice her fortune are not able to be always so enteel, and so constant at all places of pleasure and kpense. She has everything that is in the fashion, nd is in every place where there is any diversion. lavia is very orthodox, she talks warmly against eretics and schismatics, is generally at Church, ad often at the Sacrament. She once commended sermon that was against the pride and vanity dress, and thought it was very just against ucinda, 16 whom she takes to be a great deal finer an she need to be. If any one asks Flavia to do mething in charity, if she likes the person who makes e proposal, or happens to be in a right temper, she Il toss him half-a-crown, or a crown, and tell him F2 |