Our power of doing _external acts_ of love, is often very narrow
and restrained. There are, it may be, but few people to whom we can
contribute any worldly relief.
But tho’ our outward means of doing good are often thus limited, yet,
if our hearts are full of love, we get, as it were, an infinite power;
because God will attribute to us those good works, which we would have
performed, had it been in our power.
You cannot heal all the _sick_, relieve all the _poor_; you cannot
comfort all in distress, nor be a father to all the fatherless. You
cannot, it may be, deliver many from their misfortunes, or teach them
to find comfort in God.
*But if there is a love in your heart, that _excites_ you to do _all_
that you can; if your love has _no bounds_, but continually _wishes_
and _prays_ for the relief of all that are in distress, you will be
received by God as a benefactor to those, who had nothing from you but
your _good-will_, and tender affections.
You cannot build _hospitals_ for the _incurable_; but if you join
in your heart with those that do; if you are a friend to these great
friends to mankind, and rejoice in their eminent virtues, you will be
received by God as a sharer of such good works, as tho’ they had none
of your _hands_, yet had _all_ your _heart_.
This consideration surely is sufficient to make us watch over our
hearts with all diligence: and aspire after the height of a loving,
charitable, and benevolent mind.
13. And, on the other hand, we may hence learn the great evil of
_envy_, _spite_, _hatred_, and _ill-will_. For if the goodness of our
hearts will intitle us to the reward of good actions, which we never
performed; it is certain that the badness of our hearts, will bring us
under the guilt of actions that we have never committed.
*As he that lusteth after a woman shall be reckoned an adulterer,
tho’ he has only committed the crime in his heart; so the malicious,
spiteful, ill-natured man, that only _secretly_ rejoices at evil,
shall be reckoned a _murderer_, tho’ he has shed no blood.
*Since therefore our hearts, which are always naked and open to the
eyes of God, give such an exceeding extent and increase, either to our
virtues or vices, it is our _greatest_ business to govern the motions
of our hearts, to correct and improve the inward state of our souls.
14. Now there is nothing that so much exalts our souls, as this
heavenly love; it cleanses and purifies like a holy fire, and all
ill tempers fall away before it. By love, I don’t mean any _natural
tenderness_, which is more or less in people, according to their
constitutions; but a _larger principle_ of the soul, which makes us
kind to all our fellow-creatures, as creatures of God, and for his
sake.
It is this love that loves all things in God, as his creatures, as the
images of his power, as the creatures of his goodness, as parts of his
family, as members of his society, that becomes a holy principle of
all great and good actions.
These reasons sufficiently shew, that no love is _holy_, or
_religious_, till it becomes _universal_.
For if religion requires me to love all persons, as God’s creatures,
that belong to him, that bear his image, enjoy his protection, and
make parts of his family and houshold; if these are the great reasons
why I should live in love with any one man in the world, they are
the same great reasons why I should live in love with every man in
the world; and consequently, I offend against _all these reasons_,
whenever I want love towards any one man. The sin therefore of hating
or despising any one man, is like the sin of hating all God’s creation;
and the necessity of loving any one man, is the same necessity of
loving every man in the world. And tho’ many people may appear to us
ever so sinful, odious, or extravagant in their conduct, we must never
look upon that as the least motive for any contempt or disregard of
them; but look upon them with the greater compassion, as being in the
most pitiable condition that can be.
15. *As it was the sins of the world, that made the Son of God become
a compassionate suffering Advocate for all mankind; so no one is of
the Spirit of Christ, but he that has the _utmost compassion_ for
sinners. And you have never less reason to be pleased with yourself,
than when you find yourself most offended at the behaviour of others.
All sin is certainly to be hated; but then, we must set ourselves
against sin, as we do against _sickness_ and _diseases_, by shewing
ourselves tender and compassionate to the _sick_ and _diseased_.
*All other hatred of sin, which does not fill the heart with the
_softest_, _tenderest_ affections towards persons miserable in it, it
is the servant of sin at the same time that it seems to be hating it.
And there is no temper which even good men ought more carefully to
guard against than this. For it is a temper that lurks under the cover
of many virtues, and by being unsuspected does the more mischief.
A man naturally fancies, that it is his own love of virtue that makes
him not able to bear with those that want it; and when he _abhors_
one man, _despises_ another, and can’t bear the _name_ of a third, he
supposes it all to be a proof of his own _high sense_ of virtue, and
_just hatred_ of sin.
And yet one would think that a man needed no other cure for this
temper, than this one reflection:
That if this had been the _spirit_ of the Son of God, if he had hated
sin in _this manner_, there had been no redemption of the world: if
God had hated sinners in this manner, the world itself had ceased long
ago.
This therefore we may take for a certain rule, that the more we
partake of the divine nature, and the higher our sense of virtue
is, the more we shall compassionate those that want it. The sight of
such people will then, instead of raising in us a haughty contempt,
or peevish indignation towards them, fill us with such bowels of
compassion, as when we see the miseries of an _hospital_.
16. That the follies therefore, and ill-behaviour of our fellow
creatures, may not lessen that love which we are to have for all
mankind, we should often consider the reasons on which this duty of
love is founded.
Now we are to love our neighbour, that is, all mankind, not because
they are wise, holy or virtuous; for all mankind never was, nor ever
will be so.
Again, if their goodness were the reason of our being obliged to love
people, we should have no _rule_ to proceed by; because tho’ some
people’s virtues or vices are notorious, yet, generally speaking, we
are but ill judges of the virtue of other people.
_Thirdly_, We are sure that the virtue of persons, is not the reason
of our being obliged to love them, because we are commanded to pay
the highest instances of love to our worst enemies; we are to love,
and bless, and pray for those that most injuriously treat us. This
therefore is demonstration, that the merit of persons is not the
reason on which our obligation to love them is founded.
Let us farther consider what that love is which we owe to our
neighbour; it is to love him as ourselves, that is, to wish him every
thing that we may lawfully wish to ourselves; to be glad of every good,
and sorry for every evil that happens to him: and to be ready to do
him all such acts of kindness, as we are always ready to do ourselves.
This love therefore, you see, is nothing but a love of _benevolence_;
it requires nothing of us, but good _wishes_, _tender affections_, and
such acts of kindness, as we shew to ourselves.
17. Now we are obliged to this love, in imitation of God’s goodness,
that we may be children of our Father which is in heaven, who willeth
the happiness of all his creatures, and maketh his sun to rise on the
evil and on the good.
Again, our redemption, by Jesus Christ, calleth us to the exercise of
this love, who came from heaven, and laid down his life, out of love,
to the whole sinful world.
_Lastly_, Our Lord and Saviour has required us to love one another, as
he loved us.
These are the great, perpetual reasons, on which our obligation to
love all mankind as ourselves is founded.
These reasons never vary; they always continue in their full force;
and therefore equally oblige at all times, and in regard to all
persons.
God loves us, not because we are wise, and good, and holy, but in pity
to us, because we want this happiness. He loves us, in order to make
us good. Our love therefore must take this course; not looking for, or
requiring the merit of our brethren, but pitying their disorders, and
wishing them all the good that they want, and are capable of receiving.
18. You will perhaps ask, if you are not to have a _particular esteem_
for good men? Yes; but this _esteem_ is very different from that love
of _benevolence_ which we owe to our neighbour.
The distinction betwixt love of benevolence, and esteem, is plain and
obvious.
No man is to have a _high esteem_ for his own accomplishments or
behaviour; yet every man is to love himself, that is, to wish well to
himself; therefore this distinction betwixt love and esteem, is not
only plain, but very necessary to be observed.
Again, if you think it hardly possible to dislike the actions of
unreasonable men, and yet have a true love for them, consider this
with relation to yourself.
It is very possible, for you not only to dislike, but to _detest_ and
_abhor_ a great many of your own past actions. But do you then lose
any of those tender sentiments towards yourself, which you used to
have? Do you then cease to wish well to yourself? Is not the love of
yourself as strong then as at any other time?
Now what is thus possible with relation to ourselves, is possible with
relation to others. We may have the highest good wishes towards them,
desiring for them every good that we desire for ourselves, and yet at
the same time dislike their way of life.
19. To conclude, all that love which we may justly have for ourselves,
we are in _strict justice_ obliged to exercise towards all other
men; and we offend against the great law of our nature, when our
tempers towards others are different from those which we have towards
ourselves.
Now that _self-love_ which is _just_ and _reasonable_, keeps us
constantly _tender_, _compassionate_, and _well-affected_ towards
ourselves. If therefore you don’t feel these kind dispositions towards
all other people, you may be assured, that you are not in that state
of charity, which is the very life and soul of Christian piety.
You know how it hurts you, to be made the _jest_ and _ridicule_ of
other people; how it grieves you to be _robbed_ of your reputation:
if therefore you expose others to _scorn_ and _contempt_ in _any_
degree; if it pleases you to see or hear of their _frailties_ and
_infirmities_; or if you are only _loth_ to conceal their faults,
you are so far from loving such people as yourself, that you may be
justly supposed to have as much hatred for them, as you have love for
yourself. For such tempers are as truly the proper fruits of hatred,
as the contrary tempers are the proper fruits of love.
And as it is a certain sign that you love yourself, because you are
tender of every thing that concerns you; so it is as certain a sign
that you hate your neighbour, when you are pleased with any thing that
hurts him.