Sermon

Exodus 20:13. You shall not kill.

2. The second duty implied is that we should do all the good we can to ourselves and others.

1. In reference to others. We should endeavor to preserve the lives and souls of others. 2. In reference to ourselves. To preserve our own life and soul.

[1.] In reference to others.

(1.) To preserve the life of others. Comfort them in their sorrows, relieve them in their wants: Be as the good Samaritan, pour wine and oil into their wounds. Job 29:16. I was a father to the poor. —13. The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me. This is a great means of preserving the life of another, by relieving him when he is ready to perish. Pompey, when there was a great dearth in Rome, provided corn for their relief; and when the mariners were backward to sail there in a tempest, says he, [illegible], It is not necessary that we should live, but it is necessary that Rome be relieved. Grace makes the heart tender, it causes sympathy and charity: As it melts the heart in contrition toward God, so in compassion toward others. Psalm 112:9. He has dispersed, he has given to the poor. This the commandment implies, that we should be so far from ruining others, that we should do all we can to preserve the lives of others. When we see the picture of death drawn in their faces, administer to their necessities. Be temporal saviors to them; draw them out of the waters of affliction with a silver cord of charity. That I may persuade you to this, let me lay before you arguments.

First, works of charity evidence grace.

1. Faith. James 2:18. I [reconstructed: will] show you my faith by my works. Works are faith's letters of credence to show. We judge of the health of the body by the pulse, where the blood stirs and operates. Christian, judge of the health of your faith by the pulse of charity: The word of God is the rule of faith, and good works are the witnesses of faith.

2. Love. Love loves mercy: It is a noble, bountiful grace. Mary loved Christ, and how liberal was her love! She bestows on Christ her tears, kisses, costly ointments. Love is like a full vessel, will have vent; it vents itself in acts of liberality.

Secondly, to communicate to the necessities of others is not arbitrary (it's not left to our choice whether we will or no), but it is a duty incumbent. 1 Timothy 6:17. Charge them that are rich in this world, that they do good — that they be rich in good works. This is not only a counsel, but a charge. If God should lay a charge upon the inanimate creatures, they would obey. If he should charge the rocks, they would send forth water: If he should charge the clouds, they would melt into showers: If he should charge the stones, they would become bread. And shall we be harder than the stones, not to obey God, when he charges us to be rich in good works?

Thirdly, God supplies our wants, and shall not we supply the wants of others? We could not live without mercy. God makes every creature helpful to us. The sun does enrich us with its golden beams: The earth yields us its increase, veins of gold, crops of corn, store of flowers. God opens the treasury of his mercy, he feeds us every day out of the alms-basket of his providence. You open your hand, and satisfy the desire of every living thing (Psalm 145:16). Now, does God supply our wants, and shall we not minister to the wants of others? Shall we be only as a sponge to suck in mercy, and not as a breast to milk it out to others?

Fourthly, in this we resemble God, to be doing good to others. 'Tis our excellence to be like God. Godliness is God-likeness. And in what are we more like him than in acts of bounty and munificence? Psalm 119:68. You are good, and do good. You are good, there is God's essential goodness; and do good, there is his communicative goodness. The more helpful we are to others, the more like we are to God. We cannot be like God in omniscience, or in working miracles, but we may be like him in doing works of mercy.

Fifthly, God remembers all our deeds of charity, and takes them kindly at our hands. Hebrews 6:10. God is not unrighteous to forget your labor of love which you have shown toward his name, in that you have ministered to the saints. The chief butler may forget Joseph's kindness, but the Lord will not forget any kindness we show to his people. Matthew 25:35. I was hungry and you gave me meat, thirsty and you gave me drink. Christ takes the kindness done to his saints as done to himself. God that has a bottle for your tears, has a book to write down your alms. Malachi 3:16. A book of remembrance was written before him. Tamerlane had a register to write down all the names, and good service of his soldiers: So God has a book of remembrance to write down all your charitable works, and at the day of judgment there shall be an open and honorable mention made of them in the presence of the angels.

Sixthly, hard-heartedness to them in misery reproaches the Gospel. When men's hearts are like pieces of rocks, or as the scales of the Leviathan, shut up as with a close seal (Job 41:15), you may as well extract oil out of a flint, as the golden oil of charity out of their hearts. These unchristian themselves. Unmercifulness is the sin of the heathen (Romans 1:31). [illegible], without mercy. It eclipses the glory of the Gospel. Does the Gospel teach uncharitableness? Does it not bid us draw out our soul to the hungry (Isaiah 58:10; Titus 3:8)? These things I will that you affirm, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. While you relieve not such as are in want, you walk antipodes to the Gospel; you cause it to be evil spoken of, and lay it open to the [reconstructed: Lash] and censure of others.

Seventhly, there is nothing lost by relieving the necessitous. The Shunamite Woman was kind to the prophet, she welcomed him to her house, and she received kindness from him another way. He restored her dead child to life (2 Kings 4:35). Such as are helpful to others, shall find mercy to help in time of need. Such as pour out the golden oil of compassion to others, God will pour out the golden oil of salvation to them. For a cup of cold water they shall have rivers of pleasure. In fact, God will make it up some way or other in this life (Proverbs 11:25). The liberal soul shall be made [reconstructed: fat]: as the loaves in breaking multiplied, or as the widow's oil increased by pouring out (1 Kings 17:16). An estate may be imparted, yet not impaired.

Eighthly, to do good to others in necessity keeps up the credit of religion. Works of mercy adorn the Gospel as the fruit adorns the tree. When our light so shines that others see our good works, this glorifies God, crowns religion, silences the lips of gainsayers. Basil says, nothing rendered the true religion more famous in the primitive times, and made more proselytes to it, than the bounty and charity of the Christians.

Ninthly and lastly, the evil that does accrue by not preserving the lives of others, and helping them in their necessities. God sends oft a secret moth into their estate (Proverbs 11:24). There is that withholds more than is meet, but it tends to poverty. (Proverbs 21:13) Whoever stops his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard. (James 2:13) He shall have judgment without mercy, that showed no mercy. Dives denied Lazarus a crumb of bread, and Dives was denied a drop of water. (Matthew 25:41) Depart from me you cursed, for I was hungry and you gave me no meat. Christ says not, You took away my meat: but, You gave me no meat; you did not feed my members, therefore depart from me. By all this, be ready to distribute to the necessities of others. This is included in the commandment, You shall not kill. Not only, You shall not destroy his life, but you shall preserve it by giving to his necessities.

(2.) It is implied, that we should endeavor to preserve the souls of others; counsel them about their souls, set life and death before them, help them to Heaven. In the law, if one met his neighbor's ox or ass going astray, he must bring him back (Exodus 33:4). Much more if we see our neighbor's soul going astray, we should use all means to bring him back to God by repentance.

[2.] In reference to ourselves. The commandment, You shall not kill, requires that we should preserve our own life and soul. It is engraved upon every creature, that we should preserve our own natural life. We must be so far from self-murder, that we must do all we can to preserve our natural life. We must use all means of diet, exercise, and lawful recreation, which is like oil to preserve the lamp of life from going out. Some have been under temptation; Satan has suggested, they are such sinners as do not deserve a bit of bread, and so they have been ready to starve themselves. This is contrary to this sixth commandment, You shall do no murder; it is implied, we are to use all means for the preserving our own life (1 Timothy 5:23). Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for your stomach's sake. Timothy was not by drinking too much water to over-cool his stomach, and weaken nature; but he must use means for self-preservation, drink a little wine, etc.

Secondly, this commandment requires, that we should endeavor (as to preserve our own life, so especially) to preserve our own souls. Omnia si perdas animam servare memento. It is engraved upon every creature, as with the point of a diamond, that it should look to its own preservation. If the life of the body must be preserved, then much more the life of the soul. If he who does not provide for his own house is worse than an infidel (1 Timothy 5:8), then much more he who does not provide for his own soul. This is a main thing implied in the commandment, a special care for the preserving our souls. The soul is the jewel, [in non-Latin alphabet], Macar. The soul is a diamond set in a ring of clay. Christ puts the soul in balance with the world, and it outweighs (Matthew 16:26). The soul is a glass, in which some rays of divine glory shine: it has in it some faint idea and resemblance of a deity: it is a celestial spark lighted by the breath of God. The body was made out of the dust, but the soul is of a more noble extract and origin (Genesis 2:7). God breathed into man a living soul.

1. The soul is excellent in its nature. It is a spiritual being, it is a kind of angelical thing: the mind sparkles with knowledge, the will is crowned with liberty, and all the affections are as stars shining in their orb. The soul being spiritual, (1.) is of quick operation. How quick is the motion of a spark! How swift is the wing of a cherubim! So quick and agile is the motion of the soul! What is quicker than a thought? How many miles can the soul travel in an instant! (2.) The soul being spiritual, moves upward, it contemplates God and glory (Psalm 73:25). Whom have I in Heaven but you? The motion of the soul is upward; only sin has put a wrong bias upon the soul, and made it move too much downward. (3.) The soul being spiritual, is [in non-Latin alphabet], it has a self-moving power, it can subsist and move when the body is dead, as the mariner can subsist when the ship is broken. (4.) The soul being spiritual, is immortal. Scaliger. Aeternitatis Gemma, a bud of eternity.

As the soul is excellent in its nature, so in its capacities: it is capable of grace, it is fit to be an associate and companion of angels. It is capable of communion with God, of being Christ's spouse (2 Corinthians 11:2): "That I might espouse you, virgin souls, to Christ." It is capable of being crowned with glory forever. O then, carrying such precious souls about you, created with the breath of God, redeemed with the blood of God, what endeavors should you use for the saving of these souls! Let not the Devil have your souls. Heliogabalus fed his lions with pheasant. The Devil is called a roaring lion — feed him not with your souls. Besides the excellency of the soul, which may make you labor to get it saved, consider how sad it will be not to have the soul saved. It is such a loss as there is none like it, because in losing the soul you lose a great many things with it. A merchant in losing his ship loses many things with it: he loses money, jewels, spices. So he that loses his soul loses Christ, the company of angels, heaven: it is an infinite loss, and it is an irreparable loss; it can never be made up again. Two eyes, but one soul. Chrysostom. O what care should be taken about the immortal soul. I would request but this of you, that you would but take as much care for the saving of your souls as you do for the getting of an estate. Nay, I will say this: do but take as much care for the saving of your souls as the Devil does for destroying them. O how industrious is Satan to damn souls! How does he play the serpent in his subtle laying of snares to catch souls! How does he shoot fiery darts! The Devil is never idle: the Devil is a busy bishop in his diocese, he walks up and down seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). Now is not this a reasonable request, to take but as much care for the saving of your souls as the Devil does for the destroying of them?

Question: How shall we do to get our souls saved?

Response: By having them sanctified. Only the pure in heart shall see God. Get your souls inlaid and enameled with holiness (1 Peter 1:16). It is not enough that we cease to do evil (which is all the evidence some have to show) — this is to lose heaven by short shooting; but we must be inwardly sanctified. Not only the unclean spirit must go out, but we must be filled with the Holy Ghost (Ephesians 5:18). This holiness must needs be, if you consider God is to dwell with you here, and you are to dwell with him hereafter.

First, God is to dwell with you here. God takes up the soul for his own lodgings (Ephesians 3:17): "That Christ may dwell in your heart." Therefore the soul must be consecrated. A king's palace must be kept clean, especially his presence-chamber. The body is the temple of the Holy Ghost (1 Corinthians 6:19) — then the soul is the Sanctum Sanctorum; how holy ought that to be?

Secondly, you are to dwell with God. Heaven is a holy place (1 Peter 1:4): "An inheritance undefiled." And how can you dwell with God till you are sanctified? We do not put wine into a musty vessel: God will not put the new wine of glory into a sinful heart. O then, as you love your souls and would have them saved eternally, endeavor after holiness; by this means you will have an idoneity and fitness for the Kingdom of Heaven, and your souls will be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.