Public-spiritedness Recommended. A SERMON Preached before the GENTLEMEN Educated IN Merchant-Taylors School, AT BOW-CHURCH, DECEMBER 10, 1700. By SAMUEL PRAT, D.D. Chaplain to Her Royal Highness the Princess, and late Almoner to His Highness the Duke of Gloucester. LONDON: Printed for S. Smith, and B. Walford, at the Prince's Arms in St. Paul's Churchyard, MDCC. TO My Honoured Friends and Schoolfellows, Mr. Edw. Cook, Mr. Tho. Hill, Mr. Tho. March, Jo. Rogerson Esq Wm Turner Esq Mr. Edmund Lily, Mr. Wm Thompson, Mr. Jo. Pelham, STEWARDS; And the other Gentlemen Educated in Merchant-Taylors School. GENTLEMEN, THE most irreparable Calamity that ever befell these Kingdoms by the Loss of a Prince, might have excused one who stood among the nearest to the Blow, from appearing in Print, even whilst his Wound is still bleeding: But seeing you were of the Opinion, that this Sermon, by the great Contribution which followed it, had already been instrumental, in some measure, to its chief design, and might probably be farther so when Published; your Importunities proved irresistible, and hath given me occasion to Apologise for that part of it, wherein I may seem to have forgot the Gravity of a Preacher. The Juvenility of the greatest Number of my Auditors may make some excuse for my wresting one Line out of Virgil; and to the more serious I hope I am accountable for nothing else, unless possibly for the two Verses I quoted out of Homer. Now by the first of 'em, I had a mind to express that which I thought would have been flat without some sort of Allusion; and by the latter I followed the Advice of the Son of Sirach, Ecclus. 38. v. 1. So that if they be not misapplyed, I need not value Censure; for Homer may appear in a Sermon, after that an Apostle has cited Epimenides. At least you may excuse me this once, when by my ask pardon for School-learning, ye see I am not overfond of it. For what Pride, or what Pleasure can we now take in Philology, after HE is gone, who by the Innocency and Holiness of his Life would have sanctified Human Learning to the World, to whom all the great Professors in Humanity were rising up to pay an Early Reverence; and who Himself was the greatest Master of it that ever yet appeared at his years; Especially if we consider those great Ornaments of a Sublime Understanding, which are most properly peculiar to the first Rank of Men. But yet Human Learning is still necessary; and ye do well to encourage it more than ever, now that it hath lately lost the greatest Encouragement it ever had. There is no Consolation left, but in that Holy Spirit, which directs such Men as you to be Publick-minded: May you always receive the Comforts of that Spirit, to whose Almighty guidance I humbly commend you, desiring to be esteemed, Gentlemen, Your most Affectionate, and most Obedient Servant, S. P. Public-spiritedness RECOMMENDED. 1 COR. X. 24. Let no man seek his own. THIS we may very well believe, was one of those Precepts, that made Christianity far so badly at its first Promulgation. This was a main Cause of men's Prejudices against the Gospel; that it not only pretended to Mysteries far above human Understanding, and to Paradoxes that, at first hearing, opposed all human Reason, but to such Injunctions likewise as were intolerable to human Sense. Now this Text is liable to every one of these three Objections. For, First, These Words seem to contain a Mystery; to wit, That after all the Terms of Benefit and Advantage to ourselves, proposed throughout the whole Series of the Gospel; after all the Motives and Inducements derived from the Consideration of what we may and aught to expect as a Reward for our embracing and adhering to this Doctrine; here comes a Clause of quite another strain; We must not, it seems, seek our own: How does this agree with the rest? When we have been so often as good as told, we must seek our own, the Tranquillity of our Minds, the Improving our Parts, the Bettering our Reputation, the Conservation of our Health, the Establishing our Fortunes, the Refining of our Enjoyments: Are not all these Lessons of Christianity? Nay, that which is above all the rest, the Salvation of our Souls? Is it not our own Salvation that we must work out with fear and trembling? And yet after all, 'tis here said, Let no man seek his own. This was not easy to be comprehended by the Gentile World: This was a New Doctrine, and very Sublime; for none of their Philosophers had ever touched upon it: The Sum of the Ancient Philosophy was, That every man should seek his own; that is, prefer his own Safety, his own Ease, his own Quiet, his own Pleasure, before all the World; and whenever they seemed to step out of this Rule, you do but think they did so, for they always kept within it. If you find any of 'em Munificent and Liberal, it was for their own Glory, or upon some meaner Motive; as that great One, for instance, of Popularity. If you find any of 'em pushing forwards into Danger with more than ordinary Bravery and Courage; why, it was, like Caesar, to uphold their own sinking Fortunes; or, like Scipio, to support a tottering State, in which they themselves had so great a share; or, like Alexander, through the Unsatiableness of their own Ambition: It was upon some selfish Motive or other; some such Inducements as do prompt the outward Professors of Christianity to do sometimes very great and heroic Actions, upon very Unchristianlike Principles: those I mean, who seek more their own Glory, than the Glory of God. Nor was it much less a Mystery to the Jews, that sour selfish Generation of Men, who lived as if it were a Point of Religion to be ill-natured to the rest of Mankind. But, Secondly, It might have passed well enough for a Mystery, if it had not looked too much like a Paradox; Let no man seek his own. Why, is that the way to bring it about? Is every thing such a shadow as to follow ye, when ye flee from it? Credit and Esteem may do so sometimes, but not Riches and Preferment, in any Age but the Golden One. Perhaps that which we are bid here not to seek, will come without seeking; and if ye seek the Kingdom of Heaven, all these things will be added unto you; or perhaps they'll come the sooner for not being sought after; then he who is so persuaded may seek 'em most, by not seeming to seek 'em; yet in the mean time he does seek that which he turns his back upon. Still it looks like a Contradiction, to bid a man not seek after that which you allow him to desire. This bears hard upon human Reason. But then, Thirdly, 'Tis as hard upon all our Senses. To bid a man not seek his own, is a very hard Saying to flesh and blood: This is to bid farewell to all the Senses of the Body; beside those Faculties of the Soul, as, Will, Love, Desire, and the like: This is more severe than to pluck out the Right Eye, and to cut off the Right Hand and Foot; for there was One Eye left to seek, and a Foot to pursue after, and a Hand to receive things, at least of a more lawful, and more excusable Nature: Such as are our own, one would think, after the others had been punished for seeking things not our own, such as we ought not to meddle with. But after all; how hard soever the Precept may be, 'tis very necessary, otherwise 'twould not be here. The Apostles, who forsook all they had for the sake of the Gospel, would not, doubtless, clog it with any thing superfluous, or give it any disrelishing Taste to the World, they could have avoided: As to the Mysteriousness, 'tis no more than what our Blessed Saviour himself preached; He that seeks his Life, shall lose it; and he that loseth it for Christ's, and the Gospel's sake, shall find it. And as to its Severity, our Lord himself put it in practice; he sought not his own; he did not come into the World for his own sake, but ours; it was for our Benefit, our Comfort, our Glory. So his Apostles and Confessors, following his Example, sought not their own; they pretended to nothing, unless you'll make any thing of Poverty, Labour, Disgrace, Imprisonment, Stripes, Tortures, Deaths: If these were their own, these they sought; but nothing else, beside the Benefit of all Mankind. Yet seeing this Phrase is so hard to be understood, and so much harder to be practised, I shall endeavour Three Things: First, To explain a little the Sense of it; show you what is meant by not seeking our own. Secondly, I shall discourse of the Reasonableness of the Precept; reconcile it with your Interest, and recommend it to your Consideration. And, Thirdly, I shall, by way of Application, direct you to the Practice of it. First then, for a clearer Understanding of these Words, 'tis to be noted, that this former part of the Verse is more strictly translated from the Original than the latter: Let no man seek his own, is verbatim; but every man another's Wealth, is not so; the Greek here has no Substantive, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉; i.e. but every man another's, or the things of another; Let no man seek his own Benefit or Advantage, but the Benefit and Happiness of others. Let no man seek his own; that is, study and contrive his own singular private Interest, but every one the Interest of others; Let no man be selfish in his Designs, be of a narrow private Spirit, but let him have an open Heart and a public Mind. Let no man seek his own so as to injure others, or neglect others; but let him also seek another's Wealth; and not only his Wealth, but his Safety, his Peace, his Content, his Honour, his Everlasting Good. Let no man lay it as the only Principle, no, nor the first Principle of his Thoughts, Words, and Actions; How shall I raise my Fortunes, or garnish my Credit, or increase my Store, or improve my own Affairs? But, How shall I do good to others? How shall I make other People happy? How shall I benefit my Neighbour? How shall I secure his Fortunes, or Reputation, or Peace? How shall I be beneficial to Mankind in the general, or to such and such of my Neighbours in particular? Perhaps if the Apostle had been to speak to the Men of this Age, he would have said, Let no man do that, which almost every man does now, seek his own; pursue it as the great Business of every one's life. It seems from the present State of Affairs among Men, that the first Question every one asks himself upon any Emergency, is, How may this conduce to my own Interest? For who is it upon hearing any Public Occurrence, that says first within himself, How will this conduce to the Glory of God and the Benefit of mankind? Will this propagate the true Religion, and discountenance every false one? Will this set free the Captive, or will it relieve the Oppressed? Will it be a means of instructing the Ignorant, or of enriching the Poor? These, 'tis to be feared, are not the first Thoughts. But, Will it alleviate Taxes, or advance our Friends? Will it raise our Actions, and put a better Price upon what we have to sell, or further any of our designs? If these are not the chief Reasons why People are so inquisitive in public Affairs; Let us inquire into Things of a more private Nature, and we shall be sure to find the Text come home to many of us. Let no man seek his own, is a Precept directed to all those who seem to ask leave of themselves before they do good to any body else: Shall I give such an one good advice? But will it be safe for me so to do? May not he mistake my meaning, and so become my Enemy? Shall I bestow such a Bounty? But will it hold out with my Income? May it not look like Profuseness? or may I not choose a time in which I shall be more thanked for it? Shall I be such an one's Friend and Advocate? but shan't I spend my Interest, or my Time; or my Money? These things are my own, and shall I bestow 'em upon another? Let no man seek his own, says the Text; no, nor keep his own upon such an occasion; i.e. not seek to keep it; 'tis a full and positive Answer to all such Objections: Let no man ask what he himself shall be the better, or how much a againer by this or that? Let no man seek his own when he has an opportunity of doing good: Let no man ask that Pharisaical Question, Is it for a Relation, or a Friend, or a Customer, or Somebody that will do me good again? Let no man do any thing for another, but for another's sake. Nor likewise for himself: Let no man seek his own in the Things that relate chief to himself. If a man seeks Wealth, let him not seek it as his own; not that he may be richer than he is, but that he may have wherewithal to relieve those that are poorer: Let a man seek Honour by lawful means as he should Riches, but then not as his own; if it be by any part of Learning, let it be to the Honour of his School, or College, or University; If it be by Justice, Temperance, and Generosity, let it be for the Honour of his Parents; or Guardians, or Family; if it be by Courage and Manliness, let it be to the Honour of his King and his Country: but above all, and that which is the Crown of all, let every thing that every man does be to the Honour of God, of the Christian, and of the Reformed Religion. This may suffice to show the meaning of the Words; which was my first Undertaking. I proceed, Secondly, To the Reasonableness of the Precept, the Justice, the Goodness, the Agreeableness of it to our Interest. First then let us consider, that no good man is a single, separate, and entire Being of himself; he is but a part of a Whole, or a member of a Body; single him out, and separate him from the rest, and he is like a Limb cut off from the Body, dead and useless: So that for a man to call any thing his own, is as great an Impropriety of Speech, as for a Member of a Society to say of the Lands belonging to the whole Community, These are my Lands; or for a Scholar to say, This is my School; or for a Soldier to say, This is my Army; no body in this World has or aught to have any thing their own, separate from the use and benefit of the rest of Mankind; therefore for a man in that sense to seek his own, is to seek his own destruction; he can't subsist alone upon his own bottom; if such a one could live as private as his own spirit, he would be the miserablest thing in the World; he could have no Honour, for no body could pay it him; he could have no Riches, for there could be no value upon what he hath; he could have no Safety, for no one man is able to protect himself from even Wild Creatures. That which gives Life and Heat to any Member, is the Circulation of Spirits that is in Common to the whole Body: Therefore when ye are bid not to seek your own, ye are bid to live and be happy in the common Benefits of mankind; ye are bid to have an Interest and a share in that which others have; it is for your own Preservation and Happiness that ye are bid not to seek your own. Secondly, Let us consider, that we our selves are not our own, we have a Master, a Lord, a Proprietor, which is God: We neither made ourselves, nor are we any thing but what he pleases to make us; we cannot dispose of ourselves, nor do we know how he will dispose of us; we ourselves, as well as all that we have, is of him, and belongs to him; and therefore 'tis very improper to call ourselves or any thing we have, our own; and to seek any thing as our own, is to withdraw ourselves from him in whom we live, and move, and have our being: but not to seek our own, that is, not to place our Hopes and Desires on any thing but God, is to entitle ourselves to his Care and Protection. And these words do not restrain us from seeking that which Impropriety of Speech many times calls our own; as Wealth, or Honour, or Power, and the like; these and many other Benefits of Human Life may be sought after by Just and Righteous means; but we must seek none of all this for our own sakes, but for the Glory and Honour of God; and when we have attained any thing, we must not look upon it as our own, but ourselves as Stewards of it before God; it belongs all to him, and we must put it to no other uses but what he ordains; it must be sought after only for his Sake, and disposed of only by his Will: And if so, then, Thirdly, Upon these very words of my Text we may build safely and innocently the greatest Self-interest; for if we dedicate all our Desires and Acquisitions to God, then, and not till then, every thing we possess is properly our own, every thing we enjoy is the free Gift and Blessing of God; then our Riches will be our own, they will not so easily make to themselves wings and fly away; or if they do, they will not leave us poor, having a Treasure still in Heaven; our Dignities will then be our own, they'll be intrinsic Honours, and not shine as others do, with a borrowed and precarious Lustre: We may own likewise the Pleasures and Enjoyments of this life; we need not be ashamed of them as of stolen Pleasures; it will then be a true Enjoying of our own: So that after all, the not seeking our own, is the readiest and the only way to find it, that principally which will be our own to all Eternity; I mean the solid Enjoyment of Everlasting Life; when after the denying one's self, we shall each of us be owned by Christ; and the losing of all the World will be the gaining of a man's own Soul; when the forsaking all that he hath, is the laying hold of all that can be desired, the Infinite and Eternal Riches of God's Kingdom. All these things considered, there is no Precept in the Gospel that conduces more to our real benefit and advantage than this does. Nay, to those who are not sufficiently persuaded of these great and precious Promises; those that look no farther than the present life, may perceive a Reasonableness in this Precept suitable to their Temporal Felicity; they may see that nothing is more disadvantageous to a man than the proposing to himself only private Interest; for such an Inclination never fails of being discovered; and then he who is so selfishly disposed, does intimate to other people that they should be so too, and he may reasonably expect that others will act the same part which he encourages by his Example; whereas a beneficent and public Spirit, for the most part, meets with suitable Returns. There is a Magnetic Force in Generosity and Good-nature, that attracts others, and assimilates to itself: And, on the other side, the narrow and selfish Disposition is so far from gaining upon others, that it is never pleased with those of its own Temper. 'Tis Humanity and Kindness; 'tis Good-nature and Beneficence; 'tis Largeness of Mind, and Openness of Heart; 'tis contributing to the Welfare of others that conduces to our own Happiness; and 'tis a very easy Observation which any one may make in the Course of this World, that the pursuing of a selfish and private Design is one of the weakest and most unsuccessful of Human Policies. I might enlarge much more upon the Reasonableness of the Precept, but I must hasten to the Third and Lost Thing I proposed to you. The directing you, by way of Application, to the Practice of it. Our Blessed Lord, 'tis said, came unto his own, Jo. 1.11, 12. and his own received him not, i. e. the Generality of 'em; but to as many as received him, to them gave he Power to become the Sons of God. Where they are called his own; whose Benefit and Happiness he designed; he pretended to nothing but what might be the better for him; so following his Holy Example, we may make many things our own, which otherwise we should have no Relation to; we may make to our selves friends, for instance, of the Mammon of Unrighteousness; the Mammon itself will fail them that seek it, but the Friends we make with it will never fail us, they will hand us into Everlasting Habitations: The Poor we have always with us, and we may make them our own, our Relations, our Clients, our Dependants here; and they, under Christ, will be our Advocates hereafter: If we seek out a distressed Family to Relieve it; if we seek out a disconsolate Family to Comfort it, that will be our own Family, it will always own us before God, and we ourselves shall enjoy as it were the Affluence, the Refreshments, the Joys of that Family: If we deal out our bread to the hungry, and satisfy the thirsty soul; if we set free the Prisoner, and take the burden from off the shoulder of the Oppressed; if we instruct the ignorant, and give advice to him that is destitute of Understanding; if we are a Father to the Fatherless, and a Husband to the Widow, in all these we have an Interest; and if they should prove so ungrateful as not to acknowledge it, yet he who has commanded us not to seek our own, but to seek the good of others, he will acknowledge it, and he will reward it. But that Reward, though it be sure and certain, must not be the only Motive upon which we do all this; that will be seeking our own, if what we do for others be only upon the hopes that God will retaliate and pay it back to us; and much less may we propose to ourselves any Secular and Temporal Advantage from the Benefits we confer upon our Fellow-brethrens; we must not advance the Fortunes of our Relations, because it is for our Credit and Reputation, that they make a better Figure in the World, but because we are more sensible of the Wants and Necessities of those that are near us, than of those that are afar off; we must not do good to our Tenants, or our Chapmen, or our Servants, because they may be the better able to pay us, or to deal with us, or to serve us, but because they have a dependence upon us, and because they have a greater Right to our Assistance than others of equal Necessity. We must not Relieve any one, because he is a more conspicuous Object of Charity, but because he is a Greater; We must do good to him that will be most sensible of the Benefit, rather than to him that will most thankfully acknowledge it. So likewise in Duties to ourselves, we must not seek our own upon selfish Motives; we must not be Temperate in Meat and Drink for the sake only of our Ease and Health, but chief in Obedience to God, and for a good Example to others; we must not be sober in our Conversation, and discreet in our Actions, only because we are in such an Employment, Place or Office; but rather, because we profess the Gospel of Christ, and are called by his Name: We must not be industrious in our Acquisitions, and frugal in our Expenses, that we may fill our Bags, and enlarge our Lands, but because we have a Family to provide for, or some great Acts of Charity and Munificence to perform: We must not do great and glorious Actions for the Reputation that we may gain by 'em, but for the Glory of God, and the Honour of our Country; all our Designs must be of a large and regular Circumference, our Hopes and Desires must be elevated above ourselves; we must never stoop so low as to any selfish Consideration. But every one must consider himself as no more than one among the rest of Mankind; a Servant of Christ's, and a Member of his Body; and therefore he must seek that only as is most pleasing to his Lord, and most beneficial to the Advantage of the whole; he must seek to walk worthy of his Lord unto all pleasing, and be fruitful in every good work; as a Tree that brings not forth for itself, but for others; he must seek all Occasions and Opportunities of doing good to every one; he must make every body's Case his own, and be a Partaker and Fellow-feeler in every one's Circumstances; he must rejoice with them that rejoice, and mourn with them that mourn; however he be Transported with his own Affairs, to do good, and to communicate, he must not forget; he must weigh his Virtue, and measure his Grace, and number his Days by the Good that he does to Mankind; he must look upon himself as poor, and miserable, and destitute, when he has not an Opportunity of Feeding the Hungry, and Clothing the Naked, and Visiting the Sick, and Comforting the Afflicted; he must seek Occasions and Opportunities of doing all this, and much more; and he must rejoice when he hath found out a way of making others easy and happy: For as the Enemy of God and Man goes about seeking whom he may devour; so he who will be a Friend to God and Man, must go about seeking whom he may support; to which of all those for whom Christ died he may be any ways serviceable. And now, had I time, I might apply myself more particularly to you who are here present as a Society. The Self-gratification with which we this Day meet one another, is one of the most Innocent at least, if not likewise most Commendable Enjoyments that Human Nature is capable of. We renew hereby our Pure, Disinterested, and Virgin Friendships; we bring back to our Remembrance the pleasing Images of the most lively Scenes, the sweet Ideas, of the Springtime of our Age; We look back upon the Original Figures that we made in the School; we reflect upon the Wit, the Docility, the Sagacity, the Good Humour of our tender Years; we see as it were, after a Resuscitation, the known Air and Features of each one whom we then loved and esteemed. Sic oculos, sic ille manus, sic or a ferebat. Virg. 〈◊〉. And here we compare ourselves by ourselves; and what we are now, we judge of one another by what we have been: We see how the Gifts of Nature have been improved, and how at the same time the Gifts of Fortune, or (that with St. Austin I may retract the Word) the other Gifts of Providence have not altered us; but that the same Love, Friendship and Familiarity continues as at this day. And we come hither to taste and see how good and gracious God has been to us in the prolonging of our Lives, and blessing our Endeavours, and putting us into a Capacity of being beneficial to others; by which means others may behold, and see, and feel too, how pleasant and joyful a thing it is Brethren to dwell together in Unity. For though Self-satisfaction may be allowed us in all these things, yet we come not hither, I hope, to seek that only. The main design of this Meeting is to seek the Good of others, to seek it by contributing thereto. I appeal to the inmost Thoughts of every one of our hearts, whether we don't mean this day to vie in some measure with all the Societies in England of this kind. And wherein shall we vie? in the Honour and Antiquity of our School? that indeed is very great; but in this we must give way to one or more. Is it in the Illustrious Conduct under which it now at this time flourishes? Is it in the numerousness of Scholars within doors? that was I well remember very great, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, Od. ξ. and is so still; but we won't outvie in that. Is it in the Eminency of Professors without? If we have many Chrysostoms' and Papinians, and at the head of all our Galens and Paracelsi one Hypocrates, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, Il. λ who without Invidiousness can deny the like to some other Schools? But we can, and I hope shall, this Day outvie all the rest in Benefactions: We here present are living Instances (God be praised) and I hope grateful Remembrancers of our Forefathers Benefaction; Let none of us be ashamed of it: They whose Parents paid for them never so Liberally, and who received not afterwards the Benefactions of the College, have cause to bless God for the Foundation of a Free-School; All the Money in the World won't purchase any sort of Education which has all the Advantages to be there met with; such useful Acquaintance and Friendships; such Noble Emulation; such Public Encouragements; such absolute, and yet easy Subjections; such proper, approved, and uninterrupted Discipline are there seen, as no Private Education, though never so expensive and prudent can afford. And now is there no Debt remaining upon us for all this? Though we were Free-Scholars, yet, as I take it, we are no Freemen till we have discharged ourselves to the Public for what we own the Public. What use do we now make of our former Discipline? The Holy Spirit of Discipline the Wiseman calls it, Wisd. 1, 5. if we Sacrilegiously smother those great Talents we received at School as the Seeds of all our Intellectual Acquisitions, and the Foundation upon which most of us build our outward Hopes. What Blessing can we expect upon our Endeavours, unless God assists us? and how can we expect God's Assistance, unless we assist those that stand in need of us? The Sum of Discipline, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. Plato de Leg. says Plato, is to teach Children the Love of that Virtue, which, being well understood, they are to make use of in Manhood. Solomon with more Perspicuity says, Train up a Child in the way he should go, Prov. 22.6. and when he is Old he will not departed from it. We who have had a Liberal Education, have this Day an Opportunity of showing whether we imbibed that Discipline; that Wisdom which among many other noble Epithets, in the 7th Chapter of Wisdom is said to love the thing that is good, to be ready to do good, kind to man. Such a sort of Wisdom is a Treasure unto men that never faileth, Ver. 14. which they that use become the Friends of God, being commended for the Gifts that come from Learning. They who have learned all the Liberal Sciences, will, I hope, show the Quality of their Education in being Liberally-minded; and they who have learned the first of 'em only, have been taught their own Interest, taught sure to read that of Solomon, Pro. 11.24. The Liberal soul shall be made fat; and he that watereth, shall be watered also himself: but I must keep by my Text; Let no man seek his own. I would have no selfish Consideration at this time to work upon you: but consider with yourselves, that you have now an Opportunity of contributing to those that are in Need, for such a sort of Education as you yourselves were blessed with. You that are Great Men in Learning, may contribute to make others as Great as yourselves; such as have a Genius and Capacity, which may otherwise perhaps lie in perpetual Obscurity. And ye who have other Talents, and have met with Avocations from Learning, may pay that Debt you own your Country in the want of it, by being nobly Instrumental in the building up such Scholars, as may be Living and Lasting Monuments of your Munificence; and may be able themselves, some of 'em, to do that for the next Age, for which our Example will lay upon 'em the most powerful Obligation. This minute is the time for you to resolve within yourselves what to do, and this Morning-Offering in your Pious Resolutions; these first Fruits of your cheerful Intentions will consecrate the Day, and all the next Year, I hope, to temperate Cheerfulness. Above all things, this will show whose Disciples ye have been, and whose ye are: By this shall all men, saith our Blessed Saviour, know that ye are my Disciples, if ye have love one to another. I'll conclude all therefore with those Words of St. Paul, in the beginning of his 2d Chapter to the Philippians; If there be therefore any Consolation in Christ, if any comfort of Love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, be ye like-minded, having the same love. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus; To whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit, be all Honour, Praise, and Glory, for ever and ever. Amen. EINIS.