And how despised was the poor preacher St. Paul when he was beaten with rods! And yet how strangely was the world mistaken in their judgment! How much to be envied was St. Paul! How much to be pitied was Alexander!
These few reflections shew, that the different conditions of this life have nothing in them to excite our uneasy passions, nothing that can reasonably interrupt our love and affection to one another.
12. To proceed now to another motive to this universal love.
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.