1. There must be in Christian-Society, a mutual exchange and imparting of Gifts and Graces: God hath dispensed variety of gifts unto his people; as Job was exemplary for patience and uprightness; Moses for faithfulness and meekness; Josiah for tenderness and activity in the cause of Reformation; Timothy for Ministerial diligence and care of the flock: The gift of Christ is Grace, according to measure: He measures to one such gifts, to another such, to another such and such, as he pleaseth: Unto every one of us is given grace, 1according to the measure of the gift of Christ: God gave the Spirit without measure unto Christ, but we have it according to our scantling, and as he pleaseth to honour and entrust us: To one is given the word of knowledge, to another faith, to another prophecy, 2to another the discerning of spirits, to another divers kinds of tongues: Thus every man hath his proper gift of God, One after this manner, 3and another after that: One hath quickness of parts, but not so solid a judgement; another is solid, but not so ready and presential; one hath a good wit, another a good memory, a third a good utterance; one is zealous, but ungrounded; another well principled, but timorous: One is wary and prudent, another open and plain hearted; one is trembling and melting, another cheerful and full of joy: Now thus God freely gives, and most wisely disposeth, that we may be engaged to use his bounty to each ⟨p. 226⟩others help: The knowing Christian is to impart to him that is weak in gifts, and the zealous Christian that hath fewer notions, is to impart his warmth and heat to his knowing friend: The Christian that hath collected experiences, or found out methods, for the advancement of holiness, must not deny such knowledge to the body; Christians must drive an open and free trade, they must teach one another the mystery of godliness: Tell your experiences, and tell your conflicts, and tell your comforts, make all that you have the bodies, and all the body hath, yours: Some say, The art of Medicine was thus perfected, as any one met with an herb, and discovered the virtue of it by any accident, he would post it up in some public place, and so the Physicians skill was perfected, by a collection of those experiments and receipts:
1. There must be in Christian-Society, a mutual exchange and imparting of Gifts and Graces: God hath dispensed variety of gifts unto his people; as Job was exemplary for patience and uprightness; Moses for faithfulness and meekness; Josiah for tenderness and activity in the cause of Reformation; Timothy for Ministerial diligence and care of the flock: The gift of Christ is Grace, according to measure: He measures to one such gifts, to another such, to another such and such, as he pleaseth: Ʋnto every one of us is given grace, 1according to the measure of the gift of Christ: God gave the Spirit without measure unto Christ, but we have it according to our scantling, and as he pleaseth to honor and entrust us: To one is given the word of knowledge, to another faith, to another prophesie, 2to another the discerning of spirits, to another divers kindes of tongues: Thus every man hath his proper gift of God, One after this maner, 3and another after that: One hath quickness of parts, but not so solid a judgement; another is solid, but not so ready and presential; one hath a good wit, another a good memory, a third a good utterance; one is zealous, but ungrounded; another well principled, but timerous: One is wary and prudent, another open and plain hearted; one is trembling and melting, another chearful and full of joy: Now thus God freely gives, and most wisely disposeth, that we may be engaged to use his bounty to each ⟨p. 226⟩others help: The knowing Christian is to impart to him that is weak in gifts, and the zealous Christian that hath fewer notions, is to impart his warmth and heat to his knowing friend: The Christian that hath collected experiences, or found out methods, for the advancement of holiness, must not deny such knowledge to the body; Christians must drive an open and free trade, they must teach one another the mystery of godliness: Tell your experiences, and tell your conflicts, and tell your comforts, make all that you have the bodies, and all the body hath, yours: Some say, The art of Medicine was thus perfected, as any one met with an herb, and discovered the vertue of it by any accident, he would post it up in some publique place, and so the Physitians skill was perfected, by a collection of those experiments and receipts:
- 1Ephes 4.7.
- 21 Cor. 12.8, 9, 10.
- 31 Cor. 7.7.
