27. *We _charge you_, therefore, _who are rich in this world_, as having authority from our great Lord and Master, ἀγαθοεργεῖν, _to be habitually doing good_, and to live in a course of good works. _Be ye merciful as your Father which is in heaven is merciful_, who doth good and ceaseth not. _Be ye merciful_,――“How far?”――_After your power_, with all the ability which God giveth. Make this your only measure of doing good, not any beggarly maxims or customs of the world. We _charge you to be rich in good works_; as you have much, to _give plenteously_. Freely ye have received; freely give; so as to lay up no treasure but in heaven. Be ye _ready to distribute_, to every one according to his necessity. Disperse abroad, give to the poor; deal your bread to the hungry. Cover the naked with a garment, entertain the stranger, carry or send relief to them that are in prison. Heal the sick; not by miracle, but thro’ the blessing of God upon your seasonable support. Let the blessing of him that was ready to perish thro’ pining want, come upon thee. Defend the oppressed, plead the cause of the fatherless, and make the widow’s heart sing for joy. 28. We exhort _you_, in the name of the _Lord Jesus Christ_, to _be willing to communicate_: κοινωνικοὺς εἶναι. To be of the same spirit (tho’ not in the same outward state) with those believers of antient times, who _remained stedfast_ ἐν τῇ κοινωνίᾳ, _in_ that blessed and holy _fellowship_, wherein _none said, that any thing was his own, but they had all things common_. Be a steward, a faithful and wise steward, of God and of the poor; differing from them in these two circumstances only, that your wants are first supplied, out of the portion of your Lord’s goods which remains in your hands, and that you have the blessedness of giving. Thus _lay up for yourselves a good foundation_, not in the world, which now is, but rather _for the time to come, that ye may lay hold on eternal life_. The great foundation indeed of all the blessings of God, whether temporal or eternal, is the _Lord Jesus Christ_, his righteousness and blood, what he hath done, and what he hath suffered for us. And _other foundation_, in this sense, _can no man lay_; no not an apostle, no not an angel from heaven. But thro’ his merits, whatever we do in his name, is a foundation for a good reward, in the day when _every man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labour_. Therefore, _labour_ thou, _not for the meat that perisheth, but for that which endureth unto everlasting life_. Therefore _whatsoever thy hand_ now _findeth to do, do it with thy might_. Therefore let “No fair occasion pass unheeded by; Snatching the golden moments as they fly, Thou by few fleeting years ensure eternity!”