s prospered him, and he will see that the
Lord will act according to what is contained in this verse. If pride
constrain us to give, if self-righteousness make us liberal, if natural
feeling induce us to communicate, or if we give whilst we are in a state
of insolvency, not possessing more perhaps than ten shillings in the
pound, were our creditors to come upon us; then we cannot expect to have
this verse fulfilled in our experience; nor should we give at any time
for the sake of receiving again from others, according to this verse;
but if indeed _the love of Christ constrain us_ to communicate according
to the ability which the Lord gives us, then we shall have this verse
fulfilled in our experience, though this was not the motive which
induced us to give. Somehow or other the Lord will abundantly repay us,
through the instrumentality of our fellow-men, what we are doing to his
poor saints, or in any way for his work, and we shall find that in the
end we are not losers, even with reference to temporal things, whilst we
communicate liberally of the things of this life with which the Lord has
intrusted us.

Here it might be remarked, But if it be so that even in this life, and
with regard to temporal things, it is true that "to him that gives shall
be given, good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running
over," and that "he which soweth bountifully shall reap also
bountifully," then in the end the most liberal persons would be
exceedingly rich. Concerning this remark we have to keep in mind, that
the moment persons were to begin to give for the sake of receiving more
back again from the Lord, through the instrumentality of their
fellow-men, than they have given; or the moment persons wished to alter
their way, and no more go on sowing bountifully, but sparingly, in order
to increase their possessions, whilst God is allowing them to reap
bountifully, the river of God's bounty toward them would no longer
continue to flow. God had supplied them abundantly with means, because
he saw them act as _stewards_ for him. He had intrusted them with a
little which they had used for him, and he therefore intrusted them with
more; and if they had continued to use the much also for him, he would
have still more abundantly used them as instruments to scatter abroad
his bounties. The child of God must be willing to be a channel through
which God's bounties flow, both with regard to temporal and spiritual
things. This channel