ling merely that we may earn the means of obtaining the necessaries
of life, why even Christians, true children of God, may be engaged in
their calling, such as, to obtain a certain sum of money, and then to
retire from business and to live upon the interest; or to provide
something for old age; or to obtain a certain amount of property,
without intending to give up business. If it be unscriptural to be
engaged in our calling merely even for the sake of earning the means for
procuring the necessaries of life for ourselves and family, how much
more unbecoming that a child of God should be engaged in his calling for
the sake of any of the last-mentioned reasons.

This second point, then, Why do I carry on this business? Why am I
engaged in this trade or profession? ought first to be settled in the
fear of God, and according to the revealed will of God; and if we cannot
say, in honesty of heart, I do carry on my business, I am engaged in my
trade, or art, or profession, as a servant of Jesus Christ, whose I am,
because he has bought me with his precious blood, and he has commanded
me to work, and therefore I work,--I say, if we cannot say this in
honesty of heart, but must confess that we work on account of lower
motives, such as that we may earn our bread, or on account of still
lower motives, and such as are altogether unbecoming a child of God, who
is not of the world, but of God, such as to obtain a certain sum of
money in order to be able to live on the interest without having to
work, or to provide something for old age, or to obtain a certain amount
of property without intending to give up business;--if these are our
motives for being engaged in our calling, I say, can we be surprised
that we meet with great difficulties in our business, and that the Lord
in his abounding love to us, his erring children, does not allow us to
succeed? But suppose this second point is scripturally settled, and we
can honestly say that, because we are servants of Jesus Christ, we are
occupied as we are; we have further to consider,--

3. Whether we carry on our business, or are engaged in our trade, art,
or profession, _as stewards_ of the Lord. To the child of God it ought
not to be enough that he is in a calling in which he can abide with God,
nor that he is engaged in his calling because it is the will of his Lord
and Master that he should work, but he should consider himself in his
trade, business, art, or profession, only as the _