ch, if it were well considered, would not
make us so desirous to come aloft, and to get riches, honour, and
dignities in this world, as we now are, nor yet so malicious one against
another as we are. For then we should ever make this reckoning with
ourselves, each man in his vocation; the servant would think thus with
himself, I am a poor servant, and must live after the pleasure of my
master, I may not have my free will; but what then? I am sure that I have
as good a God as my master hath; and I am sure that my service and
business pleases God as much, when I do it with a good faith, as the
preachers and curates, in preaching or saying of service. For we must
understand that God esteems not the diversity of the works, but he hath
respect unto the faith; for a poor man who does his duty in faith, is as
acceptable unto God, and hath as good right to the death and merits of
Christ, as the greatest man in the world.

So go through all states of men, whosoever applieth to his business with
faith, considering that God willeth him so to do, surely the same is most
beloved of God. If this were well considered and printed in our hearts,
all ambition and desire of promotion, all covetousness and other vices,
would depart out of our hearts. For it is the greatest comfort that may be
unto poor people, especially such as are nothing regarded in this world--if
they consider that God loves them as well as the richest in the world--it
must needs be a great comfort unto them.

But there are some that say, that this sentence, "The first shall be
last," is the very substance of the parable. And here you shall
understand, that our Saviour Christ took occasion to put forth this
parable, when there came a young man demanding of him, "What shall I do to
come to everlasting life?" Our Saviour, after he had taught him the
commandments of God, bade him, "Go, and sell all that he had, and give to
the poor; and come and follow him." He hearing this, went away heavily,
for his heart was cold. And then our Saviour spake very terribly against
rich men, saying, "It is more easy for a camel to go through the eye of a
needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven:"--a camel,
or as some think, a great cable of a ship, which is more likely than the
beast that is called a camel. The disciples hearing this, said, "Who then
can be saved?" He made them answer, saying, "God is almighty, and that
which is impossible to men, is possible with G