Charity and its fruits - Edwards - VI - Lecture V

Required reading
Charity and its fruits by Jonathan Edwards (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Lecture V (Charity disposes us to do good).

My summary
This week Edwards teaches us that charity will dispose us freely to do good to others.

Firstly Edwards opens the nature of the duty of doing good to others.  Three things are considered:
(i) the act of doing good;
(ii) the objects (everyone);
(iii) the manner (freely).

Secondly Edwards shows us that a Christian spirit will dispose to do good to others.  This appears from two considerations:
(i) the main thing in that love which is the sum of the Christian spirit, is benevolence, or good-will to others;
(ii) the most proper and conclusive evidence that such a principle is real and sincere is its being effectual.

What grabbed me
I enjoyed the section on who are supposed to be the objects of our love. 

Particularly the encouragement to love both the thankful and unthankful: '...we should do good both to the thankful and the unthankful. This we are obliged to do by the example of our heavenly Father, for he (Luke 6:35) “is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil;” and the command is, that we “be merciful, as he also is merciful.” Many make an objection against doing good to others, saying, “If I do, they will never thank me for it; and for my kindness, they will return abuse and injury:” and thus they are ready to excuse themselves from the exercise of kindness, especially to those who may have shown themselves ungrateful. But such persons do not sufficiently look at Christ, and they show either their want of acquaintance with the rules of Christianity, or their unwillingness to cherish its spirit.'

It is so hard to love the ungrateful, but we must.

Next week's reading
Read Lecture VI (Charity inconsistent with an envious spirit).

Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.