forth the Death of Christ and that homage and service which thou commandest us to perform Wherefore Dear Lord be thou pleased with this so sincere though poor acknowledgment not weighing or considering our merits by which we cannot pretend any right to thy acceptance but pardoning our offences which might cause thee to reject us Oh do thou deal thus with us through the Merits and Intercession of Iesus Christ our Lord by whom as our Mediator and with whom as thy only Son in the unity of and together with the Holy Ghost we desire all honour and glory may be given unto thee O Father Almighty both now in this World and for ever in the World which is without end Amen SECT III. Of the second Prayer in the Post-Communion § 1. WHen we communicate often it may be very grateful and sometimes very helpful to our devotion to vary the form for which cause the Church hath supplyed us with an other Prayer that so according to the temper of our spirit we may make our choice This being more full of praises and acknowledgments will be most fit when our minds have a joyful sense of the benefits received in this Sacrament as the former consisting chiefly of Vows and resolutions is more proper when we would express our selves in love or duty And yet we may use either of them at any time because neither doth the former want Thanksgivings nor this Petitions for Grace The Composition of this also is regular and judicious pious and extracted out of antient forms and as the former Prayer it will not only serve to close our Devotions within the Temple a Non est vera Religio quae cum templo relinquitur Lactantius but it offers very useful Meditations for the Closet also after we return home as the ensuing method will demonstrate The Analysis of the Second Prayer in the Post-Communion § 2. This Second Prayer consists of Four Parts 1. A hearty Thanksgiving for the present Favour describing 1. The Object of our Praise Almighty and everlasting God we most heartily thank thee 2. The Subject thereof for that thou hast vouchsafed to feed us who have duly received these holy Mysteries with the spiritual Food of the most precious Body and Blood of thy Son our Saviour Iesus Christ 2. A free Confession of the Benefits assured thereby 1. In possession 1. The Love of God And dost assure us thereby of thy favour and goodness towards us 2. Union with the Saints and that we are very Members incorporate into the mystical Body of thy Son which is the blessed Company of all faithful People 2. In reversion Eternal Life And are also Heirs through hope of thy everlasting Kingdom by the Merits of the most precious Death and Passion of thy dear Son 3. An humble Petition that we may retain them shewing 1. The Thing requested And we most humbly beseech thee O heavenly Father so to assist us with thy Grace 2. The Ends why we do request it viz. for 1. Perseverance that we may continue in that holy Fellowship 2. Fruitfulness and do all such good works as thou hast prepared for us to walk in 3. The Motive to obtain it Through Iesus Christ our Lord 4. A concluding Doxologie to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory world without end Amen A Practical Discourse upon the second Prayer with Meditations after the Communion § 3. Almighty and everliving God we most heartily thank thee for that thou hast vouchsafed to feed us who have duly received these holy Mysteries with the spiritual food of the most precious Body and Blood of thy Son our Saviour Iesus Christ This Act of Thanksgiving may be expressed in various words but it must not be omitted after the Communion and therefore it is put into both these forms We ought not at any time rudely to ask for blessings from God until we have prepared the way by Praises b Arrogans oratio si ab homine quid petiturus dicas statim da mihi hoc Peto Debet inchoari oratio à laude Dei ut sequatur supplicatio Ambr. de Sacr. l. 6. c. 5. But having so lately received so great mercy it would be unsufferable to pray for more till we have acknowledged that which is already bestowed on us And by confessing the former mercy in the very entrance of this Prayer we do both encourage our selves to ask and expect further blessings c Sequentium rerum certitudo est praeteritorum exhibitio Greg. in Evang. hom 1. and we do also by our gratitude engage the Almighty to give us more d Ascensus gratiarum descensus gratias Cassiod Efficacissimum genus est rogandi gratias agere Plin. Paneg. Indignus est dandis qui ingratus est pro datis Aug. de temp 112. Besides the very gift it self now imparted to us is the greatest and the best the most sweet and most necessary for us in the World we bless God for our daily Bread our common food how much more then ought we to praise him for this spiritual food which nourisheth our Souls unto life everlasting True it is that carnal and unworthy Receivers have little cause of joy e Sacrificia non sanctificant hominem non enim indiget Deus sacrificio sed conscientia ejus qui offert sanctificat hominem pura existens Irenae l. 4. c. 34. for they have eat the Bread and drank the Wine not discerning the Lords Body and Blood but those that prepared themselves by Repentance and received by Faith those I say have fed upon the spiritual part and therefore they have the most reason with all their powers to bless the Lord in this wise An Act of Thanksgiving It is a mighty favour to me O my God that thou hast made bread to grow out of the Earth to nourish my mortal body but O how far hast thou transcended that mercy in giving me the Bread of Life from Heaven to feed my immortal Soul Whom was there in Heaven or Earth that I could have wished for in comparison of Jesus Christ and now thou hast given him to me whom my Soul longed for and in him thou hast given me all for he is all in all He is the fairest of ten thousand for whose sake I will trample upon all that this World accounts desirable O my Soul bless thou the Lord I came not to gaze at or taste of the outward part but to satisfie the longings of my sin-sick Soul by laying hold of the merits of a Crucified Saviour yet I have received the Sacred Elements and thou hast made them to me that which I needed and desired even the Body and Blood of thy Son I have received his flesh in Sacrament but his grace in reality f Ideo in similitudine quidem accipis sacramentum sed verae naturae gratiam virtutemque consequeâ—is Ambr. de sacr l. 6. And O how it fills my Soul with joy to behold thy Majesty
have mercy upon us 3. A Doxology to him also together with the whole Trinity For thou onely art Holy thou onely art the Lord thou onely O Christ with the Holy Ghost art most High in the Glory of God the Father Amen A Practical Discourse upon the Gloria in Excelsis § 3. Glory be to God on high on Earth Peace and good will toward men This blessed Hymn the Church hath learned from that Heavenly Choire which came to celebrate our Lords Nativity Luke 2.16 And since we have tasted the Coelestial Manna and fed upon Angels food it is fit we should join with them in singing the praises of their Lord and ours and as one of the Angelick Order first began and then a multitude of the Heavenly Host united their Voices so it was the Custom b Angelicum posthaec sacrifex pater incipit hymnum Inceptum complet vociferando Chorus Hildebert Conoman Episc of old for the Priest first to begin and then all the Communicants to compleat the Harmony of this divine Anthem It was first endited to set forth the happy effects of that Redemption which Jesus did undertake at his Birth and it doth declare that it caused Glory to be given to God in Heaven and made Peace for poor Sinners on Earth because it did engage the good will of the Almighty towards Men But all this was but expected and prophesied of then whereas now when the Merits of this Redemption are really and effectually communicated to Penitent Souls in this Sacrament those things are all performed and accomplished so that the worthy Receivers have juster cause now than ever to sing Glory to God in the highest note who dwelleth in the highest place c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 aliquando excellentissimè Math. 21.9 hoc loco terrae opponitur Grot. for he hath now done us the highest favour in making such Peace on Earth d Deus nobis haec otia fecit Virg. and giving such testimonies of his good will toward us No doubt the blessed Spirits above who sing at the Conversion of one Sinner do give glory to God in the highest now when he hath sealed his Covenant of Peace with so many and when they behold us all at peace one with another and rejoicing in these pledges of the divine favour The Church rejoyceth to see so many poor Souls revived with the hopes of Mercy e Gaudet Ecclesia redemptione multorum adstare sibi familiam candidatam spirituali exultatione laetatur Ambros de Sacr. l. 5. c. 3. every heart is full of joy and every Tongue is ready to bless the Lord for this happy reconciliation Oh let us strive to sing the Praises with an Angelick Spirit that so they above and we below may make a lovely Concord and if our Devotion cannot rise to the same note yet let our sincerity keep us in an agreeable Key and for the help of our affections let us thus meditate O my Soul behold and blush to see the Angels who are almost unconcerned sing for thy felicity while thou art silent and unmoved The Heaven is calm above thee the Earth is quiet round about thee and thy God hath testified his good will unto thee Rejoice and be exceeding glad admire and celebrate the Love of Jesus and the efficacy of that Sacrifice which hath filled Heaven with Glory Earth with Peace and all the World with Comfort O ye Celestial Powers it is my concern to magnifie him to whom you pay these Praises for I have received those Mercies which are the cause of your Joy Wherefore I will join with you and bless my God in the highest strain and I will pray that I may extol him more highly O let all the Lords redeemed on Earth and all the glorious Spirits of Heaven unite their Voices till all the World do resound with his Praise who hath restored Peace to us and shewed such good will unto men Hosanna in the highest § 4. We praise thee we bless thee we worship thee we glorifie thee we give thanks unto thee for thy great glory O Lord God Heavenly King God the Father Almighty Having before propounded the subject of our Praises we now begin to descant upon it and first we glorifie the Father Almighty to whom the former Praises are primarily directed And although we are taught with many words to express our gratitude and our joy yet none can censure this as a vain repetition because it is done in imitation of those Celestial Hymns recorded in the Revelations viz. Blessing and Glory and Wisdom and Thanksgiving and Honour and Power and might be c. Revel 7.12 and the like Chap. 5.13 as also because every word here used is highly pertinent and hath its peculiar and proper signification f 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Philem. Poet. Graec. We praise God by setting forth his Greatness we bless him by declaring his goodness we worship him with our Bodies we glorifie him with our mouth we give him thanks with our hearts for the great glory which he hath gotten to himself by these his Mercies toward us And further the adding so many words doth well express the vehemency of our affections and shew that we are so full of admiration and delight that we know not well with what words to signifie the pleasure which we feel within us And whilst we are repeating so many Phrases let our Souls be enlarged in comfortable reflections upon the goodness of God and then we shall not object against their number but find a new motion in our minds to comply with every one of these Eucharistical words and use every one of them with devotion O God the Father of Heaven whose mercy is over all the World I am infinitely pleased to behold the glory and to hear the Praises which thou hast gotten by thy mercy to poor Sinners and I could even pour out my Soul in the manifestation of that joy which my heart conceiveth at thy so universal Honour Wherefore I will praise thee by acknowledgments and bless thee with Hymns I will worship thee with the lowest reverence and glorifie thee in the highest note yea I will give thanks unto thee with all my Soul for thy Pity and thy Patience thy Mercy and long-suffering thy Bounty and Loving-kindness towards thy unworthy yet miserable Creatures And as all men do share in thy goodness I hope they will join in thy Praises in singing that Song of the Lamb which is to be the subject of eternal Hallelujahs Praise and Blessing Honour Glory and Thanksgiving be unto him that sitteth upon the Throne for ever and ever Amen § 5. O Lord the only begotten Son Iesu Christ O Lord God Lamb of God Son of the Father that takest away the Sins of the World Have mercy upon us Thou that takest away the Sins of the World Have mercy upon us Thou that takest away the
sins of the World receive our Prayer Thou that sittest at the right hand of the Father have mercy upon us As the Father is the Object so the Son is the Subject of the Angelick Praises wherefore in the next place we are to glorifie him who is remembred and represented given by God and received by us in this Mystery It is usual at the Entertainment of great Princes by a Herauld to proclaim their Names Stile and Titles with great solemnity Even so the pious Soul which hath now received her dearest Lord doth with a mighty pleasure repeat all the names belonging to his Person to his Nature and his Offices and thereby declare the Majesty and Glory the Mercy and Goodness of him whom she hath now accepted for her Lord and King And whilst we are setting out his glories we do also invocate him by all these honourable and endearing Names that he will imploy his Power his Interest and Merits to make our Persons and our Prayers acceptable We behold him dying for the sins of all the World and we cannot but beseech him to grant our Pardon We discern him sitting at the right hand of the Father interceeding for us and thereby we are encouraged to beseech him to pitty our miseries and accomplish our desires His glory and our necessity makes us beg this with ingeminated cries and a redoubled importunity saying as he once in his Agony did the very same words And thus we do at once provide for our own relief and do honour to the Blessed Jesus for this part is so contrived that it is a Confession of our Faith an acknowledgment of his Glory a Prayer and a Tanksgiving all in one and thus we may reduce it to a practical Meditation How shall we express thy welcom into our Souls Blessed Jesus or how shall we celebrate thy praise We will remember what thou art in thy self and what thou hast done for us for thou art glorious enough in thy own perfections O thou Eternal and only begotten Son of God equal to the Father who art thy self both Lord and God How lovely art thou O thou innocent Lamb of God encircled with millions of redeemed Souls whom thou hast washed in thy blood O how illustrious a brightness shines round about thee whilst thou art in the midst of all thy happiness interceding for poor Sinners I adore thee and long to do thee honour and I delight to see all the Angels of Heaven worshipping thee my Lord and my God Hast thou merited so much on Earth and hast thou so much glory in Heaven sweetest Saviour then sure I cannot perish Behold how many poor Souls are prostrate before thee admiring and publishing the merits of thy Death and the power of thy intercession hear our importunate Supplications and help us all therefore O Lord that we may be able by experience to proclaim thy goodness Amen § 6. For thou only art holy thou only art the Lord thou only O Christ with the Holy Ghost art most high in the glory of God the Father Amen This Phrase thou only art holy with some others in this Hymn are taken out of the Song of Moses and of the Lamb Revel 15.4 as that thou only art the Lord is from the first Ep. Tim. 6.15 g 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Apoc. 15.4 Vulg. Solus Pius es 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Timoth. 6.15 Non quod non aliis is titulus aliquo sensu tribuatur sed quia hoc quicquid est à Deo venit Grot. in 1 Tim. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Responsor ad Quaest Graec. There are indeed holy Angels and Saints and there are Lords many 1 Cor. 8.5 Yet none of these have a propriety in this Title because their holiness is imperfect and derived Only Jesus is Holy in and of himself and of his holiness all others do receive He is Holy and Hallowed because he halloweth and sanctifieth us as the Liturgy of St. James paraphraseth it h Solus tu sanctus es qui sanctificas sanctificaris Liturg. S. Jacob. He only is that Lord saith St. Augustine i Solus verus Dominus es qui Dominum non habes Aug. Confes l. 10. c. 36. who hath no other Lord above him For he only with the Holy Ghost is equal to the Father God blessed for ever And this is the reason why we exalt him so highly and pass by the Mediation of Saints and Angels because none is so holy none so mighty none so high in the favour of God nor none so gracious and loving to us as Jesus is This we do acknowledge therefore with all possible joy and triumph and it is a mighty rejoicing to our Spirits that he who hath given himself for us and is come to dwell with us is so High and so Magnificent And while it doth chear our hearts to set forth his glory our Enemies are confounded For while the Church triumphs the powers of darkness tremble at the mention of his perfections Let us then refresh our selves with some such Meditation We have exalted thee O Lord as high as we can and yet scarcely so high as really thou art We will apply our selves to thee only for Holiness for thou only art most Holy we will seek for succour and protection from thee for thou art the supream Lord of Lords and we will not doubt of acceptance with our Heavenly Father because thou art a Partner in his Divinity the highest Favourite of the Coelestial Court Thou art the greatest and the best in Heaven and Earth and to my endless comfort whatsoever thou art thou hast made thy self mine so that the greater thy glory is the greater is my happiness now by Faith hereafter by enjoyment 'T is true I cannot see thee with my bodily Eyes but I admire and bless thee I love thee with ecstasies of affection for thou art my Lord and I am thy servant I feel thy influence and I believe thy excellencies so that I can rejoice in thee with joy unspeakable and full of glory Thou art the highest in thy Fathers favour and in my esteem also to thee therefore with the Father and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory now and for ever Amen The Paraphrase of the Angelick Hymn § 7. O come let us join with the Heavenly Host and sing Praises for the Redemption wrought by Jesus which bringeth so much Glory to God who dwells on high from all the Saints and Angels and which makes on Earth such a blessed Peace by reconciling us all to God and to one another and which also declares so great good will in the Almighty towards Men who had perished eternally without his Mercy Holy Father it is we that receive the benefit of this thy goodness wherefore We praise thee for the Power and we bless thee for the mercy of this great Salvation We worship thee with our Bodies and we glorifie thee with our Souls for thou hast redeemed them both We give
IMPRIMATUR Jan. 21. 1673 4 C. Smith R. P. D. Episc Lond. à sacris domesticis A COMPANION TO THE ALTAR Or an HELP To the worthy receiving of the LORDS SVPPER By Discourses and Meditations upon the whole COMMUNION OFFICE To which is added An ESSAY upon the OFFICES OF Baptism and Confirmation By THO. COMBER M. A. LONDON Printed by J. Macock for John Martyn at the Bell in St Pauls Church-Yard and Richard Lambert at York MDCLXXV TO THE MOST REVEREND Father in GOD RICHARD By the Divine Providence Lord ARCHBISHOP OF YORK Primate of ENGLAND and METROPOLITAN May it please your Grace I Have often with much pleasure and admiration observed how rarely every part of Divine Service is suited to its proper Subject whereof there needs no better instance than that which is under our present Consideration The Communion is the most sublime Duty of Christianity the Compendium of Religion the best opportunity for Repentance the highest exercise of Faith and the strongest engagement to our Charity and accordingly it is fitted with an Office agreeable to its usefulness and grandeur wherein the Directions are full and perspicuous the Exhortations vigorous and importunate the Devotions fervent and expressive of more than ordinary affections an Office wherein equal regard is had to the Majesty of the Ordinance and the advantage of the Receivers to the Custom of the Antient and the benefit of the present times So that the illustration of this one Part of Liturgy will contain Arguments to convince the Negligent Instructions to teach the Ignorant and be the properest method to prepare us for this Sacrament to assist us in Receiving and to confirm us in all Holiness and Vertue afterwards yea I dare affirm that he who will conscientiously practise by these measures can neither be an Ill Man an Vnworthy Receiver or an Enemy to that Church which affords him such excellent means of Salvation Wherefore that these endeavours may be made publick with more Advantage I have been bold to recommend them to your Graces Patronage and that with great reason For their subject being of the highest Mystery and their design to adorn the most eminent Office of the Church could no where be more justly presented than to your Grace who beside the Dignity of your Primacy and the honour of so High a Station in this Church are so known a Lover and Patron of all its Primitive Administrations Besides your Grace hath a peculiar title to the Author as well as a Right in the subject of this Discourse for he first received the Holy Order of Priesthood and the Power of Dispensing this Sacrament a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ignat. ep ad Smyr Apost Can. 39. Concil Laodic Can. 57. from your Graces Hands to whom therefore he will ever pay the Reverence and Observance due to a Spiritual Father b Esto subjectus Pontifici tuo quasi animae parentem suscipe Hieron ad Nepot Ep. 2. In fine I am obliged to make this Tender by my Condition and my Duty by Gratitude and Affection And your Graces fair Approbation of my first Essay encourageth this to hope for a Candid acceptance both as it is a Testimony of my Respect and as it may minister to the Devotion of those who approach to Gods Altar My Lord There is nothing more useful to the friends of this Church nor more convincing to the dissenters from it than to present her pure and Primitive Order of Worship in its natural and lovely splendor whereof by the Divine mercy I have seen some Experiments from my former attempt and if this may prevail also to undeceive the seduced to amend the prophane and to elevate the devotion of Pious Men I shall have all I aimed at in this Work only I most gladly comply with this Opportunity to testifie my self Your Graces Most dutiful Son and most humble Servant Tho. Comber THE INTRODVCTION Of the Communion Service in general with the reason and use of this Vndertaking § 1. WHatsoever benefits we now enjoy or hope hereafter to receive from Almighty God are all purchased by the Death and must be obtained through the Intercession of the Holy Jesus And for a perpetual memorial hereof we are not only taught to mention his name in our daily Prayers John 14.13 15.16 but are also commanded by visible signs to Commemorate and set forth his Passion in the Lords Supper 1 Cor. 11.26 wherein by a more forcible rite of Intercession a Fideles etiam inter orandum Christum afferunt Deo Patri victimam dum scilicet mente affectuque ad sacrificium ejus unicum feruntur ut Deum sibi habeant faciantque propitium Anon. apud Med. Chris Sacrif Sect. 3. we beg the Divine Acceptance That which is more compendiously expressed in the Conclusion of our Prayers through Iesus Christ our Lord is more fully and more vigorously set out in this most holy Sacrament Wherein we Interceed on Earth in Imitation of and Conjunction with the great Intercession of our High Priest in Heaven Pleading here in the Vertue and Merits of the same Sacrifice which he doth urge there for us And because of this Sympathy and near Alliance between these two Offices of Praying and Communicating we find the Eucharist in the purest Ages of the Church was a daily b Act. 2.42 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Companion of their Common-Prayer So that there is no Ancient Liturgy but doth suppose and direct the Celebration of this Sacrament as constantly as the use of Publick Prayers they being never separated but in the Case of Novices or offending secluded Christians who only had the benefit of the Petitions but were shut out before the Mysteries were begun And though the iniquity of our Age hath made the Imitation of this sublime Example rather to be wished for than expected Yet the Consideration thereof may both humble us for the sad decay of Christian Devotion and also shew us what Excellent reason our Church had to annex so much of this Communion Office to the usual Prayers of all our more solemn Assemblies § 2. As to the particular Form of this part of the Divine Service Our Church hath taken the same liberty therein which others had done before them For since our great Master who did Institute this Sacrament haâ—h not prescribed any particular Form for the Administration thereof in holy Writ there have been in all the first Ages many Liturgies composed suitable to the places and times for which they were designed Such are those which now bear the names of St. Peter and St. Barnabas but especially the Liturgy of Hierusalem called from St. James and that of Alexandria named St. Marks and that of the famous Clemens Most of which though with some Corruptions are still extant And yet notwithstanding St. Basil St. Chrysostom and St. Ambrose did every one of them compile a several Liturgy for their several Churches and yet all different from the Roman Missal
need be and never desert his interest either for cost or peril which Prayer we must not only make with respect to our temporal felicity but as duly considering that the Almighty and invisible Governour of the World doth not Rule us immediately by himself but by Kings to whom he hath delegated his Authority So that they bear his Name and act by his Power g Exod. 22.28 Psal 82.1.6 Dii i. e. Judices qui potestatem Dei exercent Ab. Ez. And such as Rebell h Quicunque obfirmat faciem suaem contra Regem perinde est ac si obfirmaret faciem contra Divinam Majestatem Midr. Cohel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Clem. Const do fight against God Act. 5.39 oppose his word and resist his Ordinance Rom. 13.2 Wherefore we desire grace to obey not only for fear of wrath but for the Lords sake 1 Pet. 11.13 that is for Conscience sake Rom. 13.5 And this will produce the firmest and readiest obedience to all the Commands of our Governours when we observe them as subordinate to the Laws of God Eph. 6.1 in the Lord i Sed intra limites Disciplinae Tertul. Quia poterant aliquid imperare perversum ideo adjunxit in Domino Hieron in Eph. 6. Superiorum imperia Dura Declinanda sensim relinquenda magis sunt quam Respuenda Aul. Gell. Noct. At. l. 2. c. 7. as far as they do not contradict the plain will of the Almighty and for the Lord Rom. 13.1 that is because of his Authority vested in them And thus the best Christian will be the best Subject Let us therefore most fervently beg that we may all be conscientiously obedient and if we desire that heartily we shall not only obtain grace from God to be so but this Petition is an evidence we are already loyal And were it sincerely put up by all there could be no Treason nor Rebellion harboured in our Breasts but we should live in peace and please God adorn the Gospel Tit. 11.10 oblige the King and declare to all the World that it is not only the Duty but the Interest of Princes to defend the Religion of this Church which makes the best men and loyallest Subjects in the World § 6. Through Iesus Christ our Lord who with thee and the Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth ever one God World without end Amen It was a false and malicious calumny of the Jews that the Kingdom of Iesus was inconsistent with the Empire of Caesar for Obedience to Kings was never so enjoined and asserted before as it was by Christ and his Apostles And he himself hath told us that he is a King but no Rival to the Monarchs of this Earth For his Throne is in Heaven And his proper Subjects Saints and Angels k John 18.36 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Euseb He reigns but it is with the Father and the Holy Ghost for ever For his sake therefore we may pray for the welfare of Temporal Kingdoms who hath power both to dispense them on Earth Math. 28.18 and to command blessings from Heaven on them especially on such Princes who are the Guardians of his beloved Church who own his Supremacy and daily confess and praise Him that liveth and Reigneth for ever The Paraphrase of the first Collect. § 7. Almighty God who art always ready to help us since thou art that King whose Kingdom is Everlasting and All sufficient to relieve us since thou art in Power infinite We beg not single or small Mercies of so great a Majesty but beseech thee to Have mercy upon all the Members of thy whole Church And especially that part thereof planted in these Nations which will be truly happy if it may please thee so graciously to direct the Counsels and so constantly to rule the heart of thy chosen and anointed Servant CHARLES by thy Providence and his undoubted right our King and Governour That He always remembring his Authority to flow from thee and knowing whose Minister and Vicegerent he is even the Deputy of thy Heavenly Majesty may above and before all things seek by defending Religion executing Justice and shewing mercy to advance thy honour and glory for he in so doing will ingage us all to praise thee for setting so wise and gracious a Prince over us And to compleat his and our happiness Grant that we and all others whom thou hast placed in the condition of his Subjects seriously and duly considering that for thy sake whose Authority he hath we owe him all duty and Allegiance may faithfully serve him with our Prayers Lives and Fortunes and also honour him in his person with our hearts and humbly obey him in his Laws by our whole Conversation so far as is possible in thee by the help of thy grace and for thee and for thy sake by a conscientious and exact Obedience according to the Commands of thy blessed word the appointment and Ordinance of thy Supream Providence O Lord let us be so happy to obtain this through the Merits of our great High Priest Iesus Christ who hath enjoined this Obedience and is our Lord who sets up Christian Princes on Earth to rule under him who with thee the Father and the Holy Ghost most gloriously liveth and reigneth in Heaven ever one God in that World which is without end and yet not forgetting us that are his Members in this changeable and uncertain World for his sake be it so Amen Of the second Collect for the King § 8. This Prayer is only added to help our Devotion with a greater variety but being as to the main so little different from the former it shall suffice to remark that the Petitions are here grounded on a never failing l Matth. 24.35 Foundation the word of God viz. Prov. 21.1 The Kings heart is in the hand of the Lord as the Rivers of Waters he turneth it whithersoever he will Although the Kings heart be unsearchable to men Prov. 25.3 and his purposes seldom to be alter'd by any of his Inferiors Yet Almighty God hath shewed many instances m Ezra 1.1 7.28 9.9 Neh. 1.11 Dan. 3.28 Rev. 17.17 that he can change the Decrees of the greatest Monarchs and as the Gardener n See Hammond on Psal 1.3 by opening certain Sluces can direct the streams of his Water-courses to which part of his Plantation he pleaseth So can the King of Kings direct the Counsels and turn the designs of all mortal Princes to his own glory and the prosperity of his Church To increase our wealth at home to secure us against foreign Enemies and defend us in the Exercise of the true Religion is the care of our gracious King the Prayer of all good Subjects and the end of government it self o See 1 Tim. 2.2 Vt placidam quietam vitam degamus cum omni pietate honestate Quid enim aliud est imperium nisi cura salutis alienae Ammian Mercellin and therefore let us rejoice that we have
only with the Priest but with Angels and with Archangels and all the Company of Heaven c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrys hom 18. in 2. ad Cor. for Jesus by his Death hath united Heaven and Earth and designed all his redeemed ones to sing Hallelujahs with the blessed spirits above for ever Wherefore it is fit that in this Commemoration of his Passion we should begin to unite our Voices to them with whom we hope to praise God to all Eternity Only as we sing with them let us sing like them and not spoil their blessed harmony by mingling flat and discordant notes O with what delight and pleasure sincerity and joy do they sing this Hymn while they are ravished with the prospect of the divine perfections Could we but see their felicity and hear their Musick it would transport us above our selves and make us forget and despise all other pleasures to join with them It may be we fear that we cannot sing in so high a note yet if we do it with like sincerity our lower key may grace the harmony and compleat the Concord Behold those blessed Spirits who had no need of any Saviour and who never did offend do praise God with incessant Voices for his mercy and love to us and seem to invite us saying O ye Sons of men praise the Lord with us and let us magnifie his name together How then can we be silent especially when our glorified Brethren Prophets and Apostles Saints and Martyrs do also bear a part in this admirable Hymn How justly do we stile the object of these praises a glorious Name since all the World resounds its praise To it Cherubin and Seraphin Angels and Archangels continually do cry Holy Holy Holy and all the Saints in Heaven and Earth do join to set forth the glory thereof § 7. Evermore praising thee and saying Holy Holy Holy Lord God of Hosts Heaven and Earth are full of thy Glory Glory be to thee O Lord most high This primitive and triumphant Hymn was first taught unto the Prophet Isaiah Chap. 6.3 when he was admitted to hear it sung in the Quire of Heaven But as Procopias well observes the Triple Holy could not fit the Jewish Synagogue and so was designed at first for the Christian Church who confess the Holy Trinity wherefore it was again revealed to St. John Revel 4.8 and afterwards constantly used by all Churches in the Celebration of these Mysteries for it is found in all the Liturgies of St. James St. Mark St. Basil and fully in St. Chrysostoms thus Before thee stand thousands of Archangels and many thousands of Angels Cherubins and Seraphins singing the triumphant Hymn chanting forth crying and saying Holy Holy Holy Lord God c. and the like appears in the Apostolick Constitutions lib. 8. cap. 16. so that though some affirm that Sixtus the eight Bishop of Rome brought it first in use with the Latine Church about 130. years after Christ yet Nicephorus doubts not to say it was derived from an Apostolical Tradition hist lib. 18. c. 51. The Grecians call it the Trisagium because the word Holy is thrice repeated and of latter times do express it thus Holy God Holy Strong Holy Immortal d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sixt. Sene◠Bib. Sanct. l. 5. annot 58. Have mercy on us And they have a Tradition that they were commanded thus to repeat it by a Child which for some time was rapt up into Heaven in the time of a great Earthquake in the days of Theodosius junior and Proclus the Patriarch and by so repeating it the City was delivered However it is certainly an Act of Praise wherein we worship and adore the whole Trinity and Galatinus d Pet. Galatinus lib. 2. c. 1. de Jesai 6.3 saith it was antiently read in Jonathans Chaldee Paraphrase Holy Father Holy Son Holy Spirit but as it is nothing is more plain e Non semel dicunt ne singularitatem credas non bis dicunt ne spiritum excludas non sanctos ne pluralitatem aestimes sed ter repentant idem dicunt ut etiam in hymno distinctionem Trinitatis divinitatis intelligas unitatem Ambr. de sp sanc l 3. c. 18. ita Epiphan in Ancorat Procop. Gazaeus in Jesaiam than that every Person is acknowledged to be Holy and all to be one Lord God of Hosts who commands the Armies of Heaven and all the Creatures of the World whose Glory fills both Heaven and Earth Which way can we look or what can we think upon that doth not declare how great and gracious their Creator and Preserver is and how can we then refrain from giving glory also unto the Lord most High In his nature he is holy in all his works glorious let us praise him therefore with pure hearts for he is thrice Holy let us bless him with a mighty vigour that as the Angels make the Upper so we may make the lower Region Eccho with his praise It was long since ordained that this Hymn should be used every day supposing the faithful would never be weary of so sweet and desirable an imployment f Quia tam dulcis desiderabilis vox etiam si die noctuque possit dici fastidium generare non possit Concil Vasens can 6. An. 450. But surely it is most proper for this blessed Sacrament that as every person in the Trinity concurred to our Redemption so every one may be adored in the memorial thereof The Father is Holy who gave us such a Saviour the Son is Holy who effected this Salvation and the Spirit is Holy who sanctifies us by the vertue thereof and yet these three are one Lord to whom we must now with most fervent gratitude offer up the Sacrifice of Eucharist and Thanksgiving O ye Heavenly powers that rejoice for the sake of us poor Sinners we join with you and with joyful hearts over our Propitiation do sing Holy Holy Holy Lord God c. Glory be to thee O Lord most high Amen An Appendix of the particular Prefaces § 8. It is long since the daily and weekly Communions have been generally laid aside by the people for St. Chrysostome himself takes notice that ordinary Christians in his time had appropriated their communicating to the greater Festivals of the Church g Chrys orat de B. Philogono and some affirm that Fabian the Martyr did order those seasons especially for all the faithful to receive h Sabellicus Volatteranus ad An. Christi 236. And truly a solemn time of joy seems the most proper for the Celebration of this Heavenly Feast Now hereupon it came to pass that as the Church was wont at this Holy Table to give thanks for all mercies so they did peculiarly praise God for the mercy commemorated on that Festival upon which they did Communicate which doubtless was the Original of these particular Prefaces In the Roman Church there were formerly nine of them to which Vrban added
ever since by Jews or Christians or both with the greatest solemnity See how those blinded Jews rejoice over their Paschal Lamb in the midst of all their Calamities for the deliverance of their Fathers But we have a nobler Passover for a greater deliverance Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us therefore let us keep the Feast and that upon the precious Body and Blood of the Lamb of God who was slain but is alive again and behold he lives for evermore Wherefore I will go to thy Altar with joy and tell out thy works with gladness O most mighty Saviour who hast not only died for my sins but risen again for my Justification and indeed what comfort could I have found in this memorial of thy Death if it had not been for thy Resurrection this Sacrament would have only remembred thy sufferings and renewed my sorrow to think that so excellent a Person had perished in the attempt of my deliverance but now it is become a Feast of joy because it is an assurance of thy Resurrection as well as a Commemoration of thy Passion And since thou livest sweetest Jesus we live also thy Resurrection raiseth our hearts from sad despair it gives a new life to our hopes it makes our sorrows light our labours easie our lives chearful and our death advantage because it hath lost its sting and is become the gate into immortality We can charm all our fears and troubles with this one word The Lord is risen yea the Lord is risen indeed For thou hast washed us in thy own blood and made us Kings and Priests to God to offer up at this thy Altar never-ceasing Praises Therefore with Angels c. A Meditation for the Communion on Ascension-Day § 11. I see O merciful Jesus thou art content for our sakes to stay here upon Earth when Heaven longs for thy return thou hast these fourty days denied thy self the full fruition of thy glories to dispel the sorrow and confirm the Faith of thy Disciples and yet at last their tears and embraces shew how loth they are to depart from thee But behold the day of thy Triumph is come and the holy Myriads are sent to wait upon thee the Heavenly Singers that go before cry Open your selves ye everlasting doors that the King of Glory may come in to whom the Angels which come out to meet him answer in extasies of amazement Who is the King of Glory and all the Chorus that follow after reply Even the Lord of Hosts he is the King of Glory and thus with hymns and joyful acclamations is Jesus welcomed to his antient and most glorious Throne And now O my soul why standest thou gazing into Heaven he is too high to be discerned too bright to be seen with mortal Eyes since Cherubins are dazled at his splendor He is gone to his proper place and ascended thither whither thy desires carry thee and where ere long thou shalt see him face to face Thou standest like Elisha looking after him and lamenting thy Masters departure but he hath left his Mantle behind him even the mysteries of this holy Sacrament which to thy Faith is the flesh which he was cloathed with all and is designed to convey a double portion of his spirit unto thee so that it appears he hath left his Love with us when his Person was taken from us Away then with these sighs and tears lament no longer the absence of thy Lord for he is in this Blessed Feast he is here in his comforts and graces here in his merits and his love and his spirit can Minister the same benefits hereby which his personal presence would have given thee Go then with all possible speed and taste of this Heavenly Provision delight in it above all the sweetnesses in the World because it contains so many pledges and emblems of thy glorious Redeemers love when thou beholdest him that is thy head so advanced make haste to unite thy self nearer to him by partaking of his Body and Blood that thou maist finally reign with him in the mean time raise up thy thoughts above this lower World declare thy desire to be with Jesus send thy heart before and protest if he had not left thee some little tastes of his sweetness in the repast of this holy Table by the way thou couldst not have endured so long without him There is nothing which he loves comparable with his Throne in Heaven unless it be an humble and thankful heart into which I am about to receive him and as the Coelestial Quire welcomed him thither so will I receive him with joy into my poor Soul Therefore with Angels c. A Meditation for the Communion on Whit-Sunday § 12. I will go to thy Altar O Lord with a New-Sacrifice of Praise because thou hast given me a fresh instance of thy Love this day thou art slow to punish thy Enemies but speedy to comfort thy servants for no sooner was thy misery changed into glory but we received the greatest demonstration of thy affections no sooner didst thou put on thy Crown in Heaven but the Earth felt the bounty of thy Dispensations for it was not possible for thee sweetest Jesus to let thy promise remain long unperformed or the sad expectations of thy Disciples unsatisfied Being assembled therefore this Day with one heart in one place they are suddenly surprized with wonder and inspired with a Heavenly Power such as they had never felt before vigorous as a mighty wind chearing as the morning light inflaming their hearts with zeal and filling their mouths with Anthems indited in the languages of all the World Oh wonderful change their ignorance is turned into learning their mistakes into infallibility their fear into courage their weakness into strength their sorrow into joy and they in a moment made able to confound the Arts and conquer the oppositions of the Heathen World and maugre all the devices of Satan to set up the Kingdom of the Lord Christ And shall not we praise thee for these miraculous dispensations by which the Gospel was made known even to us in these utmost corners and last of times Yes holy Jesus we will also meet with one accord at thy Table not doubting but thou wouldst give us the same measures of thy spirit there if our duty or our necessity did require it it is enough to us that thou knowest our needs more than will supply them we dare not ask less thou wilt not give Thou hast given us thy self wherefore we believe thou wilt not deny us thy spirit without which we can have no interest in thee nor benefit from thee We come not gracious Lord with the carnal Jews to devour thy flesh but to partake of thy spirit which only giveth life the flesh profiteth nothing Behold thy Spirit hath converted Millions let me therefore together with thy precious Body receive here such proportions of thy holy spirit as may suppress my evil affections revive my dead heart comfort
yea upon all thy Merits and Graces Lord thou reachest out most freely that which I need infinitely and that which I wish for above all things Adored be thy admirable bounty in complyance wherewith unworthy though I am I do stretch out a trembling hand I do open my mouth yea my heart to receive thee Open your Doors O ye Gates of my Soul and the King of Glory shall come in Rejoice and be exceeding glad for behold thy King cometh meek and lowly to visit the meanest of his servants Come Lord Jesus come quickly A Meditation while we Eat the Bread §. 8. In remembrance that Christ died for thee An Act of Contrition O my Soul behold how thou hast incensed the Majesty of Heaven see how he gives up the most innocent and most holy Jesus thy best thy only friend and his own dear Son to be tortured and tormented for thy Sins O how cruelly was he scourged with whips wounded with Thorns loaden with the Cross torn with Nails pierced with a Spear and rackt on the most painful instrument of Death His lovely Face is defiled with blood and spitting his Ears filled with taunts and curses his Eyes drenched in tears for the ruine of his Enemies and his Soul amazed at the terrors of the divine wrath till at length all wounded broken and bloody with many groans yet with admirable patience he breaths out his holy Soul And yet whatever he suffered was my portion My pleasure hath been his pain my wicked life hath caused his bitter death Wretch that I am to live in such a manner that nothing else could satisfie or make my Peace But here I come this day to call my sin to remembrance I will look on thee whom I have pierced with a most tender and sympathizing affection and while I break this holy Bread with my Teeth I will commemorate how thou wast bruised for our iniquities and how our offences did grind thee with grief and pain Holy Saviour I am angry at my self and full of anguish to see what I hâ—ve brought upon thee I am sorry with all my heart that I have given harbour to thy Murtherers but I hope this most dismal spectacle l Est enim tanta vis crucis Christi ut si ante oculos ponatur in mente fidelitèr retineatur ita ut in ipsam mortem Christi intentis oculis adspiciatur nulla concupiscentia nulla libido nullus furor nulla potest superare invidia Origen in 7. ad Rom. shall mortifie in me all desires after Evil and make me abhor all those desperate pleasures which must be so dearly paid for by thee or else stand charged upon my Account for ever No no I will never crucifie thee again by renewing my disobedience for I have done too much already A Meditation after the receiving of the Bread §. 9. And feed on him in thy heart by Faith with thanksgiving An Act of particular Application and Gratitude Hail holy Lamb of God thrice welcome art thou to a poor perishing Sinner was it not enough that thou shouldst suffer so much for me but thou wilt also give all the purchase of those sufferings to me thy loving kindness is truly admirable Thou hast taken my sins on thy self and communicated thy Righteousness unto my Soul Lord while I believe and consider the benefits of thy Passion I am revived and filled with an unwonted vigour My Conscience doth accuse me of many and grievous sins but I do here most humbly and thankfully set forth this perfect Sin-offering before thy divine Majesty and I know thou canst not except against it I believe it is sufficient to attone thy anger what I owe he hath discharged what I have deserved he hath endured so that for his sake I hâ—pe thou wilt set me free Blessed Jesus how is my Soul refreshed that it is thus restored again to thy Fathers Love Let Heaven and Earth praise thee and declare the merit of this glorious Sacrifice and I will bless thee while I have my being I will love thee because thou hast loved me better than thy own life my heart shall feast with joy and Eucharist upon the pleasures and Comforts which I expect to draw from this Coelestial food I have received thine immaculate Body and it shall cleanse my sinful body and teach me by the vertue of so rare an example to relieve my poor Brethren for whom thou hast died and to conquer my Enemies by my Charity for thus thou hast done to me And both my lips and my life shall set forth thy Praise I begin to feel my self one with thee already and I will wait till I am perfectly united to thee in Everlasting Glory Amen Meditations before the receiving of the Cup. §. 10. The blood of our Lord Iesus Christ An Act of Acknowledgment It will not suffice me Dearest Saviour to receive thee in part only for I must be wholly thine and blessed be thy Name thou art willing to be wholly mine also Thou hast already given me thy holy Body to cleanse my nature and now thou art preparing thy precious Blood to wash away my guilt My sins have poured out every drop thereof wherefore thou presentest it to me by it self to shew how truly thou didst suffer Death for me And now O my Redeemer thou hast said this Cup is the Communion of thy blood and thy Truth is unquestionable thy power is infinite and thy love was such that thou gavest thy hearts blood for me I will receive it therefore as the Blood of the Everlasting Covenant the seal of all the Promises of thy holy Gospel I have indeed vile Sinner that I am drunk in iniquity like water and therefore am unfit to taste this Water of Life and yet I shall perish without it for I am all over defiled and this is the fountain which thou hast opened to cleanse us I am scorched with the flames of evil Lusts and unruly Passions and this is the Cup which thou hast provided to cool and refresh us O thou Medicine of immortality my Soul longeth for thee what value is sufficient for me to put upon this Heavenly Cordial how can I reverence it enough since the God of Heaven esteemed it a price sufficient for millions of perishing Mankind Lord let me taste and my soul shall live let me wash in this Laver before I come to thy great Tribunal so shall I be whiter than Snow §. 11. Which was shed for thee An Act of Repentance mixed with Faith Was there ever so base a wretch as I have been who have accounted those sins small and trivial yea and made them my sport and pleasure which have pressed down and wounded the holy Jesus till he is all over drenched in his own blood Woe is me I have easily committed that which nothing but these streams can wash away O ye accursed Lusts ye have by wicked hands taken Crucified and slain the Lord of Life and if he had
Christ for its Author than that Divine Prayer which ows its Original to the same person The Lords Prayer must be the most proper Introduction to the Lords Supper It seems our Saviour intended it should be joined to all our Offices of Devotion because he ushers it in with this Injunction Luke 11.2 When ye pray Say Our Father c. In Compliance wherewith as the Church hath again placed it at the entrance into this Service so let us repeat with a fresh Devotion Considering that these being the Words of the Son of a Agnoscat Pater filii verba Cypr. God will if duly repeated make way for the Acceptance of all the rest of our Petitions and Services And as there is nothing can be more agreeably united to the Intercession of Jâ—sus in Heaven in this our great rite of Supplication than that Prayer which himself hath indited So the form it self as the Ancients did explain it doth excellently agree b Oratio illa nihil terrenum habet sed omnia coelestia ad animum tendentia S. Germ. Theor. to this Mystery Wherefore passing by its Analysis and Discourse upon its several parts which we have done before Compan to the Temple We shall now as more pertinent to this Occasion by a brief Paraphrase direct the pious Soul how to apply it to the present duty The Paraphrase of the Lords Prayer § 2. We confess O Lord we are not worthy to be called thy Servants and yet desire so to be united to thy Son by Faith and to one another by Love that thou maist be Our Father in Jesus Christ by the visible remembrances of whose Death on Earth we set forth thy goodness which art in Heaven and not to be seen with mortal Eyes O let us so reverently celebrate this Mystery that Hallowed and adored by us and all the World may â—e thy Name for the Mercies of our Redemption And let us by this Manifestation of our Saviours love be won so fully to thy Obedience that thy Kingdom of Grace being set up in all our hearts we may be ready against thy Kingdom of Glory come where these outward signs shall cease and we shall see thee face to face In the mean time let this and every part of Thy will be done with the like sincerity and Devotion by us thy Servants in Earth as it is by thy holy Angels in Heaven who are now attending upon and desirous to look into these Mysteries But since we want that immediate fruition of thy glorious presence which those blessed Spirits do enjoy Give us at thy Holy Table which thou hast prepared for us â—his day that Bread of Life the Body of Christ c Et corpus ejus in pane censetur panem enim peti mandat quod solùm fidelibus est necessarium Tertul. de Orat. Ita Cypr. Hieron in Math. 6. c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theophil in Math. 6. which is as necessary for our Souls as our daily Bread is for our bodily sustenance And since thou hast admitted us to Feast upon the remainders of the great Sin-offering Be pleased by virtue of that expiation to pardon And forgive us fully and freely all our trespasses against thy divine Majesty as we moved by the experience of a greater mercy in this holy Sacrament do heartily forgive those that now or at any time in word or deed trespass against us Finally when with the expence of thy Sons blood thou hast reconciled us to thy self and to one another Let not the Enemy renew the breach And lead us not into evil circumstances lest we forgetting our vows should comply and fall into temptation again and so provoke thy Spirit to forsake us We are thine O Lord leave us not but deliver us as Members of thy dear Son from all the snares of the wicked one that we may be preserved from evil spiritual temporal and eternal And as a pledg thereof do thou in this Sacrament to these Petitions set thy Amen SECT II. Of the Collect for Purity § 1. THis Ancient and Devout Collect was retained not without great Prudence as being a most exact and compendious expression of our desires of Purity Nor could it be more conveniently placed since it is not only an excellent entrance for the Communion Office as the Discourse will manifest But a very proper Preface even when there is no Sacrament to the rehearsing of and examining our lives by the Ten Commandments to which it is immediately prefixed For if we hear the Law with an impure heart Sin will take occasion by a Rom. 7.8 Admonent enim saepe dum interdicuntur Cypr. de Spect. the Commandment to cause thoughts of desire after or delight in the very iniquity which is forbidden And then how is it possible we should heartily say Lord have mercy c. Or Incline our hearts c. So that we are obliged upon both accounts earnestly to beg a pure heart And that we may do it with a more knowing Devotion We shall open the particular Form by the following plain Division Discourse and Paraphrase The Analysis of the Collect for Purity Sect. 2. This Collect hath 3. Parts 1. The Reason of the Request Gods Omniscience which is expressed 1 Affirmatively Almighty God unto whom all hearts be open all desires known 2. Negatively From whom no secrets are hid 2. The Request it self viz. 1. The Matter of it Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts 2. The Means By the inspiration of thy holy Spirit 3. The end 1. Internal That we may perfectly love thee 2. External and worthily magnify thy holy name 3. The Argument used to obtain it through Iesus Christ our Lord Amen A Practical Discourse upon the Collect for Purity § 3. Almighty God unto whom all hearts be open all desires known and from whom no secrets are hid Of all the Divine Attributes there are none so likely to make us afraid in this our nearest approach to God of coming with an unclean heart as his Omnipotence and Omniscience And these therefore are in Scripture phrase here set before us to mind us that we b Jerem. 17.9 Psal 38 9. Cui omnis voluntas loquitur Missal Rom. Psal 44.21 Job 42.2 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Petlaei versio Lit. ex Heb. 4.13 Allusio ad victimas excoriatas suspensas dum sacerdos exta scrutatur come before an Almighty and All-seeing Majesty So that if any wickedness be but imagined in the heart desired by the will or acted by the hand in the darkest night or most secret corner it is apparent to him and he will condemn us for it unless we first condemn our own selves Which Consideration we may improve two ways First To shew how necessary it is for us to labour for pure hearts since we are about to draw near to him who is so able to punish and so sure to discover the most secret sins To whose power all things are subject and to whose
For is it not as sure as God is true that if I persist in them I shall lose all my interest in my only Saviour forfeit all my hopes of Heaven and sell my title to the glorious Kingdom which is full of ravishing and endless pleasures and all abundance of whatsoever heart can wish And besides this insupportable loss shall not my Soul be condemned in the last dreadful judgment and cast into the Region of horror and darkness anguish and torments that have no abatement nor no end Why then Oh my Soul wilt thou buy these vanities so dear and be so abused by thy Enemies so ungrateful to thy dying Redeemer and so mischievous and cruel to thy self Wilt thou ever be so foolish and so desperate to commit the like again Say then O my Soul I abhor and renounce these accursed delusions being almost enraged at my self that I have been cheated with them so long My reason is convinced and my will perswaded that thy ways are the Right Therefore O Lord encline c. § 10. Secondly To engage our minds to all the Duties of Religion and Piety Justice and Charity that we may unalterably chuse them Let every one of us meditate First Why should I be backward to vow my obedience to the Laws of God Are they any thing else but a method of living well and wisely free from fears and injury Do they not teach me to bear my self so that I may win the favour of God and good men and be safe in the best and happy in the worst condition Can I wish my dearest Friend or my own Soul a greater felicity than to be meek and patient grateful and contented temperate and industrious just and bountiful to converse with God rejoice with Angels to imitate the Saints follow the blessed Jesus and to seek Everlasting Joy Secondly Doth God require any thing impossible unjust or unreasonable Am I to bind my self to any more than that which my Judgment and my Conscience when I am serious tell me it is fit and expedient for me to do although it had never been commanded Is it any more than that which all the wisest and best men the friends of God and the Darlings of Heaven have done with the greatest delight and pleasure and therefore it is the only proof of a generous and noble Spirit Thirdly Is not my God the best of all Masters who covers the infirmities and strengthens the weaknesses of his Servants Can I fail to please him who begets the desire and enables for the performance and makes the way familiar and easie pleasant and inviting and yet where there is a hearty endeavour doth make many abatements and accept the will for the deed d Quia voluit etiamsi non valuit adimplere 2 Cor. 8.12 and who begins his assistances early and continues them till he hath perfected this excellent work Fourthly Finally shall I not be rewarded with a glorious Crown in Heaven for being so wise as to chuse to be happy on Earth Is not this the sure way to the enjoyment of God the Society of Jesus and the Fellowship of glorified Saints and blessed Souls to Eternal Peace never-ceasing Joy to the most perfect and compleat felicity which shall last for ever though the trouble of gaining it be but short and transitory Be wise therefore Oh my Soul and easily perswaded to chuse thine own happiness And say I desire and long to be acquainted with these paths of pleasantness I chuse and love them all O Lord encline our hearts to keep these Laws And now I hope it may be time to bend your knees again and with a fresh bewailing of your transgressions and many acknowledgments of your Conviction to renounce and protest against all iniquity especially that by which you have been most apt to fall and also to vow and engage that you will lead a holy life which you must do most seriously as in the presence of God And finally looking unto Jesus the purchaser of Pardon and the giver of all Grace most humbly beg the holy Spirit that you may be enabled to keep this pious resolution since it is your wisdom and happiness never to break it more to which purpose say Lord write all these thy Laws in our hearts we beseech thee That is in our memories and on our affections that we might not offend against them Psal 119.11 For if his Spirit ingrave them on our Souls we shall with ease and pleasure keep and do them Ezek. 36.26 Wherefore let us beg this favour most earnestly and let us not doubt of being heard For this is the first and greatest part of the new Covenant God hath ingaged He will put his laws in our minds and on our hearts will he write them Jerem. 31.33 Heb. 8.10 And further if we so sincerely pray for this grace of Obedience it will ingage our Heavenly Father still more effectually to grant the last clause viz. that our Sins and iniquities he will remember no more SECT IV. Of the two Collects for the King § 1. THE Kings Majesty is fitly prayed for after the Commandments because he is Custos utriusque Tabulae and his Example is a great encouragement to the good and his Power a terror to the evil and so may be a great furtherance to the Observation of the Laws of God And it doth as conveniently precede the daily Collect for therein we beg all inward grace and herein all outward prosperity for the Church which is always prosperous under good and happy Princes And although we had prayed for the King before a Comp. to the Temple yet we are enjoined to do it here again for these Reasons First Because the welfare of the Kings Majesty is of so great and universal concernment to Religion and the Laws to Ministers and People that no one Earthly blessing is so necessary to be asked or so advantageous when obtained Secondly Because this is a distinct Office anciently used some hours after Morning Prayer b Vid. Spar. Rational p. 239. and S. Paul seems to Command that we should pray for Kings in all our Prayers and that first of all 1 Tim. 11.1 2. as we in this Service do Thirdly Because it was ever the Custom not only of the Jews c Ezra 6.10 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Joseph lib. 12. cap 17. in the time of the Oblation but also of the Christians d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theoph. in 1 Tim. 2. Oratio pramittitur pro populo pro Regibus pro caeteris Ambr. de Sacr. l. 4. c. 4. Vid. Aug. Epist 59. ad Paulin. Chrys in 1 Tim. 2. in the time of the Celebration of these Mysteries to supplicate for their Princes as all Ancient Liturgies do attest With unbloody Sacrifices and Mystical Rites saith Eusebius we endeavour to obtain the Divine mercy in order to the common peace offering up then to God supplications for the Church of God and his Vicegerent the King for
and the compliance of our affections being not only confident of their truth because God hath revealed them but delighted with their excellency because they tend to make us holy and happy and then we shall believe them with a perswasion stronger than can be built upon the Scholastical Demonstration we shall adhere to them closely and for ever because they are amiable and lead us to God and immortality Let us not think our Faith sufficient till we so believe in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour that we are moved thereby to repent of our sins and cast our Souls on him for Pardon and then we have spiritually communicated already we have obtained the benefits and perfected the designs of this Sacrament and done that internally and nakedly by Faith which is more solemnly effected in the Mysteries themselves To which there is no better preparation than such a repetition of our Holy Faith The Paraphrase of this Creed Sect. 4. I confess with my mouth and believe with my heart in one God a pure and infinite Spirit distinguished into three Persons the first of which is God the Father declared to be Almighty as he is the Maker of Heaven and Earth Creator of the whole World and all things contained in any part thereof both visible as all bodily substances on Earth and invisible as spiritual beings and Angels in Heaven And I also believe firmly in one Lord Iesus Christ the second Person of the glorious Trinity who is not as Angels or Men the adopted but the only begotten Son of God not created in time but begotten of his Father from all Eternity before all Ages of the Coelestial or Terrestrial Worlds Of the same nature with his Father God begotten of God after a mysterious and spiritual manner as Light is kindled of Light not diminishing his Fathers substance and yet being very God of very God derived not as the Creatures for he was begotten and not made and is equal to God being of one nature and substance with the Father and of the same dignity and power for he is that Eternal Word by whom all things were made out of nothing I believe also it was this very Son of God who passing by the fallen Angels for us Men and for the effecting of our Salvation and deliverance out of the state of sin and death in which we miserably lay came down unto this Earth from Heaven and left his glory for he took our nature and was incarnate by assuming a body of flesh like ours only without sin because it was conceived by the overshadowing of the Holy Ghost in the Womb of the Virgin Mary so though he was still very God yet he took the form of a servant And was made Man living holily and working Miracles till at last he was unjustly condemned and was crucified also with intolerable torments to satisfie Gods justice for us and all Mankind who were become liable to Damnation which cruel Death he endured under Pontius Pilate the Roman President by whose unjust sentence he suffered till he was really dead and was buried and yet when he had paid the full price of our Redemption The third day after his Crucifixion by his divine power he rose again to life according to all those Prophecies and Types of him before recorded in the Scriptures After which he conversed with his Disciples fourty days and ascended in their sight into Heaven where he is restored to all his glory and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father interceeding for us And he shall come again at the end of the World with glory and Millions of Saints and Angels to judge all men according to their works both the quick then living and the dead who departed never so long since whereupon the wicked shall be condemned to endless Torments and the righteous received to immortal joy by the same Jesus whose Kingdom shall then fully begin but shall have no end but remain for ever and ever And I believe most firmly in the Holy Ghost the third person of the glorious Trinity who is also very God the Lord and giver of grace and all spiritual Life who is not made nor begotten but proceedeth from the Father and the Son yet is not less in dignity as who with the Father and the Son in all Offices of the Church together and in the same manner is worshipped and glorified being the inditer of holy Scriptures and he who spake by the Prophets in the Old Testament and by the Apostles in the New And finally I believe that the whole body of Christian people holding the right Faith do make one Catholick and Universal True and Apostolick Church in which Society I acknowledge there are great priviledges viz. One Baptis◠instituted by Christ not only as a sign of but a means for the remission of all those sins which we are guilty of when we enter into this Covenant Wherefore being my self baptized I hope for pardon and grace in this life And I look for and expect that my body though after Death corrupted and turned to dust shall be restored to life in the Resurrection of the Dead at the last day and I hope then for a Portion in glory and the life Everlasting and that I shall Reign in the blissful Kingdom of the World which is to come after this is utterly dissolved Amen Lord be it unto me according to my Faith Amen § 4. The Sermon which is here to follow comes not within the Method we have proposed so that we shall only note that it was appointed by Antiquity there should be Sermons i Concil 6. Constant can 19. Concil Mogunt can 25. or Homilies k Concil Vasense can 4. an Christi 460. every Lords Day especially when the Lords Supper was Administred l Acts 20.7 Post lectionem legis prophetarum Epistolarum c. Ordinatus-alloquatur populum verbis Exhortatoriis Const Apost c. 4. Leo. 1. Serm. 2. de Pasch Aug. confes l. 3. cap. 3. and surely this is the fittest place since the Sermon is either an explication of some Article of the Creed preceeding or an exhortation to the following duty of Charity But I do earnestly wish that when there is a Communion the Minister would sute his Discourse to that occasion for to treat of another subject then although otherwise never so good will too much divert the minds of those whose careful preparation hath composed their thoughts for this Ordinance whereas if the Sermon be chiefly tending to raise them still into a higher strain of Devotion for their communicating it will be a word spoken in due season Prov. 15.23 and rarely improve their Souls then made tender by Repentance and much more apt to receive impressions from all representations of the love of Christ and the means of our Union with him Yet withal the people must now hear with extraordinary attention and receive with great affection these holy Instructions and Exhortations drawn from the Word of
them in their want He shall receive an hundred fold for it He may be confident it shall be paid him again with large interest both on Earth and in Heaven Mark 10.29 30. And who would not wish for such a Creditor § 20. Psalm 41.1 Finally let us only be liberal and we are here assured that we shall not stay for our reward till the next World but that we shall find the benefit of our Charity as soon as ever we begin to need it Paraphrase Blessed and happy shall be te Man that out of a charitable heart z Vatab. marg Qui prospicit agroto provideth for the necessities of the sick and weak in body and considereth and relieveth the wants of the Poor and needy in Estate As his bounty delivereth those poor Creatures in their Calamity so The Lord of Heaven who sees and remembers all such Deeds shall deliver him most readily when he also shall be poor or sick or fallen into any straits in the time of trouble a Visitatio aegrotorum liberat à gehennà RR. God will then think of him and be his surest Comfort *** If the Congregation be large and the Alms long in gathering thou mayst profitably read all or most of these Sentences to enlarge thy heart and quicken thy Charity if the offering be short yet read some of them before it come to your turn and then prepare your own Oblation and the next Section will teach you how to present it § 5. As these Divine Parcels of Holy Writ do move us to Charity and Alms-deeds at all times so especially at the receiving of this blessed Sacrament for which I will now suppose thou hast prepared a large gift according to thy ability and art ready to offer the same with a chearfui countenance and a joyful heart b Offertorium enim olim cantari notant Rupert de divin off c 2. Isidor de Eccl. offic l. 1. c. 14. ut â—im in esse vide 1 Chron. 29 9. 2 Chron. 29.27 28 29. As an acknowledgment of the bounty of the Father who gave thee all that thou hast c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Liturg. S. Chrysost 1 Paral. 29. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Philo. and of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ who though he was rich became poor that thou through his Poverty mightest be rich Look not therefore on the By-standers but lifting up thy Soul to God and bowing down thy head cast in thy mite into this Treasury with these or the like thoughts O Lord I give thee a small part of thine own who hast given me all my Earthly Comforts yea thy own Son out of thy bosom to become my Salvation and hast not disdained to adopt me an heir of thy Glories Oh that I could give a thousand times more thy love deserves it but this alas I give not as a requital of thy favour but a testimony how much more I owe unto thee but my Charities cannot extend to thee who needest nothing only sweetest Jesus I do gladly embrace my poor Brethren thy Friends whose Souls thou hast purchased with thy dearest blood and made them with me Heirs of the same glory I rejoice that thou accepted so small a matter to them as done to thy own self Behold therefore I beseech thee a Soul so sick and leprous poor and naked that it needs thy mercy more than the miserablest Creature in the World my Charity Oh how many and how earnest Prayers do I need Could I engage all the poor on Earth whose Prayers soonest pierce the Clouds I need all this and much more to make way for mine acceptance But O my Saviour this is a Day of grace in which thou scatterest thy bounties Wherefore remember my Soul which is undone without thy pitty and since thy mercies are infinitely greater than ours Lord do not pass me by Far be it from me to think so meanly of thy love as to esteem my Alms the purchase of it No no I do only by this small token give thee the Livery and Seisin of me and all mine and having vowed to pursue a more plorious interest and to seek thy Kingdom I do renounce the riches of this World which I will never value more than as they may serve to relieve thy members and mak me friends that I may be received into everlasting habitations Oh happy exchange and admirable way of Gain But so thou art wont to deal with us O God to accept trifles from us and give glories to us great and endless and inexpressible I adore thee O my Lord and I love thee infinitely and because no Earthly gift can bear proportion to such unspeakable goodness I will give my Soul also and it shall be thine for ever Amen SECT VII Of the Prayer for the whole Church § 1. AS the people of Israel were wont to bring their gifts and Sacrifices to the Temple and by the hands of the Priest to present them to Almighty God So are we appointed to give our Oblations into the hands of the Minister of Christ who by vertue of his Office may best recommend them with Prayers and Praises to the Majesty of Heaven and yet we must not neglect to join with him in these Supplications both to beg the acceptance of our offering and to shew that our Charity extendeth further than our Alms can reach for the benefit of these is received only by a few of our Neighbours but we ought to love all the World especially our Christian Brethren a Sapientes sapientibus etiam ignotis Amicos esse dixerunt Stoici ap Cicer even those who do not need or cannot have profit by our gifts And how can we express this better than by recommending them all to the mercies of God who is able to relieve them all and of whose bounty all have need Which excellent Duty though it be to be done daily yet at this Holy Sacrament it is most proper because we here behold the Universal love of Jesus and are declared lively Members of his Mystical body and conjoined in the strictest bonds of Union with all our fellow Christians Besides when can we more effectually intercede with God for the whole Church than when we represent and shew forth that most meritorious Passion on Earth b Eucharistia est commemoratio sola quae propitium facit Deum hominibus Orig. Hom. in Lev. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Dionys Ep. ad Demoph by the vertue whereof our great High-Priest did once redeem and doth ever plead for his whole Church even now that he is in Heaven This Sacrament therefore hath been accounted the great Intercession and accordingly all the antient Liturgies did use such universal Intercessions and Supplications while this Mystery was in hand and in the time of St. Cyril there was a Prayer used c Super illa propitiationis hostia obsecramus Deum pro communi Ecclesiarum pace pro tranquillitate Mundi pro Regibus pro
sees that this Plea is often feigned because few men are so intangled in the World as not to be able upon a Weeks notice to gain a day or two of leisure do not these very men contrive to have some portions of their time for Recreations and Visits for Feasts and discourse with their Friends but if their Prince or their Patron should send notice of their coming they would throw all away to prepare for them or if they received intelligence of a cheap purchase or a good Bargain a few days were easily spared to accomplish those concerns and why have they no time nor leisure for this Sacrament They could not be always so busie at the Sacrament but that instead of contriving their occasions so that they may come God knows that many chuse and design to make appointments just then that so they may have this poor Apology And for the Company that is with us if they be good they will attend us to the Holy Table if but civil they will not hinder us if they perceive we are resolved to receive but if they do keep us back they are neither our Friends nor Servants of God and so no matter for their anger nor shall we lose by their going away it is not therefore our Company that hinders us only we use it to palliate our sloth and wicked aversation Secondly It is always frivolous for if we be now so busie I wonder when we shall be at leisure the World saith not yet the flesh saith the next Sacrament but the Devil saith never and both the former come to this at last for if we will not receive till we are so at leisure as that we have no real business nor can pretend any we shall never receive at all will not Satan find us imployment or excuses think you against the next Communion if he can so keep us off we may be sure to be deprived of this Holy Feast for ever We do more easily allow an excuse now because we hope to come to the next y Qui non meretur quotidiè accipere non meretur post annum accipere Aug. in Math. 6. but how can we expect to live to another opportunity who have so lightly contemned this May not Death seize us before the next Sacrament and then we shall in vain bewail our neglect and curse that business that prevented the minding the Salvation of our Souls Thirdly It is sometimes Impious To say we will not come because we are busie is to cast a great contempt upon this Divine Mystery and is as if we said we will come when we have nothing else to do for if we know but of a Market or an Entertainment an opportunity of merriment or recreation we cannot attend at this Heavenly Feâ—st Do we not witness to all the World that we love our Body better than our Souls our Friends more than God and Earth more than Heaven If we had a due esteem for spiritual things is there any business so necessary as to repent so profitable as to make our peace with God so pleasant as to receive the pledges of his love Or do we think when we chuse the World and leave the Sacrament that the concern which we pretend can make us amends for the loss of our Souls It is plain such persons think Months and Years too little for their affairs and pleasures but as many hours are too much â—o spare to remember Christs love and that they will despise the greatest benefits to their Souls rather than lose the least earthly advantage or delight So that these excuses are so far from being accepted by God that they make the fault worse and discover the Person that useth them to be ordinarily an Hypocrite and despiser of holy things a stupid Worldly wretch and therefore either let us bring a better excuse than this or not dare to stay away for this is nothing before God who knows we might contrive our affairs so as to come if we had a desire to partake hereof § 7. If any man say I am a grievous Sinner and therefore am afraid to come Wherefore then do ye not Râ—pâ—nt and amend The ground of both these objections is an undeniable Truth viz. that unless we have leisure and time to prepare and are in some degrees penitent it is not fit to come to the Holy Sacrament but when we draw false Conclusions from these premises meerly to hide our negligence the consequence is only the more taking and more mischievous because it seems to be deduced from a Truth And if we be wise and careful of our own Salvation we must not rely upon them how specious soever they seem till we have duly examined them As for this second pretence of staying away because of our sinfulness it is alledged by three sorts of Persons First By the scrupulous who think it is humility and a high esteem of this Ordinance that makes them stay away they pretend they are unworthy of it and shew more fear of God and Reverence to the Sacrament because they do not or dare not come to it But sure as St. Ambrose notes z Sed aiunt se Domino deferre reverentiam Quis est qui magis honorat qui mandatis obtemperat an qui resistit Ambr. de poen l. 1. c. 2. it is an odd way to express their Reverence to God by flying from his embraces and living in the neglect of his plain Commands Our Saviour saith Do this Luke 22.19 and if they did honour him as the Centurions Servant did his Master they would do it Math. 8 9. Can any that truly fears Gods displeasure be so confident while they disobey a plain Precept if they were rightly informâ—d they should be as much afraid to stay from the Communion so carelesly as to come unworthily I confess these are dreadful mysteries but it is to the Impenitent and Persevering Sinner whose condition is fearful in it self and every Page in Scripture is terrible to such but why then saith the Church do ye not Repent and turn your scrupulous abstaining into a penitent address and then hâ—re is nothing dismal in this Holy Feast for there are none condemned for unworthy receiving but such as deserve it for other Iniquities and continuing in them had been sentenced if they had never come hither Bullinger complains of the Anabaptists in his time that they had made so many scruples about the Lords Supper and represented this lovely and comfortable Ordinance so horrible as to scare many good and tender Persons from the use of it a Hâc ratione Coenam domini amabilem gaudio plenam horribilem tristem faciunt ac aditum ad eam adeo coarctanâ— ut pii quoque homines ab eâ abhorreant adv Anabap lib. 6. cap. 9. But let our reverence to this holy Communion be shewed rather by diligent preparation than captious scruples for God will never cast any man into Eternal Flames for striving to
their meat in due season Math. 24.45 For this Cause the Antient Church appointed the Priests in great Cities to have a Communion every Day so that devout people might always find the Table spread whensoever they hungred after this Bread of Life and in such places our own Church still makes monthly preparations and also sends the Minister to the Altar upon every great Festival on purpose to mind the people that he is ready if they were so also But when the Table is actually spread methinks we should need no other Oratory than those holy Symbols to invite us did we know our need of that food and were we acquainted with the pleasures of that Celestial Banquet we should be attracted with the very sight of the Elements and long yea languish to participate of them and sure they upbraid those wretches who go away and turn their backs upon them but there are some who cannot or will not hear this still voice and therefore the Minister doth once again ex officio invite us in the Name of God who is the great Master of this Feast and in the behalf of Christ who is the precious food there provided beseeching us that we will not by neglecting affront the great God and slight his dear Son and further exhorting us by the most cogent Argument viz. for our own sakes as we love our Souls as we fear to be Condemned and wish for Salvation that we will come Cicero thought a man might as soon run away from himself as lose the desire after those things which conduced to his own happiness h Prius à se poterit quispiam discedere quam appetitum earum rerum quae sibi conducunt amittere lib. de fin 5. But we have some so wretched who know there is no Salvation but by the Sacrifice of Christs Death and no so proper and ready way to get an interest in that Sacrifice as to eat of the remainders thereof in Faith and yet are hardly perswaded by the most pressing invitations But let us Consider that by frequent and long omissions our devotion grows flat our purposes wavering our Faith weak and our Corruptions strong the Enemy gets ground of us and the Spirit begins to withdraw from us i Mens deficit quamnon recepta Eucharistia erigit ac accendit Cypr. Ep. 54. ad Cor. so that if we would go safely to Heaven we must not too long neglect this holy Sacrament § 11. And as the Son of God did vouchsafe to yield up his Soul by Death upon the Cross for your Salvation so it is your duty to receive the Communion in remembrance of the Sacrifice of his Death as he himself hath Commanded Although we be by Gods Embassadors strongly intreated to come to this Holy Feast yet we must not think it left to our choice to hearken or to disobey for if they should not invite us we are obliged to come hither by the strongest Bonds of reason and duty For if Jesus thought our Salvation worth his Death do we think it too dear of a little preparation is he willing to bleed for our sins and are we not willing to weep for them shall he yield up his Soul in the midst of the most dolorous agonies and will not we yield up our Lusts and come to remember his love in this Holy Sacrament Our Saviour hath satisfied the divine Justice obtained a Pardon and done his part towards our Salvation but our part is still behind viz. to sue out this pardon in the Commemoration of his Death and in this Communion of his Body and blood to apply his merits by Faith to our own Souls And that we should Do this was one of his last and dying Commands Luke 22.19 1 Cor. 11.25 and is it not our duty to obey it How wretched then are we if we refuse to kneel and extend our hand for this Pardon which was purchased at so vast a price How unworthy are we to have any part in this Redemption if we disobey so small a Command and deny so easie a Request of so dear a Master His last Precept was to keep the memorial of the last Act he did for us on the Earth and sure it is our duty never to let that be forgotten § 12. Which if ye shall neglect to do Consider with your selves how great injury ye do to God and how sore punishment hangeth over your Heads for the same If we be resolved in spite of all this still to neglect this divine Ordinance the Minister can do no more than sadly tell us First the grievousness of our sin Secondly The greatness of our danger First We are desired to consider the sin which is called a great injury to God even as we esteem it to our selves when our Guests slight our invitation § 4. 'T is true we cannot properly injure God Job 35.6 by taking away any of his essential happiness Yet because we owe Obedience to him as our Soveraign Lord we are said to wrong him of his due k Debitum contrahitur quoties delinquitur quod debitum solvi in gehennâ quandoque necesse est Aug. Serm. 126. de Temp. Creditor est qui minus quam quod suum est habet vel voluntario ut in mutuatione vel involuntariò ut in Criminibus Vide Grot. de sat Chris c. 2. when we refuse to observe his Commands And in this Case let us consider before we resolve not to come that hereby we shall rob our God of this solemn part of his worship reject a plain and loving command despise the Passion of his dear Son slight his provision refuse his invitation grieve his Servants by such rash and obstinate denials and perhaps bring an evil report upon the Ordinance it self when men see we must be dragged to it The Sacrifices of the Erecynian Venus came of their own accord to the Altar saith Aelian hist anim l. 10. c. 1. But we are forced hither as to a slaughter house is not this a great injury to the Master of this divine Feast But secondly The mischief in fine lights upon our own heads for no man provoketh this King but in so doing he sinneth against his own Soul Prov. 20.2 God is just as well as merciful and severe to revenge the abuses of his love He will not always pass by this scorn nor put up these affronts but punish us perhaps temporally with losses and crosses sickness or an evil Death which careless neglecters deserve as well as unworthy receivers 1 Cor. 11.30 for so those Israelites who laughed at Hezekiahs invitation to the Passover 2 Chron. 30.10 were carryed into a sad Captivity within two years after 2 Kings 18.9 And we must not think presently we are safe because as yet none of these Judgments have seized on us for they may hover over our heads as the Arrow over Julians and at last pierce us to the heart but if we do escape a while l Si nunc omne
peccatum manifestâ plecteretur poenâ nihil ultimo judicio reservari putaretur si nullum puniret nec providentiam esse crederetur August de Civ Dei lib. 1. cap. 8. from temporal miseries he hath more secret and more sad means of punishing us by spiritual evils viz. by withdrawing his Spirit from us and letting loose Satan on us by giving us up to a hard heart and a reprobate mind and finally he can send us into those Regions of sorrow where the extremity of the torments will sufficiently make amends for the deferring of the Execution Oh consider this ye that forget God and do not by doing this injury to him bring the greatest misery upon your selves for all this vengeance is due to you while you live in wilful neglect of this blessed Sacrament § 13. When ye wilfully abstain from the Lords Table and separate your selves from your Brethren who come to feed on the Banquet of that most Heavenly food We must carefully distinguish those who absent themselves from the Lords Supper or else we shall condemn the righteous with the wicked for this great sin and heavy judgment belongs only to those who wilfully m 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 est quod nec provideri potuit nec improbo sit animo à 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod provideri potuit non tamen fit improbo animo 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 quod destinatò impâ—obo sit animo Arist de art Orator do abstain There are some who forbear once or twice and are not guilty viz. if they be under the Censures of the Church or of their own Conscience and cannot yet make their peace if they are labouring for the pardon of some lately committed sin if they be prevented by sickness or surprized by indispensable business but such must with the pious Emperour Theodosius look toward the Church with sad hearts wishing they might receive and accounting the poorest Creatures there happier than themselves lamenting the occasion of their present exclusion and being never satisfied until they can prepare and have another opportunity and such will come with the greater appetite to the next Communion But those who wilfully abstain are such as stay away from time to time and are glad of any excuse for it who secretly wish they were never obliged to come at all and contrive to miss the opportunity and will not be perswaded nor convinced it is these wretches who do first so grievously offend God as was shewed before and of whom it is said now Secondly they sin against their Brethren by a wicked separation for this Ordinance is the badge of a Christian and designed to make us all one body and bind us together in the Bonds of Charity They therefore that will not receive it do cast away Christs badge and cut themselves off from the body of the Church and refuse to be bound in the Bonds of Love indeed they declare themselves no Members of this blessed Society who may say to such absenters as St. Peter to Simon Magus Acts 8.21 Ye have neither part nor lot with us in this matter Now how evil a thing this is may appear in that they do what they can to discourage men from receiving and to breed scruples in the minds of those who do Communicate yea to cast a disgrace upon the Ordinance it self But let them beware of cutting themselves off from those who are the Members of Christ and so from their part of eternal life since it is just to shut them out from the Communion of Saints in Heaven who never would Communicate with them on Earth There are many holy Persons who do participate but these do not and so are in a contrary way if good men do well to come why do they not follow them if they be in the way to Heaven the absenters are going I fear to a worse place It may be there are some wicked persons who are crowded into these mysteries and some pretend they stay away because of them But let us beware of the Pharisees Pride Isai 65.5 in bidding men stand off for we are holier than they the best men despise none and usually think themselves the worst of all and how do we know but they may be begun to be changed by Gods grace however we are not judges but the Church our duty is to fit our selves not to make all others so We are to wish that all the Congregation were holy but if all be not we must not lose our part in Gods Ordinances because an Esau or Judas may be there if we be not like these persons in their Sin we shall not fare the worse for them God can distinguish though we sit never so near in place if we be distant in our qualities he will accordingly dispense his favours We must converse with such sometimes in the World where there is more danger they should infect us but here perhaps our devotion may do them good but their guilt can do us no harm § 14. These things if ye earnestly consider ye will by Gods grace return to a better mind for the obtaining whereof we will not cease to make our humble Petitions unto Almighty God our Heavenly Father Were the sin and danger of neglecting this Holy Sacrament duly considered there would be fewer offenders in this kind and if we have been guilty therein whatsoever we have deserved for former omissions it appears our estate is not yet desperate because God hath spared us and given us this one invitation more it is likely we heard this Exhortation but slightly before and resolved not to come however but if we will weigh it seriously now and beg the help of Gods grace there is no doubt but we may repent and amend For we are herein courteously invited and earnestly pressed to come our scruples are satisfied our excuses shewed to be vain our duty is made evident and our peril of neglecting it fully expressed so that nothing but obstinate purposes to despise Reason and Example the Injunctions of God and the request of our well-wishers can after this keep us back It had been just in God to have cut you off before but since he still calls God forbid that we Ministers should sin in ceasing to pray for you 1 Sam. 12.23 notwithstanding all the denials you have given us since our Master forbears we will exhort you earnestly and pray heartily for you still to him who is Almighty to subdue your obstinacy and our Heavenly Father who is apt to pitty poor Sinners and if you join your Prayers to ours and consider as well as pray we are confident the success will be that you shall lay aside your idle excuses and both resolve to come to the Sacrament and be careful to prepare for it so shall all your former contempt be forgiven and your present addresses be accepted to your endless comfort Amen PARTITION II. Of the more immediate Preparation SECT I. Of the Exhortation at the Communion §
pit He saw us wretched and miserable lying hopeless and helpless reserved in Chains of Darkness to the judgment of the great Day and then he had Compassion on us and broke our Bonds in sunder But there is one step higher still 4. Let us behold the noble design and happy consequence of this Deliverance he hath not only snatched us from the flames of Hell but made us Heirs of Heaven not only pacified our offended Judge but engaged him to become our most gracious Father so that he owns us for his Friends adopts us for his Children and intends us to be partakers of his endless joys We are taken from our Dungeon into the Family of God from his Bar into his Bosom and advanced to be like unto the Angels in glory and immortality Oh the heigth and length the depth and breadth of the love of Christ Who can sufficiently admire it that so great a Majesty should stoop so low and suffer so much for so poor and so evil-deserving wretches with purpose to advance them to so blessed a condition this is a subject fit for an Angels Song-Praise the Lord oh my Soul and let all thy powers be acted with such love and wonder that thou maist break forth into all the expressions of joy that admiration and gratitude can inspire thee with Glory be to thee O Lord most high § 9. And to the end that we should always remember the exceeding great love of our Master and only Saviour thus dying for us and the innumerable benefits which by his precious blood-shedding he hath obtained to us he hath instituted and ordained holy mysteries as pledges of his love and for a continual remembrance of his Death to our great and endless comfort Our merciful and gracious Lord hath so done his marvellous works that they ought to be had in remembrance Psal 111.3 but especially this work of our Redemption which to forget were an ingratitude baser than Heathens or Publicans ever knew Math. 5.46 and might almost compare with the Cruelty of his Murtherers Is it not our greatest comfort and our highest honour that we were thus redeemed by such a Saviour Can we forget that precious blood which was the price of our Souls and the purchase of Heaven by which we obtain benefits more than we can number greater than we can sufficiently apprehend Pardon and peace the love of God and the service of Angels Victory over Satan and the Conquest of Death the Conversion of Souls and the fruition of glory do all spring from it with many many more The Choire of Heaven bless God for it and Eternity is designed to sing the glory of this excellent love which had no pattern hath no parallel nor ever can it fully have an imitation John 15.13 Rom. 5.7 8. And is it possible now that those for whom all this was done should ever forget so rare a mercy or neglect so cheap d Qui meminit sine impendio gratus est Sen. so mean a return as to Commemorate it with thanksgiving Reason would deem this impossible but experience alas shews it is too frequent and both good and bad do more or less let slip the memory hereof Wherefore the holy Jesus found it necessary to appoint this Sacrament to be the Worlds Remembrancer therein It hath been the Custom of all Nations to preserve the memory of their Hero's and to perpetuate their deliverances by appointing publick Games and Festivals thus Cities commemorate their Founders and the Sects of Philosophers their first Authors yet all these being of humane Institution are soon apt to decay and beside they are without advantage to the Souls of men But our Lord hath appointed a Commemoration of his Death and our Salvation that shall as far out-last as it doth outvy them all A Coelestial Banquet and worthy of so great so divine an Author Which doth at once represent our Saviours Passion before us and convey its benefits to us it demonstrates his love confirms our Faith mortifies our Lusts it makes us like to Jesus and one with him And how can we have more evident pledges of his favour He knew we were apt to forget him and then we grow cold and dull exposed to our Enemies and open to all mischief wherefore he hath contrived these mysteries that we might neither want the comfort of remembring his holy Passion nor the benefit of sharing in the merits of it He had given himself for all before but now he gives himself to every particular Soul Let us then take care duly to receive these Tokens of his endless love and they shall begin a joy which shall never cease till our Lord in person shall appear in all his glory and by the brightness of his presence remove all these Vails and Coverings and give us leave to see him face to face § 10. To him therefore with the Father and the Holy Ghost let us give as we are most bounden continual thanks submitting our selves wholly to his holy will and pleasure and studying to serve him in true holiness and righteousness all the days of our life Amen By this time surely we begin to be melted with these vigorous manifestations of the love of Christ and our affections big with gratitude and admiration begin to struggle within us for therefore is this representation made that we might remember it and remembred that we might celebrate it with Hymns and Eucharist My heart is ready O God saith the pious Soul My heart is ready Psal 108.1 Most seasonably therefore doth the Priest invite us to Praise the Lord with him just now and summon us to this excellent duty almost in the very words of St. Paul Heb. 13.15 We have seen the everlasting love of the Father the unspeakable kindness of the Son the incomparable grace of the Holy Ghost and our own infinite Obligations Let us therefore all join in offering up all possible Praise and Glory let us begin the Office with it that it may warm our hearts and dispose them for all the following parts thereof And let us worship the blessed Trinity with such sincere and hearty thanksgivings that the Choire of Communicants may be a little Emblem of that of Angels with this only difference that they openly behold that which we discern by Faith but both they and we rejoice in it with joy unspeakable and full of glory But because when we have done all we can we shall come far short we must resolve not only to make a few praises in this highest part of our Devotion but to perpetuate the duty to our lives end for our very life is too short and all our Thanksgiving too narrow to celebrate these mercies let us strive therefore to imprint the love of Jesus so deeply in our minds that the memory thereof may never depart from us but be ever in us and always dispose us to bless the Lord at all times in all places and upon all occasions And further since no praises
the Tenth concerning the Virgin Mary not till the year 1095. But our prudent Reformers have retained only five of the most ancient which are concerning the principal Acts of Christ His Incarnation Resurrection Ascension and sending of the Holy Ghost all which we may very properly bless God for over this Commemoration of his Passion because they are either the Precedents to his Death or the consequents thereof only that of the Holy Trinity is added both as it is a fundamental Article of our Faith and a great mystery and because many Sundays are reckoned by it Now for the use of these we must note that as the greater Feasts of the Jews continued seven or eight days so these Prefaces are to be repeated some days after the great day to which they principally belong both that the mercy may be better remembred by often repetition and also that all the people who in many places cannot Communicate in one day may join in praising God for it Which being the great end of them the best method to promote that and fit the receivers with peculiar praises for these solemnities will be to ground a devout Meditation upon every one of these Prefaces proper for those who do partake of the mysteries at any of these Times A Meditation for the Communion at Christmas § 9. Welcome thrice blessed Day the desire of all Nations whose distant glories made the Father of the faithful to rejoice and whose approaches fill'd the World with wonder and expectation thou wert ushered in with Angelick Hymns and celebrated ever since with Anthems of praise because thou didst bring forth joy and a Redeemer to Mankind Happy am I that I have a Sacrifice of Thanksgiving in my hand to express the delight which my heart doth feel This holy Table is the Altar upon which I offer my acknowledgments for all mercies and oh how many how great are those which this day brings to my remembrance so infinite they cannot be expressed and yet so excellent they must not be forgotten This day hath reconciled Heaven and Earth and made contradictions friends to find a way to help us as if nothing might disagree when man was at peace with God O my Soul summon all thy powers to admire and worship for all is Miracle and the height of Wonder Eternity begins to be the Maker of all is made himself an infinite Majesty is shrunk into the dimensions of a span The word is made flesh and God becomes Man yet remains God still Here is a Mother who knew no man a Son that had no Father on Earth a Child of Adam untainted with the Cantagion that infects all his Posterity an Infant honoured with a new and glorious Star adored by Kings worshipped by Angels yet born in the condition of the meanest fortune All hail sweetest Saviour how lovely is thy condescension how honourable thy abasement thou hast more splendor in the Rags of thy Humility than all the Grandeurs of this World could give thee thou art more a King because thou wouldst be like a slave for our sakes and conquerest more hearts by thy stupendious love and unparallel'd self-denyal O how shall I celebrate this great Solemnity wherewithal shall I set forth my gratitude for this most auspicious Day I will receive the Cup of Salvation and with ravishments of delight feast upon that precious Body and Blood which Jesus did this day assume for me It is not enough dearest Lord that thou wast born for me unless thou art also born again in me and as it were become incarnate in my heart In thy Birth thou wast made one with us thou didst put on flesh and wert a partaker of our humanity And thou hast appointed this holy Sacrament that I might be one with thee be replenished with thy Spirit and a partaker of thy divine nature Nor is it any incongruity if I remember thy Passion and praise thee for thy Incarnation at once for as soon as thou wast born thou didst begin to die and the life which was here begun compared to that glorious life which thou didst leave was it self a very Death but therefore thou wast born that thou mightest be capable to suffer that death for us which thy Divinity could not feel and thus thy Nativity was the first Scene of thy Passion for it introduced thy Death and that effected our Salvation so that I will remember both together For in both thou hast most admirably humbled thy self to the depth of misery and yet I doubt not but thou wouldst have stooped lower if it had been either necessary or possible But there needs no more testimonies of thy love Blessed Jesus I am already overwhelmed with these which are so strange and undeserved so sweet and ravishing that my Soul could not contain if it did not vent it self in thy Praises Therefore with Angels c. A Meditation for the Communion at Easter § 10. O my soul adorn thy self with the garments of gladness prepare thy most triumphant Hymns to go forth and meet this great returning Conqueror Thou didst rejoice when he was pleased to undertake the Combate and didst celebrate his entrance into the lists with Praises how then will it ravish thee to behold him come off with such success and honour His warfare is now accomplished and he hath passed through the scorn and cruelty of Men the malice and rage of Devils the just but severe anger of God yea the shaddow of Death and the Regions of Eternal horror and after all this thy Surety is set at liberty for he hath paid all thy Debts and cancelled all those dismal Bonds by which thou wert forfeited to eternal Ruine Thy Champion is Victorious and as the Trophees of his Conquest he hath the Keys of Death and Hell and leads them both in triumph vanquished and disarmed Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord We receive thee dearest Saviour as born to us a second time and this shall be thy Birth-day also the Nativity though not of our Emperor yet of thy Empire thy Restauration to a state of immortality Thy former Birth did shew thee to be the Son of Man but this declares thee to be the Son of God and now we know that our Redeemer liveth he that loved us so infinitely as to dye for us doth now ever live to interceed on our behalf he that expressed such kindness to us in his Passion hath so fully demonstrated his own Power in his Resurrection that we are sure he is as able as willing to deliver us Let the Heavens rejoice and the Earth be glad for this is the Day that the Lord hath made a day to be had in everlasting remembrance a Time destined to jubilee and rejoicing Behold how nature is raising it self from the grave of Winter and seems annually to celebrate the memory of her Lords Resurrection in her green and fresh attire A season chosen by God for Festival 3000. years ago and observed
Blessed Sacrament on purpose to purifie us and unite us unto our dear Redeemer Why then do we stand looking one upon another Gen. 42.1 and not rather look up to him that only can help us all will not our own necessities open our mouths nor his tender mercies incourage us to call upon him to give us grace that we may eat and live We do intend to eat but we had better not eat at all than not eat So k 1 Cor. 11.28 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So let him eat Psal 26.6 So will I compass c. as God requires and So as to be bettered thereby Now to the pure all things are pure but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure Titus 1.15 In vain therefore should we desire in the following Prayer of Consecration that these Elements should become the body and blood of Christ if we did not first pray that we might worthily receive them There must be a change in us or else though Christs natural flesh and blood were here and we should eat and drink thereof every day we could not partake of Christ l Qui discordat à Christo nec carnem ejus manducat nec sanguinem bibit etiamsi tantae rei sacramentum quotidiè indifferentèr accipiat Prosp sent 341. It is our eating with Faith and penitence love and holy purposes that makes it to be Christs body and blood to us most wisely therefore hath the Church ordered that before we pray for the Consecration of the Symbols we should desire to be Consecrated our selves Thus St. Ambrose in that Prayer said to be used by him before he Communicated saith O holy Bread which camest down from Heaven and givest life to the World come into my heart and cleanse me from all defilements of flesh and spirit enter into my Soul heal and sanctifie me within and without Let us consider the spots and stains the foulness and diseases with which our bodies and Souls are overspread and then behold this salutary and living Manna which hath power to restore us to an excellent purity and to make us amiable in the Eyes of God and then we shall heartily put up this Petition we shall hunger and thirst after it groan and long for it m Famelicus accedo ne recedam impastus si antequam comedam suspiro da vel post suspiria ut comedam August Med. c. 39. as it is reported St. Catherine was wont to do with the same passion that the Child doth for the Breast of its Mother Let us come then with most ardent desires and summon up all our Powers now the Angel is so near who makes our Bethesda Medicinal let us passionately cry out and say Lord hast thou set open this Fountain and wilt thou let a wretched Creature die for thirst in thy presence hast thou prepared such balm to heal me and shall I languish here before thee I know if thou wilt thou canst make me clean here is the very instrument in thy hand Grant therefore holy Jesus that I may duly apply it and rightly use it and then it shall prepare me for thee and unite me to thee by such inseparable Bonds as shall never break unless Eternity can have an end Blessed are they that So eat thy flesh and So drink thy blood So as thou requirest and So as thy Saints of old have done for they have been cleansed at this Fountain and here their Vnion with thee first began Oh happy season Excellent opportunity Lord let me do it well this once and I am thine for ever Amen The Paraphrase of the Address § 6. Holy God! thou mightest justly wonder to see so many grievous Sinners daring to come so near but We do not impudently rush upon these dreadful mysteries nor do we presume to come to this thy Table where Angels do attend as if we deserved this Honour O merciful Lord We do not approach trusting in our own Righteousness for alas we have done nothing which can bear that name but that which drew us hither was our confidence in thy manifold and great mercies which exceed our manifold and great offences And now that we are before thee we must still confess whatever favours thy goodness heaps upon us that we are not worthy by reason of our sinfulness and backslidings so much as with the Dogs to gather up the Crumbs which fall under thy Table not fit to receive the least mercies or measures of grace from thee much less to sit as guests before thy Majesty at this Heavenly Feast But yet we make bold to do this because thou art not to be changed by our sins being ever the same Lord whose property is to be unwearied with well-doing and never wanting in pity and thou art wont always to have mercy on those who confess their offences as we have done Grant unto us therefore gracious Lord by the present assistance of thy holy Spirit so to eat the flesh of thy dear Son Iesus Christ spiritually in this Sacrament and so to drink his blood as that we may receive all the benefits of his Cross and Passion even that our sinful and defiled bodies may be made clean by his holy and immaculate body and our Souls which are polluted in every faculty washed through his most precious blood which taketh away the sins of the World Let us be so wholly purifyed that we may now begin to be inseparably united to Jesus and that we by Faith may evermore dwell in him abiding in his love and that by his spirit he may dwell in us always Amen SECT II. Of the Prayer of Consecration § 1. AFter all this Preparation we need not ask with Isaac Gen. 22.7 where is the Lamb for the Burnt-Offering for God hath provided his own dear Son whose blood being already spilt is so efficacious and all-sufficient that there is now no need of any other but this unbloody Sacrifice a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Cyril cat Myst 5. incruentam oblationem Liturg. 5. Marci sacrificium absque sanguine Liturg. S. Basil to be offered and that in memorial of that great Sin-offering which taketh away the sins of the World 1 Pet. 2.5 And for this purpose Christ himself hath b Ille mirabilem quandam victimam pro nostra omnium salute obtulit memoriam nobis tradens loco sacrificii continuo offerendam Euseb praep Evang. l. 1. c. 10. appointed these Creatures of Bread and Wine ordaining that because they are designed to express so great a Mystery they shall have a peculiar Consecration The antient Greeks and Romans would not taste of their ordinary Meat and Drink till they had hallowed it by giving the first parts thereof to their Gods c Romani Graeci in convictu familiari ciborum particulis vino in ignem conjectis libamina Diis dabant Alex. ab Alex. gen dier l. 5. c. 21. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Porph. de abst l 2. c. 20. The
is given for you Our Heavenly Physician being about to cure the Diseases of our Souls having thus prepared the Remedy and presented it to us he doth first direct the use of it a Medicus non tantum curat sed etiam monet Sen. ep 94. and Secondly Tell us what it is We are not taught to carry it about to gaze at and to be adored but to Take and Eat it For Christ having made himself a Sin-offering for us desires that Sacrifice may be accepted as ours and would have us to share in the benefits thereof wherefore he hath made this a Peace-offering as the memorial of it and invited us to take and eat our Portion that so he may be one with us and we with him And when we hear him so lovingly call us to feast with God upon the remainders we may very fitly fall into these Contemplations There is indeed a mighty difference between the feeding of my Body and the refreshing of my Soul that which enters in by the mouth cannot of it self reach thither yet I am commanded when I come for spiritual relief to Take and Eat and I will not enquire but obey because he that prescribes this method can work wonders and at once satisfie both Body and Soul wherefore I will perform the outward part and at the same time lift up my Soul above these visible representations and being sensible of my offences against Heaven while my mouth is chewing the holy Bread my Faith b Quod esca est carni hoc animae fides Cypr. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Basil shall feast upon the satisfaction made by my Redeemers Passion until I find my Soul is nourished with the Joy the Peace and the Comfort which it draws from thence As he hath made his Oblation mine by his designing it for me so I will make it mine also by a particular application O strengthen my hand by a lively Faith and open my mouth by fervent desires so will I take and eat this and rejoice in so lively an Emblem which leads me into that within the vail and while I am performing the bodily part let my soul feel the spiritual efficacy of thy grace that I may not eat unworthily or to Condemnation Lord I feed upon thy love I lay hold upon thy Promises I will take and eat these as well as the material part if thou wilt please to enable me so to do Furthermore lest I should be mistaken and either not understand or not believe the true worth of this incomparable gift he is pleased to tell me what it is This is my Body saith he which is given for you and by that word he makes it to be so to every true Believer wherefore the Minister ought to pronounce this so reverently and so deliberately that the Communicants may have time to exercise their Faith because their senses cannot discover any material alteration For the true understanding whereof let me here digress a little for the satisfaction of such as are not prejudiced nor contentious We know how stifly the Roman Church contends for the literal exposition of this Text and what Tragedies have been acted upon those who did not so understand it but we have great reason to believe That our Saviour did not intend by these words to change the substance of the Bread and Wine into his natural Flesh and Blood For I. The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 This being Neuter cannot agree with 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Bread which is Masculine and it is very probable that our Lord did herein as in other things imitate that Phrase which the Jews used at the Feast of the Passover This is the Bread of affliction which our Fathers did eat c. and This is the Body of the Paschal Lamb which our Fathers did eat c. as the Talmud tract de Pasch declares For as that was not the very Bread nor the very Lamb yet they called it so because it did represent and continue the memorial of that and was used to the same purpose so in like manner He calls this his own Body who was the true Paschal Lamb because This Action doth signifie and remember it and by this Bread we are partakers thereof Secondly St. Paul the best interpreter of his Master expounds This is my Body and Blood by this is the Communion of my Body and Blood 1 Cor. 10.16 that is most plainly This blessed Bread is that which will make you partakers of Christs Body c. and 1 Cor. 11.26 he calls it no more but Bread even after the Consecration ver 24 25. And the same Apostle c Solet autem res quae significat ejus rei nomine quam significat nuncupari ut Petra erat Christus Hebraeis non signum Christi dicit Apostolus Aug. in Levit. Quaest 57. saith That Rock was Christ d 1 Cor. 10.4 not intending to make us believe the Rock was Transubstantiate but only that it was the figure and symbol of Christ and so might be called by his name Thirdly Nor did the most antient Fathers thus apprehend our Saviours meaning when they called this the Antitype of his Body the Type of a great Mystery the Figure of his Body and a Symbol called by the name of his Body e 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Nazianzen 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Cyril Mys cat 5. Hoc est corpus meum i. e. figura corporis mei Tertul. in Marc. l. 4. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 viz. Ego sum panis vitae 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 viz. Hoc est corpus meum Theod. Dial. cap. 8. and much more to this purpose Fourthly Nor will this opinion of Transubstantiation agree with the most antient Liturgies for in the most genuine part of them the Prayer of Consecration all those forms called from St. James St. Clement St. Basil and St. Chrysostome do pray after they have pronounced the words of Christ This is my Body that the Holy Spirit may descend and make that Bread so they still call it the Body and that Cup the Blood of Christ Yea in the Roman Church it self one of the most authentick parts of the Canon of the Mass hath these words That this Oblation may be made Vnto us the body and blood of thy most beloved Son our Lord Jesus Christ Which doubtless may be done without any real change in the Elements themselves Yea and in the last part of the Canon long after the Priest hath said Hâ—c est Corpus meum by which they suppose the substances to be changed they say Through Jesus Christ our Lord by whom thou dost always create sanctifie quicken bless and give us these good things Which words being only applicable to the Bread and Wine do shew f Haeretici hujus seculi rident hanc Canonis particulam eò quod post Consecrationem adjecta sit quasi ea verba intelligi nequeunt nisi de pane vino nam Corpus sanguinem Christi non
to you consider the sound of his Masters feet is behind him wherefore labour to express the same reverence both in Soul and Body as you would do if Jesus were visibly present with a train of glorious Angels say as the Primitive Christians did g Porro moris erat Communicaturis dum accipiebant Eucharistiam dicere Domine non sum dignus ut intres sub tectum meum Authore Origine hom 6. in divers ap Durant Lord I am not worthy thou shouldst come under my roof and at the sound of his words let you heart leap within you for joy and say whence is it that my Lord himself should come unto me and then according as you have opportunity you may from these very words be furnished with most pertinent Meditations Meditations before the receiving of the Bread §. 4. The Body of our Lord Iesus Christ An Act of Faith O Eternal word of God by whose power all things were made I will not ask how thou canst give me thy flesh to Eat because I am abundantly satisfyed in thy saying This is my Body since thou canst make it become to me whatsoever thou sayst it is h Oportet igitur non in sumptionibus Divinorum mysteriorum indubitatam retinere fidem non quaerere quo modo D. Bernar. I believe Lord help my unbelief What though my senses assure me the outward substance and its accidents still remain i Corporalis substantiae retinet speciem sed virtutis divinae invisibili efficientiâ probat adesse praesentiam Cypr. de coen Dom. Yet my Faith and my Experience tell me there is an efficacy therein beyond the power of any other thing Alas the flâ—sh would profit me nothing John 6.63 for he that is joined to thee must be one spirit 1 Cor. 6.17 O let these sacred Symbols therefore make me partaker of thy nature and a partner in thy merits let them unite me to thee ingraft me in thee and make that body mine which did suffer Death for me and then I shall seek no further but be more happy than if I could understand all mysteries Sure I am This is thy body in Sacrament it communicates to us the blessings and benefit thereof and though presented in a figure and by a holy Rite yet it is to all its purposes that which it doth represent I will therefore receive it as thy Body and esteem it infinitely above all other food that I may not be judged for not discerning thy Body O let it be unto me according to my Faith Amen An Act of Humility I am a sinful wretch O Lord and yet if I bid thee depart from me I banish all true happiness from my Soul I long for thy presence but how shall I entertain thee thou wast born of a pure Virgin wrapped in clean linnen laid in a new Tomb and dwellest now where nothing defiled can enter but never was there so unworthy an Apartment prepared for thee as my polluted heart into which I durst not presume to bring thee but that I know thou canst make it clean However when by Faith I see that Body which all the Angels of Heaven worship I cannot but abhor myself in Dust and Ashes I am amazed to see such a Majesty come to visit a Sin-sick Soul in so poor a Cottage yea I cannot but tremble at thy presence O thou King of Glory because I am so overspread with the filth of sin But I will lament those corruptions which I cannot fully purge away and beseech thee not to despise me though I do deserve it I do profess my self unworthy but thy condescension in stooping to me will be the more illustrious k Majoris enim pretii beneficium est quod praestatur indignis Salvian and if thou hast less delight in me for the present thou shalt have more glory by me afterwards when thou hast changed my vile body and made it like to thy glorious Body according to thy mighty Power Amen §. 5. Which was given for thee An Act of Love Holy Jesus I am not worthy to touch this blessed Body as it is thine yet I presume to approach because thy Love hath made it mine This is the Sacrifice for my Sins the price of my Redemption and that by which my Soul was ransomed from Hell and rescued from a dreadful Execution it was given for me and it shall now be given to me And hast thou prepared such a propitiation for me and offered it unto me which is dearer to thee than thousands of Gold and Silver Lord I am even ravished with thy Love and transported with affection to thee who hast regarded me a forlorn Creature and disappointed my Enemies that waited to see my fall Dear Saviour I will love thee with all my Powers and strive and pray that I may love thee more and more as fervently as ever any of thy Saints have done I will give my self unto thee and despise all other things in comparison of thee and when I have once tasted of this all-saving Sacrifice which was given for me I am perswaded that neither Life nor Death pleasure nor pain things prâ—sent or things to come shall ever be able to separate me from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord Amen §. 6. Preserve thy Body and Soul to Everlasting Life An Act of Desire O my Coelestial food the Bread that came down from Heaven how doth thy sweetness and my own necessities invite me My body alas is liable to temporal my Soul to Eternal Death and behold here is the Medicine of immortality which will remove the sting of the first and destroy the power of the second Death which will fill me with the graces which I want fit me for the glory which I desire and advance my Soul and Body above the power of Corruption I feel a mighty hunger created in me an Appetite kindled after these incomparable dainties which nothing but this Heavenly Manna can satisfie Behold I despise the meat which perisheth and feedeth for destruction and I long with a great impatience to taste of this Body of Christ of which I may eat and live for ever which will make the Grave unable to hold me and Hell not to dare to shut its mouth upon me O make no long tarrying but give me now and ever this Bread for I desire nothing but Christ and if I want this repast I shall faint or die before I come to the Mount of God A Meditation when the Bread is offered to us §. 7. Take and Eat this An Act of Admiration Whence is it that my Lord himself should come to me No sooner doth his voice sound in my ears but my heart within me leaps for joy Oh blessed tidings to my poor Soul almost famished with feeding on husks and vanity faint and languishing with grief and fear and behold thou sayst Take and Eat thou offerest thy self unto me and commandest me to feast upon thy own flesh
not sustained your fury ye had delivered me over to Everlasting Burnings I do abhor and detest ye all how dear soever you have been to me the sight of my bleeding Saviour hath stirred up my indignation against you and I will revenge his blood upon you by sacrificing you all at this Altar How can my Eyes but drop down tears of Contrition when they behold thee pouring forth Rivers of thy Blood but while I grieve to see thy bleeding wounds I must not forget for whom thou didst sustain them thy Blood was shed for me because my life was forfeited why art thou then so cast down O my Soul wilt thou dishonour that price by thy doubts and fears which God hath accepted for all the World cannot that Sacrifice which appeaseth the divine wrath satisfie thy Faith Be not afraid only believe and be assured he will not cast away those whom he hath bought at so dear a rate for thee it was shed for thee it is prepared open thy mouth wide and he will fill it §. 12. Preserve thy Body and Soul unto Everlasting Life An Act of Supplication O Lord I tremble at the apprehension of all those Evils that stand between me and thy glory behold the Grave gapeth for my Body the Infernal Pit threatens to swallow my Soul and Satan is ready were he permitted every moment to devour me wherefore I beseech thee sprinkle me with thy all-saving blood that the destroying Angel may pass over me let me drink of this Cup of Life and so shall my Body be free from Corruption and my Soul from Condemnation Death shall be defeated the Grave dismantled and Satan disappointed Let me drink of thy precious Blood that I may receive thereby abundance of thy Spirit so shall my Body be hallowed into a sacred Temple and my Soul shall be replenished with such Graces that I can never perish Sweetest Jesus how desireable are thy Provisions oh let us not always languish without them but pitty our dry and parched Souls and water them we intreat thee with these living streams for behold we thirst and long with a mighty Passion to drink of this Fountain of Life that we may not faint in our journey to those Rivers of pleasures which are at thy right hand Oh give us this divine Cordial at present and make it to us a Preservative for Body and Soul to everlasting life Amen A Meditation in the receiving of the Cup. §. 13. Drink this in remembrance that Christs blood was shed for thee An Act of Commemoration How chearing is this Cup to me Blessed Jesus which was so dreadful unto thee it was thy Agonies and thy Wounds which afforded me this Wine of Joy Thou didst find how bitter it was when thou wert appeasing an offended God but I tast how sweet it is now that thou hast made him a tender and reconciled Father I receive this Cup O my Saviour as a new plâ—dge of thy dearest love for from those pits whence these Rivulets did flow I can discern thy heart bleeding in pity to my misery and sick of Love And since thou dost here give me a right to that great expiation which thou hast made I do most humbly commemorate the same before the Father of Heaven as the full satisfaction for my innumerable debts and I will remember the dolours of thy Cross with a brisker sense than ever because thou hast made me drink of thy blood and given me thy Soul thy Life and thy Spirit so that now I will live no more but thou shalt live in me because we have mingled Souls and thou hast joined me to thy self by the Communications of thy Spirit O let nothing separate that which thou hast so graciously joined together A Meditation after the receiving of the Cup. §. 14. And be thankful An Act of Thankfulness and Resolution Praise the Lord O my Soul and all that is within me bless his holy name for now I find the Mercy and the Peace the Comfort and the Grace which flows from the Death of Christ let all the World know what he hath done for my Soul he hath rescued me and many of my poor Brethren round about me from the nethermost Hell wherefore I will love thee holy Jesus more than I can express and I will love them for thy sake And since thou hast given thy self thy merits and graces to me and sealed a New Covenant with me in thy own blood I do here bind my self by this sacred Cup to be sincerely thine m Mos est regibus quoties in societatem coeant implicare dextras pollicesque inter se vincire Mâ—x levi ictu cruorem eliciunt atque invicem lambunt id foedus arcanum habetur quasi mutuo cruore sancitum Tacit. Annal. lib. 12. I will spend my time and strength in thy service yea and Sacrifice my blood to bear witness to thy truth if ever thou callest me thereunto I will never betray nor forsake thee but live and die with thee for I have sworn and am stedfastly purposed to keep thy righteous judgments Oh let me never unhallow that body nor defile that Soul in which the Lord Jesus delights to dwell let no Oaths or lying prophane those lips no Obscenity or Intemperance pollute that mouth by which those holy Symbols have passed And methinks I feel new desires and new hopes my nature seems râ—newed my blood refined my Soul full of holy vigour blessed be thy name for it let thy mercy keep me in this happy temper till I have accomplished all my resolutions Amen § 15. By these and such like contemplations you must keep your minds imployed all the time that the Heavenly Banquet doth continue and if the Congregation be numerous and there be further opportunity the devout Soul will easily find more fuel to nourish these flames viz. by considering the necessities of all Mankind the Calamities of the Church the Miseries of the Sick the wants of the Poor the condition of our Relations Friends and Acquaintance and recommending them all with an effectual Charity to Almighty God through Christ Jesus As also by lamenting its own unworthiness and indispositions by recollecting all its present wants both spiritual and temporal by surveying the difficulties and dangers of that pious course now undertaken and by calling upon the Father of Mercies for grace and relief for courage and strength for support and protection in order to each of these So likewise by doing Acts of mental Charity to be put in Execution afterwards viz. Resolving for the sake of Jesus to forgive and do good to our Enemies to reprove Sinners instruct the ignorant help those that are in need And finally by contemplating of the wisdom and advantage of a holy Life the comfort and peace of a happy Death the joys and felicities of the life of Glory with the pleasures of those Souls that behold Jesus face to face these and many more which the good Spirit will offer we must improve
as much as the time will give us leave because to look about us or to unbend our thoughts while the Celebration is in hand is a sign of a carnal heart and a base spirit that is weary of conversing with God it is an affront to the blood of Christ it exposeth us to Satans malice and prepares us for evil suggestions which unguarded Souls fall into sooner here than elsewhere and to conclude it will make our Lord abhor us the Spirit forsake us and turn the Cup of Blessing into poison and a Curse Wherefore be very watchful that no evil or impertinent cogitation do divert you till the Post-Communion doth begin and then you must have no other imployment but to join with the Minister in that part of this holy Office also PARTITION IV. Of the Post-Communion SECT I. Of the Post-Communion in general and in particular of the Lords-Prayer § 1. IT is a rudeness in manners to depart from the House of our Friend as soon as the Tables are removed and an Act of Irreligion to rise from our common meals a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Porphyr de Essenis de abst lib. 4. Sect. 12. Gratias agere debent cum hymno à mensâ devenire Chrysos hom 83. in Math. without Prayer Thanksgiving How much more absurd and impious then were it for us to depart so abruptly from the Lords Table Our Church hath therefore here provided this concluding Banquet of Prayers and Praises imitating our Saviours Pattern who concluded his last Supper with that excellent Prayer John 17. as well as with that Hymn Math. 26.30 which is supposed to have been the Paschal Hallelujah and all Churches do finish this Heavenly Feast in like manner as the following particulars will demonstrate It is our part therefore to take care that the vigour of our devotion do not remit for we ought to perform these duties also with the same affections It is the first Testimony which we give of that Piety that we have vowed and if well done will be like the digestion and turning this Heavenly food into spiritual nourishment We do not eat our common meat only to please our palate but to support and strengthen our nature and to make us more fit for our imployment in like manner we do not partake of the Blessed Eucharist to put us into holy raptures at present only but to strengthen our Souls and put them into better frame for all Duties which we owe to Almighty God so that now we must give the first experiment of our having worthily received § 2. The Lords Prayer is placed in the first entrance upon this part of the Office both in imitation of Antiquity b Docuit Apostolos ut quotidiè in Corporis illius sacrificio credentes audeant loqui Pater noster Hieron in Pelag l. 3. Vid. Aug. ep 59. Greg l. 7. ep 63. and because it cannot any where be used more properly For having now been made partakers of Jesus and his Spirit it is fit the first words which we speak should be his as if not we but he lived and spake in us and surely these divine words can never be more effectual than when we have the blessed Author of them so fresh in our memories and have so lately set forth his most meritorious Death We have in this Sacrament received him and we know that unto as many as receives him he gives them power to become the Sons of God so that we may all with one heart and voice now say most chearfully Our Father and apply every Petition to the present occasion in this or the like manner The Paraphrase of the Lords-Prayer O Lord who hast now sealed our Adoption and made us Members of Christ we make bold to call thee Our Father and do lift up our hearts to thee which art in Heaven to bless thee for this mighty favour wishing that Hallowed and for ever blessed may be thy Name throughout all the World Thou hast made us thy servants now by grace therefore O let thy Kingdom of glory Come as soon as thou pleasest In the mean time since we have been fed with Angels food we pray that thy Will may be done by us thy servants in Earth as readily and as constantly as it is ever done by those blessed Spirits in Heaven We cannot distrust thy Providence for Earthly things since thou hast given us thy own Son and fed us with his Body and Blood wherefore we will only beseech thee to Give us this day so much as is necessary for our subsistence even our daily Bread to enable us to serve thee And â—orgive us by the merits of that prevailing Sacrifice now commemorated all our trespasses by which we have deserved that wrath which Jesus hath endured Lord pardon us therefore as we by thy Example in this Feast of love do freely forgive them that have done any trespass against us And do thou not only remit what is past but lest we lose our comfort and break our Vows O Lead us not neither suffer us to fall into temptation which we expect with more violence now that we have renounced the bondage of Satan But we trust in thee O Lord and call upon thee to deliver us from all Evâ—l temporal spiritual and Eternal * Note that the Doxology is here used because this part of the office is Eucharistical For thine is the Kingdom over all especially over us who have now sworn Allegiance unto thee Thou only hast the might and the Power to secure us And therefore to thee shall all the Praise and the Glory be given by Men and Angels for ever and ever O do thou therefore to these our requests say Amen that we may also join in thy Praises So be it SECT II. Of the first Prayer in the Post-Communion § 1. THat the Eucharist was always concluded with a Hymn is observed by all but we affirm there were Prayers also made after it as appears by that Prayer of our Saviour John 17. and also from the Custom of the Jews who finished the Paschal Solemnity with Prayers as well as Hymns a Hoc ita gesto pater familias precationes mensarias ad finem precari pergit Buxt Synag Cap. de Pasch 13. And for the Christians St. Cyril warns them b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Cyril Mystag cat 5. not to depart till the last Prayer be done Besides the joint consent of all the antient Liturgies shew that all Churches had such Prayers As for this form the principal clause thereof of offering up our Bodies and Souls is taken from St. Paul Rom. 12.1 and it is a main end of this Sacrament though the Roman Mass is wholly silent in it the rest of this Prayer although the words be modern in sense agrees with many of the antient forms and is so well contrived as it may not only serve to exercise our devotion at present but teach how to demean our selves
thou dost deserve it all I am sorry I am no better yet such as I am I do most freely surrender my self unto thee both Soul and Body avowing that I will be no more my own but thy servant in all things My understanding shall enquire after thee my will shall chuse thee my affections embrace thee my senses shall obey thee my passions shall be at thy command and my thoughts shall be always of thee O be thou pleased to come and reign over me take possession of me for thou hast won my heart I shall never be my own till thou hast made me thine but if now at last I may be accepted I hope I shall never be so unjust and ungrateful so foolish and absurd so perjured and sacrilegious as to rob thee of my self hereafter or wilfully to prophane my Body or Soul any more It is indeed a miserable gift that I offer a defiled Body a stained Soul and corrupt affections But it is all I have to give and all that thou requirest and it will be freer and better by being thine Let me never have other Master let me never sully that which the blood of Christ hath washed nor sell that to Satan which Jesus hath bought for God Grant me therefore gracious Lord that I may find by the workings of thy spirit within me that thou hast accepted me give me such help from thee to confirm my hope that I may always perform my Vows and never rob thee of that which I have dedicated to thee in the sincerity of my Soul I have sworn and am stedfastly purposed to keep thy righteous judgments I am thine O save me for thy mercies sake Amen Amen § 6. Humbly beseeching thee that all we who are Partakers of this holy Communion may be full-filled with thy grace and Heavenly Benediction There are too many who are forward enough to promise great things w 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theophylac in Math. 20. while their zeal is warm which they either do not intend or do not take care to perform x Quid enim est turpin◠quam promittere quae praestare aut nolis per ignaviam aut non possis per imbecilitatem Drus But the sincere Christian is not more ready to make his Vow than diligent to keep it wherefore he considers that this will prove but a vain oblation unless he can obtain the divine grace and Benediction to enable him to perform it and accordingly his next care is to pray most earnestly for the aid of Heaven both for himself and his Brethren We may perhaps be too confident and secure imagining the evil spirit to be cast out and both Soul and Body consecrated unto God but alas how easily may the Enemy return and recover his hold if the grace of God do not preserve us Let us therefore now consider how prudently we have made this vow and how blessed we may be in keeping it let us remember how often we have formerly been surprized and what danger there is of future failings and finally let us think how impossible it is to stand without the assistance of the holy Spirit and then doubtless we shall hunger and thirst after Righteousness and accordingly as he hath promised we shall be filled Math. 5.6 We shall not ask riches honours or pleasures for we have renounced them all but above all things we shall desire the grace of God and his blessing whereby we may have power to keep our Covenant with him made upon the blood of Jesus and this is that request which the Lord delights to hear and which now we have most need to make and doubtless if we be sincere it shall be granted to which purpose we may add this supplication as the enlargement of the preceeding Petition Behold O blessed Jesus how many of thy redeemed ones are here returned to their duty and allegiance we have all vowed our selves thy servants but we do yet tremble in expectation of those most furious assaults which will be made upon us by the Enemy from whom we have withdrawn and Alas we have too often returned again to folly But if thou pleasest to plant thy grace within us and send thy blessing upon us we fear not his policy nor his power We have received that heavenly food which is the means to convey this grace and we know that by this Coelestial Remedy many of thy servants have been dreadful to the powers of darkness and thou didst never cast off any humble Soul O bless then this life-giving mystery unto us that we may find such power and strength such courage and resolution flowing from thence that we may all stand firm to the purposes which we have made Sweetest Saviour we are now thy servants and O what quiet and comfort what safety and joy what honour and pleasure have we under so gracious a Lord how happy shall we be in enjoying a freedom from Anger and Intemperance Malice and Revenge Pride and Covetousness and all the furies which use to torture us O mark us for thine own therefore and deny us not that grace which is necessary to make thee ours and us to be thine if we feel not some effects thereof we shall sink and die for fear lest thou hast rejected us and our Oblation But who did ever seek thee and did not find who ever trusted in thee and was forsaken or why should we suspect thou shouldst make us the first instances of such a severity We are sure in thee all fulness of grace doth dwell O let it now overflow that of thy fulness we may all receive so shall we daily and always perform our Vows Amen § 7. And although we be unworthy through our manifold sins to offer unto thee any Sacrifice yet we beseech thee to accept this our bounden duty and service not weighing our merits but pardoning our offences To offer up the Sacrifice of Praise is properly the imployment of an Angel and to make whole Burnt-Offerings was the Office of the sacred Order alone But we Christians are every one so far become Priests as to be allowed to come near to Gods Altar and there we are admitted to offer the incense of our Praises and to make our selves a living Sacrifice Yet the more favour we have the more humility we should express because we are unworthy of it and we must not let our presumption grow upon the stock of the divine condescension Let us remember therefore that Aarons Motto was Holiness to the Lord Exod. 39.30 and that God destroyed his two Sons for making bold to offer unworthily declaring thereby that he would be sanctified in those that came near to him Levit. 10.3 so that we had need be exceeding humble and with all possible lowliness confess our unworthiness for alas we have been Enemies and Rebels treacherous and unfaithful full of vain thoughts and vile affections all which is most apparent to him before whom we stand so that we may justly
pleasures of sin 2. It is most base ingratitude to the goodness of God and the love of Jesus to part with these tokens of the divine favour so easily It was censured as an infamous Act in that Epicurean Philosopher whom Athenaeus speaks of l. 5. who having obtained of the Syrian King the priviledge to wear a Purple Robe and a Golden Coronet and to be stiled the Priest of Virtue gave all these soon after to his Courtezan and she was seen publickly wearing the Ensigns of his Honour Yet it is far baser so cheaply to give up the Testimonies of Heavens Love How vile a wretch is he that when his wounds are healed and his Peace made with God will tear them open again and renew the breach so lately made up What can be more horrid than to throw those Souls willfully into the Portion of Devils which Jesus hath with so much sweat and blood rescued from thence 3. It is the immediate way to utter destruction for what can save such an one who is so desperately in love with sin that no mercy can oblige him to leave it no vows hold him from it And as those who at their Baptism were dispossest of evil Spirits upon their return to iniquity were as St. Cyprian notes possessed again c Recedente siquidem disciplina recessit gratia Cypr. ep 75. Ingens periculum ad deteriora redeundi Sen. ep 72. Math. 12.45 So we may be assured the Devil will with more strength return upon those who do wilfully or carelesly relapse after this sacred Communion and they will become more wicked and more hardened than ever And why should God withhold such a person from destruction who despiseth his favour and is weary of the Company of Jesus and longs to be in a state of Evil. To this might be added that to fall off now will shew that the whole Duty was feigned and hypocritical and will cause God scarce ever to be willing to give us grace again if we thus abuse this and it will shew we hate the ways of God when we cannot endure to be tyed to them But I hope this will suffice to convince us of the sin and danger of not continuing in this fellowship and of neglecting to do those good works which God requireth Wherefore to assist our resolutions of perseverance let us observe carefully these few directions 1. Immediately after we return from the Lords Table we must not entertain any business or Company until we have first seriously considered the happiness of our present Estate as to the comfort the hopes and the peace which we now feel and then to consider the folly and the danger of quitting so desirable a condition and this we must meditate upon until we see it is our wisdom our interest and greatest advantage to continue in this blessed Society and these good ways where we may be so easie so safe and so rewarded For many part with their comfort before they ever considered the value thereof 2. Be sure immediately to beg of God as this Petition teacheth the assistance of his Grace to which purpose the annexed form may be used and to excite our devotion let us sadly reflect upon our former backslidings and that we have the same frail nature d Multos impedit à firmitate praesumptio firmitatis Aug. de verb. Dom. 13. our Enemies the same power and policy and greater malice still and if we can pray heartily for grace to be good it is a great assurance that we do sincerely desire to be good e Justa vita cum volumus adest quia ipsum plane velle justitia est August ep 45. And it is the beginning of grace to wish earnestly for it f Vt ergo desideremus adjutorium gratiae hoc ipsum quoque opus est gratiae ipsa namque incipit infundi ut incipiat posci idem Yea we serve such a Master as will be pleased if we do what we can and ask of him what we cannot do though we do not all we should Only it must be remembred that we must not only pray for perseverance just now but every day of our life also afterwards 3. Let us presently begin to do these good works and to perform our Vows while our hearts are warm with these flames for to morrow we shall be less able and perhaps less willing and if we go not forward we shall go backward g Vnum è duobus necesse erit aut semper proficere aut prorsus deficere Bern. divers 36. And by doing Acts of Religion and Vertue that will be pleasant and easie which was thought difficult h Quem unquam ista destituêre tentantem cui non faciliora in Actu apparuêre Non quia difficilia sunt non audemus sed quia non audemus difficilia Senec. ep 104. only because we had not tryed it Besides by denying our desires once or twice we shall perceive how much easier and sweeter it is to deny a Lust than to satisfie it and by the success of these first attempts we shall both give Experiment of the grace received and have somewhat wherewith to upbraid our Souls afterwards if we grow remiss 4. When we feel our zeal to cool our devotion to decay when we find our selves less sensible of former sins and that we begin to abate of our watchfulness and care we must renew our Addresses to these Mysteries for if we receive this Sacrament carefully and often it is the best means to make us persevere and so it must never be omitted too long together A Supplication for the Grace of Perseverance Blessed Jesus the Author and finisher of our Faith who art the same yesterday to day and for ever thou hast given spiritual meat to those that fear thee and wilt ever be mindful of thy Covenant But my goodness is as a Morning Cloud which soon passeth my devotion fleeth like a shadow and never continueth in one stay O do thou establish me with thy free spirit that I may not so easily forfeit my Comfort forget my Duty and break my Vows as I have formerly done How unwearied art thou dearest Saviour in doing well unto me how constant in thy love how amiable and attractive are thy endless and unalterable Mercies And shall I be so ungrateful to thee and so Cruel to my self to forsake thee and my own happiness Alas I justly suspect my own weakness I fear the power and policy of my Enemies I do with shame and sorrow call to mind my former returns to folly and I do most passionately entreat thee not to leave me to my self I have through thy goodness now obtained some measures of peace and comfort my eyes are inlightned my heart is revived my hopes are quickned and my purposes seem to be sincere O grant that I may be as careful to keep these as I have been earnest to obtain them that when I find the pleasure of thy service I may be
thanks unto thee with all our hearts for thy great glory Which is given to thee by all the World O Lord God We acknowledge thou art our Heavenly King who hast subdued our Enemies Thou art God the Father Almighty who hast designed and brought about this marvellous work We do also adore thee O Lord our Saviour remembring with delight and confessing with joy that thou art the only begotten Son of God Iesu Christ the anointed Redeemer And now O Lord God As thou art the most innocent Lamb of God slain and sacrificed for our offences and as thou art the most dearly beloved Son of the Father that by thy holy Passion takest away the sins of the World We entreat thee to Have mercy upon us and pitty us And again we beseech thee Thou that takest away the sins of the whole World since we are Sinners Have mercy upon us and forgive us And once more we pray thee O Thou that takest away the sins of the World take away our sins and receive our Prayer which otherwise might be hindred by them We know thou hast the only interest in Heaven wherefore we do again beseech thee Thou that sittest in great glory at the right hand of the Father that thou wilt have mercy upon us and save our Souls To thee we make this application for pardon and acceptance Blessed Jesus for thou only art holy in and from thy self To thee we seek for succour for thou only art the supream Lord of Lords Thou only O Christ together with the Holy Ghost the Comforter art most high in the favour and a Partner in the glory of God the Father constituting the holy and undivided Trinity which is blessed for ever Amen SECT V. Of the final Blessing § 1. OF the concluding the Ordinary Prayers with a blessing we have discoursed Comp. to the Temple SECT ult But besides it is apparent that the people were always dismissed from this Ordinance with a solemn Benediction pronounced by the Bishop when he was present a Plebs ab Episcopo cum benedictione mittatur Concil Agath can 30. and in his absence by the Priest b Populus non ante discedat quà m Missae solennitas compleatur ubi Episcopus non fuerit Benedictionem accipiat sacerdotis Concil 3. Arelatens yet so as none might depart till this was given by the one or the other Which Custom some would ground upon our Saviours practice who after his last eating with his Disciples Luke 24.43 took his leave with a blessing ver 50. The present form is taken out of holy Scripture the first part is from Philip. 4.7 The latter part is a Christian Paraphrase upon the old form of Moses Numb 6.24 25 26. for whereas the name of the Lord is thrice repeated there to note the Mystery of the Trinity we have explained it by the Father Son and Holy Ghost And what is further observable the following method will declare The Analysis of the final Blessing Sect. 2. This Blessing containeth a twofold wish 1. For the Peace of God to be in us shewing 1. The Excellency thereof The Peace of God which passeth all understanding 2. The end for which it is desired Keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and of his Son Iesus Christ our Lord. 2. For the Blessing of God to be upon us intimating 1. Whence it must proceed And the blessing of God Almâ—ghty the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost 2. How it is to be imparted be amongst you and remain with you always Amen A Practical Discourse upon the final Blessing § 3. The Peace of God which passeth all understanding Keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and of his Son Iesus Christ our Lord. When St. Paul had directed us to make our addresses to God by Prayers Supplications and Thanksgivings Philip. 4.6 he immediately adds And the Peace of God shall keep your hearts c. ver 7. So that he may seem to have designed this to be a Conclusion for this very office For we have now by Prayers Letany and Eucharist c Graec. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Phil. 4.7 made our applications to the Divine Majesty Wherefore the holy man by this method ought now to give us the Peace of God We have begun in Piety and therefore we shall certainly end in Peace Hence all Liturgies generally conclude with the mention of Peace d In pace Christi eamus Lit. S. Jacob Reg. MS. enim lâ—git 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Phil. 4.7 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrysos hom de jejun in Pasch In pace procedamus in nomine Domini Lit. S. Basil And there is not a more comprehensive blessing than Peace nor a more seasonable valediction after this Sacrament whether we understand it of the Peace which God hath made with us or of that which he requires of us 1. If we take it for the Peace which God hath made with us viz. for our Reconciliation to him by Jesus Christ Rom. 5.1 e 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theophylac in loc Philip. and the internal Peace of Conscience following thereupon It is so admirable in it self and it brings such comforts to the Soul which enjoys it that it not only surpasseth all the gifts of Wisdom and Knowledge but passeth the capacity of the highest Understanding to comprehend it And whereas we do now all pretend to know and to love God and our Lord Jesus Christ the Minister prays that we may find such comfort and delight in our Peace and Reconciliation with God that it may keep us firm and constant to this Knowledge and Love that it may win the affections of our hearts and gratifie the powers of our Mind so as to attract us to a further progress in the knowledge of so gracious a God and in the love of so dear a Saviour He prays that this Peace may make us despise all the friendships of Sin and engage us to seek after a further acquaintance with God and a nearer Union with Jesus Christ so that we may fall off no more to vanity when we have tasted these divine pleasures 2. If we take it for the Peace which God requires of us viz. that Peace which by his command we here make with our Brethren which sense Theophylact also mentions it is very proper to wish that this Peace may keep our hearts also For we are all here joined in the Unity of the Spirit and the Bond of Peace and Amity as a token whereof the Antients finished these Mysteries with a kiss of Peace f 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Justin M. Apol. 2. Osculum Pacis quod est signaculum orationis Tertul. de Or. Roman 16.16 and supposed they had not received aright unless they all departed in mutual Peace and Charity g Quale sacrificium est à quo sine Pace receditur idem Tertul. ibid. And this blessed Peace is both better than
the Phrase is frequently used by the Fathers in this Case The sum of them is to desire that whatsoever is shadowed in the Outward part and signified in Rite may in Substance and reality be fulfilled o Baptismus salutaris est si perfectum est in corde quod factum est in Corpore Augustin and that whatsoever the Scripture affirms to be the duty of all baptized Persons may be particularly performed by this Child That as this Child hath in figure imitated Christs Death and Resurrection so it may hereafter live as one dead unto sin and all the desires of it but alive unto righteousness and ready to execute all the commands thereof That as it is baptized into the Faith of Christ Crucified for Sin so it may mortifie and kill all its corrupt affections until it have utterly abolished all the powers of Lust and Concupiscence and brought the flesh in subjection to the Spirit We pray that it may not renew the guilt that is remitted nor fall back into the bondage from which it is delivered that it may not defile what God hath cleansed nor expel what he hath given but when it comes to understanding that it may make use of the Grace that is offered unto it and improve the beginings planted in it and live like one of Gods Children and one of the Society of Saints and then we are assured that it shall not only have an Interest in the merits of Christs Death but feel the power of his Resurrection and finally it self also shall rise again in the Resurrection of the Just of which this Mystery is a pledge p Baptismus itaque resurrectionis pignus est imago Ambros in Rom. 6. We do most ardently therefore desire this Infant may lead a holy life for if it live like Jesus on Earth it shall live with him in Heaven if it be an obedient Son it shall not fail of the Inheritance if it follow the steps of holy Saints it shall go whither they are gone and with them at last sing Hallelujahs in Everlasting Glory And oh what pity is it that when this Child is set in the right way thither when it is put into such a state that neither former Guilt nor future power of Sin can stop its passage if it hold fast the Grace received what pity is it I say that it should fall off and lose all again And yet too many do thus Apostatize and exchange Life for Death Liberty for Bondage and Heaven for Hell whose sad Catastrophe doth stir us up most heartily to pray that this poor Infant may never do the like but through the Continuance of the grace of God may lead the rest of its life according to this blessed beginning for Jesus sake and let all the People say Amen §. 4. The concluding Exhortation to the Sureties Forasmuch as this Child hath promised by you that are his Sureties to renounce c. The Church hath always had an especial care that this Vow of Baptism may be conscientiously performed And in regard that nothing tends more directly to the securing of Holiness and Religion here is added endeavours to our Prayers for the fulfilling thereof In the first Ages when those of riper years were Baptized the Exhortation q Alloquimur recentèr baptizatos ut animos accendamus sive ad virginalem integritatem sive ad continentiam vidualem sive ad ipsius thori conjugalis fidem Aug. de Civ dei l. 1. cap. 27. was directed to the Persons themselves and there are many excellent Tracts of the Fathers made upon that occasion But now that Children are most commonly the Subjects of Baptism who are not yet capable of Admonition here is a serious and earnest Exhortation made unto the Sureties Which if it be well considered will shew how base it is for any to undertake this Trust meerly in Complement how absurd to put little Children whose Bond is not good in humane Courts upon this weighty Office and also how ridiculous for those who have taken this duty upon them to think they can shake off this Charge again and assign it over to the Parents which are the evil Customs of this Licentious Age It is sure that if this Institution of Godfathers and Godmothers were prudently undertaken and well performed there could not be a more effectual means to repair the decay of Christian Piety and therefore it is very lamentable to behold how slightly men enter upon it and how little they do regard it afterwards For remedy whereof I wish that all Sureties would well weigh this Excellent Exhortation which contains First A review of what they have done Secondly A direction concerning what they are to do Thirdly A reason why it is so necessary that these things should be done by them 1. They have engaged for a Minor unto Almighty God the God of truth and the Judge of all Men they are become Sureties and Bondsmen r Quicunque viri quaecunque mulieres de sacro fonte filios spiritualiter exceperunt cognoscant se pro ipsis fide-jussores extitisse August de Temp. Serm. 136. for this Child unto the Majesty of Heaven and it is a hainous Crime to deal falsly with him ſ Eccles V. 2.4 Quam gravia vincula promittere Deo non solvere Ambros in Luc. 20. and he will in no wise be mocked You have undertaken that this Infant shall renounce the Devil believe in God and serve him and though the Childs wilful Apostasie doth not forfeit your Bond yet your own negligence may if you do not endeavour to instruct and amend him God knows it is not in your power to give the Childs Grace but it is in your power to teach and to admonish and if you will not do so small a matter the Child is lost through your default and it is apparent you care not what you promise to Almighty God for the least that a Bondsman can do is to call upon the Debtor to discharge what is owing nor can there be a more easie condition than that the Surety shall be free if he do but often admonish him that he is bound with to pay the Debt Consider therefore all you that are concerned what you have done and then it is easie to gather from thence what you are obliged unto 1. To teach these Children the nature of their Baptismal Vow and this was of old appointed even as to grown Persons when they had been baptized in haste in Cases of imminent danger they were to be taught afterwards what favour God had done them and what duty they owed for the same t Qui in aegritudine constituti baptismum perceperunt facti sani fidei symbolum doceantur ut noverint quâ donatione digni sunt habiti Concil Laodicen Can. 59. Much more is it necessary in the Case of Infants wherefore The Godfather or Godmother saith an antient Author ought to signifie to those whom they have received from the
shall be the subject of my Eternal Hallelujahs Amen § 5. And that we are very members incorporate in the mystical Body of thy Son which is the blessed Company of all faithful people The second happiness assured by this Holy Eucharist is that we are thereby united to Jesus so as to have fellowship with him 1 John 1.3 and in St. Pauls phrase we do thereby become members of his Body of his Flesh and of his Bone Eph. 5.30 for he gives us himself to be our food with intent that he may be one with us and we with him m Hoc Sacramentum ideò nobis datum est ut Corpus Ecclesiae Christi in terris cum Capite quod est in coelis coadunetur Aug. Serm. 8. ad fratr in Eremo As some have made their Leagues of friendship by drinking each others blood thereby intending to sympathize and as it were to mingle Souls and since we have been fed with that food with which God feeds his dearest Children and have participated of that spirit which quickens the great mystical Body of Christ 1 Cor. 12.9 we may infer that we are living Members of the true Church also Let us therefore solace our selves with reflecting upon the happiness of our present Estate How little saith the Philosopher should we be troubled with care or fear if we were of the Imperial Family n 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Arr. in Epic. l. 1. c. 8. and shall not our relation to God and our Union with Jesus chear us much more What can he want that hath such a Father and Friend what can hurt him who hath such a Protector how can he die whose life is hid with Christ in God Again is it not an excellent felicity to be admitted to the blessed Society of Apostles and Prophets Saints and Martyrs and to have an interest in the Prayers and a share in the hopes of all the excellent persons now in the World That pious Emperour professed he esteemed himself more happy in being a Member of Christs Church than in being head of the Roman Empire and if we duly apprehend the favour which we have now received we may thus express our gratitude An Act of acknowledgment Part. II. I bless thee with all my Soul O my God for that thou wert pleased to make me who was by nature a Limb of Satan to be a Member of Christ and of his Church by Baptism and yet when I had forfeited that blessing by my transgressions thou hast admitted me to a nearer Vnion with Jesus in these holy mysteries than ever my Soul knew before so that now thou imputest my offences to him and communicatest his merits and graces unto me Alas what am I that I should eat of that meat and drink of that Cup with which thou hast feasted holy Souls and entertained thy best beloved ones My unworthiness would tempt me to suspect the reality of such a favour but I hope thou wilt abundantly convince me by granting that thy grace may work in me in the same manner as it hath done in thy Saints and Servants in all Ages producing in me eminent and exemplary virtues and a plentiful encrease of all good works so that following the steps of Jesus and the Examples of his holy ones this now begun Vnion may be perfected when I shall be intirely joined to my glorious head and glorified Brethren and make one in the Celestial Choire to sing thy praise Amen § 6. And are also Heirs through hope of thine Everlasting Kingdom by the merits of the most precious Death and Passion of thy dear Son The third benefit which worthy Receivers have by this Sacrament is that it doth consign them to a blessed immortality and this follows from the former it being impossible any true Member of Christ should be left for ever in the Grave since the Head liveth the Members shall live also John 6.54 Hence the Fathers called it an Antidote against Death o 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ignat. ep ad Eph. and the means to make us partakers of our Lords immortality p Clem. Alexandr paedag l. 5. For Jesus doth not only here refresh the Soul with a present Communication of his graces but doth here Seal that Covenant also one condition of which is that he will bring it to his glory And therefore as Wax is little worth in it self yet when sealed and annexed to a Deed by which an Estate is secured it is highly valued so also whilst Carnal Persons discern nothing but common Bread and accordingly receive it in a careless or formal manner the Devout Communicant by Faith sees it stamped with the impress of Jesus and receives it with great joy as the seal of that Covenant and Testament by which the Kingdom of Heaven is made over unto him It doth not put us into the Possession of it at present but it secures it to us in Reversion and makes us Heirs in hope and that not in the vain uncertain hopes which Wordly men deceive themselves withal q Spes nomen incerti boni Sen. ep 10. ita est in humanis at in divinis nomen boni certissimi Vid. Rom. 5.5 Chap. 10.11 but it is a hope that will never fail nor make us ashamed because it is grounded upon the Truth of God and upon the merits of the most precious Death of Jesus Christ God hath promised it and Christ hath purchased it so that those who are beloved by God and Redeemed by Jesus cannot be excluded from it Our Lord saith St. Bernard hath a double right to this Kingdom the one by Inheritance as he is the Son of God and that is sufficient for himself the other by purchase as he is our Saviour and this he here bequeaths to us If our hopes were built upon our own merits they might deceive us but they are founded upon the merits of the Sacrifice of Jesus now commemorated let us therefore with a firm Faith and a mighty joy receive from the hands of God this pledge of a glorious immortality And when we remember that it was our Lusts which were the Death of this our dearest Lord who hath made over this Inheritance to us we must believe it to be our duty as we are Heirs to his Kingdom to be the Avengers of his blood or else the Law esteems us unworthy of the inheritance r Numb 35.21 2 Kings 14.5 Apud Abyssinos homicida traditur ad propinquos interfecti ut vindictam sumant Bodin method histor Indignus censetur haereditate qui interfecti necem vindicare negligit L. de haered 17. ff de his quae Cum tibi sint fratres fratres ulciscere laesos Ovidius Let us therefore crucifie them all on his Cross and utterly destroy all our Lusts with great fury when we remember the barbarous outrage they have committed upon him from whom our Title to the Kingdom of Heaven doth descend which resolution together with our grateful acknowledgment may be thus
made An Act of acknowledgment Part. III. Most merciful Jesus although thou reservest the fâ—ll manifestations of thy love to my Soul till the glorious Resurrection yet as if thou wert impatient of so long a stay thou hast sealed at present thy gracious donative and my comfortable Title to a never-fading Crown Thou hast dearly bought it for me and thou hast freely given it to me wherefore I will vigorously endeavour after it patiently wait for it and chearfully expect it Ah my dearest Saviour I am here vexed with Crosses oppressed with Enemies troubled with corruptions and tossed on the waves of a thousand sins and miseries But it is my comfort amidst all these sorrows to receive this assurance that I shall ere long be translated into a blissful state never to know sin or feel pain to be in danger of Enemies or fear of Evil any more Oh how it enlightens my heart and makes my spirit vigorous to foresee the rest and peace the joy and pleasure to which I am consigned the glorious Society that waits for me Oh how welcom shall be that blessâ—d hour that summons me to enter into the joy of my Lord And whilst I stay I will behave my self O my Saviour as the Heir of thy Kingdom for I will destroy all Murtherers be they harboured in the most private retirements of my Soul I will pluck these Lusts from thence for they have crucified thee and they would still exclude me from those felicities which thou hast offered to me Lord I will hate every thing that keeps me from Heaven and love nothing but what may further me in my way thither I am resolved by the help of thy grace to live as one that is above all the trifling pleasures and sorrows of this lower World and I hope to demean my self as an Heir of Glory as one designed to be a Companion of Angels and to partake of thy bliss for ever and ever Amen So be it § 7. And we most humbly beseech thee O Heavenly Father so to assist us with thy grace that we may continue in that holy Fellowship and do all such good works as thou hast prepared for us to walk in That goodness which hath bestowed so many and great favours upon us hath encouraged us to ask more Å¿ Ex perceptione praeteritorum munerum firma fit expectatio futurorum Bern. de temp And since we learn from St. John 1 Ep. 1. Chap. ver 6. that we can have no fellowship with Jesus if we walk in darkness and since St. Paul assures us Ephes 2.10 that the end of our Regeneration through Christ is that we may do those good works which God hath prepared for us to walk in Therefore the Church hath taught us in the next place to pray for such grace as may testifie the truth of our Union with Jesus and preserve the good things which we have received and in vain have we taken these pledges of love in vain have we sought to be united to Christ and his mystical Body in vain are all our hopes of Heaven unless we do hereafter persevere and bring forth good fruits t Et fides ipsa ut nativitas non accepta sed custodita vivificat Cypr. Non quaeruntur in Christianis initia sed finis Hieron We were fed with this Heavenly food not to fatten us with pride but to strengthen us for our journey this being given us as a Viaticum or repast to make us travel more chearfully in our way to the Heavenly Canaan u Vt Pascha Hebraeis ante iter per desertum Exod. 12.10 11. unde Philoni 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dicitur Sacrificia propter viam vide apud Macrob. Saturn lib. 2. c. 2. There was no other reason of Gods renewing us and giving us new favours but only that we might walk in newness of life Now because we cannot either continue in this blessed Society or do good works agreeable thereto without the help of Gods grace we must most humbly beseech our Heavenly Father who knows our necessity constantly and plentifully to assist us with his Grace that we may be such as Jesus is and do so as the Saints have done to whom we are united He is a root full of all sweetness and they all bring forth much fruit who are engrafted in him so that if we be barren of good works we are dead Branches and have no true Communion with Christ or our Brethren Pray we then with all possible fervency that we may never be cut off from this blessed Society nor want that grace which consolidates the Union O what honour and advantage what pleasure and reward shall we have by our perseverance Let not sinful vanities entice us to leave this sweetness let not the difficulty of obedience the fear of sufferings nor the terrors of Death affright us from it but let us go on in the path which God hath marked out both for us and all good Christians to walk in so shall we come to the same blessed end even Everlasting Glory But because so many men fancy their duty to be at an end as soon as they have praised God made fair promises and prayed unto him for his Grace and so grow remiss w Improbus quoad metuit omnia est promissurus simulatque timere defierit similis est futurus sui Cicer. 2 Phil yea and profane afterwards to the great scandal of this Sacrament and the ruine of their own Souls We must now shew that it is necessary we should practise as well as promise x Coneordet sermo cum vitâ ille promissum suum implevit qui cum videas illum cum audias idem est Sen. ep 75. and endeavour after and exercise the grace of God as well as pray for it y Et oratione operatio operatione fulciatur oratio Hieron in Thren 3.41 or else all our Petitions are Hypocrisie z Tanta sollicitudine petere audebis quod in te positum recusabis Tertul. Interdum enim obnixe petimus quod recusaremus si quis offerret Sen. ep 95. and our carelesness will shew we did but mock the Almighty all the while Let us therefore seriously lay to heart 1. The sin and danger of basely relapsing 2. Let us learn the means of a blessed perseverance 1. The Sin appears by these Considerations 1. It is apparent folly and madness for us to cast away those hopes and comforts which we have obtained with so much pains a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Arrian in Epic l. 2. meerly by inconsideration or to please a base Lust so that the Scripture compares such to bruit Beasts b Jerem. 8.6 2 Pet. 2.21 Psal 49. ult And verily Man being advanced to this honour and yet not understanding and valuing it is worse than the Beasts that perish for nothing is more bruitish than to lose peace of Conscience the love of God and the hopes of Heaven for the short and miserable