destructive to our selves This is to add sin to sin and by that means to heap up wrath against the day of wrath upon our own heads Now that to Do this is a duty incumbent upon us by vertue of a Divine Command I have plainly shown you and the want of opportunity you have no reason to complain of being so often and so earnestly invited thereunto And therefore unless you have some just impediment to hinder your present compliance with that command you have no reason to decline your duty nor any cause to fancy to your self such a liberty as you now enquire after 3. Consider That the solemn profession of our Christian Faith according to Gods Ordinance is a Duty which all Christians ought most readily and upon every just occasion to perform Luke 12.8 9. Whosoever shall confess me before men him shall the son of man confess also before the Angels of God. But he that shall deny me before men shall be denied before the Angels of God saith our blessed Saviour Thereby plainly intimating that whosoever shall be ashamed to own him and to confess their Faith in him in this World them will he disown and be ashamed of at the great and last day Now the Celebration of this holy Feast is one of the most memorable actions of our life wherein we are most solemnly to Commemorate the dying love of the blessed Jesus 1 Cor. 11.24 26. For this we ought to do in remembrance of him And as often as we do it we are to shew forth the Lord's death till he come i. e. We are herein to commemorate all that the holy Jesus hath done and suffered for us and not be ashamed to confess our Faith in a dying Saviour And that all this is according to God's Ordinance is plain because it is a duty incumbent upon us by vertue of a Divine Command Unless therefore you can dispense with your duty to God and content your self to dissemble your Christianity unless you can perswade your self that the profession of your Faith in Jesus a thankful acknowledgment of all that he hath done and suffered for you and a publick owning of all those favours and benefits which you have received from him be things indifferent to you It will be in vain to pretend such a liberty as you now enquire after By this time Neighbour Parishioner I hope you are satisfied that neither you nor any other who pretend to Christianity are left at liberty in this case That to Do this or leave it Vndone as they please is no part of that liberty wherewith Christ hath made them free Parishioner I thank you Mr. Pastor for the pains you have taken with me which by God's blessing upon them have not been in vain they have had their design'd effect for I am now very well satisfied that it is not a thing indifferent but a Duty But pray Sir be not offended if I trouble you with another Question Pastor No my good Neighbour I shall not pray be free and rest assured that you cannot better please me than by giving me an opportunity of offering you all the satisfaction that is in my power Parishioner My next Question Sir is this Obj. 2. If this command be so strict and general and our obedience thereto so indispensible are not all then who live within the pale of the Church whether good or bad without any exception to be admitted thereunto Pastor You may remember that in answer to your former Question I did intimate to you that there are some cases which though they do not lessen the Duty yet do limit the command as to our present actual obedience thereunto For as our Saviour forbade the casting of Pearl before Swine and the giving of the Childrens Bread to Dogs so hath he left power with his Church to make a difference between worthy and unworthy Receivers and where the case is so manifest as to come within her Cognizance to judge who are so and who are not And besides those cases before intimated there are some other wherein the Church doth with good reason take upon her to restrain and keep back some from prophaning this holy Sacrament and ruining themselves Especially these that follow 1. When men are grosly ignorant so little knowing in the things of God so much unacquainted with the Religious part of their duties that in this case what the Prophet Jonah said of many thousands in the great City of Nineveh is but too truly verified in them Jonah 4.11 They cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand And of this sort God knows we have too many in our days who are so sottishly ignorant of what concerns God and themselves at least the better part of themselves viz. their immortal Souls that though the light of the Gospel shine so gloriously yet still they sit in darkness though the glorious truths thereof be daily preached so plainly asserted and so frequently inculcated upon them yet are they no more improved in their knowledge of them than those poor Indians who never heard of the Gospel 'T is strange indeed there should be such but not so strange as true Now such as these till they are better instructed in their Religion in general and in this part of their Religion in particular ought to be withheld from being partakers of this holy Sacrament For Our Church supposeth all those her Members who either do or are fit to receive the holy Sacrament Rubrick after the Communion Service to be persons of discretion i. e. persons of some competent knowledge able to discern between the Table of the Lord and their own Tables between this holy Feast and a common Meal What measure of knowledge there ought to be seeing God hath given us no standard to judge by I shall not presume my self wise enough to determine But that there ought to be some and a competent share of knowledge too will appear if we consider what qualifications our Church requires in those whom she admitteth to be Communicants They must be such as truly repent them of their former sins They must be such as stedfastly purpose to lead a new life such as have a lively Faith in God's mercy through Christ such as thankfully remember the sufferings and death of the blessed Jesus for their sakes Ch. Catech. and they must be in charity with all men All which do presuppose a good share of knowledge and a godly practice of what they know Besides all who are admitted to the Lord's Supper by the Rules of our Church ought not only to be baptized but also after Baptism to be confirmed by the Bishop or at least to be ready and desirous to be confirmed Rubrick after the Order of Confirmation Now in order to Confirmation it is required that they be of a competent age able to say in their Mother tongue the Creed the Lord's Prayer Rubrick after the Catechism and the Ten Commandments and to answer
Saviour that he may evermore dwell in me and I in him Grant this O Lord for Jesus Christ's sake our only Mediator and Advocate Amen When you Approach the Lord's Table and there see the Symbols of Christ's Body and Blood placed in order and ready to be Consecrated to that Holy Vse you may use this following or some other short Prayer to this purpose I Am here O Lord in Obedience to thy Command and am very desirous to do my Duty I come to renew my Covenant with Thee and beg thy assisting Grace That I may keep it better for the time to come To this end be pleased to increase and strengthen that Faith which Thou hast already wrought in me and grant That I may ever hereafter serve and please Thee in Newness of Life I find a Table spread for me blessed be thy Name for it give me I beseech Thee a Spiritual Appetite thereunto I am unfit I confess for so great an Honour I am unworthy to partake of these Holy Mysteries I have no Merits of my own to trust to but I have thy Mercies to depend upon and the Merits of my Blessed Saviour to plead for me Hear them O Lord and for their sakes look graciously down upon me upon their Account let me find Favour with Thee here and obtain Everlasting Life when Time shall be no more hereafter Amen When you see the Bread broken and the Wine poured out by the Minister then use this following or some other short Prayer to this purpose O Holy Jesu who for my sake didst suffer thy self to be Apprehended Arraigned and Condemned and at last to suffer Death upon the Cross for my Sins Give me Grace to be truly affected with the Remembrance of what Thou hast done and suffered for me Write it on the Tables of my Heart that I may ever be mindful of it and let the Consideration thereof cause me to hate Sin and love Holiness Create in me O Lord a new Heart and renew a right Spirit within me that for the future I may make it my business to Perfect Holiness in thy Fear That as Thou diedst for Sin so I may die to Sin That as thy Body was broken and Blood spilt upon the Cross for the Sins of Mankind so my Heart may be broken under the Sense of Sin and broken off from the love and likeing of any Sin and at last fixed upon Holy and stedfast Resolutions of better Obedience for the future Amen Whilst the Minister is Receiving the Sacrament himself and Administring it to the rest of the Communicants you may use this following or some other short Prayer to this effect O Blessed Lord God! Who am I that Thou shouldst be thus mindful of me That Thou shouldst admit me a Guest to thy Table I know I am unworthy to appear in thy Presence and should have wanted Confidence to approach this Sacred Place if I had not received thy Command so to do Lord Let me not suffer for my Obedience thereunto But as Thou hast thought fit to invite me hither so be pleased to prepare my Heart for the Reception of these Holy Mysteries provided for me And grant That my so doing may in some measure be instrumental to the Advancement of thy Glory the Good of my own Soul and the Edification of others And this I beg for Jesus Christ his sake Amen When you have Received the Holy Sacrament whilst the Minister is Administring it to others or returning to the Table and placing things decently and in order there you may use this following or some other short Prayer to this purpose O Almighty God and Heavenly Father I most heartily thank Thee for that Spiritual Food which I have now Received Let not I beseech Thee any Failure of mine deprive me of the Advantages of this Holy Feast But be pleased to add thy Blessing thereunto that so it may be Food indeed and nourish my Soul not only in Grace here but unto Glory hereafter I am so sensible of the Obligation that Thou hast been pleased now to lay upon me that I do henceforward devote and consecrate my self Soul and Body wholly to thy Service humbly beseeching Thee to accept this my bounden Duty and to give me Grace ever hereafter rightly and truly to perform the same to thy Honour and Glory through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen When you return Home and are retired into your Chamber or Closset you may use this following or some other Prayer to this purpose O Almighty and most Merciful Father who art Good and do'st Good Thou art an inexhaustible Fountain and an unfathomable Depth of Mercy and Goodness Of thy Fulness we all receive and are filled without lessening thy Store How great an instance have I this Day had of thy Bounty How large an Experience of thy Mercy I confess I am a Sinner and a great Sinner the unworthiest of those that worship Thee unfit for the Company of thy Saints and Servants And yet I have this Day had the Honour to sit at thy Table and to be entertain'd by Thee at a most Heavenly Banquet I have had the Happiness not only to Feast with my Saviour but to feed upon Him to eat his Flesh and drink his Blood which whosoever doth He hath assured me Shall have Everlasting Life and He will Raise him up at the last Day What shall I render unto Thee O Lord for all this Mercy and Goodness I will take the Cup of Salvation and call upon the Name of my God I will make it my business to serve and please Thee as long as I live These are my Resolutions Lord Let not thy assisting Grace be wanting to me for the Performance of them Write I beseech Thee this thy Mercy upon my Mind in such Characters as may never be blotted out Give me such a due Sense of it that my Heart may be unfeignedly thankful and that I may shew forth thy Praise not only with my Lips but in my Life by giving up my self to thy Service and by walking before Thee in Holiness and Righteousness all my Days through Jesus Christ our Lord In whose Blessed Name and Words I further Pray as He hath taught me saying Our Father which art in Heaven c. FOrasmuch as no Business either Religious or Civil can be well done by us without the Grace and Assistance of Almighty God nor any thing prosper under our Hands without his Blessing thereupon And that neither his Grace and Assistance nor his Blessing upon what we go about can reasonably be hoped for unless with Pious and Devout Hearts we faithfully and diligently Pray unto Him for the same It will highly concern us even in point of Interest as well as Duty to take the Counsel of St. Paul and Pray continually i. e. To keep our Hearts and Minds in such an Holy and Devout Frame and Temper that at all Times and upon all Occasions we may be ready to offer up pure Hearts and clean
you hereafter From this account of this Text you see plain that there are some who have no pretence to perfection in this life and yet in God's account are esteemed worthy Communicants And of such an one I shall give you this short Character which may serve as a Test to try your own worthyness by To be a worthy Guest at God's Table is not to be without sin but to be sensible of sin and sorrowful for it one who doth hunger and thirst after righteousness one who doth earnestly desire Union and Communion with Christ especially in this holy Feast One who is truly sensible of and as truly thankful for what the blessed Jesus hath done and suffered for him One who upon that consideration doth resolve with himself that as much as in him lieth he will for the future lead a new life and live in all godly love and charity with all men This though short I take to be a full Character of a worthy Guest at God's Table Which worthy disposition may very well consist with many and great weaknesses and imperfections This thus premised may enable us to give a more direct answer to our first enquiry and help us to discover What it is to eat and drink unworthily To eat and drink unworthily in the Apostle's sense doth therefore imply these things 1. To come to the Lord's Supper with low and mean thoughts of it being either ignorant what it is or if in some measure knowing yet are they willing to put a slight and contempt upon it The former of these are indeed the more pityable but neither the one nor the other are excusable both of them in St. Pauls sense may be truly said to eat and drink unworthily The one contentedly sitteth down under such circumstances that he cannot and the other if he can will not make any difference between the Table of the Lord and their own between this great and holy Feast and a common and ordinary meal and repast This is that for which St. Paul reproveth the Church of Corinth 1 Cor. 11. v. 20 21 22. saying When ye come together into one place this is not to eat the Lord's Supper For in eating every one taketh before other his own Supper and one his hungry and another is drunken What have ye not Houses to eat and drink in Or despise ye the Church of God and shame them that have not What shall I say to you Shall I praise you in this I praise you not This is to come to the Lord's Table without Faith or Fear neither believing nor remembring what the blessed Jesus hath done and suffered for them of which at this Feast they ought to make a grateful and solemn Commemoration 1 Cor. 11.24 This is to approach thereunto without that due regard and reverence that becometh them and befitteth the action they are about not once considering with whom or upon what they are to feast And this is part if not all that St. Paul designeth in those words which he addeth in the close of this Text not discerning the Lord's Body 2. To eat and drink unworthily is to come to the Lord's Supper without a due sense of sin without a just remorse a godly sorrow and an unfeigned repentance for it For as I before hinted to you it is not sin barely but an obstinate and impenitent continuance in sin that maketh men unwelcome guests at God's Table If the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed and keep all my statutes and do that which is lawful and right he shall surely live he shall not die All his transgressions that he hath committed they shall not be mentioned unto him in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live saith the Lord Ezek. 18. v. 21 22. A broken and contrite heart God will never despise Ps 51.17 I might if it were needful produce many other Texts to this purpose for the holy Scripture is full of such passages as speak the goodness and mercy of God to repenting and returning Sinners how ready he is to receive them how he openeth his arms to embrace them and how kindly he bids them wellcome If the Prodigal can but think of returning to his Father his Father will prevent him and run to meet him Luk. 15.18 19 20. Turn unto me and I will turn unto you saith the Lord of Hosts Zech. 1.3 But though God be thus kind and gracious to the Penitent yet will he be severe and inexorable to the obstinate and impenitent If men will sin with an high hand and go on therein without once reflecting upon what they do or have done If they will still persevere in wickedness against all the admonitions of God and checks of their own Consciences If they be resolved to indulge their lustful appetites and inordinate affections and not to be reclaimed therefrom If against the judgment of the Church and the plain evidence of Scripture and reason they will reject the Truth and espouse and defend Errours and Heresies If they give themselves over to strife and contention to promote malice and hatred to disturb their own and the peace of that Church and state in which they live What can such men expect but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation to devour them Hebr. 10. v. 26 27. There is nothing doth more surely forfeit the kindness and mercy of God nor any thing that doth more certainly treasure up to it self wrath against the day of wrath than an hard and impenitent heart Rom. 2.5 As impenitency is a certain bar to Man's Salvation so is it to his participation of this holy Feast For to come to the Lord's Supper without a due sense of sin and sorrow for it is to go about to join righteousness with unrighteousness to mix light with darkness and to lodge Christ with Belial 2 Cor. 6. v. 14 15. 3. To eat and drink unworthily is to come to the Lord's Supper without Charity If thou bring thy gift to the Altar and there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee leave there thine offering before the Altar and go thy way first be reconciled to thy brother and then come and offer thy gift Matth. 5. v. 23 24. This counsel proceedeth from the unerring wisdom of the blessed Jesus wherein he doth plainly intimate how vain it is to expect that God will accept an offering at our hands whilst our hearts are filled with malice and hatred to our Brethren Love to God and love to the Brethren are qualifications indispensibly necessary in every one who will be a worthy Guest at God's Table and neither of these can well consist without the other If a man say I love God and hateth his brother he is a liar for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen And this Commandment have we from him that he who loveth God love his brother also 1 John 4.
Christ Jesus a serious and unfeigned repentance of all our sins a stedfast purpose of leading a new life and being in Charity with all men This I take to be St. Pauls meaning in this expression and if you thus discern the Lord's Body you will certainly find the blessed effect of it in the spiritual nourishment of your Soul unto Eternal Life And thus have I performed the second part of my Promise to you by showing you how you ought to demean and behave your self at God's Table Pashioner Sir You have infinitely obliged me by the pains you have taken to furnish me with such good rules and directions I pray God to give me grace to observe and follow them I shall God willing do my endeavour and I beg your Prayers for my assistance But there is one thing more yet which you were pleased to promise me viz. some Directions how to behave my self after I have received this holy Sacrament And these also I would willingly take along with me when I go from hence Pastor I confess I am your Debter by Promise as to this also and shall endeavour to discharge my self of that Debt by giving you some short and plain rules how to carry your self afterwards 1. When you go away from this holy Sacrament you ought to carry along with you a deep sense of those great obligations which God Almighty hath laid upon you therein You ought to retire not only into your Closet or some private place but into your self and there meditate of the great mercy and goodness of God the Father in sending his Son to be your Mediator and Redeemer and of the great condescension and infinite kindness of God the Son in taking upon him your nature and submitting himself to Death even the Death of the Cross for your sins You ought often to think of that great honour you have received in being admitted not only to feast with God and Christ but to feast upon Christ the true Christian Sacrifice In a word you ought by serious thoughts and meditations of what you have been about to imprint upon your minds a due sense of God's goodness and thereby take a prospect of all that happiness which you either do enjoy or may obtain by complying with and being obedient to the command of the blessed Jesus in this particular 2. Having thus imprinted these things upon your mind you must endeavour thereby to work it into an humble and grateful frame When you reflect upon your former sins and present unworthiness you will find cause sufficient to be humbled for them and when you consider God's greatness in himself and his goodness towards you you will find good reason to be thankful for the favours you have and daily do receive from him Let it be your care therefore always to cherish due sentiments of divine goodness in your mind that so you may be ready upon all occasions to praise and glorify his great and holy name for it Can you remember how kindly you have been invited how courteously received how nobly and friendly entertained by the blessed Jesus and yet be unthankful I cannot believe that any one who pretends to Christianity can so far forfeit his Religion and reason too can be so much lost to all the sentiments of piety and humanity at once as to be guilty of so gross ingratitude Unthankfulness in Divinity is an odious crime and Ingratitude in Morality is no better So much was it abhorred even by the Heathens that it became a Proverb among them Call a man ingrateful and you have said the worst you can of him Be not you therefore guilty of that against God which the Heathen looked upon as so great a reproach among themselves Consider that heavy charge which God draws up against Israel Isa 1.2 3. Hear O Heavens and hearken O Earth saith the Lord for I have nourished and brought up Children but they have rebelled against me The Ox knoweth his owner and the Ass his Master's Crib but Israel doth not know me my people doth not consider Let the consideration of God's so deep resentment of this crime in his own people teach you and me to beware of it Let us recollect our selves and call to mind all those incomparable favours and benefits which God from time to time hath bestowed upon us and the advantages of this holy Feast in particular that so our minds may be always ready to make grateful acknowledgments thereof 3. When by these or the like Meditations you have wrought your mind into such an humble and thankful frame Your next work will be to evidence the truth and reality of that temper by actions sutable thereunto We do not expect to find grapes on thorns nor figs on thistles For as a good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit so neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit saith our blessed Saviour Matth. 7.16 17 18. And thence he concludeth Therefore by their fruits ye shall know them v. 20. The best evidence therefore of a worthy Communicant is to be taken from his way of living afterwards If he make Conscience of what he doth if he make it his great care and business to live holily towards God and righteously towards all men it is a good sign of the goodness of his condition But if notwithstanding the obligations which have been laid upon him at this holy Feast he return with the Dog to his Vomit and the Sow that was washed to his wallowing in the Mire if he still adhere to his old sins and take pleasure in his former wickedness it is an evidence that he still remaineth in the gall of bitterness and that without a timely repentance and reformation his portion will be with Hypocrites in Everlasting Burnings It is good counsel which St. Paul giveth us Col. 2.6 As ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk ye in him Thereby intimating that our returns ought to be sutable to favours and benefits which we have received The holy and righteous God loveth holiness and righteousness in his people and expects it from them When by our Baptism we were at first admitted into Christianity we entered into Covenant with God That we would renounce the Devil and all his Works the Pomps and Vanities of this wicked World and all the sinful desires of the flesh that we would believe all the Articles of the Christian Faith And that we would keep God's holy Will and Commandments and walk in the same all the days of our life Now our continued profession of that Faith into which we were baptized is indeed a daily repetition of that Promise but as often as we receive this holy Sacrament and feast with God upon this holy Sacrifice we solemnly renew our Covenant and do thereby engage our selves to perform the Conditions thereof To sum up all in a word therefore If you would know what is expected from you after you have been admitted a Guest at God's Table It is briefly this
according to their several Necessities giving them Patience under their Sufferings and an happy Issue out of all their Afflictions And as we Pray unto Thee so we desire to Praise Thee for all Mercies at all Times and upon all Occasions afforded to us We bless Thee for our Creation Preservation and all the Blessings of this Life In an especial manner we adore thy Great and Good Providence for thy Protection of us this Night past and for that competent Measure of Rest and Sleep which we have enjoyed We bless Thee for that Thou hast safely brought us to the Beginning of this Day Defend us in the same with thy mighty Power and grant That this Day we fall into no Sin neither run into any kind of Danger But that all our Doings may be ordered by thy Governance to do always that is Righteous in thy Sight We bless Thee for all those thy Saints and Servants who are departed this Life in thy Faith and Fear Beseeching Thee to give us Grace so to follow their good Examples that we with them may at last obtain a Glorious Resurrection in the Life Everlasting But above all we adore and magnify thy Great and Glorious Name for the Redemption of the World by our Lord Jesus Christ the Fountain and Foundation of all our Mercies for the Means of Grace here and the Hope of Glory hereafter For all these Mercies we Pray unto Thee and for all these Blessings we desire to Praise Thee in that most Sacred Form of Words which the Holy Jesus hath taught us saying Our Father which art in Heaven c. The Evening Prayer may be continued thus WE Praise and Glorify thy Great and Glorious Name O Lord God for thy most Gracious Providence over us and Protection of us this Day past that by the Assistance of thy Grace and Holy Spirit Thou hast withheld us from falling into many Sins which our own Lusts and Corruptions might have betrayed us into and prevented us from running into many Dangers into which our own Folly and Vanity might have led us Continue we pray Thee the same Providence over us this Night and let it watch over us for Good. Lighten our Darkness we beseech Thee and by thy Great Mercy defend us from all Perils and Danâ—â—e of this Night Furnish us with a competent measure of Rest and Sleep and let that Sleep be sweet and pleasant strengthening and refreshing to our wearied Bodies Let it be our Care to compose our Minds into a quiet and sedate Temper and to fill them with such Holy Thoughts and Heavenly Meditations that there may be no room for our extravagant Fancies to work upon them nor any place for evil or idle Dreams to disturb them And grant we beseech Thee That by that Rest and Refreshment which we shall this Night receive at thy Merciful Hands we may be so enlivened and invigorated that the Day ensuing we may be able in the Strength thereof and by the Assistance of thy Grace not only to discharge the Duties of our Particular Callings in this World but also those of our General Callings in order to our Everlasting Happiness in the World to come And this we beg for the sake of thy dear Son and our Blessed Saviour Jesus Christ in whose Blessed Name and Words we Conclude these our broken and imperfect Prayers saying as He himself hath taught us Our Father which art in Heaven c. FINIS Books Printed for and Sold by L. Meredith at the King ' s-Head at the West End of St. Paul 's Church-Yard A Short Discourse upon the Reasonableness of Men's having a Religion or Worship of God. By his Grace George Duke of Buckingham The Songs of Moses and Deborah Paraphras'd with Poems on several Occasions Never before Published To which is added A Pindarick on Mr. L' Estrange Two Treatises The First Concerning Reproaching and Censure The Second An Answer to Mr. Serjeant's Sure Footing To which are annexed Three Sermons Preached upon several Occasions and very useful for these Times By the late Learned and Reverend William Faulkner D. D. An Introduction to the Old English History comprehended in Three several Tracts The First An Answer to Mr. Petyt's Rights of the Commons Asserted and to a Book Entituled Jani Anglorum Facies Nova The Second Edition very much enlarged The Second An Answer to a Book Entituled Argumentum Antinormanicum much upon the same Subject Never before Published The Third The Exact History of the Succession of the Crown of England The Second Edition also very much enlarged Together with an Appendix containing several Records and a Series of Great Councils and Parliaments Before and After the Conquest unto the End of the Reign of Henry the Third And a Glossary expounding many words used frequently in our Antient Records Laws and Historians Published for the Vindication of Truth and the Assistance of such as desire with Satisfaction to read and truly understand the Antient English Historians and other Pieces of Antiquity By Robert Brady Doctor in Physick
the way You have furnished me with a better notion of Sacraments than I had before and thereby given me so great satisfaction that you shall not need to bespeak my attention hereafter I beseech you therefore since you have well dispatched the notion of Sacraments in general that you would now proceed to that of the Lord's Supper in particular Pastor I shall very willingly comply with your desire and in so doing I shall endeavour to do these two things I. To show you plainly what notion you ought to have of the Lord's Supper II. That the Celebration thereof is a duty incumbent upon us by vertue of a divine Command I. We must look upon this Supper as a Sacrament properly so called I have already shown you what conditions are requisite to constitute such a Sacrament and if I make it appear that all those conditions are to be found in this then may it be justly reckoned as one of that number The Conditions I told you were these four 1. A Divine Institution Now that this holy Supper was instituted and ordained by Christ that it owes its Original to none other but only the Son of God and our Saviour will plainly appear from the concurrent testimonies of St. Matthew St. Mark and St. Luke St. Matthew gives us this account of it As they were eating Jesus took Bread Matth. 26. v. 26 27 28 29 30. and blessed it and brake it and gave it to the Disciples and said Take Eat This is my Body And he took the Cup and when he had given thanks he gave it to them saying Drink ye all of it For this is my blood of the New Testament which is shed for many for the remission of sins But I say unto you I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the Vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's Kingdom And when they had sung an Hymn they went out into the Mount of Olives Much to the same purpose is that account which St. Mark gives of it And as they did eat Jesus took bread Mark 14. v. 22 23 24 25 26. and when he had given thanks he brake it and gave it to them and said Take Eat this is my Body Also he took the Cup and when he had given thanks he gave it to them and they all drank of it And he said unto them This is my blood of the New Testament which is shed for many Verily I say unto you I will drink no more of the fruit of the Vine until that day that I drink it new in the Kingdom of God. And when they had sung an Hymn they went out into the Mount of Olives St. Luke also with little variation gives the same account And he took bread Luke 22. v. 19 20. and when he had given thanks he brake it and gave it to them saying This is my body which is given for you this do in remembrance of me Likewise also after Supper he took the Cup saying This Cup is the New Testament in my blood which is shed for you And if we call in St. Paul to give his suffrage with these three Evangelists we shall find him according with them all in the History of the Sacrament and the Institution of it but most expresly with St. Luke 1 Cor. 11.23 24 25 26. I have received of the Lord that which I also have delivered unto you That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread and when he had given thanks he brake it and said Take Eat This is my body which is broken for you this do ye in remembrance of me After the same manner he took the Cup when he had supped saying This Cup is the new Testament in my blood this do as oft as you drink it in remembrance of me For as often as you eat this Bread and drink this Cup ye do shew or shew ye forth the Lord's Death till he come Thus have I shown you all those Scriptures which give any account of the History of this Sacrament and the institution of it and you see plainly they do all agree that it was ordained and instituted by Christ that it owes its Original to none other but only the Son of God the Lord 's Christ and our Jesus and if so then the first thing requisite for the constitution of a Sacrament properly so called viz. A Divine Institution doth evidently appear in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper 2. The second thing requisite for the constitution of a Sacrament properly so called is a visible sign And that there are such things in the Lord's Supper is visible and apparent for by the words of Institution Bread and Wine which are substantial and visible things are appointed to be the Elements thereof And though these in their own essence and nature do nothing differ from common Bread and Wine yet in regard of their designation and use they do very much differ therefrom For in this holy Supper they are designed for and used as outward and visible signs of inward and spiritual grace and in respect of that secret thing which is hidden under them and represented by them they become Sacramental 3. The third thing requisite for the constitution of a Sacrament properly so called is a divine promise added to the sign which importing spiritual grace here and eternal life hereafter may firmly unite the sign and thing signified and that this is to be found in the Lord's Supper is plain from the words of institution where the Bread blessed and broken is called the Body of Christ and the Cup the New Testament in his blood which is shed for many for the remission of sins And our Saviour expresly saith John 6.35 I am the bread of life he that cometh unto me shall not hunger and he that believeth on me shall never thirst And again v. 54 55 56. Whosoever eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life and I will raise him up at the last day For my flesh is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me and I in him Which plainly declareth an Union of the sign and thing signified by vertue of a divine word and promise in which Union consists the nature of a Sacrament properly so called 4. The fourth thing requisite for the constitution of a Sacrament properly so called is That it be given to the whole Church as a perpetual sign to continue so long as the external form of divine Worship instituted by God doth remain in that Church Now that this was given to the whole Church appears plainly from the institution of it for the Disciples to whom it was first given were the Representatives of the whole Church And that it was given for perpetuity seemeth plain from those words of our blessed Saviour Matth. 26.29 I say unto you that I will not drink henceforth of this fruit
v. 20 21. Now who they are that come without Charity will best appear if we consider that noble Character which St. Paul giveth of it and compare their manner of address therewith Are men impatient under sufferings Are they apt to murmur and repine at the dispensations of Divine Providence touching the ordering and governance of persons and things in this World Are they morose and unsociable Are they over-tenacious unfriendly and unliberal This betrayeth their want of Charity For Charity suffereth long and is kind Are men apt to be envious at the happy estate of their Brethren Do they look with an evil Eye upon the prosperity of others Do they macerate and wast themselves with vexing at the wellfare of other men This speaketh them strangers to this excellent grace for Charity envyeth not 1 Cor. 13.4 Are men proud and haughty Do they love to be the Trumpeters of their own praise and the proclaimers of their own worth Are they apt to swell and be puffed up with the conceit of their own excellency Do they entertain so high an opinion of themselves and their own virtue and goodness that they look with scorn and contempt upon all others Are they unwilling to be indebted even to God himself or to his mercy and blessing or to any thing else but only themselves for their success in all things This bewrayeth their want of love and Charity For Charity vaunteth not it self is not puffed up Are men censorious and contumelious Are they Railers Revilers Detracters and Backbiters of others Do they love to betray the secrets disclose the faults and expose the persons of others to contempt and scorn Can they please themselves with being unhandsome rude and unmannerly This showeth how empty they are of Love and Charity For Charity doth not behave it self unseemly v. 5. Are men wholly devoted to themselves Are they altogether led and acted by the dictates of their own interest Can they lay aside all care and concern for the good of that Community in which they live Can they be content that all publick good should truckle and give place to their private profit and advantage Are they so much in love with themselves that they love nothing besides or in comparison with themselves This plainly shows that they have no true Love and Charity in them For Charity seeketh not her own Are men passionate and suspicious Are their passions quickly raised but when up so ungovernable that they are not easily laid again Are they apt to take fire at every spark and be offended even with innocence it self if it happen to run counter to their humours and inclinations Are they so jealous and suspicious that every bush is taken for a Bugbear that nothing though never so good can occur in which they do not suspect some hidden evil or secret mischief design'd against them This is directly contrary to the rules of true Charity For Charity is not easily provoked thinketh no evil Are men carnal sold under sin Rom. 7.14 Do they love to walk in the vanity of their minds Are their understandings so darkened that they are become Aliens from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them Are they past feeling and have given themselves over unto lasciviousness to work all uncleanness with greediness Eph. 4. v. 17 18 19. Do they love to speak lies through hypocrisie having their Consciences seared with an hot iron 1 Tim. 4.2 Do they rejoice to do evil and delight in the frowardness of the wicked Prov. 2.14 Are they so bent upon wickedness that they cannot sleep except they have done evil and their sleep departeth from them unless they have caused some to fall Prov. 4.16 This is a temper far different from that of true Charity For Charity rejoyceth not in iniquity but rejoyceth in the truth v. 6. Are men impatient of injuries and cannot bear the least affront Are they diffident and distrustful of all things propounded to them either by God or Man Have they no prospect of a future state nor can hope for any thing but what is before their Eyes and within the reach of their senses in this life This plainly demonstrateth that they are strangers to this excellent grace of Charity For Charity beareth all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things v. 7. Thus have I shown you who they are that come to the Lord's Supper without Charity and by this and the two preceding rules you may plainly perceive what St. Paul meaneth when he speaks of eating and drinking unworthily Now if either you or any other be really thus unworthy it will nearly concern both you and them to consider what you do It will not be safe for you to approach this holy Table with such unworthiness about you But I hope better things of you and that upon this account you will have no just cause to absent your self from this holy Feast Parishioner I heartily thank you Sir for the pains you have taken to rectify my misunderstanding and inform me better I bless God I have no such low and mean thoughts of this Heavenly Banquet and though I confess I am a Sinner yet am I heartily sorry for my sins though I am not so charitable as I ought yet am I not such a stranger to it as you have now described And therefore if other obstacles be removed I do believe I shall not hereafter absent my self upon this account I am sorry that I have interrupted you but I could not forbear to testify my satisfaction in what you have said And now Sir I beseech you proceed to explain the other part of this Text by resolving that other enquiry viz. Qu. 2. How and when men are said to eat and drink their own Damnation Pastor I shall endeavour with all readiness and as much plainness to make good my promise and gratify your desire in the resolution of this enquiry also And in order thereunto let me premise this in the general viz. That the punishment of unworthy Communicants differeth according to the different degrees of their unworthiness 1. Some there are who come to these holy mysteries without any Faith or any repentance or any Charity at all So Infidels or Unbelievers Reprobates Hypocrites and inveterate Sinners come Now those who thus presume to approach this holy table they in the strictest sense may be truly said to be guilty of the body and blood of Christ 1 Cor. 11.27 i. e. They are as much guilty of his Death as those who Crucified him in the flesh These have no more value for the blood of Christ than those had and therefore may expect to be as severely punished as they were or shall be The Death of Christ will be unto them a savour of Death unto Death not of Life unto Life The Apostle's Argument is of great weight in this case He that despised Moses his law died without mercy under two or three witnesses Of how much sorer punishment
is not only our duty but our greatest interest For thereby know we that we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren 1 John 3.14 The remembrance therefore of the dying love of the blessed Jesus ought to stir up in us at this time a love to God and to the Brethren 7. The consideration of the whole should create in us an humble and thankful frame and temper of mind It should put us upon offering the Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving unto God not only in word but in every action of our life for Christ and all his benefits and to testify the reality of that gratitude by renewed acts of Faith Repentance and Obedience all our days Thus ought we to receive this Sacrament in remembrance of Christ 2. What it is to shew forth the Lord's Death till he come Ans An Historical Narrative of the Sufferings and Death of Jesus Christ to be able to tell that he died at Jerusalem in the Eighteenth Year of Tiberius the Emperour Pontius Pilate being the Roman Deputy in Judea and Josephus Caiphas the High Priest that same year This is not to shew forth the Lord's Death in the Apostles sense But such a serious Meditation thereof as may inhanse our hatred of sin our love to God and our thankfulness to Jesus Christ if it be constant and continued will best declare our sense of our Saviour's Sufferings and shew forth his Death till he come 1. When therefore we are at God's Table and there see all things prepared for us when we consider that Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us and that we are now invited to a Feast upon that Sacrifice We cannot but reflect upon the just anger and indignation of God against sin We cannot but observe that such was the severity of Divine Justice and the heinousness of sin that no reconciliation could be made between God and Sinners till the punishment due to sin was suffered So highly was God incensed so great was his wrath justly conceived against sin that he was not to be pacified by any thing but only the deprecation and Death of his own Son. These ought to be our thoughts especially at this time and if thus we employ our selves when we are at this holy Feast and in pursuance of these thoughts do for the time to come loath and abhor hate and avoid all manner of sin then and thereby shall we truly shew forth the Lords Death till he come 2. When we are at God's Table and there see the dainties provided for us that there is not only food for our bodies but for our Souls also not only such as may sustain our frail Bodies or support and maintain the union between our Souls and Bodies here but such as will nourish us up in grace here and fit us for Glory hereafter When we consider that such was the love of God to Mankind that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believed on him should not perish but have everlasting life John 3.16 have we not the greatest Specimen of God's mercy and goodness towards us that we can desire and is not this love writ in Characters so legible in this holy Sacrament that he that runneth may read them and if so what cause have we with grateful acknowledgments to own and declare the goodness and mercy of God to praise and thank him for it to love him again and to testify that our love by keeping his Commandments Which if we do and persevere in so doing then shall we truly declare and shew forth the Lord's Death till he come 3. When we are at God's Table and there under those symbolical Elements of Bread and Wine can clearly discover the Body and Blood of Christ really though not corporally offered to us how lively is the dying love of our blessed Saviour therein represented to us May we not therein plainly read those dreadful pangs those dying groans and those unspeakable sufferings which the blessed Jesus did willingly undergo for our sakes and ought we not with all possible expressions of love and gratitude to commemorate this his kindness This is all i. e. this with the dependencies thereupon that he requireth of us for all that he hath done and suffered for us viz. to celebrate this Feast in remembrance of him which if we rightly do and continue so doing then do we truly declare or shew forth the Lord's Death till he come For this Meditation cannot fail of filling our hearts with grateful sentiments of our Saviours Love and those sentiments will certainly imploy our tongues in thankful acknowledgments and engage our whole lives in dutiful returns unto him for it Thus have I shown you in the first place how you ought to demean and behave your self when you are at God's Table viz. you ought to do this in remembrance of Jesus Christ But there is one thing more yet required of you viz. 2. In the doing of this there ought to be a Discerning of the Lord's Body This expression hath been mightily strain'd by some who have racked their inventions to find out such notions of it as I am apt to believe were never intended by St. Paul but I shall not now either trouble my self or you with the Examination of them My design is only to instruct you plainly and make things as intelligible to you as I can In order whereunto all that I shall do at present shall be only to acquaint you with the full importance of the word Discerning and by that means to show you the true and genuine sense of the Apostle in this expression The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 here used and rendred Discerning imports only a discretional act whereby we do exempt some one thing from the common order of others and set a more honourable value and esteem upon it This sense of the word is warranted by the usage of it in other places St. Jude v. 22. adviseth us to have compassion of some making a difference 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. between such Sinners as are treatable and willing to be instructed and such as are intractable obstinate and disobedient And St. Paul putteth the question saying 1 Cor. 4.7 Who hath made thee to differ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. who hath separated thee from the rest of Mankind and placed thee in an higher Form than them from both which places the importance of the word is very plain that it implies only a discretional act whereby one thing is distinguished from another and more honour and respect paid thereunto than to the other To discern the Lord's Body therefore in St. Pauls sense is to look upon the sacred Elements of Bread and Wine in this holy Feast as the most precious symbols of the Body and Blood of Christ to put a difference between them and all other common meats and drinks to use them with a religious reverence and not to approach this holy Table without a lively Faith in
You must make it your great concern with all care and Conscience to perform your Baptismal Vow and Covenant in all the parts and branches thereof i. e. You must take care to spend the remainder of your lives in living holily towards God and righteously towards all men And thus have I endeavoured to perform the third and last part of my Promise by acquainting you what it is that will be expected from you after you have had the honour to be admitted a Guest at God's Table and to bear your part in the Celebration of this holy Feast Pashioner Sir You have to my great satisfaction fully performed all that you promised And now it is my part not only to remember but carefully to observe and conscienciously follow those good Rules and Instructions which you have given me And that from this time forward I will endeavour by God's Assistance to do I beg your Pardon for the trouble I have given you and heartily thank you for the pains you have taken with me I hope you will excuse the One and I will endeavour to improve the Other to those good Ends and Purposes which you design'd it And that I may the sooner set about that Work I will at present take my Leave of you Pastor God b'w'y ' good Neighbour Go and do as you have said and the Lord give a Blessing thereunto Be not you wanting to your self in your Endeavours and God Almighty will never be wanting to you in his assistance But that you may carry on this work the more comfortably be frequent in your Prayers to God for his blessing and direction and rest assured my Prayers shall not be wanting at the Throne of Grace that you may be successful therein A SHORT FORM OF PRAYERS Fitted for the more Worthy RECEIVING OF THE Holy Communion WITH A Morning and Evening Prayer for the Use of Private Families WHen you hear the Exhortation read by the Minister on the Sunday or Holy-day before and find your selves thereby invited to and admonished to prepare your selves for the Celebration of the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper consider seriously by whom and to what you are invited imprint upon your minds a due sense of that great honour which is done you by God and of the great love of your dying Saviour and think with your selves with what Godly Preparation you ought to approach thereunto And that these impressions may not wear out let me advise you constantly to use this following or some such like Prayer and Confession every Morning and Evening the Week before O Almighty and most merciful Father who of thine infinite goodness hast been pleased to invite me not only to Feast with thee but to Feast upon thee who hast provided for me not only Sacramental Bread and Wine but the Bread and Water of Life the Body and Blood of my blessed Saviour How infinite is thy mercy and how unspeakable is thy loving kindness herein I am overwhelmed with the thoughts of it and lost in admiration But when I consider That Thou art a God of purer Eyes than to behold the least Iniquity That Thou neither dost nor canst approve of any Sin in any one then my fears arise and my confidence faileth me How shall I who am a great and grievous Sinner appear before thee How shall I dare to approach thy presence I cannot but own that both in thought word and deed I have grievously offended thy most Sacred Majesty and that too frequently and with too high an hand I have done what in me lay to forfeit thy favour and to provoke thy wrath and indignation against me What therefore can I expect but with him who wanted the Wedding-Garment to be rejected with scorn and exposed to Punishment But O Lord with Thee is mercy that thou mayst be feared It is thy property to have mercy and to forgive In confidence therefore of this thy great mercy and in hopes of Pardon and Forgiveness it is that I am now humbly bold to appear before Thee Behold me O Lord thus prostrate in thy presence with the tears of true and unfeigned Repentance bewailing the miscarriages of my by-past life and for thy mercies sake and for the merits sake of thy dear Son Jesus Christ humbly begging not only Pardoning Grace for Sins past but Preventing Grace against Sin for the time to come It was for my Sin that my Saviour suffered it was to wash away the stain thereof that he shed his Blood O let me not lose the benefit of it If there be any thing in me that may render me uncapable of it be pleased to remove it If there be any thing wanting in me to make me fit for it let thy Holy Spirit O Lord work it in me Subdue and mortifie all my Lusts and Corruptions and implant in me principles of Holiness and true Righteousness Teach me to love and fear Thee as I ought Give me an humble and obedient temper of mind Let it be my great pleasure to walk in thy ways and my only delight to keep thy commandments Make me thankful for all thy mercies and careful to improve them to thy glory my own comfort and the good of others Fit me for all states and conditions of life and prepare me for every good work but especially for the celebration of that Sacred Feast which I am now invited to Let nothing O Lord be wanting in me that Thou knowest requisite for me when I appear in thy presence Let me be found a welcome guest at thy Table and there receive that heavenly Food which alone can nourish up my Soul unto Eternal Life All which I humbly beg in the Name and Mediation of Jesus Christ and in that Sacred form of Words which he himself hath taught us saying Our Father which art in Heaven c. In the Morning of the Communion-Day before you go to Church use this following or some such like Prayer O Lord my God the Day the joyful Day is come on which Thou hast promised to provide and invited me to be a guest at a most Heavenly Banquet This day I am to Feast with Thee and Feed upon my blessed Saviour and Redeemer Give me I beseech Thee a due sense of that Honour and Happiness I am now going to be made partaker of and make me truly thankful for it I am now going to Thy Table good Lord fit and prepare me for it furnish me with such Graces and Ornaments of Mind as may be suitable to so high and honourable an entertainment fill my Soul with Fear and Reverence with Humility and Meekness with Piety and Devotion and with Faith and Charity that nothing may be found wanting in me when I appear before Thee Let thy Blessing go along with me and let Thy Holy Spirit guide and direct me Let me find a gracious reception there and a full satisfaction to all my wishes and desires Enable me so to Eat the Flesh and Drink the Blood of my blessed