be eaten Exod. 21. 28. Doth God take care for Oxen sayes Saint Paul in another case and doth God doe justice and require justice to be done upon Oxen doth he require mans bloud at a beasts hand Then how much more will he do justice upon men that are guilty of Christs bloud and how much more will he require his Sons bloud at the hands of reasonable creatures that by unprepared receiving the Sacrament make themselves guilty of it Iudas his great sinne for which his soule and his memory is everlastingly accursed was the betraying of innocent bloud the betraying of Christs bloud his sin was That he was guilty of the bloud of the Lord. The horrible sin of the Iewes which we professe with so much indignation to abhor and detest it was the shedding of Christs bloud and how remarkable and dreadfull a curse and vengeance hath lyen upon their heads for the space of above fifteene hundred yeeres for that very bloud according to their owne wish His bloud be upon us and upon our children And doth it not then deeply concerne men to take heed how they make themselvs guilty of that bloud Why then in the feare of GOD take heed of comming to the Sacrament unpreparedly If thou commest unpreparedly thou commest unworthily and if thou commest unworthily instead of being a drinker thou wilt be a shedder of Christs bloud Bloud is a crying sin take heed above al things of having bloud cry against thee but especially take heed of having Christs bloud cry out against thee Christs bloud indeed applied by faith speaks better things than the bloud of Abel but if wee make our selves guilty of it as we do if we come unpreparedly and unworthily to the Sacrament it speakes no better things than the bloud of Abel it then speakes Quod si ipse pellere non audes mihi dicas Non permittam ista fiâ—eri Animam prius tradam meam quam dominicum corpus alicui indigno sanguinemque meum potius effundi patiar quam sacratissimum illum sanguinem praeterquam digno concedam Chrys in Mat. hom 64. and cries as Abels bloud for justice and vengeance Woe be to him for whom Christs bloud speakes not but woe a thousand times more to him against whom Christs bloud cries All which considered were enough to make unworthy and unprepared ones to resolve with themselves in the case of receiving the Sacrament as S. Chrysostome did in the case of giving it to unworthy ones I will rather sayes he give my life than I will give the body of Christ to any unworthy one And I will rather suffer mine own bloud to be shed then I will give that most holy bloud to any but him that is worthy So should this consideration worke men to those thoughts Is it so dangerous to receive the Sacrament unpreparedly Shall I thereby make my selfe guilty of Christs bloud Then surely I will rather lose my bloud then by unprepared and unworthy receiving make my selfe guilty of such bloud 2 The second danger is That a man comming unpreparedly to the Sacrament he not onely receives no good but a great deale of hurt to his soule Good he receives none God blasts his Ordinance to such a soule so that it shall not yeeld its fruit and its efficacie unto such an one Isay 1. 13. Bring no more vaine oblations Were not those oblations of Gods owne appointment and by his owne precept Why then are they called vaine oblations because they were to them in the use of them but vain Then a thing may be said to be vaine when there is no profit in it Things are vaine things which are unprofitable things 1 Sam. 12. 21. Vaine things which cannot profit That is a vaine thing that yeelds not a man fruit answerable to his paines and endeavours Levit. 26. 20. And your strength shall be spent in vaine for your Land shall not yeeld her increase neither shall the Trees of the Land yeeld their fruits They should use their strength in tilling and planting the Land and yet all their labour should be vaine because the land should not yeeld her increase nor the trees their fruits So here when a man shall use Ordinances come to the Sacrament and they doe not nor can profit him when a man comes to the Sacrament and it doth not yeeld its increase and its fruit then is the Sacrament vaine to such a man and then the Sacrament yeelds not fruit when men come unprepared unto it for want of preparation was the thing that made their oblations vaine as appeares Isay 1. 16 17 18. For those whom he forbids comming before he bids them come upon their preparation Come now namely when you prepared your selves as is required Verse 16. 17. To come to the Sacrament and not to partake of the benefit and fruit of it is an heavie thing And it is the case of every unworthy and unprepared communicant The same curse is upon him that was upon the Prince of Samaria 2 Kings 7. 2. Behold thou shalt see it with thine eyes but thou shalt not eat thereof They see the plenty that God provides but yet they eat not of that spirituall provision with which God so richly furnishes his Table They are spiritually in this case under those curses Hos 4. 10. They shall eat and not be satisfied Hag. 1. 6. Ye eat but ye have not enough ye drink but ye are not filled There is a Law Deut. 16. 16. That three times in a yeere they must appeare before God in the three solemne Feasts And they shall not sayes the Text appeare before the Lord empty So must it be with us when we appeare before God in this solemne feast at the Sacrament we must not appeare empty before the Lord. He that is voide of that disposition of spirit which God requires he that comes unprepared he appeares empty And what will the danger be of appearing empty Surely as we come so shall we goe God will send us away empty As in another sense God sends away the rich and the full empty Luke 1. 53. so in this sense he sends the empty away empty Yea the Ordinance of the Sacrament which in Gods instituon comes to us as Paul to the Romans Rom. 15. 29. And I am sure that when I come unto you I shall come in the fulnesse of the blessing of the Gospell of Christ shall come empty handed to us and shall prove an empty Sacrament unto us So that upon our receiving it shall be no better with us than with those in that case Isa 29. 8. It shal even be as when an hungry man dreames and behold he eats but he awakes and his soule is empty or as when a thirsty man dreames and behold he drinks but he awakes and behold he is faint and his soule hath appetite So shal it be w th every unprepared Communicant he may eat and drinke the outward elements and may thinke to eat Christs flesh and
neither of these pure Well then who are they now that are defiled ones See the words of the Text to them that are defiled and unbelieving Therefore an unbelieving person is a desiled and an uncleane person Faith purifies the heart Acts 15. 9. and so fits for pure Ordinances but unbeliefe defiles the heart and a defiled heart defiles Gods Ordinance to it selfe And how can that man bee welcome to an Ordinance welcome to a Sacrament that defiles it 2 To come without faith makes our comming an abomination To come without faith is to come out of Christ and to performe the service which a man doth out of CHRIST Now all service performed out of Christ is abominable to GOD. See Lev. 17. 3 4. What man soever there be of the house of Israel that killeth an Oxe and a Lambe c. And brings it not to the doore of the Tabernacle of the Congregation to offer an offering to the LORD c. bloud shall be imputed to that man he hath shed bloud and that man shall be cut off from among his people And againe vers 6 7. And the Priest shall sprinkle the bloud upon the Altar of the Lord at the doore of the Tabernacle c. And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto divels Sacrifices then not brought to God to the doore of the Tabernacle were as murder and bloudshed were as the service of the Divell And what more abominable before God The doore of the Tabernacle was a Type of Christ Iohn 10. I am the doore And the drift of that Law is to teach that they should performe all their services to GOD in CHRIST and to shew how loathsome to GOD all services are that are not done in him Now he that is in his unbeleefe that wants the grace of faith is not in Christ neither can he doe any thing in Christ And therefore such a mans comming cannot but be an abomination God abhors and abominates that man and his comming that wants faith The end of comming to the Sacrament is to seeke and see Gods face and to have fellowship and communion with him Now if we come without faith God will not let us see his face GOD will turne away and hide his face from us Deu. 32. 19. 20. And when the Lord saw it hee abhorred them because of the provoking c. And he sayd I will hide my face from them But why will God do so He gives his reason for it for they are children in whom is no faith So that when a man hath not faith he shall not see GODS face in the use of his Ordinance for how can a man see an hidden face But that is not all GOD not onely hides his face but he abhorred them He abhorred them because of their provoking him How did they provoke him Not onely by that spoken of in the verses going before but by that also in the verse following because they were children in whom was no faith Such then as have no faith have no communion with GOD and doe provoke God so as he abhors them There can bee no communion with GOD where a man is cut off from God and fellowship with him And where a man is cut off from covenant he is cut off from communion Now where there is no faith there is an excision a cutting a man off from God and covenant with him Rom. 11. 20. Through unbeleife they are cut off And besides it is a provoking sinne An unbeleever lives in a sin that continually provokes God Numb 14. 11. How long will this people provoke mee And how long will it be yer they beleeve me And Psal 78. 21 22. The Lord was wroth so a fire was kindled against Iacob and anger also came up against Israel because they beleeved not in God And what wonder then that a man comming to the Sacrament without faith is abomination to GOD when his unbeleife angers and provokes the Lord. 3 The state of unbeliefe is a state of spirituall death I live by the faith of the Sonne of God Gal. 2. 20. A beleever is a living man an unbeleever a dead one spiritually dead The want of faith in the soule is the death of the Vnde mors in anima quia nō est fides undemors in corpore quia non est ibi anima ergo animae tuae anima fides est August in Ioh tract Placuit ut corporibus defunctorum Eucharistia nō detur Dictum n. est ◠Domino Accipite edite Cadavera aut◠nec accipere posiunt nec edere Concil Carthag 3. can 6. soule as the absence of the soule from the body is the death of the body It was an ancient abuse of the Sacrament to give it to dead bodyes an abuse condemned and cast out by a Councill upon this reason Because CHRIST sayes Take Eate But carcases and dead bodies can neither eate nor drinke It was a good reason to deny it to dead bodyes The very same reason excluds unbeleevers Vnbeleevers are dead unbeleevers can neither eate nor drinke for beleeving is eating drinking Ioh. 6. 53. What should a man doe at the Sacrament that can neither eate nor drinke CHRISTS flesh and bloud An unbeleever can doe neither because he is a dead man because hee wants faith the life and teeth by which Christ is to be eaten 4 Vnbeleife evacuates enervates and de-sorces the Sacrament of its efficacy and vertue or powerfull operation The Sacrament in Gods Institution is an Ordinance that hath a fulnesse of spirituall blessing in it full of efficacy and spirituall power and offers to empty it selfe with a rich and plentifull blessing upon the soule of the receiver But yet provided that hee come to receive it after the due order that hee come prepared with a beleeving heart And Christ sayes to every receiver as he sayd to the Centurion Matth. 8. 13. As thou hast beleived so be it done unto thee and as to the blinde man Matth. 9. 29. According to your faith bee it unto you So in this case as you beleive and according to your faith when you come to the Sacrament so bee it done unto you According to your preparation with faith so shall mine Ordinance worke and be effectuall and empty out it selfe unto you And as every man brings faith so hee carryes away an answerable portion of blessing and spirituall good from the Sacrament But now when a man comes to the Sacrament in unbeliefe voyde of the grace of faith the Sacrament proves but a dead Ordinance utterly ineffectuall utterly empty of any spirituall good That looke as the Apostle speakes of CHRIST to them in case of circumcision and justification by the workes of the Law Gal. 5. 2. Behold I Paul say unto you that if you be circumcised Christ shall profit you nothing and verse 4 Christ is become of no effect unto you who ever of you are justified by the Law So it may be said of the Sacrament and
place but to have him enter at the Sacrament at the Lords Table this is far more fearefull To rise up from the Lords Table with greater greedinesse and more eagernesse after our lusts to rise from the Lords Table with more strength and minde than before to do the divell service is wondrous fearefull And doth thine heart tremble at the thoughts of such going from the Sacrament then let thine heart tremble no lesse at the thoughts of such comming to the Sacrament of comming unpreparedly unto it Loth thou wouldest be to have Satan enter but into thine house be as loth to have him enter into thine heart especially in the use of the Sacrament and as thou wouldest be carefull to prevent Nâ—m Sacramentum sicut accipâ—t ad vitâ—m â—ignus sic ad judicium moâ—â—em propâ—â—â—m indignuâ— Sacramentum â—â— sine re Sacramenti mors est â—umenâ—â— Res vero Sacramenti praeter Sacramentum vita aeâ—â—rna est accipâ—enâ—â— Bern. in caen Dom. Ser. 2. so great a danger so dismall a case so look to it to come in due order duly prepared for the Sacrament 2 Instead of receiving that which might further our salvation we shall receive Iudgement and damnation We come to the Sacrament to further our salvation but comming unpreparedly further our damnation 1 Cor. 11. 29. He that eates and drinkes unworthily eates and drinkes his owne damnation The Paschall Lambe might not be eaten raw Exod. 12. 9. Eate not of it raw To teach that the Sacrament must not be eaten unpreparedly He that receives unpreparedly eates the Sacrament raw because hee comes rawly and eates it rawly and unpreparedly Now to have eaten the Pascall Lambe raw had beene both unwholesome and dangerous He that eates raw flesh never digests it kindly The eating of flesh that hath not been so well prepared as it should that hath bin somewhat too raw hath cost many a man his life As dangerous as eating of raw flesh is to the body so dangerous to the soule is the eating of the Sacrament rawly and unpreparedly It appeares by 2 Sam. 6. 6. That Vzzah put forth his hand to the Arke of God upon a good intention to save the Arke from a fall when the Oxen stumbled or shooke it But his good intention notwithstanding there was an error or a rashnesse in it And for that errour and rashnesse the anger of God was kindled against Vzzah and for that errour and rashnesse God smote him there and there he dyed by the Arke What is the Arke of God to the body and bloud of the Sonne of God And if God punisht him so severely for his errour that he rashly layde hold on the Arke which yet he did out of a sodaine feare of the Arkes comming to some hurt and miscarriage and without diliberation there being no place for deliberation in so sudden a chop if yet God was so severe against him how much more are they in danger to bee smitten for their errour that will rashly put forth their hand to lay hold on the body and bloud of CHRIST Especially not doing it rashly upon any suddaine occasion that puts them upon it but having time and liberty for deliberation yea and doing it against so many faire warnings as they continually have Every one that meddles with the Sacrament unpreparedly meddles with it rashly and he that meddles rashly is in danger of Gods stroake of a worse stroake then Vzzahs was of a stroake upon the soule for he that eates and drinkes unworthily eates and drinkes his owne damnation So strangely doth our unpreparednes pervert Gods Ordinance Ideoque alijs sunt haec munera odor vitae in vitam alijs odor mortis in mortem quia omnino justum est ut tanto pâ—â—ventur beneficio gratiae con emptores nec in â—â—dignis 〈◊〉 gâ—atiae puâ—â—â—â— faciâ—â— maâ—â—â—â—nem 〈◊〉 de â—oen dom and of an Ordinance of life makes it an Ordinance unto death That as they spake in that case 1 Reg. 4 40. Oh thou man of God death is in the pot So it may bee sayd unto an unprepared Communicant ôh thou unworthy receiver Death is in the cup. If thou drinke unpreparedly thou drinkest thine owne death And as God speakes of Ierusalem to the enemies of it Zech. 12. 2. Behold I will make Ierusalem a cup of poyson or a cup of trembling unto all the people round about so may it be sayd of the cup in the Sacrament to an unprepared receiver Inteâ—â—jâ— nefarie necatus veneno per infectum panem sacrum Beneconventi a Bernhardino Monachoâ—e familia fratrunâ— pradicatorum qui ad hoca Florentioâ—â— eâ—at conductus Carion Chronic. lib 5. Behold I will make the cup in the Sacrament a cup of poyson or a cup of trembling to all unprepared Communicants The Emperour Henry the seventh was poisoned in the bread by a Monk and Pope Victor the second was poysond by his Subdeacon in his challice and one of our Bishops of Yorke was poysond at the Sacrament by poyson put in the wine Now if poyson were mingled with the Sacramentall bread or if poyson were put into the cup would not men tremble to eate that bread would not that cup be a cup of trembling would not the very feare and suspicion of poyson make men tremble to drinke of it Assuredly if thou be an unprepared receiver there is poyson in thy bread in thy cup and it will poyson thy soule to death And therefore it should make men as much tremble to come unprepared as Medicus enim non daret venenum salutem medicus dedit sed indigne accipiendo ad perniciem accepit August they would tremble to go away with their soules poysoned If a sonne shall aske bread of any of you that is a Father will hee give him a stone sayes our Saviour Luk. 11. 11. We professe when we come to the Sacrament that wee come to seeke bread and foode for our soules And bread the true living bread that came down from heaven is there to be had but when we come unprepared it so falls out with us that in stead of bread we have a stone given us a stone that will choake us The Divell would have had our Saviour to have turned stones into bread but contrarily men comming unpreparedly turne the bread in the Sacrament into a stone so that not onely no more nourishment by it then by a stone but so much danger by it as by feeding on a stone which is no lesse then death I will sayes David Psal 116. 13. Take the cup of salvation How many in taking the cup in the Sacrament take the cup of damnation Either take it a cup of salvation or take it not at all 3 The third danger is bodily danger Vnprepared receiving brings bodily judgements upon men as sickenesse weakenesse yea and death it selfe 1 Cor. 11. 30. For this cause many are weake and sickely amongst you and many sleepe For what cause For receiving the
in which this bloud is put This bloud is held forth in this bason This is my bloud Now when this bloud is held forth to us in this bason wee should sprinkle our selves with this bloud That must be done by Actuating our faith and by the act of faith applying that bloud of Christ unto our selves We finde mention Rom. 3. 25. of faith in Christs bloud there is not onely faith in Christs Name but faith in his bloud Faith when Christs bloud is holden out to us either in the Word or Sacrament puts her hand into this bason or dippes the hyssope into the bloud in the bason and so besprinkles a mans soule therewith Faith applying CHRISTS bloud to a mans selfe doth put her hand into the bason doth dip the hyssop into the bloud in the bason ye doth with Thomas put her hands into the wounds of CHRIST and take bloud thence and besprinkles the soule withall When therfore we see CHRISTS bloud in the Sacrament we are to take it and besprinkle our selves with it that is we are to have faith in his bloud and by faith to apply the merit of Christs death unto our owne soules And this application is the Actuation of faith Nay that is not all faith seeing the wounds and the bloud of Christ not Cruci haeremus sanguinem sugimuâ— intra ipsa Redempturis nostri vulnera sigimus linguam Cyp. de Coen Dom. onely puts her hands into Christs woundss or into the bloud in the bason but faith layes her mouth to these wound and to this bloud and suckes these wounds suckes in this bloud with an holy greedinesse A faith Actuated in the Ordinance is a bloud-sucking faith Prov. 30. 15. The horse-leech hath two daughters which cry Give give Such an eager and holy greedinesse hath faith in sucking in Christs bloud It cannot be satisfied but still cries Give give Lord give me evermore of this bloud give me of this bloud to sprinkle my unrighteous soule Give me of this bloud to staunch the bloudy issues of mine heart Give me of this bloud to heale my leprose spirit Give me of this bloud to helpe subdue and mortifie my lusts Give me of this bloud of Christ crucified to crucifie old Adam and all my rebllious lusts Thus when a man suckes in earnestly the bloud of Christ whom he sees crucified and shedding his bloud in the Sacrament and suckes it in for his severall and speciall necessities then is faith Actuated in the use of the Sacrament And thus also may and must a man Actuate his faith for his comfort In this bason of the Sacrament I see Christs bloud Christs bloud is a reconciling bloud Rom. 3. 25. Col. 1. 20 21. It is justifying bloud Rom. 5. 9. We are justifyed by faith How by faith By faith in his blood Rom. 3. 25. It is a pacifying bloud Col. 1. 20. Ephes 2. 13 14. A pardoning bloud Mat. 26. 28. Eph. 1. 7. It is a sanctifying bloud Heb. 13. 12. A purging bloud from dead workes Heb. 9. 14. A cleansing bloud 1 Ioh. 1. 7. It is a mortifying bloud such a bloud as fetches out the heart bloud of old Adam and delivers from the dominion of sinne The bloud of Christ crucified is crucifying bloud Rom. 6. 2 3 6. Gal. 6. 14. It is a bloud that sets prisoners free Zech. 9. 11. It is a bloud that makes men Kings and Priestes Apoc. 1. 5 6. It is a softning molifying bloud that makes the heart tender it supples a stony heart and Illa invicta vis duarum violentissimarum naturae rerum ignis ferti contemptrix hircino tamen â—sipitur sanguine faedissimo Animalium Plin. makes it a heart of flesh Zech. 12. 10. Goats bloud some say breakes the Adamant which neither Iron nor fire can doe but to bee sure the bloud of this Goat Lev. 16. the bloud of this Lambe breakes the Adamant heart of a man which nothing else can breake It is a quickning bloud that brings life and strength with it Therefore represented by wine in the Sacrament It is life-bloud bloud full of CHAP. 21 spirit that fills the soule with excellent vigour to holy performances Heb. 13. 20 21. Now the God of peace that brought againe from the dead our Lord Iesus c. typified by that Exodus 24. 7 8. Now what a deale of comfort may faith draw from all this Alas my person is unrighteous but LORD thy bloud is Iustifying bloud mine heart is uncleane but thy bloud is sanctifying bloud my lusts are many and mighty but LORD thy bloud is Mortifying bloud Mine heart is wondrous hard but Lord thy bloud is softning bloud mine heart is exceeding dead but Lord thy bloud is quickning bloud In this bloud of thine I beleeve this bloud of thine I thirstily drinke downe this bloud of thine I heartily apply with a comfortable expectation of all these blessed benefits Be of good cheare oh my soule here is pardoning bloud to comfort thee against thy guilt here is sanctifying bloud to comfort thee against the pollutions of thy nature CHAP. 20 here is crucifying bloud to comfort thee against thy lusts here is following bloud to helpe thee against thy hardnesse quickning bloud to helpe thee against thy deadnesse He was wounded for our transgressions Isa 53. 5. And here in the Sacrament we may see his wounds and faith must looke upon them as healing wounds With his stripes are we healed Isa 53. 5. what sweete comfort may faith fetch hence Looke upon the wounds of Christ on the Crosse as on the Cities of refuge whither thy pursued soule by the avenger of bloud may flye for safety and Sanctuary Indeed I am a grievous sinner I have wounded my conscience Feccavi peccatuÌ„ grande turbatur conscientia sed non perturbabitur quoniam vulnerum Domini recordabor NeÌ„pe vulneratus est propter iniquiâ—ates nostâ—â—â— Quid tam ad mortem quod non Christi moâ—te salvâ—tur Bernard â—iâ—p Can. Serm. 61. with my transgressions but behold my Saviour here wounded for my transgressions I have â—â—â—se to be troubled in my conscience for the wounds my transgressions have made therein but yet my conscience needs not sinke in a despondency of spirit whilest I looke at these wounds of Christ Here be wounds for wounds healing wounds for stabbing wounds curing wounds for killing wounds He was wounded for our transgressions what wound so deadly that cannot or may not be healed by his death and wounds what comfort is here for faith in the wounds of Christ crucified whose death is represented in the Sacrament a FoderuÌ„t manus ejus pedes latusque lancea foraverunt per has rimas licet mihi sugere mel de petra oleum de saxo id est gustare videre quoniaÌ„ suavis est dominus At clavis reserans clavis penetrans factus est mihi ut videaÌ„ voluntatem domini Quidni videaÌ„ per foramen clamat câ—edens sit
and Yours be ever more and more honble and long may Your House flourish in such and all other Honor. Experience lets us see that not only Nobles but Nobility it selfe is mortall and that not only Great Men but Great Houses dye Yet there is a way to make Honours and Houses longer lived than many times they be Davids prayer was this Let 1 Chro. 17. 24 27 the House of thy Servant be established before thee let it please thee to blesse the House of thy Servant that it may be before thee for ever for thou blessest O Lord and it shall be blessed for ever But that is not all that David did as he prayed God to blesse his House so he himselfe also blessed his House And David returned to blesse 1 Chron. 16. 43 his House Needs must his house be established when he not onely desires God to blesse it but withall he blesses it himselfe by doing what ever it might be that might bring a blessing upon his House Then doe Great Ones blesse their Houses when among other things they be like the Nobles of Israel Those Nobles had their staves which haply they bare in their hands as Ensignes of their Nobility Now they made those staves which were the Ensignes of their Honour the instruments also of common good The Princes digged the well the Nobles of the people digged it with Num 21. 18. their staves With their staves of Honour they digged a Well for the common good and publike benefit of the people That is one speciall way to keep the staffe long in a Family and long to continue the Honour Nobility Dignity and wealth of great Families when they improve their Honours and Power to honour God in being serviceable what they can to publike good It lies a black blot upon the Nobles of Tekoah that they put not their necks to the work of Neh. 3. 5. the Lord in not being forward to promote a common good which though a civill worke yet because it conduced to common good is called the worke of the Lord. As that thing blurs their Names so who knowes but it might gradually moulder bring downe and lay their Houses in the dust This is out of question that Doing worthily makes a mans name famous and his House glorious Doe thou worthily Ruth 4. 11 12. in Ephratah say those Elders blessing Boaz And be famous in Bethlehem and let thine House be like the House of Pharez That which was their blessing upon him is and shall be my prayer for you that the GOD of Heaven and Father of our Lord Iesus Christ will be pleased to make good that blessing upon your Honours Persons and hopefull posterity that with Abraham he would make you blessed and blessings that ye being heires of blessing here may be heires of blessednesse hereafter in the Kingdome of Glory Your Honours to serve You IER DIKE A Table of the Heads of this Treatise The due Order of receiving the Sacrament of the Supper and seeking God therein stands in three kindes of Duties 1 Duties Antecedent in doing such Duties as must go before the Sacrament All which come under the generall Head of preparation Preparation is twofold 1 Habituall having the soule furnished with such graces as may make a man a worthy Communicant They are these Knowledge Faith Repentance Charity Obedience 2 Actuall which stands in these things 1 Solemne sequestration of a mans selfe 2 Examination 1. of the Truth of Faith Repentance Love Obedience 2. of the Growth of Grace 3. of our Wants 3 Renewing and quickning our Habituall Graces 4 Excitation and stirring up in our selves strong desires after Christ 5 Stirring up in our selves a strong expectation of the benefits to be had in the Sacrament 6 Earnest seeking of GOD by Prayer 2 Duties concomitant In doing such Duties as accompany the action of Receiving where the generall Duty is The offering up of our selves to God in an holy and spirituall disposition in receiving the Sacrament This stands in five things 1 Solemne and serious meditation 2 An exercise of repentance standing in Godly sorrow for sin A solemne renewing of our covenants with God 3 The actuating of faith upon Sacramentall offers Sacramentall promises Sacramentall representations 4 The Duty of Thanksgiving 5 An Exercise of Love and Mercy 3 Duties subsequent In doing such Duties as must follow after Receiving And they are two 1 Examining a mans selfe how he hath sped at the Supper 1 If sped ill Then 1. finde out the cause of miscarriage and be humbled for it 2 Labour by after-paines to quicken and make the Sacrament effectuall 2 If sped well Then 1. blesse God for it 2. labour to keepe and maintaine the holy frame of heart gotten at the Sacrament 2 A speciall care to keepe our vowes and expresse the power of the Ordinance in our holinesse of life and obedience A Table of the severall Chapters of this Treatise Chapter 1. That God must be sought in a right Order as well as in a right Ordinance Chapter 2. The necessity of Preparation before the Sacrament Chapt. 3. The danger of comming to the Sacrament without preparation Chapt. 4. The necessity of knowledge in a Communicant Chapt. 5. The necessity of Faith in a worthy Receiver Chapt. 6. The necessity of Repentance in a prepared Communicant Chapt. 7. The necessity of charity and love in an orderly Cammunicant Chapt. 8. The necessity of obedience in an orderly Communicant Chapt. 9. The solemne sequestring and setting a mans selfe apart before the Sacrament Chapt. 10. Of examination Chapt. 11. The examination of faith Chapt. 12. The examination of Repentance Chapt. 13. The examination of love Chapt. 14. The examination of obedience Chapt. 15. The growth of Grace and our wants examined Chapt. 16. Habituall Graces to be quickned and renued before the receiving of the Sacrament Chapt. 17. Excitation of earnest desires after Christ and a strong expectation to receive him and his benefits Chapt. 18. God to be sought in speciall manner by prayer before the Sacrament Chapt. 19. Meditation and an exercise of Repentance at the Sacrament Chapt. 20. Faith to be actuated and exercised in the Sacrament and an exercise of thankesgiving love and mercy Chapt. 21. Subsequent duties such as must follow the Sacrament Received Errata Pag. 30. li. â— consent reade conceipt .. 84. l. 10. disposing r. despising p. 100. l. 24. Iohn r. Iob. p. 222. l. 8. is r. it p. 167. l. 5. on r. no. p. 174. l. 1. dele Lords Table p. 231. l. 2. r. a duty p. 265. l. 18. thus r. this p 283. l. 9. faith r. truth p. 288. l. 1. care r. eare p. 328. l. 24. faith r. truth p. 371. l. 17. adde only p. 427. l. 1. implyed r. imployed p. 433. l. 14. Iohn 1. Isaiah p. 443. l. 20. dele the first it p. 516. l. 1. for 16. r. is p. 529. l. 26. duely r. duty p. 532. l. 23. will r. with p.
Sacrament unworthly and comming unpreparedly to it yea and some thinke that it might be the Pestilence that was amongst them for that sinne at least some mortality was at that time amongst them As for the neglect of his worship and Ordinances God falls upon men with the Pestilence Ex. 5. 3. So no lesse is he provoked for the undue order of using his Ordinances to fall upon men either with pestilence or other sicknesses There be many when they bee sicke will confesse themselves to bee sinners and that it is for their sinnes that GOD brings sicknes upon them Custome and fashion teaches men at the least to say so much But if a man should aske them wherein they be sinners or for what sinne Gods hand is upon them that they know not I have dreamed a dreame sayes Nebuchadnezzar Dan. 2. 3. but he knew not what his dreame was So I have sinned sayes many an one in his sicknesse but yet can scarce tell wherein if he were put to it I will tell you therefore wherein you are sinners and for what one sin amongst many others God layes sicknesses and that unto death upon you For this cause for your unprepared and unworthy receiving the Sacrament For this cause God takes away your health visits you with sore sharpe long mortall sicknesses If we would judge our selves we should not bee judged 1 Cor. 11 31. Because men doe not by Iudging themselves prepare themselves before they come therefore God doth Iudge them by punishing with sicknesse and untimely death after they come It may be there be some that greatly regarde not the danger of their soules that yet love their healths and lifes well enough If Spirituall dangers will not yet let temporall dangers make men looke about them When God cast Adam out of Paradise he set an Angell with a flaming sword to keepe him from offering to make a re-entry If Adam would have adventured hee had certainely gone upon his owne death And so hath God set all his threatnings against unworthy receivers as so many Angels with flaming swords to keep off all unprepared persons from the Sacrament And because all this notwithstanding they will adventure to come in their unpreparednes therefore they smart for it God kills them with death for it GODS Iudgements have beene very remarkable upon such as have profaned despised and abused either the Table or Vessels belonging to the Sacrament or the Elements themselves For the prophaning of the Table memorable is that divine vengeance Centuriat Magdeb. cent 4. ca. 3. Theod. lib. 3. ca. 11 12. which was upon Iulian unckle to Iulian the Apostata He comming into a Church at Antiochia profaned the Lords Table by pissing upon it in contempt and smote Euzoias the Bishop who chode him and sought to hinder him from such horrible villany But not long after divine Iustice found him out for he dyed miserably being taken with a disease that rotted his bowels so that his excrements came from him not by the accustomed passages of nature but came thorow his wicked mouth which had said to Euzoias endeavouring to hinder him from that vile act that the divine providence tooke no care at all of Christians affaires For disposing the Communion vessels Centuriat Magdeb. ibid. Theod. or scorning at it that such pretious vessels should be used at the Sacrament that Iustice of God is remarkable upon Felix treasurer to Iulian the Apostata and himselfe also an Apostata for he beholding in the same Church those vessels which Constantine and Constance had given for that use behold saith he in scorne En qualibus vasis ministratur Mariae filio what vessels the Son of Mary is ministred unto withall But suddenly the stroake of God was upon him and he perisht miserably bleeding day and night at the mouth For abuse of the Elements The Donatists that cast the holy Sacrament to the Dogs were themselves after devoured of Dogs The Reverend and learned Bishop that now is of Durham In his learned booke of the Institution of the Sacrament li. 5. ca. 3. sect 5 reports a story upon his owne knowledge of one Sr Booth a batchelour of Arts in S. Iohns Colledge in Cambridge who being Popishly affectted at the time of the Commuion tooke the consecrated bread and forbearing to eate it conveyed and kept it closely for a time and afterwards threw it over the Colledge wall but a short time after not induring the torment of his guilty conscience hee threw himselfe headlong over the battlements of the Chappell and some few hours after ended his life Now howsoever all these were sinners in another kinde then unprepared receivers be yet thus far these examples may be of use to our present purpose to let us see that God is a Iealous God in the case of his Sacrament abused and despised that he will be a swift witnesse and a severe Iudge against such And though unpreparednesse and unworthy receiving be not a sinne so foule as those grosse prophanations yet therein there is a prophanation of GODS Name and Ordinance and therefore very dangerous because God will not beare nor brooke profanations of his Ordinance 4 In the fourth and last place consider this one thing It is a very dangerous thing not to come to the Sacrament to neglect Gods Ordinance in an infrequent use thereof or utter disrespect of it Gen. 17. 14. He that neglected circumcision was to bee cut off And we see that God would have killed Moses for neglecting his Childs circumcision Exod. 4. 24. And see that place Numb 9. 13. But the man that is cleane and is not in a journey and forbeares to keepe the Passeover even the same soule shall be cut off from his people because he brought not the offering of the Lord in his appointed season that man shall beare his sinne And we know the severity of their punishment that neglected to come to that Supper of the King Matth. 22. 5 7. They made light of it and went their wayes c. But when the King heard thereof hee was wroth and he sent forth his armies and destroyed those murtherers and burnt up their City Not to use the Sacrament and to be without it is all one And to be without the Sacrament and without CHRIST and without God in the world are joyned together Ephes 2. 11 12. whilst they were called uncircumcision at that time they were without CHRIST and without God in the world And the necessity of the use of the Sacraments appeares by this that before the Israelites must enter into Canaan they must bee circumcised and eate the Passeover Iohn 5. 7 10. To teach that all that will enter into the heavenly Canaan must of necessity in obedience to GODS Commandement bee partakers of his Sacraments It is therefore very dangerous to be without the Sacrament not to come to it when God invites to it And yet as dangerous as it is not to come to Etenim
that needs not to bee ashamed Timothy was a studied man a man of rare and singular gifts and endowments and yet for all that if he would bee an approved workeman S. Paul would have him study to doe it he would not have him rest on his habituall preparations but would have him actually fit himself for his work when he was to worke Now thus is the case in the Sacrament there must be an habituall and an actuall preparation to it A man that will receive the Sacrament must first be furnished with such graces and dispositions as a Communicant ought to have and though he have such graces as are requisite to habituall preparation yet may he not therefore all on a sudden rush to the Lords Table and without any more adoe receive the Sacrament but first there must be an actuall preparing and fitting of himselfe for the worke Both must be had or else no due order in the worke or else no fruit from the duty There be that in their fashion do actually prepare themselves that yet are voide of those graces that are required to habituall preparation And there be that are habitually prepared and yet faile in an actuall fitting of themselves To both these the Sacrament proves as Iobs brooks to the Travellers Iob 6. 19. 20. The troopes of Tema looked and the companies of Sheba waited for them as hoping by the waters of those brookes to have beene refreshed but they were confounded because they had hoped they came thither and were ashamed because they came with an hope to have found water in those brookes but they being dried up with the heate of Summer their hope was disappointed and so they went away ashamed of their lost labour So both those sorts of people come to the Sacrament there they looke and wait for some spirituall refreshment by it but they may goe away ashamed because they hoped and their hope is frustrate they meet with no such thing as they hoped for And the reason of their disappointment is that which is spoken in another case Matth. 22. 8. The wedding is ready but they which were bidden were not worthy The wedding was ready but the guests were not ready So the Sacrament is ready and God ready in the Sacrament to do his part but these kinde of Communicants are not ready either not ready by an habituall or not ready by an actuall preparation and because not ready not worthy and because not worthy therefore their hopes disappointed Now though both these be required yet habituall preparation must bee in the first place for no man can indeed actually fit himselfe till he be habitually prepared and in vaine is all actuall preparation where habituall goes not before it This habituall preparation therfore stands in having the soule furnished with all such graces and dispositions as may make a man worthy that is fit for the Sacrament And those graces and dispositions are these 1 Knowledge 2 Faith 3 Repentance 4 Charity 5 Obedience All these must a Communicant be qualified with that in the Sacrament seeks God in due Order and the want of any of these makes him guilty of not seeking God after the due Order 1 The first thing then that is required is knowledge The Apostle makes this a great fault in receiving the Sacrament so to receive it as not to discerne the Lords body 1 Cor. 11. 29. Not discerning the Lords body Therefore that should be a mans care so to come as to discerne the Lords body This Discerning stands in knowledge understanding and judgement of the nature use and necessity of the Sacrament the which because they cannot be known without the knowledge of the fundamentall principles of religion therefore under this discerning the Lords body is included and comprehended a convenient and competent measure of knowledge of all the grounds of Religion and that such knowledge is necessary for every one that desires to come after the due Order will appeare by these following reasons 1 First God prizes knowledge more than the outward acts and performances of his service Yea so highly prizes knowledge above outward performances that if it should needs be that one must be wanting the knowledge of God without publike performances is more acceptable than publike performances Hos 6. 6. I desired the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings Possibly the case might be so that a man could not offer sacrifice as it was with David in his exile yet having the knowledge of God he might be saved But if a man did Sacrifice and offer Burnt-Offerings yet if he had not the knowledge of God hee could not be saved There may bee cases in which a man cannot come to receive the Sacrament but yet a man having the knowledge of God hee may be saved Iohn 17. 3. This is life eternall to know Thee c. But let a man receive the Sacrament ever so often yet if he be voide of the knowledge of God he cannot be saved For God will haue all men to be saved and come he sayes not to the Sacrament but to the knowledge of the truth 1 Tim. 2. 4. So that as in that case so in this I desired knowledge of God more than receiving of the Sacramt. Men commonly desire the receiving of the Sacrament more than the knowledge of God But our desires should be suitable to Gods desires As he desires so should we desire and he desires the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings and so by proportion more than Sacraments 2 Secondly a man should so prepare himselfe for the Sacrament as he would prepare himselfe for his death look how he would be loth to goe to his grave so should he be loth to go to the Lords Table A man that would die comfortaby would die with the knowledge of God and a man that would receive comfortably would receive with knowledge It is a dreadfull thing to die without knowledge If a man die without knowledge I know but one way with him It is threatned as an heavie judgement Ioh. 36. 12. They shal die without knowledge And that is an heavie saying Ioh. 8. 21 Ye shall die in your sins that is ye shall die in a damned condition Now to die without knowledge is all one as to die in our sins for questionless he that dies in ignorance dies in his sins and so dying without knowledge dies in a state of damnation And if so fearefull to die without knowledge how fearefull to come to the Sacrament without knowledge For what makes a man unfit to die makes him unfit to receive and what condition is dangerous to die in that condition is dangerous to receive in A man is not fit to receive that is not in a state of salvation as no man is fit to dye that is not in such a state we are not in a state of salvation but so far forth as we have the knowledge of the truth 1 Tim. 2. 4. Who would have all men
repentance Mat. 3. Iohn did baptise the people that came unto him but he first preaches repentance to them Vers 2. and they professe repentance unto him before they be baptised Vers 6. They were baptised of him confessing their sins And so Acts 2. 38. Repent and be baptised first repent and then come to the Sacrament of Baptisme It is so also with the Sacrament of the Lords Supper repent and receive the Lords Supper first repent and then come to the Lords Supper And therefore 1 Cor. 11. 31. he wishes us to judge our selves before we come to the Sacrament which is a speciall worke of repentance In the Sacrament wee draw nigh to God and we desire to have the Lord draw nigh to us If therefore we would draw neere to God or have him draw neere to us we must come after the due Order If we draw neere to God and do it disorderly he will not draw neere to us nor have any fellowship with us Now what is Gods Order and the due Order wherein he would have us draw neere unto him we finde Iames 4. 8 9. 10. Draw nigh to God and hee will draw nigh to you But after what Order must we draw nigh to him Cleanse your hands ye sinners and purifie CHAP. 5 your hearts you double minded be afflicted and mourne and weepe c. Humble your selves in the sight of the Lord. This is the Order after which wee must draw neere to God namely prepared and fitted for fellowship with him by unfained repentance Hezekiah proclaimed a solemne Passeover to be kept at Ierusalem and the Order after which they kept it is worth the observing and is for our imitation before we come to the Sacrament First the Priests they cleanse the Temple and brought out all the uncleannesse that they found in the Temple of the Lord into the court of the House of the Lord and the Levites tooke it to carry it out abroad into the brooke Kidron 2 Chron. 29. 16. And as the Priests and Levites doe their parts in purging uncleannesse out of the Temple so the people doe theirs in purging the Citie They arise and take away the Altars that were in Ierusalem and all the Altars for incense tooke they away and cast them into the brooke Kidron 2 Chron. 30. 14. And marke what followes Vers 15. Then they killed the Passeover namely when all uncleannesse was fetcht out of the Temple and all the Altars knockt downe in the Citie and were thrown into the brooke Kidron as it were into the Towne-ditch Then they killed the Passeover First there was a purging a cleansing out of filthinesse first al the baggage and uncleane stuffe throwne into Kidron and then a killing of the Passeover This must bee our Order in comming to the Sacrament first purge our hearts and lives of al manner of uncleannesse that may be found in them by repentance and by repentance throw it all into the brooke Kidron and then come to the Sacrament then receive the Lords Supper So must men come to the Lords Table as the Priests came to the services of the Tabernacle When the Priests came to performe holy services in the Tabernacle see in what Order they must come Exod. 30. 18 21. They must wash their hands CHAP. 6 and their feet at the brazen laver when they went into the Tabernacle or when to the Altar to minister there The equity of it reached farther than to the Priests David was no Priest yet Psal 26. I will wash mine hands in innocency so will I compasse thine Altar He alludes to the ceremony of the Priests washing at the brazen Laver before they ministred at the Altar to let us see that though this ceremony belonged onely to the Priests yet the morality belongs to all and that there is a washing that concernes all before they meddle with holy services and so with the Sacrament As the Priests were to wash themselves so some parts of the Sacrifices also were to be washt Levit. 1. 9. But the inwards and his legs he shall wash in water The same Order must be observed in comming to the Sacrament every sinner is an uncleane person and uncleane ones must be washed before they offer to have fellowship with the GOD of Purity There is a double washing with which wee must bee washed before we can come in due Order First the washing of our selves in Christs bloud by faith And secondly the washing of our selves by repentance He that will come in due Order must wash by repentance as well as by faith yea he must wash both his inwards and his feet His inwards must be washt Ier. 14. 4. Wash thine heart O Ierusalem how long shall thy wicked thoughts lodge within thee All inward and secret lusts must be washt out by repentance And the feet must bee washt also Iohn 13. 10. As we walke in our daily wayes we gather a great deale of soile and this same soile of our outward actions must also bee washt away by repentance Why must the inwards and the feet or legs of the Sacrifices be washt above all the rest The reason is given because the inwards or intrailes are the vessels that containe the filth and excrements of the Beast and therefore were they to be washt And the legs CHAP. 5 or feet to be washt because they tread in the dirt and mire and so are more defiled then any other part of the body And all this was to teach that when wee draw neere to God wee should specially wash there where most filth is readiest to bee contracted Our inwards our hearts and consciences what abundance of excrements and filth have they what dunghils of filthy lusts lye in our hearts our legs our feet how doe we defile them by walking and treading in foule wayes Even he that is washed already still and daily needs to have his feet washed Iohn 13. 10. Now then for us to come to the Lords Table with such inwards with such feet is not to take heed to our feet nor to come in due Order It were disorderly to sit downe at a mans Table in so slovenly a fashion as with unwashen hands therefore more disorderly to sit downe at the Lords Table with unwashen hearts The Pharisees quarrelled with our Saviours Disciples Matth. 15. 2. Why say they doe thy Disciples transgresse the tradition of the Elders for they wash not their hands when they eat bread But to such Communicants as come to the Lords Table without repentance it may be said upon better ground Why doe ye transgresse the commandement of the Lord For yee wash not your hands nor your hearts when ye eat bread at the Lords Table Quest But what is that repentance wherewith a man must come How must a man repent before he comes Ans This is indeed a thing worth the inquiring after because many that come to the Sacrament that yeeld to it that there must be a preparation before they come yet fouly deceive
and candle of the Word Psal 119. 105. Thy word is a light a Lampe And by the light of this candle search and ranscke the blinde corners and secret crannies of our hearts and out with all the very crums of leaven So that as the Apostle speakes in that case 1 Cor. 5. 7 8. Purge out therefore the old leaven Therefore let us keepe the feast not with old leaven c. So let us doe in this case of comming to the Sacrament This is to keepe our Passeover after the due Order If we will eat of the Lambe we must have no leaven if Lambe no leaven if leaven no Lambe if Christ in the Sacrament no sins and lusts favoured if sins and lusts favoured no Christ There bee that expound that Text Cant. 7. 2. of the two Sacraments Thy navell is like a round goblet which wants not liquor thy belly is like an heap of wheat set about with Lilies By the navell they understand the Sacrament of Baptisme the navell serves for the nourishment of the babe in the wombe and baptisme nourishes infants and new borne babes in the Churches wombe By the belly like an heape of wheat they understand the Sacrament of the Lords Supper for the aboundance and store of excellent spirituall nourishment therin and marke with what this heape of wheat is set about set about with Lilies signifying Christians of holy and godly life To be sure such they should bee by repentance that come to this Sacrament they should be Lilies pure and white Lilie-white that are set about this heape of wheat It is not after the due Order when stincking weeds hemlock nettles and such trash are set about this heape of wheat when scandalous and profane persons common swearers customary drunkards c. thrust in and set themselves downe at the Lords Table It is a case much to be lamented to see the desperate boldnesse of many in comming to the Sacrament swearers habituall drunkards uncleane persons make no more bones of comming to the Table of the Lord than of sitting downe at their owne ordinary Tables sweare this day receive the next be drunke on the eve and receive the Sacrament on the morrow Herein dealing as the Harlot in that case Prov. 30. 20. She eats and wipes her mouth and saith I have done no wickednesse I am as honest a woman as the best of my neighbours So these eate and drinke at the Sacrament and wipe their mouthes and who hath any thing to say to them they hope they are as orderly faire Communicants as the best That therefore men may bee awakened to bee more considerate and may bee provoked to come prepared with repentance let them a little thinke seriously on these following particulars First hee that comes to the Sacrament and not after this order prepared with Repentance shall be sure to meet w th no blessing benefit or comfort There is a great deale of comfort and joy to bee had in the use of the Sacrament provided a man so come to it as he ought provided that a man come prepared with repentance Marke that passage Ezra 6 22. They kept the Feast of unleavened bread seven dayes with joy What are civill Feasts without joy and what are holy Feasts without joy A Feast is made for laughter and wine makes merry Eccl. 10. 19. Little comfort in this Feast and Wine in the Sacrament unlesse it make a mans heart merry and joyfull Ioy is that which GOD promises to the right users of his Ordinances Isay 56. 7. I will make them joyfull in mine house of prayer So God makes men joyfull in the house of preaching and joyfull at the Table of his house They kept the Feast with joy How so For sayes the Text the Lord had made them joyfull But observe who they were whom God made joyfull at that Feast and Passeover namely those who had separated themselves from the filthinesse of the heathen of the land Such as come with true Repentance God makes joyfull in the use of his Ordinance A man may be bold to challenge impenitent persons that come in their sinnes and to charge them with it that they have no joy in their receiving God joyes them not makes them not welcome As in the Gospell so at the Sacrament God makes a Feast such a Feast as the Feast of the Gospell is Isay 25. 6. A Feast of fat and sweet things a Feast of Wine a Feast of things full of marrow But who must eate of that Feast who must be feasted with that wine and marrow How must they bee prepared that eat of this Feast They must come in due Order that come to that Feast and that due Order is to come with repentance for marke what God subjoynes there Vers 7. And I will destroy the face of the covering the veile that is spread c. So that they that will be partakers of that Feast must first have the veile the covering taken away they that come veiled and covered come not after the due Order and therfore shall not taste of the sweetes of this Feast But what is that veile then that must be taken away before they shall eat of that Feast We may see what it is by that of the Apostle 2 Cor. 3. 14 15 16. The veile is the hardnesse of mens hearts and that veile is taken away when men turne to the Lord. Repentance takes away that veile when men are humbled for their sinnes and doe truly repent then is the veile taken away And when the veile is taken away then are men prepared to come to that Feast of fat things The Sacrament is a Feast of fat things also and they that will come to this Feast in the Sacrament must come with their hearts unveiled It is a Feast of fat things but they that will eat of this Feast of fat things must not come with fat hearts They that come with fat hearts will finde it a Feast of leane things will finde neither sweet nor comfort in the use of the Sacrament Goe make the heart of this people fat Isay 6. that is Goe make their hearts hard and impenitent Psal 119. 70. Their heart is fat as greasse fat hearts shall not be feasted with these sweet things A leane heart that mournes that pines that grieves for sin that heart shall eate of these fat things Psal 22. 26. The poore shall eate and shall bee satisfied The man that is humbled and abased he shall eat unto satisfaction so that they onely have benefit taste the sweet and the marrow in this Feast that come prepared with repentance But let a man come without repentance and humiliation and he receives no benefit at all at the Sacrament but findes a leane and a drie Feast of it It is in this case with a man as it was with the Prodigall when once he came to himselfe and was soundly humbled for his folly and fals to confession Father I have sinned against thee and against
Sacrament to the feeding of its diseases and the increasing of its owne sorrow and mischiefe as the water that made the cleane woman fruitfull made the uncleane woman swell and rot God curses the Sacrament to an impenitent defiled person and so makes a sad breach upon him in stead of a blessing Secondly such an one as comes in his impenitency shall meete with a breach in another kinde with Gods heavy wrath falling upon him at the Sacrament That same is a terrible Text and worthy to be well thought upon by every man before he comes to the Sacrament Lev. 7. 20 21. But the soule that eats of the flesh of the peace offerings that pertaine to the Lord having his uncleannesse upon him even that soule shall be cut off from his people Moreover the soule that shall touch any uncleane thing as the uncleannesse of man or any uncleane beast or any abominable uncleane thing and eate of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace-offerings even that soule shall be cut off from his people Their peace offerings were eucharisticall offerings Now suppose a man had defiled himselfe and should have come and with that uncleannesse upon him have eaten of the flesh of those offerings what had the issue beene surely it had beene better for that man to have beene a bed and asleepe for that soule shall be cut off from his people that man shall be destroyed destroyed by GODS hand and from before his face as Lev. 22. 3 That soule shall be cut off from my presence Nay marke yet further ver 21. That if a man did but touch any uncleane thing uncleannesse of man or beast or any abominable uncleane thing and then in that case after such a touch before he be clensed shal offer to eate of the flesh of the peace offering he should be cut off from his people What If no more uncleannesse upon him then came by a touch must he yet be cut off Must he be cut off that eates but with a touch of uncleannes What then will become of him that not touches but wallowes and tumbles in uncleannesse In the uncleannesse of whordom drunkennes If he must be cut off that touches the uncleannes of a man what will become of him that wallowes in the uncleannesse of the Divell If he must be cut off that touches but the uncleannesse of a beast then what will become of him that is an uncleane beast an uncleane adulterer an uncleane drunkard or any other uncleane sinner See how our Saviour speakes Matth. 10. 12 13. When you come into a house salute it And if the house be worthy let your peace come upon it but if it be not worthy let your peace returne to you If the Apostles came to an house that was worthy then upon their salutation the blessing they prayed for came upon that house but if an unworthy house the blessing fell not upon it but returned to them againe So is it in the receit of the Sacrament When it is received if he bee worthy that receives it then comes a blessing from GOD upon a man but if the person be unworthy then comes neither blessing nor peace Now who is worthy Iudge in your owne consciences are impenitent sinners that live and lye in their sins Are customary profaners of Gods Name Are habituall drunkards Are loathsome Adulterers covetous earth-wormes are these worthy If these be worthy who then is unworthy Either these or none are unworthy Therefore no peace nor blessing can come upon them Nay that is not all not only no blessing but a curse shall come upon them If he will shew himselfe a worthy man saies Salomon of Adonijah there shall not an hayre of him fall to the earth 1 King 1. 52. but when after he carried himselfe unworthily it cost him his life If men come worthily to the Sacrament so prepared by repentance as they ought they meete with no hurt but with a great deale of good But if wickednesse be found Mutet ergo vitam qui vult accipere vitam Nam si non mutet vitam ad judicium accipiet vitam magis ex ipsa corrumpitur quà m sanâ—tur magis occiditur quà m vivificatur Aug. Ser. de Temp. 1. in men as Salomon there speakes and so men come unworthily God will curse them for so comming He that eates and drinkes unworthily eates and drinkes his owne damnation And who doth it unworthily but he that doth it impenitently And what can such unworthy impenitent persons expect but a breach with a witnesse The Israelites had a wondrous strange minde to flesh Numb 11. 4. They wept and said who shall give us flesh to eat And as great a minde have many to come to the Sacrament but yet it fares no better with them at the Sacrament than it did with Israel at their Quailes Psal 78. 30 31. Whilst the meat was yet in their mouthes the wrath of God came upon them and slew the fattest of them and smote downe the chosen men of Israel And so whilest many have the bread and wine in their mouthes the wrath of God comes upon them But why so Because it is with them at eating the Sacrament as it was with Israel in another case Verse 30. They were not estranged from their lusts but whilest the meat was in their mouthes the wrath of God c. So many come to the Sacrament but are not estranged from their lusts their whoring drunkennesse worldlinesse c. but come in impenitency without sorrow and reformation and therefore whilest the Sacramentall elements are in their mouthes the wrath of God comes upon them and so instead of eating Christ they eat wrath And all because they comming in their impenitency provoke GOD to wrath It may be thou feelest no wrath for the present but yet wrath may be inflicted insensibly on thy soule And though thou feele it not yet thou mayest heape and treasure up wrath against the day of wrath A man that brings every day but a fagot or two to the stack may in time make a great heap every day a stick to the pile may make such a pile as being fired at once will make a dreadfull fire Thou feelest no wrath for the present but every Sacrament thou receivest thou bringest a fagot to the heape and makest such an heape as at last will make the fire so much the greater so much the hotter at the day of wrath And then shalt thou feele that wrath which now thou heapest up Thou greatenst thine heape now and the greater the heape the greater the fire Now the reasons why God thus sadly makes a breach upon impenitent sinners are specially two 1 Because every impenitent sinner defiles the Lords Table and the Sacrament Holinesse becomes thine house O Lord and so no lesse holinesse becomes thy Table O Lord. As God himselfe is holy so his word Sicut sanctum Canes non sanctificat nec margaritae porcos nutriunt sed contra Canes
2. 8. I will that men pray every where lifting up pure hands without wrath Every Christians care should be to have his prayer like Iobs Iob 16. 17. Also my prayer is pure The way to have our prayer pure is to lift up pure hands without wrath Love is that which makes heart and hands and so prayer pure from the defilement of wrath It is required in all that will heare the Word aright Iames 1. 19. They that will bee swift to heare must bee slow to wrath and verse 21. all superfluity of maliciousnesse must be layd apart to fit for the receiving of the Word So 1 Pet. 2. 1 2. Wherfore laying aside all malice as new borne babes desire the sincere milke of the Word And so likewise no lesse requisite in all such as will come to the Sacrament in due order Every sacrifice was to be salted with salt Levit. 2. 13. And every oblation of thy meate offring shalt thou season with salt Thou shall not suffer the salt of the Covenant of thy God to be lacking c. with all thine offrings thou shalt offer salt Vnseasoned services are unsavoury services Services without salt are services without savour And here is a salt with which all our duties are to be sprinkled Marke 9. 50. Have salt in your selves and have peace one with another And as at all times so especially is it required before we come to the Sacrament If without love we are neither fit to pray nor heare then not fit to receive the Sacrament for he is not fit to receive the Sacrament that is neither fit to pray nor heare the Word The necessity of it will appeare by these things 1 By that so well knowne a place Matth. 5. 23 24. If thou bring thy Nun quam mihi contingat turbatum ad pacis accedere sacrificium cū ita disceptatione contingere Sacramentum-Certe non recipitur munus quodcunque meum quod defero ad altare nisi ante placato fratre quē me forte laesisse meminero quanto minùs si meipsum non placavero priùs Bern. de precept dispens guift to the Altar and there remember that thy brother hath ought against thee leave there thy guift before the Altar and goe thy way first be reconciled to thy brother and then come and offer thy guift It may seeme to be somewhat an odde thing an incongruous carriage and to carry some shew of irreverence with it that a man being come into the Temple having brought his offering before the Altar should all on a sudden turne his backe upon the Altar and goe his waies out of the Temple Might not a man therefore in such a case better have stayed there still so that in his heart he were sorry for the wrong done to his neighbour and be fully resolved so soon as the sacrifice is ended to reconcile himselfe to him No it will not serve the turne but how od and undecent it may seem to be yet go thy way and first be reconciled and then come and offer thy guift Not offer thy guift and then go and be reconciled This must be done first it is a preparative duty and preparative duties must be done before the services themselves be done Now as in Sacrifices so is it in Sacraments Et tum veniens offeres munus tuum Vae mihi misero ne dicam tibi qui tanto tempore aut non obtuli munus aut ira permanente sine causa obtuli Hieronym Ep. ad Castorin Matert GOD will have love and reconciliation before men come to His Table Go first and be reconciled before thou goe to receive the Sacrament He that will goe to the Sacrament without charity can looke for no better then to returne without fruit Vncharitable receiving can bee no better then unprofitable receiving 2 That same 1 Cor. 12. 13. By one spirit wee are all baptised into one body and by one spirit have beene all made to drinke into one spirit The Apostle had shown before v. 8 9 10. that though some men do receive personall peculiar gifts yet they are given by the spirit for the good of the whole Church The reason in briefe is because all the whole Church is but one body and one soube and every beleever being a member of that body whatsoever he hath he hath it not for himsefe but for the common good of the body But now the question might be whether all beleevers be one body and one spirit or soule Now therefore the Apostle shewes and proves this unity of the Church that all beleevers are one body and soule from the end and effect of the Sacrament which is to seale this unity That they be one body it appeares by the Sacrament of baptisme for by one Spirit wee are baptised into one body That they be one spirit or soule it appeares by the Sacrament of the Lords Supper for by one spirit we are made to drink into one Spirit or soule Thus by both the Sacraments is this unity sealed Observe then that a mayne end and use of the Supper is that wee may be made to drinke into one spirit into the Sacrament in love and charity CHAP. 7 or else how shall the end and use of the Sacrament be made good How can they be made to drink into one spirit that are of two spirits of two different contrary spirits it is exceeding requisite that they be of one spirit that come to be made drinkers into one spirit It is love that makes men of one spirit and so fits them to bee made in the Sacrament to drinke into one spirit love makes men of one spirit the Sacrament seales this unity of spirit There cannot be an unity of spirit sealed till there be an unity of spirit made Now because it is love that makes this unity and this unity must be sealed at the Sacrament therfore necessarily must a man come with love that will come aright to the Sacrament or else hee frustrates a maine end of the Sacrament 3 Thirdly as the Sacrament of Baptisme is the Sacrament of our new birth so the Sacrament of the Supper is the Sacrament of our new life and spirituall nutrition and growth And unto it should a man come that in the right and religious use of it he may be spiritually nourished and may thrive and grow in grace and goodnesse Now no man can grow thrive or be nourished by the use of the Sacrament that comes to it without love The whole Church is a body every Christian is a member of that body now a member that will grow in the body and thrive must necessarily be united to and conjoyned with the body If a member be separated from the body it cannot be nourished nor grow an hand or an arme rent or cut off from the body cannot be nourished nor grow Nay though a part of the body bee not separated from the rest yet if there be but a dislocation of a part so
when as it is the beleeving soules solemn mariage day What espoused Bride longs not for the mariage day when shee shall enjoy her Bridegroome Faith unites Christ and the beleever and contracts them together Now when once the contract is past there followes a longing for the mariage-day And this longing after the mariage-day is a signe of a contract made by faith Doth thy soule then long for those blessed nuptials with the Lord Christ when thy soule shall have the fill of his Love Doth the Spirit in thee cry Come Lord Iesus make haste my beloved Oh happy signes of true faith But now enter into thy soule O thou covetous worldling and thou voluptuous epicure c. Deale seriously and honestly and tell the plaine truth Is there any one thing in the world thou thinkest lesse upon wishest lesse or dreadest more than the comming of Christ When S. Paul disputed of Righteousnesse and the judgement to come before Foelix he trembled How many boast of righteousnesse even of the righteousnesse of faith but how troublesome are the thoughts of the judgement and Christ to come unto them How heartily could they wish oh that that day might never come Let such as cannot rejoyce in the thoughts of that day in some measure and desire it as the day of their refreshing question if not the truth yet the strength of their faith 2 Secondly The effects of faith in regard of our selves And they are these 1 First the Operation and effectuall working of the Word upon our hearts faith is that which makes all Gods Ordinances effectuall and so the word 1 Thess 2. 13. The word of God which effectually workes in you that beleeve Indeed the word workes on those that beleeve not workes their hearts to rage and rebellion workes to their hardning and damnation But it workes no good thing when faith is not to set it on worke Heb. 4. 2. The word which they heard profited them not because it was not mixed with faith The Gospell is the power of God to every one that beleeves Rom. 1. 16. Faith is as the vitall and naturall heat of the soule If the body be dead and without naturall heat give a man the most stirring and working Physick that is and yet it workes not because there wants a principle of life and heate to set it on worke Iust so is it here The word dispensed in the most powerfull manner that can bee workes not upon an unbeleeving heart because the heart is dead without faith but if any faith in the heart it makes the Word worke effectually Try thy selfe by this workes the Word upon thy soule workes it thee to a conformity to it selfe so as thou art cast into the mould of it Such efficacy of the Word argues a presence of faith in thine heart But how many discovers this to be void of faith How many have lived all their dayes and are even growne gray under the Gospell and yet what grace or goodnesse have all the Sermons that ever they have heard wrought in them more than in such as scarce in all their dayes ever heard Sermon Nay what is wrought in many but scorne rebellion resolution of disobedience wrath swelling and hellish boiling of the heart both against Minister and doctrine Are these the workes of faith or is it rather a signe that he workes in their hearts that effectually workes in the children of disobedience This is a fearfull signe that a man is in the state of unbeleefe 2 Secondly Sanctification and holinesse of heart and life Acts 15. 9. their hearts were purified by faith Pharisisme may wash thy hands but faith washes hand and Heart Pharisisme washes cleane the outside of the cup and platter but Faith makes cleane the inward part also yea there faith begins the worke Faith is not onely an holy but an hallowing grace Acts 26. 18. Amongst them which are sanctified by faith We finde a woman in the Gospell that had beene troubled twelve yeeres with a bloudy issue who was healed but how came shee to be healed She touches the garment of Christ touches but the hem and yet straightway the Fountaine of her bloud was dried up Marke 5. 29. It is true that it was Christ that healed her It was vertue that went out of Christ that healed her Vers 30. and yet Vers 34. Thy faith hath made thee whole Faith then fetches healing vertue from Christ and heales diseases The faith that is true faith fetches healing vertue from Christ Every mans heart naturally hath such a spirituall disease as shee had a bodily That disease which the woman had did typifie under the Law the naturall filthinesse of our hearts Prov. 4. 24. Observe the heart from thence are the issues of life Every action issues from the heart the Fountaine of all our actions This Fountaine is a Fountaine of bloud and all the issues from this Fountaine in our thoughts words actions all these issues are bloudy issues and very filthy and loathsome before God Mat. 15. 18 19 20. Hence hands defiled with bloud Isay 59. 3. Bloudy filth Isay 4. 4. Their way was before me as the uncleannesse of a removed woman Ezek. 36. 17. and Hos 4. 2. Bloud toucheth bloud Many bloudy issues out of the heart one issue meets with another and so bloud touches bloud Now when faith is once wrought in the heart it workes strange cures both in heart and life There were wont to be filthy issues out of the heart in vile loathsome noisome thoughts of uncleannesse wantonnesse covetousnes worldlinesse There was wont to be a filthy issue at the mouth a deale of vaine filthy rotten communication bloudy oathes and curses There was wont to bee issues in all the severall actions and passages of the life But now when faith comes into the heart that presently carries a man unto Christ touches him fetches healing vertue from him that dries up this Fountaine of bloud in some good measure and so heales all those loathsome bloudy issues It is true that where faith is there may be stil some ouzings of this Fountaine but yet the flux of it is nothing so aboundant and so continuall as formerly A mans heart naturally is like the Sea Psal 104. 25 26. This great and wide sea wherein are things creeping innumerable both small and great beasts There goe the Ships there is that Leviathan whom thou hast made to play therein In the sea there be vast Whales huge Leviathans that sport themselves and play in the deepes thereof but besides those huge Whales what a world of creeping and crawling smal creatures are there to be found therein Such is the heart of a naturall man there be therein not only some Leviathans some speciall uncleane and foule lusts some speciall Sea-monsters but there are also creeping things innumerable a world of crawling bugs and baggage vermin That looke as is said of Gods Angels Dan. 7. 10. Thousand thousands ministred unto him and ten thousand times
that is commanded me and when I have done that which is my duty to doe I must say I am an unprofitable servant then how much more must I say it that am far short of doing all that in this particular I am commanded to do and have not done that which is my duty to do I doubt therefore that I may not come to the Sacrament because I cannot finde my selfe thus prepared I were better keepe away than come unlesse I were thus prepared I have done what I possibly can do but alas how short am I of what is required Answ 1. First have recourse here to that which before was said in the last point of the second Chapter Labour and endeavour to be as exactly prepared as possibly thou canst but if thou canst not attaine to that measure and degree of preparation thou desirest yet if thy heart witnesse to thee that what is wanting in thy preparation is not from sloth idlenesse and lothnesse to take paines but it is the highest degree that with all thy paines thou art able to attaine unto I say unto thee in this case as Saul spake to David in that 1 Sam. 17. 37. Goe and the Lord be with thee Go to the Sacrament and feare not but that the Lord will be with thee 2 Secondly if indeed thou hast no faith no repentance at all wrought or renewed in thee I would in any case advise thee to forbeare for why shouldest thou destroy thy selfe as Salomon speakes in that case Eccl. 7. 16. But now deale uprightly as in Gods presence and take heed as well of bearing false witnesse against thy self as against thy neighbour It is a sin to beare false witnesse against thy selfe as well as to foredoe thy selfe and therefore make conscience of it deale sincerely therefore Darest thou confidently and upon unquestionable grounds affirme it that thou hast no faith no repentance I much feare me sayest thou that I have not That is not the point what thou fearest but what thou assuredly knowest A man may have much faith that feares hee hath none yea there may bee greatest faith where there be greatest feares Thou upon serious examination of thine owne condition not upon an ignorant selfe-love darest not for a world resolutely and peremptorily say thou hast no faith no grace no part in Christ then take heed how thou upon thy feares forbeare Gods Ordinance 3 Thirdly if thou have done thine utmost in the sincerity of thy spirit to fit thy selfe for the duty and thine heart charges thee neither with any grosse guilt in thy life nor with any slothfull formality in thy preparation though thou canst not finde thy selfe so fitted as thou wouldest yet go to the Ordinance if it be upon conscience of giving God obedience Christ commands the use of the Sacrament Doe this in remembrance of me Now though thine owne feares discourage and dis-hearten thee and when thou lookest at thy selfe thou fearest to go yet if when thou lookest at Gods commandement and in the conscience of it fearest to stay away here in this conflict of feares let this last feare get the victory and be more afraid to stay from the Sacrament in regard of Gods commandement then to come to the Sacrament in regard of thy discouragement Gods commandement sayes Go thine own discouragements sayes Goe not Give obedience rather to Gods commandement than to thine owne feares Obedience yeelded to God out of pure conscience to his commandement yeelded I say against discouragements and feares may be no whit inferiour unto nor lesse acceptable then a preparation in a more exact and excellent degree then yet thou hast Such obedience is most excellent and most acceptable for that is the most excellent obedience when there is nothing else to toll and draw us on but only Gods commandement When a man finds himselfe in such a frame of spirit as that he questions not but to meet with comfort and a good answer at the Sacrament then possibly not Gods commandement but that comfort may rather seeme to draw him to the duty But now when a man hath some discouragements in regard of the feares of the indisposition of his spirit and yet in regard of Gods commandement dares not absent himself dares not but go it is cleere that such obedience is pure obedience because there is nothing to draw him on but Gods commandement and that hee doth the duty upon this ground Because God will have him do it that he doth it more for Gods sake than his own Excellent is that Exo. 14. 15. The Lord said unto Moses speak unto the children of Israel that they go forward Forwards Why there was great danger before them they go upon a manifest danger the Sea is before them As good go backward to the Aegyptians or as good stand still and let the Aegyptians come and put them to the sword as to goe forward It is but death to stand still but death to go backward and it is no better than death to goe forward What safety can be expected by going into the Sea Well for all this speake to the children of Israel that they go forward Now to go forward because God commands it when nothing but present danger in sight was an argument of pure obedience it was not safety but conscience of obedience to Gods commandement that carried them forwards A man in the truth and sincerity of his spirit hath done his utmost in his preparation and yet his heart misgives him that he shall sin to go to the Sacrament and that he shall run himselfe upon a manifest danger speake unto such a man that he go forward because God commands him to doe him this service and his going forward in obedience being pure obedience it shall returne him at last as great comfort as if he had beene so prepared as his desire was to have beene Object I but my heart is full of feares and doubts I feare and tremble to come to Gods Ordinance in my feares Answ Yet come Feares in comming are no barre to comfort Thou mayest come in feare and yet goe away with much comfort See Mark 5. 33. The Woman fearing and trembling came and fell downe before him And what sayes Christ to her Vers 34. Daughter go in peace She comes to Christ with feare she goes away in peace she came trembling she goes away rejoycing If her feare and trembling had kept her from Christ she had missed of that sweet and comfortable answer Daughter go in peace We know not what comfort we deprive our selves of when we suffer our feares and jealousies to prevaile so farre with us as to keepe us from Christ in his Ordinances Object But my feare is that I shall not meet with Christ nor finde him in his Ordinance and therefore what should I do there Answ A man may then meet with Christ and find him when he least of all hopes to finde him Mary meets with Christ Iohn 20. 15. and supposes
Christ in it then faith suckes and when faith suckes then it fetches honey and oyle out of the Rocke As the Prophet speakes in that case Isa 66. 11. That yee may sucke and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolation so in this There must bee sucking before there can be satisfaction The word and Sacraments are breasts of consolation and these be full of sweet milke but there can be no satisfaction unlesse there be sucking A child may handle the mothers breasts may play with them may kisse them but all this while the child is never the fuller Therefore the child when it would be satisfied it layes its mouth to the breast gets the nipple into the mouth and then suckes and drawes with all the strength and might and so fetches forth the milke out of the mothers breast So must it be in these case Men may come to the Sacrament and gaze upon the elements and eate and drinke them and yet not receive the sweete of the Ordinance but if they would have the milke out of this breast they must fall to sucking and to drawing with all their power and strength Then doe men sucke and draw the breast of the Sacrament when in the use of it they Actuate and set their faith on work Faith Actuated suckes vertue out of he Sacrament suckes from Christ in the Sacrament mortifying vertue to kill lusts healing vertue to cure the pollutions of the heart quickning vertue to enable to duties and actions of spirituall life Look how David speakes of wicked men in that case Psalm 73. 10. Waters of a full cup are wrung out to them So is it to all true beleevers in the Sacrament They have therein full draughts of Christs bloud they have their hearts filled as with the comforts of the Holy Ghost so with the efficacies of Christ they have waters of a full cup. But how come they by these waters of a full cup They are wrung out to them And how are they wrung out to them Faith being set on worke in the Ordinance and working upon the Ordinance that wrings out waters of a full cup that wrings out the juyce the sap and sweete of the Sacrament that wrings and presses out the succulency of it It is just here as it was in the dreame of Pharaohs Butler Gen. 40. 10 11. The clusters of the Vine brought forth ripe grapes and Pharaohs cup was in mine hand and I took the grapes and pressed them into Pharaohs cup. The Sacrament is as a Vine set before us full of clusters of rippe grapes and these grapes full of Iuyce Christ with all his fulnesse offered to us in this Ordinance Now our care and course should bee to have the liquour and bloud of these grapes powred into the cup of our hearts How may that bee done now As Pharaohs cup came filled Hee tooke the grapes and pressed them and crushed them into Pharaohs cup and so the cup was filled So must wee take these grapes and presse and crush them wee must squeeze forth the liquor of them That we doe when faith is Actuated and is set on worke in the use of the ordinance Actuated faith takes these grapes and presses them and wrings out of the Ordinance that which fills our hearts When therefore we are come to the Sacrament and now are to receive set we all the Powers of our faith on worke Lift up this eye to see Christ reach out this hand to lay hold upon and receive him set this mouth on feeding eating drinking sucking Set the mouth of thy faith to the breast of the Sacrament and Quomodo ergo capiunt qui lac capiunt Iesum Christum inquit Apostolus huÌ„c crucifixâ—â—m Suge quod pro te factus est cresces ad id quod est Aug. in Psa 119. sucke and draw at it with all thy might and draw hardest for that vertue of Christs thy soule stands in most need of David speakes of the marrow of Gods house and Ordinances Psalme 63. 5. He that will have the marrow out of the bone must breake the bone and knock the bone and that will fetch sorth the marrow So must faith worke and bestirre it selfe and take paines at the Ordinance and then the marrow of the Sacrament will bee had So should a man doe at and with the Sacrament as Christs Disciples did when they passed through the corne fields Luk. 6. 1. And his Disciples plucked the eares of the corne and did eate rubbing them in their hands They did not plucke off the eares and so eate the whole eaâ—es but first they rubbed the eares in their hands to fetch out the corne So at the Sacrament set faith on worke to rub the eares and fetch out the corne that is in them for foode A rub'd eare will yeeld corne fit for foode but there is no eating of eares unrub'd without danger Prov. 29. 33. Surely the charming of milke brings forth butter They must charme therefore and charme hard set their faith hard to this worke of charming that will have butter that will have benefit out of the Sacrament There is oyle in olives but before there could be oyle fetcht out of them to anoynt a mans selfe withall they used to treade the olives and so expresse the oyle out of them as appeares Micah 6. 15. Thou shalt treade the olives but shalt not anoynt thee with oyle It is threatned as a Iudgement but yet it implyes that oyle was fetcht forth by the treading stamping bruising and breaking of the olives with their feete The Ordinances of Gods word and Sacraments are olives full of good full of excellent oyle but these olives will not drop oyle upon us they must be stampt and trod if we would have oyle out of them to anoint our selves Faith Actuated and set on worke in and upon these ordinances that treads these olives and helpes us to the oyle of them And how-ever the Prophet in that place threatens it as a judgement that they should tread Olives and not anoynt themselves yet it never so falls out in this case He that Actuates his faith and sets it soundly on work to tread these olives he shall be sure to dippe his foote in oyle and to be comfortably anoynted in the use of the Ordinance It is only the want of faiths taking of paines in industrious treading of the olives that makes us go away dry headed dry hearted and unanoynted from the Sacrament and all other Ordinances Thus must faith worke hard at the Sacrament and eate her bread in the sweate of her browes Quest But how and in what manner is faith to be Actuated and set on worke in the use of the Sacrament Answ In the Sacrament consider three things First Sacramentall offers Secondly Sacramentall promises Thirdly Sacramentall Representations fix the eye of faith upon them all and set faith on worke upon them all 1 First in the Sacrament we have Sacramentall offers Christ Himselfe is offered
enlarged in more speciall manner to blesse God for Christs Death and the sweet comforts received in the use of the Sacrament Fifthly and lastly this holy Sacramentall disposition stands in an exercise of love and mercy In an exercise of love when wee looke upon our fellow members communicating with us we should cleave to them in CHAP. 20 one spirit as unto members of the same body 1 Cor. 10. 17. For we being many are one bread and one body for wee are all partakers of that one bread So that in partaking of that one bread we are one bread and one body Many cornes goe to the making of one loafe but yet they will not be knod into one loafe unlesse by the mixture of some moysture they bee wrought and fastned together Love exacted stirred up is that moysture that unites us many severall graines into one bread So 1 Cor. 12. 13. We drinke into one spirit that is into one soule In an exercise also of mercy and compassion to the poore members of Indigne manducant qui corpus sanguinem Christi in Sacramēto manducunt bibunt membra autem ejus Evangelio non agnoscunt Aug. cont lit Tetil l. 2. c. 55. Christ shewing mercy to them in contributing to their necessities And here specially at the Sacrament shold that ground work with us 2 Cor. 8. 9. And thus we see what the concomitant duties are and such as accompany the Action Chap. 21. Subsequent duties and such as must follow the Sacrament received CHAP. 21 VVEE are now come to the third and last sort of Duties in which the due order of receiving the Sacrament stands and they are subsequent duties such as follow after the Sacrament received There ought to be a speciall care of duties after the Sacrament as well as before and in receiving for though a man may come conveniently prepared and may in a good measure be holily conversant in the duty of receiving yet if a man be carelesse and looke not to himselfe after the duty is done he may marre all A man may come to his meate prepared with a good stommach may eate it with a good appetite and feed hungrily and heartily and yet as soone as he hath eaten may doe that which may spoile all If a man before his meate bee well out of his mouth fall to sleepe or to serious study or to violent exercise or specially if he shall after meate eate some unwholesome food or take some poyson these must needs hinder digestion and concoction these must needs make him the worse after his meat though he come to it prepared with a good appetite and fed upon it with a good stomach Physitions before they give physicke prepare the body for it and give it when the body is in a convenient disposition for it but that is not all They have also a speciall care to order and dyet a man after he hath taken his physicke For though a mans body may be well prepared before taking physicke and be well disposed in taking it yet if a man be not afterwards carefull of taking cold be not carefull what and when he eates his physicke will not kindly worke nor doe him any good Carelesnesse in dyet in taking cold afterwards may Qui pharmacum sumunt solent eo die ab omnibus abstinere quibus pharmaci vis operatio impediri potest Gualth in 1 Cor. 11. 27. dead and kill the force of the physicke so as it may not onely doe a man no good but much hurt though the physicke were very good and proper for his body and disease A great care therefore ought to be had of a due and a right ordering our selves after the Sacrament And this care thus to order our selves stands in these two things First In a mans examining himselfe after he is come from the Sacrament Let a man examine himselfe and so let him eate and so let him drinke So also let a man eate and drinke and so let him examine himselfe A man is seriously and faithfully after he hath beene at the Lords Table to consider between God and his owne soule what entertainment and welcome GOD hath given him whether God hath dealt with him at this Supper as Mary delt with CHRIST at that Supper Iohn 12. 2 3. whether the LORD hath powred any precious oyntment upon him or not what comfort and increase of faith and grace he hath received what quickning what refreshment what friendship and communion with CHRIST what vertue hee hath found to flow out of Christ into his owne soule Now upon such examination a man shall finde that it hath been well with him at the Sacrament or it hath not he hath had a good day of it or no good day And accordingly as he findes so he is to proceed First then if a man have found no joy comfort enlargement no communion with nor answer from CHRIST but upon examination findes that he hath beene unfruitfull and that his heart was full of deadnesse hardenesse and dulnesse of spirit then two things are to bee done First Suspect thy selfe that some miscarriage hath beene in thee either in thy preparation to or in thy performance of the duty Labour therfore to finde out where the faile was and what it was that hindred the efficacy of the Sacrament that caused God to keep his hand close that caused him to deny to anoynt thee with fresh oyle And having found out what hindred and deaded the Sacrament judge thy selfe for that and be seriously humbled for it And this being thus done so that after our receiving we can but be sensible of our owne senselesnesse of heart in that holy duty and can mourne for it and complaine to God of it and of our selves we neede not be overmuch dismaied and cast downe because this is one fruit of the life of Christ which was undoubtedly received in the Sacrament Though thou hast not that thou wouldest have had yet thou hast that which was worth the going for Construe this very thing as a fruite of going to the Sacrament and be thankefull for that Secondly Endeavour by after paines in prayer and humiliation to quicken and awaken the efficacy of the Sacrament for this wee must know as a point of great use and comfort that Sacraments doe not alwaies worke for the present but the efficacy may come afterwards It is in this case as in that 1 Sam. 10. 1. 6 9. Samuel anoynted Saul and said The Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee c. And it was so that when had turned his back to goe from Samuel God gave him another heart The Spirit of God came not upon him in the Anoynting but afterwards when hee was departed from Samuel The Actions of God are of eternall efficacy though he put forth that efficacy in such times and seasons as he sees good Though the Sacrament worke not for the present in the administration yet if wee bee after touched with a
sense of our unworthinesse and thereupon awaken our selves to quicken the Ordinance to our selves the Sacrament shall be ready afterwards to empty it selfe with blessings upon our soules and shall prove effectuall and comfortable unto thee The first Sacrament of the Supper the Disciples received it is not like they found the efficacy of it for the present for they then knew nor understood nothing of CHRISTS death neither could it sinke into their heads that he should dye but yet afterwards when they came more cleerely to understand the mysteries of Redemption and the whole doctrine of Christ no question but they reaped the benefit of that Ordinance which then they fully understood not Physicke doth not alwayes worke when it is taken but many times a good while some dayes after It is with the Sacrament as it is with the word Many a man heares the word and minds it but for the present it hath no work at all It is possible that seven yeares twenty yeares after it may worke a Sermon preached seven yeares before may prove the meanes of a mans conversion seaven yeares after wee have an example in that kinde Iohn 10. 41 42. And many resorted unto him and said Iohn did no miracle but all things that spake of this man were true and many beleeved on him there Iohn had preacht of Christ before they did not there upon beleeve in Christ when hee preacht Iohn was dead and gone but now when Christ comes amongst them they upon Iohns former Sermons preacht a great while before doe now beleeve Iohn was dead but his word was not dead that now workes when he lyes in his grave Thus also may it be with the Sacrament it doth not alwayes presently worke it may and doth work some longer time afterwards when a Communicant humbled for his unprofitablenesse in the duely endeavours by after-diligence and Humiliation to quicken and put life into it And if such a course may quicken a Sacrament some time after then why not much more on the same day What hinders but it may bee in the case of the Sacrament of the Supper as in the Sacrament of Baptisme The efficacy and force of Baptisme doth not presently appeare no not presently upon the yeeres of discretion Many an one lives vitiously in sinfull course a swearer adulterer c. but yet afterwards if God give once a man the heart to bee toucht with the sense of his owne unworthinesse and hee beginnes to bestirre himselfe to secke GOD by faith and Repentance the Lord quickens a mans Baptisme and makes it as powerfull and efficacious as if that very day administred So in this case possibly a man that hath beene at the Lords Table and hath more then once beene an unworthy receiver but yet if a man shall come once to bee humbled of that unworthinesse God will make sacraments so oft unprofitably received to become efficacious unto him For though hee were unprepared to receive yet God was not unprepared to dispense the benefit of them Therefore if wee have miscarried in our preparations and dispositions so as we have found no benefit no comfort yet here is a remedy and an help take this course by after-diligence and after-Humiliation to fetch life into that Ordinance in which thou wert dead and which was dead unto thee in the Administration It is a frequent and foule fault amongst many that so soone as the Sacrament is done and the duty ended in publike they never once looke after it more They leave the Sacramentall disposition and devotion in the Church there they shake hands with it and bring not a whit of it home with them When the Sacrament is done all is done with them and as they come to it so they goe from it without any examination at all It is never once more thought upon And thereupon no Humiliation for deadnesse hardnesse and indisposition in the duty and no care to make up that by after diligence wherein they were wanting in the present performance 2 Secondly If upon this examination we finde that we were refreshed had our hearts enlarged had vertue from and communion with Christ and that GOD was very good to us then doe these two things 1 First Blesse God with all thy soule for his mercy shewed unto thee acknowledge with all thankefulnesse Gods gracious dealing with thee in the communication and manifestation of himselfe to thee in his Ordinance 2 Secondly Be carefull and watchfull to keepe up and maintaine that holy and gracious frame of heart in thee which thou acquirest in and bringest from the Sacrament with thee A man when he findes enlargement and a gracious disposition of spirit in the Ordinance should be of Peters mind when in the Mount with our Saviour in his transfiguration Master It is good being here It is good to be here as long as may bee when therefore in the Sacrament wee have gotten holy affections by degrees wound up to some spirituall height have gotten them up to more than an ordinary and common pitch our care should be to keep and maintaine so long as we can what we have gotten at the Sacrament to keepe the sweete meates wee bring from this banquet It is true indeed that wee cannot hold them up in that height and pitch to which we have wrought our hearts in holy duties and in the heate of holy exercises but yet wee should endeavour it what we can and so long as is possible by after private duties of prayer meditation good conference and the like That as David prayes for the people in that case 1 Chron. 29. 18. when he saw them in a floate of good affections their hearts sweetely and graciously enlarged O Lord saies he keepe this for ever in the Imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people and prepare or stablish their heart unto thee As if he had said Lord thou seest what a good frame of heart is in them at this present oh that thou wouldest keepe and maintaine this frame of heart in them ever So when we finde a good frame of heart wrought in us at the Sacrament wee should pray and endeavour that this frame of heart might bee still upheld and continued in us See an excellent example of this after a Sacrament 2 Chron. 30. 21 22. They finde their hearts comfortably and sweetly enlarged in the use of Gods Ordinance and loath they are to let this frame of heart sinke in them faine would they keepe it up still and therefore see ver 23. what they doe And the whole assembly tooke counsell to keep other seaven dayes and they kept other seaven dayes with gladnesse This was done to keep up still this gladnesse of heart which they had in keeping the first seven daies And this by way of proportion serves to teach us what a speciall care we should have after the receiving of the Sacrament to looke wisely to our selves to keepe alive as long as may be that holy fire that
was kindled in our hearts in the use of the Sacrament It is a grosse miscarriage a shrewd faile in men who after good and faire enlargements at the Sacrament have no care to keepe their hearts in good frame by prayer meditation or good conference but as soone as they come from the Sacrament doe fall to worldly and earthly conference or vaine and idle discourse and so all on a sudden quench dash and dampe all undoe all they have been so long a doing in their preparations and performances Such abrupt chopping off and jumping off from holy duties is a dangerous quenching of the Spirit Such a quenching of the Spirit as tends much to the hardening of the heart Yron red hot put into water and suddenly quencht it makes it the harder It is a very dangerous thing to the body when it is hot and in a sweat suddenly to cole it by casting off a mans clothes or leaping into the cold water Such a thing is as much as a mans life is worth Such sudden coolings and dampings of spirituall heats got in holy duties cannot be without much danger to the soule What a poore thing is it that when at the Sacrament a man hath gotten an excellent fire kindled and flaming in his heart that an houre or two after hee should not have so much as a coale or a sparke of that fire remaining And so much for the first thing to be done after Receiving namely the examining of our selves 2 The second thing to be done followes And that is A speciall and a wondrous great care to keepe touch with GOD to expresse the power and efficacy of Gods Ordinance in making our good and keeping our vowes and covenants we have made at the Sacrament our owne hearts are very false fickle and slippery there is therefore the more neede to looke narrowly to them They never long more to breake loose then when they are fresh bound with new cords The divell also is exceeding malicious Hee is never more busie more violent to tempt and bring men to sin then when they come new from the Sacrament Hee knowes that is the way to make their sinnes out of measure sinfull Hee is exceeding desirous to goe in and goe downe after a Sacramentall sop No sooner was CHRIST Baptized Luk. 3. but Luk. 4. presently after the Sacrament received hee sets fiercely and with all his skill and strength upon him in his tentations Looke how Senacherib did with Hezekiah so doth Satan with us When Hezekiah had reformed the Church setled the worship of GOD and had put all in good order 2 Chron. 31. then Chapt. 32. 1. After these things and the establishment thereof Senacherib came with his army into the land So when a man hath beene at the Sacrament and hath renued his Covenants with GOD and stablished his resolutions of better obedience After those things the Divell will come with all his forces and seeke to make a man breake his vowes and neglect his Covenants Therefore proportionable and answerable to the loosenesse of our hearts and to the malice of Satan should our care be to keepe our covenants and our vowes and to expresse and manifest the power and vertue of Gods Ordinance in the holinesse and obedience of our lives Now should our care be to shew what benefit wee have received by the Sacrament in walking closely with GOD in the forsaking all former sinnes and performing all duties of obedience formerly neglected Elias after he was fed by GOD went in the strength of that food forty daies and fortie nights 1 King 19. 8. So should we walke in the strength of our Sacramentall foode many daies and nights and shew that indeed we have received strength by and from it by keeping our covenants with GOD of holinesse and obedience See how Wisdome speakes Prov. 9. 5 6. Shee kills her beasts she mingles her wine shee furnishes her Table shee invites her guests Come saies she eate of my bread and drinke of the drinke which I have mingled But marke what it is that shee requires of her guests after she hath fed them and feasted them at her Table Forsake the foolish and live and goe in the way of understanding Now that I have fed and feasted you at my Table live now no more as yee were wont to doe now choose new company and new courses now become new men and goe and walke in new waies It is the very thing that GOD lookes for at our hands after we have been at the Sacrament So should it be with a man after his communion with GOD in the Sacrament as it was with Iacob after his communion with GOD in Bethel Genes 29. 1. Then Iacob lift up his feet and came into the land of the people of the East Hee lift up his feet he went with strength with spirit with cheerfulnesse and Then he went that is after he had had that sweet fellowship with GOD in Bethel hee was so cheered and refreshed with that spirituall baite that in the strength and force of that he went on livelily and cheerily in his journey So when we have had fellowship with GOD in the Sacrament in the strength of that heavenly baite at the Sacrament wee should lift up our feete and goe on cheerily livelily lustily in our journey towards Heaven After Christ had beene at Iordan at the Sacrament he goes forth furnished with strength from Gods Ordinance to encounter the Divell Then Iesus returned from Iordan full of the HOLY GHOST to be tempted of the Divell Mat. 4. 1. Luk. 4. 1. Hee went from the Sacrament full of the HOLY GHOST and full of power against the filthy ghost So should wee rise from the Sacrament full of the Holy Ghost Tanquam Leones igitur ignem spirantes ab illa mensa recedamus facti diabolo terribiles caput nostrū mente revolvētes charitatem quam nobis exhibuit Chry. ad pop Hom. 61. full of power and spirituall strength and like Lyons breathing fire as Chrysostome speakes so as wee might be terrible to Satan and powerfull against our lusts and corruptions to mortifie and subdue them for this is one maine end and use of the Sacrament for which we come to eat that we may get from CHRIST in it power to mortifie our lusts and corruptions and to be enabled to walke in better obedience then wee have done Therefore that we may shew that wee have made good the end of the Sacrament wee must mortifie lusts and performe duties of obedience with more power than ever That which Paul speaks Ephes 4. 28. Let him that stole steale no more c. It must specially be remembred after the Sacrament Let him that swore sweare no more that used to lye lye no more to be drunke be drunke no more to be uncleane be uncleane no more c. This we come for to the Sacrament and this vow wee at the Sacrament It is the note of a man that shall goe
reached forth to receive Christs body at the Sacrament shold afterwards be stretched forth to oppression and violence that those mouthes and lippes that have drunke Christs bloud at the Sacrament shold be after and specially the same day defiled with the slabbering drivell of oathes filthy obscaene speech and rotten communication The Habassines after the receiving of the Sacrament thinke it not lawfull for them to spâ—t that day till the setting of the sun Brerew enquir cap. 23. 166. It is no better then superstition in them but yet their superstition will rise up in Iudgement against the monstrous profanenesse of many amongst us They that hold it unlawfull to doe so much as spit that day would they out of excesse of drunkennesse spue that day They that will not spit that day would they endure the Divells drivell to fall from their mouthes that day in ungodly oathes and unsavory rotten communication They that will not spit that day would they in that day spit in Gods face as common profane swearers and blasphemers doe But yet some againe there are that have so much reverence to the Sacrament and so much respect to the Ordinance that upon that day they receive they will carry themselves fairly and demurely If they be tempted by their companions to any irregular carriage they can answer Oh fie by no meanes I have beene to day at the Sacrament I may not so much forget my selfe And it is a good answer But yet that day once over the next day or a few daies after let out themselves and take their former sinfull liberties Now here let men a little consider themselves Doth the sacramentall efficacie last and doth the sacramentall covenant binde but for a day If because thou hast beene at the Sacrament to day it be a good argument that thou must not sin and breake out to day why is it not as good an argument for the next day for the next weeke for the next month the next yeer Is the efficacy the bond of the Sacrament stinted to a day Nay if thou returne to thy sins seven yeeres twenty yeeres after thou hast received if in so long a time thou shouldest not or couldest not receive againe yet still the bond is as strong upon thy conscience as if thou hadst received the Sacrament but this present day There is one and the same reason in both Sacraments The Sacrament of Baptisme is but one administred and that in our infancie and yet I know our Baptismall vow and covenant binds to the day of our death though we should live an hundred yeeres yea though wee should fulfill Methusela's daies The same covenant and vow wee make in Baptisme we renew at the Supper and the bond in this as binding and as lasting as in the other Sacrament That is true or should at least be true of both the Sacraments which Paul speakes of the Rocke 1 Cor. 10. 4. They dranke of that spirituall Rocke that followed them or went with them They dranke of the materiall Rocke which is called a spirituall Rocke because it was a type of Christ The Israelites did not onely drinke of the Rocke when they were at it but after they were removed and gone from it they still dranke of it But how could that be yes the Apostle saies The Rocke followed them That is the water that issued out of the Rocke followed them as they journyed and streamed after them in their removes So the Rocke followed them virtually the vertue and benefit of the Rocke followed them and went along with them So is it so should we have a care it should be that the Sacraments should not onely be efficacious when we are present at them and in the act of receiving them but their efficacy and vertue should follow us and streame after us all the while wee are travelling in the wildernesse of this world till we come into Heaven When we come to the Sacrament and doe not shew the efficacy and power of it doe not keepe our covenants and walke the more religiously and fruitfully after it there followes upon it these two evills 1 First God accounts such receiving no service done to him The Sacrament received without following and answerable obedience he reputes and accounts as no service at all to him Looke how God contests with his people Zech. 7. 5. 6 7. Did yee at all fast unto me even to me And when yee did eate and when yee did drinke did yee not eate c Should yee not heare the words c As if hee had said yee have kept many fasts for many yeeres but yee did no service to me in all your fasts for your fasting was no more service to me then when yee did eat and drink for your selves and for your owne pleasure and delight But how so Because with your fasting yee joyned not your obedience to me and my words there followed no obedience in your lives and therefore you fasted not unto me Did yee at all fast to me to me So likewise will God contest with such communicants as doe not expresse the power of the Sacrament and keepe not their sacramentall covenants in following obedience When yee received the Sacrament in the first second third and every moneth in the yeere did ye at all performe any service unto mee unto me And when yee did eat and when yee did drinke did yee not eat for your selves and drinke for your selves Should yee not heare the words which the Lord cries by his Ministers Your eating and drinking at the Sacrament is no more service to me then when yee eat and drinke at your owne ordinary tables for your selves and your owne pleasures so long as after your receiving and eating and drinking at my Table there followes no expression of the power of mine Ordinance no conscience of keeping your covenants in yeelding obedience to my words in your lives Now what comfort can we have in our having received the Sacrament if God accept it not as a service done to him Nay it is so farre from being a service accepted of God as done to him that he accounts it treachery against him It is true here which Hoseah speakes Hos 6. 7. But they like men transgressed the Couenant There have they dealt treacherously against me There that is in the very Covenant they have plaid false with me where they thought they did God great service there they abused him where they thought to please God there they provoked him to anger there they dealt treacherously against me It is in it selfe a service to God to receive the Sacrament and to make a Covenant with him And many thinke they doe God good service herein but they are deceived because like deceitfull false hearted men they transgressed the Covenant There there in the very Covenant they deale treacherously against GOD. And so it is no service but a provocation to the Lord For what can provoke more then treachery And what is it but treachery to transgresse so solemne a Covenant 2 Secondly we horribly pollute and take Gods Name in vaine and make our selves guilty of spirituall perjury before God What thinke we of perjured and forsworne persons What think we wil become of them When we take an oath solemnely at the Lords Table to forsake our sins to walke in obedience in the performance of such holy duties and then afterwards live in those sins still and in the neglect of those duties still Are we not forsworne If we sweare Siquidem vovens non solvens quid nisi peiero Bernard de Precept Disp c. 20. to doe such a thing and doe it not doe we not forsweare And is it a light thing with us to be forsworne and that by the breach of an oath and covenant made solemnely with God Doe but consider how heavily God threatens Zedekiah for breaking his oath and covenant with the King of Babylon Ezek. 17. 12. 21. Reade and well observe the whole place Zedekiah made an oath to Nebucadnezzar and brake it And what followes upon it Vers 15. Shall hee escape that doth such things or shall he breake the Covenant and be delivered Vers 19. As I live surely mine oath that he hath despised and my Covenant that hee hath broken even it will I recompense upon his owne head But how He should die for it in the midst of Babylon Vers 16. and it first cost him the losse of his eyes so soone as he had seene his children slaine before his eyes So smart vengeance hath God for perjury God hath sworne that he will be revenged upon such as are forsworne verse 19. And though men will yet GOD will not bee forsworne Now then will the Lord be so heavily avenged for breach of oath and covenant with a man nay with an heathen man and an Idolater Woe then to that man that breakes covenant with the great God of heaven and earth who will not be mocked who will not bee baffled withall who will be a swift witnesse and a severe Iudge against all such as grossely take his glorious Name in vaine and so foulely pollute his holy Ordinance And thus a man doing the duties required before in and after the Receiving of the Sacrament comes to the Sacrament after the due order And he that walkes after this Rule peace shall be upon him and all the Israel of God FINIS