Christian man To take care that his Soul be not unthankful to his God Have I received any light or life or increase of grace and peace I will remember to my dying day though 't is wrought in me yet 't was not wrought by me Non nobis Domine non nobis Not unto us Lord not unto us Because not by us Lord not by us but by the Spirit of the Lord of Hosts Though I cannot praise thee so much as I should yet will I praise thee as much as I can Sacramenta Judaeorum umbra Christianorum Aug Enar in Psal 37 nobis 38 At the Jewish Passover was sung the 113. and some following Psalms and this they call'd the Great Hallelujah And the Sacraments of the Jews were but shadows unto ours In every thing we must give thanks but for this especially others stand without you are admitted into the Presence-chamber of the great King They feed on husks and trash you on the hidden Manna My flesh saith Christ is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed All other food compar'd with this is cibi tantummodo umbra vana imago as Cameron speaks all shadow no substance To a worthy Receiver the choicest of mercies and blessings are here exhibited one calls it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Food made up all of Thanksgiving And having tasted so much nay drunk so deep of the cup of blessing does it not concern you now to sing Glory be to the Holy Ghost That praise is due to God from every Creature in the World and from every corner of the world I need not prove but 't is not comely for any but such as you Psal 33.1 'T is a garment that suites none but Saints Isa 61.3 You read there of the garment of praise The Jewish Doctors have a saying That the World subsists by three Pillars the Law the Worship of God and Thankfulness O let the high Praises of God be now and for ever in your lips and lives Hath the good Spirit of the Lord gone out before you in love and mercy Do you follow him now in praise and duty 'T is the happiness of the Saints in Heaven to enjoy God and 't is their only business in Heaven to bless God and is it not your wisdom as well as duty to be daily doing that on Earth besides which you shall have nothing to do to all Eternity in Heaven Hosanna's here and Hallelujahs hereafter 2 Walk charitably Do all the good you possibly can for the Spirit of the Lord and for the people of the Lord. I know your goodness extendeth not to God but let it the more to the Saints Yet you may plead for and vindicate his honour which is by many now laid in the dust many father their errors and blasphemies on the Spirit laying them at his door as if he were not the Spirit of Truth There are four sorts of men amongst us 1 Some who are all for Ordinances not eying at all the Spirit of the Lord for his teachings 2 Some are all for the Spirit Sans-ordinance men casting of Baptism the Ministry of the Word and this blessed Sacrament Beza in 1 Cor. 1.12 As Beza said so shall I Hoc Pestilentissimo morbo utinam nulli hodie laborarent Oh that none had this Plague-sore now 3 Others and not a few neither regard the Spirit nor men nor means nothing but mundum fundum 4 Only the sincere Christian is for all and he is the man to whom I address this counsel if you espouse not his cause who shall if in your stations as Magistrates as Ministers as Christians you plead not for it who will But walk charitably towards men that 's the duty I would press on you Has the Spirit of the Lord done you good do you now all the good you can to others shew your love to God by your love to your needy Brethren and your love to them by works of mercy Acts of charity do not impoverish but enrich Perhaps the Purse may be lighter but your Crown will be heavier Who ever heard or read of a man that liv'd charitably that died miserably Non memini me legisse malâ morte morâ—â—â— qui libenter opera charitatis exercuit Hieron Morison in his Itinirary Hierom in his Epistle to Nepotian tells us he never did nor did the royal Prophet Psal 37.25 26. One tells us of a fountain of Salt in Germany of which all the poor about it had Salt-water freely for their use but when once it was deny'd them it lost its vertue If once you harden your Hearts against or hide your faces from those pale faces and withered cheeks and maimed arms from those who have no bread to eat nor where to lay their heads well may the Spirit of the Lord suspend his influences at the next Communion and then it cannot heal nor seal nor do you good What greater incentive to shew mercy to others than a due sense of mercies received from God Do good to all as you are of ability and have opportunity but especially to the houshold of Faith 3 Walk contentedly Have you received good and much good at the Lords Table then be not so full of complaints if you have little of the worlds goods Is your grace increased have you got more assurance of your Lords love do not murmur though your Corn and Wine and other matters increase not Whilst those put gladness into your Hearts let not the want of these cause sadness to appear in your faces It is enough says Jacob Joseph is alive So say you It is enough the Spirit of the Lord is alive and hath enlivened and sealed 1 Tim. 6.8 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and comforted me at and by this precious Ordinance Shew us the Father says Philip and it sufficeth us The sight of God without riches or honours or lands or friends should satisfie your Souls Having food and raiment you should be content well Having food not fine fare Raiments not Ornaments and you have both nay much more viz. the Mediatory Righteousness of Christ to deck and adorn you and his precious Body and Blood to nourish you And whatever afflictions you meet with in or from the World still be contented They say whatever betides a Spaniard he will not change his pace whatever troubles betide you let no change appear in your Face Whether God give or take whether he stroke or strike Nimis delicatus es frater si hic vis gaudere cum mundo posthac regnare cum Christo Hierom. whether men hum or hiss fret not your selves shall you receive good from the hand of God What all good and no evil you are too delicate if you would have two Heavens one here and another yonder above the Clouds 4 Walk Compassionately Have you tasted there of the Lords graciousness can you tell of the great things the Spirit of the Lord hath by that Ordinance done for your Souls
Ambrose his Counsel with you Toto animo odi damna quod diligit mundus Tanquam mortuus a labe affectu illius te separa Epistolarū lib. 4. Floriano sicut sepultus nil habeas carum de saeculo tanquam defunct us omni terreno te abdica negotio contemne vivens quae post mortem habere non poteris 10 Walk watchfully 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 uprightly As it is not enough that you be and do good for a day or two before you come to the Sacrament but your care must be to walk uprightly so it must be your care when you are gone thence to walk thus Go then and sin no more Joh. 5.14 no more so wilfully so prefumptuously To sin after a Sacrament is to sin with a witness To sin against clearest light and dearest love provokes exceedingly and yours will be found of this nature To provoke God in a Wilderness is not so bad or sad as to provoke God in a Paradise 'T was an aggravation of Eves sin to listen to the whisperings of the Serpent when placed there 't is so for you who have been sealed with the holy Spirit of promise now to listen to the delusions of that lying Spirit Enar. in Psal 29 Adam in stercore says St. Austin est cautior quam Adam in Paradiso Sacramentum est juramentum every wilful iniquity now comes little short of perjury There are some sins which the fallen Angels were never guilty of they sinned not against the Patience of God non expectavit Angelos they suffered immediately as they had sinned Nor against the tenders and offers of Grace the golden Scepter was never held out nor pardon offer'd to them Nor against the Death and Passion of Jesus Christ he died not for them if now we sin not out of weakness but out of wilfulness our sins will be found such as the Devils themselves are not guilty of What higher priviledg is or can mortal man be capable of on this side Heaven than to be feasted at the Lords Table with these Heavenly viands Now the greatness of the Priviledg adds to the greatness of the crime Ubi sublimior praerogativa ibi major culpa Salv. de Gub. Dei lib. 4 pag 128. your sins after a Sacrament cannot take Christ from you but they may take rest from you Psal 38.3 They cannot take Grace from you but they may take peace from you God may break your bones and leave you long in the dark you may never recover that comfort and assurance which you had before Wicked men have their Heaven here and their Hell hereafter and some good men have their Hell here and their Heaven hereafter Now Sirs you have been at the Lords Table you have seen what Sin cost Christ what buffetings what bruisings what woundings what bleedings and shall not this engage us to greater circumspection to our dying day having received so much good from the Spirit of the Lord shall not we watch our ways and keep our Hearts and Eyes and Tongues Obstrue quinque Fenestras i.e. quinque sensus ut luceat Domus Prov. Arab. and All with more care and diligence If Israel play the Harlot yet Judah must not transgress Having now been at such an Ordinance as this shall we again return to break his Commandments Every mercy is a motive to duty and to walk circumspectly watchfully wisely uprightly is one without dispute Eph. 5.15 Mark 13.37 Col. 4.5 Let not the increase of our mercies be the decrease of our duties Though we walk in yet let us not walk after the Flesh but after the Spirit of the Lord who by this Institution hath done us all this good Once more Walk Penitently You must renew your repentance as well after as before this Ordinance Call to remembrance the deadness of your Hearts the coldness of your Love the unactiveness of your Faith the many wandrings and distractions of your minds and spirits when about this duty There are some special seasons for the renewing of repentance As 1. When you are a dying though we must not defer it till death yet we must be sure to renew it at death We should take our fill of repentance before we take our leave of repentance thus St. Austin did he caus'd the Penitential Psalms to be fixt before him on the wall and as he lay in bed he wept and read and read and wept abundantly Intuebatur legebat jugitr ac ubertim flebat as Possidonius relates it De vita Aug. cap. 31. 2. And when you are suffering for God or from God under some great afflictions though repentance must not be limited to a time of affliction yet it must be renewed in a time of affliction for Gods end and design in and by them is not to break our backs but to break our hearts Once more 3. When you are a doing or have done any great and more solemn duty What is there nothing now you have been at this Ordinance to renew your repentance for was all so well done did corruption act so weakly and Grace so vigorously and strongly was the evil spirit so chained and restrained and did the good Spirit of the Lord so enlarge enliven and strengthen is there no need of praying over your prayers again of repenting that your repentance was no more Evangelical Did you thorowly consider as you ought your Saviors Passion in the matter and quality of it in its bitter ingredients and heightning circumstances of it or your own sins the meritorious cause of it You had some light about this in your heads but was it attended with power and efficacy upon your hearts for the clearest notions without suitable impressions will not advantage you And thus have we dispatcht the counsels which concern you Saints and also resolv'd the seventh Query If thus you walk you will much honour the Spirit of the Lord who is the great Agent in your Regeneration Illumination Conversion and in your proficiency by this sacred institution And as you are concern'd to honour the Son for what he hath done without so are you concern'd to honour the Spirit for what he hath done within You will honour this Ordinance too and advantage your selves and you will be instrumental to bring in others whose hearts are too full of disgusts and prejudices against this high and holy Institution I told you of something I had to say to sinners I could be well contented to say nothing at all had I none at all to speak to But there are two ranks or sorts of them 1. Such as peremptorily but most perniciously and erroneously assert that they are above Ordinances this or that Sans-or supra-ordinance men in what predicament to place them how to call them or how to cure them I well know not Is not the Spirit of the Lord straitened can he do his people good by this Ordinance why then is there no breaking of Bread no Sacrament of the Lords Supper
Nothing does grace a man as Grace 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrysostom 't is a Christians great Ornament What a pearl of price must holiness be when 't is the scope of Almighty God in all his Acts Ordinances and Providences in all his Mercies and Judgments in our Election Ephes 1.4 in our Redemption Tit. 2.14 in our Afflictions Heb. 12.10 Some Ordinances are for Conversion some are for Confirmation all are for our Sanctification This Golden Oyl comes from the two Olive Trees through the Golden pipes of his holy Institutions They say that Corn never ripens more than when the Sun is in Conjunction with the Dog-star sure am I Holiness never ripens more than when the Spirit of the Lord is in Conjunction with the Word and Sacraments When you go from this sacred Ordinance and find you are not only more for the doing of holy things but for the more holy doing of things more thankful for mercies more watchful over your hearts words and ways more spiritual in your Conversations more savory and fruitful in your Converses more conformable in every thing to the Image of your dear Redeemer When the power of this Ordinance runs through every vein of your Conversations when you trade buy and fell when you pray hear sanctifie his Day and do all in the strength of this Ordinance when you can stand at a greater distance from Sin and from the World when you can look upon all the beauty of the World as blackness and on all the fulness of it as emptiness when you can feast your selves in God whilst you are starving in the Creature when you can say in the sincerity of your Souls were all the Universe on a flame the fire does not touch my portion when you can stand upon its ruins and say triumphingly I have lost nothing or as that good man Lord Te pro omnibus prae omnibus the sauris aestimo Moller in Psal 73.25 thou knowest where all my good things are even in thee and above with thee Lord whom have I in Heaven but thee and there is none on earth that I desire in comparison of thee You have there the desire of Davids Soul and the Soul of his desire when thus you find it working it does you much good indeed 6 When their hearts are more humbled more deeply and thorowly humbled when they meet with such tasts of the Lords graciousness such manifestations of his rich mercy and discoveries of his free love as lays them as low as the very dust when they can say as David did 2 Sam. 7.18 19. Who am I O Lord God that thou hast brought me hitherto What shall such a poor pitiful piece of polluted clay such a map of misery be admitted to thy Table feasted at thy Board fed with the Body and Blood of the Son of God who am I that I should be embraced in his arms that he should ravish my heart with the sweet sound of his precious promises and rejoyce my drooping Soul with a well-grounded hope of his gracious pardons and of the acceptance of my person and performances I am not worthy the least crumb of bread which grows upon the earth or comes thence much less of that bread of life which came down from Heaven The condition of my Soul had been as doleful as any mans on earth had not free grace renewed me as dreadful as any damned souls in hell had not he in mercy to my Soul repriev'd me O what a poor starven Soul had mine been had not the Lord of Life refresh'd me The most genuine and natural effect which divine discoveries have upon a devout Soul is Humiliation nothing does it more kindly and that which humbles us does not hurt us when you can go from this Ordinance lothing and abhorring your selves and see more of your own nothingness as Creatures and vileness as Sinners when you can cry with Job Behold I am vile Chap. 40.4 With the poor Publican God be merciful to me a sinner I dare not lift mine eyes towards Heaven Luk. 18.13 When it makes and keeps us more humble then it doth us good indeed 7 When their peace and joy in the Lord is increased their Spiritual comforts are enlarged and their Souls are more assured of their interest in Christ and in the everlasting Covenant When they can go to Christ and say Thou art mine to the Promises and say all these are mine when they can lay hold on the blessings of the Covenant and say all these are sealed to me in this blessed Sacrament This lo this is the sweet fruit the Saints find at this holy Sacrament when their trembling Faith is turn'd into a triumphing Faith their Faith of adherence into a Faith of evidence and assurance There is a threefold fulness of Assurance a full allurance of Understanding Col. 2.2 of Hope Heb. 6.11 and of Faith Heb. 10.22 O what a sweet and precious what a rich and rare Jewel is this Grace purifies Assurance pacifies Grace brings the Soul to Heaven Assurance brings Heaven into the Soul Grace is better than Peace but Peace is sweeter than Grace Assurance is a flower of Paradise a sparkle of Glory Heaven on this side Heaven an Anchor at Sea a Shield at Land a Staff to support a Sword to defend Bread to strengthen Wine to chear and Balm to cure the Soul of man When at and by this precious Ordinance your Souls are fill'd with joy unspeakable and full of glory when those black clouds of fears and jealousies are dispersed and those bitter storms of Soul-troubles are blown over when brighter beams and clearer calms and sweeter comforts flow in upon your Souls when thus you find it then has the Sacrament been working for your good 'T is one great end of this Ordinance to seal his peoples Graces many a child of God can tell you that by this Ordinance they have arriv'd at a great measure of assurance they have come empty and gone hence full they have come with fears and doubts upon them and have gone away with abundance of joy and peace the Lord has met them at his Table has spoken peace unto their Consciences has clear'd up their Evidences for Heaven and now they can speak of the great things he has done in it and by it too for their precious Souls This Ordinance was instituted for his peoples growth in Grace and for their sense of Grace for the augmentation of it and for the manifestation of it By it Grace grows up to its full stature and just proportion 'T is for sealing too the Sacrament is a good friend to the Spirit be it spoken with reverence and the Spirit is a greater friend to the Sacrament and both are great friends to the Soul sealing it up unto the day of redemption Rom. 4.11 Ephes 4.30 As a Seal doth confirm and settle the mind of the Buyer so doth the Sacrament satisfie and assure the heart of a Believer O how
Cor. 1.12 Our rejoycing is this the testimony of our Conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity we have had our conversation in the world In an Evangelical sense one may walk perfectly and thus Zachary and Elizabeth did See Luk. 1.6 They walked in all the Commandments of the Lord blameless 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not sinless but blameless Sineâ—querela non sine peccato as St. Austin glosseth it in the end of his 95. Epist and since him Osiander and others 'T is a true saying of one They err egregiously who look for that in the Law which is only to be found in the Gospel for that in themselves which is only to be found in Christ and for that on Earth which is only to be had in Heaven i.e. A sinless perfection To dispatch this enquiry know that to this upright walking three things are necessary 1. A Rule is requisite a certain infallible and inflexible Rule by which we act that 's the Word 't is not only a rule of Knowledg but also a rule of Duty 2. A knowledg of this Rule and then there must be 3. An acting conformably suitably to our knowledg We must have an eye as well to the manner of our Obedience as to the matter of our Obedience For as Luther well Adverbia apud Deum praevalent verbis We must obey him as well in the spirit of the command as in the letter of it In those things which seem to make against us as in those that make for us Gen. 22.1 to the 12. v. We must not only not do that which is evil but we must do that which is good We must have respect to all his Commandments Psal 119.6 As good to none at all as not to all David fulfilled all Gods wills Act. 13.22 Gal. 3.10 3 Q. We shall now enquire after the Quae ratio of what importance and concernment is it that we thus walk It were easie to be voluminous but take hints That there is an absolute and indispensable necessity of walking sincerely uprightly that it is of great concernment we do so Appears 1. If we appeal to God under the Law there we see the Lord requires it Gen. 17.1 I am the Almighty God walk before me and be thou perfect or upright 2. If we appeal to Christ under the Gospel all his commands breathe Holiness and Uprightness and his promises are to the pure and sincere in Heart Mat. 5.8 He came to save us not in our sin nor with our sin but from our sin He requires us to be holy as he is holy and we must follow the example of his life if we hope to be saved by the Merits of his Death 3. If we appeal to the practise of the Saints under both Dispensations they ever made it their business to walk uprightly Enoch and Noah and David and Josiah and Hezekiah Hear one for all Remember now O Lord I beseech thee how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart says good Hezekiah Isa 38.3 For the New Testament consult 2 Cor. 1.12 and 1 Thes 2.10 Ye are witnesses and God also how holily and justly and unblameably we behaved our selves among you that believe Phil. 1.27 4. If we appeal to Conscience our own or others Conscience is a faculty or habit of the practical understanding whereby the mind of man by the discourse of Reason applys the light it hath to every particular moral act There is a Conscience convinced and awakened but not converted nor renewed Consult this and it will tell you that 't is a matter of importance to walk uprightly a Conscience upon the rack will confess it freely There is a good renewed Conscience and this will tell you there is a necessity of walking uprightly In every man God hath placed a Conscience 't is his bosom-preacher 't is a petty God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it reproves accuses checks and smites when we do evil Ask your Consciences when you are under some sore affliction or when upon your Death beds and they will bear witness to this truth that 't is your part and prudence your duty and discretion to be in the fear of the Lord all the day long To walk humbly and uprightly before God Excellent is that passage of Justin Martyr in his Defense for the Christians to Antoninus Pius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. If any be found who lives not as Christ hath taught 't is a certain Argument he is not a Christian 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 though with the Tongue he confess the Doctrine of Christ for not those which only profess but those who make good their profession doth Christ assure of Salvation But to ground the Point We are thus oblig'd to walk upon a sevenfold account 1. He is an upright God whom we walk before he is so in his Nature in his Attributes in his Mercy Love and Justice in his Precepts in his Promises in Threats he is so in his offers and tenders of Christ and Grace and of Pardon and eternal Salvation in Him is no iniquity no hypocrisie at all He is a God of Truth his eye is fixt upon it his heart is in love with it He disgusts and abhors all leaven of hypocrisie and vizors of piety all falseness 'T is not all you can say or do or suffer or lose that can make you precious in his eyes without this sincerity In that Psalm of Thanksgiving there is an excellent passage 2 Sam. 22.22 to the 28. I have kept the ways of the Lord. All his judgments are before me I was also upright before him For with the upright man thou wilt shew thy self upright David walkt before an upright God and it concern'd him the more to walk uprightly 2. We have an upright Pattern and upright Presidents to walk after The Lord Jesus is our pattern he hath left us an example 1 Pet. 2.21 and we must follow his steps who did no sin neither was guile found in his mouthâ— We must look at Jesus Heb. 12.2 He was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a pattern not only for patience in death but for holiness and uprightness of life too for this end and purpose is his life recorded in this sacred Volume Bonos tibi adjunge quia si socius fueris conversationis eris virtutis Ambr. that all his Members might lay it as a golden Samplar before them according to which they should work Upright Presidents the godly Patriarchs the holy Prophets and Apostles pious Princes and other religious persons of whom we read in Holy Story These are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Examples propounded for all our imitation In every Profession there are Chieftains The Roman Warriors had their Camilli Fabricii and Scipio's The Philosophers had their Plato Aristotle and Pythagoras We have the Prophets and Apostles Man is a ductile creature led as well by the eye as by the ear we must follow them so far as they follow Christ Non