keep Covenant on his part but it may be we shall not keep Covenant on ours and so we may fail at last but now when thou lookest upon all the good things in the Gospel dispensed in the way of a Testament that is the Will of God the Legacies that God doth bequeath to his Servants this is a mighty comfort to the foul that all the precious things of the Gospel come to me in the way of a Testament and that 's the meaning of the new Testament that is the mercies of God in Christ coming now in the way of another administration than they did before 't is not only new in respect of the Covenant of Works that God made with Adam but new in respect of the administration our fore-fathers the Patriarchs they had the same things in substance but administred in a darker way and many differences there are but now when we hear of the new Testament there is presented unto us all the riches of the Covenant of grace in the way of a Legacy and in the administration of it with cleerness and with a great deal of mercy and goodness of God the terror and harshness of the old administration being taken away Now these are the meditations by which we should labor to sanctifie our hearts when we are receiving of the Sacrament and in the working of these meditations upon our hearts we shal come to sanctifie the Name of God when we are drawing nigh to him in that holy Ordinance of his thus for Meditation The next thing when we are there must be an actuating of these holy dispositions that before we spake of 't is not enough for a Christian to bring grace to the Sacrament but there must be a stirring of that Grace at that time or otherwise the Name of God is not sanctified in receiving of the Sacrament and above al graces the actuating of the grace of faith 't is not enough that thou beest a Beleever but thy faith must act at that very instant as thus First When thou hearest the Minister in the Name of Christ say thus This is the Body of Jesus Christ which was given for you take eat thou shouldest have thy faith so acting upon the mercy of God in giving Jesus Christ for the nourishment of thy soul to eternal life as if thou didst hear a voyce from Heaven saying Here is the Body of my Son given for thee particularly take it and eat apply it to thee and so make Christ one with thee by faith as the Bread is made one with thy Body when thou doest eat it And then when thou comest to take hold of the Bread thou art to put forth the act of faith faith being as the hand of the soul and at that instant when thou takest the Bread and puttest it into thy mouth to eat thou shouldest stir up the act of faith afresh laying more hold upon Jesus Christ look as once thou didst in thy first conversion when Christ was presented to thee in the Word or in any other way there was an act of faith drawn forth whereby thy soul did cast it self and roul it self upon Jesus Christ so shouldest thou renew it renew the same work of faith that thou didst find in the very first conversion and therby thou shalt come to have renewed comfort in the renewing of that act I might name thee other graces and dispositions how there should be a stirring and an acting of them only remember I leave all this Point with this Note That grace is not enough for partaking the Sacrament of the Lords Supper except there be an acting and a stirring up of that grace many Christians are careful to prepare and examine before whether they have grace or no but at that time when they come to receive then there is not a lively working and stirring of that grace and so they come to lose the comfort and benefit of that Ordinance Thus much shall suffice for this point of sanctifying Gods Name in receiving the holy Communion I shall now come to the last Point which is the Sanctifying the Name of God in Prayer Sanctifying the Name of God in Prayer NOW this Argument might take us up many Sermons but upon occasion of the Daies of Prayer and Hmiliation I have preached divers Sermons about the Point of Prayer therefore I shall be brief and only now reckon up together and set before your view the several things that are to be done for the Sanctifying of the Name of God in Prayer First for Prayer in that we draw nigh to God and it 's a duty of Gods Worship that I suppose all of you cannot but acknowledg that it is a natural duty of Worship the other was instituted but this is natural it 's natural for the creature to draw nigh to God in Prayer wherein the creature tenders up his homage to God and manifests his profession of his dependance upon God for all good that he hath and acknowledges God as the Author of all good therefore this is Worship and it 's a great part of Worship Prayer it is such a part of Worship as sometimes in Scripture it 's put for the whol Worship of God He that calls upon the Name of God shall be saved that is He that worships God aright Jer. 10. 25. And Powr out thy wrath upon the Heathen that know thee not and on the Families that call not on thy Name that do not pray that is that do not worship thee There one part of Worship is put for the whol as being a principal part of the Worship of God Surely we must sanctifie Gods Name in Prayer for it is that which sanctifies all things to us 1 Tim. 4. 5. Every thing is sanctified by the Word of God and Prayer And if the Argument of Christ was right as no question but it was That the Temple was greater than the Gold upon the Temple because the Temple did sanctifie the Gold And the Altar was greater than the Offering that was offered upon it because it did sanctifie the Offering then Prayer must needs be a mighty great Ordinance a greater than any other because that it sanctifies all things The Word sanctifies the Creatures but Prayer sanctifies the very Word unto our use and therefore when we reade the Word we are to pray for a sanctified use of the Word Prayer is a great Ordinance a great Duty of Worship that sanctifies all Prayer hath a casting voyce as I may so say in all the great works of God in the world the great affairs of the Kingdom of God the Kingdom of his Power and the Kingdom of Christ I say Prayer hath a kind of a casting voyce and doth order under God the great things of the world they are according to the prayers of the Saints they bring down blessings upon the godly they powr forth judgments upon the wicked the prayers of the Saints they are the viols that are powred forth in a special manner
presented the greatest mysteries of salvation ibid 2 It is an Ordinance that Christ hath lest out of his love ibid 3 It is the Sacrament of our communion with Christ 229 4 The Covenant of grace is sealed in it ibid 2 No duty is urged with more strength and severity ib. 3 Nothing strikes more upon mens consciences 230 How many are to Sanctifie Gods Name in the Sacrament 231 1 Those that receive it must be holy 232 1 Because it is the seal of the Covenant ibid 2 It is an Ordinance of spiritual nourishment 233 3 Because we are required to examine our selves ib. 4 It is a Sacrament of communion with God and the Saints 234 2 It must be received in an holy communion ibid Wicked men not to be admitted to this communion 235 SERMON XII Addition to the former concerning holy communion 242 The qualifications in the soul to fit it for receiving the Lords Supper 244 1 Knowledg ibid 2 A broken heart 246 3 Actual purging the heart from sin 249 4 Hungring and thirsting after Jesus Christ 251 5 Exercise of Faith 252 6 Exercise of spiritual Joy 255 7 Thankfulness ibid 8 Renewing of Covenant 257 9 Renewing of love towards God and our brethren 258 SERMON XIII We must keep to the institution in the Sacrament 261 1 For the gesture 262 2 Delivering it to all in general and not into every particular mans hand 264 3 That the Communicants be all the while exercised in their thoughts about the death of Christ 265 Meditations in receiving the Sacrament 267 1 That the way of mans salvation it is through a Mediator ibid 2 This Mediator between God and Man is true Man ibid 3 That his Body was broken and his blood shed for us 268 4 It was the Body and blood of that person that is God that reconciles us ibid 5 To consider the dreadfulness of Gods justice ibid 6 The price of saving a soul 269 7 The greatness of the evil of sin ibid 8 The infinit love of God to mankind ibid 9 That Beleevers shall be nourished to eternal life ib. 10 To meditate upon the Covenant of grace to Beleevers 270 Holy dispositions to be actuated in receiving the Sacrament 271 Of Sanctifying the Name of God in Prayer 272 What preparation we are to make to prayer 274 1 Concerning the Matter of Prayer 276 2 Concerning the Manner of Prayer 280 Concerning wandring thoughts in Prayer 282 SERMON XIV A further enlargement concerning wandring thoughts in in Prayer 283 Five Rules to help against wandring thoughts 286 1 Set an high price upon the duties of prayer ibid 2 To reuew resolutions against wandring thoughts 287 3 To set the presence of God before us 288 4 To account all wandring thoughts evil ibid 5 To bless God if at any time he did help us against them 289 3 For sanctifying Gods Name in prayer there must be the breathings of the spirit 289 4 There must be pure hearts and hands 292 5 We must call upon God in truth ibid 6 We must pray in faith 293 7 In the spirit of adoption 294 8 We must pray with constancy 295 9 We must pray in humility ib. 10 We must tender up all our prayers in the Name of Christ 296 Conclusion of all 297 Books printed by Peter Cole at the Printing-Press in Cornhil London Seven Books of Mr. Jeremiah Burroughs lately published As also the Texts of Scripture up in which they are grounded 1 The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment Phil. 4 11. Wherein is shewed 1 What Contentment is 2 It is an holy Art and Mystery 3 The Excellencies of it 4 The Evil of the contrary sin of Murmuring and the Aggravations of it 2 Gospel-Worship on Levit. 10. 3. Wherein is shewed 1 The right manner of the Worship of God in general and particularly In Hearing the Word Receiving the Lords Supper and Prayer 3 Gospel-Conversation on Phil. 1. 17. Wherein is shewed 1 That the Conversations of Beleevers must be above what could be by the light of Nature 2 Beyond those that lived under the Law 3 And sutable to what Truths the Gospel holds forth To which is added The Misery of those men that have their Portion in this Life only on Psal 17. 14. 4 A Treatise of Earthly-mindedness Wherein is shewed 1 What Earthly-mindedness is 2 The great Evil therof on Phil. 3. part of the 19. vers Also to the same Book is Joyned A Treatise of Heavenly-mindedness and walking with God on Gen. 5. 24. and on Phil. 3. 20. 5 An Exposition on the fourth fifth sixth and seventh Chapters of the Prophesie of Hosea 6 An Exposition on the eighth ninth and tenth Chapters of Hosea 7 An Exposition on the eleventh twelfth and thirteenth Chapters of Hosea being now compleat Twelve several Books of Mr. William Bridg Collected into one Volumn Viz. 1 The great Gospel Mystery of the Saints Comfort and Holiness opened and applied from Christs Priestly Office 2 Satans Power to Tempt and Christs Love to and Care of His People under Temptation 3 Thankfulness required in every Condition 4 Grace for Grace or the Overflowings of Christs Fulness received by all Saints 5 The Spiritual Actings of Faith through Natural Impossibilities 6 Evangelical Repentance 7 The Spiritual-Life and In-being of Christ in all Beleevers 8 The Woman of Canaan 9 The Saints Hiding-Place in time of Gods Anger 10 Christs Coming is at our Midnight 11 A Vindication of Gospel Ordinances 12 Grace and Love beyond Gifts Six Sermons Preached by Dr. Hill Viz. 1 The Beauty and Sweetness of an Olive Branch of Peace and Brotherly Accommodation budding 2 Truth and Love happily married in the Saints and in the Churches of Christ 3 The Spring of Strengthning Grace in the Rock of Ages Christ Jesus 4 The Strength of the Saints to make Jesus Christ their Strength 5 The Best and Worst of Paul 6 Gods Eternal Preparations for his dying Saints A Godly and Fruitful Exposition on the first Epistle of Peter By Mr. John Rogers Minister of the Word of God at Dedham in Essex A Platform of Church-Discipline Gathered out of the Word of God and agreed upon by the Elders and Messengers of Churches assembled in the Synod at Cambridg in New-England Tears of Repentance Or a further Narrative of the Progress of the Gospel amongst the Indians in New-England Setting forth not only their present state and condition but sundry Confessions of sin by diverse of the said Indians wrought upon by the saving Power of the Gospel Together with the manifestation of their faith and hope in Jesus Christ and the Work of Grace upon their hearts The Wonders of the Load-stone by Mr. Samuel Ward of Ipswich An Exposition on the Gospel of the Evangelist St. Matthew by Mr. Ward Clows Chyrurgery Marks of Salvation Christians Engagement for the Gospel by John Goodwyn Six several Books by Nich. Culpeper Gent. Student in Physick and Astrology 1 The Anatomy of the Body of Man Wherein is
way or other appear to be against me in such duties that I tender up unto him Now you will say How doth God appear that he doth not accept of them He will appear in these three things 1. First By blasting those that do worship him thus in a formal way It shall at first be secret but afterwards it will appear more apparantly and we see it by experience that such as have been Professors of Religion and worship God in hypocrisie and in formality they have been blasted in their parts and common gifts The Judgment of God upon Nadab and Abihu that did not Sanctifie Gods Name it was secret at first It struck them dead and though by fire yet if you reade the story you shall find that their cloathes were not burnt and yet they were burnt in their bodies So the Lord sometimes doth blast men inwardly in their Spirits in their Souls in their Parts in their common Gifts He blasts them I say inwardly though it doth not appear outwardly yet at length it will appear before men that they are blasted and in these times of the Gospel the Lord doth come with spiritual judgments rather than with outward temporal judgments In the time of the Law those that did not Sanctifie the Name of God in holy duties the Lord did appear by some external and visible way upon their bodies but now in the time of the Gospel there God comes with more spiritual judgments upon mens souls and those are the most terrible judgments We have a notable Scripture for this in Isa 29. 13. How God doth blast those that do not sanctifie his Name in holy duties Wherefore the Lord said Forasmuch as this people draw neer me with their mouth and with their lips do honor me but have removed their heart far from me and their fear towards me is taught by the Precepts of men Mark what follows Therfore behold I wil proceed to do a marvelous work amongst this people even a marvelous work and a wonder for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid What do they come and draw neer me with their lips and their hearts are far from me and do they worship me in a formal way I 'le take away the wisdom from the wise and the understanding from the prudent And that is the reason why so many great Scholers are blasted in their very Parts because they would worship God according to the precepts of men in a formal way and so all Hypocrites and formal Worshipers the Lord doth blast them in one way or other the judgments of God upon the spirits of men were sometimes in the time of the Law But in the times of the Gospel there we find generally the judgments of God to be more spiritual upon the hearts and consciences of men we find it by experience God doth discover that he doth not accept of such as those are and therefore when you see any that have made profession of Religion that had excellent Parts at first many common gifts and now are as we say no body Remember this Text That God will be sanctified in those that come nigh Him Secondly The Lord doth manifest that he will be sanctified in those that draw nigh him by awaking their consciences many times upon their sick beds and death beds the Lord doth force them to give glory to Him and there to acknowledg that they did not worship God in Uprightness but in Formality And now they are in horror of conscience and cry out in the anguish of their souls upon the apprehension of the dreadful wrath of God that is upon them Take heed for the Lords sake of this thing when you are performing of the duties of Worship do not rest in the outward duties for they will never comfort you upon your sick and death beds you may perhaps put off your consciences a little for the present but when you come upon your sick beds there will be no comfort unto you and then you will be forced to say wel all this while I have but taken the Name of God in vain and now God hath rejected me and all my services and you will then speak to those that come about your beds side and bid them take warning by you take heed that when you worship God you worship him to purpose I have spent time in prayer and hearing but for want of this I find I have no comfort at all but the Lord appears to be terrible to my soul and comes out against me as an enemy I say now Gods Name is sanctified whatever becomes of thee he will force glory from thee one way or other and it may be even here in this time of thy life but however at the great day when the secrets of all hearts must be disclosed before Men and Angles then the Lord will appear to be a holy God by rejecting all such services that thou didest tender up to him and it will then be a great part of the work of the day of Judgment for God to be sanctified in those that did worship him by declaring before Men and Angels how did he reject such formal and hypocritical worship that they did tender up unto him Oh that God would strike this upon your hearts that it may abide upon you every time you come to worship him to think thus Let me look to it to sanctifie his Name now for I hear that God will sanctifie it himself if I do not do it But then on the other side If so be that thou makest conscience of sanctifying Gods Name in duties then he will sanctifie his Name in a way of Mercy that is he will manifest how he doth accept of the least degree of holiness though there be much mixture God hath a way to take away the mixture by the blood of his Son and then to accept of any holiness he sees in thee He will sanctifie his Name by meeting with thee and revealing his glory to thee when thou art worshiping of him There is an excellent Scripture for this Exod. 29. 43. There I will meet with the Children of Israel and the Tabernacle shall be sanctified by my Glory Thou that hast a gracious heart and art worshiping of God in sincerity thou art as a Tabernacle of God and God hath his Service and Worship from thee thou art as the Temple of God and there will I meet with thee saith God and I will sanctifie my Tabernacle by my Glory God wil sanctifie thy heart by his Glory if thou dost sanctifie his Name Further Thou shalt it may be not alwaies have such glorious comforts the full beams of the Sun rising upon thee but at one time or other the Lord will break in upon thee and manifest his Glory to thee and it 's like if thou hast not such full comforts now yet upon thy sick bed though God doth not then alwaies manifest himself fully for
do you go for What account had you been able to have given unto him You must understand what you do when you come thither First You must be able to give this account to God Lord I am now going to have represented to me in a visible and sensible way the greatest Mysteries of Godlines those great and deep Counsels of my Will concerning my eternal estate those great Things that Angels desire to pry into that shall be the matter of eternal praises of Angels and Saints in the highest Heavens that they may be set before my view Lord when I have come to thy Word I have had sounding in mine ears the great Mysteries of Godliness the great Things of the Covenant of Grace and now I go to see them represented before mine eyes in that Ordinance of thine that thou hast appointed Yea Lord I am now going to receive the Seals of the blessed Covenant of thine the second Covenant the new Covenant the Seals of the Testimony and will of thine I am going to have confirmed to my soul thine everlasting Love in Jesus Christ Yea Lord I am going to that Ordinance wherein I expect to have Communion with thy self and the Communion of thy chief mercies to my soul in Jesus Christ I am going to feast with the to feed upon the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ Yea I am now going to set the Seal of the Covenant on my part to renew my Covenant with thee I am going to have Communion with thy Saints to have the bond of Communion with all thy people to be confirmed to me that there might be a strong bond of union and love between me and thy Saints than ever these are the ends that I go for this is the work that I am now going about thus you must come in understanding you must come with understanding you must know what you are going about this is that which the Apostle speaks of when he spake of the disarming the Lords body he rebukes the Corinthians for there sin and shew them that they were guilty of the Body and Blood of Christ because they did not descren the Lords Body they look'd only upon the outward elements but did not discren what their was of Christ there they did not understand the Institution of Christ they did not see how Christ was under those elements both represented and exhibited unto them that is the first thing there must be knowledg and understanding And now for the knowledg and understanding of the nature of the Sacrament there need be knowledg in other Points of Religion for we can never come to understand the nature of this Sacrament without knowing God and knowing our selves knowing in what estate we are by Nature knowing our Fall knowing the way of Redemtion knowing Jesus Christ what He was and what He hath done for the making of an Atonement the necessity of Jesus Christ and what the way of the Covenant is that God hath appointed to bring mens souls to eternall life by The main points of Religion must be known but especially that which concerns the nature of a Sacrament Now this knowledg likewise must be actual not meerly habitual knowledg but there must be a stirring up of this knowledg that is by meditation I must be meditating have actual thoughts and meditations of what I do know that ought to be the work of a Christian in coming to receive the Sacrament to quicken up his knowledg to have a renewed work of his knowledg by actual thoughts and meditations of the main Points of Religion and especially of the nature and the end of this holy institution that is the first thing Secondly As we must come understandingly without which we cannot Sanctifie Gods Name so we must come with hearts sutable to the work that we are about that is because the great thing that is here is the breaking of Christs body and the powring forth His blood A sutable disposition to this is brokenness of heart sence of our sin of that dreadful breach that sin hath made between God and the soul our sin should be upon our hearts so as to break them But this brokenness must be Evangelical it must be through the applying of the Blood of Christ unto my soul I must come to be sensible of my sin but especially be sensible of it by what I see in the holy Sacrament that must make me sensible of my sin There are a great many things to make me sensible of my sin The consideration of the great God that thou hast sinned against and the Curse of the Law that 's due to thee the wrath of God that is incensed against thee for thy sin and those eternal flames that are prepared for sinners those everlasting burnings But now those are not the things that will break the heart in an Evangelical way in a gracious way the main thing by which the soul must come to break its heart must be the beholding of the evil of sin in the red glass of the blood of Jesus Christ the beholding him broken and truly there is nothing in the world that hath that power to break the heart of sin as the beholding of that which is to be beheld in the holy Sacrament and that heart is a hard heart that can see what is there to be seen not break in the apprehension of sin when I here see what my sin cost what a price was made for my soul when I see the hatred of God against sin and the justice of God in not sparing his Son but in breaking his Son for my sin and in shedding the blood of his Son for my sins I see here that the making of my peace with God did cost more than ten thousand worlds is worth I see that by my sin such a breach was made between God and my soul that all the Angels in Heaven and Men in the World could never make up this breach only the Son of God he that was God and man that was thus broken by the burden of the wrath of his Father for my sins could do this The truth is when we come to this holy Communion we are to look upon Christ as if we saw Him hanging upon the Cross suppose thou hadst lived at the time when Christ was crucified and hadst understood as much concerning the death of Christ as now thou doest and what Christ was if so be that thou shouldest have beheld Him in the Garden and there sweating drops of water and blood and lie groveling upon the ground crying If it be possible let this cup pass from me and shouldest have followed Him to the Cross and there have seen His hands and feet naied and His side pierced and the blood trickling down and have heard him crying out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me would not such a sight as this is have broken thy heart for thy sin the truth is there is more I won't say only so much but I
wonderful things of God it is the most glorious sight in the world al the glory of God in the Heavens and Earth is not like this Sight of Jesus Christ and the mysteries of the Gospel that do appear to the eye of Faith therefore you may by this know whether you have come with Faith or no to the Sacrament whether you have seen the most glorious Sight that ever your eyes did behold Alas with our natural eyes we behold a Minister coming with a piece of Bread and a little Wine but when the eye of Faith is opened then we behold the glorious things of the Gospel Many times when you come to hear the Word your hearts burn within you as they that went to Emaus but when you are breaking bread the eye of Faith that must look upon Jesus Christ and in this sense those that have pierced Christ must look upon him that Scripture is fulfilled in Zachariah 12. latter end They shall look on him whom they have pierced by their Sins and then mourn and lament This eye of Faith will cause mourning and lamenting for Sin And then As Faith is the eye to make what is here real so Faith is the hand to take it When you come to a feast you must have something to take the meat to you so saith Christ he brake bread and gave it unto his Disciples saying Take eat this Take it how shal we take it By reaching out of the hand if you sanctifie Gods Name in this Ordinance as you reach out your hand to take the Bread and Wine so there must be an actual reaching out of the soul by Faith putting forth an act of Faith to receive Jesus Christ unto the soul to apply the Lord Jesus Christ unto thy soul with all his merits and good things that he hath purchased when the Minister doth give out that Ordinance 〈◊〉 should look upon God the Father giving out his Son as if this were your condition I am now in the presence of the eternal Father who now doth actually give out his Son to my soul and saith Soul here receive a new this day my Son with all that he hath purchased for thy good now then the soul acts upon this and by stirring up an act of faith comes and closes with this gift of the Father and casts its selfe upon Jesus Christ and saith as it were Amen to what the Father gives Oh Lord here I come and imbrace thy Son as my life as my Savior as the Fountain of all my good in whom I expect all the good I am like to have either here or to all eternity so that there must be a stirring up of the act of faith in an actual taking of Christ if thou beest a Beleever Canst thou remember what thou didst when first thou didst take Jesus Christ when the Lord in the preaching of His word did reveal Jesus Christ to my soul what didst thou then Oh soul how did thy soul work in closing with Christ as thy soul did then in closing with Christ so it must now renew the work there must be a renewal of the work at that time So that when you come to the Sacrament you must not think that it is then a time to listen to doubts fears and Scruples no but it is a time that God cals for the exercise of faith the casting of the soul upon Christ and His merits for life and for salvation or else the Name of God is not sanctified as it ought thou doest not Sanctifie Gods Name when thou art busying thy soul in doubts and scruples in thy receiving of the Sacrament And then faith is as the mouth when thou comest to eat and drink how canst thou if thou hast not a mouth thou hast a bodily mouth to take in Bread and Wine but know that without faith thy soul cannot take in Christ faith is as it were the mouth that is by the act of faith the soul doth open it self for Jesus Christ and not only opens it self but takes in Christ to the soul and makes Christ and the soul as one as our Bread and Wine is made one with our Body so faith takes in Christ and makes him as one with thee and turns Christ into the nourishment of thy soul and thou and Christ by faith are made as truly one as the Bread and Wine that is put into thy Body is made one with thy body This is the work of faith without which we cannot Sanctifie the Name of God Sixthly There must be spiritual Joy that must be exercised here for it is a feast here we come to sit with Christ at his Table we come as Children to our fathers Table and to sit there with Jesus Christ our Elder Brother now as a father doth not love to have his child sit in a sullen and dogged way at his Table or to be crying but he would have the child sit in comfort and with a holy cheerfulnes with a holy freedom of spirit not in a sullen way but as a child in the presence of his father and not as a servant with the master Obiect You told us before that there should be brokenness of spirit and sence of our sin Answ That may be and joy we rejoyce with trembling therefore that brokennese of spirit that I meant must not be slavish horror and fear but a kindly melting of the soul from the apprehension of the love of God unto it in Jesus Christ that was willing to be at so great cost to purchase the pardon of sin such a gracious mourning as may stand with joy and the truth is that that sorrow for sin in the Sacrament that is not mixt with joy is a sorrow that doth not Sanctifie Gods Name godly sorrow and evangelical joy may stand together very well And therefore know that this is not the time neither to give liberty to have your hearts sink no there must be no sinking sorrow of heart but such a sorrow of heart as in the midst of it you may be able to look upon God as a reconciled Father to you and have a cheerfulness of spirit as in the presence of God you must look upon your selves as Gods guests to be merry at his Table now this is a great mystery of godliness that there should be at the same time the sight of Christ crucified and yet at the same time a spiritual cheerfulness in the assurance of the love of God in Jesus Christ I say it is a mystery and only those that are Beleevers are able to understand this mystery how to have their hearts break and yet how to rejoyce at the same time in that unspeakable love of God that is here presented unto them in this Sacrament Seventhly In the next place There must be thankfulness therefore it is called the Eucharist and in one of the Evangelists where it is said Christ blest the Bread in another it is said Christ gave thanks Christ when he instituted this
Sacrament he gave thanks he gave thanks for what he gave thanks to God the Father that he was pleased to send him into the world to die for poor souls now shall Jesus Christ give thanks unto God the Father for that which did cost him his life yea saith Christ I see that here is a way to save souls and let it cost me my life if it will yet I bless thee O Father if souls may come to be saved though it cost me my life Christ rejoyced in his Spirit in thanking his Father for this then how should our hearts be enlarged with thankfulness when we come to this that the Ancients were wont to call the Eucharist that is a thanksgiving we are to give God thanks for every mercy you will not eat your own bread without giving of thanks but when we come to have this bread this bread of life here is matter of thankfulness here is matter of enlargment of soul thou that hast the deadest and dullest soul and straightest Spirit yet when thou comest hither and understandest what thou doest here thou canst not but see matter for the enlargment of thy heart and wish that thou hadst ten thousand thousand times more strength to express the praises of the Lord here is a thing that must be the subject of the Hallelujahs and doxologies that Angels and Saints must for ever sound out in the highest Heavens dost thou know what the Lord presents to thee here it is more than if the Lord should say I will make ten thousand worlds for the sake of this creature and give all these worlds to him thou wouldest think that thou wert bound to bless him then only when God in Bread and Wine reaches out to the the body and Blood of his Son here is more matter of praise then if ten thousand thousand worlds were given to thee and therefore God expects that thou shouldest say to thy soul My soul praise thou the Lord and all that is within me praise His holy Name bless the Lord O my soul and forget not all His benefits who forgiteth all thine iniquitie who healeth all thy diseases O poor soul here is the foundation of all mercies dost thou praise God for Justification for sanctification here is a glorious application of the mercie of God to the souls of sinners and therefore if ever thou wert thankfull be thankfull here The Sabbath my Brethren that is appointed to be the set constant day of thanksgiving for the great mercies of God in Christ and there are other daies for National mercies now a special work of the Lords day is The celebration of this holy Sacrament and the Christians in former times were wont to do it every Lords day because that is the day appointed by God for to be the day of thanksgiving for that great mercy the Lord Jesus Christ and that 's the reason why the Sabbath was changed the last day in the week was the Jewish Sabbath and that was to celebrate the memorial of the Creation of the World and the first day now it is to be the day of thanksgiving for al the work of God in mans Redemption Eighthly A further thing is this If you would sanctifie Gods Name you must be willing to renew your Covenant that 's the end of it there must be an actual renewing of your Covenant with God that 's thus I come to receive this Bread this wine and this is to be as the Seal of the Covenant on Gods part now this will be emplied in the nature of the thing that if I take the Seals of Gods Covenant that I must be willing to set to my Seal too to renew the Covenant that God calls me to now know all men and women that are sav'd they are sav'd by the vertue of the Covenant of Grace and there God on his part promises and makes a Cavenant That he will bestow his Son Life and Salvation through him and thou must likewise come in on thy part and beleeve on his Son and repent which is the Tenour of the Gospel now every time thou comest to receive this Sacrament thou comest to renew this Covenant As if thou shouldest say Lord thou hast been pleased to make a Covenant of Grace as the first Covenant was broken and all men were cast by that Covenant now thou hast made a Covenant of Grace and callest thy servants whom thou intendest to save that they should renew their Covenant with thee in this Sacrament of thine Lord here I come and Lord here I renew it and set to my seal to promise and Covenant with thee That as ever I expect to receive any good from Christ so Lord here I will be thine I will give up my self for ever to thee as thou hast given me the Body and Blood of Christ for my salvation so Lord here I consecrate my body and blood to thee the last drop of my heart blood shall be given to thee and so my strength and estate and name or what ever I am or have shall be thine Have you done thus when you have come to receive the Sacrament have you actually renewed your covenant with God you that have taken the body of Christ have you given up your body to Christ What 's the reason then that you sin so much with your bodies that you abbuse your body with uncleanness and drunkenness and other wickedness afterwards Oh you prophane the name of God and the very Body and Blood of Christ in this except thou givest up the body and soul to God in way of Covenant Ninthly in the last place for the sanctifying of Gods Name there is required the renewing of Love the coming with lovely dispositions and the renewing of the grace of love not only towards God but towards our Brethren for it is the feast of the Lord and it is an act of communion Communion not only with Christ but with His Churches with his saints and as I have told you that there is a profession of our selves to be of the same body with Jesus Christ then the Lord requireth that His Children should not fall out that come to His Table but that there should be love and peace there 's a mighty bond upon thee when thou comest to the Sacrament and therefore first all heart burnings and heart grudges must be laid aside and secondly you must come with a willinness to be reconcilled one to another willingnes to pass by all infirmities in thy Brethren here I have the Seal of Gods wllingness to pass by al my sins and therefore I must be willing to pass by all infirmities in my Brethren I must now cast out all ill wishes towards others and come with a disire of all good unto them and with a heart ready to imbrace any opportunity to do any good thou doest lye unto God except thou comest with such a heart as this is Lord thou knowest that I am willing to take all opportunities to do good
be acting upon me that 's the meaning And in Zeph. 3. 2. God complains there of his people that they did not draw neer to him as they should And it appears plainly it was from hence that their graces did not act so upon God as they ought She obeyed not the voice she received not correction she trusted not in the Lord she drew not neer to her God So that acting faith upon God is a drawing nigh to God and so acting any grace upon God is a drawing nigh to God Now when is there a time for the acting of our graces upon God so as when we come to worship God And therefore in Isa 94. 7. the Lord complains there That no man did stir up himself to take hold on him When we come to Worship God we should stir up our selves to take hold of God And thus you see in what respects the Soul may be said to draw nigh to God when it comes to Worship him Now for the Aplication of this point and it is in divers particulars The First is this Hence learn what you do when you come to Worship God and consider of it every time you come to perform any act of Worship Truly this one thing would be of marveilons use and it would help forward to the next point of Sanctifying of Gods Name This you are all convinced of That it is your duty to Worship God when you Pray you come to Worship God when you come to hear his Word you come to worship him and when you receive the Sacrament you Worship him Now if I should come from one end of the Congregation to the other and ask every one of you this Question It is your duty to Worship God Is it not Yes that you will all be ready to answer And what do you do when you Worship God I fear that this Second Question would gravel many You will say We must pray to God and serve him and hear his Word and go to the Communion yea but what do your Souls do in this work of worshiping of God This should be the answer and so you should think with your selves and charge this upon your own hearts I am now going to worship God either in Prayer Word or Sacrament I am now going to tender up that homage that is due from a creature to the infinit Creator so that I must so pray as I must manifest that high respect that I owe to God as my Creator but that I shall speak to more afterword only now remember this That you do profess every time you go to Prayer That you go to tender up that homage that you owe unto God and so every time you come to hear the Word there is a profession that you come to tender up that respect and homage that you owe to the infinite God And so likewise when you come to receive the Sacrament Now when we come to offer a present to men we know how we prepare and with what sutable presence we desire to offer but of that afterward when we come to speak of Sanctifying Gods Name 2 Secondly Remember when I come to Worship God I come to set my self before the Lord in those ways that God doth let out the choice of His Mercies to his people in I have many mercies from God in the enjoyment of the creature but when I come to worship Him I expect the communication of his mercy in another way than through any creature in the world The duties of his Worship are the chief channels that God doth let out the choicest of His Mercies to the hearts of His people through and now I am going to worship Him I am going to present my self before God Indeed there is a little glimmering of the light of God through other Creatures to me but the glorious Beams of the light of God is through the duties of His Worship 3. And then Thirdly I am now going to act my Soul upon God so that if I have any abilities to close with God to act my soul upon him it must be put forth now at this time I am indeed at all times to labor to enjoy Communion with God when I see the Creatures the Sun Moon and Stars to labor to lift up my heart to God and when I see the glory of God in the Sea and for my meat and drink I am to bless God and to acknowledg God in all but when I come to worship God then all the strength of my soul is to be acted upon God in a more special manner I must then above all labor to stir up whatsoever I have in my soul to act upon God this is now to worship God Secondly If to worship God be to draw nigh to God hence we see the reasons why guilty consciences have little mind to the duties of Gods Worship When a man or woman hath given liberty to any licentious way and sinned against their consciences if they have any light in their consciences it is one of the tediousest things in the world to come to the duties of Gods Worship they had rather do any thing than come to holy Duties as to Prayer and especially to secret Prayer A man or woman that hath an enlightned conscience and is under the guilt of sin the coming to God in holy duties is a very grievous burden to them Why Here 's the Reason Because to worship God is to draw to God and the guilt that is upon them hath made the presence of God terrible to them and therefore they had rather go into their company and be merry eat drink sport or any thing rather than to come into Gods presence We know how it was with Adam when God appeared in the Garden and called to him he ran to hide himself Why Because he had guiltiness upon him Oh! the evil that the guilt of sin brings upon the soul it makes the presence of God terrible The presence of God it should be more comfortable to us than our lives but our sin makes Gods presence grievous and terrible A Child sometimes when it hath offended the Father and is conscious to its self of the offence that it hath given the Father it had rather be in the Kitchin among the Servants than to come into the Hall or Parlor where the Father is because it hath offended him And so it is with a guilty conscience when it is conscious to its self of some haunt of evil that it hath given it self unto it hath no mind at all of coming into the presence of the Father but hangs off My Brethren the very presence of God in the Communion of his Saints is terrible to a guilty conscience the very looking upon a godly man is terrible to a guilty conscience When as thou hast been abroad and been loose and wicked in thy waies I appeal to thy conscience when thou comest into the presence of some holy gracious man or woman that lives close with God Doth it
not daunt thee Now is the presence of God in the very faces of his Saints terrible to a guilty conscience how terrible is the presence of God in his Ordinances then Indeed those men and women whose consciences are not enlightened but are ignorant and sottish they can sin against God and go into his presence without any trouble you shall have men swear and be drunk over night and come to the Sacrament the next day What 's the reason Because there is no light sn their consciences their consciences are in darkness they are besotted in their sin but I speak now of one who hath an enlightened conscience the presence of God is terrible to such an one A Third Use is this Here 's the reason why Hypocrites do meet with such vengeance from God as they do I confess we shall meet with this more especially afterwards only by the way take notice of it Hypocrites above all men may expect the severest judgments of God upon them because they come so nigh God for they come often to the Duties of Gods Worship now they that will come so nigh Gods presence and come with base and ungodly hearts to cloak their villany of all in the world they must expect to have the severe vengeance of God let down upon them they that stand nighest the bullet must expect to have the strength of it to be the more upon them so when the wrath of God proceeds out upon sinners wicked men that stand nighest Him they have the greatest stroke of Gods wrath But of that more when I come to the Third Point That God will be Sanctified in those that draw nigh Him The Fourth Use is this If to Worship God be to draw nigh Him then to neglect Gods Worship is to depart from Him that must needs follow And this is a dreadful thing it is the Sentence that shall be at the last day of Judgment Depart from me Thou now art willing to depart from God Oh consider of this you that neglect Worship the Worship of God in your Families and in your Closets and in the Congregation in the Communion of the Saints thou hast little minded or regarded the Worship of God it may be all thy daies what hast thou been doing all this while thou hast been departing from God all this while and when thy conscience shall be but enlightned and awakened to see how far thou art from God how terrible will it be to thee Remember this you that have no mind to the duties of the Worship of God but love the Commission of sin you neglect Gods Worship you were wont to worship him in a constant way in your closets and families but now you grow more loose and so you grow more dead every day than other you go off from God more and more Surely there can be no good to neglect Gods Worship And those that are loth to Worship God because they cannot worship him as they ought from this Point it appears plainly That there can be no good gotten by neglecting Gods Worship for it is departing from God whatsoever plea there may be by any temptation to neglect Gods Worship certainly there is danger in it and therefore never listen to any such temptation as shall draw your hearts from the duties of Gods Worship There are a generation of wantons in these times that make little matter of continuing the duties of Gods Worship they were wont constantly to worship God and to attend upon the Word but now it is nothing to them and they are even ready to thank God for it that they make not such conscience as they were wont to do in the duties of the Worship of God It may be they will say That heretofore some slavish terror did carry them on in the duties of Gods Worship more than the understanding of the freeness of the grace of God would admit of but shall the understanding of the freedom of the grace of God carry thee on less than thy slavish terror did Oh blind and wanton spirit that knowest not the waies of God nor the freeness of the grace of God nor the riches of it Oh what a dishonor art thou to Jesus Christ and to the freeness of his grace that thou canst go up and down from day to day and never Worship God! Did Jesus Christ come into the world for that end for to cause thee to depart more from God 'T is plain out of the Word That the duties of Gods Worship are those duties whereby the soul comes to draw nigh to God And I beseech you Brethren observe these men whether there be that Holinese in their lives that Spiritualness as there was wont to be No you shall find them by degrees to grow loose yea run sometimes into gross sins grow many times to lying and deceiving and to drunkenness and company-keeping yea to worse things by degrees Perhaps they are at first ready to say Is thy Servant a dead Dog that I should do this But by departing from God they grow dead to holy duties we find it by experience That the Professors of Religion have not that Holiness Heavenliness Spiritualness as they were wont to have in former times and no mervel for now they keep not so nigh to God as they were wont You that are Sea-men and Travellers sometimes you are neer the Sun and then you are hot but the further off the Sun you go you grow to be colder and colder And so those that neglect the Worship of God they go from warm Sun they go from the light of Gods Countenance and from the presence of God and so they grow cold and chill and by degrees they grow to prophaness and it is to be feared that many of them will grow to meer Athiesm Another Use is this An Use of Exhortation that we would be encouraged to worship God and to be much in the Worship of God In Heb. 10. 22. Let us draw neer saith the Text Who would not draw neer to God Oh what a good thing is it to be in the presence of God Is not the Lord the fountain of thy life Is it not a sweet thing to be in his presence We think it a sweet thing to be in the presence of godly men Oh that we might alwaies live with such men and be nigh them That Martyr Doctor Taylor rejoyced in this That ever he came into prison to be acquainted with that Angel of God holy Master Bradford and as I remember some among the Heathens that profest they would rather be in prison with Cato than be in the greatest glory with some other It is a blessed thing to be in the presence of God to be with him that is the God of our lives and the fountain of all good let us draw nigh to God often let us know that it is a mercy that we may draw nigh to God we might have been banished from the presence of the Lord long e're this time
are most potent with God As now a stranger cannot prevail in any Petition so as a familiar friend can Thus my brethren when strangers come into Gods presence God doth not so much regard them but when his familiars come into his presence the Saints of God that keep close with him in constant communion and converse in the duties of his Worship God doth take them as His familiar friends and they will prevail much with God Secondly By this means the teror of death will be taken away there is no such way to take off the terror of the thoughts of death as by keeping familiarity with God death then is joyful to those that converse with him That Reverend Divine that is now with God Docter Preston when he was to die he had this speech I shall but change my place I shall not change my company whereas its otherwise if thou growest-estranged from God when death comes it will look with a terrible face for then thou hast to deal with God thou art then to go into the presence of the infinite dreadful God into whose presence thou never hadst any mind to go before but saith death I must now carry thee into the presence of God As thy Body returns to the dust so thy soul must return to God that gave it that is to receive its eternal doom c. But now saith a Saint what must my boby return to dust and my soul to God that gave it it is he which I have been with every day and can say as he said My soul go forth go forth why art thou unwilling to go forth to him that thou hast conversed with all thy daies And then what safety is there in being neer to God especially in these dangerous times In the times wherein we live it is safe to be neer God in Psal 22. 11. Be not far from me for trouble is neer saith David Lord trouble is neer me be not thou far from me It 's a blessed thing to have God neer us when trouble is neer us Trouble is neer many of you perhaps there 's not a spans breadth between death and us what a blessed thing is it then to have God to be neer us When the poor Chickin sees the Kite come neer to seize upon it and is like to be supprized if the Hen be neer it runs to the Hen and the Hen covers it and keeps it safe So it should be with us for so Christ saith of Jerusalem How often would I have gathered thee as a Hen gathereth her Chickens There are a company of Kites abroad in the world and we are poor shiftless Creatures now how happy are we then if we can run under the shadow of Gods wing There is a kind of shadow in the presence of God in the enjoyment of the creature but the shadow of God that we have in his Worship that is as the shadow of his Wing There is the shadow of a Tree and that may help from some kind of troubles but there 's another manner of shadow under the shadow of the wing of the Hen because that nourishes the Chicken The men of the world they have the shadow of the Tree as it were Gods general providence which is over all creatures but the Saints of God that draw nigh to God they have the shadow of Gods Wing like the shadow of the Hens wing to the Chicken which doth comfort it and safe-guard it Let us by the duties of Worship thus draw nigh to God and keep nigh unto Him SERMON III Leviticus 10. 3. I will be Sanctified in them that come nigh me I WILL only add one Particular more to what we said the last day and then proceed If in the duties of Worship we are nigh to God then hence appears the great Honor that God puts upon His Servants that do Worship him Certainly the Worshipers of God have great Honor put upon them because the Lord vouchsafes them to draw nigh unto Him they are such as are precious and honorable in his eyes I will not enlarge my self in this only give you three Scriptures that shew the great honor and respect that God puts upon those that he doth admit to come and worship him The first Scripture is in Deut. 4. 17. There Moses speaking of the people of Israel and the great respect that God shewed to them more than others for saith he What Nation is there so great who hath God so Nigh unto them as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for What Nation is there so great as you are So great How doth it appear that the Nation of Israel is a greater Nation than other Nations are How That hath God so Nigh unto them in all things that they call upon him for herein any man or woman or Nation may be said to be great that is greatly honored by the Lord God in that they have the Lord nigh unto them and they are nigh unto him here 's the greatness of a Nation You would think that if one would describe the greatness of a Nation it should be in their great Wealth their great Trading and Traffick that they have and the Fertile place that they live in No this is not the greatness of a Nation But what Nation is there so great that hath the Lord God so nigh to them There 's the greatness of a Nation and so a spiritual heart would account greatness to consist in having God to be nigh unto it The second Scripture is in Numb 16. 9. There we have Moses speaking unto the sons of Korah rebuking them for their sin and he brings this aggravation to them of the greatness of their sin saith he Seemeth it but a small thing unto you that the God of Israel hath separated you from the Congregation of Israel to bring you neer to Himself That is That you should come to worship him Is this a small thing to you Is not this honor enough As if Moses should have said Why do you contend for any more Honor the Lord hath separated you to bring you neer to himself Object This you will say was spoken to the Priests Answ But it may be said of every gracious soul for every Beleever Christ hath made a King Priest and Prophet unto himself now there is no Beleever but Jesus Christ hath separated him or her from the rest of the world to be neer unto God This is the dignity that God hath put upon thee that thou art separated by His grace to be one neer to Him whereas others of the world they depart from Him continually depart more and more from Him but I say the Lord by his grace hath set thee apart for Himself as he saith in Psal 4. 3. The Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself Thou art separated from the world To what end It is that thou mightest be neer to Him this is thy priviledg and thou shouldest account it
those that did offer it they did eat a great part of it themselves now they were very careful in those offerings that they were to partake of themselves to offer fat beasts you do not see that the holy Ghost takes any notice of fat beasts in their burnt offerings Now the Note from hence is this That in those things where men are interested themselves they will be very careful to have the best things But now the Lord rejected the fat beasts of their Peace-offerings saith God You were very careful to offer fat beasts in your Peace-offerings where you may feed your selves but for those offerings wherein I have all there you are not so careful and therefore I regard them not The third Scripture is in Zach. 7. 7. there they did keep many daies in seeking of God it is an observable Scripture for these times Speak unto all the People of the Land and to the Priests saying When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh month even those seventy years Did ye at all fast unto me even unto me Mark the phrase You fasted in the fifth and seventh month and for seventy yeers together but saith the Lord Did you at all fast unto me and then mark how he doubled it To me even unto me Noting that when we fast or pray or do any thing in the Worship of God we should be sure to aim at God more than our selves that God may not say of us another day Do you do it to me even to me You may ask me this Question How may I know that I am acted by self-ends in holy Duties for it is a hard thing for one to know ones own heart when one is acted by principles of self and when we aim at God in holy Duties Now for that I will give you these Notes to try whether you be acted from your selves or no. The First is this If a man loves holy Duties though he finds no present good comes in by them because they are such things as God requires and therefore though I get nothing by them yet this is enough to carry me on and to carry me on readily and willingly in the Worship of God those that can delight in Gods Worship even at that time though they find nothing coming in to themselves But now when we find not that coming in that we do desire we begin to be weary of Worship and say Why have we fasted and thou seest it not This is an Argument that thou art acted by Self rather than by God Secondly To know whether we be acted by self-ends or rather by high ends for God Those men that can rejoyce in others that are able to honor God in holy duties more than themselves they may have a good evidence to their own souls that when they worship God they are acted by higher ends than Self but now such as are straightned themselves and when they see other more enlarged in the Worship of God they rather envy them are griev'd and troubled know that Self is a great ingredient in those duties that thou doest perform if thy heart were raised high to God though thou canst not thy self be enlarged in holy duties yet thy soul would be glad that any others are though I have a wretched and vile heart of my own yet blessed be God that there are any others that can worship God better than I can Thirdly A man that is acted by Self in holy duties he regards holy duties but little save in time of extremity in time of fear or in sickness or in danger But now one that hath high ends in holy duties makes the duties of Gods Worship to be the joy of his soul in the midst of his prosperity and that is an evident sign that thou art not acted by self ends but by higher ends Canst thou in the midst of thy abundance say Lord thou givest me all conveniences in this world and all outward things that I want but Lord this is that which is the joy of my soul this is that which makes my life comfortable even communion with thy self in the duties of thy worship that I have free access unto the Throne of thy Grace to worship Thee the Lord and there meet with thee when I am in the performance of holy duties O Lord thou that knowest all things knowest that this is the thing that makes my life comfortable It is not that I have a Table furnished with variety of dishes and that I can have liberty of time to go into company and spend according as I please but Lord those incomes of thy Spirit that I do find in the duties of thy Worship those are the things that makes my life blessed indeed unto me Such a man is able thus to appeal to God surely when he worships God he is acted by high ends and not by self-ends And that 's the Third thing that is necessary for sanctifying Gods Name in holy Duties thou must have a sanctified heart high thoughts of God and high ends In the fourth place There must be much reverence and much fear when thou comest into the presence of God to worship him thou doest not glorifie God as God except thou doest come into his presence with much fear reverence of his great Name Fear in worshiping of God it is so necessary that many times in Scripture we find that the very Worship of God is called The fear of God they are put both for one I might give you divers Scriptures for it and hence it was that the Name of God was called the Fear of Isaac Jacob did swear by the Fear of his father Isaac because Isaac being a great Worshiper of God kept his constant times to worship God and worshiped him in such a constant way as except David and Daniel we do not find mention of the constancy of any in the worshiping of God as we do of Isaac's for it is said that he walked but into the fields in the evening as he was wont to do to Meditate and to Pray and therefore God is called The fear of Isaac In Psal 89. 7. is a notable Scripture for this drawing nigh to God with fear God is greatly to be feared in the Assembly of the Saints and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him God is to be had in reverence of all them that are about him but in the Assembly of his Saints he is greatly to be feared he is daunting terrible so the words are in the Assembly of the Saints When thou comest nigh to God thou hadst need have thy heart possest with much fear So in Psal 2. 11. the Kings and Princes of the earth are called upon to serve the Lord with fear Let them be never so great yet when they come into Gods presence they must serve him with fear And so in Psal 5. 7. In thy fear will I worship toward thy holy Temple Now this fear of God it must not
be a servile fear but a filial and reverential fear For my brethren there may be a great deal of slavish fear where God is not honored there may be fear from some terrible apprehensions of God which yet is not owned by God to be this grace of fear I 'le give you two notable Scriptures for that in Deut. 5. 23 24. compared with the 29. It came to pass saith the text vers 23. when ye heard the voyce out of the middest of the darkness for the mountain did burn with fire that ye came neer unto me even al the heads of your Tribes and your Elders And ye said Behold the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness and we have heard his voyce out of the midst of the fire we have seen this day that God doth talk with man and he liveth now therefore why should we die for this great fire will consume us If we hear the voyce of the Lord our God any more then we shall die See with what a terror they were struck at the apprehension of Gods appearance you would think surely these men did fear God much but mark in vers 29. O that there were such a heart in them that they would fear me Why did they not fear the Lord Were they not struck with such fear that they thought they should die they saw this presence so terrible that they were afraid they should die and yet O that there were such a heart in them that they would fear me So that it appears by this That one may be struck with much terror in the apprehension of Gods presence and yet have no true fear of the Name of God So some of you it may be in time of thunder or danger are filled with terror but yet may it not be said presently after O that there were the fear of God in the heart of this man or woman this youth or maid They are terrified somtimes but yet there is not a filial and reverential fear of God in them And I find in 1 King 19. where you have the story of Gods appearing in that most terrible manner unto the Prophet Elijah by Fire by Thunder and in a mighty Wind the Prophet was not so struck with fear of Gods presence when he did appear in the mighty wind or earthquake or fire as when God did appear in the smal still voyce therfore in vers 13. it is said And it was so when Elijah heard it that is the soft voyce after the fire and earthquake and the mighty wind that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out stood in the entring in of the Cave and behold there came a voice unto him and said What doest then here Elijah Then his heart was more struck with fear where was most of Gods presence though it was in a soft voyce than when the fire and earthquake did appear It is a good sign of a gracious fear when the soul can be struck with more fear from the Word and from the sight of God in enjoying of communion with him in his Worship than when God appears in the most terrible way of his works or when there is terror in a mans conscience through fear of Hell when God appears as though he would send him down presently to Hell though God expects to be feared then but when the soul in enjoying communion with God in holy duties and the more communion he hath with God the more is he struck with reverence and the fear of God this is a sign of sanctifying fear and then Doth the heart sanctifie the Name of God indeed when it is so possessed with fear in the duties of Worship Now this fear of God should be indeed in the soul and expressed outwardly when you are in the Assembly by such reverent carriage in prayer as if a Heathen should come in he may see Gods Name sanctified and may say How great is this God that this People do Worship And in your Families a reverent carriage not lying all along in prayer upon your elbows sleeping but carrying your selves so that if a Heathen should come into your families they may say O how great is this God that this people do worship And likewise this fear it must be an abiding fear not only at that instant when you are worshiping of God or speaking of any of Gods Titles and Names but a fear that must abide upon your hearts after duty is over that is after you are come out from your Closets one may perceive the fear of God upon you and so walking all the day long in the fear of God as it becomes those that have been solemnly setting themselves to worship Him Now this fear and reverence is contrary to the slightness vanity the boldness and presumptuousness that there is in the hearts of men and women when they are worshiping of God Fifthly The duties of Gods Worship must be full of strength for they are not sutable to God else because God is a God infinite in power and glory himself therefore God cannot endure vain worshiping In Isa 1. 13. I hate vain oblations Vanity of spirit in worshiping of God is very hateful to God it doth defile the Name of God God is dishonored by the vanity of mens spirits Now this strength is Three fold First The strength of Intention Secondly The strength of Affection Thirdly The strength of all the Faculties of the soul and the strength of body too as much as we are able should be put forth in the worshiping of God 1 First the strength of Intention We must intend our work as if it were for our lives If ever we were seriously Intentive or Attentive about any thing it must be when we are worshiping of the Name of God When you are coming to Pray be intent about it You shall see some when they are going in the street when they have much intention about their businesse their friends meet them and they never mind them one may perceive as they are going That they are mightily intent about their businesse My Brethren look upon every duty of Worship as a great thing which you must be intent in your thoughts about and not give way to the wandring of your thoughts I have read of one Martyr that when he was to die and the fire a kindling saith an Officer What! will you not speak when you see the Fire kindling Saith he I am speaking to God that is he was praying and he minded not at all what they were doing Oh what little things do take our thoughts away from holy duties When every toy every feather every light matter cals them off Is this to Sanctifie Gods Name Would not we account it a dishonorable thing If we were talking to one about serious businesse and when we are talking every one that comes by he should be looking after them and turning aside to talk with them If a Superior be talking with you he doth expect
do come and present my body to hear the Word or my body to receive the Sacrament this is not to worship God as a Spirit If indeed that our God were as the Heathens that were corporeal then it were another matter then bodily worship would serve the turn but God being a Spirit he must have Spiritual Worship therefore my soul and all that is within me magnifie his Name saith David my Soul magnifie his Name not my lips only but my soul The Apostle in 1 Tim. 4. 8. saith that bodily exercise profits little it is no great matter for the body God looks but very little at bodily exercise but it is godliness that is profitable it is the work of the Spirit when we come to pray we must pray in the Spirit that is we must pray with our souls we must powr forth our souls before God and when we come to hear our hearts must not go after our covetousness we must set our hearts to what we hear we must hear with our hearts as well as with our ears our souls must be at work in hearing of the Word when you hear it is not enough for you to come and sit in a Pew and have the sound of a mans voice in your ears but your souls must be at work And so when you come to receive the Sacrament your souls must feed upon Jesus Christ Bodily-worship without Soul-worship is nothing but soul-worship may be accepted without bodily-worship therefore it is the Soul that God doth principally look at in holy duties If you be not able to worship God in your bodies you may worship him in your souls and God regards that bodily exercise in holy duties is little worth somewhat it may be worth I confess sometime bodily exercise may further the soul as a reverend carriage of the body and the like but it is nothing in comparison the great work is the work of the soul for God is a Spirit and must be worshiped in Spirit And God is said to be a Spirit not only in that he is not of so thick a Capital substance but it notes the simplicity of God he is without any composition whatsoever is in God is God Himself He is absolutely One there are not divers things in God now then those that come to worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth that is there must not be a heart and a heart there must not be a compounded heart but you must bring simple hearts before God without any composition of dross in your selves and of any kind of falsness but in the simplicity of your hearts you must come to worship God and thus you shall worship him with such worship as is some way sutable to him as he is a spirit 2. Further consider God as he is an eternal God what sutable disposition doth this require of me when I am to look upon God as an eternal Being it requires this only That therefore thy heart must be taken off from all temporal good things and set upon that eternal good thou mayest indeed desire these outward good things but in order to thy eternal good Then further Thou art worshiping an eternal God hence then whatsoever sin thou doest confess although committed 20. or 40. yeers ago thou must look upon it as if it were now presently committed and be humbled as much before the Lord as if it were now committed at this present You will say Why so Because God is an Eternal God Yes For if I understand Gods Eternity I know that there is no succession in Gods Being therefore the sins that I committed in my youth if I come to confess them they are before God as if they were now a doing in regard of time and therefore I must as much as I can look so upon them and be humbled for them as if they were sins lately committed Many people are troubled for their sins the very day after they commit them but a little time wears off their trouble but if you did consider that you had to deal with an eternal God then you would look upon your sins though a long time since committed as if they were but now done Likewise there will be this required from the consideration of Gods eternity You must come with such a disposition of heart as not to think much though what you desired be deferred and not granted in your time when you would have it For if there be no time that alters with God but a thousand yeers are with God as one day then that that we account long before it s done it is nothing with God and therefore we must have our hearts so work towards God as towards an Eternal God as one with whom there is no alteration of time at all with whom there is no succession of time If we come to a man and seek any thing of him if he doth not answer us presently we will think that he will forget it and other things will come into his mind but when we come to worship God we must look upon him as an Eternal Being and that time alters nothing with him Thus understanding God in a right way wil much help us in his Worship and to Sanctifie his Name We cannot Sanctifie Gods Name without knowing his Name without having serious thoughts about his Name and getting our hearts to work accordingly 3. Thirdly Look upon God when you come to Worship Him in His comprehensible Being that is as a God that fils all places His being is real in the room that we are praying in the place that we are meeting in as it is in Heaven Now then when we come to worship Him we must consider that that infinite glorious Being stands before us looks upon us is at our elbow and therefore especially when you worship in secret consider this it is good to consider it when you are with others but especially I say consider it when you are in secret and know that when you are most private you have one that looks on you and takes notice of you who is more than if you had ten hundred thousand witnesses standing by you and looking upon you For it is the Lord that stands by you and sees your behavior sees what you do in your worshiping of Him take heed therefore that there be nothing done by you that is unbeseeming the presence of such a God as the Lord is Suppose that some of you were praying and there were some godly able Minister stood neer you it would be some means to stir up your hearts to mind what you did but now the Lord He is not in the next room only but in the same room and stands by you Let there be nothing done therefore unbeseeming the presence of that infinite holy God that stands by you and hold this truth forth The Lord is present with me I acknowledg it and I own it and therefore I carry my self thus and all because I would witness to
is able to do and therfore 't is Worship I wait upon God when I am hearing the Word if I know what I do to have som spiritual good conveied to me beyond what there is in the means it self this makes it Worship When I am busied in Natural and Civil actions there I must profess that these things can do me no good without God but I do not wait upon God in an Ordinance for the conveyance of Natural good beyond what God hath put into the Creature 't is his blessing with it that God in the ordinary course of his providence doth convey such Natural or Civil good in the use of those Creatures But now when I come to hear his Word I here come to wait upon God in the way of an Ordinance for the conveyance of some spiritual good that this Ordinance hath not in it self take it materially but meerly as it hath an Institution in it and is appointed by God for the conveyance of such and such things God doth appoint meat to nourish me and together with his appointment he hath given a natural power to meat to nourish my body that in an ordinary course of providence is enough for the nourishment of my body but now when I come to hear the Word I must look upon that not only as a thing appointed to work upon my soul and to save my soul by not as a thing that hath any efficacy put into it in a natural way as the other hath it is not the nature of the thing that carries such a power in it but it is the Institution of God and the Ordinance of God in it Now then when I come to wait upon God in an Ordinance for the spiritual good that is beyond the vertue of any creature to convey to me certainly I worship God that is a speciall part of worship to wait upon God in this way Therefore in these two respects the hearing of Gods Word it is a part of the Worship of God and I beseech you remember these two things every time you come to hear I come now to give a Testimony that I am not able to understand God and the way to eternal life of my self but I do depend upon God for the knowledg of it And here I come to wait upon God for the conveyance of that good to my soul that is not in the power of any creature to convey Now I worship when I do these But further you shall find it more plain when we come to open how we should sanctifie Gods Name in the hearing of His Word This is Divine Service as much as any service can be performed Heretofore our Prelates and those kind of men made all the Worship of God to be in their Divine Service as they call'd it which was of their own inventions and made light of the preaching or hearing of the Word but the Word is a great part of that Divine Service that God requires of us in His Worship and in it you do tender up your homage to God You therefore must not only when you come to hear think I come to get something I come to understand more than I did and to hear such a mans parts and the like but remember you come to tender up your homage to God to sit at Gods feet and there to profess your subjection to Him That is one end of your coming to hear Sermons Now then you will say What should be done in the hearing Gods Word so as Gods Name may be Sanctified For that as we opened in the general That in the duties of Gods Worship there must be preparation and then an answerable behavior of the soul So here there must first be a preparation of the soul to this work and then an answerable behavior of the soul in it 1. There must be a preparation of the Soul so as when you come to hear you may with all readiness receive the Word The soul must be made ready in Act. 17. 11. there it is said These were more noble than those of Thessalonica in that they received the Word with all readiness of mind The word is with all Alacrity as well as readiness their minds were in a fit preparation to receive the Word and the text saith They were more noble The word that is translated more noble it signifies better bred for I do not take this Scripture as if it were meant only of men that were Earls or Lords that did thus receive the Word with readiness but they were of a more Noble disposition they were well bred men so the Greek word signifies A man sometimes preaching to a company of rude people that never had any good breeding they will behave themselves rudely they slight the Word and like the Swine regard Acorns rather than Pearls And the Word is seldom so profitable to a company of rude people that have no breeding at all but now there is more hopes to preach to men that have breeding Men that are exercised in Arts and Sciences and have some understanding and some ingenuity in them they will hearken to reason Now there is a great deal of spiritual reason in the Word there is a great deal to convince men that are but rational men Let a man be but a rational man and willing to attend to the Word I say there is a great deal of reason to convince him in it and it is a sign of good breeding of men of ingenuity to be willing to hear the Word Who are those in a Parish that so disregard the Word as not to hear it but the ruder sort There are many I confess that are men of parts perhaps the Word doth not so prevail with their hearts as to convert them yet if they have any good breeding at all if the Word be preached in a convincing way so that they see there is a pains taken and preached as the Word of God to them they will vouchsafe their presence at least but the rude multitude that know nothing at all they had rather be in Ale-houses drinking and swilling they never care to hear the Word As in such a place as this There are very few of your miserable poor people that come to hear the Word What place is there fuller of miserable poor people than this place is and yet what a poor appearance is there of such people at the hearing of the Word But now those that have any ingenuity in them at all or any breeding for so the word is they will receive the Word with readiness But this breeding here spoken of was a little higher than natural breeding They were spiritually Noble and so they had a readiness in their hearts in receiving the Word Now this readiness of heart in receiving the Word consists in these particulars First When you come to hear the Word if you would sanctifie Gods Name you must possess your souls with what it is that you are going to hear That what you are
to hear is the Word of God That it is not the speaking of a man that you are going to attend upon but that you are now going to attend upon God and to hear the Word of the Eternal God Possess your souls with this you will never sanctifie Gods Name else in the hearing of his Word therefore you find that the Apostle writing to the Thessalonians he gives them the reason why the Word did them so much good as it did It was because they did hear it as the Word of God 1 Thes 2. 13. For this cause also saith he thank we God without ceasing because when ye received the Word of God which ye heard of us ye received it not as the word of men but as it is in truth the Word of God which effectually worketh also in you that beleeve Mark so it came effectually to work because they received it as the Word of God many times you will say Come let us go hear such a man preach Oh no let us go hear Christ preach for as it doth concern the Ministers of God that they preach not themselves but that Christ should preach in them So it concerns you that hear not to come to hear this man or that man but to come to hear Jesus Christ We as the Ambassadors of Christ do beseech you saith the Apostle 2. Possess your hearts likewise with this Consideration That I come to hear the Word as an Ordinance appointed by God to convey Spiritual good to my soul and this is a very useful consideration and especially it concerns men of understanding and parts for the helping of them to hear For men that are of understanding and parts when they come to hear this temptation is ready to come upon them that except they hear some new thing that they did not understand before wherefore should they come I am able to understand as much in such a point as can be said And when I have come and heard many times I have heard but that I knew before and upon that they think there is no use of coming to hear Now this is a great mistake when you come to hear the Word you do not come alwaies to hear what you did not know it may be sometimes God may dart in something that you did not think of before or so fully understand but suppose it be not so you are to come to it as an Ordinance of God for the conveyance of spiritual good to your souls You will say Cannot we sit at home and reade a Sermon But hath God appointed that the great Ordinance for the converting and the edifying of souls in the way to eternal life True there is some use of it but the great Ordinance is the Preaching of the Word Faith comes by hearing the Scripture saith and never by reading So that though when you come to hear you do not hear that which you heard not before yet you come to attend upon this Ordinance for the conveyance of some spiritual good that it may be hath not been conveyed before or in a further degree than it hath been conveyed before and so you should come to hear the Word with your hearts possest with that meditation That it is the Word of God and the great Ordinance that God hath appointed for the conveyance of spiritual good so that I come now in obedience to God and in this I do testifie my respect to God that I wil attend upon this Ordinance of His for the conveyance of spiritual good to me and although I may think that this or the other means may do the deed as well yet because God hath appointed this to be his Ordinance therefore in obedience to him I will attend upon this means rather than upon other means as you know Naaman he thought the other waters would have been as good as the waters of Jordan to have healed him but if God will appoint him the waters of Jordan that they should heal him rather than other waters he must wash there No question but other waters had as much natural vertue in them as they had but because the waters of Jordan were the Ordinance that God for that time had appointed to cure his Leprosie withal he must come and wash in those waters rather than in any other So because preaching of the Word is the great Ordinance that God hath appointed to convey himself by therefore he doth require that thou shouldest shew thy respect to him so far as to attend upon him in this Ordinance The Second thing that is to be done in way of preparation it is To plow up the fallow ground of your hearts and not to sow amongst thorns as you have it in Jer. 4. 3. and so in Hosea 10. The Word of God you know is compared to seed in that Parable of Christ in Mat 13. And an Auditory is compared to the ground I suppose you are al acquainted with that Parable of the sower that it is to set out the Ministry of the Word and what fruit it hath upon the hearts of men a Congregation is like the field and a Minister preaching is like the Sower that sows the seed in the field he knows not which Truth whether that or the other will prosper the seed being sowed in some part of the ground is lost and in another part it grows so in one Pew the seed of the Word is lost in another Pew it grows up But now if people that are compared to the ground would so hear the Word as Gods Name may de sanctified in it their hearts must be plowed as if one should sow seed upon green soil saw it in the fields upon green grass What would become of it The ground must first be plowed for the preparation of the seed But you will say What is the meaning of the plowing of our hearts for the preparation of the Word The meaning is nothing else but this The work of humiliation the humbling of the soul before the Lord when it doth come to hear Gods Word Humble it in these two regards First Be humbled for your Ignorance that you know so little of Gods Mind as you do Secondly Be humbled for all the sinfulness of your hearts be sensible of the sinfulness and wretchedness of your hearts and the miserable condition that you are in if you can get your hearts broken with the sence of your sin and misery and come so to hear the Word it is very like the Word may be of mighty use and Gods Name may be very much sanctified in your hearing of the Word You will say Must we plow up our hearts before we come to hear It must be the Word that must plow us the Word is the Plow and so the Ministers of God are compared to Plowmen in the Word He that puts his hand to the Plow and looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of Heaven It is true it cannot be expected that the heart should be
they have been or are guilty of it puts a shame upon them and therefore their hearts do rise against it It is a dreadful thing to have the heart rise against the Word As we reade of that froward Prince Jehoiakim in the Prophesie of Jeremiah that when the Roll was read in his hearing sitting in the winter time by a great fire he took a penknife and cut it in pieces and threw it into the fire in anger and I have read that the Jews kept a Fast every yeer to mourn for that great sin and yet this Jehoiakim was the son of Josiah whose heart did melt at the hearing of the Word he had an humble and meek heart when the Law was read and yet see what a different spirit Jehoiakim had either from his Father or Grand-Father It is a great dishonor to the Name of God for men to give liberty to their passions to rise against the Word take heed of passion either while you are hearing the Word or after the Word as many of you while you are discontented with what is said when you come in company what a fury are many men in upon the hearing of some things in the Word that comes close to their hearts Remember when you are hearing of the Word that it is that which is above you and it is not fit for one that is an inferior to shew himself passionate in the presence of a Superior It is true the Ministers they may be in as low a condition as you and in a lower but the Word they speak it is above all the Princes and Monarchs upon the face of the Earth and it is fit therefore we having to deal with God that we should behave our selves in a meek disposition 6. The next thing for the sanctifying Gods Name in the hearing of the Word is this We must hear it with a trembling heart with fear as well as meekness and for that you have that famous Scripture in Isa 66. beginning Thus saith the Lord The Heaven is my Throne and the earth is my Foot-stool where is the house that the build unto me and where is the place of my rest For all those things hath my hand made and all those things have been saith the Lord but to this man will I look even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit and trembleth at my Word This is a most admirable Scripture Mark how God lifts up himself in his Glory so great a God as the Heaven is my Throne and the Earth is my Foot-stool where is that house that ye will build unto me But then may a poor soul say How shall I be able to stand before this God that is so glorious Saith God Be not discouraged poor soul who doest tremble at my Word for I look to you And then this is a further thing observable That God hath a regard to that soul that trembles at this Word rather than to any that should build the most sumptuous buildings in the world for him for saith God here The Heaven is my Throne and the Earth is my Foot-stool where is the house that ye build unto me and where is the place of my rest They have built a glorious Temple to God but what do I regard that saith God I regard one that trembls at my Word more than that great house that you have built unto me It is a notable Scripture to shew what a high respect God hath to one that trembles at his Word he regards them more than this glorious Temple that was built unto him If you were able to build such a place as this was for the service of God you would think it a great matter it is not so much regarded as if you could bring a trembling heart to Gods Word that 's a special thing wherein the sanctifying of the Name of God consists when we come to see the dreadful Authority that there is in the Word of God when we are able to see more Glory of God in his Word than in all the works of God besides for there is more of his Glory in the Word than there is in the whol Creation of Heaven and Earth take the Sun and Moon and Stars you that are Marriners you have seen much of the Glory of God abroad that one would think might strike terror into all your hearts but know That there is more of the dreadfulness of Gods Name in his Word than in all his Works In Psal 138. 2. Thou hast magnified thy Word above all thy Name the Word it is magnified above all the Name of God whatsoever and it is a very good sign of a spiritual enlightened soul that can see the Name of God more magnified in his Word than in al his Works besides I appeal unto your consciences in this thing Have you ever seen the Name of God to be more magnified in his Word than in all his Works I may with very good confidence affirm this That there is no godly soul upon the face of the Earth that hath the weakest degree of grace but hath seen more of the glory of God revealed in his Word than he hath seen in all the VVorks of God besides and his heart hath been more taken with it It requires therefore a trembling frame of heart when we hear it And then further When this is considered that the word is that which bindeth the soul over either to life or death mens eternal estates are to be cast by the word certainly then it requires a trembling heart to hear that by which the eternal estate of man is to be cast we do not sanctifie Gods Name when we come to hear the word except we come with trembling hearts and they are the most likely of all men and women to understand the mind of God as for such as come with conceited spirits that they understand as much before they come and think their reach of wit or capacity is beyond the capacity of any that shall open the word unto them yet that were not so much if it did but only rest upon the man and not reflect upon the word it self Now these that are rich in their own thoughts and understandings are sent empty away but those that come with trembling hearts to the word they are the men that are like to understand Gods Counsels revealed in his word In Ezra 10. 2 3. Shechaniah the Son of Jehiel one of the Sons of Elam answered and said unto Ezra We have transgressed against our God have taken strang wives c. Yet now there is hope ni Israel concerning this thing now therefore let us make a Covenant with our God according to the counsel of my Lord and of those that tremble at the Commandement of our God So that those that tremble at Gods Word and such as are fittest to counsel they understand most of Gods mind and that 's another particular of the behavior of the soul in sanctifying Gods Name in hearing
His Word 7. The next is a humble subjection to the Word that we hear our hearts must bow to it must lie under the Word that we hear it is a very remarkable Scripture that we have in 2 Chron. 36. 12. There it is said concerning a great King Zedekiah He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the Prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord. It is a very strange expression as any we have in the Book of God that Zedekiah a great King should be charged with this as a great sin that he did not humble himself Humble himself before whom you will say We are bound to humble our selves before God but here it is that he did not humble himself before Jeremiah the Prophet Why before the Prophet Because he spake from the mouth of the Lord. If it be any messenger that speaks from the mouth of the Lord God expects that we should humble our selves so that if any truth comes to be delivered unto you the Lord expects that you should fall down and yeild obedience to it whatsoever your thoughts your judgments your opinions have heretofore been if there come any thing in the Word against it you must submit your judgments submit your very consciences you must submit your wills whatsoever your hearts have been set upon though it hath been never so contentful to your spirits before yet now submit and yeild though it go never so cross unto your minds your wills your ends yet all must be submitted and laid down flat before the Word so as to be willing to deny your selves of any thing in the world When a man or woman can say thus Lord it is true I confess before I heard thy word opened in the evidence and demonstration or the Spirit unto me I was of such a mind and my heart went after such and such contentments and I thought it was impossible that ever my heart should be taken from them but O Lord thou hast been pleased plainly to shew to me by the opening of thy Word in the evidence of thy Spirit what thy mind is Now whatsoever becomes of my name of my comforts of my contentments in this world Lord here I cast down al before thee I submit unto thy Word this is a gracious frame Now is the Name of God extol'd and lifted up in hearing of the Word the Name of God is sanctified in such a word of spirit as this is I have read of a German Divine writing to Oecolampadius another famous German Divine he hath this expression Oh let the Word of God come and though we had 600 necks we would all submit them unto the Word of God saith he So it should be the temper of such as hear the Word and desire to sanctifie Gods Name in it let the Word of God come this morning let God speak and we will submit had we 600. necks we will submit all we are or have to this Word of the Lord it is the Word of God that we are willing should triumph over us To have a Congregation to lie down under the Word of God that is preached to them is a most excellent thing and Gods Name is much sanctified we do not brethren desire you should lie under us we are not only willing but we are very desirous that you would examin what we speak to you whether it be according to the Word of God or no. But look to it that if we do speak to you that which is the Word from the mouth of the Lord know then that God expects that you should submit your estates your souls your bodies all that you are and have to this Word and that is another particular in the sanctifying of the Name of God in hearing the Word there must be an humble submission of the soul unto it 8. Another particular wherein the behavior of the soul for the sanctifying of Gods Name consists is this the Word it must be received with love and with joy it is not enough for you to be convinc'd of the authority of it and to think thus well I must yield to it this is the Word of God and if I do not yield to it I must expect the plagues and judgments of God to follow it that is not enough but you most yield to it with love and with joy except you receive the Word with love and with joy it is not sanctified you do not sanctifie Gods Name nor is it sanctified unto you You must receive the Word not only as the true Word of the Lord but as the good Word of the Lord. In Thess 2. 10. we find it to be the cause of mens being given over to a spirit of delusion because they received not the Word of God in love It is spoken of Antichrist that at his coming he shall come with all deceivableness and he shal prevail with them that perish Who are they They that receive not the love of the truth that they might be saved It is not enough my Brethren to receive the truth that we might be saved but we must receive the love of the truth if ever we would be saved Good is the Word of the Lord to my soul And we must receive it with joy too as well as with love Prov. 2. 10. When wisdom entereth into thy heart and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul then discretion shall preserve thee understanding shall keep thee c. That is a great matter when the Word reveals some truth to thy understanding and thou canst so receive it as it should be pleasant to thy soul that thy soul rejoyces in it it is a good Word it is that which doth me good at the heart When a people can hear the Word and the Word coming near unto them they can say This Word doth me good at the heart it is pleasant to my soul that is excellent In Act. 2. 41 the godly are described those that did receive the Word so as to sanctifie Gods Name in it by this That they gladly received the Word and were baptized and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls There were three thousand in one day that did gladly receive the Word What an Auditory had Peter at this time Then the Word it did them good when they gladly received it Quest But it may be said Wâ— reade in Matth. 13. of the stony ground the hearers that were not good and did not profit by the Word so as to be saved yet they received the Word with joy And Herod it is said of him That be heard John Baptist gladly It seems then that it is not enough to receive it with gladness Answ To that I Answer First There must be that which Hypocrites may have if there be want of that we cannot sanctifie Gods Name But you will say We must go further or else Gods Name is not sanctified That I confess Therefore
any just occasion to others to say Is this to hear Sermons Do you get nothing else but this by hearing Sermons If you should open the mouths of men to say so of you the Word of God as much as lies in you would be disgraced by you you should rather think thus It were better for me that I should die and that I were under the ground and rotting there than that the Word of God should ever be disgraced by me Let me hold forth the glory of the Word the Word is that which hath done good to my soul the Word is that which I would not for ten thousand worlds but have heard it and shall I disgrace this Word shall I give any occasion that this Word of the Lord should be spoken ill of by reason of me O God forbid Therefore if you regard not your selves and your own honor yet regard the honor of the word If ever you have got any good by the word you should go away with this resolution well I will labor all the daies of my life to honor this word of God that I have got so much good by If this were but the resolution of every one of your hearts this morning it would be a blessed mornings work SERMON X. Leviticus 10. 3. I will be Sanctified in them that come nigh me NOW follow the Reasons why God stands so much upon it That he will have his Name Sanctified in this Ordinance of hearing his Word 1. First It is because there is so much of God in his Word and therefore we should Sanctifie Gods Name If it were possible there could be sin in Heaven that sin would be greater than sin committed here therefore the sin of the Angels when they were in Gods presence in a more special manner was the greater The Name of God being in any thing the greater will be the evil if we do not sanctifie Gods Name in it now there is very much of God in his Word more of God there than in all the Works of Creation and Providence In Ps 138. 2 Thou hast magnified thy Word above all thy Name There being therefore so much of God in his Word we must sanctifie the Name of God in it 2. Secondly God hath appointed His Word to be the great Ordinance to convey the special mercies that He intends for the good of His People That we spake to before in the general in shewing how the duties of Gods Worship are as a Channel for the conveyance of Special good to the Saints But none more than the Word that 's the Ordinance to convey the first Grace to those that belong to Gods election The Sacraments is for strengthening and therefore there is rather more in the Word than in the Sacrament and yet every one thinks in conscience that he is bound to come carefully to the Sacrament and to look to Sanctifie Gods Name there It is an easier matter to convince men and women that they are bound to sanctifie the Name of God when they come to receive the holy Communion than for the hearing of the Word they think not so much of that but certainly the Word is appointed to be an Ordinance of conveying more blessing than the Sacrament because it is appointed to convey the first Grace and to convey strength of Grace as well as the Sacrament Now being appointed to convey such great things to the souls of the elect both the first grace and strengthening of grace and comfort and assistance thereof the Lord expects to have his name santifiied in it 3. Thirdly The name of God must be Sanctiffed in the Word because the word is very quick and lively it works men or women to life or death to salvation or damnation In Heb. 4. 12. The word of God quick and powerfull and sharper than any two edged sword piercing even to the deviding a sunder of soul and spirit c. It is very quick of operation the text saith that is when God hath to deal with men by His Word He wil not stand dallying and trifling with them but he is very quick with them either to bring there soules to life or to cast them away The time of mens ignorance God winks at but now he cals all men to repent Let them look to it now God did forbeare in the time of ignorance but He will not forbear so when the word comes Now is the Ax laid to the root of the tree And when was that when John Baptist came to preach repentance because the kingdom of Heaven is at hand though the tree were barren before and did not bring sorth good sruit yet it might stand still and not be cut down but when the powerfull ministration of the World comes then the Ax is laid to the root of the Tree either now come in and be saved or resist the Word and perish And therefore that is very observable when Christ sends out His Disciples to preach in Mark 16. 15 16. Saith he Go ye into al the world and preach the Gospel to every creature and he that beleeveth and is Baptized shall be saved but he that beleeveth not shall be damned As if he should say there shall be quick work made with them go preach those that belong to my election shal be brought in to beleeve and be saved and the others shall be damned As if God should say If they will come in and imbrace the Gospel they shall be saved if they wil not they shall be damned and there is an end of them So that I say we have need to look to it that we Sanctifie the name of God in His Word upon these Three Grounds Because there is so much of God in His Word Because he hath appointed it to convey the greatest Mercies to His Saints And because God is very quick in His Word one way or other We shall now proceed to the Application of this Point And First by way of reprehension to all those that do not sanctifie Gods Name in hearing the Word and herein we shal shew their feareful condition and how God will Sanctifie His Name upon them in waies of judgment and then when we come to the use of Exhortation to exhort you to sanctifie the Name of God there we shall shew you likewise how God will sanctifie His Name in waies of mercy upon those that do sanctifie Him in waies of obedience in Hearing of His Word 1. For the first Certainly if that be to sanctsfie the Name of God that we have spoken of Gods Name is but very little sanctified by people that do come to hear His Word and we have no cause to wonder that there is so little good got by the Word because there are so few that make conscience to sanctifie Gods Name in hereing it Some there are that are so far from sanctifying Gods Name in it as they altogether neglect it and make it a matter of nothing whether they come to hear it
any certain sign of Reprobation therefore I cannot say of any man he hath now such a mark upon him as doth evidently prove that he is a Reprobate we cannot tell that because we know not what God may do afterwards but we may say this That it is as dreadful a sign as any There are not any more dreadful signs than these two First For a man to be suffered to prosper in a sinful course For God to let men go on and have their hearts desire satisfied in an ungodly way And then secondly For the Lord to leave them to themselves so as the Ministry of the Word shal not work upon them that they shall be by Gods providence so disposed of as to live under a faithful and powerful Ministry and that it should not work upon them These are the two blackest signs of Reprobation and therefore it is a most dreadful thing to sit under the Ministry of the Word and not to sanctifie Gods Name in it 6. In the next place Surely there can be nothing sanctified to thee who doest not sanctifie Gods Name in His Word The Scripture saith That every thing is sanctified by the Word and Prayer And how canst thou exspect that the Word should sanctifie any thing unto thee seeing that thou doest not make conscience of sanctifying Gods Name in the Word The godly think thus 'T is the Word that must sanctifie all things to my soul and I had need then sanctifie Gods Name in that from which I exspect the sanctified use of all blessings You therefore that can sit under it and make not concience of sanctifying Gods Name in it I say you can expect no sanctified use of any thing that you have in this world 7. Such as do not sanctifie Gods Name in the Word are very nigh to a curse There is a notable Scripture for this in Heb. 6. 7 8. where the Apostle compares the Word to the rain that fals upon the ground For the earth that drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed receiveth blessing from God But saith he that which beareth thorns and bryars is rejected and is nigh unto cursing whose end is to be burned The meaning is this plainly The rain here is the Word the good hearers they are like the ground that receive the rain and bring forth fruit and receive a blessing But now ill hearers that do not sanctifie Gods Name in his Word they are like ground that receives the rain as much as the other hear as many Sermons as the other but they bring forth nothing but thorns and bryars and mark what a dreadful expression is against them First It is rejected Secondly It is nigh to cursing Thirdly Whose end is to be burned Thou rejectest the Word doest thou The Lord rejecteth thy soul If thou hast no need of the Word the Word hath no need of thee it is a dreadful thing to be rejected of God And then thou art uigh unto cursing It may be the Lord may for the time withdraw Himself from the soul and manifest that it is at it were rejected but yet the soul hath not the curse of God upon it to say Well let this soul perish for ever but some there are that are under an actual curse and saith God Well My Word shall never do good to this soul such a one hath sate under it thus long and hath rejected it My Word shall never do good to him Like as in Luk. 14. where those that made excuses when they were bidden to the Supper the text saith at length That the Master of the Feast was angry which was God Himself that invited them by the Gospel to partake of His Son and when men would not come in but make excuses and refused the offer of the Gospel Verily saith he none of those men that were bidden shall tast of my Supper They shall never partake of any good of the Gospel This is a dreadful curse Now the Lord deliver you from having this curse pronounced against you but yet I beseech you tremble at this Scripture in the Hebrews they are nigh to cursing Who knows how nigh some soul in this place may be to this curse for God to say This soul hath been often invited and yet hath made excuses and put off all he shall never tast of my Supper of the good things in Jesus Christ the Word that hath been so rejected shall never do them good more you had better never been born than to have this curse actually upon you Oh fear and tremble lest your condition be such as to be nigh to cursing Who knows what a day a week may bring forth It may be the Lord may spare and be willing to pass by the neglect of former Sermons but who knows what the next actual rebellion against the Lord in His Word may do to bring the curse upon thee And then if so the next part of the verse will prove to be thy portion Whose end is to be burned Oh! It is a dreadful thing to sin against the Word God stands much upon it 8 Eightly Know that if Gods Name be not sanctisied in it the end that God hath appointed it for will be turned quite contrary to thee The proper end that God hath appointed his Word for it is to save souls but now where Gods Name is not sanctified it is turned quite contrary so the Apostle in 2 Cor. 2. 16. To the one we are the savor of death unto death and to the other the savor of life unto life It is a dreadful thing that the good Word of God in which there is such treasures of Gods mercy wherein the counsels of God concerning mans eternal estate comes to be revealed that this should prove to be the savor of death unto death unto any soul that is to have such an efficacy in it as to kill them by the very scent of it as it were As some things have such a poyson in them as the very scent is enough to poyson one So saith the Apostle to some our word hath that efficacy being turned quite to the contrary end some souls are sav'd and are and shal be blessing God to al eternity for the Word and thy soul is damn'd by the Word so as thou wilt hereafter curse the time that ever thou camest to hear it That wil be a dreadful thing that the same Word that others shal be blessing of God eternally in Heaven for that thou shalt be cursing eternally in Hell for it will be turned to the quite contrary end if it works not in the right way it will work the other the truth is it hardens mens hearts if it brings them not to God there is nothing that doth harden the hearts of men more than the Ministry of the Word yet by accident not by its self there is no men in the world have such hard hearts as those that
are wicked under the Ministry of the Word it is not only an argument that their hearts are hard but they are hardened by it That in Isa 6. 9 10. is remarkable for this and the rather because I find it so often quoted by Christ I think it is quoted three or four times in the Gospel And he said Go and tell this People hear ye indeed but understand not and 〈◊〉 ye indeed but perceive not Make the heart of this people fat and make their ears heavy and shut their eyes lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and convert and be healed This is a strange Scripture What must a Prophet go to them to make their hearts fat and to shut their eyes why the word is appointed to open mens eyes but here the Prophet is sent to shut their eyes that they might not be converted this is dreadful this is for the punishment of some former neglect of the word of God sent unto this people above all Judgments you should be afraid of this It is not so much that a fire should be upon your houses as that God should make his word to be a means to harden your hearts In Ezek. 14. we have a dreadful expression to this purpose by the Prophet there where the Lord saith The people did come to enquire of him with setting up their Idols in their hearts but saith God I will answer them according to their Idol If men come to the Ministry of the word with their beloved sins and resolve that they will not part with them the Lord many times in his just judgment suffers some things in the word to be accidentally a means to harden them in that sin of theirs I will answer them according to their Idol Those men are in a dreadful estate whose hearts come to be hardened by the word 9. Ninthly If thou doest not sanctifie Gods Name in the hearing of the word what comfort canst thou ever have by the word in the day of affliction Certainly when the day of thy affliction comes then there is nothing can comfort thee but the word Vnless thy Law had been my delight saith David I should then have perished in mine affliction But thou having been exercised in the word so much and Gods Name not sanctified thou must not expect to have thy soul comforted in the day of thy affliction No marvel then though the word hath been applied again and again to your hearts and nothing would stick I remember it was an expression of one in a great deal of terror of conscience many came to apply comfortable Scriptures to him and he himself for a while did take those Scriptures and lay them upon his heart to passifie his troubled conscience but a little before he died he cries out with a most fearful terror There is a fair Plaister made but it will not stick on it wil not stick on so died despairing so there is in the word such a plaister as may help a wounded and troubled conscience but canst thou expect that hast not sanctified Gods Name in thy life time that it shall stick upon thy soul in the day of thy afflction never expect it for the Lord hath said otherwise Prov. 1. Because when I cryed and call'd ye would not hear you shal cry and call and I will not hear The Lord in His Word cries to the Oh thou sinfull soul who are going on in the waies of sin and eternall destruction Return return that is the way that will bring thee to eternall miseries but here is the way that wil bring thee to life and eternall salvation Thus the Lord cries and cals to day to day and thou stopest thy ear Oh how just is it with God to stop his ear from thy crying and calling in the day of thy affliction 10. Further Know that thou that doest not sanctife the Name of God in his Word that all the Word of God wil be made good one day upon thee God hath His time to magnifie his Law and to make it honorable Isa 42. 21. You slight Gods Law you slight His Word and despise it but God will magnifie it and make it honorable there is not any sentence that thou hast heard in the Word but it shall be made good whatsoever becomes of thy soul Thou thinkest that God is a merciful God he will not damn thee but though God be merciful and hath regard to His Creatures yet the Lord hath ten thousand times more regard to His Word than to all the souls of men and woman in the world and God will stand to make that good he will not have such regard to that wretched vile sinfull soul of thine as not to honor His Word He will honor His Word whatsoever becomes of thee and al that thou hast heard and rejected shall be made good upon the on day 11. Again the Word that thou doest reject and sin against it shall be the Word that shall judg thee Joh. 12. 48. Look to it as well as you will This Book of God out of which we preach and those truths that we delivered to you from his Word they must be called over again at the great day to judg your souls by the sentence of every of your eternal estates must be tryed out of this book Oh look upon it as the word that must judg your souls at the last day and then you will see it a dreadfull thing not to sanctifie Gods Name in it And then when the Word doth judg you you shall obey it whether you will of no. Now the Word convinces you and you will not obey it but when God comes to judg you by the Word then you shall obey it Then when God comes to reade that sentence out of the Word Go ye cursed into everlasting fire then I say you shall be forced to obey it 12. Lastly There is yet one thing more which should have been mentioned before which is very remarkable That those men which do not sanctifie Gods Name in his Word they will be blasted even here while they live their parts and common gifts that they yet have will be blasted wither and come to nothing We find it ordinarily that many that are yong had very good beginnings and very good parts that were very hopeful and would speak very savorly where they came afterwards beginning by degrees to neglect the Word the Lord hath blasted them their gifts have withered the common gifts of the Spirit have been taken from them I will give you one text for that in Luke 8. 18. Take heed therefore how you hear It is an Exhortation that follows upon the parable of the Sower that went out to sow because it is so that when the Word is sowen as seed there is so little of it doth prosper and most hearers do not sanctifie Gods Name in it therefore look to your selves Why For whosoever hath to him shal be
I am to withdraw from him and to profess against communion with him so that that 's enough to answer the case We reade likewise that there were divers wicked men among the Corinthians and of Tares that grew in the Wheat It 's true There where wicked men among them but they were enjoyned by the Apostle to cast out those wicked men and if they did not do it it was there sin and they were defiled by it And for Tares that were among the Wheat take it that this is meant concerning the Church suppose it where and yet Christ saith plainly that the field is the world and it 's the godly and the wicked living together in the world and so I find many Interpreters take it but howsoever take it that it is meant of the Church-communion yet thus far is cleer that it was through the fault of the Officers that there should be any Tares among the Wheat for so the text saith plainly that while the servants slept there did Tares spring up therefore there should have been none Secondly They were not such Tares as would spoil the Wheat but as Hierom saith in those Countries the Tares did grow much like Wheat all the while it was in the blade so that they were hardly to be distinguished though some that were of more understanding were able to discern them from the Wheat therefore though such as do grow up like unto the Wheat may be suffered and yet in this case only that is in case that it will prejudice the Wheat that is when they are so close to the Wheat as there will be danger by plucking them up to pluck up the Wheat too then they must be let alone Mark first it was through the negligence of the Officers they should have been kept out Secondly if they do get in yet while they grow so close to the Wheat as there will be danger that when you pluck out them to pluck out the Wheat too only in that case it must be forborn but this gives no libertie that therefore all sorts may be let into the Church and there should be no kind of Ordinance to cast out those that are venemous weeds that will do hurt and mischief But if you understand it as many do concerning the world then the meaning is thus The preaching of the Gospel that comes to a place and there 's only good Seed sown and is a means of the conversion of many but together with the conversion of some there are others that do hear the Gospel preached and the truth is they being mingled among the hearers of the Word instead of bringing forth good fruit according to the Gospel they bring forth the Tares now saith the servant Lord how comes it to pass that we preach such excellent Truths in this place and yet there are so many wicked men that bring forth such wicked fruit Lord is it thy mind that we should be wholly separated from them and have nothing to do with them that there should be a full separation while we live in this world no saith Christ not so for then the truth is if all godly men should wholly withdraw from wicked men and beleeve that they may not live among them they could not live in the world If you did beleeve it were your dutie not so much as to live neer a wicked man nor to have any thing to do in any kind of converse with him there would be no Wheat growing in this field of the world here and therefore you must be content when you live where the preaching of the Gospel is and the seed brings forth good fruit in some and in others it brings forth Tares you must not be offended by this that here in this world God doth not by some visible stroke of judgment come and strike them dead or that God doth not take some course that there should be a full separation here but that they might live together til the day of judgment here I say you shall not have such a full separation so that you see it carries a very fair sense to take the field to be the world and the Kingdom of Heaven there to be the preaching of the Gospel in any place and so we must be content while we live in this world to be where wicked and ungodly men are But it doth not follow from this place that we are to have converse in the closest communion in Church-communion with wicked men to be made body by eating the same Bread and drinking the same Wine it holds not forth such close communion as this is so that there 's little strength can be taken from that place but still it holds that wheresoever there is the Sacrament of the Lords Supper there must be a holy communion of Saints Object The Scripture only saith Let us examine our selves Answ I grant for the benefit of mine own soul I must look to examine my self more especially but now for another I am but only so far bound to look to him as to keep my self clean it is true I am not bound to go and pry into his life and all his waies so as to force him to give an account of things that are secret but I am bound to keep a watch and if any thing be done that offends me then I am bound to go to him according to the formet Rule of Christ and if he appears to be wicked then I am bound to see him purged from the Congregition for take but that other text in 1 Cor. 5. 6. Know you not that a little leaven leaveneth the whol lump If I do not do so much as concerns my duty than I am defiled by it So as that you must not think that it is nothing to you how many wicked men comes to the Lords Table and that it belongs only to the Ministers and they are to look to it the truth is that every one in his place is to look to it and every one may be defiled if he doth not perform this duty that God requires of him do not say What have I to do with my Brother am I my Brothers keeper It was the speech of Cain if thou beest of the same body you are to have a care of your Brother do not ye Judg those that are within there is some kind of judgment that every one may pass upon such as do joyn with them in the same Body surely it concerns me much what shall I do in such an action as to joyn with them to eat Bread whereby I must profess that I do beleeve my self to be of the same body that this Drunkerd is of that this Whoremaster is of that this Swearer is of whenever you receive the Communion with any company you do profess your selves to be of the same body with that Company only in this case If I have discovered any and can particularly profess against any one then I do not profess my self to be of the
same body with him but now when I come in an ordinary way and I know such to be wicked vile and prophane and I professe nothing against them nor take any course at all I do then by partaking with them profess my self to be of the same body that they are of Thou doest as it were openly declare Lord here we come and profess that we are all of the Body of Jesus Christ now when thou knowest such and such are notoriously wicked and prophane and dost nothing in the world to help to purge them out dost not thou think that Gods name is taken in vain is not Gods Name prophaned here therefore it coâ—ceâ—â—s us very much to look unto it that it be a holy communion that we receive the Bread and Wine in I beseech you therefore understand things aright that I have spoken of I have labâ—â—ed to satisfie men that there is a way that we may partake of the Sacrament though wicked men be mixt with us but this is that which is required of you for doing your duty to keep your selves clean that you may not be accessary to any way to any wicked mans coming to partake of this holy mystery of the Body and Blood of Christ there are divers things further about this and the speciall thing I thought of was to shew you the holy qualifications that there ought to be but this I conceive to be the necessary and I should not have had peace in mine own conscience as being faithfull to you in what I am speaking of sanctifyng the Name of God in this Ordinance if I should not have mentioned this that I have spoken unto you and ther 's an error on both sides that I desire to meet withal either those that come hand over head and think it concerns them not at all with whom they come to the Sacrament but to look to their own hearts and there 's an error on the other side that if they do what they can to keep them away and yet if they should be suffered to come they may not come to partake of those things now it is very usefull for us to know what we should do in this case SERMON XII Leviticus 10. 3. I will be Sanctified in them that come nigh me I Shall ad somthing to one particular that I had the last day concerning Peoples withdrawing from such a Congregation where they could not receive all the Ordinance of Jesus Christ As now If I were in a Church where I could have but a piece of the Sacrament suppose they deale with me as the papists do with the people that is they will give them the Bread and not the Wine Certainly I were not bound to stay with them then but I were bound to go where I might have the whol Sacrament So if a Church will give me some one Ordinance and not another I confess so long as there is hope that I may enjoy it and that they are in a way for injoyment I think there should be a great forbearance to a Church as wel as to a particular person as I must not withdraw from a particular man where there is hope still of his reformation that there may come good of my forbearance so towards a Church much more but I say if I cannot enjoy neither doth there appear any hope of injoyment of all Ordinances certainly it were but a cruelty to force men to stay there when as otherwhere they may enjoy all Ordinances for the good of there souls And this cannot be schism thus to do As now if this schism Supose a man were in a place and joyned in such a Communion for his outward benefit he may remove his dwelling from one place to another if he can have better trading in another place than certainly if he may have more Ordinance for the edification of his soul he may as well remove from one to another as he may remove if his trading be better in one place than another Christ would have all his people look to the edification of there souls and should I account that schism when a man or woman meerly out of tenderness and a desire to injoy Jesus Christ in all his Ordinances for the benefit of there souls they find such want to there souls of all Ordinances that though they may have some in one place yet if they cannot have all their souls do not so thrive now if this be all the end why they remove that they might have more edification to their souls injoying the Ordinances of Christ more fully God forbid that this should ever be acounted such a sin that the Scripture is to brand no that's schism when there is a violent rending out of malice for the want of love for as a postasie is a rending from the head so schism from the body that is when it is out of an evil spirit from envie or from malice from want of love or from any base sinister ends and upon no Just Ground but now when it is meerly out of love to Jesus Christ that I might have more edification to my soul and still I retaine love to the Saints that are there as they are in Communion and so far as they have any thing good among them I hold communion with them in that only I desire in humility and in meekness that I may be in such a place where my soul may be most edified where I may enjoy al those Ordinances that Christ hath appointed for his Church certainly that soul that can give this account to Jesus Christ for going from one place to another will be freed by Jesus Christ from such a sin as this is that the world calls Schism but the truth is this word is in mens mouths that understand not what it means and the Devil alwayes will have some word or other cast upon them that are good for he hath heretofore gained much by it so still he makes account to gain much by words and terms and therefore men should take heed of words and termes that they do not understand and examine seriously what the meaning is and what is held forth in these words And thus much for that point that it must be in a holy Communion wherever there is the receiving of the Lords Supper it must be received in an holy Communion Now we are to proceed to that which is the main thing and that is What are the holy Qualifications or dispositions of the soul together with the actings fit in receiving of the Lords Supper what is required in the soul for he sanctifying of the Name of God in this holy sacrament There are many things required As first there is required Knowledg I must know what I do when I come to receive this holy Sacrament knowledg applyed to the work that I am about When some of you have come to receive this Sacrament if God would have spoken from Heaven and have said thus to you what are you doing now what
say there is more in this Sacrament to break the heart for sin than such a sight as that You will say If you should haue Christ to be crucified again before your eyes if you should see the body of Christ hanging upon the Cross and there behold him crucified and hearing of him cry out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me you would think if your hearts did not break for sin then that they were desperately hard know every time that thou hast come to receive the Sacrament thou hast come to see such a sight and it is as great an aggravation of the hardness of thy heart if it hath not broken at this sight as it would be if it should not break at that sight We reade in Gal. 3. 1. of Pauls speaking of the preaching of the Gospel he saith that Christ was crucified before those that did hear the word and foolish Galatians who hath bewitched you that you should not obey the truth before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth crucified among you he doth not mean that Christ was crucified in Galatia but that where the word was preached he was evidently set forth and crucified among them but now my brethren the crucifying of Christ in the Word is not such a real evident and sensible setting forth of Christ crucified as when he is set forth in this Sacrament and t is that which works with more efficacie to break the heart than that other sight and the reason that I give is this Because you do never find that God did set that apart as an Ordinance an institution appointed to that end that they should come to look upon that for the breaking of there hearts there was indeed a naturalness in it that if they did behold Christ it might break there hearts but it was not such an Ordinance it was not a Sacrament as this is now this being in a Sacramental way in the use of an Ordinance appointed by Jesus Christ to set forth his sufferings and al the riches of the Covenant of grace to the soul there may be expected here a further blessing than in the other though it 's true the other might work mightily upon the heart but yet this being a great ordinance of Christ in the Church a great institution of Jesus Christ for the setting out of his sufferings it hath a more special blessing that goes along with it every Ordinance hath a promise and a more special blessing than any other thing that is not an Ordinance So when you come here to behold Christ crucified before you you cannot see Christ naturally crucified as upon the Cross but you have Christ crucified before you in the way of a Sacrament in the way of a solemn institution of Jesus Christ that hath a special blessing which goes along with it therfore if the heart be not broken here there is an aggravation of the hardness of the heart as great as if we should behold Jesus Christ upon the Cross and our hearts not broken there and indeed this is a special reason why those are said to be guilty of the body and blood of Christ that receive unworthily as if a man had been then alive and had been before the Cross and there have seen how the blood of Jesus Christ was shed for sin and should not have been affected with it but should have accounted it as a common thing this man in some regard might have been said to be guilty of His death that is to have joyned and consented with those that 〈◊〉 crucifie Him for if a man sees another commit a sin if he 〈◊〉 affected with that sin and it does not stir his heart he may come to be partaker of his sin so that those that come to see Jesus Christ crucified and have not their hearts at all stir'd with the crucifying of Christ they are in som regard truly said to be guilty of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ And that 's the second thing brokenness of spirit is sutable to the light of a broken Christ 3. The Third thing that is here to be done in the Sanctifying of Gods Name is the purging and clensing of the heart from sin and actuall clensing and purging the heart from sin there ought to be The Jews in there Passover were to cast out all leaven and those that were of the custom of the Jews say that they were wont to do three things in the casting out of their Leaven 1. they made diligent search for Leaven they lighted Candles to look into every corner lest there should be any bit of Leaven left in the house 2. When they found it they cast it out 3. They used an execration they did curse themselves if they should willingly keep any leaven in the house So my brethren when we come to partake of this holy Ordinance there should be a diligent inquisition for sin for sin in Scripture is compared to leaven thou shouldest make a diligent search what sin there is in thy heart in any of the faculties of thy soul what sin there is in thy thoughts in thy conscience in thy understanding in thy will in any of thy affections what sin there hath been in thy life what family sins what personall sins thou shouldest make a diligent search to see whether there be not some leaven some evil in thy heart and what ever sin thou shalt come to find out in thy heart there must be a casting of it out that is thy soul must be set against it to apose it with all thy might what ever beloved sin whatever gainfull sin whatsoever become of thee thy soul must renounce that sin of thine yea and in a kind of execration of thy life that 's thus Lord as ever I expect to receive any good by this Body and Blood of Christ that I come now to receive so Lord here I profess against every sin that I have found out in my heart I desire to find out all and profess against all and renouuce all and would do to the uttermost that I am able for delivering of my soul fully from every known or beloved sin Oh that there might not be any remaining in my heart this must be the disposition of the soul coming hither and it must needs be thus or else we cannot sanctifie Gods Name because there is nothing more sutable than this disposition unto the receiving of the Sacrament for we come here to profess That we do acknowledg that sin did cost so much as it did that it cost the Blood of the Son of God now this cannot chuse but cause the heart to renonnce sin If indeed I do beleeve that sin hath cost the Blood of Christ that it cost him so deer as it did that it did trouble Heaven and Earth that there must be such a mighty wonderful way of satisfaction to God for my sin committed against him Certainly sin hath a dreadful evil in it Oh let me
never have to do with such sin that was the cause of such sufferings to my Savior that did shed his Blood If so be that thou sawest a knife that had cut the throat of thy dearest child would not thy heart rise against that knife Suppose you come to a Table and there is a Knife laid at your Trencher and it was told you This is the Knife that cut the Throat of your Child or Father if you could use that Knife as another Knife would not any one say There was but little love to your Father or Child So when there is a Temptation comes to any sin this is the Knife that cut the Throat of Christ that pierc'd his Sides that was the cause of all his sufferings that made Christ to be a curse now wilt not thou look upon that as a cursed thing that made Christ to be a curse Oh with what detestation would a man or woman fling away such a Knife and with the like detestation it is required that thou shouldest renounce sin for that was the cause of the death of Christ I remember it is reported of Anthony when Caesar was slain he comes to stir up the people against those that had slain Caesar and he takes the cloaths that were bloody and holds them forth to the people and saith Here is blood of your Emperor and upon that the people were enraged against those that had slain him and went and pulled down their houses upon them So when thou comest to this Sacrament thou seest the blood of Christ gushing out and for thy sin if ever thy sin be pardoned either thy soul must be eternally damn'd for thy sin or else thy sin cost the gushing out of the blood of Christ now when thou seest this this should cause an holy rage in thy soul against sin that caused this surely the putting away sin the rising of the heart against sin must needs be a disposition sutable to such an Ordinance as this is And that 's the Third thing required in sanctifying of Gods Name in this Ordinance the purging out of sin and rising of the heart against it 4. The Fourth thing that is to be done for the sanctifying of Gods Name here it is the hungring and thirsting of the soul after Jesus Christ whosoever comes hither he comes to a feast and the Lord exspects that all his Guests should come with stomachs unto his feast come with hungring and longing for Jesus Christ this should be the disposition of the soul Oh that my soul might enjoy Communion with Jesus Christ now this is the end that I am come for Oh! the Lord that knows the workings of my heart knowes that this is the great desire of my soul that I might enjoy Communion with Jesus Christ Oh! that I might have more of Christ that I might meet with Christ that I might have some further manifestation of Jesus Christ that I might have my soul further united to the Lord Christ and so have further influence of Christ to my soul I come with thirst after the Lord Christ knowing my infinite need of him and the infinite excellency that there is in Jesus Christ my soul doth famish and perish for ever without Christ but in the enjoyment of Christ there is a fulness for the satisfying of my soul that I have had of Christ somtimes in the Word and somtimes in Prayer that have been sweet unto me but I expect a further communion with Christ here for this is the grand Ordinance for Communion with Jesus Christ indeed the word in this respect it is beyond this Ordinance that is it is not only for the increase of Grace but for the begetting This is only for the increase of Grace and not appointed for the begetting now in that respect the Word is above the Sacrament but now this Sacrament is a more full Ordinance for Communion with Jesus Christ this is the Communion of the body of Jesus Christ and of his blood and therfore there ought to be hungring and thirsting desires of the soul after Jesus Christ therefore you must take heed you do not come with your stomachs full of trash as children when they can get Plums and Pears and fill their stomachs with them when they come to your Tables though there be never so much wholsome diet they have no mind at all to it so it is with men of the world they fill their hearts with the trash of this world and with sensual delights and hence it is that when they come to such a great Ordinance to enjoy communion with Jesus Christ that then they feel no want at all of Christ only they come and take a little piece of bread and a draught of wine but for any strong pausing desires to meet with Jesus Christ there in the Ordinance to come so as they know not how to live without Christ even as a man that is an hungred cannot live without his meat and drink and so for the soul to have such a disposition after Christ this is a rare thing but know that Gods Name is not sanctified unless thou doest come in such a way unto his holy Sacrament that 's the fourth thing hungry and thirsty desires after Christ from a deep sence of the need of him and the apprehension of the excellency in him 5. In the fift place there must be an exercise of faith for the Sanctifying of Gods Name here Faith that is both the hand and the mouth of the taking of this spiritual meat and spiritual drink when thou comest to the Feast of the Lord Faith first is the eye and then the hand and mouth it is the eye of thy soul to give a real sight to what there is here you are not able to discern the body of the Lord but by the eye of Faith if thou comest only with bodily eyes to look upon what is here thou seest nothing but a little Bread and Wine but now where the eye of Faith is there is a real apperance of Jesus Christ to the soul as if Christ were bodily present and we need not have the bread truned in to his body for Faith cannot see the body of Christ through the bread and the blood of Christ gushing in the Wine And it is a mighty thing to have Christ and such sprituall things made real and not to be a fansie If one look upon the fire that is painted one cannot heat ones self in cold wether with that but fire that is really burning upon the harth so those that come to receive the Sacrament and not come with Faith that have only the eye of their bodies they only see as it were a painted Christ they do not see Christ really his body and blood and those great mysteries of the Gospel are not presented as real things to their souls and hence it is that they go away and get nothing but now when the soul comes with the eye of Faith the soul sees the
will pray then it seems that the main matter of your prayer is onlie for your selves but how hath the matters of the Glorie of the great God and the good of the Churches taken your hearts all this while how have your hearts been affected with this that the Name of God hath been so little sanctified in the world and that the Kingdom of God hath not come and that the Will of God hath not been done have these things taken up your heart in prayer the matters of the Glorie of God and the good of Churches though your selves have not anie particular interest in them if these things did but take up your hearts in Prayer then when you are at Sea you would remember the cause of the Churches as much as your selves the Church is as it were in the midst of the Sea tost up and down and in a great storm now why do not you pray as earnestly for the Kingdom of Christ among his Churches as for your selves when you are in a strom at sea yea and spiritual things should be the chief matter of your prayer for they are the nearest to the glory of God though God hath his glory from other things yet spiritual things are neerest the glory of God now in these daies of prayer many will come to pray that they might be freed from danger that they might have outward peace this is good but spiritual things are the chief things and therefore the strength of your spirits should be thus powered forth to God Oh that I could get my heart to God and the assurance of the love of God! Oh that I could get the shine of his face Oh that I could get power over such and such corruptions And I beseech you observe this That spiritual things may be prayed for absolutly but outward things must be prayed for conditionally I may pray and never put any condition in at all That the Lord would pardon my sins and help me against my corruptions c. But when I pray for the health of my body I ought to pray if this be according to thy wil then restore me to the health of my body or the health of my husband or the health of my wife but thou maiest pray Lord convert the soul of my husband or the soul of my wife without any condition at al When your estates at sea are in danger when you pray for them you must make conditions Lord as thou seest best for me so do thou deale with me this shewes the excellency that there is in spirituall things above outward things surely spiritual things are more to be desired for they are to be prayed for absolutly and the others to be prayed for only conditionally That 's for the first In the second place We are to pray for our owne good God doth give us leave to do so onely here comes in a Question Quest Whether it be sinfull to pray for afflictions as somtimes some will be ready to do Answ To that I answer frist Take it absolutely considered we may not pray that God would afflict us because afflione is in its self materially an evil thing and a fruit of the curse therefore we may not I say absolutely pray for it but thus far we may pray for afflictions disjunctively conditionally comparatively Disjunctively thus Lord either grant unto me a sanctified use of such a mercie or otherwise let me rather be without it let me have a sanctified use of my siknes or otherwise let my sickness be continued to me thus now you may pray for continuing in sickness Or thus conditionally ' Lord if thou seest that my heart be so vile and wretched that I will abuse through my corruption such and such mercies Lord rather take them from me and let me be without them if thou seest that there be no way to break this proud heart of mine but such a way Lord let that be thy way to break it if thou seest it according to thy will as the fittest way Then comparatively thus Lord rather let me have any afffiction then sin rather let me suffer loss of my estate than sin against thee than depart from thee any thing Lord rather than sin Thus you may pray for afflictions but not absolutly You must not pray that God would send you afflictions absolutely for you do not know your hearts it may be if afflictions should come your hearts may be as stubborn under your afflictions as they are now for affliction hath no power in it self to do us any good And then for the good of others for Christ teaches us to pray Our Father c. There comes in here a rebuke of the wicked practice of divers in cursing and then a question about it It is a wicked thing to use curses but it 's a most wicked thing to wish evil to others in way of prayer yet how manie doe so though it may be they do not think it they speak to God and desire him to bring such and such evils upon their neighbors yea somtimes parents upon their children this is a wicked practice of men what is it not wickedness enough for thee to have any desire that there should any evil befall thy brother but wilt thou dare to presume to call God to be an instrument of the execution of thy base sinfull wrath that God must be a drudg as it were to thy wrath and to thy passion this is abominable wickedness Any of you that ever have been guilty of this sin of cursing others Wives Children Servants or Friends the Lord rebuke you for this sin how far hast thou been from sanctifying Gods Name in Prayer whereas instead of sanctifying the holy Name of God thou hast called God to be a servant and a drudg to thy passion God must be call'd to help the venting of thy passion Oh! remember this you that have been at Sea and have been angry and things not going according to your mind have fallen a cursing and wishing such and such evils might come upon those you are angrie with that 's a kind of prayer but it 's a most fearful taking the Name of God in vain in the highest degree and certainlie God will not hold him guiltless that shall so take his Name in vain therefore be humbled for this sin Object But you will say Do not we reade in the Book of Psalms where many times the Prophet David doth curse the Enemies of God and wishes evil to come upon them Answ To that I answer First That the Prophet and those that pen'd the Psalms they had a prophetical spirit and those places that you reade that are in a way of cursing they are rather prophetical predictions of evil than direful imprecations they are rather fore-telling what shall be in a way of prophesie than wishing what should be Secondly If they be wishing what should be then I answer That those which were endued with such a prophetical spirit they did know who were