for prayer or receiving Sacraments who are listlesse to all duties and feel no sweetnesse in them all such may hence learn what is the root and ground of this distemper what it is that makes them out of tast with these rich and savoury provisions which all healthfull souls doe so dearly love even because their secret but most powerfull thoughts are that they have nothing better than their Bodies to provide for and that to doe this is the chiefest businesse they have and that nothing is of any great use which makes not for this end But it would be quite otherwise with them if they were indeed clearly convinced and soundly perswaded that they have souls which will never die and that these are their best part and deserve most care and are as much to be preferred before the body as a man before the horse which he rides on and that these their immortall souls can onely be made happy by the favour of God out of which they are faln by sinning against him and that the great work of this life is to get all breaches made up betwixt God and them that so when they leave this world they may be restored to perfect happinesse in the enjoyment of God and that they can no way be thus reconciled to God but by Jesus Christ by whose merits and mediation their sins may be pardoned and by whose holy Spirit which is given by the Father through him they can onely be so changed and sanctified that they may be made meet for the inheritance of the Saints in the heavenly light of Gods presence and love Was the sound belief of these plain great and commonly acknowledged truths but well rooted in the hearts of men so as to overpower and change their affections we should soon perceive them to be other kind of persons in all their behaviour If they took it for the business of their lives to work out their salvation being convinced that they had nothing in the world to doe but this and what is in order to it then would they diligently labour after a saving knowledge of a crucified Christ which comprehends in it the whole of religion And then they would highly prize and diligently attend upon those means which Christ hath appointed for the manifesting himself and conveying his saving benefits to the soul. They would take care to be found in those ways wherein Christ is like to be found Whatever had relation to him would be very much esteemed by them and they would never be at quiet till they had done their best to make it sure that they had got an interest in him and through him a title to the Fathers everlasting love They would then rightly inform themselves what 's required of all that must be saved by Christ and these conditions they would endeavour to come up to and perform They would be willing to enter into the most solemn Covenant with him to take him for their Saviour in all his Offices by him to be brought to that glory which God hath prepared for true Believers and the keeping of this Covenant would be their study and care through the whole course of their life Now though considering these things it might appear a very fit method for the curing of mens mistakes and direct them in the way to blessedness first to represent and demonstrate to them that they have immortal souls and that the love of God is their onely portion and that this can no way be obtained but by the Lord Jesus and then to shew what is required to make us partakers of happinesse by him yet since these things are in some sort known and readily confest by the most I shall at present wave this method and chuse rather to drive at the last of these which will be found to contain all namely to direct and exhort poor souls to enter into Covenant and make a thorow closure with Jesus Christ that through him their sins may be subdued and pardoned their persons and natures reconcil'd to God that they may be blessed for ever in communion with him And even this is my chief design in laying down the following Directions to a due preparation for and a right receiving of the Lords Supper and in giving Motives to the serious and frequent performance of that duty which I look upon principally as a solemnizing and ratifying our Covenant with God by Jesus Christ and the sincerity of the heart in making this Covenant and our faithfulnesse in keeping it is the very heart and scope of Christianity For my intention in treating of this subject is not meerly to perswade people to come to the Lords Table alas what a poor thing is that to be rested in but to instruct them for a right coming to and hearty receiving of Christ himself then to come to the Sacrament there to make and renew their Covenant with him in a more formall and expresse manner the more to affect and deeplier to engage themselves For this being a sensible and solemn thing will be apt to make the stronger impression upon mens spirits and perhaps they will be sooner perswaded to this work because it is so much fitted to sense it self But the great danger is least they should rush upon that which they understand not the reason of and think they have done enough by bare receiving the Sacrament without considering to what purpose they doe it which would be greater madnesse and of worse consequence than for a man to run and lay his hands upon the book and kisse it and use the like ceremonies of an oath and never mind what he swears to nor afterwards think what he hath done though it was about a matter of life and death And therefore I shall endeavour by Gods assistance to prevent this miscarriage by shewing what is the nature and design of this Ordinance in a right participation whereof consists so much of religion since hereby a man professeth and engageth himself to be a sincere obedient Christian which may be understood by this comparison before I come to speak to it more fully that more ignorant Reader may the sooner have the notion fixt on his mind It is much what as if the Governour of a City after there had been a seditious insurrection of the Citizens should offer pardon to all that would acknowledge their fault beg his pardon and return to their former subjection and peaceable behaviour and moreover should enjoyn all that were thus affected to come take a piece of money which he would give abroad or to partake of a feast which he would make on purpose for the entertainment of such now would it not be madnesse and grosse impudence and dissembling for any to receive this money or go sit at this Table who were resolved yet to continue their rebellion and would imploy that very money and the strength they received from his meat against him that gave them whenas hereby they were to testifie their resolutions
it as a farther assurance from God that his promises of mercy shall be made good to thee CHAP. VII The second benefit is Sanctification 2. THe second great benefit purchast by the Death of Christ and held forth in the Sacrament is Sanctifying Saving Grace for the enlivening and strengthning the souls of Believers There is no truth more plain in the whole Gospel than that one great end of Christ's Death was to obtain from the Father that the holy Spirit should accompany the proclaiming of the Gospel to enlighten the minds and soften the hearts of those who should not wilfully resist his workings that they might entertain the truth in the love thereof and that on these greater measures of grace should be poured forth to make them in all things conformable to their Maker according to the capacity of their natures which was the great design of the Redeemer even to restore apostate creatures to the image of God wherein they were created that so they might be made meet for his service here and the fruition of him hereafter A most lamentable mistake it is to confine Christs death onely to the procuring of a pardon and keeping sinners out of Hell since this was but in order to a work of grace on their hearts and onely such who submit to this work shall at last have a share in the absolute pardon For suppose a company of prisoners were taken in Warre who being weak and wounded cannot return into their own Countrey but must presently be put to death by the King that took them and in the mean time comes their own Prince and pays a great sum to obtain that the execution of them may be put off for some time and that his Physician may use medicines and apply plaisters to as many as are willing and that all such when they are made whole shall be sent to their own homes and the rest who will not be ruled by the Physician but spit out his potions because they are bitter and throw away his plaisters because they make them smart they are to remain in their prison and be put to death as they were sentenced Here we see the ransome that was paid was first to stop the slaughter of the prisoners and to get liberty to use means for their recovery to health and soundnesse and secondly to obtain that the recovered should be set free to return to their own Countrey and not onely the contempt of the ransome but of the Physician would bring death Thus had we by the Fall both brought our selves into danger of present destruction and disabled our souls that we could not return to that state whence we fell but the Son of God undertaking our Redemption obtained for us that the sentence of condemnation should not speedily be executed and that there should be assured hopes of escaping destruction and returning to happinesse for all those who make not their condition desperate by continuance in sin and rejecting of the cure which his Spirit would work upon them now the work of his Spirit is to plant and encrease grace in their hearts to heal the diseases and remove the weaknesse which sin hath caused that they may be enabled to walk in the ways of holinesse to their everlasting rest and the sending forth of his healing Spirit was the fruit of his blood Now as it will assuredly damn men to despise the blood of Christ as if it was of no force to be a ransome nor to attain those ends for which the Gospel saith it was shed so is it as dangerous and damnable to resist and sleight the Spirit of Christ let them pretend what esteem they will for his blood A like mistake also it is flowing from the former to limit the notion of free grace to meer pardoning mercy whenas it includes sanctifying 〈◊〉 so for in the instance now given the Physick I hope was as free a gift to the prisoners as the ransome that was paid for them notwithstanding this was without them and the other to be taken into them And in like manner is the giving of the Spirit into us as purely from the grace and mercy of God though merited by Christ as the giving of his Son for us accepting of us for his sake This I was willing to hint least any when they hear or read of being saved by Free grace should dream of a salvation to be had by a meer pardon without being sanctified by the Spirit That the making men holy in their hearts and lives was a principall end of Christs Death without which no happinesse is to be attained is I say a truth so evident in the very tenour of the Gospel that it may seem needlesse to produce particular proofs yet amongst the rest read these few Eph. 2.10 We are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works c. Eph. 5.25 26 27. Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it that he might sanctifie and cleanse it c. and that it might be holy and without blemish 1 Joh. 3.8 The Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil 1 Pet. 3.24 Who bare our sins that we being dead to sin should live unto righteousnesse Tit. 3.4 5 6. According to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour Read also Mat. 1.22 Luk. 1.75 Rom. 6.11 Galat. 1.4 Tit. 2.12 13 14. Heb. 9.14 Now though I acknowledge it is by the help of the Spirit that we are brought to believe for faith it self is the gift of God Eph. 2.8 yet I think we shall ordinarily find the promises of the Spirit to be made to those who are already Believers to advance and carry on the work of God upon their souls And to this end and of this nature is that Grace which is 〈◊〉 and given forth by the Sacrament even to refresh and nourish the souls of Believers to confirm and encrease those graces that are wrought in them and to bring them forward to farther degrees of perfection And this much the very elements themselves do teach us for as Bread is the support and stay of life and Wine that which makes glad the heart of man and both are needfull for the maintaining of life and encreasing our strength so are the Body and Blood of Christ alike necessary and usefull to our souls for he himself hath told us that his flesh is meat indeed and his blood is drink indeed and that he who eats his flesh and drinks his blood dwelleth in him and hath eternall life with much more to the same purpose Joh. 6. The proper meaning whereof as will appear by the Context and the occasion of that Discourse I suppose is That they who believe in him having the same expectations of spirituall life from him that they have of temporall life from their food and accordingly receive digest and improve
Pag. 76 Chap. 5. Perswasions to accept of the Redeemer and give up the Soul in Covenant to him Pag. 96 Chap. 6. IV. A right Remembring the benefits procured by his death 1. Of Justification Pag. 130 Chap. 7. The second benefit is sanctification Pag. 139 Chap. 8. The third benefit is eternal Happinesse with God Pag. 151 Chap. 9. V. It must be a thankful Remembrance Pag. 155 Chap. 10. VI. It must produce an holy Love to Saints Pag. 158 Chap. 11. Use An invitation to come to Christ and his Sacrament with Motives thereto Pag. 168 Chap. 12. Sacraments are not to be accounted vain because externals Pag. 196 Chap. 13. Against too seldome communicating in the Sacrament Pag. 205 Chap. 14. The Objection of unfitness answered As proposed by the doubting and careless Pag. 209 Chap. 15. Obj. We are not in perfect charity but at variance with our neighbours Answered Pag. 234 Chap. 16. Directions for a due preparation and right receiving Pag. 242 Chap. 17. Directions for duty after the Sacrament Pag. 286 CHAP. I. The Introduction lamenting the Ignorant Vulgars contempt of their Salvation and shewing the design of this Treatise THe blessed God who in these last daies hath spoken to us by his Son and more fully and clearly reveal'd the way to life and immortality which Christ hath brought to light hath abundantly manifested his infinite wisdome and goodness in suiting and accomodating his commands and institutions to the meaness of our capacities and as a God who knows our frame hath so fitted himself and the revelations of his will with a respect to our weakness that nothing but affected ignorance and meer wilfulness can keep out the understanding of what he hath taught us or hinder the performing of what he commands us The Doctrines of the Gospel which are of necessity to be believ'd in order to Salvation and upon which an holy life is built are few and plain which we may finde sum'd up in our common Creeds As for the precepts which are given to bee the rule of our life how easie are they to be known and remembred how exceeding reasonable in themselves and most agreeable to our rectified natures and apparently tending to the unspeakable advantage of particular Persons Families Towns and Common-wealths the Gospel being design'd not only to bring men to glory and pleasure hereafter but to better the world at present and to make this earth a kinde of type and shadow of heaven and so it would bee if men were but more generally broughâ— under the power and influence of the Christian Religion which doth not only forbid those sins which are destructive to the happiness of societies and single persons as the Laws and Religion of the Heathens might also do but strikes at the very heart of wickedness and gives the surest directions and best helps for the utter removal of the cause and root of all disorders in the world which it would be beside my purpose at present to speak of None have cause now to complain that they know not what to do to obtain eternal life since he that runs may read his duty To love God above all and our neighbour as selves to do as we would bee done unto to repent of all our sins and betake our selves to the mercies of God through his Son Christ Jesus for a pardon to be humble holy chaste and temperate is any of this difficult to be understood Have we not a plain word directing us how to lead the whole course of our life And have we not a monitour within us the Spirit of God by our Consciences in most cases telling us how wee should behave our selves The sum of all is comprehended in our Baptismal Covenant to Renounce the Devil and all his works the world with its pomp and vanities the flesh and the lusts thereof and to be devoted to the Father Son and Holy Ghost And as our duty is easie to be known so is it not difficult to be done where there is first a willing minde for indeed in this is comprehended all to bee unfeignedly willing to be such as God would have us and to do all that he bids us So that none can excuse himself for his disobedience which is nothing else but obstinacy or gross negligence And though of our selves wee are poor weak creatures yet through the almighty grace that is offered to our assistance we may be inabled to do all things needful for our happiness and those weaknesses that cleave to us which we allow not our selves in but strive against and bewail wee are assured through the merits of our precious Saviour shall never be laid to our charge And as the great truths and duties of our Religion are thus plain and easie so the positive institutions whereby I mean the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lords Supper are few and clear being neither burdensome to be practised nor the meaning of them hard to be understood Doth not that form of words which Christ hath enjoyned to be used in Baptism whereby we are solemlny received into the number of professed Christians sufficiently shew the meaning of it namely that we are hereby consecrated and given up to the Father Son and Holy Ghost And doth not our being Baptized with Water very plainly hold forth our washing and cleansing from the stains and pollutions of defiled nature and from the guilt of sin by the blood and Spirit of Christ. And who knows not that the Lords Supper is for remembrance of Jesus Christ that Died for us The breaking of the Bread and pouring forth of the Wine how fitly and evidently do they represent to us that his body was broken and his blood shed for us And the Elements of Bread and Wine which we commonly use to nourish and refresh us do naturally signifie that strength and comfort which we receive from Christ as I shall hereafter shew at large Since then the truths of our Religion are so evident the Duties so reasonable and excellent the Ritual part the Sacraments so easie so few and so exceeding profitable may it not well be expected that all who profess themselves owners of that Religion which Jesus Christ hath taught and established should be well acquainted with these weighty truths diligent in the practise of Duty to their Maker and Saviour and to one another and most devout and serious in the observation and use of these holy Sacraments constant in their attendance upon all Ordinances as publick Prayer and Preaching whereby they may be instructed enabled to know and do the will of him that sent them into the world But alas alas to the dishonour of God and our profession and to the grief of all that long after the advancement of true goodness in the world by sad experience wee finde the quite contrarary even in this our Nation that we look no further God forbid that I should go about to disparage the glorious fruits of our Reformation from Popish
action testifying and confirming a Covenant betwixt God and man as in the Eastern and other Countries they were wont to ratifie their Leagues by feasting together and as they who eat of the sacrifices offered to Devils therereby had fellowship with Devils as the Jews by eating of their sacrifices held communion with and profest subjection to God as you may see them paralleld 1 Cor. 10.16 17 18 19 20. since I say this is on mans part a sign of his being in covenant with God I shall somewhat fuller explain what this Covenant is that you may understand whether you are cordially entred thereinto and are willing to continue in it that so you may know whether you are like to be entertained as worthy guests at the Lords Table which is proper to his Covenant-people In a word then the Covenant which wee renew at the Lords Supper is the very same with that you were entred into in Baptism when you were baptiz'd in the Name of and thereby engaged to the Father Son and Holy Ghost and therefore to those duties which wee owe to God in the several relations wherein he stands to us which are denoted by the Persons of the sacred Trinity That is we are hereby oblig'd to acknowledge God the Father to be our Creator and Preserver and therefore to behave our selves as his creatures ought submitting our selves to his Commands and Providences and placing our happiness in pleasing him and enjoying his love God the Son made man that is Jesus Christ we are hereby bound to take for our onely Saviour through whom alone we hope for the pardon of our offences and for ability to serve and please God and for acceptance and happinesse with him And God the Holy Ghost wee promise to take for our Sanctifier to have our souls by him renewed after the Image of God and those graces given into us which were purchast for us by Christ and the evidences of Gods love and of our title to the future blessedness to bee clear'd up and assur'd to our consciences the Holy Word also which he inspir'd the Prophets and Apostles to write wee are hereby engag'd to take for the Rule of our faith and life And this is your entring inâ—o Covenant with and being consecrated to the Father Son and Holy Ghost which doth necessarily suppose and include our renouncing the flesh the world and the Devil which is in effect the same with Repentance for sin which I spoke to largely under the last Head For he who is truly humbled for and resolved to forsake sin doth hereby renounce his flesh which is pleas'd with sin and will not make carnal self his chief end and he also renounceth the world which is the fuell and food of his lusts all that wherewith the carnal part is gratified as matters of pleasure profit honour and the like not regarding them as means to his happiness and he renounceth the Devil who by temptations drawn from these wordly things would entice him to sin and that wicked nature also which does the office of a Tempter within him All you then who have been baptiz'd into the Christian Faith are thereby bound to take God for your Supream Governor and chief Happiness and Jesus Christ for your Mediatour and way to the Father and the Holy Spirit for your Sanctifier and Guide And since you were Infants when you thus were first dedicated to God it behooves you that are now come to the use of reason and are resolv'd by the grace of God to be stedfast in this holy Covenant to come to the Lords Table and there professe these resolutions and by the receiving of this Sacrament in the presence of the heart-searching God and all your fellow-Christians to renew your engagement that you will take God for your God and that you will be his people Since then it is so plain that they and they only are worthy Communicants who have in heart made this covenant with God in Christ which they are to profess solemnize and confirm by eating and drinking the Sacramental bread and wine it remains that all who would not venture upon damnation by doing this unworthily ought to enter into a faithful examination of themselves whether indeed this be their condition and frame of heart or not And let me beseech thee Reader faithfully to set upon this Work as a businesse of the greatest concernment that ever thou hadst to do in thy life namely to see that thou art sincerely in covenant with God through his Son for this is the very heart and substance of Religion the sum of all Christianity and that upon which thy everlasting happiness wholly depends Know but this once and thou maiest know that Heaven will be thy portion shouldst thou dye at this hour And here that I may do what in me lies to help thee to the true knowledge of thy self let me first advise thee to look carefully into thy own heart for that 's thy surest way if thou art but well acquainted with the workings thereof and wilt deal impartially And in this searching into the state and temper of thy Soul I would wish thee to put these questions to thy self which I shall ask thee and to give in a true answer I demand of thee then what is that great good on which thou hast plac't thy highest love the obtaining of which thou hast made the great business of thy life and which if thou couldst but attain to thou believest thou shouldst be satisfied and made perfectly happy Canst thou say and that truly that God hath the upmost place in thy heart that his Authority swaies thee most and that for the main all things that concern thee are regarded but in order to him Dost thou make it thy principal study and trade to please him And dost thou count of nothing as fit to make thee a portion but his everlasting love If it be thus with thee then thou maist safely conclude that indeed thou hast made God thy chief end But enquire diligently whether it be not quite otherwise and whether thou hast not set up thy self in a distinction from God becoming thy own Idol Art thou not possest with high thoughts of thy self loving and admiring thy self separate from him who gave thee thy being It s true the man who is most heartily devoted to God hath the greatest love and veneration of himself but it is as he is Gods creature and it is his soul which hath his highest esteem and he seeks his happinesse by subjecting himself to God and therefore preferres adores and admires God infinitely above himself regarding himself in and for God accounting it the end of his being to serve his Makers will desiring no other felicity than the feeling of that love of God which he manifests to all such humble obedient ones But the carnall man though he may have some reverence for God and may yield him some tribute of service some prayers some praises and some
word and all providences shall help forward thy happinesse All thy outward affairs thy heavenly Father who knows what thou hast need of will see to and regard at all times he will so dispose of and provide for thee as shall be most for thy advantage no affliction shall befall thee but will prove as Physick to thy soul in all estates and conditions he will be near to thee to direct and preserve thee if thou retain thy integrity so that neither men nor Devils shall prevail against thee to thy ruine And the Holy Ghost will be thine to enlighten sanctifie guide and comfort thee to assist thee in duties and to seal thee up to everlasting happinesse When thou diest the Lord Jesus will receive thy Spirit and preserve thee from the roaring Lion and the pit of destruction and vouchsafe thee the beginnings of happinesse with himself which shall be compleated and perfected at the great Resurrection day when thou shalt be raised up by his power and brought into appearance not in wrath but in mercy and shalt be publickly owned by that Christ whose person and cause thou didst here embrace and own and by him thou shalt be openly justified from all accusations of Satan or the Law and shalt be presented pure and holy into the presence of the Father and shalt be eternally blessed in the enjoyment of all those treasures of infinite love and goodnesse which God hath laid up in store for believers This is the inheritance which we come to by Christ we are made heirs of God yea coheirs with his own Son we enter upon the joy of our Lord with him we shall abide in the mansions that are in our Fathers house Then at length we shall know all the designs of Divine wisdome and love when they shall be accomplish'd in us and for us and by the fruition we shall understand what is that exceeding and eternall weight of glory for which there were made such wonderfull contrivances such solemn preparations by that God who doth all things like himself being infinitely wise and good Then shall we reach to and find those glorious things that are spoken of the City of God yea those things which it was neither lawfull nor possible for Angels or Men to utter To be short thou shalt then be advanced to the utmost possible perfection of thy nature thy soul shall be fitted for those actions and employments which are most suitable to it even the loving and praising thy Maker Saviour and Sanctifier and shalt be made capable of tasting the most ravishing satisfying sweetnesse and joy in these employments in pleasing the blessing God and in feeling thy self encompassed with the warm embraces of his dearest love And as this thy blessedness shall be infinite and unspeakable so shall the continuance of it be eternall Nor shall thy delight be once abated or interrupted through all this eternity but be ever exalted to the highest pitch it shall always flow yea overflow but never ebbe This is the joy which hath no end no measures or decay This is the glory which Christ will give his servants not as the world gives gives he unto them This he tells us is the will of him that sent him that every one that sees the Son and believes on him may have everlasting life Joh. 6.40 The water which he gives us to drink shall be in those who partake of it a well of water springing up into everlasting life And some beginnings of this divine life now there are brought into the soul whilst it is made in its measure conformable to God and is carried out after him with the strong workings of love and desire and feels the shedding abroad of his love in it self and lives in the joyfull expectations of an advancement to the abundance of life the perfection of blisse which I before mentioned And now Reader if thou believest all this which I think thou must needs except thou take the Gospel for a cheat if then thou believest it to be true I would know of thee whether the invitations Christ makes thee to come to him be not backt with sufficient motives to prevail with all that are not quite beside their wits in matters of the greatest moment By this time I hope thou seest that thy Redeemer seeks thy interest whilst he is so importunate with thee What is all for in the result but this That thou would'st make thy self blessed for ever This he commands thee this he beseeches thee to And shall such commands be disobey'd shall such requests be denied Good Lord How strange a thing is this That man a reasonable Being whose wisdome sets him above all other creatures on earth should be thus woo'd thus call'd upon and entreated to be happy and yet that he should stand dallying and deliberating whether he had best be so or not yea that he should peremptorily refuse to be so Which should I most admire in this case the distraction and base ingratitude of man or the inconceivable mercy and patience of God so long to bear with such unworthy creatures and so frequently to renew the offers of blessednesse and even presse it upon them Well then dost thou think there is any gain in godlinesse Is there enough to be had with Christ to make him and his gifts worth the accepting For that I tell thee still is all that is expected from thee be but cordially willing to take him and all his benefits together and for certain all shall be thine Thou shalt find every promise of the book of God made good to thy comfort yea thou shalt find ten thousand times more than ever thou could'st understand or conceive from the fullest promises the highest expressions that ever thou mett'st with concerning the priviledges of Believers Shall all that is said then bring thee to be one of that number or not Dost thou know where to make a better bargain for thy self If so take thy own course and make thy best on 't for be assured Jesus Christ needs not thee His glory doth not so depend on thy subjection to him that it should be lessened in case of thy disobedience Doe thou as thou wilt he knows how to secure his own interest but fain he would perswade thee to take pity on thy self and save thy own soul. If there be any in all the world that hath done more for thee than Christ or that will doe more hearken to him and spare not But before thou conclude there is any such person or thing examine matters well on both sides and then doe as thou seest meet Indeed the case is so plain that the veriest child or fool almost may know how to decide it Bethink thee well what thou art like to have from the world from thy lusts from the service of the Devil or from any thing that would keep thee from Christ. Canst thou think that the satisfying of thy senses with what they call for or pleasing thy fancy with
prepared for rebellious sinners should not be poured out upon thee who thus scornest and abusest thy compassionate Saviour By this time I hope thou art convinced that there is abundant reason why thou shouldest accept of the Lord Jesus Christ to bring thee to the salvation he hath prepared for his people in that way which he himself hath prescribed That thou mightest not want arguments of all sorts I have plainly told thee what 's like to come of thy obstinate refusall And now after all I again demand of thee whether thy heart be brought thus thoroughly to consent that Christ shall be thy Saviour and take his own way with thee to keep thee from misery and bring thee to true blessednesse Art thou resolved to give up thy self to him and follow his directions or not Shall all that hath been said doe nothing to encline thee thereto Dost thou think it better to be commanded to go from Christ hereafter than to come to him at his command for salvation here Canst thou bear his heaviest indignation rather than his easie yoke light burden Is there any thing in becoming Christs faithfull servant worse than being the Devils everlasting bondslave Bethink thy self whilst thou hast leisure and cease not these thoughts till thou arrivest to a true sense of the things that concern thee and at length art firmly resolved without any more baffling or dallying to bind thy self over to Christ by a firm Covenant to be wholly his never to depart from him but in all things sincerely to comply with him and be guided by him that thou maist escape the vengeance thy sins have exposed thee to and obtain that glory to which he will assuredly bring thee This is that Covenant with Christ or faith in him which I have been all this while perswading thee to wherein I told thee is contained thy Covenant with God the Father to love and honour him above all as thy Maker Ruler and End and with the Holy Ghost to be sanctified and led by him Which Covenâ—nâ— every man must be cordially entred into that he may be fit to partake of the Lords Supper whereby he doth professe to consecrate himself to the Father Son and Holy Ghost that is to be a true Christian as by his Baptisme he stands engaged And this is third qualification which is requisite to all Communicants And if I should name no more hence it may sufficiently appear who is fit to come to this Ordinance even he that being acquainted with the Doctrine of the Gospel concerning Jesus Christ believes all that is there related to be true and is sensible of and deeply humbled for all his sins being stedfastly resolved by Gods assistance presently from this time forward to forsake them and is unfeignedly willing to receive the Lord Jesus to be his Saviour upon the terms of the Gospel that is as I shall next speak particularly he that relies upon him alone for the pardon of his sins and is willing to be sanctified by his holy Spirit that he may be made fit for an everlasting communion with God upon whom he hath placed his highest love This is the man whom Christ will bid welcome to his Table Wherefore Reader if this be a description of the state of thy soul let not Satan or thy own fearfull misgiving heart perswade thee that thou art unfit to partake of the priviledges held forth to Believers but with a chearfull boldnesse addresse thy self to this Feast which thy gracious Lord hath appointed for thy refreshment and strengthning till he take thee to himself into his heavenly Kingdome Since I have already thus farre discovered what kind of persons Communicants ought to be from the nature of this Ordinance as it is for a Remembrance of Christ and his Death which cannot be without the knowledge of him repentance for sin and believing in him I may therefore be briefer in the particulars that follow in shewing what more is included in Remembring Christ at the Sacrament since they serve but farther to illustrate and confirm what I have already mentioned concerning the qualifications of the Receivers and since I may repeat some of them in directing those that intend to Communicate CHAP. VI. IV. A right Remembring the benefits procured for us by the Death of Christ. 1. Justification HE that Remembers Christs Death as he ought cannot but Remember what were the benefits purchast by his Death for those that believe in him which benefits are held forth and represented in the Sacrament and by it conveyed and assured to the worthy Receivers and doe call for suitable dispositions and affections in them as I shall shew particularly Of these benefits I shall name three which are the principall and contain all the rest And these are Justification Sanctification and Glorification 1. The first is Justification or the pardon of sin for the difference betwixt them is so small that I shall here take no notice of it which pardon Christ hath obtained by the satisfaction he made to divine justice by his perfect obedience and grievous sufferings for the sake whereof Believers are releast from the rigour and curse of the Law received into the favour of God and preserved from those miseries which otherwise had according to their desert befaln them Gal. 3.13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the Law being made a curse for us Heb. 1.3 When he had by himself purged our sinâ— c. Heb. 9.26 But now hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself Rom. 3.23 24. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ with multitudes of the like places And the Bread and Wine set apart for the Sacrament do represent Christs Body that was given and broken for us Luk. 22.19 1. Cor. 11.24 and his Blood which was shed to procure our pardon as you may read expresly Mat. 26.27 28. And he took the Cup and gave thanks and gave it to them saying Drink ye all of it For this is my Blood of the New Testament which is shed for many for the remission of sins That is This Wine doth signifie and represent my Blood in which the new Covenant betwixt God and man is founded and establisht and by which remission of sins and all other consequent benefits of this New Testament or Covenant are purchast And those Sacramentall actions of giving and receiving the Bread and Wine to eat and drink it doe hold forth and confirm the mutuall Covenant betwixt God and man As it seals to the Covenant on mans part that he will receive Christ as he is offered and be devoted to him and to God by him I have spoken to it under the foregoing Head and to all who sincerely doe thus God hereby seals to them that he will be their God reconciled to them through his Son and that Christ with all his benefits shall be theirs
apposite Text Ezek. 16.62 63. And I will establish my Covenant with thee and thou shalt know that I am the Lord That thou maist remember and be confounded and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done saith the Lord God It is to be considered moreover that the promises of joy are principally made to this frame The spirit of the humble and contrite God hath promised to revive They that mourn shall be comforted And they who come to the Table of the Lord weeping are most likely to return from thence rejoycing 4. And when you are wrought to this humiliation for and hatred of sin you will easily be brought to the next part of your work which is stedfastly to resolve by the grace of God never more to give willing entertainment to the same but to be entirely devoted to God by Jesus Christ to love please and serve him all your days I have told you how at the Lords Supper you renew your Covenant to perform those duties which you were engaged to by being Baptized into the Name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost Renouncing carnall self you professe to place your happinesse in the love of God and no farther to regard or please your selves than is consistent with his pleasure Renouncing the world your own abilities righteousnesse and worthinesse and all ways to to happinesse which are set up against Christ you professe to take him alone for your Redeemer and to resign up your selves to him that he may bring you to the fruition of God and therefore Renouncing the Devill who would draw you from God and Christ to gratifie your lusts with earthly things you professe your resolutions to be led by the Holy Spirit of God in those ways that lead to his everlasting kingdome You who are truly willing to all this for to such I speak I would have you in the most serious manner to professe the same before God and especially in the prayers that you make in preparation for the Sacrament Bind your selves over to him by the strictest vow that he shall be your God and you will be his people Professe to him that he shall be the portion of your souls that you will have none in heaven but him and will desire nothing on earth in comparison of him that if he will but vouchsafe you his saving love in Jesus Christ you shall be indifferent to all things here below as knowing that in his favour alone you are abundantly provided for Acknowledge his right to govern you and dispose of you being your Maker and Preserver infinitely wise and good and engage to take him for your Soveraign and Lord to render a sincere unlimited obedience to his commands and quietly to submit to his dispensations Professe to him that you relinquish all right to your selves and give up all into his hands to do with you what he pleaseth consecrating all to his glory whatever he doth or shall afford you being resolved through his assistance so to improve and employ it Promise to him that neither your own will nor the will of any mortall man shall be obey'd in contradiction to his And bethink your selves of those sins whereof you have been more especially guilty in thought word or deed and of the duties you have omitted and engage your selves particularly against those sins and to the performance of those duties And then Remember under what notion you enter into Covenant with God and what kind of creatures you are even poor lost sinners loaded with much guilt which you could never by any satisfaction of your own making take off from your selves and also exceeding weak so that you cannot by your own strength give that obedience to God which he requires nor vanquish the difficulties which you will meet with wherefore it is of absolute necessity that you accept of Jesus Christ as your Deliverer and your Strength for he onely who hath the Son hath the Father also Professe then before God your unfeigned willingnesse to close with the Lord Jesus to all those ends for which he offers himself to the world Acknowledge to him that you neither expect mercy for any merit of your own nor set upon duty in your own might nor look for acceptance of any service for its own worth but that you humbly depend upon Christ the Mediatour for all that you stand in need of Acknowledge his right to rule over and in you as having bought you out of slavery with his own most precious blood to whose mild and gracious government you will therefore submit your selves Professe your willingnesse and earnest desire to have your hearts purged and sanctified by his Holy Spirit and your lives thereby directed according to the precepts of the Gospel Thus professe your acceptance of Christ and submission to the Spirit that you may be brought into the favour of God and be enabled to please and glorifie him by your holy conversation for all tends to this even to make you holy in heart and life Therefore are we married to Christ that we may bring forth fruit unto God Râ—m 7.4 And the fruits of righteousnesse are by Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God Phil. 1.11 In him we are created unto good works This is the effect of his death and resurrection that we might be dead to sin but alive unto God Rom. 6. throughout They are Christs Disciples that bring forth much fruit to the glory of God the Father Joh. 15.8 And therefore is the Spirit of life given us through Jesus Christ that we may be made free from the power of sin and death that the carnall mind might be taken away and we made subject to God and able to please him yea that we might rise up to an higher kind of life more spirituall and heavenly than was ordinarily attainable under the Law Rom. 8. the former part of that Chapter This being then the summe of all to devote your selves to God by Jesus Christ to live in his love and fear and in strict obedience to his laws till you shall be taken glory you that are firmly purposed to do this and have made promises thereof betwixt God and your own souls Do you eat thâ— Bread and drink the Wine in the Sacrament as a confirmation of these promises Let this be remembred I beseech you whatever you forget That hereby you do most straitly engage your selves to live a Righteous Sober and Godly life from this very day and to the end of your days This some give as the reason why the Name Sacrament is put upon Baptisme and the Lords Supper because they are of a like nature with that Oath which Souldiers were wont to take to be obedient to their Generall and rather to die than to forsake their Colours which military Oath was called a Sacrament and thus both by Baptisme and the Lords Supper are we consecrated to the service of God
the belief of that pardon which you have received in the hopes of that grace and glory which have been assured to you Meditations of heaven and the exercise of Thankfulnesse are now very proper works Consider also what you have done what an obligation you have laid upon your self how you are no longer your own Man having made a resignation of your self to God by Jesus Christ And beg the assistance of his Holy Spirit to enable you to stedfastnesse and perseverance in this holy Covenant whilst life shall last and beseech him that the Ordinance you have been made partaker of may become effectuall to your souls to all those ends that it was designed for and which are attainable by it Think it not enough to read over these things I entreat thee but do accordingly and now betake thy self to Consideration and Prayer to those ends I have exprest Review moreover what your miscarriages have been and humbly beg of God to forgive either want of due preparation or coldnesse and distractions that your hearts have not been affected suitably to the importance and excellency of the duty and the Majesty of him with whom you have herein had to do And be heartily thankfull for any measure of life and affection any raisednesse and comfort that God hath been pleased to vouchsafe you And here by the way let me caution all humble Christians to beware of a mistake to which they are too prone to wit To judge of their profiting in this or other duties by their present feeling and so to think they get no good except their souls are as it were lift up and ravisht with sensible joys and these onely they take for evidences of Gods acceptance and the having of communion with him But by this means you will often plunge your selves into needlesse sorrows and load your selves with unjust censures and which is worse you will hereby become lesse thankfull to God as thinking you have received little advantage because you found not those delights you expected and will be in danger of becoming weary of the work and ready to throw it off as thinking it unprofitable Wherefore to avoid these ill consequences and the mistake that begets them consider well That it is the uprightnesse and sincerity of your hearts in the performance of your duty which may administer most ground of comfort to you when you reflect upon it for be assured if you have this ornament you were really acceptable to him that lookt down upon you though this acceptance might not be testified with the giving in of any extraordinary joy Let it not then trouble you as if God was not well pleased with you because your affections were not raised up to an higher pitch since he doth not look so much at fits of passion as at the steady bent and tenour of the soul. Nor think because you mist of great joys that you had no favour from nor communion with God for consider again That the truest communion with God is to enjoy the câ—mmunications of his grace to your souls whereby you are made conformable to him and you may enjoy these saving influences of the Spirit when you cannot feel his more abundant consolations Moreover the fruit of this Ordinance is not so much to be discerned at present as in your after-conversation For the great benefit you are to expect being to receive farther measures of Grace from the Holy Spirit accompanying these means it cannot be well known what Grace you have received till you come to the exercise of it when tempâ—ations shall assault you And to allude to the Apostles words in another case Though this Ordinance may not at present be joyous yet it may afterward yield the peaceable fruits of righteousnesse to those that are conversant therein And lastly If you are but sincere as I said in your covenanting with God it is your duty to believe that you have this day received from him a seal to the promise of pardon and eternall life and in this belief may you take much rationall and solid comfort which otherwise you are not like to find And this is the ordinary way whereby the Spirit conveys comfort to the Soul first working in you a belief that the promises of God are in themselves most true enlightning you to the knowledge of your own souls and then enabling you to apply these promises to your selves as being such to whom they belong Thus the Apostle tells us their rejoycing was from the testimony their Conscience gave of their simplicity godly sincerity 2 Cor. 1.12 Wherefore you are not so much to expect any extraordinary immediate assurance from the Spirit that you are the Lords But see to get good grounds for your faith and so to have your hearts fill'd with peace and joy in believing Yet do not misinterpret what I have said thence to indulge your selves in any sloth or dulness or to content your selves with the bare doing of the work without heeding the frame of your heart therein no but take as much pains as you can to raise them to the greatest sensiblenesse affection and if you do so you may reasonably expect to find much sweetness and satisfaction in the work it self but my meaning in this caution is that you should not look so much at the feeling of extraordinary comforts as at the integrity of your hearts in vowing your selves to God and the continuing stedfastnesse of your resolutions to be true to these vows 2. And that 's the next thing I would exhort you to even to discâ—ver this inward truth and sincerity by your future holy and exact walking This is that which must crown all the rest I may say to you as Moses to the Israelites Deut. 26.16 17. You have this day avouched the Lord to be your God to walk in his ways and keep his statutes And the Lord hath avouched you to be his peculiar people And you have promised to take Christ for your Husband and Lord to live in love and obedience to him as you hope to be saved by him One thing now remains that you go and do likewise Say with the Psalmist I have sworn and will perform it that I will keep thy righteous judgements Psal. 119.106 Now you have been remembring him that suffered in the flesh arm your selves with this mind no longer to live the rest of your time in the flesh to the lusts of men but to the will of God 1 Pet. 4.1 2 3. Let it not happen to you according to the Proverb The Dog is turned to his own vomit again and the Sow that was washt to her wallowing in the mire If God have spoke peace to your souls turn not you again to folly Call to mind particularly what sins you confest and promised to forsake and do accordingly You that have been guilty of drunkennesse or gluttony fornication and wantonnesse pride or covetousnesse be so no more you that have been wont to spend your time in
did as it were reprieve the world and kept us from being suddenly destroyed by divine justice which otherwise would have laid hold on us and did obtain for us that we should be tried once again for our lives so that our first fall should not be our damnation if we would accept of that way of Salvation which he had procured for and revealed to us Now since our first happinesse did consist in our being like to God being righteous and holy and obedient to him that it might appear that Christ consulted for his Fathers honour as well as our interest the way to salvation which he appointed was this That we should love God above all and count it our greatest happinesse to be reconcil'd to him that we should humbly acknowledge and repent of all our sins of nature and practice whereby we had provoked his anger against us and be sincerely willing to live in obedience to his Laws and that we should own him the Lord Jesus as our onely Redeemer and depend upon him onely for ability to perform these conditions and to obtain the pardon of sin and the favour of God upon performance of them And then that we might have this ability who by the fall were become weak and unable for good but strongly bent to evil Christ by his death obtained of the Father that the Holy Ghost the third person of the Trinity should be employ'd to bring men to the performance of those conditions which Christ required of all whom he would save And accordingly the Holy Ghost in pursuance of this work did inspire the Apostles and their fellowers to write and preach the Gospel and sealed to the truth of it with miracles for the conviction of all that should hear it And in some places in all ages hath enabled men to make it known and moreover this Holy Spirit doth accompany the Word to the hearts of the Hearers and where he is received doth enlighten the mind and soften the heart and heal and change and sanctifie the nature of man and restores him to the image of his Maker and begets in him a strong love to God and a willingnesse to please him in all things and brings him to an hearty sorrow for and an hatred of all his sins and enclines and enables him to come to Christ to believe in him to love and highly to esteem him for this work of Redemption which he hath wrought ascribing it wholly to his merit that he hath hopes of mercy from God and any power to please him And then for all those who by this assistance of the Spirit are made willing thus to come to Christ and to God by him for these Christ hath purchast that their sins should be forgiven them and greater measures of the Spirit bestowed on them in a word that they should have all things good for them here and be received into everlasting glory hereafter But all they who reject these offers of sanctification and salvation shall die in their sins and be everlastingly in torment with the Devil and his Angels And this same Jesus Christ will be the Judge of all men and at the end of the world shall come with great glory and power and raise up the bodies of all that were dead and change those that are alive and shall pronounce and cause to be executed the sentence of absolution and glorification upon the righteous and the sentence of condemnation upon the wicked This is that Jesus the Redeemer of the faln world whose memory ought to be so precious to you And these were the weighty causes and the glorious effects of that death which you shew forth and keep up the remembrance of in celebrating the Sacrament I suppose it needlesse to turn you to the particular Texts of Scripture proving these things they being so common and well known and the truth of them so plain that they cannot well be doubted of by any that own the Christian Religion And I hope they are neither so many nor so difficult that you should pretend you want time or learning or wit to get well acquainted with them I dare say you could learn other kind of matters than these if you could get any worldly advantage by it If Books were Printed that should teach you how to be rich and honourable to live in ease and pleasure to enjoy health long life and all kind of prosperity you would pore sufficiently upon such Books and beat your brains day and night but you would get to understand and remember them But if indeed you have so little regard to your souls that you will perish for lack of knowing those things which might easily be known your damnation is just And as for you that think the most sottish ignorance is excusable because you are no Schollars and yet take your selves for as good Christians as the best let me tell you plainly if you be without the knowledge of these principal Heads of Religion you are not fit to be so much as called Christians Are you Disciples of Christ that are so blockish and stupid that you have not yet learnt the first principles which he teacheth his Schollars Nay if you refuse to learn them you thereby renounce Jesus Christ to wit as he is your Prophet and Teacher which if you doe expect not salvation from him And as without being acquainted with these fundamentall truths you are able to perform no duty aright so especially not this of receiving the Lords Supper for I say can he remember Christ as he should that knows not who he is what he has done for him or what need he stands in of him And they who being in this wilfull blindnesse venture upon this Ordinance must needs doe it to their own hurt coming to it as a common meal or meerly for custome and fashion sake and so are guilty of the very same miscarriage which the Apostle represents as so dangerous 1 Cor. 11.29 They eat the Bread and drink the Wine not discerning the Lords Body not having that knowledge of Christ who is there represented whereby they might be enabled to give him that reverence and honour which is required of all that are admitted to these mysteries I need not sure spend time in examining the Reader whether he know these truths before laid down or not If thou hast the use of thy reason thou canst tell I hope what it is thou knowest and what thou doest not wherefore take thy self to task and go over the severall points of Religion as I have before briefly mentioned them if thou thinkst fit and take account of thy own apprehension and understanding and where thou findst thou art most wanting be diligent to inform and satisfie thy self and to this purpose make conscience of hearing the word Preacht and of reading the holy Scriptures in private And get well acquainted with the grounds of Religion as you may find them in Catechismes or the plâ—inest Books that treat of them But think
great men their friends recommending themselves to the world by their sumptuous Houses great Retinues rich Cloathes gentile deportment and the like braveries others by their strength beauty wit learning and the like accomplishments of body or mind Thus you see according to the nature of mens happinesse they make use of means to reach it Search well therefore whether some of these or the like empty trifles have not been more set by and laboured for than â—hâ—ist himself If so never say thou takest him for thy Mâ—diatour for it is apparent thou dost not make him so No but those things are indeed thy Mediatours which thou makest use of to accomplish thy selfish dedesigns And hereby thou dost in effect as much reject and vilifie Christ as if thou didst revolt from him and take Mahâ—met fâ—r thy Saviour Oh beware of deceiving thy self in this point which is so easie so common and dangerous to talk of trusting and relying on Christ whiâ—st the heart relies most upon some outward enjoyment to bring it to the happinesse it seeks for and the most they look for from Christ is to have him keep them from Hell after they have been all their days gratifying their lusts and serving the Devil but they never think of improving him as a Mediatour betwixt God and their souls expecting all their mercies of this life and the next to come by him and by him offering up all their services to God Wherefore I beseech you to remember that nothing will prove you sincerely in Covenant with Christ as one of his living members but a thorow stedfast willingnesse to be brought to happinesse by him in his own way and let it be your care to examine whether you are thus heartily willing And then lastly hast thou submitted thy soul to the powerfull workings of the Holy-Ghost to renew and regenerate thee Hast thou faithfully rendred up thy self to him to be transformed into the divine likenesse to have thy corruptions purged away and all saving graces implanted in thee It is the office of the Holy Ghost to carry on Christs interest in the souls of men to fulfill all the pleasure of his goodnesse and the work of faith with power to bring them to the Father by the Son No man can cry Abba Father and be fill'd with a child-like disposition and nature but he who hath received this Spirit of Adoption and no man can call Jesus Lord and be heartily subject to him but by the help of this almighty Spirit He shews men the vanity of the Creature and the goodnesse the fulnesse and all sufficiency of God and enables the heart firmly to cleave to him He convinces men of sin and shews them the odiousnesse and danger of it and discovers to them a Saviour by whom they may be Redeemed from all their iniquities from the dominion and from the condemnation of sin and he begets in the soul a saving faith making men not onely willing but earnestly desirous to accept of Christ to both these ends Reflect upon thy self then whether thou hast experienc'd any such workings in thy soul or not whether thou art changed by this divine power into a new and heavenly nature and art hereby become a new creature as all in Christ are old things being done away Hast thou ever found the vigorous and warm movings of this holy Spirit upon thy heart conveying light and life to thy dark soul dead in trespasses and sins Hast thou carefully cherisht these motions and complied with this sanctifying work which spreadâ— it self through the whole man And art thou willing to be governed by him to hearken to his voyce within thee and to that word which was inspired by him to be a lamp to thy feet If these things be so then indeed thou hast performed the engagement that was laid upon thee by being baptized into the name of the Holy Ghost But call thy self to account whether it hath not been quite otherwise with thee Dost thou not still remain in the carnall selfish state alienated from the life of God through a blind mind and a wicked stubborn will being still at enmity with him Hast thou not quenched the Spirit and stifled convictions and resisted his operations upon thy soul Art thou not rather guided by the seducing spirit and thy own unmortified lusts Doe not these still remain in strength and power so that whatever they draw thee to must be done let the Word and Conscience say what they will If it be thus never boast of having God to be thy Maker nor Christ thy Redeemer for if thou art not sanctified by the Holy Ghost God will never own thee for his who accepts of none but an holy people Thus by looking carefully into your hearts you may discern whether you are truly in covenant with God or not And if this seem any matter of difficulty to know what your hearts are or rather least you should pretend your hearts are thus right when it is no such thing I shall give one instance more whereby you may know how you stand related to God and that is by the consideration of your lives and conversations for if you are sincerely devoted to God in your hearts then you must needs shew it in the holinesse of your lives which is nothing else but the keeping of that Covenant which is made betwâ—xt God and the soul. If you do indeed fâ—llow after holinesse it 's a sign you account it your chief happiness to see God If you are patient and unwearied in well-doing it 's a sign you seek for honour and glory with God And if you keep the Commandments of Christ endeavouring to walk as he walk't it 's manifest that you love him and believe in him If you bring forth much fruit hereby you and all men may know that you are Christs Disciples that you are living branches of him the true Vine then have you received Christ if you walk in him And if you shew forth the fruits of the Spirit in your lives it 's a sure token that his graces are sown in your hearts If you are led by and walk after the Spirit then indeed the Spirit is with and in you and you live in him Gal. 5.25 But on the other hand it 's as certain thou art a stranger and Aliene from this Covenant I have beâ—ore described if thou be one that servest the Devil rather than the true God Make what profession thou wilt to love God and believe in Christ if thou allowest thy self in any one known sin all thy great pretences will at length come to nothing What doth that man love the Lord who doth not hate evil Nay who delights in that which the Lord abhorrs and wherewith he is griev'd and provokt to fury Doth hee take Christ for his Lord who will not be obedient to him Doth he take him for his Physitian who would not be heal'd but had rather keep his diseases Beware as thou lovest thy soul of
wrath which thou art treasuring up for thy self against the day of wrath Thou liest wholly at his mercy whom thou art daily provoking to fury In all thy ways which are so defiled the holy God beholds thee in anger and even loathes thee for thy filthinesse And he alone knows how short a while he is determined to wait on thee thy glasse is running his patience is expiring death and judgement are hasting hell is ready burning and thou canst not promise thy self a moments safety Whilst thou art sleeping or waking eating or working talking and laughing the heavy doom hangs over thy head and thou hast every day reason to expect the dreadfull vengeance of the Lord to seize upon thee nothing but meer mercy hath kept it off this while which will not always last At night when thou goest to bed it s a great hazard but thou maist awake in flames and never more see the comfortable light or when thou goest out of doors it 's a question whether thou maist not with Judas go to thy own place the infernall mansions before thou returnest home For ought I know or thou either this may be the last Book that ever thou maist read this may be the last warning that ever thou maist have Think a little whether this be a comfortable case for a man to continue in and what wise people they are that venture all upon a Repentance hereafter Moreover in all the troubles thou maist meet with in the world I know not what support what comfort can be administred to thee for there 's none to be given thee from God I am sure whilst thou art a resolved enemy to him What shift thou makest to get a little ease and relief at such a time I cannot but wonder onely the remnants of thy carnall comforts and the hopes thou hast of seeing things better its like may help thee to some false peace But alas poor man Death will shortly arrest thee Death that will strip thee of all that thy heart delighted and trusted in Death that will break the neck of all thy fond hopes and utterly frustrate thy expectations Death that will carry thee out of thiâ— beloved world into a place to which thou hast been a meer stranger not thinking of it at all or but coldly and seldome or with horrour and aversenesse this Death I say will shortly lay hold on thee and then whither wilt thou look for comfort who art a stranger to God and Jesus Christ Into whose hands wilt thou commend thy departing soul who would'st not whilst thou wast living resign thy self to the God who made thee bought thee with his Sons blood Canst thou expect Christ should now receive thee who would'st not be perswaded to receive him What receive a rebel into the kingdome of peace A filthy Swine into the communion of Saints No never expect it And if he will not receive thee who must If heaven may not hold thee what place will Thou canst easily answer these questions And when by a resurrection to condemnation thou art made with all the rest to stand in the presence of thy Judge how wilt thou then appear before him For the Lord's sake yea for thy own sake poor sinner thou that canst not be brought to like of Christ nor his holy Laws and ways not the sanctifying work of his holy Spirit put these questions as thou readest them close to thy heart What wilt thou then say to Jesus Christ for this thy contempt and dislike of his person and government Darest thou then justifie thy unbelief and impenitence when he calls thee to answer for it Or who wilt thou get to plead for thee when the onely Advocate shall condemn thee Who wilt thou make thy friend when he who alone could and would have been so is through thy own fault become thy greatest enemy Dare Angels or Saints speak a word for him against whom their Lord shall speak Or would they if they durst No they will approve his righteous sentence Will the Devil take thy part dost thou think Hath he any power there to secure his followers Why it 's he that is thy accuser and if need be would rather aggravate those faults which he drew thee to Wilt thou then hit him in the teeth with the large promises he made thee and call on him to make them good Alas he 'll but laugh at thee and scorn thee and make thee acknowledge that most justly are all they so served who would trust to the Devils delusions rather than to Gods promises Or dost thou expect relief from thy companions in torment Ah poor creatures they would rather help themselves if they could but cannot Oh then with what an heart with what a countenance wilt thou hear that last dolefull sentence Depart from me ye cursed when thou shalt look round about and see no help no hope but that down thou must lie in that burning lake which the breath of the Lord's fury like a stream of brimstone doth kindle what a posture will thy soul be in I can tremble to conceive it easier than I can expresse it And when thou hast lain some thousands of years in that place of torments what then will the workings of thy heart be when thou hast felt that tribulation and anguish which comes upon those that work evil what thoughts wilt thou have of the ways that brought thee thither what would'st thou not doe for the least dram of hope in that miserable despairing state for the least glimmering of light in that gloomy darknesse But there is none to be had no nor ever will be through a whole eternity the force of which word eternity and the meaning of Hell is now known and felt in another manner than when careless sinners could laugh at the mention of them or sleep whilst they were preacht on But what canst thou not perswade thy self that there are any such torments prepared for unbelievers If not it s to be feared thou art one of those unbelievers for whom they are prepared But if Scripture may convince thee read amongst other places 1 Thes. 1.8 9. Mat. 25.46 Joh. 3.36 and then tell me thy judgement Now indeed all this is but talk Hell 's out of sight and the most terrible words are but wind and therefore it is there is so little care in the world to make sure his favour who can save them from this misery which because it 's neither seen nor felt is sleighted and forgotten Should a King take a company of men out of prison who had committed some fault worthy of death and offer pardon to those that would be sorry for their crime and promise never to be guilty of the like but threaten Death to those that would not and withall should shew them pardons ready sealed and great hopes of money to be given to the penitent but racks and gibbets and fires ready kindled for the execution of the obstinate Doe you think this would not easily
the Son would make us free he would set the captive at liberty but must he not then take off his fetters We are polluted Sin is our filth Christ is the fountain opened for our cleansing and can we be clean if we will not be purged from our filthinesse We are slaves to Satan through our lusts by which he leads us whither he will Christ would deliver us from this slavery but must he not then break these chains Sin is the spawn or seed hell is the fruit and off-spring and if the seed be permitted to grow must there not needs be the fruit And this shews how man plainly destroys him self whilst he will hug his lusts which are a Serpent in his bosome presuming that for all that they will not sting him Man by his sins had deserved everlasting wrath Christ came to save him from sin and so from wrath and if men will not believe he came to this purpose or will not improve him in order thereto must they not needs die in their sins and so abide under that wrath which was before upon them and which still follows after sin Joh. 8.24 and 3.36 Acts 4.12 Ignorance of God is one part as well as cause of mans unhappinesse and if men wilfully close their eyes that the light which Christ brings to the world can have no entrance must they not of necessity remain in darknesse Excessive love to our bodies and to the comforts of this life which we shall be stript of and want of delight in God and his holy service is the great misery of a soul and doth engage it in those strifes with it's Maker that cast men into an hell upon earth and kindle the unquenchable fire and if they will not give way to the Spirit of Christ to turn the bent and inclination of their hearts from the world to God doe they not retain their own certain misery Thus thou seest how impossible it is even in the thing it self for all rejecters of Christ to escape damnation supposing they are but continued in being and left to themselves both which Scripture assures us will befall the impenitent in the future state But know moreover to the breaking of thy heart in time thy condemnation is like to be much more heavy for thy rejecting of Christ than it would have been if he had never come into the world or had never offered mercy to thee Canst thou in thy own Conscience think that thou who hast been so importuned and begg'd by so many arguments to accept of Christ shalt escape as easily as they that never heard of him or but very darkly Shall not he that abuseth ten Talents be more severely dealt with than he who hides but one why else does Christ denounce such woes against Chorazin and Bethsaida threatning them with worse punishments than Sodom and Gomorrah was it not because they enjoy'd more mercies and greater means for Repentance Doe we not read Heb. 12.25 that they who refuse to hear the Son speaking from heaven shall much lesse escape than they who refused to hear the Prophets of old And of a sorer punishment whereof they are worthy Heb. 10.29 Though I would not have thee neglect the means whilst there is any hope yet let me tell thee it had been better for thee to have never heard one word of the way to salvation by Jesus Christ than having heard to fleight and disregard it Every Sermon thou hast heard every Book thou hast read and every exhortation thou hast had and neglected will sink thee so much the lower into hell These very lines which thou art now reading if they be not improved will without Repentance be remembred to thy smart another day Be thou well assured though God be the Father of mercies and a God of bowels yet he takes account of the mercies he affords his Creatures and takes notice how they improve them and if they be abused they shall be severely reckoned for God will not be mocked by rebellious Creatures nor shall his precious gifts be trod under feet and they that doe such things escape unpunished Above all then how will the love of Christ in dying for them make their doom more sad if they be not constrained by this love What torments can be great enough for the ingratitude and perversenesse of such If thou Reader be one of them I dare appeal to thy self whether thou deservest not for thy unbelief and impenitency greater sufferings than if Christ had never died For suppose there was a traitor who for his treason being condemned to die the Kings own Son should be content to have his right hand cut off to satisfie the Law and terrifie the people from the like guilt hereafter that he might obtain a pardon of his Father for this poor man and when he had got it should come and tell him what he had done assuring him that if he will but take him for his deliverer relinquish all his traiterous designs and become a good Subject he shall not onely have a pardon but be taken into the Court and there live in the greatest favour and honour but suppose he when he hath heard all instead of a thankfull acceptance of his pardon upon these conditions should kick at the hand that offers it and turn his back upon him with contempt asking him who wisht him to trouble himself for him nay worse than this suppose whilst the Prince is holding forth his pardon he should endeavour with a Knife that he had got to stab him to the heart would'st thou not think that such a wretch deserved the greatest tortures that could be devised And more for this his latter obstinacy than for his first treason And if thou be found guilty of the very same yea worse perfidiousnesse and ingratitude against God thy Maker and Jesus Christ thy Redeemer will not thy own Conscience conclude it most just that the heaviest judgements should be thy portion Wast thou not liable to death to all kind of misery for thy sin Did not the Son of God humble himself to take on him thy nature and then to die a most shamefull cursed death to purchase thy pardon and yet when he offers it upon condition of thy acceptance of him for thy Saviour and becoming a faithfull subject to the Soveraign Majesty thou art so farre from being brought to this that thou rather takest encouragement from this mercy held forth by Christ in the Gospel to continue in disobedience to God than which thou could'st not offer a greater injury to thy Saviour to make him as it were a patron of thy wickednesse doing far worse than they that crucified him whilst thou endeavourest quite to pervert and take away the end of his Death which was to redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works Tit. 2.14 And if indeed this be thy case canst thou say one word in thy own excuse why all the plagues that are
the pleasing of your flesh that you should be thereby stupefied to a regardlesnesse of your soul. The luscious fare which the world affords cloys the mind of man and spoils his appetite and puts him out of relish with his own most proper food This is the undoing of the most they are so full of the creature if not in their hands yet in their hearts that they have no mind nor room to entertain any thing of God there Every man breathing finds himself a needy creature that cannot live upon himself but must have something from without brought in to give him satisfaction but then the misery is they think their wants are all of that nature that things here below may supply them The poor think there is nothing they need so much as better food and raiment more plenty and ease and esteem in the world and they who abound in these things because they see others excell them think they want such and such greater Estates and Dignities to make them happy Though they find after all their attainments that still they are restlesse discontented and wanting something else they scarce know what which might convince them that it is onely from God they can receive satisfaction by having their natures perfected with those graces which may fit them for that communion with him in love and delight wherein the soul of man can onely find rest and contentment This I say they might learn from those restlesse infinite desires of their own hearts if they would but heedfully attend to the nature thereof but being more cruell to themselves than any parent to his child when the soul calls for bread they give it a stone endeavouring to put it off with those things that concern the body alone whilst that within them which is most needy still remains so and is suffered to pine and starve As if an hungry man should fill his mouth with meat and let nothing down into his stomach Whilst you are fondly endeavouring to quiet your minds and accomplish your selves with any thing that is without your souls be it riches pleasures honours friends and all the accommodations of the outward man which the world most dotes upon you are as verily besotted and deceived as he that thinks to ease a violent pain at his heart with putting on a rich Suit of Clothes or to supply the want of enlivening blood and spirits by painting his face Your necessities and diseases are deep and inward your very souls are out of order and nothing in the world will doe you any good but what gets within you and changes your apprehensions desires and affections and makes you quite other persons than now you are Wherefore I would beg you to fix this truth deep into your minds That since you are become poor and naked through the losse of Gods image which was the riches and beauty of the reasonable creature it 's never like to be well with you till you be again restored to his image which is by being brought to the knowledge and love of him to an universall submission and exact conformity to his will 3. And when you are brought to this knowledge of your wants and the nature of them then consider well that it is by Jesus Christ alone that you can be satisfied and supplied The Law was given by Moses but by him comes grace and truth 1 Joh. 1.17 He is the Mediatour through whom and for whose sake we receive from God whatever our souls stand in need of He by his death hath purchast all things necessary for our salvation he is ascended on high and hath received gifts for his people As King and Head of his Church he communicates to his members those graces that by his death and intercession he hath obtained for them and they are replenisht with the fulnesse of him who filleth all in all And then you are to take notice that Christ hath appointed duties to be performed by us and set up Ordinances which we are diligently to attend upon and by his Spirit accompanying them he conveys grace to the hearts of those that are conscionable in the use of these means Such are hearkning to and meditating upon the word Joh. 17.17 Sanctifie them by thy truth thy word is truth 1 Pet. 2.2 As new born babes desire the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby And prayer to the Father in his name Joh. 14.13 Luke 11.13 How much more will your heavenly Father give the Spirit to those that ask him Jam. 1.5 If any man lack wisdome let him ask of God who gives to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him Such also is the Sacrament of Baptisme being duly improved Gal. 3.27 For as many of you as have been Baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Rom. 6.3 4. 1 Pet. 3.21 And lastly this receiving of the Lords Supper which is our feeding upon Christ who is the Paschal Lamb sacrificed for us and herein to believers in a spirituall sense is afforded a communion of the body and blood of Christ as we may find in the Apostles words before mentioned And when you have but arrived to a sence of your own indigence and Christs fulnesse suitable thereto there will necessarily arise in you desires after a participation of that fulnesse which will bring you to and prepare you for those Ordinances wherein these desires may be gratified Lastly I would advise you to beware of ever entertaining a conceit that you are become so full now that you need nothing for that 's a plain sign you are poor and know it not Your stomachs are filled with wind instead of solid meat And whilst you are puft up with this self-conceit you will be hindred from seeking after what you really want He that thinks his Barns full when they are empty may through this mistake first lie in idlenesse and after come to beggary He that dreams of such a perfection as makes all helps Christ hath appointed needlesse to him neither knows himself nor considers what a God he hath to serve nor what a Law he hath given him to walk by It 's much to be feared that he who thinks he hath grace enough hath yet got no saving grace at all He that knows enough is very ignorant he that 's humble enough is still exceeding proud and so of the rest For he that hath tasted that the Lord is gracious longs after fuller communion with him He that drinks of the water Christ gives though his sickly thirst after creatures will be cured yet will such a thirst after more of Christ arise in him as will never be quencht till he be drencht into the ocean of grace and joy Wherefore study thy self study the duty of this whole present state wherein we are enjoyn'd to grow in grace and learn hence so much humility so much wisdome as to own thy necessities and not go about to cover them for they will not always be
hid but rather use all means to supply them whilst they are afforded And as there is required in all Receivers an earnest longing after sanctifying grace which is here vouchsafed so the other qualification suitable hereto I told you is a Resolution to improve this grace that is to lay it out and shew forth the fruit of it in an holy conversation This is an effect of the former and indeed necessarily flows from the nature of grace which is no way desirable but for use and exercise not is it possible that in should ordinarily lie still in the heart and not be brought forth into act and shewn in the life He that desires patience humility purity temperance to what purpose is it but to overcome the temptations which he meets with in the world to the contrary vices and to shew forth these fruits of the Spirit in all his converse Whence it appears that no man is worâ—hy to come to the Lords Table who is not resolved by the grace of God to live an holy life and to be led by the Spirit in all his ways He that hath got any sin which he is resolv'd to keep is not like to have any desire after that grace which should mortifie and quell his sin nor any mind to remember that Death which was to deliver us from this present evil world He 's like to be far from a right remembrance of Christ who will not be perswaded to imitate him for certainly that 's one end of our remembring his Death that we may thereby be drawn to follow his example which he gave us then as well as in his life by his constancy patience charity to his enemies and ready resignation of himself to his Fathers will As he walked so ought we to walk and from his very death may we fetch directions for our life This resolution for holinesse which I am speaking of is indeed one branch of our Faith in Christ being no other than our consent to take him for our King to guide and govern us in all our thoughts words and actions and therefore having said something to it under that Head as also the former of Repentance I shall at present passe it over CHAP. VIII The third benefit is eternall happinesse with God 3. THE last of those benefits which I named obtained for us by the death of Christ and to be remembred at the Sacrament is eternall happinesse It is by his resurrection from the dead and consequently by his death that Believers have a lively hope of an inheritance incorruptible undefiled that fadeth not away reserved in the heavens for them 1 Pet. 3.4 It was his blood that redeemed them to be Kings and Priests to God Rev. 5.9 10. He gave his flesh for the life of the world Joh. 6.51 By Jesus Christ God calls us to eternall glory 1 Pet. 5.10 He opened the entrance into Paradise which sin had shut up It was his will not onely that they who believe in him should be kept from the place where Satan was but that they should also be with him where he is Joh. 17.24 This he pray'd for this he died for and is gone before to prepare a place for them and keeps them here to prepare them for that place and being ready they shall enter into the Kingdome He receives their Spirits when they die and will raise up their bodies at the last day Now their life is hid with Christ in God and when he appears then shall they also appear with him in glory Coll. 3.3 4. Be we sure then this Death of Christ cannot be remembred as it ought if the glory purchast thereby be forgotten How can we remember a dying Christ but withall we must call to mind that he vanguisht this death is risen again and ascended into glory whither in due time he will exalt his people Moreover that Covenant which is sealed to by this Sacrament promiseth an everlasting Kingdome to Believers and can any man forget such a benefit even whilst he is receiving a confirmation of his right to it Again here is that grace given out which is the pledge the seed the beginning and forecast of glory here is the meat which endures to everlasting life and who can forget his Journeys end whilst he is taking food to strengthen him for his travell To conclude here 's a communion of Saints which does in some measure shadow out and signifie that perfect communion which they shall have one with another when all the Elect shall be gathered from the four corners of the earth and with Abraham Isaac and Jacob shall sit down and for ever remain in the Kingdome of God Now hence it appears that the worthy Receiver must be one who hath taken the heavenly glory for his portion who hath got a treasure above and there placed his heart and his hopes for none but such a one can with any life and raisednesse remember this glory which is to be revealed He that is wont to solace himself with the contemplation thereof will rejoyce in every thing that hath a relation to it much more in the remembrance of that price that was paid for it But how can the earthworm whose soul lies groveling upon the dust bring himself to any affectionate thoughts of hidden treasures which cannot be got into his bags not coffers which he cannot so much as get a sight of Nor can the swinish voluptuous sinners that feed upon none but the muddy delights of sense take any comfort in the forethoughts of pure and spirituall pleasures such as are prepared for exalted purified souls Any whoever they be that place their chief conâ—entment on earth are not like with any pleasure to think of that time when they must leave this earth and enter upon another state where are no such sensuall enjoyments as here they blest themselves in Ignorant narrow souls have no heart to think of what shall be thousands and millions of years to come These poor sordid spirits are so glewed to the little trifles of the world that they look not so high as after Crowns and Scepters which Christ hath in store for his faithfull followers And they who never took much pains to secure or clear up their evidences for heaven but have taken it for granted that they must needs go thither at last or counted it an indifferent thing whether they doe or not will be farre from those lively apprehensions of the greatnesse of that love which purchast it and of the excellency of the blisse it self which are necessary for him who can rightly remember either Now to bring those who are yet strangers hereto to such an apprehension of the glory to come by Christ that they may chuse it as their portion and so be joyfully taken up in the expectations thereof in one word I would desire thee whoever thou art that hast but so much common reason as to distinguish between good and evil to consider well whether thou hast not
A very Heathen anciently when he gave an account of the practice of the Christians said of them that they did sometimes in their assemblies by eating and drinking together engage one another to abstain from theft murder adultery and all kind of wickednesse so right a notion he had of the design of this duty Imagine then you heard Christ saying All that will hearken to me and become such as I would have them both in their hearts and lives let them come and take this Sacrament as a witnesse of their resolutions to cleave to me And let the voice of your souls in answer be Lord I am willing to hearken to thee to take thee for my Redeemer and Lord and it is my unfeigned desire to be holy as thou would'st have me and it is my resolution from this time forward by the help of thy Spirit to yield a sincere obedience to all thy commands and not allow my self in any known sin whilst life shall last and in witnesse hereof I take this holy Sacrament which thou hast call'd me to And thus thou do'st plight thy troth to Jesus Christ by partaking of these consecrated Elements as friends are wont to break a piece of silver betwixt them to bind each other the faster to the promises they make or as the Man and Woman expresse their consent to a Marriage by their use of the Ring And hereby thou do'st in effect professe that thou expectest salvation by Christ upon no other terms than as thou shalt be found faithfull in making and keeping this Covenant with him Thou maist easily perceive this is no trifling matter and therefore good reason there is I should advise thee to be serious and deliberate in it least by thy hypocrisie thou should'st even bind over thy self to damnation for if thy heart will not consent to such a Covenant as I have described think not I go about to perswade thee to dissemble with God But yet remember there is nothing in all this that may afford any ground of hesitation or doubting whether thou should'st do it or not unlesse thou art in a doubt whether thou hadst best be sav'd or damn'd for except thy heart be brought to such a subjection to and closure with Christ it 's impossible thou should'st ever be sav'd by him This Wedding-garment of Faith and Obedience which I would have thee put on is as necessary for thy being received into Heaven as for thy being a welcome guest at this Table And by the way consider how you have endangered your souls you who have from time to time received Sacraments and never thought of any such engagement as this which yet the very action it self lays upon you nor ever took care to be faithfull thereto In what a daring manner have you laid your selves open to vengeance And how great is that patience which hath hitherto born with you even whilst you have been wilfully guilty of most horrid perjury I mention not this to drive you to despair no there is yet hope of mercy concerning this thing if now at length you are but sensible of your miscarriage and will carefully reform it for the future Whoever you are that do now from your very hearts render up your selves to God by your Redeemer doubt not of a gracious acceptance you that with such designs do assemble to this Supper and none else are fit to come there of you will Christ say when he looks upon you as once of his Disciples who sat about him Behold my mother and my brethren Mark 3.34 for as he there addes ver 35. whosoever shall do the will of God the same is his Brother Sister and Mother Yea to you will the Lord Almighty say I will be a Father unto you and ye shall be my sons and daughters 2 Cor. 6.18 and and safely may you regard your selves in this comfortable nearnesse of relation to him which brings me to the next 5. You that are thus truly humbled for sin and turned from it to God by Jesus Christ upon good grounds may and ought to believe that God will make good all the promises of his Covenant which he hath wade to such as you are Whereupon you may with an holy boldnesse beg the same at his hands and accordingly do it Humbly beseech him to deal with you according to those gracious promises wherein he hath caused you to trust And for the strengthning of your faith consider some of the chief of them and plead them with God in prayer and beg the blessings contained therein Pray earnestly that the Blood of Christ may cleanse you from all unrighteousnesse that your iniquities may be remembred no more but that you may have peace with him being freely justified by his grace Beseech him to give you his Holy Spirit to carry on the work of faith with power to enable you against temptations of all sorts to fill you with peace and joy to lead you in the way wherein he would have you to walk and to perform that good thing he hath begun in you to the day of Jesus Pray that you may be found in Christ at that great approaching day and may stand before him with boldnesse and be discharged from all accusations and set with the sheep on his right hand and with that little Flock be received into the Kingdome which he hath promised to all that love him And since you are as yet in the body which stands in need of outward comforts and supplies and are in a World where you have relations friends and affairs wherein you are concern'd you have promises touching these also and may therefore confidently beg your heavenly Father who knows what you need to take care of you and yours and furnish you with what he sees convenient for you to direct you in all difficulties and by his providence so to order all your affairs as may tend most to his glory and your good Ask these things of God and what ever you perceive necessary and doubt not but they shall be given into you more abundantly than you can ask or think and look upon them as confirmed to you by the Sacrament But remember alwaies that it is for Christs sake that these mercies are confer'd upon you so that you are to acknowledge your selves unworthy of the least of them and confesse if you had your own desert you should be stript of all comforts and be laid under the greatest miseries Professe therefore that all you hope for is on the account of Jesus Christ who hath purchast all things needfull for the happinesse of his people after a forfeiture was made of all by the fall of Adam through him are these good things promised and these promises fulfilled In the new Covenant founded in his blood they all accompany his Person and are ascertained to those that cordially receive him as the Wife by taking a Nobleman to her Husband is made partaker of his estate and honours So that having Christ to be
common stick Wherefore if you would not be lamentably wanting to your selves and Enemies to your own comforts I beseech you all you that love the Lord Jesus know your own priviledges and fix these things firmly on your mindes and let not the greatnesse of them hinder your belief since they are as sure as great but see that you apprehend a reality in all that is done at this holy Table See Christ himself in the Minister see also the benefits that come by Christ in the Bread and Wine and stedfastly believe that these are given you by Christ as verily as the Elements are given you by the Minister For pardâ—n and right to eternal life are things to be believed not felt so that it is by believing that you must perceive the comfort of them Wherefore beg of God to clear up these things to your apprehensions to remove doubtings to strengthen your faith and to joyn the inward seal of his spirit to the outward administration of his Ordinance And do you take the boldnesse though with the greatest humility to professe to God that you take this Sacrament as an earnest of all those mercies which you hope for from his bounty as hereby you deliver up your selves and all you have and are to his will and pleasure And as an earnest engageth both the Servant and Master to do according to their agreement so is God graciously pleased hereby to engage himself to his Creatures so that not only from his bounty but from his justice and faithfulnesse may you expect whatever he hath promised to do for you There being thus a sacred Covenant transacted betwixt God and your souls see only that you be not treacherous and Heaven and Earth shall sooner fail than God will depart from one tittle of all that he hath said With confidence may you look upon God as your Father Christ as your Head and Husband the Holy Spirit as your Comforter and Guide the Angels as your friends ready at Christs command to do you service the Saints in both Worlds as your Brethren and the full enjoyment of God the Father Son and Holy Ghost in the joyfull communion of Saints and Angels your assured everlasting portion 6. Since you in your selves are poor impotent creatures who without Christ can do nothing but must be beholden to that grace which drew you to this Covenant to hold you in it and to help you to perform your part and since there is of this grace even now to be given but to the prepared soul Let it be your care to get very sensible of your spiritual wants and to come hither earnestly desiring and expecting a supply Consider well with your selves what graces you finde weakest and most wanting what duties you are prone most to fail in and humbly beg suitable help and assistance Examine what temptations you are most exposed to and oftnest overcome by what corruptions you finde yet strongest in you and especially what those sins are to which you are inclined most by nature and custome or are most in danger of by your employments or converse in the World and represent all this in your prayer before God and beg of him more power and strength against them and now by this Ordinance to convey it to you Look round about and consider well the work you have to do the difficulties you are to grapple with the several relations wherein you stand and the duties they bring along with them and noâ—â—ue out for direction and assistance in all And for your encouragement remember what I told you that God hath engaged himself to all you his Covenant-people to afford you whatever may conduce to your happiness now since you stand in present need of the supplies of his grace you may confidently expect the same He that will bring you to the end will give you the means As if a King should call some of his poor subjects to give them great possessions in another Country which he had conquered and should also furnish them with store of money and provisions for the way even thus bounteously wil God deal with you oh Believers Hee 'l put strength into your feet and revive your fainting spirits that you may hold on in your way you that wait upon the Lord though you have no power or might in your selves yet shall renew your strength and run and not be weary and walk and not faint till you come to your journies end By faith in Christ we are engrafted into him as a branch into the Vine and are related as a Member to the Head so that he is become the root of our life and from him shall sap and nourishment be communicated to our needy souls He is the dispenser and fountain of Grace and his Ordinances are as Conduit-pipes and conveyances of the same And of this nature is the Lords Supper Here Believers are made to drink into the Spirit 1 Cor. 12.13 Which words have a plain reference to this Sacrament Baptisme being mentioned at the beginning of the verse Come hither then oh yee thirstie souls and be refresht with the waters of life that shall flow in upon you in abundance Open your mouths wide and they shall be filled Be not straitned in your selves for the bowels of Christ are not straitned towards you Bring hither capacious enlarged hearts and you shall carry away accordingly The anointing of thâ— Spirit which is shed abroad upon you is like the Widdows Oyl 2 Kin. 4.6 It will not stay running whilst there is room to receive it Oh why is it then that we are so empty The fault is not in Christ we must needs acknowledge But let us examine whether we have not stuft our hearts with other things that leave little or no room for grace to be poured in there Are we not fill'd with the love of earthly things Is not our delight most of all in profits and pleasures And our desires eagerly carried out after them Do not Creature-comforts so possess and fill us that they even thrust forth the Holy Spirit from his habitation Do we not grieve him by our carnal joys and cause him to with-draw from us Oh! for shame let it be no longer thus with us Alas how little can these narrow hearts of ours contain of the fullness of God though they were widened to their utmost present capacity And shall we pinch and straiten them yet more by entertaining every trifle there This is that room which the King of Heaven would have entire to himself and shall every common guest every Beggar be lodged there Is it fit that Money-changers and Merchants should fill the house of God That it should be a thorow-fare for every Vessel every common and unclean thing Oh let your hearts then be consecrated as Temples for the Holy-Ghost not Dens of such Thieves as rob God of his due and draw away those desires and affections which he claims as his own And now let the gates of these Temples
flie open that the King of Glory may come in Now in an especiall manner let your hearts be emptied of all trash that they may be fill'd with the good things which are here distributed If you were set to an heap of Gold and bidden to carry away as much as you could grasp you would keep no dirt nor stones in your hand that would make them hold so much the lesse Loosen your selves then from the inordinate love or thought of any created good your Houses or Lands your pleasures or employments withdraw your minds as much as possible from all temporall concernments with which whilst you are taken up the edge of your desire after heavenly things is extreamly abated And if you come not hither with great expectations you are like to be little the better If you have no higher designs but with a little seeming Devotion to eat Bread and drink Wine then Bread and Wine are the best things that you are like to meet with For is it probable you should find that which you never look after But if thou comest hither with an holy greedinesse after greater measures of grace thirsting for the living God as the Hart pants after the water-brooks and as the parched ground gapes for the refreshing showers then fear it not thy desires shall be gratified Thou canst not please God better than by looking for the greatest and best things from him which bring most glory to himself and do most good to thy soul. Beg earnestly then that by the power of his Spirit accompanying this Ordinance thou maist partake yet more of a new and divine nature that thou maist find strength and vigour diffused through thy whole man and maist now receive some communications of that light and life which Christ came into the world that his people might have and that they might have it more abundantly now pray that his Death and Resurrection may have their power and efficacy upon thee that virtue may issue forth from him for thy healing Beg that by this food thy lusts may be poisoned and destroy'd and every grace strengthned and encreast And be particular in thy desires Oh that something may be done this day against my pride and passion my worldlinesse and sensuality my distrustfull fears and discontents Oh that I may be delivered from that listlesnesse dulnesse and distractions wherewith I am haunted in holy duties Oh that I may find my heart hereby drawn nearer to God and carried out with more unweariednesse and cheerfulnesse in his service that I may be better enabled for a conscientious discharge of my duty in every place and relation that I do stand in and in the whole course of my life Blessed God thou who knowest the state of my soul give in to me I beseech thee what thou seest I need most I have an hard heart Lord soften it a dead heart Lord enliven it I am much in the dark Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon me Make me more humble holy and heavenly Oh take this season for coming in upon my soul and bestowing more of thy self upon me that I may become more like to thee These oh God are the mercies thou hast promised to thy people and bidden them to ask these thou art wont to convey by thine ordinances for these things therefore do I wait upon thee this day with no lower aims do I come to thy Table with such precious things is the Lord Jesus wont to feast his guests and of his infinite fulnesse it is that I hope to participate through him it is I hope to be strengthned with might in my inner man even to be made strong by the Grace that is in Christ Jesus Oh will the Head let a member perish Shall a branch wither for want of succour and juyce Blessed Saviour thou who wast so willing to shed thy blood for us art thou not as willing to bestow the fruits of it upon us Art thou not still as mercifull and tender as ever thou wast Thou who didst once so readily heal diseases and cure all that came to thee hast thou not as much mercy to souls as to bodies Lord I believe thou art as able and ready to help as ever If thou wilt thou canst make me clean and it is my hope that thou wilt Outward means without thee cannot do it yet here thou hast bid us attend and thus I do waiting for the descent of thy Holy Spirit Oh grant the requests of thy poor creature Say to me Be it unto thee even as thou wilt yea even as thou wilt oh Lord let it be unto me who art ever readily and strongly inclined to do thy people good Thus stirre up your selves and actuate Faith in such holy breathings as these and be assured such additions of Grace as you are fitted for and God in his infinite wisdome sees meet at present to deal out shall be conferr'd upon you and being refresht and strengthned with this banquet you may cheerfully walk on your way to glory 7. From all that hath been said of the greatnesse of the mercies here commemorated bestow'd and sealed to it will appear most reasonable and just that the hearts of all Gods faithfull servants should here be raised to the greatest height of divine love thankfulnesse and joy I put these together because though in the notion they are different yet in the workings of the soul they usually go together That same goodnesse which works love and thankfulnesse causeth joy too as it 's begun to be enjoy'd or strongly hop'd for And this is a frame most proper to a Communicant all his preparations being much in order to it Therefore should he get sensible of his misery and humbled for his sin that he may have the more affectionate thankfull sense of the mercy that pitied and pardoned him Wherefore labour much with your selves even beforehand to rise up to this ingenuous and pleasant temper which will prove so acceptable both to God and your selves Dwell intently upon that amazing mercy which God hath revealed to mankind in Jesus Christ which thing the Angels themselves desire to look into Ponder well the severall heightning circumstances thereof the meannesse sinfulnesse and misery of man the Majesty of God the dignity of Christ the greatnesse of his condescension and sufferings the fulnesse and freenesse of his purchase and offers Study all his dealings with your selves in particular whereby he hath accomplisht in you the designs of his love and continue these musings till you feel a fire of love and joy kindled within you Let not Satan so farre have his will of you as to cast you into these dejections and groundlesse perplexities which will rob God of his praise and you of your comfort Let him not be able to perswade you that God is cruell and unmercifull and hardly reconciled to returning sinners Have you not the strongest and most unanswerable demonstration at hand to confute him would you desire or can