who has made it one of the marks of the fincerity of our love to God; for whoso hath this world's goods, and feeth his brother have need, and fhutteth up his bowels from him, How dwelleth the love of God in him? which fincerity of our love to God can never be fo well attefted, as when we are calling to mind the divine love difplaying itself to us in the bleeding wounds of our Saviour Chrift. Prayer ought to have its due proportion in our preparatory Quickening exercises for this holy facrament; because it helps. of graces. us to that temper of mind which makes us welcome guests at God's table, and fills our thoughts with such fpiritual objects, as are proper to entertain them at such opportunities. Our thoughts of business and affairs must as much as poffible be laid afide, when we folemnly approach God's prefence; and our thoughts fhould be applied intirely to fuch fpiritual fubjects, as the chriftian facrifice naturally brings into our minds. And prayer in its own naDevotion. ture takes off our thoughts from the things of the world, and all fenfible entertainment, and raises them to God, and those things that concern our eternal life. Prayer masters our evil habits by a lively sense of our duty, and fortifies us against temptation by the ftrength it communicates to our fouls. Wherefore when we defign to approach the holy table, we should prepare the way by devotion, and by attending the prayers of the church in public. And The necefy Whoever prefumes to come to the holy table of the Lord. without this wedding garment, must expect to be of these caft into outer darkness, where is weeping and graces. gnashing of teeth. For, tho' God bears with fuch a finner for a while, his damnation is fure, if not prevented by a timely repentance: if he will continue either wilfully to neglect this his bounden duty, or the means to receive it worthily, his punishment will be intolerable: For who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings? Therefore the church exhorts us to repent of our fins, or elfe not to ⚫ come to that holy table: left, after the taking of that holy facrament, the devil enter into us as he entered into Judas, ⚫ and fill us full of all iniquities, and bring us to deftruction both of body and foul. And because it is requifite that no ness man fhould come to the holy communion: but with a full * truftin God's mercy, and with a quiet confcience; therefore, if there be any perfon who by this means cannot quiet his ' own confcience herein, but requireth farther comfort or 'counfel; then let him go to fome discreet and The ufefullearned minister of God's word, and open his es of a 'grief; that by the ministry of God's holy word Spiritual ' he may receive the benefit of abfolution, together guide. with ghoftly counfel and advice, to the quieting of his conscience, and avoiding of all scruple and doubtfulness.’* Thus, having laid down what is neceffary to qualify a chriftian to receive the Lord's fupper, I can't better fum duty in these particulars than in that fhort exhortation of the church: Ye that do truly and earneftly repent you of your 'fins, and are in love and charity with your neighbours, and 'intend to lead a new life, following the commandments of God, and walking from henceforth in his holy ways; draw near with faith, and take this holy facrament to your comfort, and make your humble confeffion to almighty God.'+ And this brings me to the next part of our duty, how we ought to behave at the time we approach the Lord's Table to receive this holy facrament, and also after we have received the fame. up our tate on thy III. Having duly reflected on our own unworthiness, and meditated upon the fufferings of Chrift, his infinite t receilove to mankind therein, his propitiation for fins, ving, mediand our obligation to thankfulness, arifing from unworthithence, we should receive the holy facrament with ss. great reverence and devotion; with particular attention of mind, accompanying him that adminifters throughout the whole office; which is admirably framed and composed to exprefs all those pious difpofitions and devout affections, which well-prepared minds ought to exercise upon fuch occafions; as our repentance in the confeffion and abfolution; our charity in relieving our poor brethren, in praying for all conditions of men, and in forgiving those that have offended us; our humility in acknowledging our unworthiness; our refolutions of better obedience, in prefenting ourselves areafonable, L See the first Exhortation in the Communion Service. ↑ See the Communion Service immediately before the Confefion. The atonement [Sund. 6. fonable, holy, and lively facrifice unto God. And at the time of confecration, when thou seeft the bread broken Of the fufferings of and the wine poured out, remember how Christ Chrift. fuffered for us; how his head was crowned with thorns, his back scourged at a pillar, his hands nailed to the cross, and the last drop of his blood fpilt with a fpear, for our fins look with an eye of faith on him, who is the facrifice once offered for the fins of the whole world: and beg of God the Father that he would accept of the fat sfaction, and pardon of all our fins, and be reconciled to thee wrought by for the merits of hisbeloved Son, who died for us. Confider what inexpreffible thanks are due from us, for all that he has done to reconcile us to God. Think on thofe great agonies of his foul which drew from him that utmoft difconfolate exclamation, My God, my God, why haft thou forfaken me! and this will produce in thy foul a moft hearty and fincere thanksgiving, and teach thee to admire the love of our Maker, who gave his only-begotten Son to redeem mankind. Should not fuch love as this deter thee from finning any more? them. Thankfulnefs orving to him for them. Covenant When you are about to receive, remember this facrament The benefits is God's feal to the new covenant, in which we reof the new ceive pardon of fins, grace to refift temptations, and a title to the inheritance of eternal blifs; yet fealed in this facrament. upon no other condition than that we do alfo refolve to perform our part of the christian covenant promifed in baptifm; which refolution can then be in no wife better expreffed than by an hearty Amen to that excellent form, when the minifter gives thee the bread and wine, faying, The body of our Lord, &c. And fo conclude with praises and thanksgivings in the hymns and devogive your tions after the facrament is received. While others are communicating, you may enlarge yourselves upon these subjects, always taking care that your private devotions give place to thofe that are publick; and that you lay afide your own prayers when the minifter calls on you to join with him in the publick form of prayer: all which are particularly defcribed in that devout treatife, called the new Upon your receiving banks. Private pay prayer and ing. week's preparation; because the young communicant is there be tions. Means for iner afing vur regard Thus the frequent ufe of the holy facrament is the likeliest means to increase our veneration and refpect thereto. Because, tho' familiarity with the beft of men may apt to diminish that refpect, which was paid to them, by reafon of thofe frailties and imperfections, crament. which are fometimes mixt with very great virtues, and which are only difcovered by a great intimacy with them; yet the oftener we converfewith God in his holy ordinances, the more we shall admire his divine perfections, and the L 2 * See vorus in Sunday 6. Sect. viii, more more we shall be difpofed to conform ourselves to his will and example: because an object of infinite perfection in itfelf, and of infinite goodness to us, will always raise our admiration, and heighten our esteem and respect, the more we contemplate it; it being the discovery of some imperfection, where we thought there was none, that abates the value and reverence we had for any thing or person. Befides, frequent communion preferves a lively fense of The benefit religion upon our minds, and invigorates our fouls of frequent with fresh ftrength and power to perform our obcommunion. ligations. This ftrengthens that intimate union that ought to be inviolable between Jesus and the members of the mystical body of Chrift. This is the proper nourishment of our fouls, without which we can no more maintain our fpiritual life, than we can our temporal without meat and drink. This raifes in us ftrong ardours of love and confolation, fo that it becomes the greatest torment we can endure to offend God, and our greatest delight to do his pleasure. This is the fovereign remedy against all temptation, by mortifying our paffions, and fpiritualifing our affections: for how can we love any finful fatisfaction, which crucified the Lord of glory; and fix our hearts upon perishing objects, when he only deferves the whole man, as he requires? This ratifies and confirms to us the pardon of our fins, and repairs those breaches which our follies have made within us. This fortifies our minds against all thofe afflictions and calamities, which are often the lot of the righteous in this miferable world; and adminifters to us fuch comfort and peace of confcience, as furpaffes all understanding. SUNDAY VI. PART II. V. We now proceed to the third commandment, or the Of the ho- giving GOD the honour due unto his NAME. The your due to highest reverence is due to the name of God, in our God's name. thoughts, in our words, and in our actions. Therefore, when we mention the word of God, or any persons or things which have a relation to his worship or glory, with irreverence, itis, by juft interpretation, denying to honour God in his name. And what the honouring of his name is, I apprehend, |