penitent and faithful thos mortal blessings, for whic and obedience, are neces "Repent and be baptized f sins." " Except ye eat the man, and drink his blood, you." We must sincerely we must heartily believe th walk in the paths of holy c also enter into covenant wi and ratifying our vows of at the holy sacrament of memorate the meritorious The sacraments are the receive the inestimable bless -the pledges by which the THE PRAYE O ALMIGHTY GOD, who in hast appointed ordinances to thy love, and the pledges and and mercy to a fallen world, adore thy sovereign will, and to thy institutions. Ever ch sense of thy almighty power, a ness, guilt, and dependence, ma gance which would lead me to sations, or to neglect and cor means of grace. Thy infinite or which repentance, al re necessary qualifications aptized for the remission of e eat the flesh of the Son of s blood, ye have no life i incerely repent of our sins. elieve the Gospel; we mus of holy obedience; wemas nant with God by baptism ows of allegiance and dust ment of the supper, com torious sacrifice of Christ re the means by which we ble blessings of redemption ich they are assured to us PRAYER. who in thy wise providence aces to be the memorials of es and channels of thy grace vorld, teach me humbly to 1, and reverently to submit ver cherishing a profound wer, and of my own weak ace, may I repress the arro me to arraign thy dispen nd contemn the instituted finite condescension and erfully impress on my understand affecting mysteries of my redempt ken the affections of my soul in vice. Ever mindful that thy al give efficacy to the most humble I discern, by the eye of faith, unde visible signs of thy holy sacrament spiritual grace which they signify to convey. Save me, O God, fr presumption of endeavouring to s hast inviolably connected; of pr thy grace and mercy, while I ne the means and pledges by which t and assured to me. To the hol ordinances of thy church may I e as the divine seals by which thy to my soul-the channels by whic rifying, and refreshing streams fl tain of thy grace. And while I t holy ordinances, and by steadfas partaking of them, keep up my thee, my God, may I ever remen estimable blessings are fully con humble, the penitent, and the fait therefore, O God, sedulously to tues of humility, of penitence, and alone I can be a worthy partaker ments, and expect to receive in t nications of thy grace and love. ever to guide and aid me in my p holy ordinances. Let thy prevent my penitence, confirm my faith, they may seal to my soul tion, and reinstate me in thy favour. Hear me in these tions, O merciful God, and gr ces of thy church establishing graces and virtues, may prep into thy heavenly kingdom, drink at the fountain of immo satisfied with the fulness of glo Jesus Christ my Mediator and MEDITATIC The mode by which authority to administer ved froın Christ, the Divine He CONSIDERING the sacram pledges of divine grace and evident that their efficacyc inherent virtue, but on the p accompanies them. Hence tant truth, that in order to acknowledged by God, and his power, they must be adn who have received a comm pose from him. It is of the u therefore, to ascertain with vested authority to admini ments which derive all their ing administered according t The Son of God, as the kind, was constituted by his ne in thy everlasting DITATION. administer the Sacraments is to be deri e Divine Head of the Church. : sacraments as means and ace and mercy, it must be ficacy depends not on any the power of God which Hence results the impor der to be effectual, to be od, and accompanied by be administered by those commission for the pur f the utmost importance. n with whom God has dminister those sacra1 their efficacy from beding to his appointment. the Redeemer of maaby his Almighty Father thority in the church. The fa ast, who, invading any of the tions, pretends that he has rec from God a divine commissio the confidence of mankind, apostles, he proves, by the exe power, that God is indeed w claim to the ministerial functi day, founded on an immediate God, must be rejected as fal There remains, therefore, n spiritual authority can be d divine Head of the church, agency of a set of men origina authority from Christ, and su mitting "it to the end of the In inquiring concerning the the Christian ministry, we wo authorized in supposing, tha would resemble the Jewish p Christian dispensation was c development and consummat system of grace and mercy, which had been traced in shadows of the Jewish ritua and shadows of the law wer but all gloriously fulfilled in in the ordinances of his spirit presumption surely is not unv 15 under three orders resembl dingly, the notion was pre primitive fathers, that the priests, and deacons, in the were instituted in conformi ders of the priesthood in That Christ transferred in the church to the apostl the commission which he my Father sent me, ever The Father sent him, the」 and Ruler of the church. T fore, were commissioned t the priests, and the governors That this commission wi and to die with the apostles trary, was to be perpetuated evident from the concluding mission: "Lo, I am with y the end of the world." The a successors, therefore, were promulgate the terms of sa and enforce its doctrines a were also commissioned to bless the people, and to pr eucharist the commemorativ death of Christ. They were sioned to govern the church, to exclude from its commu laws, and to administer its |