guilty of the body and blood of Christ nay he eats drinks damnation to himself And this is as true he who eats and drinks in a Christless condition eats and drinks unworthily And what dost thou think will be the consequents of such a sin In stead of a drinker thou becomes a shedder of the blood of Christ as Judas as Pilate as Herod Look upon the Jews and see what it is to be guilty of the body and blood of Christ It is the heaviest curse in the world to be guilty of that blood which should save you pardon you shall that which should be a blood of pardon become a blood of guilt Oh! what is it to be guilty of that blood should take away guilt If thou wert guilty of all the sins of men on earth and damn'd in hell the blood of Christ could pardon thee and take off that guilt But what shal take off the guilt of that that should take off guilt Oh! see what a sin it is and in the fear of God adde not this to all your sin to all your swearings your prophanations drunkenness adde not this to all to be guilty of the body and blood of Christ assure your selves God will not care for your bodies who have no regard to the body of his Son shall your blood be esteemed when the blood of Christ is contemned shall your lives be priz'd when the death of his Son is sleighted nay when you by this sin shal crucifie Christ again judge that Vse 3. Well then if the sin be so great and the punishment which God hath threatned be so terrible what care ought wee to have wee do not prophane this Ordinance and what care to look back into our lives and see whether we have not prophaned this Ordinance The one to prevent sin not cōmitted and so to prevent wrath the other to repent of sin committed and so to turn away wrath But you will say how shal I know whether I have prophaned this Ordinance For the answer of which I refer yon to what I have said in the second Doctrine where I put the triall upon these three Generals 1. the observing Gods order 2. Gods rules 3. Gods ends I shall now adde three more to help to discover whether you have been prophaners of this Ordinance yea or no. 1. When the Sacraments work no further good upon thee thou hast prophaned this Ordinance I have told you the Sacraments are not idle empty things but operative and efficacious toward them who are worthy receivers Christ cannot be fed on but he must nourish the soul A man may feed upon other meats and get no nourishment but he who feeds on this he finds spirituall strength and nourishment Now then when men come hither and return as empty as they came as vile as before there is no fruit can be seen in their lives and conversations here a man may suspect the Ordinance is prophaned When men were filthy and are filthy still swearers and are so still drunkards and remain so still this is an evident demonstration thou hast been a prophaner of this Ordinance Indeed Gods people do not ever get the good they expect never get the good they desire But yet some good is gotten some more strength of Grace some more working out of lust although for the present they cannot apprehend it But the other now they get none they come graceless hither and go graceless away and it must needs be so this is no Ordinance for the working of grace in graceless persons but for the nourishing of grace in those whom God hath wrought grace in as I have shewed at large So that is the first when wee get no good 2. When a man is worse after then before this is an evident sign hee hath prophaned this Ordinance When a man is strengthened in a state of sin returns with more violence to any particular sin as you see Judas the Devil entred into him he took fuller and stronger possession of him and you shall see this the ordinary fruit of prophanation of this ordinance men wax worse worse proceeding from evill to evill It may be when first they came to receive they were fearfull for there is some naturall tenderness of conscience in men and they are afraid to come to so great an Ordinance without some kind of preparation and therefore it may be they did catch up a book the day before and say a Prayer more carry themselves demurely But afterwards when men are grown up in the prophanation of this ordinance they can look upon all the threats upon all the judgements denounced against them in this Ordinance and never start at them never tremble And what is the Reason they trembled before and do not now their condition is never the better it may be farre worse Why here is the reason the custome of prophanation of this Ordinance hath hardened them in their way they now fear nothing their heart is fortified They have sinned away those common principles that naturall tenderness that was once in them Sin is an eating thing it eats out the very heart of every thing which is good in men A man may not only sin away his morall principles but he may sin away the very principles of nature Sin will never leave till it hath made all as vile as it self Rom. 1.26 27. When men live in the prophanation of this Ordinance they wax worse and worse That man runs violently on in sin who sets out from the prophanation of Gods Ordinances because he runs with the Devils strength Satan hath filled his heart with more mischief As the Saints do run more actively in the wayes of God after so the wicked more violently in a way of sin The prophanation of this Ordinance doth strengthen men to further sinne either as 1. One sin doth dispose a man to another helps the birth of another 2. Nay and one sin doth strengthen a man to the commission of another As one duty of godliness doth dispose and inable to the performance of another So one sin doth dispose and strengthen to the cōmission of another The sin of unworthy eating doth strengthen to more sin Such a man he gets more heart to sin he that dares break through threatnings here to sin will not stick to do it in other cases It causes God to give us up to blindness of minde hardness of heart c. which gives Satan further footing in mens hearts to egge them on to all munner of wickedness You see it in Judas and therefore if thou finde thy self worse in life and conversation there 's a manifest sign thou hast prophaned this Ordinance 3. Sign of prophanation When a man feeds upon nothing but the outward element the Bread and Wine and not upon Christ in the promise he prophanes this Ordinance If thou feedst not upon panem Christum as well as panem Christi the Bread which is the Lord as well as the Bread of the
necessity of our nourishment so is there necessity our nourishment should come from Christ he is the staff of nourishment Eo modo quo generamur nutrimur As in naturall life the same way we are begotten the same way we are nourished so in spirituall life Christ hee is the Breeder and so he is the Feeder of grace in us he is the Begetter and he is the Nourisher From Christ we have our graces he is the fountain from whose fulnesse wee receive grace for grace in our regeneration and he is the nourishment of whose fulnesse wee receive * Gratiam gratiae accumulatam grace to grace in our sanctification Hence he is called the Bread of life not onely because he begets life in dead men but because he nourisheth and maintaineth life in living men He is panis spiritualis spirituall bread in the word to beget life and panis Sacramentalis bread in the Sacrament or Sacramentall bread to nourish and to maintain life begotten and hereafter he shall be panis aeternalis our daily bread in heaven to preserve us in holiness with happiness to all eternity And as there is a necessity of nourishment and nourishment by Christ so Christ for this end that we might be nourished hath set up this ordinance of the Sacrament for the nourishment of the Saints in grace for the strengthening our faith to which it hath a proper influence being the seale of the covenant and for the increasing our sorrow and repentance unto which it hath the like influence being the representation of Christ wounded broken bleeding for sinne who looks on Christ bleeding but his heart must bleed c. And so of the rest Christ is a full fountaine and unwilling to be a sealed fountain to you Gratia derivantur à Christo 1. Efficatia operationis 2. Beneficio intercessionis 3. Merito passionis 4. Virtute applicationis he is a treasury of grace and unwilling to be lockt up and therefore hath been so gracious as to set up an ordinance not only to be a seale but an instrument or conduit-pipe to convey grace to us from him the Fountaine of all grace which nourishment he doth convey unto us by vertue of our union and communion with him and application of him to us in these ordinances which though they be all secret wayes of conveyance of nourishment and under ground that the world cannot see yet there is reall nourishment brought down to the soul whereby the soul goes home in a better frame faith more increased affections more inlarged our love more inflamed our desires more quickened and yet more satisfied Quest But I know you will ask of me how faith is here to be exercised for the drawing down of life nourishment from Christ in this ordinance Answ For the answer of which in brief 1. Faith looks upon Christ as the treasury and common stock of grace in whom dwels all fulness Joh. 1.14.16 Joh. 3.34 Col. 1.19 Col. 2.3.9 all our fulnes faith looks on him as the universall principle of life and root of holiness God gave not him the Spirit in measure 2. Faith casts its eye on the promise for the conveyance of grace from him Ille est canalis gratiae ab illo nobis omnes rivuli derivantur Daven it sees a promise for derivation of grace from him to us Faith works virtute promissi by vertue of the promise where there is no promise there can be no faith and therefore faith discovers that there may be communion and participation with this fulness there are such promises made that of his fulness we shall receive grace for grace John 1.16 and Christ is made unto us Wisdome Righteousnes Sanctification 1 Cor. 1.30 and he came that we might have life and have it in abundance Joh. 10.10 3. Sacramenta ex similitudine repraesentant ex institutione significant ex virtute Christi sanctificant Aquin. Faith looks upon this ordinance as an Instrument a means which God hath set up for the conveying of life and nourishment from Christ Though God can do it without yet in God's ordinary way Ordinances are the means of the conveying of life from him to us 4. Now then faith being steeled by such considerations as these that there is a fulness in Christ that there is a promise of this fulnes to be made over to us and that the Sacrament is an Ordinance wherby God as by an Instrument will convey of this fulness of Christ to a poor soul faith goes over to Christ and by vertue of the Promise applying and feeding upon Christ draws down further life and nourishment from him to the soul As one said of the tree of Christ's ascension though the fruit were high and above our reach yet if wee touch him by the hand of faith and tongue of prayer all will fall down upon us So here if we can but touch him with the hand of faith though a palsie hand though a weak and trembling hand if we can but goe to him with a praying heart Christ can with-hold nothing from us And after this manner doth faith form a Prayer to him Lord thou knows I am weak in grace thou seest my faith is feeble my love cold my desires faint my obedience small but thou hast all fulness of grace thou art the Fountain and this Fountain is opened here thou art the Treasury and this Treasury is here unlock'd Those graces I have though weak thou begatst them and wilt not thou now nourish them From thee I had the being of grace and from thee I must have the nourishing Thou hast set up this Ordinance as a means to convey grace and thou hast promised to remember them that are in thy way Isa 64.5 therefore help c. Besides may faith say Lord thou hast been pleased to implant me into Christ and shall I die for want of nourishment thou hast made me a member of Christ and shall I decay and wither for want of influence Oh! never let it be said that a branch in Christ shall wither and decay for want of nourishment when there is so much in the root let it never be said that a member of Christ should wither and die for want of influence and life seeing there is so much in the Head Thou camest Joh. 10.10 that I might have life yea have it in abundance why Lord my graces are weak here are dying affections dying dispositions dying graces Oh! come down before I dye strengthen the things that are ready to dye in me Rev. 3.2 Thou hast raised me from the death of sin let me not again drop into the same grave thou hast wrought graces in mee let them not decay for want of life when such abundance in thee Thus doth Christ formed in the heart cry out for Christ nourishing in the Sacrament The work of grace is called a forming of Christ in the soul Gal. 4.9 and Christ doth but
that we might be healed scourged that we might be solaced drunk the cup of wrath a bitter cup to procure all our sweet draughts He was slain saith Daniel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Dan. 9.26 but not for himself he was wounded for our transgressions broken for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him and by his stripes are we healed Isa 53.5 8. 3. Consider them as effectus peccati as the effects of our sin as those things our sins brought upon him Solvere gelicidium and needs must this melt and thaw our Icie stony hearts Oh will the soul say it hath been I who have been the traytor the murtherer my sins which have been bloody instruments to slay the Lord of glory I have sinn'd Ezek. 18. thou suffer'd 't was I that did eat the sowre grapes yet thy teeth were set on edge I have been thy death yet thy death hath given mee life I have wounded thee yet thou hast healed me yea and even out of that wound my sins made thou sent a plaister to heal mee This consideration must needs fill the heart with sorrow Zach. 12.10 They shall look upon him whom they have pierced and how shall this sight affect them why it follows they shall mourn and be in bitterness of soul as one in bitterness for their first-born They say if one man kill another and you bring the murtherer into the place where the slain person lies the dead will bleed afresh Wee are the murtherers of Christ and we come here to an Ordinance where Christ is represented in his blood as broken and wounded for our sins O! that our hearts might bleed as he bleeds afresh to us so that wee might bleed a fresh to him A Prince wil weep himself when the Page is whipped for him but how should the Page mourn when the Prince is scourged for him My brethren there is infinite more disproportion between Christ and us then between the Prince and the Page the Lord and the slave And how can we then look upon him as wounded scourged pierced for us not be affected with afflicted for our sin the cause of it Bernard saith * Sivis ipsum cognoscere sicut se fregit ita te frange If thou would be conformable to Christ in the Sacrament as thou beholdest a broken a bleeding Christ so labour to behold him w th a broken bleeding heart Look on him in this Ordinance as Mary looked upon him on the Cross when Simeon's Prophesie was fulfilled that a sword should pass through her soul Luke 2.35 for then indeed did a sword pass through her soul when she saw him pierced on the cross so when you see him pierced and broken in the Sacrament which is the lively representation of Christ broken Oh that then it might be as a spear to our hearts as a sword to our spirits that we by our sins have wounded and pierced him This is the second grace to be exercised in this Ordinance And beside these two there are many more to be exercised here viz. Our love to God our hungring and thirsting after Christ There is that in Christ represented to the eye of faith in this Sacrament that calls out for all the affections dispositions and desires in you You cannot see Christ here but it will make every grace within you stir every disposition within you to move every wheel go Who can see him but love him who is so exceeding lovely Who can see him but prize him who is so exceeding precious Who can see him but desire him who is so exceeding desireable Who can see him but delight in him who is the joy and delight of the soul You cannot possibly see him here but all the powers of the soul will be up 1. Your judgements to prize him your wills to choose him and make a new match with him your affections to love him embrace him delight in him And the clearer your sight is here of Christ by faith the more will your hearts be stirred your spirits moved Men that sit here as logs lumps of clay never stirred never taken up they see not Christ they see no higher then the table the Bread and Wine and therefore dead and sensless Oh! but if if one crevise of your hearts were opened to let in but one beam one glimpse of Christ it would set you all on a burning heavenly fire this would warm you indeed But besides these graces to be exercised there is required some demeanours in the soul in this Ordinance if we would sanctifie God in it 1. An humble and holy reverence which is the fruit of that dread and fear of God which is in the heart There is abundance of lightness looseness and vanity in the spirits of men by nature And the Majesty and dread of that great God with whom wee have to do in this Ordinance must consolidate and make our spirits weighty in these great Ordinances The Sacrament is called an Eucharist 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 grata beneficiorum recordatio it is a gratulatory service and God is fearfull in praises Exod. 15.11 which hath speciall respect to the affection wherewith you are to praise him 2. There is required a discharge dismission of all worldly thoughts and businesses When Abraham went up to the Mount to sacrifice he left his servants in the valley Thou art now to go up to the mount where God appears Oh! leave all your servile affections your worldly thoughts in the valley And if any enter do as Abraham did by the Birds that would have eaten up his sacrifice chase them away do by them as you do by straggling beggars give them their pass and send them away In the Temple though there was so much flesh for sacrifice yet there was not one Flie appeared stirring oh that it might be so with us this day that not one thought might arise upon our hearts unsutable to the place and work in hand It is a thing unbefitting these great imployments to have our hearts and thoughts taken up with other businesses what have you to do here with your shops your bags your chests What have you here to do with things of this world Quid proficit si meditationes tuae in lege Dei sint ipsae in se ipsis sine lege sint Bern. in Cant. Oh make not this place an Exchange a Shop for merchandize men are not able to do business in a crowd nor you so great a business as this in a crowd of thoughts But this is the misery you are servants and slaves to the world at other times and therefore the world will master you now If you pass over your hearts to the service of the world at other times the world will make you serve it now Because you have not spirituall hearts in your temporall employments therefore have you carnall hearts in your spirituall employments The lesse of the Sabbath in the
they are costly things when prophan'd Hezekiah knew this full well and therefore hee prayes Now the good Lord pardon all those who come to seek the God of their Fathers though they are not prepared according to the preparation of the Sanctuary he saw the danger of the unsanctified use of Ordinances To be short it will bring upon thee 1. Corporall hurt you see this in the Corinthians 1 Cor. 11.30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you and many are fallen asleep It was some Epidemicall disease flagellum inundans some over-flowing scourge whereby God swept away many in all the quarters of the Church and will you know what was the ground what was the reason of it The Apostle tels us that in the beginning it was for this cause viz. the prophanation or unsanctified use of this Ordinance there was mors in olla death in the cup they partaked of the cup of the Lord unworthily and drank their own death in it the cup of life was become a cup of death the blood of pardon a cup of guilt 2. Spirituall hurt though God do not break out in visible judgements upon the carkasses of men as formerly yet the curse of God eats secretly into the consciences of men You cause God to give you up to blindness of minde hardness of heart and these are curses with a witness the curse of curses is a hard heart 3. It puts you in danger of eternall judgement The Apostle tels you so 1 Corinth 11.29 verse He that eats and drinks unworthily eats drinks his own damnation Better saith * Melius erat mola asinaria collo alligata mergi in pelagus quam illotâ conscientiâ de manu Domini buccellam accipere Ambr. de coena Applicatiof the second Doctrine Ambrose that a milstone were tied about thy neck and thou cast into the midst of the sea then to take the least bit of bread or drop of wine from the Minister with an unsanctified heart and polluted conscience And thus much for the doctrinall part wee will now come to the application Vse 1. If so that whoever hath to do with an Ordinance must sanctifie God in it and that there is so much required before so much in the time so much afterward Oh! how few then shall we finde that sanctifie God in this Ordinance Some there are who openly prophane this Ordinance some who steal a draught of damnation to themselves your close and civill men this is the difference where the common prophane man goes to hell the plain road way this man steals to hell behinde the hedge And indeed the best of men do not sanctifie God as they ought in them Alas what preparation before wee come upon these Ordinances What exciting and stirring up of our graces What exercise of grace here Faith Repentance What thankfulness What obedience afterwards Where is the fruit of so many Sermons Sacraments have they not been like rain that falls on the rocks Are not all these like so many clouds which pass over our heads and leave never a drop of moisture behinde Are wee not like Pharaoh's lean Kine never the fatter for all our feeding Are we not like men sick of an Atrophy who though they feed upon never so good nourishment yet they grow not thereby Do wee not shame our meat discredit those heavenly dainties that we thrive no more by them Other ages like Leah were bleer-eyed but fruitfull ours like Rachel beautifull but yet barren Wee answer not God's care and cost towards us we profit not wee grow not and what 's the reason Because we do not sanctifie God as we ought in these Ordinances therefore are we so weak in faith therefore so feeble in grace therfore corruptions so strong in us they who look the Ordinances should be means for the perfecting of their sanctification they must labour to sanctifie God in them Vse 2. Is it so Then it behooves us to enquire whether we have sanctified God in these Ordinances Wee have to do with God's Ordinances daily you see God requires who ever have to do with his Ordinances should sanctifie God in them Let us then ask the Question of our selves Have I sanctified God in this Ordinance I have often come to the Sacrament but have I sanctified God in it Now you might know this by looking over the things 1. Precedent 2. Concomitant 3. Subsequent But at this time I shall follow this method Would you know whether you have sanctified God in this Ordinance see then whether you have observed 1. God's order 2. God's rules 3. God's ends and this before your coming 2. whether you have exercised God's graces in the time 3. whether you have returned with God's quickenings God's inlargements God's inablements afterward 1. See whether you have observed God's order Now God's order is this to justifie a man put on him the Wedding Garment to sanctifie a man to beget him anew before he bring him on this Ordinance 1. Art thou then justified Hath God given thee an interest in Christ Hath he discovered thy sins to thee Hath he humbled thy soul under the sense and burthen of sin Hath hee revealed to thee what footing and ground there is in the Word for receiving graceless persons to life Hath he cleared to thee the truth fulness freeness goodness of the promise Hath he brought thy soul over to assent to the truth imbrace the goodness rest upon the firmness of it and to bring all this home to thy own soul Thou art a man who art justified and God calls thee hither to put his Seal to thy Evidence that thou mayest be assured for ever that Christ is thine and thou Christs 2. Art thou a man sanctified renewed regenerated Hath God wrought a through an universall spirituall change I say spirituall not a partiall morall formall change but a spirituall reall universall change That thou hast a new judgement new will new affections Whereas before there was disagreement now there is a blessed conformity between God and thee in all things thou seest as God sees loves as God loves thou differs as much from thy self as if another soul lived in the same body thou wert once darkness now light in the Lord once dead now alive once blinde now seest Thou art a man whom God calls hither to strengthen and nourish his own work in thee As the maid whom Christ raised from death hee said Give her meat so Christ having raised thee from the death of sin to the life of grace hee calls thee hither that thou may have meat for the nourishment of spirituall life in thee and this is God's order 2. You may know whether you have sanctified God in an Ordinance if you examine whether you have observed God's rules Now the grand rule is Preparation which lies in two things 1. In Examination 2. Excitation of our graces 1. Examination 1 Cor. 11.28 Let a man examine himself and so let him eat c.
out unto us in his death and sufferings whereon feeding wee get spirituall nourishment for grace and death of sinne The blood of Christ like the waters appointed for the triall of jealousie hath a double property to kill and to make fruitfull to kill our sinnes and make our graces grow to rot our sins and ripen our grace Well then remember that the great dish thou feedst on at this Feast be Christ himselfe Christo sublato nihil restat in sacramentis praeter inanespectaculum Dav. in col Thou canst not feed upon a promise untill thou first feed upon Christ he doth not onely give us title and interest in them but appetite to them If thou feed on him thy stomach will be quicker to feed on them nay if thou feed on him Christus est substantia sacramentorum ejus operatio est ipsa vita sacramentorum thou feedest on all the promises and hast an interest in all the good of them the sweet of all the promises is tasted in Christ All the promises are folded up in Christ and thou canst not feed on him but thou feedest on all and hast the blessing of every one in particular The promises of justification sanctification subduing of corruptions increase of grace upholding in grace interest in glory they are all of them folded up in Christ hee is all The promise doth not but Christ doth justifie Christ doth sanctifie you get nothing from the promise separate from Christ but all the good of the promise comes in by Christ and therefore here terminate your faith And so much for the second upon what object wee must terminate our Faith We come to the third For what benefit must Faith here be exercised Partic. 3. First faith must not bee here acted for your justification it is required you should be justified persons have your sins forgiven before you come hither He that comes hither under the guilt of sin goes away with more guilt and his former guilt is doubled and confirmed on him So that for this benefit faith is not to bee acted as wee shall shew hereafter Secondly faith must not be here acted for Regeneration It is required a man should be borne againe bee in the state of grace sanctified before hee come hither Here is the multiplying of grace but no begetting of grace As in the miracle of loaves Mat. 14.19 there was no new bread created but a multiplying of the bread they had So here is no giving of grace where there is none but a multiplying of grace where it is where grace is there it is increased but it is not here begotten A man may come to the Word though he be gracelesse Rom. 10.14 because the Word is an Ordinance set up for the gathering of men and begetting souls to Christ but none are to come to the Sacrament but such as are begotten anew the Sacrament is not the Font it is not the place where men are born but the table where men are nourished it is not the seed of the new birth but the meat of the new born we must be born before we eat bred before fed begotten before nourished If we come graceless hither we shall go graceless away and worse then we came In particular then Faith must here be exercised for the further assurance of our justification God hath cast down the soule by the ministery of the Word hee hath discovered and revealed the promise brought the soule over to the promise upon which it rests and is justified and hither we come to be further assured of it This was one end why the Sacrament was set up We know the strongest are but weake in faith Fides non toll it sed vincit omnem dubibitationem Dav. there is no such assurance in the world as to expell all doubts fears though to overcome them but though they may be suspended in their actings for a time and well subdued and conquered yet they are not altogether expelled if they were then were there no need of the Sacrament for this end to confirme and strengthen faith Fides potest habere aliquem modum dubitationis salvâ fide and so one of the ends wherfore God set up this Ordinance were in vaine to that man But I say there is no man so sure but may be surer there are degrees of assurance as well as faith and so may we grow up in assurance as well as faith And now for the further assurance of our justification God to the covenant of grace and mercie wherein he promised the free pardon of sin hath annexed the Seale of the covenant whereby we may be more assured Indeed here is no need of this in respect of God our justification is sure with him his intention is as good as his promise his promise as his oath his oath as his seale But it was God's goodnesse to us pitying the weaknesse of our faith he stooped below himself and was not only content to give us his promise but to confirm it with his oath the great seale of Heaven and to all this to afford his Sacraments to seale up all unto us Heb. 18.19 that we might have strong assurance and consolation Heb. 6.18 It was to this end to assure us who have such unbeleeving hearts that God gave word upon word promise upon promise oath to oath seale to seale heaping mountain upon mountain and all to confirm our staggering hearts That we might be strong in him when weak in our selves faithfull in him when fearfull in our selves stedfast in him when we stagger in our selves And how should we exercise faith here and go doubting away How shall we go away trembling after all this confirmation An oath among men is the end of all controversie the concluding of all difference and disputes and shall not God's oath prevail thus much with you Why doe you suffer returne of feares and doubts after such a seale Woe be to us Vae nobis si nec juranti Deo credimus Aug. if we will not beleeve God no not upon his oath Doest thou desire better security Thou shalt never have it thou canst not If you would come up to God and take his security how could you doubt 2. A second benefit for the compassing of which faith must be exercised c. is the increase of our graces or perfecting of our sanctification My brethren we are weak in grace you know how much infidelity and how little faith how much enmity how little love how much obstinacie how little pliable conformity to his will what a deale of formality how little power what hardnesse of heart how little brokennesse of spirit for sin c. And being weak in grace there is a necessity that these graces should bee nourished As there is necessitie of daily bread for the nourishing and upholding of our bodies so there is necessitie of spirituall food for the nourishing of grace in our soules And as there is
In terrorem Reas 1 for the terror and dread of all prophane persons that when you hear how God hath punished others who have prophaned the Ordinances of God you might tremble and not dare to prophane them If God should only threaten and should not sometime execute his displeasure upon such as were prophaners of his Ordinances men would not fear to prophane them They would but make children-play of all the threatnings of God as they did in 2 Peter 3.3 There shall come in the last day 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 scoffers such as shall make children-play of all the threats of God and look upon them but as harmless Bug-beares to keep them in awe only But when God doth back a threatning with a punishment as you see hee did here in the Text and on the Corinthians this strikes dread into the hearts of prophane persons 2. Reas 2 God doth it in cautionem for warning That others 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 might be our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 others woes might be our warnings others sufferings might be standing Sermons to us preaching this lesson to beware of the like sin lest you share in the same punishment therefore God punishes sinne in some * Ne in alios grassetur peccatum that others might beware Deut. 29.20 And those which remain shall hear and fear and do no more wickedly Vt te condiret c. Lot's wife was turned into a pillar of salt to season thee saith the Father Beware of back-sliding Moses was denied entrance into the Land of Canaan for his murmuring and unbelief that thou might beware David was punished for his uncleanness that thou might take heed The man was stoned for gathering of a few sticks on the Sabbath day to teach us to beware of prophaning the Sabbath Jerusalem was destroyed for her Idolatry Babylon for her pride Sodome for uncleanness the old world for drunkenness that these might stand up as warnings to us As the Apostle shewes at large 1 Cor. 10.5 to the 12. Let us not be Idolaters as some of them were c. All these things happened them for ensamples and admonition to us We may well say of all Lege exemplum ne exemplum fias Read the example lest thou be made an example Reade the example of Pharaoh destroyed for his oppression contempt of God and hardness of heart and beware thou of the same sins lest God make thee an example c. Reade the example of Herod destroyed for his pride Jezabel for her paint Saul for his disobedience and beware thou of the like sin lest God destroy thee And as in all others so in this sin of prophanation of this ordinance God doth thus punish the prophaners of it that others might beware of the prophanation therfore did he punish the Corinthians with sickness with death weakness for the unworthy partaking of this Ordinance that so they that remained alive and wee that follow them might beware of the like sin lest wee partake of the like or a worse punishment for usually God's second blowes are more heavie then the first they were the first sufferers for this sin and if they were so heavily punished what may wee then expect if wee do prophane this Ordinance Reason 3. Reas 3 In manifestationem justitiae to declare his justice against sin God hee made a threatning against this and if God should not sometimes punish offenders either men would think they did not offend or if they did that God was not just because he did not punish Therefore God to cleare his justice and convince men of sin doth often sanctifie himself on such as prophane c. 4. Ad removendum scandala Reas 4 to take away scandals as you see he doth sometime punish his own people because their sins occasion scandall God was more dishonoured by the uncleanness of David then by all the filth of Sodome and therefore because hee had caused the name of God to be blasphemed God punisheth him though hee pardoned him and as hee doth punish his own people if they sin because they have given occasion to the wicked within the Church to blaspheme so hee punishes the wicked because they give occasion to them who are without the Church to blaspheme What will Heathens Turks and Pagans say * Ecce quales sunt qui Christum colunt aut hoc non est Evangelium aut vos non estis Evangelici Behold what manner of persons they are who worship this Christ This is either no Gospel or you are no Gospellers Reas 5. Why God doth sanctify himself on such as do not sanctifie him in an Ordinance is to hold up his great Name and the purity of his Ordinances God could no way hold up his dread his fear his holiness his glory his purity truth of his Word if God should not punish such as prophane his ordinances You see what a conceit those had of God in Psalme 50. vers 21. because God did forbear to punish offenders When thou sawest a thief thou consentedst with him c. These things hast thou done and I kept silent I did not presently come forth to punish thee to execute my judgements on thee And what was the fruit of it What conceit did this forbearance of God work in those that were guilty Scelerum paetronum Thou thought I was altogether such a one as thy self that is that I was one who liked and approved of thy doings thou thought thou didst not amiss because I did not punish Here you see God was wronged by forbearing and not executing judgement upon offenders And there was no way for God to cleare himself to hold up his great name but this way to make them know what they had done and therefore it followes I will set thy sins in order before thine eyes Oh! consider this yee that forget God lest c. So you see God doth punish offenders to hold up his great name and there is no other way to hold up the name of God the purity and holiness of God but by punishment of offenders You come to the Sacrament and you prophane this Ordinance God hath threatened death and damnation to every unworthy receiver Why but you know God doth not execute sentence speedily on you and therefore you think you do not offend sure God is pleased with it And therefore God to uphold his Name the purity of his Ordinance and make you know what you have done doth sanctifie himself upon those who do not sanctifie him in this Ordinance sometimes in afflicting visible corporall judgments on offenders as you see in the Corinthians alwayes invisible and spirituall judgements for the present and eternall judgement if you do not repent And this you see God doth to hold up his name which otherwise would be polluted by men As in nature for preservation of the whole particulars perish It s better one perish then unity it self So here for the preservation of the glory of
God which is worth ten thousand of our lives and souls as the people said to David God doth inflict punishments upon offenders And there is no other way to preserve or make whole and repair the honour glory of God c. Men that will not learn by the Word must be taught by works if the Word will not prevail with you to forbear the prophanation of his Ordinances then his works come in If you will be so sensuall and brutish that you will see nothing to be sin but what you feel to be sin in God's hand upon you you shall feel blows enough A rod is for the back of a fool Take this with you What ever you will not learn by faith you shall be taught by sense God makes men feel those things to be evill by sense which by faith they would not believe to be evil When the word will not prevail with men to forbear prophanation of any ordinance or any sin then from word he goes to works lays afflictions judgements punishmēts on men And happy t is if the works bring men again to the word when Schola crucis is Schola lucis when God's house of correction is a school of instruction So saith David Blessed is the man whom thou chastisest and teachest in thy law It was so you see with the Corinthians the word did not prevail God goes to his works inflicts punishments on them sickness weakness death and then hee comes to the word again For this cause many are sick And no doubt but word upon works was more prevalent with them then when it went alone Reason Reas 6 6. To declare his hatred against sin God hates all sin and the neerer a sin comes to God the more he hates it Now this is neer him you dishonour his Name his Ordinances are precious they are his name and therfore God will not hold such guiltless c. Thus you see I have shewed you that God will sanctifie himself upon al those who do not sanctifie him in an ordinance And I have shewed you the grounds reasons of it now to application Vse 1. Oh! then take heed thou who art a prophane person a swearer a drunkard and forbear lest God make this true of thee this day and raise his glory out of thy ruines Thou wilt not be warned by the word look for works thou whom the examples of others will not make to beware take heed lest God do here make thee an example It was the third Captain's wisdome in the 2 Kings 1.13 14. who when he saw God's visible judgements upon the two former Captains hee takes warning thereby and avoids their sins so you that are prophane when you see and heare what God hath threatned against prophaners of this Ordinance and what fearfull judgements God hath executed upon all unworthy receivers which are all Christless all graceless persons Oh! beware of coming hither in thy sins God's Word is true As what hee promiseth is sure to come to pass so what ever hee threatens And though hee prolong and defer the time of execution yet your damnation sleepeth not as Peter saith 2 Pet. 3.7 8 9. verses It shall surely come If God should threaten to strike dead every unworthy receiver you would be afraid to come and how would it make the best of us to look about us whether we are worthy receivers or not But alas what is this threatning in comparison of the other you eat and drink damnation to your selves This is as far above the other as a temporall is below an eternall A punishment upon the body below the everlasting wrath of God and punishment of your souls Better you were strucke dead here then reserved for everlasting death hereafter Thy body escapes here and yet I cannot assure thee of that others who were God's own people were struck with death and sickness and I cannot assure thee that God will not destroy thee with the bread in thy mouth as hee did the Israelites with the Quails in theirs God hath threatened and we know not whether he will execute yea or no God said I will not hold him guiltless that takes my Name in vain Examples we have but other examples are worn out who knowes whether he will not give fresh examples and deal by thee as he did by Nadab and Abihu in the Text even in the face of the whole congregation destroy thee with fire from heaven that all may feare thou went with them but from fire to fire from a destruction by fire to preservation in fire from temporall to eternall burnings But suppose that God should forbear his stroke now yet it is certain to come Quorum ultio reponitur in futurum And wo be to them whose vengeance is reserved for another day Ah it will come then with a witness then with load enough when the guilt of al thy prophanations of this glorious ordinance come together and therefore beware beware as thou loves thy body nay thy soul that for ever beware of unworthy partaking c. Vse 2. If so Oh! then look to it you who go on in a way of prophanation of Gods Ordinances God hath said hee will be sanctified of them who draw neer to him And dost thou believe this Is it true or is it false I know thou dare not but say this is truth God himself speaks it Well then this being a truth what may thou expect who art a prophaner of his Ordinances And to all thy prophanations as it was said of Herod he added this that he cast John in prison so you adde this to all the rest the prophanation of this Ordinance of the Lords Supper Oh! this is a sin for which God will not bear with thee If God would not bear with his own people the Corinthians who yet had grace were habitually disposed were justified sanctified and wanted only actuall preparation and disposition in the Ordinance how shall he bear with thee thou prophane person graceless person If God deal thus with the green tree what shall become of the dry tree If God deal thus with his own what shall become of thee If thus with the bearing what shall become of the barren tree If judgement begin at the house of God where shall the wicked and sinners appear Answer me that if thou canst If God will be sanctified upon his sanctified ones what of thee If God doth punish the want of circumstances what wil he do to thee who wants the substance the main requisite But it may be thou thinks there is no such matter these are but Bugbears c. for thy part thou hast come hither and gone home and found no hurt And hast thou so Bless not thy self in that there is the more behind A black and dismall showre of wrath is sure to fall upon thee one day This is true God will be sanctified of them that come nigh him And this is true also Hee who eats and drinks unworthily is made
A man may be a sanctified person and yet not sanctifie God in this Ordinance if he doe not exercise those Graces gracious dispositions which God requireth here are sutable to the quality and nature of the Ordinance 1. Now the first and great grace that here is to be exercised is Faith Faith is the great Grace which gives admission unto this ordinance and faith is the great grace that is to be exercised and to run through the use of it Concerning which we shall desire to unfold three things 1. What act of Faith is here to be exercised 2. Upon what object we must exercise our Faith here 3. For what benefits faith must here be exercised For the first viz. what act of Faith is here to bee exercised There are these two main acts of Faith 1. An act of Recumbence 2. An act of apprehension application of Christ Fides potest habere aliquem modum dubitationis salvâ fide Daven Fideicertitudo importat firmitatem adhaesionis non quietationem intellectus Aquin. Both these may be exercised here and to our spirituall benefit By the one we go over to Christ by the other we bring Christ over to us The first act of Faith gives us an interest in all the benefits of Christ though as yet the soule is not able to bring home to it selfe the great revenue of mercie and grace which Christ hath purchased and the soule hath an interest in The second act of faith brings it all home In the former God makes Christ ours and we his in the latter wee make him ours Christ in his blood and merits Christ in his grace and Spirit Christ in all his doings and sufferings so far as he is coÌ„municable to poore sinners Now there is not much difference betweene these two acts The difference is not in the nature and essence of the grace both are faith and saving faith nor in the fruits and benefits both give a man union and communion with Christ c. But the difference is in the measures and degrees in the comforts of it To the first there goes a conviction of sin a manifestation and clearing of the promise a perswasion of the truth fulnesse freenesse sutablenesse and goodnesse of the promise And upon all this here is a rowling a resting upon Christ And the latter is but a further degree a bringing over or home all this to its own selfe In the former act the soule hath communion with all the benefits of Christ It 's such an act of Faith as gives a soule union with the person and that cannot be without communion with the priviledges and benefits In this latter there is but a clearer apprehension of it In the first we go over to Christ in the latter we bring over Christ to us In the former we are apprehended of Christ Phil. 3.12 in the latter wee apprehend Christ Now to the Answer what act of faith is here to be exercised unto which I say that that act of faith which doth apprehend and apply Christ is most sutable to this ordinance of the Sacrament hence is this called a taking of Christ a receiving of Christ a feeding upon Christ eating his flesh and drinking his blood all which shew this act is most sutable to the ordinance Here we have an offer of Christ and this act is most sutable to take him as offered And the more strength wee have to apply and bring Christ home the more we feed on him the more wee are nourished and built up But though this act of faith is most sutable to the ordinance yet wee shut not out the other from the comfort benefit of it That which gives the soul union with Christ doth give it communion with all the benefits of Christ Christ and his benefits go together Yet I could wish that every one who hath done this first act of faith would work it up one degree higher to apprehend and apply Christ in the promises of grace Seeing according to the measure of your faith and feeding upon Christ such is the measure of the benefit by Christ here But however be not discouraged such as are weak in faith will Christ receive Rom. 14.1 If hee have a care that others shall not reject them for their weakness but bid them to receive them much more will hee himself receive them and whom he will receive shall receive him If therefore thou art weak in applying faith and thou cannot bring Christ over to thee go thou over to Christ if thou cannot fully apprehend him let him apprehend thee Phil. 3.12 cast thy self into his arms In languidâ fide magis nos apprehendimur a â—hristo quà m quod nos ipsum apprâ—hendamus Chem. by this act set thy seal to Gods truth and expect here in this ordinance that God should put his Seal to thy heart by assuring So much for the first what act of faith is here to be exercised We come to the second 2. Upon what Object must the act of faith be terminated here You must know there are many objects of faith in generall as God himself in the unity of Essence and trinity of Persons the Word of God the Promises of God But there is but one object of Justifying faith and that is Christ God-man Act. 10.43 Gen. 3.15 the Mediatour To him give all the Prophets witness that who ever believes in him shall receive remission of sins This is the object upon which the faith of Adam was terminated Gen. 3.15 the seed of the woman and thereby was justified and had his recovery after the fall This is that object upon which the faith of Abraham who was the Father of the faithfull was terminated who saw his day and rejoyced it was not the believing of the Promise of seed but in the promised seed To him also did the eyes of the faithfull look under the law through the shadows and sacrifices and were justified by Christ to be as we are now by Christ exhibited And upon him must our faith be terminated not only in the first act of faith for justification but also in the exercise of it in this ordinance for the further assurance of justification and increase of sanctification And let it not seem strange to you wee are not so much to deale with a promise here as with the thing promised nor to feed on a promise as upon Christ himself by faith to eat his flesh and drinke his blood Matth. 26.26 Corpus Christiest pabulum fidei Joh. 6.15 This is my body c. Christ is the meat here for the hand of faith to receive the mouth of faith to eate as hee faith My flesh is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed You may make use of the promises here the Sacrament is the seale to every promise in the covenant But the matter of the Sacrament indeed and that whereon wee are chiefly to feed is Christ himselfe Christ as he is laid