speakes in another case Psalme 39. 3. Mine heart was hot within me whilest I was musing the fire burned So whilest we are thus musing and meditating of the love of Christ in his passion the fire should burne and our hearts should waxe hot within us the fire and flame of our love to Christ should kindle and grow hot in our hearts The view of his passion should worke in us an holy Rogo te per illa salutifera vulnera tua quae passus es in cruce pro salute nostra e quibus emanavit pretiosus ille sanguis quo sumus redemptiâ— vulnera hanc animam meam peccatricem pro qua etiam mori dignatus es vulnera eam igneo potentissimo telâ— tuae nimiae Charitatis Configcor meum jaculo tui amoris ut di cat tibi anima mea Charitate tua vulnerata sum c. Aug. lib. medit c. 37. passion of love The view of his wounds should wound our hearts with holy and enlarged affection to him Follow and goe along with CHRIST in all his sufferings in thy meditations Begin where his passion begun Iohn 12. 27. follow him thence into the Garden from thence into the High Priests Hall from thence into the Iudgement Hall from thence to the Crosse There is not a passage in all the story that affordes not matter of meditation and not a meditation that may not set forth his love to thee and kindle thine to him Thus therefore at the Sacrament should our hearts be imployed in the meditation of CHRISTS death and passion and thus should we make that good Cant. 1. 12. Whilest the King Sitâ—â— at his Table my spikenard sends forth the smell thereof that is whilest CHRIST had communion with me my graces were exercised and manifested themselves even then whilest I had fellowship with him As CHRIST sate at Table Mary tooke a pound of oyntment of Spikenard very costly and annoynted the feete of Iesus and the house was filled with the odour of the oyntment So the King sits at his table and when wee sit at his table in the SacrameÌ„t we shold cause our spikenards to send forth the smell thereof That we do when in the ordinance we take up our hearts with the holy meditations of the love of Christ in his bitter passion Such holy meditations are the smell of the spikenards and are as pleasing to Christ as Maries spikneard was that filled the whole house with the odour therof This Christ commandes and makes it one maine end of the Institution of the Sacrament Doe this in remembrance of me therefore appointed he the Sacrament that therein we might in speciall manner meditate upon his passion and his love to us therein David had a Psalme of Remembrance Psalme 38. in the title But for the death of Christ his love in it and the benefits by it we have not onely some Psalmes of Remembrance as Psalme 16. 22 and 69. and others but besides the Lord Christ hath to the worlds end appointed a Sacrament of Remembrance that this great worke of CHRISTS death and his infinite love and mercy therin might above all other workes bee meditated upon and had in remembrance One specially in the Evangelists is worth our notice Some of Christs workes are specified only by one Evangelist at his turning of Water to wine as his healing the sick man at the poole of Bethesda his healing that blind man Ioh. 9. Some of them are specified by two Evangelists as the history of Christs birth by Matthew and Luke Some things are recorded by three of them as the Institution of the Sacrament of the Supper But as for Christs death and Passion it is recorded by them all foure Onely two write the History of his birth but all foure the History of his death without doubt to teach us that though all Christs workes and actions are to be seriously minded meditated upon and remembred yet none so speciall as his death and sufferings And therefore specially should his death be meditated upon at the Sacrament whose institution was purposely for the remembrance of it Therefore ought men to make speciall conscience of this duely How cold and dead a remembrance of Christs death is the receiving of the Sacrament without this serious meditation of the bitternesse of his death and the sweetnesse of his love therein Wee make not good the end of the Sacrament without it yea wee as much as in us lyes make the Sacrament but a dumbe shew What remembrance is there of Christs death in such receiving the Sacrament Makes it bee in a fresh crucifying him againe by our unworthy receiving 2 Secondly An exercise of Repentance And this exercise of Repentance must be in two things 1. First in godly sorrow for sinne 2. Secondly in a solemne renewing of our Covenants with God 1. First in godly sorrow for sinne for our owne sinnes in particular for which Christ did undergoe all that sorrow and smart in his sufferings Wee have in the Sacrament a representation of the sufferings of Christ wee have him crucified before our eyes Behold saies Iohn the Lambe of God that takes away the sinnes of the world In the Sacrament should we behold him taking away the sinnes of the world In it we see and behold Christ crucified wee see his hands feete and side pierced now this sight should so affect us as it should pierce the very hearts of us What The blessed Sonne of GOD to strip himselfe of his glory to humble and abase himselfe to the ignominious and accursed death of the Crosse The glorious Sonne of GOD thus abused and abased Why How comes this about The only begotten Sonne of the Father to make such bitter lamentation My God my God why hast thou forsaken me What may the cause of all this be Alas all this was for our sinnes It was not Iudas not the Iewes not Pilate not the Souldiers but they were our sinnes thy sinnes my sinnes that put the Sonne of God to all his sorrow We we and none but we were the evill beasts that devour'd this Ioseph Our sinnes were so heinous and had so provoked the Iustice of God that there was no way to satisfie Gods Iustice to appease his wrath and to make our atonement but by the pretious bloud of the Sonne of God crucified on the Crosse And shall I now see my sins lye so heavy upon him as to make him sweate bloud shall I see him even squeezed under the huge weight of my sinnes shall I see my sinnes crowne him with thornes nayle his hands and feete to the Crosse Gore his side with the speare with an unpierced heart Oh the deepe sorrow that our hearts should bee leavened withall when wee see Christs body brusing and bleeding in the Sacrament Christ our Passeover is sanctified for us The Passeover was to be eaten with bitter herbes or will bitternesses Exod. 12. 5. And how happy is that soule that in this respect can say at the
555. l. 18. at r. of p. 586. l. 13. exacted r. excited p. 578. l. 3. following r. softning Perlegi hunc Librum cui titulus A worthy Communicant in quo nihil reperio sanae fidei aut bonis moribus contrarium quò minus cum utilitate publicâ imprimatur Tho. Weekes R. P. Ep. Lond. Cap. Domest THE INTRODVCTION TO THE FOLLOWING Treatise grounded upon 1 CHRON 15. 13. For because ye did it not at the first the Lord our God made a breach upon us for that wee sought him not after the due order CHAP. I. That GOD must be sought in a right Order as well as in a right Ordinance WE reade CHAP. 1 1 Sam. 4. 3 4. That the Israelites being beaten by the Philistims they send for the Arke of God from Shiloh to bee brought into the Campe that it might save them out of the hands of their enemies Such be the silly and the poore confidences of carnall and superstitious hearts to rest and rely more upon outward signes of Gods presence and to betrust their safety with them than to take care for the presence of God Himselfe As if God had beene so chained to his Arke that it comming God himselfe must needs come into their Campe. A far wiser course it had beene to have taken a course to have fetcht the Lord of Hosts himselfe then the Arke of the Covenant of the Lord of Hosts GOD could and would have holpen them without the Arke but alas What could the Ark doe without God They might have learned another thing from Moses Num. 10. 36. And it came to passe when the Arke set forward that Moses said Rise up O Lord and let thine enemies be scattered He knew and taught That though the Arke did rise yet if God sate still it would not make one enemy flie but let God arise and let his enemies bee scattered it is Gods rising that is the enemies scattering And suppose there had beene somewhat in the outward presence of the Arke yet what hope of helpe could they have by it as it came attended And the two Sons of Ely sayes the Text Hophni and Phinehas were there with the Arke of the Covenant of God Little likelyhood of Gods being there when they were there Their presence in the Campe was likelier to do them more mischiefe than the Arkes presence was like to doe them good But they so dote upon the Arke and put such confidence in it have it they must and have it they will not taking care to bring God along with it nor being in any feare of miscarriage though it comes upon the prophane shoulders of Hophni and Phinehas Well and when they have it how speed they That confidence of theirs was miserably checkt not onely by their owne ruine and overthrow but by the captivity of the Arke Even that which they hoped should have saved them out of the hand of their enemies was delivered into the enemies hands He delivered his strength into captivity and his glory into the enemies hand Psal 78. 61. So righteous it is with God to let men see the vanity of their fond confidences That the winde shall carry them all away that vanity shall take them Isa 57. 13. That he rejects such confidences and that men shall not prosper in them Ier. 2. 37. Well but now though Israels confidences be in the dust yet have the Philistims little reason to vaunt of their victory The Arke though it saves not Israel yet proves a plague to the Philistims God soone makes them weary of their booty and make them glad to returne it home againe and that with flying colours and in an honourable manner And now the Arke returning is not seated as before at Shiloh where it had beene till its captivity ever since the dayes of Ioshua but was placed in the Citie of Kiriath-Iearim a Citie in Iudah There it remained separated from the Tabernacle unto the time of Davids ferching it thence which could not be lesse than about the space of forty seven yeeres Samuel and Saul governed the people forty yeeres and David raigned in Hebron seven yeares before he came to Ierusalem All this while were the Arke and Tabernacle separated yea the Ark was not inquired at all the dayes of Saul 1 Chro. 14. 3. Out of all which by the way we may note That the want of some Ordinances of GOD doth not annull a Church of God A Church may want some Ordinances Ordinances of great weight yet be a true Church or else for these forty seven yeeres there had beene no true Church nor true worship in Israel and so not in the world The Arke and enquiring at it was a matter of great weight in Gods Church and worship It was one of the most speciall types of Christ a symball of Gods gracious and speciall presence it was the place of Gods speciall residence hee dwelt betweene the Cherubims and from thence hee gave answers It was the first and chiefest of al the holy things for it principally was the Tabernacle made Exod. 40. 18. 21. It sanctified the whole Tabernacle The places are holy whereinto the Arke of the Lord hath come 2 Chro. 8. 11. And yet this Arke out of the Tabernacle the place of worship and sacrifice the space of forty seven yeares Yea more during all Davids time it continued separated from the Tabernacle it being pitched in a Tent by it selfe at Ierusalem and the Tabernacle being at the High-place in Cibeon 1 Chron. 1. 4 5 6 13. The Arke and the Tabernacle never came together more after it was once removed from Shiloh but when Salomon built the Temple and the Tabernacle was dissolved then was the Arke placed in the Holy of Holies in the Temple And yet all this while who will say they had not true worship and a true Church wants therefore and defects in a Church unchurch it not The Arke now having continued forty seven yeeres at Kiriath-Iearim David being made King over all Israel and come to Ierusalem the first thing we reade he did after his plenary possession of and Inauguration into the Kingdome is to bring home the Arke from Kiriath-Iearim unto Ierusalem In the bringing it home they meet with a shrewd check and a sore miscarriage in the death of Vzzah and that by reason of a miscarriage in the carriage of the Arke upon a Cart which should have been born upon the Priests shoulders David finding their former errour and their faile in a prescribed formality doth now a second time set upon the work and in this Chapter and place direct the Priests what course to take and gives them to understand that for want of this observance God gave them that former blow in Vzzahs death Sanctifie your selves both ye and your brethren that you may bring up the Arke of the Lord God of Israel namely upon your owne shoulders according to the Canon Exod. 25. 14. as the fifteenth Verse of this Chapter explaines it For
with all his benefits Take eate drinke I see then God offers me Christ to be taken His body to be eaten His bloud to be drunke Here then must faith Actuate it selfe and set it selfe on worke striving with all it's might to take Christ to eate and drinke Christ offered Lord Christ as verily as I take and eate and drink these outward Sacramental elements so verily doe I by my faith receive thy selfe into my soule and feede upon thee for spirituall nourishment Christ is offered to us offers to come in and enter into our hearts The Act of faith now then is that Psalm 24. 7. Lift up your heads ô yee gates and be yee lift up yee everlasting doores But why must these gates and doores of their hearts be thus lift up And the King of glory shal come in Christ is come and he makes an offer to come into your hearts open therefore the gates of your hearts lift them up even from off the hookes that faire and full way may be made for his ready entrance when a great man specially a King comes to a mans house he will not only open the small wicket his little doore but he sets open his great gates throwes them wide open to make spatious way for his entrance Now Christ in the Sacrament offers Himselfe to come to us the King of glory offers to come in Here then let thy faith busily bestirre it selfe in widning the passage and opening thine heart to make Christ way now strive might and maine to stretch open thine heart to such a breadth and largenesse as a fit way may be made for the King of glory to enter Doe in receiving Christ at the Sacrament as Zacheus did in receiving him into his house Luk. 19. 5. Zacheus saies Christ Make hast and come downe for to day I must abide at thine house Here Christ offers Himselfe to Zacheus and upon the offer made instantly Zacheus made haste and came downe and received him joyfully Think upon that gratious offer of Christs how Zacheus bestirred himselfe with what haste he leaped down from the Tree with what readinesse and heartinesse he brought CHRIST home with what sweetnesse of affection he claspes about CHRIST when he entertained him into his house Christ makes thy soule the same offer at the Sacrament now let thy faith as busily bestir herselfe as Zacheus did hasten open claspe embrace welcome and receive CHRIST thus offered to thee Secondly In the Sacrament wee have Sacramentall promises This is my body This is my bloud This is my body which is given for you my blood which is shed for you Shed for the remission of sinnes Take Eate Drinke saies our Saviour Well what if we doe so what shall we get by it What shall we be the better for it A great deale the better for this is my body my bloud I promise you in the use of this Ordinance you shall receive my body and my bloud that body which was once crucified and offered for the redemption of the world that bloud which was shed for Recon 〈…〉 n and Remission of sin and you by being made partakers hereof sâ—â—ll receive efficacious vertue of my quickning death So that these are Sacramentall promises So that here is that which may abundantly set faith on worke for the promises are the most proper object for faith to worke upon Well then CHRIST saies This is my body given for you my bloud shed for you shed for the remission of sinnes Let faith now beleeve these promises Lord I beleeve that thy body was given for me thy bloud shed for me thy bloud shed for the remission of my sins Lord I cheerefully and gladly beleeve that I am now made partaker of thy body and bloud and that my sinnes are pardoned in thy bloud Faith must doe here as David doth Psal 60. 6 7. God hath spoken in his holinesse that is hee hath made me a gracious promise that he will bring all the land under mine obedience Here David hath Gods promise marke now what followes I will rejoyce saith he I will divide Sechem I will mete out the valley of Succoth Gilead is mine Manasseh is mine See how hee actuates his faith upon Gods promise so as to rejoyce so as to take possession of Sechem Succoth Gilead and Manasseh So Christ hath spoken in or by his holinesse This is my body which is given for you this is my bloud which is shed for you for the remission of your sins Here be Sacramentall promises Now upon the view of these promises should a man Actuate his faith and say I will rejoyce I will eate Christs flesh I will drinke his bloud Christ is mine His death is mine His Resurrection is mine Remission of sin is mine Pardon and Heaven are mine And thus by this Actuation of faith should a man with Iohn leane on CHRISTS bosome Iohn 13. 23. When he is at the Sacrament so participating of him as to have communion with him in all his benefits Thus leane wee on our beloved Cant. 8. 5. when at the Sacrament Againe This is my bloud shed for you for the remission of sinne Loe here is that bloud offered me to drinke and promised to me in the Sacrament by the shedding wherof remission of sin was purchased yea here is remission of sin not onely offered me and promised me but of fered and promised under seale Now then Actuate thy faith and say Lord I accept Lord I beleeve this sealed pardon of my sin And faith thus Actuated will make good unto us the Sacramentall promises for as it is true in case of prayer Mar. 11. 24. What things soever you desire when yee pray beleeve that ye receive them and yee shall have them so is it as true in case of receiving What things soever ye desire when ye receive doe but Actuate your faith and set that on worke for them beleeve that yee receive them and yee shall have them Thirdly In the Sacrament we have Sacramentall representations There is in the Sacrament a visible remembrance of CHRISTS death and in the breaking of the bread and powring out the wine there is a representation of Christs death and Passion When I see the wine powred out it represents unto me the shedding of Christs bloud here I see Christs bloud shed on the Crosse What is to be done now when I see this bloud in the Sacrament Do but consider that same Exod. 24. 6 8. Moses tooke of the bloud of the Sacrifices and put it in basons and he tooke the bloud that was in the basons and sprinkled it upon the people haply with a bunch of hysope as the manner was to which David alludes Psal 51. Purge me with hysope Now so must it be here The bloud of our burnt offering which was shed for us the Lord hath put in basons in the basons of the Word and Sacraments and out of these basons it must be sprinkled The Sacrament of the Supper is one bason
in Christo muÌ„dum reconcilians sibi patet Arcanum coâ—dis per foramina corporis Patent viscera misericordiae Dei Quidni viscera per vulnera pateant In quo enim clarius quam in vulneribus tuis eluxisset quod tu domine suavis multae misericordiae c. Ego vero sidenter quod ex me mihi deest userpo mihi ex visceribus domini quoniam misericordia affluunt nec desunt foramina per quae affluant Bernard sâ—p Cantic Ser. 61. They pierced my hands and my feete Psal 22. 16. They pierced his side with the speare and there came out water and bloud nay there comes out of those wounds honey and oyle unto faith By these passages may our faith sucke honey and oyle out of the rocke and may taste how good and sweete the Lord is The nayles the speare the wounds all preach unto faith a reconciled God that God is in Christ reconciling the world to Himselfe The Lords bowels are laid open by these CHAP. 21 wounds so as throughout them wee may see the tender bowels of his mercy and so as through them mercy flowes from those bowels unto us Oh my Dove that art in the clefts or holes of the Rocke Cant. 2. 14. Some of the Ancients understood those clefts of the Rock the wounds of Christ in which the Dove the Church hides and shelters her selfe However it may be alluded to and that should be no work of faith at the Sacrament when it sees those clefts of the Rocke opened like a Dove to betake her selfe therunto for shelter and security against all feares and distresses Tuta requies est infirm is peccatoribus in vulneribus salvatoris securus illic habito Patent mihi viscera per vulnera August Mannal Miles aperuit mihi latus Christ lancea ego intâ—ali ibi requiesco securus Aug ibid. that wrath and guilt may put the conscience to Doe any feares of wrath trouble thine heart Doth any Conscience of guilt disquiet thee with the feares of hell Why now in the Sacrament for thy comfort behold the holes in the Rocke where thou mayest be sheltred Dwell now in the rock and be like the Dove that makes her rest in the sides of the holes mouth Ier. 48. Nessell thy soule now at the Sacrament in the clefts of this Rocke See and fully beleeve thy peace to be made with God in Christs bloud and look upon him wounded for thy transgressions with such a faith as may fill thine heart with an holy security against all such feares faith thus Actuated cannot but send thy soule from the Sacrament with much comfort And thus much for the Actuation of faith which is the third thing in that holy disposition requirrd in the receiving of the Sacrament The fourth thing followes which is an exercise of thankesgiving to God for the great worke of our Redemption by the death of Christ And this must rise from an heart affected and enlarged in the use of the Ordinance the heart being warmed and growing hot with the sense of Gods goodnesse a man should breake out and give vent to his heart in magnifying CHAP. 20 the mercy of God for the death of Christ represented in this Ordinance and the fruit thereof is communicated to us therein In the use of our naturall foode there followes a cheerefulnesse of spirit Act. 14. 17. Filling our hearts with foode and gladnesse Now when the heart is cheered and refreshed with the creature it should then let out it selfe in thanksgiving to God Nehem. 9. 25. So they did eate and were filled and became fat and delighted themselves in thy great goodnesse Psalm 22. 26. The meeke shall eate and be satisfied they shall praise the Lord that seeke him So when the heart is cheered with the sense of the sweetnesse of an Ordinance of the Sacrament when the Lord hath filled the heart with spirituall foode and gladnesse when we have beene filled and have delighted our selves in Gods great goodnesse in the Sacrament then let we out our hearts to blesse and praise the LORD See it in David Psal 63. 5. My soule shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatnesse That blessing he looks for in Gods ordinances and what should then follow And my mouth shall praise thee with joyfull lippes When men are excessively filled with Wine they shout and make a noyse and sing and take on The Prophet alludes to it Psalme 78. 65. like a mighty man that Fons vitae replementem meam torrente voluptatis tuae inebria cor meum sobria ebrietaâ—e amoris tui Aug. medit c. 37. shoutes by reason of wine Such excesse and such drunkennesse the Apostle forbids Ephes 5. 18. Be not drunk with wine wherein is excesse But yet there an holy and a sober Inebriation the Apostle allowes and calls for But be filled with the spirit Drinke deepe of that Wine And where is that Wine to be drunke As in other Ordinances so in the Sacrament Here Christ makes merry with his people Eate O friends drink ye drink abundantly ô beloved or be drunken with loves Now when a man hath liberally Cant. 5. 1. drunke of this Wine of the spirit at the Sacrament what should follow That which followes in that CHAP. 21 Text Ephes 5. 19. Speaking to your selves in Psalmes and Hymnes and spirituall songs singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord. When a Quo interius exteriusque rubricati a sapientibus hujus saeculi judicamur amentes man is made Red with this wine within and without as St. Cyprian speakes then should a man let out his heart in holy Iubilitions and Thankesgivings Haec ebriâ—tas non accendit sed extinguit peccatum c. Cypr. de caen Dom. unto God Doe this in remembrance of mee that is in remembrance of the great worke of your redemption wrought by me and doe it in a thankfull remembrance So remember it as to have your hearts in special manner enlarged in all thankefulnesse unto me for this worke And from this it is that this Sacrament beares the name of the Eucharist as being the Sacrament of Thankesgiving for the work of Redemption in the remembrance whereof it is celebrated Our Saviour gave a patterne of this Matth. 26. 30. When they had sung an Hymne So then they sang an Hymne together An Hymne is a Psalme of praise So the Iewes in the celebration of the Passeover did sing the 113. Psalme with the five following Psalmes which they called the Great Hallelujah which they began to sing after that cup of Wine which they called Poculum Hymni seu laudationis the Cup of praise And thus it should bee with us in receiving the Sacrament At all times upon all occasions wee should sing Hallelujahs to GOD but at the Sacrament wee should sing a Great Hallelujah at all times wee should thankefully blesse GOD for the worke of our Redemption but at the Sacrament we should have our hearts greatly
enlarged in more speciall manner to blesse God for Christs Death and the sweet comforts received in the use of the Sacrament Fifthly and lastly this holy Sacramentall disposition stands in an exercise of love and mercy In an exercise of love when wee looke upon our fellow members communicating with us we should cleave to them in CHAP. 20 one spirit as unto members of the same body 1 Cor. 10. 17. For we being many are one bread and one body for wee are all partakers of that one bread So that in partaking of that one bread we are one bread and one body Many cornes goe to the making of one loafe but yet they will not be knod into one loafe unlesse by the mixture of some moysture they bee wrought and fastned together Love exacted stirred up is that moysture that unites us many severall graines into one bread So 1 Cor. 12. 13. We drinke into one spirit that is into one soule In an exercise also of mercy and compassion to the poore members of Indigne manducant qui corpus sanguinem Christi in Sacramēto manducunt bibunt membra autem ejus Evangelio non agnoscunt Aug. cont lit Tetil l. 2. c. 55. Christ shewing mercy to them in contributing to their necessities And here specially at the Sacrament shold that ground work with us 2 Cor. 8. 9. And thus we see what the concomitant duties are and such as accompany the Action Chap. 21. Subsequent duties and such as must follow the Sacrament received CHAP. 21 VVEE are now come to the third and last sort of Duties in which the due order of receiving the Sacrament stands and they are subsequent duties such as follow after the Sacrament received There ought to be a speciall care of duties after the Sacrament as well as before and in receiving for though a man may come conveniently prepared and may in a good measure be holily conversant in the duty of receiving yet if a man be carelesse and looke not to himselfe after the duty is done he may marre all A man may come to his meate prepared with a good stommach may eate it with a good appetite and feed hungrily and heartily and yet as soone as he hath eaten may doe that which may spoile all If a man before his meate bee well out of his mouth fall to sleepe or to serious study or to violent exercise or specially if he shall after meate eate some unwholesome food or take some poyson these must needs hinder digestion and concoction these must needs make him the worse after his meat though he come to it prepared with a good appetite and fed upon it with a good stomach Physitions before they give physicke prepare the body for it and give it when the body is in a convenient disposition for it but that is not all They have also a speciall care to order and dyet a man after he hath taken his physicke For though a mans body may be well prepared before taking physicke and be well disposed in taking it yet if a man be not afterwards carefull of taking cold be not carefull what and when he eates his physicke will not kindly worke nor doe him any good Carelesnesse in dyet in taking cold afterwards may Qui pharmacum sumunt solent eo die ab omnibus abstinere quibus pharmaci vis operatio impediri potest Gualth in 1 Cor. 11. 27. dead and kill the force of the physicke so as it may not onely doe a man no good but much hurt though the physicke were very good and proper for his body and disease A great care therefore ought to be had of a due and a right ordering our selves after the Sacrament And this care thus to order our selves stands in these two things First In a mans examining himselfe after he is come from the Sacrament Let a man examine himselfe and so let him eate and so let him drinke So also let a man eate and drinke and so let him examine himselfe A man is seriously and faithfully after he hath beene at the Lords Table to consider between God and his owne soule what entertainment and welcome GOD hath given him whether God hath dealt with him at this Supper as Mary delt with CHRIST at that Supper Iohn 12. 2 3. whether the LORD hath powred any precious oyntment upon him or not what comfort and increase of faith and grace he hath received what quickning what refreshment what friendship and communion with CHRIST what vertue hee hath found to flow out of Christ into his owne soule Now upon such examination a man shall finde that it hath been well with him at the Sacrament or it hath not he hath had a good day of it or no good day And accordingly as he findes so he is to proceed First then if a man have found no joy comfort enlargement no communion with nor answer from CHRIST but upon examination findes that he hath beene unfruitfull and that his heart was full of deadnesse hardenesse and dulnesse of spirit then two things are to bee done First Suspect thy selfe that some miscarriage hath beene in thee either in thy preparation to or in thy performance of the duty Labour therfore to finde out where the faile was and what it was that hindred the efficacy of the Sacrament that caused God to keep his hand close that caused him to deny to anoynt thee with fresh oyle And having found out what hindred and deaded the Sacrament judge thy selfe for that and be seriously humbled for it And this being thus done so that after our receiving we can but be sensible of our owne senselesnesse of heart in that holy duty and can mourne for it and complaine to God of it and of our selves we neede not be overmuch dismaied and cast downe because this is one fruit of the life of Christ which was undoubtedly received in the Sacrament Though thou hast not that thou wouldest have had yet thou hast that which was worth the going for Construe this very thing as a fruite of going to the Sacrament and be thankefull for that Secondly Endeavour by after paines in prayer and humiliation to quicken and awaken the efficacy of the Sacrament for this wee must know as a point of great use and comfort that Sacraments doe not alwaies worke for the present but the efficacy may come afterwards It is in this case as in that 1 Sam. 10. 1. 6 9. Samuel anoynted Saul and said The Spirit of the Lord will come upon thee c. And it was so that when had turned his back to goe from Samuel God gave him another heart The Spirit of God came not upon him in the Anoynting but afterwards when hee was departed from Samuel The Actions of God are of eternall efficacy though he put forth that efficacy in such times and seasons as he sees good Though the Sacrament worke not for the present in the administration yet if wee bee after touched with a