A TREATISE OF Sacramental Covenanting WITH CHRIST SHEWING The ungodly their contempt of Christ in their contempt of the Sacramental Covenant And calling them not to a profanation of this holy Ordnanice but to an understanding serious entire dedication of themselves to God in the Sacramental Covenant and a Believing Commemoration of the Death of Christ. By M. M. LONDON Printed for J. Sims at Gresham-Colledge-Gate in Bishops-gate-street 1667. TO THE READER Readers UPON the perusal of this Treatise I finde the Subject of it to be needful and seasonable the Design of it high and excellent the Stile exceeding plain and pressing purposely suited to the capacity of the Ignorant for whom it is written Concerning all which I think it meet to inform you at the entrance as foreseeing that in all these it is not unlike to be much mistaken 1. Some think that a Sacrament is a narrow and barren and not very necessary Subject to be treated of But such understand not that it is the most great and noble Subject as being the very Summary and kernel of all our Religion for it containeth in it the whole Covenant between God and Man wherein he giveth himself to us as our GOD our reconciled Father our Saviour and our Sanctifier and we give up our selves answerably to him and thankfully accept his gift upon his terms For the two Sacraments are the solemnizing of this sacred Covenant wherein we profess with seriousness resolvedness and fidelity to dedicate and devote our selves entirely to God our Father our Redeemer and our Regeneratour Which if we do sincerely the saving benefits of the Covenant are ours In which sense the Ancients truly taught That Baptism certainly washeth away all sin 2. Therefore this Doctrine must needs be seasonable at a time when our lamentable differences about Sacraments have with great numbers both of the consciencious and the careless brought them under abuses omission or contempt Many persons whose desires are to worship God according to his will beleive that it is their duty to hold the communion of Saints in Churches which have a more holy constitution guidance Discipline and administration than most of our publick Churches have from which because the Law restrains them some of them communicate now here but in secret and some so seldome there as is next to a total omission The more ignorant people seeing these shun the publick communion encourâ—ge themselves the more in their careless omission and contempt of it Some of them think that it is but a thing indifferent and a Ceremony which may well enough be spared without any danger to the Soul And others have some reverence for it and think that it is not to be approached without Repentance and great Preparation But they do the more negligently and quietly omit this preparation and the Sacrament it self when they see it omitted by so many whom they esteem above themselves But what Is it the design of this Treatise to drive all these men in their impenitency and ignorance to this Sacred work And to draw them to imitate such of the same Herd as do it only to avoid the penalty of the Law I know many that read but the Title of this Book will say Is it now a time to draw the ignorant multitude to the Sacrament Were it not fitter to seek that stricter discipline might keep them from it till they are prepared and know what they do 3. To this I answer That the design of this Treatise is not to perswade any to eat the Body of Christ and drink his Blood in an undiscerning profane or unworthy manner Nor doth it tempt men to Covenant with their lips and leave their hearts behinde them But it teacheth men to understand what the Sacrament is and what a holy and solemn Covenant is there to be renewed with God And how essentially knowledge Faith and Repentance and resolutions for a holy life are necessary for that Covenant And because most ignorant ungodly people are so strange to their own hearts that we cannot convince them of their sottish contempt of Christ and holiness by any proof but what is palpable and past denial therefore the Authour taketh advantage of their profane neglect of this Ordinance to convince them And while a superficial Reader will think he is but drawing them to the Lords Table the truth is he taketh this but as an advantage to draw them to the Lord himself The main design of the Book is to convince poor impenitent unholy souls of the absolute necessity of a speedy resolute faithful consent to the Covenant of Grace and a sincere devoting of themselves to God through Jesus Christ and then that they will solemnize and seal this Covenant in this holy Sacrament No one that Readeth the Book will think that there is any 〈◊〉 of sufficient warning against the profanation of the Sacrament Blame him not for drawing men to Christ and to Conversion and you will finde here no cause to blame him for immethodical drawing them to the Communion of the Church 4. And the great plainness and largeness of the style which to some will seem tedious must be imputed to the Authours earnest desire to save mens souls which makes him studiously condiscend to their capacities The more men understand already the fewer words will serve their turns and to such an accurate and sententious stile wil be most acceptable But the Ignorant must not only have plainness but copiousnesse and much Repetition and inculcating of the same things They understand not that which is briefly and accurately delivered though the terms be never so common and familiar and those that have due compassion on the Ignorant will best like that stile which most promoteth their information and conversion and will judge of the means by its aptitude to its proper end The Lord give the Reader the saving benefit and the worthy and faithful Author the comfort of these earnest exhortations in a plentiful success And O that the judgeâ—â—nt which hath turned so many thousand excellent Books of late into ashes may warn the negligent to use such holy instructions with faithful diligence while they have them in order to their preparation for the hastening day which will cast the earth and all its Glory into more terrible Flames Amen Come Lord Jesus Acton the Year and Month of Londons Flames Sept. 1666. Richard Baxter THE CONTENTS CHapter 1. The Introduction lamenting the ignorant vulgars contempt of their Salvation and shewing the design of this Treatise Pag. 1 Chap. 2. What it is to do this to celebrate the Communion in remembrance of Christ And I. That it includes the true knowledge of him Pag. 34 Chap. 3. II. A right remembring Sin the occasion of his Death Of Repentance with considerations to work and promote it Pag. 48 Chap. 4. III. A right remembring of the great end of the death of Christ to Redeem us from all iniquity and sanctifie us Of Faith and Covenanting with Christ.
the pleasing of your flesh that you should be thereby stupefied to a regardlesnesse of your soul. The luscious fare which the world affords cloys the mind of man and spoils his appetite and puts him out of relish with his own most proper food This is the undoing of the most they are so full of the creature if not in their hands yet in their hearts that they have no mind nor room to entertain any thing of God there Every man breathing finds himself a needy creature that cannot live upon himself but must have something from without brought in to give him satisfaction but then the misery is they think their wants are all of that nature that things here below may supply them The poor think there is nothing they need so much as better food and raiment more plenty and ease and esteem in the world and they who abound in these things because they see others excell them think they want such and such greater Estates and Dignities to make them happy Though they find after all their attainments that still they are restlesse discontented and wanting something else they scarce know what which might convince them that it is onely from God they can receive satisfaction by having their natures perfected with those graces which may fit them for that communion with him in love and delight wherein the soul of man can onely find rest and contentment This I say they might learn from those restlesse infinite desires of their own hearts if they would but heedfully attend to the nature thereof but being more cruell to themselves than any parent to his child when the soul calls for bread they give it a stone endeavouring to put it off with those things that concern the body alone whilst that within them which is most needy still remains so and is suffered to pine and starve As if an hungry man should fill his mouth with meat and let nothing down into his stomach Whilst you are fondly endeavouring to quiet your minds and accomplish your selves with any thing that is without your souls be it riches pleasures honours friends and all the accommodations of the outward man which the world most dotes upon you are as verily besotted and deceived as he that thinks to ease a violent pain at his heart with putting on a rich Suit of Clothes or to supply the want of enlivening blood and spirits by painting his face Your necessities and diseases are deep and inward your very souls are out of order and nothing in the world will doe you any good but what gets within you and changes your apprehensions desires and affections and makes you quite other persons than now you are Wherefore I would beg you to fix this truth deep into your minds That since you are become poor and naked through the losse of Gods image which was the riches and beauty of the reasonable creature it 's never like to be well with you till you be again restored to his image which is by being brought to the knowledge and love of him to an universall submission and exact conformity to his will 3. And when you are brought to this knowledge of your wants and the nature of them then consider well that it is by Jesus Christ alone that you can be satisfied and supplied The Law was given by Moses but by him comes grace and truth 1 Joh. 1.17 He is the Mediatour through whom and for whose sake we receive from God whatever our souls stand in need of He by his death hath purchast all things necessary for our salvation he is ascended on high and hath received gifts for his people As King and Head of his Church he communicates to his members those graces that by his death and intercession he hath obtained for them and they are replenisht with the fulnesse of him who filleth all in all And then you are to take notice that Christ hath appointed duties to be performed by us and set up Ordinances which we are diligently to attend upon and by his Spirit accompanying them he conveys grace to the hearts of those that are conscionable in the use of these means Such are hearkning to and meditating upon the word Joh. 17.17 Sanctifie them by thy truth thy word is truth 1 Pet. 2.2 As new born babes desire the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby And prayer to the Father in his name Joh. 14.13 Luke 11.13 How much more will your heavenly Father give the Spirit to those that ask him Jam. 1.5 If any man lack wisdome let him ask of God who gives to all men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him Such also is the Sacrament of Baptisme being duly improved Gal. 3.27 For as many of you as have been Baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Rom. 6.3 4. 1 Pet. 3.21 And lastly this receiving of the Lords Supper which is our feeding upon Christ who is the Paschal Lamb sacrificed for us and herein to believers in a spirituall sense is afforded a communion of the body and blood of Christ as we may find in the Apostles words before mentioned And when you have but arrived to a sence of your own indigence and Christs fulnesse suitable thereto there will necessarily arise in you desires after a participation of that fulnesse which will bring you to and prepare you for those Ordinances wherein these desires may be gratified Lastly I would advise you to beware of ever entertaining a conceit that you are become so full now that you need nothing for that 's a plain sign you are poor and know it not Your stomachs are filled with wind instead of solid meat And whilst you are puft up with this self-conceit you will be hindred from seeking after what you really want He that thinks his Barns full when they are empty may through this mistake first lie in idlenesse and after come to beggary He that dreams of such a perfection as makes all helps Christ hath appointed needlesse to him neither knows himself nor considers what a God he hath to serve nor what a Law he hath given him to walk by It 's much to be feared that he who thinks he hath grace enough hath yet got no saving grace at all He that knows enough is very ignorant he that 's humble enough is still exceeding proud and so of the rest For he that hath tasted that the Lord is gracious longs after fuller communion with him He that drinks of the water Christ gives though his sickly thirst after creatures will be cured yet will such a thirst after more of Christ arise in him as will never be quencht till he be drencht into the ocean of grace and joy Wherefore study thy self study the duty of this whole present state wherein we are enjoyn'd to grow in grace and learn hence so much humility so much wisdome as to own thy necessities and not go about to cover them for they will not always be
thou little regardest the health of thy soul whilst thou sleightest those means which through the blessing of the great Physician upon thy carefull use of them might tend so much to thy healing and strengthning If a shilling be offered me in earnest of a thousand pound to be given upon some certain conditions if I refuse to take it it is not so much the Earnest as the greater summe that I thereby reject Thus Heaven is assured to thee upon condition of thy faith and obedience and if thou likest it upon these terms the Sacrament shall be given thee in earnest but if thou wilt not take the Earnest thou putt'st away from thee everlasting life If a condemned man tear in pieces the Kings pardon which is brought to him his fault is not so much the tearing of a piece of paper as his contempt of the Pardon Thus shall it be laid thy charge not meerly thy despising a bit of Bread and sup of Wine but thy sleighting all those rich and unvaluable blessings which hereby were offered assured to Believers If indeed thou prizest these shew it by thy setting a due esteem upon that which hath so near a relation to them but if thou value them not think not much if thou go without them for ever for whom canst thou blame if thou misse of those things which thou caredst not for 4 Is not this neglect a sad sign that thou performest no duty as thou oughtest nor to those ends thou shouldest For if thou didst rightly improve any why should'st thou not be glad of all Art thou not ready to try all courses use all means for the continuance and encrease of thy outward welfare and yet thou thinkest every thing too much that 's enjoyned thee for thy spirituall advantage and therefore comest not to this Ordinance as thinking thou maist doe well enough without it They that are in health use not to say if they have one sort of food what should they doe with another or if they eat one meal in a day why need they eat another and yet this is thy language in reference to thy soul. So long as thou hast been baptized and comest to Church and saist thy prayers and it 's well if thou doe thus much why may not this serve thy turn without coming to the Sacrament Why tell mee pray thee what 's thy design in these duties Is it to get good to thy soul That thou maist grow in grace and get fitter for glory If it be why then is not every duty acceptable to thee which would help on this design But is it not rather to be feared that these are done out of custome without expecting and therefore without finding any great advantage from them And because the neglect of that duty I am urging thee to is too too common and so no great matter of disgrace therefore thou makest so light of it And withall perhaps there is somewhat more pains requisite to prepare thee for it and therefore out of meer sloth and lazinesse thou holdest off Oh that thou wast but set in as good earnest to inrich thy soul with grace as the most of men and it 's like thou thy self art to grow rich in the world How many ways will they wind and turn to get a little gain If one course will not serve they 'l take another and if that fail they 'l try a third what they misse in one bargain they 'l seek to make amends for in the next Thus would it be with thee wast thou a diligent Christian thou would'st turn every stone seek every corner for the pearl of price Didst thou once by experience know the worth and excellency of true Grace and the satisfying sweetnesse of conversing with God thou would'st be very diligent in the use of all those means whereby these advantages are to be attained what thou hadst gâ—t at one duty would prompt thee to another in hopes to find the like or if thou hadst mist of thy hopes in oâ—e it would put thee upon another there to get satisfaction If thou found'st thy self at a distance from God or under fears of his displeasure thou would'st never be at rest with thy self till thou hadst found him whom thy soul loved and hadst got a renewed sense of his love to thy soul in all those ways wherein he gives a comfortable meeting to his people would'st thou give constant attendance ever earnestly waiting for the gracious and comfortable manifestations of himself in thy soul. But since thou canst so contentedly misse one Priviledge and that of so great importance it 's a shrewd sign that thou improvest not any as thou oughtest and what a wretched starven case then must thy soul needs be in 5. Consider what a shame it is that thou should'st be thus regardlesse of the provisions made for thy soul whilst thou art so greedy and forward after any thing that makes for the graâ—iâ—ying of thy fâ—esh Generally in the world men refuse no pains to supply their bodily necessities and yet when here is food provided to their hands they have no mind to it because this is onely suited to their souls Hâ—w eagerly can they hunt after that which they are never like to obtain or which if they doe will neve satisfie and fill them whilst they put away from them the savoury meat which God hath brought to them which would be savoury if their taste was not spoil'd Whilst Manna is loathed that falls before the tent-door how doe they long after the Garlick and Onions and Fleshpots of Aegypt May I not justly say that the Table of Devils is more frequented than the Table of the Lord What though men now adays doe not offer sacrifices to Devils as those Idolaters did of whom the Apostle speaks yet doe they not sacrfice to their own lusts And is not this as acceptable service to the Devil and as provoking to God And doe they not maintain a fellowship with Devils whilst their nature is so conformable and their lives so subject to them Such are all swinish Epicures who serve their own belly rather than the Lord Jesus Oh what multitudes have we got of such voluptuous ones who had rather bring sicknesse upon their bodies and damnation upon their souls by pleasing their greedy unsatiable throat than come to refresh and strengthen themselves with such food as through the Spirit of life accompanying it will preserve both soul and body to everlasting life Wisdome in vain sends forth her Embassadours to stand in the highest places of the City to call passengers to the banquet she hath made whilst yet the destroyer of souls is hearkned to calling them off from the right way telling them that Stoln waters are sweet and bread eaten in secret is pleasant and with these unlawfull pleasures do foolish sinners glut themselves not remembring that he doth but feed them for the slaughter and that his guests are in the depth of hell Pro. 9. Oh
before he offered up himself on their behalf that they should feed on his body and blood here represented and remember and love him who was bruised and poured forth as an attonement for them and set them selves against the sins that occasioned all this Can men be guilty of worse ingratitude 9. If then Christ be so farre from your thoughts that you take no pleasure in the Remembrance of him Bethink you beforehand how you will be able to look him in the face when you shall be cited to appear before him whether you will or not Be assured whoever thou art to whom the memory of Christ is no way delightfull to thee his presence will be most terrible If thou hast been well pleased to have him as absent from thy heart as his bodily presence is from the world thou wilt never know how to abide the terrour of his appearance and yet abide it thou must It will then be with thee just as it was with that wicked Servant whom we read of Luk. 12.45 46. who instead of looking to his Masters Family in his absence to give them their portion of meat in due season as he was commanded ver 42. thinks within himself that his Lord delays his coming and therefore begins to eat and drink and be drunken and what follows Why the Lord of that Servant will come in a day that he looketh not for him and in an hour that he is not aware and will cut him in sunder and appoint him his portion with hypocrites and unbelievers Even thus maist thou justly expect it will be with thee who neglectest to take that portion of meat for thy soul which Christ hath provided for thee and hadst rather pamper thy flesh and indulge it in gluttony and drunkennesse That very Jesus whom thou takest no pleasure to Remember and could'st be very well content never to come nearer him never to behold him or to have any thing more to do with him even he shall at length surprize thee by the suddennesse of his dreadfull appearance Though thou would'st not Remember him yet then thou must thou shalt see him Though thou could'st caft him out of thy thoughts yet thou shalt not be able to avoid his presense till he himself shall have utterly banisht thee from him Though thou be unmindfull of him yet slatter not thy self with a conceit that he 'll forget this thy unworthy behaviour no but he 'll remember it to recompence it on thy own head in that day of his vengeance Aâ— his people may firmly build upon it that he 'll never forget their labour of love so may his enemies be sure that he will not forget their lazinesse and want of love Will it not be sad for thee at that day to call upon the roâ—ks and mountains to hide thee from his face and all in vain And yet is it not just it should be thus with thee who art now call'd into Christs gracious presence into the nearest communion with him and thou runnest away and wilfully hidest thy self and wilt not be perswaded to come in Alas Man then expect other usage from Christ than here thou foundest in the day of his patience whilst he waited to be gracious He will not come then to offer pardons to the guilty and to befeâ—ch their acceptance of them and of the Sacraments to seal them no but he will then onely absolve all those who have already got their pardon and condemn those who have not wherefore if thou think'st it of any consequence to look Christ in the face with comfort at the last day now get an acquaintance with him put oâ— thy wedding garment of Repentance Faith and Love and come hither to be his guest with an humble boldnesse come and feast with him yea feed upon him and let him be made familiar to thy soul that his coming may fill thee with joy and not with horrour 10. Lastly If after admonitions and invitations thou lâ—vest in the neglect of this duty dâ—st thou not give us too much ground to fear that thou art no true Christian I know it is not thy coming hither on any fashion that will sufficiently prove thee a good Christian but yet thy totall forbearance may rather make thee suspected to be none at all For what hast thou to plead on thy own behalf The greatest argument of thy Christianity is thy being baptized but this was done in thy infancy and who knows whether thou stand'st to it or not if thou wilt not publickly own that thou dost so If it was the custome amongst us that when a Father is listed into an Army he should set down the names of his Sons also there to stand till they came to sixteen years of age at which time they were to go in and write their own names or else to be cashiered if they when they are come to these years should refuse to give in their names doe they not hereby shew that they have no mind to be Soldiers And is it not a question whether thou ownest Christ Jesus for thy Captain if thou wilt not make thy appearance with the rest at times appointed for the acknowledgement of thy relation to him If the King should command all that were of age in a Town to come to the Market-place and there take the Oath of Allegiance if they would be held for good Subjects how would they be lookt upon who should stay away and refuse to do it Now have I not before shewn how expresse the command of Christ is to all his Disciples that beside all other duties being rightly prepared they should celebrate this Sacrament in remembrance of him as an evidence and symbol of their relation to and communion with him How then can we hold them for true Disciples that reject and sleight it But here give me leave according to my promise to meet with two or three Objections against the performance of this duty before I come to give Directions for it CHAP. XII Sacraments are not to be accounted vain because Externalls 1. Obj. PErhaps then some in the first place may say What need have we of such outward shâ—dows and ceremonies so long as we have the substance Christ himself and doe truly believe in him What good can we get by such externaâ—l services as these These are low beggarly things not suited to these more spirituall times of the Gospel Though I have before said enough to this yet because there are those who confidently talk at this rate and are very busie in perverting common people I shall say something farther by way of answer to it Ans. 1. And first I would demand of you who is fittest to be Judge in this case what you ought to do and what not Are you Servants or are you your own Masters Came the word of God forth from you Was Christian Religion something of your devising that you may frame it and appoint the duties of it as you shall see best Or came this
against which you were sufficientlie tied by your living meerly upon God and receiving all you had from him But then in the second place consider you are already obliged by your own promises and professions to walk in the fear of the Lord and therefore have not the least ground to alâ—ow your selves in sin from your not having received the Loâ—ds Supper as an engagement against it For bethink you a little do you not profess your selves to be Christians And what 's the meaning of that but that you worship God by Jesus Christ and acknowledge him to be your Maker and Ruler and Christ to be your Saviour And accordinglie are you not devoted to God by Baptisme whereby you stand bound to renounce the Devill the World and the Flesh and to be Christs faithfull servant to your lives end I confesse you were thus consecrated to God by your Parents in you infancy when according to the Law of God and Nature they had full power thus to dispose of you but now you are come to years of discretion do you consent to what they have done or not In plain English Doe you renounce your Baptisme wherby you stand obliged to be the Servants of God and his Son Christ Jesus You that I am now speaking to will I know deny this with great earnestnesse and cry God forbid that you should be such apostate wretches from Christians to turn Heathens and Infidels Well then if you acknowledge your selves under the bond of your Baptisme assure your selves you are hereby as much tied from the least sin in thought word or deed as you can be by the Sacrament of the Lords Supper What will you do then in this case will you dare to run on in those sins from which your Baptisme doth bind you and so renounce it in your practise whilst you own it in profession Or will you hereafter be so silly as to abstain from the communion for fear of engaging your selves to an holie life to which you stand engag'd already by your own consent If you continue in this mind it 's too plain a sign that in your hearts you disown your Baptisme it self and what a case are you in then For let me ask you if you had been born of Heathen Parents and were but just now come to the understanding of the Christian Religion and were acquainted what kind of Persons they must be that own'd it would you be baptiz'd into this Faith and hereby professe your resolutions to lead such an holy life as all Christians are commanded If you say you would not hence then it follows that you dislike your Baptisme since if it was to be done again you would none of it And if indeed you wish your selves in the case of unbaptized Heathens now you are reallie worse than they and shall be in a worse condition shortlie But if you say you would readilie be baptized if it was yet to do then fain would I know why you are so backward to receive the Lords Supper wherein you do but renew the Covenant that is made at Baptisme acknowledging your selves to be true Christians and promising that you will remain so what possible reason can you devise for this unwillingness Withall take notice all you that are baptized into the name and Church of Christ and do stand to your Baptisme you have hereby bound your selves to be his faithfull servants to obey his commands and to behave your selves in his Church as he directs you Now he hath commanded all Christians that are of capacitie to prepare themselves and so to receive the Sacrament of his Supper Do you not clearlie perceive then how your Baptisme bindes you to this dutie you being now come to the use of your reason How is it then that you dare neglect it whilst you are so straitlie engag'd to it And further beside your own Baptisme you Fathers that have Children every time you bring them to be baptized do professe before God and the Congregation that you renounce the Devil the World and the sinfull lusts of the flesh that you believe the Articles of the Christian faith and will keep Gods holy will and commandments walk in the same all the days of your life And are you sincere in all this If you are why should you stay away from the Sacrament where you are required to professe and promise no more However I hope hence you may be convinc't that before you partake of the Lords Supper you are so far bound to an holie life that you have no allowance for the least sin any more than you have afterward which is that I am proving And this is farther evident by all other duties of religion which you perform to God every one of which ties you to the most exact obedience to him I suppose you are not so Atheistical but that sometimes you pray to God and when you pray do you not beg of him pardon of sin and grace to do him faithful service When you say the Lords Prayer do you not therein beseech God to forgive you your trespasses and not to lead you into temptation but deliver you from evil And what dare you ask of him forgivenesse of sin whilst you are resolved to continue in it still I presume you hope to obtain what you ask and can you so much as flatter your selves with any hope that God will pardon your sins whilst yâ—â— will not forsake them Hath not his word plainly old you the contrary And when you pray to be kept â—rom sin and the power of Satan is it not to be suppos'd that you desire these things and doth not the expression of your desires engage you to do what you can to obtain what you pray for and are you not therefore bound to take heed of sin to watch against and resist temptations except you take God for an Idol and make your prayers in a mockerie as if your servant should come and entreat you to help him do his work and then run away and never set his hand to 't or as if your Childe should pray you to keep him from falling into the water and should throw himself into it as soon as he had done dare you venture thus to play and dally with the All-mightie And when you desire him to save your souls and keep you from Hell it speaks you resolv'd not wilfully to destroy and damn your selves or else you are horrid mockers of God Methinks you should never have the impudence to come neer him or speak a word to him whilst you are fully bent to go on in those waies that are so contrary and provoking to him The like I might say of hearing the word you are thereby engaged to give obedience to it for you cannot think sure you serve God sufficiently by hearing your duty whilst you set not about it And for you to come to hear what God shall say by his Minister with a secret purpose to hold on in such and such
the belief of that pardon which you have received in the hopes of that grace and glory which have been assured to you Meditations of heaven and the exercise of Thankfulnesse are now very proper works Consider also what you have done what an obligation you have laid upon your self how you are no longer your own Man having made a resignation of your self to God by Jesus Christ And beg the assistance of his Holy Spirit to enable you to stedfastnesse and perseverance in this holy Covenant whilst life shall last and beseech him that the Ordinance you have been made partaker of may become effectuall to your souls to all those ends that it was designed for and which are attainable by it Think it not enough to read over these things I entreat thee but do accordingly and now betake thy self to Consideration and Prayer to those ends I have exprest Review moreover what your miscarriages have been and humbly beg of God to forgive either want of due preparation or coldnesse and distractions that your hearts have not been affected suitably to the importance and excellency of the duty and the Majesty of him with whom you have herein had to do And be heartily thankfull for any measure of life and affection any raisednesse and comfort that God hath been pleased to vouchsafe you And here by the way let me caution all humble Christians to beware of a mistake to which they are too prone to wit To judge of their profiting in this or other duties by their present feeling and so to think they get no good except their souls are as it were lift up and ravisht with sensible joys and these onely they take for evidences of Gods acceptance and the having of communion with him But by this means you will often plunge your selves into needlesse sorrows and load your selves with unjust censures and which is worse you will hereby become lesse thankfull to God as thinking you have received little advantage because you found not those delights you expected and will be in danger of becoming weary of the work and ready to throw it off as thinking it unprofitable Wherefore to avoid these ill consequences and the mistake that begets them consider well That it is the uprightnesse and sincerity of your hearts in the performance of your duty which may administer most ground of comfort to you when you reflect upon it for be assured if you have this ornament you were really acceptable to him that lookt down upon you though this acceptance might not be testified with the giving in of any extraordinary joy Let it not then trouble you as if God was not well pleased with you because your affections were not raised up to an higher pitch since he doth not look so much at fits of passion as at the steady bent and tenour of the soul. Nor think because you mist of great joys that you had no favour from nor communion with God for consider again That the truest communion with God is to enjoy the câ—mmunications of his grace to your souls whereby you are made conformable to him and you may enjoy these saving influences of the Spirit when you cannot feel his more abundant consolations Moreover the fruit of this Ordinance is not so much to be discerned at present as in your after-conversation For the great benefit you are to expect being to receive farther measures of Grace from the Holy Spirit accompanying these means it cannot be well known what Grace you have received till you come to the exercise of it when tempâ—ations shall assault you And to allude to the Apostles words in another case Though this Ordinance may not at present be joyous yet it may afterward yield the peaceable fruits of righteousnesse to those that are conversant therein And lastly If you are but sincere as I said in your covenanting with God it is your duty to believe that you have this day received from him a seal to the promise of pardon and eternall life and in this belief may you take much rationall and solid comfort which otherwise you are not like to find And this is the ordinary way whereby the Spirit conveys comfort to the Soul first working in you a belief that the promises of God are in themselves most true enlightning you to the knowledge of your own souls and then enabling you to apply these promises to your selves as being such to whom they belong Thus the Apostle tells us their rejoycing was from the testimony their Conscience gave of their simplicity godly sincerity 2 Cor. 1.12 Wherefore you are not so much to expect any extraordinary immediate assurance from the Spirit that you are the Lords But see to get good grounds for your faith and so to have your hearts fill'd with peace and joy in believing Yet do not misinterpret what I have said thence to indulge your selves in any sloth or dulness or to content your selves with the bare doing of the work without heeding the frame of your heart therein no but take as much pains as you can to raise them to the greatest sensiblenesse affection and if you do so you may reasonably expect to find much sweetness and satisfaction in the work it self but my meaning in this caution is that you should not look so much at the feeling of extraordinary comforts as at the integrity of your hearts in vowing your selves to God and the continuing stedfastnesse of your resolutions to be true to these vows 2. And that 's the next thing I would exhort you to even to discâ—ver this inward truth and sincerity by your future holy and exact walking This is that which must crown all the rest I may say to you as Moses to the Israelites Deut. 26.16 17. You have this day avouched the Lord to be your God to walk in his ways and keep his statutes And the Lord hath avouched you to be his peculiar people And you have promised to take Christ for your Husband and Lord to live in love and obedience to him as you hope to be saved by him One thing now remains that you go and do likewise Say with the Psalmist I have sworn and will perform it that I will keep thy righteous judgements Psal. 119.106 Now you have been remembring him that suffered in the flesh arm your selves with this mind no longer to live the rest of your time in the flesh to the lusts of men but to the will of God 1 Pet. 4.1 2 3. Let it not happen to you according to the Proverb The Dog is turned to his own vomit again and the Sow that was washt to her wallowing in the mire If God have spoke peace to your souls turn not you again to folly Call to mind particularly what sins you confest and promised to forsake and do accordingly You that have been guilty of drunkennesse or gluttony fornication and wantonnesse pride or covetousnesse be so no more you that have been wont to spend your time in
or after to what purpose it is Canst thou be so silly as to imagine thou hast satisfied the will of Christ when thou hast done this Or canst thou think thy soul ever the better for it Wherefore remember what it was I first exhorted thee to namely to examine and prepare thy self and so to eat of this Bread and drink of this Cup to repent of and set thy self against all sin and to devote thy self to Christ and then to take the Sacrament as a testimony that thou dost so and as a bond to oblige thee firmer to him This I have frequently told thee and that thou maist be sure to understand my meaning and remember it take it once again in this plain comparison If a Master was about to bargain with one to be his Servant offering so much wages and a shilling in earnest and another that stands by having a mind to drive on the bargain should perswade the Servant not to stand off but to take his earnest doe you not know what he meant by this Doe you think he wisht the man onely to take the shilling and go his way without any more adoe surely no but to agree with him to become his Servant to do the work he should appoint him and to shew his consent to this should take the shilling that was to be given in earnest Thus Reader being earnestly desirous to drive on a match betwixt Christ and thy soul I would fain beg thee to take the Sacrament as an evidence of thy consent to become his faithfull servant but upon no other terms I 'le assure thee Wherefore if thou be resolved against the diligent service of God and yet venturest upon this Ordinance let the blame be upon thy own head Doe not think to excuse thy self by saying thou read'st a book that told thee it was Christ command to all that they should receive the Sacrament and that therefore thou didst as thou wast instructed for again and again have I made known to thee that none ought to do thus but true Christians such as believe in love and obey the Lord Jesus and this is that to which thou art implicity urged by that very command which he hath given for thy frequenting his Supper And this I would presse upon all that perform this duty rudely and negligently as well as on those that altogether omit it Let not such carelesse ones imagine they have hitherto rendred due obedience to this command For consider when a duty is enjoyned all that is necessary in order thereto is thereby enjoyned and the right manner of performing it also Thus when we are commanded to pray to God by that very command we are engaged to get the knowledge of God and to believe that he can hear and help us and also to be reverent and serious in our prayers for without these and the like qualifications we may say over a many words but we cannot properly be said to pray Thus when Christ commands us to eat Bread and drink Wine in remembrance of him he hereby commands us to get our hearts into such a frame that we may be fit and able to remember him with those affections and in that manner that it beseems ransomed men to remember their Redeemer And therefore we must know him and be sensible of our own slavery and be willing to be Redeemed by him and be thankfull for his love with the other qualifications which I have before shewn to be necessary to and included in our Remembrance of him If you make a Feast on purpose to entertain a friend you thereby suppose not onely that he should come to your Table but that he should come with a stomach to eat of your provisions And when Christ invites men to his Table where he hath provided spirituall food under the outward elements doe you not think he requires all that come that they should have an appetite to and desire after what he hath provided for them Thus then have I laid open to you the flat command of Christ whereby you are required to put your selves in a right posture and come to this Feast which he hath ordained in his Church as a memoriall of the Redemption he wrought for it Whether you will obey it or not I cannot tell I leave that to your choice if you have any reason that seems stronger than the will of Christ doe as you shall think fit onely remember the command I have been urging upon you was given you by that Jesus who will be your Judge and whose sentence will passe acccording to that word whereof this command is a part and if you think you have got any such excuse as will bring you off clear at that day though you be found guilty of contemning his Law I have no more to say but at your own perill be it Here I have given you faithfull warning Here I may farther adde that you have not onely Christs command but the example of his Apostles Disciples and the Primitive Christians to engage you to this duty wherein they were all conscientious and frequent Act. 2.42 They that were converted by the preaching of the Apostles continued stedfastly in their doctrine and fellowship and in breaking of bread and in prayers And this you may find was the practice of the Church of Corinth and by consequence of all other Churches then planted in that the Apostle rectifies the abuses they were guilty of therein as you may find at large 1 Cor. 11.17 to the end And are not we to walk as we have these for an example and to be followers of them as they are of Christ. Moreover they that are skill'd in Church History tell us that it is most certain it was the custome of the primitive Christians usually to celebrate this Sacrament every Lords Day at least And by the way take notice though we have no particular precept in Scripture how frequently we ought to doe it yet from thence we are taught that it ought to be done more than once and the practice of those who best knew the mind of Christ may inform us that it ought to be done often though the particular times are left to the prudence of Church-governours 2. In the next place I would wish you well to consider whether you have not good reason to conclude that you shall receive much advantage from the performance of that duty which is recommended to you by the expresse command of Christ and the example of his first followers Was there nothing else to be shewed but a command from him whom you acknowledge your Soveraign one would think it enough to silence all objections and bring you to obedience But doe you not moreover believe that Christ designed the good of his servants by the institution of this Sacrament in his Church Are any of his commands grievous or unprofitable Is not the whole design of Christian Religion evidently for our interest if we believe we have immortall souls And can
you imagine this one duty to be an exception from all the rest as having nothing in it which may make it worthy our performance Hath not he backt his commands with promises that we might have all kind of encouragement to his service Hath not he told us that to those who keep his Commandments he will manifest himself Doe you think then that when Christ first set up this Sacrament he hereby intended any advantage to those who should celebrate it If not he appointed them a meer piece of drudgery in some respect worse than the Jewish Ceremonies for they had their use to the spirituall and even as bad as thoâ—e buâ—densome ridiculous Ceremonies which make up so great a part of the Popish Religion but if you dare not affiâ—m this then I would know whether the same advantages doe not still continue to this Ordinance which were first intended to be communicated by it to the worthy Receiver Again did the Apostles and their companions get any good by it think you if not it 's strange they should be so exact and frequent in it iâ— they did fain would I know why the same good is not still to be got by serious diligent Christians Certainly Gods treasures of grace are not spent his fountain is not drawn dry no nor ever will be He that will be the everlasting portion of his people when this world is ended hath enough sure in himself for the supply of all their necessities whilst they are travelling through the world When millions of Saints have received that grace which leads them to glory there is not a jot the lesse for those that come after And as his graces are not exhausted so neither is the way of giving them forth changed in the same manner that his Spirit accompanied the word and Sacraments at any time since the Gospel was publisht in the same manner it accompanies them still for ought that any man living can shew to the contrary Christ is the same yesterday to day and for ever He who will be with his Ministers till the end of the world will be with his Ordinances till then with his people in the conscientious use of them Why should the first Christians be tied to that which we in after-ages may neglect Is not our case the same with theirs Are not our necessities as great And may not our profitings also if the fault be not our own To prosecute this a little farther as I promised Is not the Death of Christ as great a mercy to us in these latter days of his Church as it was to them in the first Have not we the same pardon offered to us the same promises given the same heaven prepared and the same sanctifying Spirit to bring us thereto Have we not then the same cause to be frequently mindfull of and thankfull for these mercies and the Death that purchast them in all ways prescribed to that purpose Are not we still of the same nature that men were then Such whose affections are much raised and quickened by sensible things by the help whereof we can with greater clearnesse and power conceive of thâ—ngs spirituall and can more affectionately remember what 's past when we see it represented and acted afresh before our eyes Is it not therefore our wisdome and duty to accept of such assistances as our Lord himself in his care of us hath afforded whereof the Sacrament of his Supper is a principall one every way fitted for that end Were they more dull than we that they should need such quickning means which we judge our selves past the use of Had not we as much need as they to be frequently renewing our more solemn repentance for sin and covenantings with God that so the consideration of those renewed engagements we lie under may the more overpower us to faithfulnesse and perseverance in his service Are not our wants of grace as great as theirs And therefore ought we not to wait in all those ways whereby these wants may be supplied which are the same now as formerly Is it not as rich a mercy now as ever to have all the blessings and priviledges of the Covenant of grace whether temporall spiâ—ituall or eternall not onely represented but made ovâ—r and assured to us in such a familiar manner Is not the exercise and strengthning of mutuall brotherly love by the maintaining of the most endearing Christian communion still a most pleasant and profitable duty now especially when all men have learnt to cry out how cold charity is grown Thus you see there are very many and those no small advantages that accrue to such as carefully manage this weighty duty and all of them continue still the same that they were in the time of the Apostles And let there be any other ground of their practice assigned or any other benefits which they hereby enjoyed and I question not to prove that we have the same or the like grounds and are capable of the same benefits with them Thus have I shewn you that to come in a due manner to the Lords Table is both your duty and your interest there is a command given by your Lord obliging you to what is good for your selves and indeed so doe all other his commands if well weighed And what more can be said to work upon men that have any Conscience or any self love to give obedience Wherefore if you be Christians yea if you be Men if you have any sense of Gods authority or of your own necessities make all possible hast out of that dangerous woefull estate which makes you unfit for and unwilling to this so profitable a duty and your souls being made ready let them bring your bodies hither Having been larger in these I shall be brief in those that follow 3 Is it not much to be feared that whilst yâ—u sleight the Sacrament you sleight those blessings which hereby are represented and assured to Believers You your selves would judge so by others in cases like this If the King should proclaim that he will give Estates in some of his Plantations to all that will come to the Court and take Patents from him and subscribe their nâ—mes to a Bond which onely ties them to acknowledge they had their Estates from his bounty and to live there accor-to his Laws is it not a sign that they who will not doe thus much doe very little care for the Estates that are offered them And doe not they manifest as little regard of heaven it self and all the promises of the Gospel who are loath to be at so much pains as to go to the Sacrament there to have all these confirmed to them being unwilling to bind themselves hereby to thankfulnesse and obedience to that God who makes them such large and bounteous offers He that refuseth a cheap and easie medicine which being duly taken may recover him from his sicknesse may well be said to undervalue his health Thus is it too apparent that