is an old trick of the Devil And thirdly and lastly binding over Persons for Worshipping God is a very ancient thing also A Persecutor is one that must abandon all moral Honesty he must do as he would not be done by he must sacrifiee his Conscience and pawn his Soul in the Hands of the Devil for he must persecute Christ Acts 9.4 5. and fight against God Acts 5.38 39. A Persecuter is one that bids Defiance to Heaven and is in open Hostility and Rebellion against the Almighty and he is striking at the Apple of God's Eye Zech. 2.8 For thus saith the Lord of Hosts after the Glory hath he sent me unto the Nations which spoised you do you hear you persecuting Spoilers of the Nation for he that toucheth you toucheth the Apple of his Eye that is of God's Eye Again A Persecuter is worse than the Devil in some Respects for the Devil cannot force a man to sin he can but tempt and suggest to Sin but the Persecutor does both he tempts them to conform to a Religion or Worship that they are convinc'd in their Consciences is not right because it has none of the Sanction of God's Authority upon it and if they refuse then he does what he can to force them by Indictments and Fines and Excommunications and Plundering and Imprisoning them and the like Now this the Devil cannot do himself personally therefore they are worse then the Devil Again Fourthly A Persecutor or one that hath this Cain-like Spirit in him every time he saith the Lord's Prayer he speaks Blasphemy for he does blaspheme the Name of God the Father the first Person in order in the Blessed and Glorious Trinity for he begins it in Blasphemy for he saith Our Father which art in Heaven And the holy Word of God saith That no man can call God Father but by his Spirit for let him that taketh the Name of the Lord in his Mouth Depart from Iniquity and the Apostle saith Know ye not that the Spirit of Christ is in ye except ye be Reprobate And our Lord Jesus Christ told the old Sect of Scribes and Pharisees that were Persecuters as our New-Gospel-Sect of the same Leven are in John 8.44 Ye are of your Father the Devil and the Lusts of your Father ye will do He was a Murtherer from the beginning and abode not in the Truth Why So all his Children departs from the Truth when they turn Persecuters they do not do as they would be done by they depart from that Truth which the very light of Nature doth teach us as well as the Word of God. Now can it ever be possible that a Child of the Devil can call God Father without being guilty of Blasphemy at the same time for he saith Our Father which art in Heaven when as his Father is the Devil so that by his Lye he does tacitly and consequentially pull God out of his Throne of Mercy and place his Father the Devil in his room upon the Mercy Seat in Heaven and puts up his Petition to the Devil instead of Praying unto God his Maker And is not this a dreadful Case Nay further in the fifth place for I have not done with ye yet When a Persecuter doth say the Lord's-Prayer he doth say Thy Kingdom come thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven And no Persons are so great Opposers of Christ's Gospel-Kingdom coming as the Persecuters are and none does oppose the doing of God's Will in Earth as it is in Heaven like them of a persecuting Spirit for in Heaven there God's Will is done uninterruptedly by Angels and all other Glorified Spirits there they Praise God in perfect Peace Love and Union there is no Persecuter there nor none to disturb nor make them afraid for there they are all of one Heart and of one Mind But so it cannot be done in Earth by the Persecuters who cannot sleep unless they do Mischief and they do hinder others from doing the Will of God in Earth as it is done in Heaven therefore a Persecuter cannot be sincere and in good earnest when he saith Thy Kingdom come thy Will be done in Earth as it is in Heaven Therefore all they of a persecuting Spirit do but dissemble and mock God and tell him a parcel of Lies to his very Face for they do say in Words that God's Will must be done in Earth as it is in Heaven but in Works they do utterly deny it for they Dethrone the Almighty who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords as much as in them lyes And the proud Persecuters do mount God's Throne here on Earth namely the Souls and Consciences of men and say to their Souls Bow down that we may go over They do rob God of his Sovereignty and become spiritual Legislators to make Laws and give Laws unto their Fellow-creatures to Worship God by as they pretend and so do wrest the Government out of God's Hand over the Souls and Consciences of men which is peculiarly belonging to the Great and Dread Sovereign Majesty of Heaven and Earth which is to do their Father the Devil's will on Earth as it is done in Hell And not to do God's Will in Earth as it is in Heaven Again Sixthly A Persecuter as often as he saith the Lord's Prayer does in Effect Pray that God would not forgive him his Sins for he saith Forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them their Trespasses against us Now a Persecuter cannot say this heartily and sincerely because that instead of praying to God he does imprecate the forest of Judgments upon himself for he saith Forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them their Trespasses against us and the Persecuter did not nor yet does not forgive the Dissenters though but pretended Trespasses against them when some Persons have fallen into their hands by their Nonconformity in the matter of Worshipping of God when they have desired them to be favourable unto them and have told them if they did proceed to the Rigour of their Law they would ruine them and their Wife and Children they would not hearken unto them unless they would bow down their Soul unto them that they might go over namely to Conform so that they must Trespass against God or else they would not forgive them their pretended Trespasses against them which made the Remedy infinitely worse than the Disease and so they chose rather to lay their Bodies with the Ground and as the Street for them to go over then that they would sin against God by conforming which was passive Obedience of the right kind therefore the Persecuters do Pray that God would not forgive them their Sins for Christ hath said But if ye forgive not men their Trespasset neither will your Father forgive you your Trespasses Mat. 6.15 Now if the Persecuters did run their Hatred and Malice to the very uttermost Extent of the Persecuting Laws and further too and are now contending to keep the
tacitly and consequentially and unadvisedly choose rather that Christ should remain still Crucified by this horrible Law of the Sacramental Test which obligeth a Man to Crucifie his Redeemer that should be and that before he can be duely qualified to come into the Government then they will part with the Test that is against the Romanists These be the 19th Article-men of the Church of England and some other good Men who are afraid to part with the Test upon another account then that of the Persecuting part of the said Church are for the Persecuting part of it cannot think of being satisfied and content to enjoy what is their own proper Right and Priviledge but are like wicked Ahab they must be coveting their Brothers Vine-yard they cannot submit willingly to part with their Domineering Prelatick Lording Power over their Fellow-Subjects they must be Lording it over God's Heritage though we bring them the great Charter and Canon Law of Heaven that forbids it Pray read this part of the Charter of Heaven and there you may find Liberty of Conscience asserted without any Humane Test to prohibite it in the 1 Pet. 5.2 3. Feed the flock of God which is among you taking the oversight thereof not by constraint but willingly Do you hear Gentlemen what your Duty is And also you may see what your Sin hath been you that have not kept to your 19th Article But stay the Apostle hath not done with you yet for as you must not be constrained to do your Duty but you must do it willingly so it must not be done in covetousness Not for filthy Lucre but of a ready Mind Neither as being Lords over Gods Heritage but being Ensamples to the Flock Thus you hear what St. Peter saith but it may be they may say of St. Peter as the Jews did say of him and St. John That they were Vnlearned and Ignorant Men Acts 4.13 And as they do Cavel and Quarrel with all them that Write Books or Preach the Gospel that do not understand Hebrew Greek and Latin well therefore let us hear what Learned St. Paul saith and hear whether he was for Liberty of Conscience or not and whether he was for having or appointing any Humane Test to secure our Christian Liberty unto us pray mind 2 Cor. 1.24 Not for that we have Dominion over your Faith. Here the Apostle disclaims all Lording Soveraignty over Men's Consciences there is your Liberty But are helpers of your Joy But they that are against Liberty of Conscience that Oppress the Consciences are the greatest Enemies to Joy in the whole World be they who they will For by Faith we stand Where was the Apostle when he said this Why even in the midst of all his Enemies Why surely St. Paul and our Humane Projecters were not of one and the same Opinion for they say That by the Test against the Romanists they stand But the holy Apostle when he was in Ten times more danger then we are said By Faith we stand There was his Test which he Relied on under God when he had not a Prince to stand by him and tell him that Conscience ought not to be restrained And it is said in the holy Scripture That the Liberal Man deviseth Liberal things and by Liberal things he shall stand Now can the Test against the Romanists be properly called a Liberal thing when it is a thing that keeps them out of their share of the Government on the account of Conscience Here is neither standing by Faith nor standing by Liberal things Which is the most Liberal thing think ye a firm Magna Charta to secure every Man in his Christian and Civil Liberty which his Majesty does propose to be devised by the Wisdom of the Nation in Parliament or this Old long Parliamentary Test Truly for my part I cannot see any kind of Liberality in the Test and I can see no kind of nigardly Churlishness that there can be in a firm Magna Charta for our Christian Liberty Thus you see these two holy Apostles were both for Liberty of Conscience and to make Faith their Test to stand upon and so am I not but that I am for all the Civil Security that can be made which does not tye up Mens Consciences in point of Christian Liberty I am not for knocking men in the head or ruining them because they are not of my Principle but let the Tares grow with the Wheat until the great Harvest and whosoever is not of this Mind is no Christian let him call himself what he please And I do not doubt but there are Honest Able Heads and Hearts at work a drawing up to themselves Propositions for the Establishing of our Christian Liberty against the time that the Great and Honourable Counsel of the Land shall meet together that will be satisfactory to all the honest Hearts that are willing to be satisfied Thus you see also that those that had rather that all the Penal Laws and Tests should be continued then that one Test against the Romanists should be taken away and Abolished do choose rather to sin against God now then to venture to suffer hereafter because the Penal Laws and Sacramental Test are Essentially sinful in themselves as you see clearly proved Fifthfly Is it so that Men must Eat and Drink their own Damnation to qualify them before ever they can be admitted to come into the Government or any place of Trust and Profit Why then this clearly Informs us that poor Deluded Men that do Obey these Laws do pawn that precious Jewel even their Souls in the Hands of the Devil and do choose rather to trust the Devil with their Souls then to trust God with their Estates or to give Wicked Men an advantage against them of bringing them into 500 l. Damage and none but Christ whom they do thus Crucify can Redeem them out of Satans Hands and that by his precious Blood in appeasing the Wrath of God and attoning them to God by giving them Unfeigned Repentance and Faith in him for none can come to God but in and through him alone the Lord of his Infinite Mercy awake ye all to Unfeigned Repentance before the Decree bringeth forth for if Death cuts you down in this Impenitent Condition you have no better hopes of Escaping the Damnation of Hell nor of Enjoying Eternal Happiness in Heaven then this which is a Dreadful deceitful one as you will find when it is too late Namely That the Word of God is not true which is in plain English without the help of Hebrew Greek or Latin to hope that God is a Lyar but let God be True and every Man a Lyar 3 Rom. 4. O Horrible Horrible Poor Deluded Sonls That ever there should be such a Device of the Devil promoted by Men for to Damn Men's Souls by Law What will after Ages think of such a Generation of Men as this O! that ever it should enter into the Hearts of Rational Men to
Riches and he shall vomit them up again God shall cast them out of his Belly That which he laboured for shall he Restore that is they laboured for it in a wrong illegal way as we use to say Prank more labour than Thank who required it at their Hands according to his Substance shall the Restitution be and he shall not rejoice therein It may be you will say You had a Law on your side Why So the old Gang of Scribes and Pharisees could boast of a Law they had on their side by which they did literally and wickedly Crucifie our Lord and Saviour We have a Law and by our Law this Man ought to die And here is a Law of the very same Complection of yours if not Prophetically spoken of the same in Isa 10.1 2. With a Wo pronounced against the Legislators thereof Wo unto them that Decree Vnrighteous Decrees and that write Grievousness which they have Prescribed To turn aside the needy from Judgment and to take away the Right from the poor of my People that Widows may be their Prey and that they may Rob the Fatherless Here you see a Law made against God's People And those that make such Laws as these are are Persons that have no Communion or Fellowship with God Psal 94.20 23. Shall the Throne of Iniquity have Fellowship with thee which frameth Mischief by a Law Pray mark What will be the End of such And he shall bring upon them their own Iniquity and shall cut them off in their own Wickedness Yea the Lord our God shall cut them off Psal 7.15 16. He made a Pit and digged it and is fallen into the Ditch which he made His Mischief shall return upon his own Head and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own Pate That is God does bring it down upon them which is a fulfilling the Words of our Saviour who hath said That the same Measure ye make shall be made unto you again O Sirs I beseech ye to take shame to your selves before the Lord for all your Abominations that you may not be put to shame by the Lord Eye the just Hand of God in all these Great Providences Humble your selves in Dust and Ashes Acknowledge and Confess all your Sins and break off from Sin by Righteousness and cry mightily to God for pardoning Mercy in the Blood and Merits of Jesus Christ But it may be or I hope at least-wise that some of ye will say I am guilty of all these Abominations and of Multitudes more I have been a sierce Persecuter a Blasphemer and an Injurious Person I have been a Whoremonger a Drunkard and a Lier and I have often Crucified the Son of God and made his Wounds bleed afresh and put him to an open Shame by Eating and Drinking unworthily at the Lord's Table and I have had a hand in Imprisoning and Impoverishing the Saints and Servants of God by which means some of them have perished in stinking nasty Goals and is there any Hopes of pardoning Mercy for such a horrible Sinner as I am Yes I tell thee in the Name of God who is a God that delighteth in Mercy if thou dost ask this Question in good earnest I tell thee from God's own Word that there is hopes of Mercy for thee Dear Soul if thou do from the bottom of thy Heart confess and forsake thy Sins and turn to God and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ Kiss the Son least he be angry with ye and ye perish from the Way when his Wrath is kindled but a little And Pray for your Encouragement Read and Consider well of the 1st of Isa 16 17 18 19 20. And Isa 55.6 7 8.9 Seek ye the Lord while he may be found call ye upon him while he is near Let the Wicked forsake his way and the Vnrighteout Man his Thoughts and let him return unto the Lord and he will have Mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon For my Thoughts are not your Thoughts neither are your Ways my Ways saith the Lord. For as the Heavens are higher than the Earth so are my Ways higher than your Ways and my Thoughts than your Thoughts With Reverence be it spoken What can the Lord say more unto you for your Encouragement to cast your selves upon his pardoning Mercy and Free Grace For there is more Vertue and Merit in the least drop of Christ's Blood to pardon and save you then there is Malignity in all your Sins to damn and destroy you if you will but believe in Christ and come unto him and resign up the Government and Conduct of your Souls unto him for he calls the weary and heavy-laden Sinners unto him and promises to give them Rest Matth. 11.28 29 30. Nothing but Unbelief and Despair can with-hold God's Merciful Hard from Extending Pardoning Grace unto you It is not the Greatness nor the Hainousness nor the Multitudes of your Sins that can hinder Pardoning Mercy from you if your own Unbelief do not And I will not speak without Book but I will give you several Instances of as Vile Persons as ever you have been if not Viler that have been Pardoned and Saved that are left upon Record in the holy Scripture as Monuments of Gods Infinite Mercy and Free Grace But let me give you this Precaution that you do not presume upon Gods Mercy to go on any longer and further into Sin You must not continue in Sin that Grace may abound God forbid that ever you should make such an evil use of it to turn the Grace of God into Lasciviousness but it is that you may not despair and pine away in your own Iniquity nor go any further on this Black Score And the first Person that I shall Instance in shall be Manasseh who was a Cruel Bloody Idolater as you may read 2 Kings 21. and yet notwithstanding all that Manasseh Repented and was Pardoned and Saved 2 Chron. 33.12 13. And when he was in affliction he besought the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his Fathers and prayed unto him and he was intreated of him and heard his supplication and brought him again to Jerusalem into his Kingdom then Manasseh knew that the Lord he was God. He never knew God until he was Converted no nor no other Sinner does neither let him have what Notional Knowledge he will in his Head if he have not Sanctifying Saving Grace in his Heart It is said That Manasseb made the Streets of Jerusalem to run with Blood as Water and caused his own Children to pass through the Fire and was guilty of Witchcraft and Idolatry and other Hainous Sins his Sins reached as high as Heaven yet Gods Mercy being higher than the Heavens that overlooked all his Sins and God cast them behind his Back and blotted them out of his Book and drowned all his Spiritual Aegyptians in the Red-Sea of Christ's Blood and did pardon and save him What dost thou
Ordinance or spiritual Government must be and how they must be qualified And thirdly and lastly I have shewed ye the danger that all those are in that rush upon this Ordinance without being dutly qualified and prepared for it both of Believers in a carnal frame of Heart and Hypocrites that are in a carnal dead state of Nature But it may be queried Whether this sacred Ordinance of the Lord's Supper may not be made a Civil Test also to accommodate Civil Government for the Admittance of Members thereunto and for their Confirmation therein and for a License to sell Ale by and other secular things in this nature as well as to be a Test for all them that belong to this spiritual Government Unto this I will answer in the Negative That it is not for not one Soul that ever did or that ever shall Receive this Holy and Blessed Ordinance out of such a base secular prophane end and design to qualifie them to come into the Government or to sell Ale or any such thing but what does highly provoke God in prophaning that sacred Ordinance not discerning the Lord's Body And so they make themselves guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord which is to Crucifie to themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame They do eat and drink themselves into the very same Spirit with the unbelieving Jews which they had in them when they did literally and actually and maliciously Crucifie our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ So that according to this Testeering Law there must not one Soul come into the Government but what must first go and Crucifie to himself the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame God hath commanded People to Crucifie their Lusts before they can be meet or worthy to come into this spiritual Government and partake of the Lord's Supper and all other Church-Priviledges thereunto belonging But these Penal Laws or Test commands Men to go and Crucifie their Lord and Master before ever they can be permitted to partake of the Civil Government or any of the Priviledges thereunto belonging And is not this a dreadful Law think ye and such a mystery of Iniquity as is not to be parallel'd in all its Circumstances Would it not be a dreadful thing think ye if there was a Law made That no Man should come into the Government unless he would eat so much Rats-bane as would fetch off all his hair off of his head and face and fetch off all the nails from off of his fingers and toes and lay him under a declining wasting lingring Distemper so that his Life would be but a burden unto him Why I will be bold to say That infinitely worse is this Law of encouraging Persons to eat and drink Damnation to themselves to qualifie them to come into the Government For as the blessed Ordinance of the Lord's Supper is spiritual Food and also wholesome Physick for the worthy Receivers for in the former it feeds and strengthens the new Man viz. all the Graces of the Spirit that is in him and by the latter all his Sins are subdued and mortified and his Soul purged and so kept in spiritual health And thus it becomes both Food and Physick to the true Believers this is a branch of the Tree of Life the Leaves whereof are for the healing of the Nations And so on the other hand it becomes strong Poyson to spiritual Vermine namely Hypocrites It is the worst Poyson that ever can be thought on to them As it is the greatest Mercy on the one hand unto them that Receive it worthily because then they are as sure to go to Heaven as if they were there already whether they do know it or not know it themselves so on the other hand it is the greatest Judgment under Heaven for a Person to Receive it unworthily in a carnal unconverted state because he eateth and drinketh Damnation to himself not discerning the Lord's Body This that is the greatest Mercy to a Child of God is turned into the greatest Judgment to a carnal Hypocrite that dare be so bold as to partake of this blessed Ordinance out of any other end and design than what the Holy God in his Infinite Wisdom has appointed it unto O dear Souls Do you that have been Test-Makers and Test-Takers and Test-Givers in this sinful way and manner tremble to think what will become of your precious Souls unless you do speedily vomit up again this deadly Poyson by unfeigned Repentance and thorow Reformation God hath said by his Servant St. Paul Let a Man examine himself and so let him eat of that Bread and drink of that Cup That is he must try himself whether God by his Holy Spirit hath made him meet and worthy to partake of this holy Ordinance that he may know in himself whether he be one of the Guest that is invited unto this blessed Feast where they are not only to feast with the Lord but upon the Lord by Faith John 6.47 48 50 63. 1 Cor. 10.1 2 3 4. And thereby are made worthy to take this spiritual Test of the Lord 's own appointment in his own way and manner and so to come into the spiritual heavenly Government and be made Members thereof For whosoever eateth and drinketh this Cup of the Lord unworthily eateth and drinketh Damnation to himself not discerning the Lord's Body Here it is said Whosoever that is High or Low Rich or Poor Priest or People Lord or Commoner this is the unalterable Law and Magna Charta of Heaven God is no Respecter of Persons therefore look to it you that are great Ones And Death is no Respecter of Persons also for when he cometh with his Sythe he outs down a Lord as soon as a Beggar Well thus you do hear what the Law of Heaven saith unto all these things and now let us hear what the Laws of Men saith unto it also Why the Laws of the Church of England saith quite another thing for they say tacitly and consequentially Let them be examined whether they have eat and drank their own Damnation and Crucified unto themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame and so let them come into the Government both of Church and State For whosoever whether he be a Lord or Commoner that shall come into the Government without being thus sinfully qualified does incur to himself and Family the Danger or Condemnation of 500 l. damage not discerning or taking notice that the Law of the Church of E is against him and that they shall pay it every groat on 't when she hath the Whip in her hand again and the Nation under her feet Hence we may observe That if any Persons will come into the Government duly qualified according to the Law in that case made and provided they must enter in at Hells Gate they must pawn or even deposit their very Souls that precious Jewel that is more worth
with them should Abolish and for ever Destroy all these Snares and Snakes that are apparently so and make better Laws for the Security of our Christian Liberty in the Room of them Eighthly and Lastly I Exhort all you of the Church of England that have been at the Sacrament formerly or latterly to Examine your selves what you went to the Lord's Table for Or if you please give me leave to ask you a few Questions 1. What was your Business at the Lord's Table 2. Pray What Condition did you go unto this Holy Ordinance in 3. Who did you expect to meet with there 4. And lastly What Benefit did you receive or expect to receive at this Holy Ordinance First What Business had you at the Sacrament Did you go there for fear of Displeasing the Parson Or Did you go there because your Neighbours should have a better Esteem of you that they should think you are a good Christian Or Did you go to satisfie the Laws of Men that binds ye so to do Or Did you go there to qualifie your selves to come into the Government Or Did you go there to satisfie and quiet a Natural Conscience What was your End and Aim in going there and partaking of that Sacred Ordinance Was it in Obedience to Christ's Command Pray do you give the Answer unto God and your own Consciences Secondly In what condition did you go unto the Lord's Table Were you born of God For this is the Children's Bread and for none else Or Did you go and rush upon this Blessed Ordinance in your Sins Were you Regenerated and born of God before ever you came there For the same Graces that fits a Person for Eternal Salvation in Glory fits him for a Right Worthy Receiving of this Holy Ordinance of the Lord's Supper therefore those do run a desperate Hazzard that do drive off Repentance and the getting all other Graces of the Spirit until they come to lye on their Death-bed when pale Death looks them grimly in the Face and is ready to launch them out into the Ocean of Eternity And then to expect that this Ordinance of the Lord's Supper shall bring all these Graces along with it to fit them for Heaven and Eternal Glory whenas they must have the same Graces to fit them for this Holy Ordinance which is lodged in the Kingdom of Heaven below as is to fit them for the Kingdom of Heaven above this being no Converting Ordinance For the Text in 1 Cor. 11.29 tells us plainly That he that Eateth and Drinketh Vnworthily Eateth and Drinketh Damnation to himself not discerning the Lord's Body Therefore I beseech ye all in the Spirit of Meekness and in the fear of the Lord that are of this Opinion to consider seriously of it because Consideration is a good Hand-Maid unto Reformation for this Ordinance does not bring one dram of Grace along with it unto any Soul but unto such as have Grace in their Hearts before receiving this Ordinance It is like the pouring of Water into a Pump that standeth in a Well that hath Water in it to fetch the Water But the giving this Ordinance to any Person that hath no Grace is like the pouring of Water into a Pump that standeth in a Well that hath no Water in it It is as Water spilt upon the Ground nay it is infinitely worse But then did you ever feel the powerful Operation of the Holy Ghost dart spiritual Light into your Souls whereby you come to see that which you never see before and feel that in your selves which you never see nor felt before Have your Souls been raised out of the Grave of Unbelief Out of a carnal corrupt dead State by the mighty Power of the Spirit And has it infuled Spiritual Life into you Hath that Almighty Power that raised a dead Saviour raised thee that was a poor dead Sinner Have you ever found and felt Sin to be an intollerable Burthen unto your Souls so as you have apprehended your selves to be in a lost and undone Condition Have you ever been made sensible of the want of Christ who calleth the Burthened Weary and Heavy laden Sinner unto him for Ease and Relief And has it made you forsake all your Sins and Lusts and all other things that come in Competition with Christ to follow him fully Have you been throughly convinced that nothing could Redeem you from Wrath and Hell and Attone you to God and Purchase Eternal Life and Salvation for you but Christ and that by and through his Righteousness and Merits alone Did you cry to God and say Lord give me Christ or I die and shall be Damned and never enjoy God nor have any Benefits by his Death and Blessed All-sufficient-Merits and Copious Righteousness Had you the Kingdom of God within ye before you came into that which you apprehend to be the Kingdom of God without ye namely the Church Did you know what you were to take it for before you came to the Lord's Table And Pray What frame of Heart did you go to the Sacrament in Were your Graces in a lively Exercise Did all those sparkling Jewels that adorn the Soul of the Believer shine forth in their Vigour and Lustre which is the Trimming that belongeth to the Wedding Garment And did you see him whom your Soul loved and longed for And did you discern the Lord's Body by an Eye of Faith through the Elements And receive him by a Hand of Faith and feed upon him with the Mouth of Faith Did you go to the Table of the Lord even sick of Love to Christ And could nothing satisfie your Hungring Thirsty Soul but Communion with Christ in that Ordinance And did you Exercise saving Faith and Spiritual Light and Knowledge and godly Sorrow for your Sins which was the Cause of Christ suffering and dying And did you receive him with Praise and Thanksgiving and with a Holy Vehement Desire Thirdly Who did you expect to meet withal at the Lord's Table Did you expect to meet with a Crucified Saviour there and to have Communion with him in that Blessed Ordinance Or Did you go only to meet with the Parson and others of your Neighbours there Did you see him by an Eye of Faith that should be your Redeemer and the beloved of your Soul Or Are you wholly ignorant of what Communion with God in that Ordinance meaneth Fourthly What did you expect to receive at the Lord's Table Did you expect to receive the Bread and Wine only and to feed upon that Or Did you expect to receive Christ which is the spiritual Bread and Drink of your Souls into your Hearts and so to receive a fresh Pardon sealed unto you for all your Sins Did you go away thence with God's Broad Seal Impressed afresh upon your Souls And your Covenant-Interest with God Ratified and Confirmed unto you in the Blood of the Lamb And your Eternal Salvation made sure unto you But if on the contrary you went to that Ordinance
in a Carnal Unconverted Dead State you came away with the Guilt of all your Sins faster bound and sealed up than they were before you came there and instead of diminishing and weakning your Sins you went away with your Sins increased and strengthened Now Pray Examine your selves Do you know what these things meaneth Or Are you wholly ignorant of them as old Nicodemus was when our Blessed Saviour Preached unto him the Mysterious Doctrine of Regeneration when he thought he must Re-enter into his Mothers Womb and be born again Joh. 3.4 Are all these things Riddles and Fancies unto ye Do you know nothing of this Matter Are you a stranger to it And are you wholly ignorant of it If you are I tell you plainly that you are no fit Subjects of this Blessed Ordinance but you did come unto it and partake of it unworthily therefore I will refer you to the Apostle Paul's Censure in this Case 1 Cor. 11. If you had not your Mind savingly Enlightned nor your Will Renewed and Changed nor your Affection Rectified and set upon right Objects viz. upon God in Christ And if you had not sanctifying saving Faith fixt upon Christ the only Mediator and Redeemer of Mankind 1 Tim. 2.5 And if you did not come with your Hearts broken for Sin and from Sin and behold a Crucified Saviour with all your Sins Crucified not one spared or Indulged And if you did not come there with a New Spiritual Understanding nor the whole Man sanctified throughout in Body Soul and Spirit But if you came to the Lord's Table ignorant of all this and in all your Sins then instead of receiving any Benefit by or from this Ordinance you do Eat and Drink Judgment or Condemnation to your selves not discerning the Lord's Body But it may be some will be so bold and hardy as to say This is very severe harsh Doctrine Why this is nothing but what I looked for and expected for it is what carnal Hypocrites and proud Persecuters do always judge of God's Holy Word and Righteous Laws and Pure Ordinances Institutions and Worship They judge that to be too strict and his Holy People to be too precise But if you will quarrel at the Severity and Strictness of this Doctrine you must quarrel with the Apostle Paul and the rest of the Apostles and Prophets Nay let me tell ye if you will quarrel with this Doctrine you must dispute the Cause with our Saviour Christ himself if you dare What dare not they do that dare to Crucifie their Maker that should be their Redeemer For the Apostle Paul delivered nothing of this severe harsh Doctrine but what he received first from the Lord 1 Cor. 11.23 There is his Mission and the Prophets spake as they were inspired by the Holy Ghost 2 Pet. 1.21 For the Prophecy came not in Old time by the Will of Man But Holy Men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost You do find fault with the Severity of God's Laws against Sinners but you do not find fault with the Severity of your own Laws against his Saints and Servants and against your selves also For there the Severity of it will center at last for you have Laws in being which you are now contending for to have continued with us which are to force men to break and violate all these severe Laws of God as you count them and thereby to incur all the Penalties of them And who is severest the God of Mercy or you that are Men of this Cruelty There are very severe Laws made against any that should even dare to Counterfeit the King's Broad-Seal or to fix the Impress of it unto any thing which they have not His Majesty's Command and Authority for so doing it is punishable with Death by the Law for it is High Treason or if they should fix it to Blank Papers whereby Enemies might write what they please and so abuse and betray the King's Authority Why This Ordinance of the Lord's Supper is the Broad-Seal of Heaven it belongeth to the King of Kings and must not be affixed to or impressed upon any thing but what they have God's Authority for so doing Now for any Persons to take this Sacred Broad-Seal of Heaven and make it a common Seal namely to affix it to the civil State to Seal Men Commissions and Warrants for Places and Offices in the Government Civil Military and Ecclesiastical this is to make this Blessed Ordinance a common Seal 2. It is a making this Sacred Broad-Seal of Heaven a common Seal when they Seal a Licence to sell Ale with it by And Thirdly and Lastly They make this Blessed Ordinance of the Lord's Supper which is the Broad-Seal of Heaven a common Seal when at Festival Times as Christmas and Easter when whole Showles of poor ignorant Creatures comes to the Lord's Table that know not their Right-Hand from their Left in spiritual Things and have no saving Work of God wrought in their Souls by the powerful Operation of his Holy Spirit but are all it may be as ignorant as the very Parson that Exhibits it unto them These are all Blanks so they impress the Broad-Seal of Heaven upon Multitudes of Blanks so that the Evil One may come and write what he pleases after them O sad deplorable Condition for any poor Souls to be in And although you count this Doctrine severe and harsh yet no man can be ignorant of it because it is written in the Great Charter of Heaven 1 Cor. 11. He that Eateth and Drinketh unworthily Eateth and Drinketh Condemnation or Judgment to himself God hath threatned to execute severe Judgments and Punishments upon all Prophaners and Abusers of this Holy Ordinance And God hath Four Gracious Ends in threatning these Transgressions 1. It is to Deter and and Affright Sinners from violating these severe Laws as they call them that Persons should not be ignorant of them 2. God threatens because that Sinners might repent and prevent the Execution of those severe Laws 3. God threatens because he will leave the Sinner wholly without Excuse or Plea Every Mouth shall be stop'd And 4. and Lastly God threatens because the Glory of his Attribute of Justice shall appear to all the World when he Executes his Threatning upon the Guilty Impenitent Sinner every Mouth will be stop'd and all shall justifie God and say Righteous art thou O Lord and Just and Holy in all thy Ways Thus you see what a dangerous thing it is for poor ignorant carnal unconverted dead Sinners to rush upon this Ordinance Hand over Head without due Consideration of what they are going about to do But Secondly My Second and last Exhortation and Counsel shall be unto all sober Protestants both of Dissenters and others that are still hankering after the Onions and Garlick and Flesh-Pots of Egypt that are yet staying upon them that smote us And my first Exhortation unto all you shall be this namely Be not afraid to part with