in joyful Songs and Hymns of Praise 7. As God whom we have so often provoked to Wrath and Indignation doth graciously condescend in Christ Iesus to renew his Covenant of Mercy to us so let us most heartily come to renew through the same blessed Iesus our Engagements to him and do that which may correspond with what Christ hath done for us Did he deny himself veiled his God-head in mortal Flesh taking on him the form of a Servant humbling himself to the Death of the Cross Let us deny our selves take up the Cross forsake all and follow him Was he Crucified for us Let the Old-man be cruciâ—â—ed in us with the Affections and Lusts let the World be crucified to us and we unto the World let us make no more Provision for the Flesh to fulfill the Lusts thereof Did he give himself a Sacrifice for our Sins Let us offer to God the Sacrifices of broken and contrite Hearts the Sacrifice of Prayer and Supplication of Praise and Thansgiving of Almsgiving and Mercy and in a word our Bodies a living Sacrifice holy and acceptable to God 8. Let this Feast of Love and holy Communion oblige us to hold the Unity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace to purge out the old leaven of Malice and Envy to forgive as God for Christ his sake hath forgiven us to do good to all men as we have opportunity especially to them that are of the Houshold of Faith to love our Enemies bless our Persecutors pray for our Haters render good for evil overcome evil with good and if going to the Altar we remember that our Brother hath ought against us go first and be reconciled unto him When we are thus disposed we may with an holy Boldness come to the Lord's Table and need not fear but we shall have the Benefits thereof conferred upon us CHAP. VIII How we are to behave our selves at this Sacrament ¶ AS thou goest to the Church meditate all the way or discourse with thy Company of the Goodness of God in inviting poor Sinners to his own Table Say thus with thy self O my sinful Soul taste and see that the Lord is good O what a Love and Goodness is this that such wicked Prodigals as we who have so long abused all the good Gifts which our heavenly Father hath bestowed upon us in a vain foolish and sinful way of living should have such Encouragements as these to return to our offended God and Father I will go unto him and say Father I have sinned against Heaven and before thee and am not worthy to be called thy Son or to appear and feed amongst thy Children O Lord not considering what thou hast made me a rational Creature to know love and honour thee my great and good God I have used my self like a Beast and have fed with Greediness and Delight amongst swinish Sinners upon empty Husks and Vanities O blessed be thy Name who hast brought me to my self again to see and lament and hate my past Folly I am now in all Humility coming to feast my Soul with thee in thy House where there is ever bread enough and to spare even the Bread of Life my ever blessed JESUS O send out thy Light and thy Truth let them lead me let them bring me unto thy holy Hill and to thy Tabernacles then will I go unto the Altar of God unto God my exceeding Joy and with all my Soul will I praise thee O God my God I will enter into thy Gates with Thanksgiving and into thy Courts with Praise I will be thankful unto thee and bless thy Name For the Lord is good his Mercy is everlasting and his Truth endureth to all Generations ¶ Entring into the Church have such Thoughts as these before the Service begin O how dreadful is this place This is no other but the House of God and the Gate of Heaven Holiness O God becometh thine House for ever One day in thy House is better than a thousand Blessed is the man whom thou choosest and causest to approach unto thee that he may dwell in thy Courts I come O Lord into thy House in the multitude of thy Mercy and in thy Fear will I worship thee in thy holy Temple I have loved the Habitation of thy House and the place where thine honour dwelleth O let me be abundantly satisfied with the Fatness of thy House and make me drink of the River of thy Pleasures ¶ Ioyn devoutly with the Congregation in the Prayers of the Church and attend diligently to God's Word read and preached And when the Minister is going to the Table say thus Blessed be God for affording us Pastors and Teachers O how beautiful are the Feet of them that preach the Gospel of Peace and bring glad tidings of good things O Lord bless and assist this thy Servant in this holy Ministration Thou O Lord art our Shepherd we can want nothing thou preparest a Table before us surely Goodness and Mercy shall follow us all the days of our Life ¶ When the Bread and Wine are placed upon the Table and thou art preparing thine Offering say thus O gracious Lord what a miracle of Divine Love do we here behold We have sinned against thee and yet thou callest not upon us for Sacrifices and burnt Offerings but hast prepared a Body for thy eternal Son that he in that might do thy Will live among us and die a Sacrifice for us and here feed us on that Sacrifice of himself to eternal Life I have abundantly deserved to be at this time in Hell amongst the Devils and dost thou yet vouchsafe to feast me at thy Table amongst thy Children on the Body and Blood of thy dearest Son O astonishing Love Let this thy love O God pierce my Heart and do thou O blessed JESUS dwell therein for ever The Earth is thine O Lord and the fullness thereof What can I render unto thee for all thine inestimable Benefits My Goodness extendeth not unto thee but to the Saints that are in the Earth Thou O God of thy Goodness hast prepared for the poor Accept I beseech thee of my poor Mite receive this my humble Acknowledgment of thy Bounty to me poor Sinner whereby I confess and declare my self and all that I have to be at thy Command and Service accept of me for Iesus Christ his sake ¶ When the Exhortation is read mind it well and observe whether you come so duely prepared as is therein said you ought to be Then say Search me O God and know my heart try me and know my thoughts and see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting Who can understand his Errors Cleanse thou me from my secret Faults ¶ When you are bid to draw near do so both with Body and Soul saying My Heart is ready O God my Heart is ready I will wash my hands in Innocency and
that his Name may be glorified his Church may flourish in Truth and Purity and Peace and Love may abound amongst Christians Some short Directions and Prayers WHen you go to examine your Faith by the help I have herein given you or some other fall humbly before God on your Knees and heartily say O most glorious God who madest me that I might know thee and knowing thee might love thee and loving thee might be for ever happy in thy Love I poor Sinner do here most humbly bewail and confess my great and alas too willful Ignorance of thee O! for his sake whom thou hast sent to call us out of Darkness into Light by his Gospel even JESUS CHRIST in whom dwell all the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge enlighten my dark Soul by thy Word and holy Spirit with the saving Knowledge of the Truth and incline my Heart firmly to believe it even to the end Remove from me all prejudice and blindness of Heart let not the God of this World any longer darken the Eyes of my Understanding or delude my poor Soul to believe a Lye or possess me with a desire of vain Knowledge which profiteth not unto Godliness but enable me daily to grow in all Grace and the Knowledge of thee the only true God and Iesus Christ whom thou hast sent Help me at this time to discern my Errors and the Imperfections in my Knowledge and Faith and to correct them Strengthen me to hold fast without wavering the form of sound Words which thou teachest and not Man that persevering stedfast in the same unto the Death I may receive the end of my Faith even the Salvation of my Soul through Iesus Christ my blessed Lord and Saviour Amen At the end of every Question consider well and if you find you so believe say For ever blessed be God who hath enlighten'd my Soul with the Knowledge of this sacred Truth and Faith in him O Lord encrease this Knowledge and confirm this Faith in me unto the end If you doubt in any point note it well and say O Lord pardon thy Servant I am weak and blind open mine Eyes what I know not teach thou me by thy holy Spirit guide me into all the Truth for Iesus Christ his sake Having noted all your Doubts take a fit opportunity to consult your Pastor for better Instruction At the end of this Examination thus pray O most blessed God if my Heart deceive me not I firmly believe all that I know of thy sacred Truth Thou know'st O Lord the scantness of my Knowledge and weakness of my Faith I most heartily beseech thee to pardon my Imperfections to keep me from Heresie and Error and to strengthen me daily in the true Faith of our Lord Iesus Christ. Let me not rest in an idle and dead Faith but make it lively and active in me purifying my Heart from all Hypocrisie and Uncleanness kindling in me a fervent Love to thee and to thy Laws working in me by Love an universal Obedience to thy blessed Will enabling me to overcome the World subdue the Flesh with the Lusts thereof to quench all the fiery Darts of the Devil to resist all his Temptations unto Victory to be conformed daily more and more to the Image of Christ to be strong against all Sufferings and the Terrors of Death and finally to lay hold on eternal Life through thy Mercy and the Merits of my blessed Saviour Iesus Christ. Amen When you are to examine your Repentance and Obedience pray to this sense Most great and good Good the searcher of Hearts and trier of the Reins who art every where present and from whom no Darkness can hide us thou compassest my Path and my lying down and art acquainted with all my ways there is not a word in my Tongue nor a thought in my Heart but thou know'st it altogether My heart O God is deceitful above all things and I cannot find it out neither understand the errors of my ways nor the sincerity of my Purposes without the help of thy holy Spirit Help me O my God help me I beseech thee to know my self and the true frame and temper of my Soul shew thou me wherein I have offended thee in Thought Word or Deed grant me a true and a humbling sight and sense of all my Sins let not my Ignorance blind me nor self-love beguile me nor the common practice of the World delude me into a false Opinion of my self and my own Righteousness but enable me I humbly beseech thee to find out all my Sins together with all the Aggravations of my Guilt make me truly vile in mine own Eyes and heartily sorry for all my Failings enable me to hate and forsake every evil way and to turn unto thee by an unfeigned Repentance and a sincere Obedience to all thy holy and good Laws that I may have my fruit unto Holiness and the end everlasting Life through Iesus Christ my only Lord and Saviour Amen After every Question pause a while and impartially judge your self and where you think you have done any part of your Duty say Blessed be my good God through Iesus Christ who by his holy Spirit hath enabled me either to will or to do any good thing in his Sight O Lord I have done all very weakly and imperfectly and most humbly beg thy pardon If I have done any thing well not unto me O Lord not unto me thy very unprofitable Servant but unto thy Name be the Glory through Iesus Christ my Lord. Where you see your sin lay it in earnest to your Heart and say O Lord I have herein sinned most grievously against Heaven and before thee and am not worthy to be called thy Child God be merciful to me poor Sinner who deserve nothing but Hell and Damnation O grant me Repentance unto Life and enter not into Judgment with thy Servant but pardon my Sin and lead me in the ways of thy Commandments to eternal life through Iesus Christ. If you have offended or injured any man note it well and take some sit time to confess it to him satisfie him and beg his Pardon If your Sin be publick and scandalous think not you have done enough till you have publickly testified your Repentance as the Church shall require it of you When you are in any doubt resort again to the Minister confess your Sin freely to him and crave his Iudgment and Directions After Examination pray earnestly to this effect O most holy and just God who perfectly hatest all Iniquity and will not have Mercy on any impenitent Sinner how should so vile and polluted a Wretch as I am dare so much as to take thy holy Name into my defiled Mouth O Lord I am a most grievous and abominable Sinner and do altogether deserve thy fierce Wrath and heavy Indignation It is a very great wonder of Mercy that thou sufferest me yet to live and hast not long since cast me into Hell and given me the
at the Lord's Table whither they are not admitted but only Professors of Christianity Though we are to withdraw from such wicked and disorderly Persons so far as not to countenance them but endeavour to make them ashamed o◠their Sins yet must we be careful to do this orderly and as becometh Christians And this you do not if you study not to be quiet and to do your own Business but delight to be busie-bodies in other mens matters If you suffer for that you have the just Reward of your busie-boldness Qu. But must wicked men be admitted to this Sacrament Ans. No not if they be notorious and have not declared their Repentance They ought to be admonished and if stubborn cast out of the Church by those to whom it belongs to do it Leave that to your Governours and do you the Duty of private Christians Remember Charity thinketh no evil but believeth all things it judgeth not rashly but hath as good an Opinion as may be had of all men Be sure then that you have sufficient ground for it when you judge any one wicked Take heed also of spiritual Pride in your self and that your unreasonable swelling with self-conceit cause not 〈◊〉 Brother to seem little and vile in your Eyes See that you count not any man a wicked man only because he is not of your Opinion or because he is not of your Party or dares not separate from the Church as you do or censure other men as boldly as you do or have as high an Opinion of his own Godliness as you have it is no good sign of that Purity which some pretend to that they scruple at a Form or Ceremony but not at being drunk or being unjust in not paying every man his due or reviling their Governours or uncharitably censuring the whole Church or that they dare not come to the Lord's Table with wicked men but dare go to the Ale-house with them See that you have discharged a good Conscience towards your Brethren before you abandon their Communion Have you friendly reproved and admonished them privately Talk not to others of their Wickedness till you have first told them of it If this have done no good upon them have 〈◊〉 admonished them again before two or three Witnesses If this prevail not have you told the Minister and desired his help to reform these Sinners If he cannot reclaim them have you endeavour'd to have them cast out of the Church by Excommunication If you have not done this where 's your Charity to your Brother where 's your Obedience to God Where 's your Zeal for the Church's Purity You have more cause to be afraid of your own Sins than of other mens nay you become by this neglect Partakers of other mens Sins which you pretend to be the very thing you are so greatly afraid of Obj. You say perhaps you have done all this and yet these Sinners are not excluded but admitted If it be so it is not well yet it is not your Fault that they are admitted but it is your Fault if you will not do your Duty because other men will not do theirs Obj. But I shall so profess Communion with the wicked Ans. By the course you have taken you have done what was your Duty to avoid their Communion You come not to communicate with the Wicked but with sincere Christians Obj. But by so doing I shall countenance them and seem to own them as good Christians Ans. By what you have done to amend them and by what you may still do in continuing to reprove them you prevent that danger There were very wicked Persons in the Church of Corinth such as the Apostle orders to be cast out and delivered to Sitan yea at the Sacrament there were Divisions and Factions and some were drunk These things St. Paul reproves them for but you no where hear him bid others abstain from the Sacrament because of such men but he bids them examine themselves and eat IV. But you say you dare not receive this Sacrament at the hand of a wicked Minister and you take yours to 〈◊〉 such It is not well if he be such indeed and if he be openly such and not removed some others are to blame as well as he Have you admonished him Have you again admonish'd him If that would not do have you complained of him and used all the means in your power to have him either reformed or turn'd out If this be not done you have not done your Duty either to him or your own Soul or the Church of God Complain not then of his Wickedness but your own Have you used all these means in vain to reform or remove him Then if you can conveniently you may remove to some place where you have a better If you cannot you are to be content and receive the Food of your Soul from a dirty hand rather than want it You would not refuse the King's Pardon though a Drunkard or a Swearer brought it you This Meat nourisheth not by vertue of the hand of him that ministreth it unto you but by the Blessing of God that giveth it Take it as from the hand of Christ himself and have Faith in him and when you have done what legally you can to get a good Minister you shall fare no worse for a bad one in the end Obj. But though I can find no great Fault otherwise with the Minister yet this I like not that he admits scandalous Sinners to the Communion He is indeed to charge all such to abstain from this Sacrament till they declare their Repentance He is not to admit such if he know them till they have declared their Repentance and made such Satisfaction as the Church requireth Do you certainly know then that he doth otherwise and have you acquainted him who they are and satisfied him that they are so indeed Usually such men keep most out of his way and he is least acquainted with them and hath at most but an uncertain Report of their Vices and they that bring him this Report refuse to prove the Truth of it and when he enquires of the Persons themselves they deny it and he dare not deny them the Priviledges of Christians till he have better grounds to go upon Or if you are sure the Minister was not ignorant of their wicked Life are you sure also that they have not before they were admitted given him all the Satisfaction he could in reason demand in such a case You ought to be sure of these things before you censure him so hardly And if you be sure he is guilty complain of him after due Admonition and I am confident this Fault will be amended But if unfit Persons be admitted by him ignorantly and you know of it and do not inform him better it is your selves on whom this Guilt will lye The good Lord grant that we may all more conscientiously do our Duties in our several Stations