Sermon XI - Sanctifying the Name of God in Receiving the Sacrament
Sermon XI Sanctifying the Name of God in Receiving the Sacrament
LEVITICUS 10:3
I will be sanctified in them that come nigh Me.
The last day we finished the point of sanctification of the Name of God in the hearing of His Word; and now we will proceed to the sanctification of the Name of God in receiving the sacrament; that's the next duty of worship.
Now first for the word, "sacrament." I confess we have not that word in all the Scripture, as neither have we the word "Trinity", and divers other words that ministers make use of to set forth the mysteries of religion by, but yet it is useful to consider the meaning why ministers in the Church have given this name unto those signs and seals that the Church receives; "sacrament" is to hallow a thing, or to dedicate, because in the sacraments there are outward things that are made holy, for holy and spiritual ends.
Secondly, we ourselves do as it were hallow, or dedicate ourselves unto God in the use of these ordinances; that's one reason from whence it hath the name.
Or otherwise, as some will have it, sacramentum, because it is to be received sacrament, with a holy mind, and therefore called the sacrament. The churches have used it a long time; in Tertullian's time (which was above fourteen hundred years ago) he was the first that we find used this word, and most that would open the Word unto us, say, that especially it was taken from the practice of soldiers, who when they came and listed themselves, bound themselves in a
solemn oath to be faithful to their captain, and to the cause that they did undertake; and the oath, they were wont to call sacramentum, a sacrament. Now in regard that Christians when they come to this ordinance, they come to seal a covenant with God, and though they do not formally and explicitly take an oath, yet they bind themselves in a holy covenant which hath the strength even of an oath in it; (For a solemn promise to the high God hath the strength of an oath in it) and from thence they were called by these names, sacraments; but that for the word, that you may understand it.
But the word the Scripture useth to set out this sacrament, by that now I am speaking of, is the communion of the body and blood of Christ. So, you have it in 1 Cor. 10:16, "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" I say we are now treating about this point how we are to sanctify the Name of God in that which the Scripture calls the communion of the body and blood of Christ. And now for the opening of that.
First, we must know that this is a part of the worship of God, and we draw nigh to God in this, or otherwise it will not come up to our point.
And then we shall show that God is to be sanctified in this duty of worship.
And then thirdly, how.
First, we do in this draw nigh to God. We worship God. For when we are coming to receive these holy signs and seals, we come to present ourselves before God; and we have to deal with God Himself in a service that He Himself requires of us in a holy, in a divine service.
We come to present ourselves to God for blessing, for communication of some higher good unto us than possibly those creatures that we have to deal with are able of themselves to convey to us; come for a higher good than to taste a piece of bread, or to
drink a draught of wine; we come, I say, to present ourselves to God that we might have communion with Him, and that we might have the blessing of the covenant of grace conveyed unto us through these things; now certainly this is a drawing nigh to God. For to present ourselves for the conveyance of the blessing of the covenant of grace through these creatures, yea, that we might have communion with God Himself in them, this is drawing nigh to Him when we come to His Table, therefore we draw nigh to God.
Had not God instituted and appointed these creatures, bread and wine, and the actions about them to be the means of conveyance of blessing unto us, it had been will-worship for us to have expected any further presence of God in such creatures than there is in the nature of them. It is true, God is present with every creature when we eat and drink at our tables, God is present there; but we cannot be said to draw nigh to God and worship God there; for we there look for no further presence of God with us in them, to convey further good than the Lord hath put into the nature of those things. Only when godly people take them and receive them as blessings sanctified by the Word, they take them as the blessings of God that come out of love to them. But now when we come to receive that which is called the communion, there we expect things that are beyond the nature of these creatures to convey that that is by an institution of God set apart for supernatural uses and ends, not to convey in any natural way such and such things but in a supernatural way, through the institution of God, and so it comes to be worship.
Had we not, I say, a command for this, it would be superstition and idolatry for us to make use of such creatures for such ends. If any man in the world should have appointed a piece of bread or a draught of wine to have signified and sealed the body and blood of Christ, it had been superstition, and will-worship, and sinful and abominable to you; but we are to look upon God setting apart these creatures for such holy and solemn ends, and therefore when we come to be exercised in them, we come to worship God; and we come likewise to tender up our homage to God, when we come to attend
upon Him in such ordinances as these are; to tender up that homage that is due from us poor creatures, unto such an infinite and glorious
God, and therefore we draw nigh to Him in these.
Secondly, we must sanctify God's Name in drawing nigh to Him.
Whatsoever we do, whether we eat or drink we must do all to the glory of God. Now if in our common eating and drinking we must do all to the glory of God, then certainly in this spiritual eating and drinking there must be some special thing done for the glory of God in this.
1. Because there is so much of God in it; for here there is a presenting before us the great, yea, the greatest mysteries of salvation, and the deep counsels of God concerning eternal life are presented before us in these outward elements of the bread and wine, and the action thereof. Now when we come to eat and to drink those things that are appointed to set forth the greatest mysteries of salvation, and the deepest of the counsels of God concerning man's eternal good, wherein especially God will glorify Himself, we had need there sanctify the Name of God, for the things are very great and glorious that are presented unto us.
2. This ordinance of the Lord's Supper, or the Communion, it is an ordinance that Christ hath left to His Church out of the abundance of His love, and therefore you shall find if you read the institution of it, in Matthew 25, that the same night wherein Christ was betrayed, He took bread and brake it; though Christ was to die the next day, and to encounter with the wrath of God, yea that very night He was to be in an agony, and to sweat drops of water and blood, and the next day to die and to have these trials of wrath poured upon Him, so as to put
Him to cry out, "My God, My God why hast Thou forsaken me?" Yet He busies His thoughts that very night to institute this supper; surely it must be a great ordinance, and there is a great deal of the love of Christ in it. Christ saw that His Church had need of it, that He should that night when He was betrayed have His thoughts busied about such a thing as this is. One would think at that time that He had
enough to take up His thoughts concerning Himself, being to encounter with the Law, and with the wrath of God for man's sin; but for all that great work Christ had to encounter with, yet His thoughts are busied about this great ordinance of the institution of the supper, and therefore there was great love in it. Christ saw that it was a matter of great moment; now if it is so, then there is great cause why we should sanctify God's Name in such an ordinance as this is, and not to account it as a common and ordinary thing.
3. We must sanctify God's Name in this, because it is the sacrament of our communion with Christ; wherein we come to have such a near union and communion with Him as to eat His flesh and to drink His blood, and to sit at His table. We come to have communion with Christ even in all our senses; now Christ coming so fully to us, that calls upon us to sanctify His Name when we come before Him.
4. In this the covenant of grace is sealed, the covenant of grace comes to be sealed in both the parts of it; now when we come to have to deal with God in the way of the covenant of grace, both to have the seal on His part, and the seal on ours, surely this must needs call for a sanctified use of such a thing as is so holy as this is.
And that's the first reason why we are to sanctify God's Name in this, because if we be in ordinary eating and drinking we must do it then in this, wherein there is so much of God, wherein the mysteries of godliness are set before us, wherein there is so much of the love of Christ, wherein we are to have close communion with Jesus Christ, and wherein the covenant of grace comes to be sealed on both sides, there had need therefore be a sanctifying of God's Name in the use of it.
Secondly, consider this, that there is no duty in all the book of God that I know of that is urged with more strength and severity than this is, as that place in 1 Cor. 11 showeth, where you have required of every one that comes to receive the bread and wine in the Lord's
Supper, that they should examine themselves and so eat, and you
have the most dreadful expressions against those that do not do it that I know are mentioned against the neglect of any duty in all the Book of God. There, the Holy-Ghost saith that whosoever eats and drinks unworthily, first, he is guilty of the body and blood of Christ, and then secondly, he eats and drinks his own damnation. These two expressions have as much dreadfulness in them as can be imagined, and we do not find an exhortation to a duty backed with two such severe expressions, in case we should neglect our duty, as this exhortation. What if we do not sanctify God's Name in this duty? We come to be guilty of the body and blood of Christ.
Blood-guiltiness is a terrible thing; you know David cries out, Lord deliver me from blood-guiltiness; to have but the blood of an ordinary man to lie upon one, to shed the blood of the vilest rogue that lives, in a murderous way, it would lie upon the conscience and be very terrible; it is impossible that such a man can be quiet all his days though he hath never such a seared conscience. A heathen could not be at quiet if he hath the guilt of blood lie upon him; but to be guilty of the blood of Christ, whose blood is ten thousand thousand times more worth than the blood of all the men that ever lived upon the face of the earth, must needs be a most dreadful thing. It is a fearful expression, guilty of the body and blood of Christ, that is, he offers such an indignity to the body and blood of Christ, as the Lord will charge him of being guilty of it, guilty of abusing of the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
And then he doth eat and drink his own damnation; but we shall speak more to that when we come to show how God will sanctify His
Name in those that do not sanctify it here in this holy ordinance. I will not therefore spend further time in those Scriptures, for I bring them only now to show that there is a necessity of it, that we do sanctify the Name of God in this ordinance.
Thirdly, there is nothing that strikes more upon a man's conscience; we find it by experience, even upon wicked men's consciences, and especially upon such as begin to be enlightened in the holiness of this
ordinance, God hath put much honor upon it. I confess some men may use it superstitiously though it be an ordinance of Christ, yet God hath put a great deal of honor upon this ordinance that men that are very wicked otherwise, yet their consciences tell them that when they come to this ordinance, then they must be good, then they must not sin but have good thoughts and good prayers at that time. And many times, they dare not come if their consciences tell them that they live in some sin. I knew one myself once that was to be executed, and he had never received this ordinance in all his life, though about forty years of age, and being asked the reason why, he confessed he lived in some sin that he was loathe to leave, and therefore would never come to that ordinance all his life, though herein the Devil gulled and deceived him. But I mention it to show what a power there is in the consciences of men about this ordinance; this ordinarily is one of the first things that strikes upon the souls of men, when they come to have their consciences awakened, oh how have I profaned the Name of God in the ordinance of the holy communion and have not sanctified His Name in it.
That God should be sanctified in this ordinance, that's clear enough.
But now the great work is (which is the third thing that I promised to show) how we should sanctify God's Name in this ordinance.
Certainly, the Name of God hath been much taken in vain, there hath been a great deal of pollution in the use of this ordinance and in men's spirits when they have been exercising themselves in such an holy ordinance as this is. Therefore, I will open this to you, and shall not be very large in it, only to show you the main and principal things that may serve for the direction of us, that the Name of God may not be so taken in vain and dishonored as heretofore, and I shall cast what I intend to speak of into these particulars.
1 That whosoever was to partake of this must be holy himself; none can sanctify God, but he must have a sanctified heart himself.
Secondly, this ordinance it must be received in a holy communion.
There must be a communion of saints for this ordinance, and it cannot be received anywhere else but in a communion of saints.
Thirdly, the holy disposition of soul particularly, or the qualifications of soul that are required for the sanctifying of God's Name in this ordinance.
Fourthly, the manner of the explicit goings out of the soul, that there are to be at that very time of receiving.
Fifthly, the keeping of the institution of Christ in our receiving. These things are required for the sanctifying of the Name of God in this ordinance.
For the first, those that come must be holy themselves.
This is an ordinance not appointed for conversion, to make holy; others that are not converted may come to the Word, because the Word it is appointed to work conversion; 'tis appointed to work grace, to work the first grace, faith comes by hearing. But we do not find in all the Scripture that this is appointed for conversion, but it supposes conversion; none are to come to receive this sacrament but men and women that before are converted by the Word. The Word first, therefore, is to be preached to men for their conversion; and then this is an ordinance appointed for to seal them. Therefore in the primitive times they let all come to hearing of the Word, and then when the sermon was done there was an officer stepped up and cried holy things for holy men, and then all others were to go out, and therefore it was called "Missa" (though the Papists did corrupt it and so called it the "Mass" afterwards, by mixing their own inventions instead of the Supper of the Lord, but it had that name at first). I say this holy communion was called by the name of Missa, because that all others were sent away, and only such as were of the Church, and accounted godly, staid. Holy things to holy men.
And this must needs be so, because that the nature of it being the seal of the covenant of grace requires it. It must be supposed that all that come hither must be in covenant with God, they must be such as have been brought to submit to the condition of the covenant. Now the condition of the covenant of grace is believe and be saved; it is therefore appointed for believers. And as the nature of it being a seal supposeth a covenant, so none can have this covenant sealed to them but those that do first submit to it and are brought into covenant.
When you make an indenture and put to the seal, certainly the seal belongs only to those that have their names in the indenture. Now
'tis true, though men's names are not mentioned in the Word, yet the condition is to those that are brought in to believe in Jesus Christ; saith God, I come now to seal all My mercies in Christ to their souls.
We abuse God if we come to take the seal to a blank; it is to make this ordinance a ridiculous thing. Therefore, there must be some transactions between God and your souls before you come to the seal. If a man should say to you, come set to your seal to such a thing, and there were never any kind of transactions between this man and you before, you would account it ridiculous; after there hath been agreements between you, you use then to seal. So, it must be here; I would appeal to many of your consciences that have come to the Lord's Supper, what transactions have there been between God and your souls? Canst thou say, the Lord was pleased to reveal Himself to me, to make known to me my wretched condition, and the way of grace and salvation, and showed me that upon my coming in to receive His Son, He would be merciful to me and pardon my sins; and I have found the Spirit of God working my heart to Jesus Christ, the Lord from heaven speaking to me, and I sending an answer to heaven again, how willing my soul was to accept of the covenant which the Lord hath made with poor creatures in the Word of His
Gospel? Canst thou say this in the uprightness of thy heart? If not, know that this seal belongs not to thee until the Lord hath by His
Word subdued thy heart to this agreement first with Him.
Secondly, this ordinance, it is the ordinance of spiritual nourishment, of eating the flesh of Christ and drinking His blood in a spiritual way. Now it must needs suppose that first there must be life before there can be any nourishment received in. If it be appointed to nourish and increase grace, then surely there must be grace before; what nourishment can a dead child take? The very first thing that is to be done is nourishment here, the Word hath power to convey life and then to nourish, but we read of no such thing here, but that which is to be done here is presently to feed, to eat, and to drink, that's the end of the sacrament; therefore it must be supposed that thou must have spiritual life, there must come no dead soul to this ordinance, but those who are quickened by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, they must come for nourishment.
Thirdly, the act here required doth note that only those that are holy and godly can receive this sacrament; we are required by the Apostle to examine ourselves. To examine ourselves of what? It must be of our godliness, examine what work of God hath been upon the soul, how God hath brought the soul to Himself, and what graces of the Spirit of God are there, and how we have been brought into covenant with God. Now if only those can receive worthily, and are to come that first examine themselves, then certainly such only as are godly are to come, for they only can perform those acts that are required.
Fourthly, it's a sacrament of communion with God, and communion with the saints; now what communion hath light and darkness, or what fellowship hath Christ with Belial? If it be a sacrament of communion, of coming to the Table of God will God have His enemies to come to His Table? You will invite no enemies to your
Tables, but your children and friends, so they must be the children of God and the friends of God, these that are reconciled to God in the blood of His Son, and those that are His children that must sit at His
Table, therefore they must be holy. Now this may suffice for that first thing, that this is not an ordinance for all sorts of people, but such as have submitted to the condition of the covenant before. Such as have grace, and ability to examine themselves of their graces, and such as
are children and reconciled to God, and so are fit to sit at the Table of God, and to enjoy communion with Him and with His Son, and with the saints; for we are one body sacramentally when we come to this holy ordinance; all others therefore certainly are to be kept from this sacrament but such.
2 The second thing will make it out more fully and that is, it is not enough that we be holy ourselves; (and so all ignorant, profane, and scandalous, yea, all that are merely civil, that cannot make out any work of godliness upon their hearts in bringing them to Christ, are excluded.) But that whosoever was to partake of this, the ordinance of the Lord's Supper, must be holy himself. None can sanctify God, but he must have a sanctified heart himself, but it must be done in holy communion, and it is clear out of that place in 1 Cor. 10: 16, 17, "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" and then saith the Apostle in verse 17, "For we being many are one bread and one body," therefore all that come to receive the sacrament, they must so come as they must be one body, one spiritual corporation; this very consideration, that those with whom we receive the sacrament are one body with us, it hath a great deal in it, for the helping of us to sanctify God's Name. This ordinance I say, it is to be received only in a holy communion; one Christian cannot receive the sacrament alone; there must be a Communion wheresoever it is to be administered; it is not enough there is one godly man there, but there must be a communion of saints, and in that communion, it is to be received.
Quest. You will say, must it be received in a communion of Saints?
What if wicked men do come there? Will that hinder us from sanctifying God's Name in partaking of the sacrament with them? Do not we find in Scripture that the Church had always wicked men among them? There are always tares growing up with the wheat. If you read even in the Corinthians, you shall find that there were some
in that Church that were wicked, yea, and it is thought that Judas himself did receive the sacrament too; therefore, what if wicked men be there, doth that hinder?
Answ. I answer, first it is true, that in the Church of God there have been wicked men and is like there will be wicked men to the end of the world; but yet wheresoever there is a right communion of Saints, there ought to be the power of Christ exercised to cast out those wicked men, or at least to withdraw from them. This is the Law of Christ, that if there be any that have communion with you, if any of them do appear to be wicked, you are bound in conscience to go and tell them; if they do not reform, you are bound to take two or three, and if they do not yet reform, then you are bound to tell the church, to tell the assembly of the Saints when they meet together. For so the word "Church" doth signify, and we find in the 1 Cor. 5, that when there was an incestuous person to be cast out, it was done in the presence of the congregation. Thus far you are bound to do, otherwise you cannot say that it is nothing to you if wicked men be there, for you have not discharged your conscience, and so you come to be defiled, and you do not sanctify God's Name in this ordinance, because you have not done to the uttermost of your duty for the casting out of those wicked men.
And mark in 1 Cor. 5:6, 7, there the Apostle writing to the Church, bids them that they should "purge out the old leaven, know ye not," saith he, "that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?" The Apostle doth not speak there of sin, but of the wicked incestuous person, saith he, you must look to it that this man be purged out from you, or otherwise you are all leavened by it, that is, the whole Church would be leavened by it, if there were not care taken to purge out that one man.
You will say, shall we be the worse for one wicked man's coming? No, if we be no way faulty of it, then we cannot be said to be worse, and it cannot leaven us. But now when it is our duty to purge him out and we do not do it, as in all communion of saints there is a duty, and
there is not any one but may do something towards it, thus far every communicant in every communion of saints must go. If there be a wicked man there, if you come to know it, and do not go thus far as I have spoken, you art defiled by him, you are not defiled by the mere presence of wicked men, (for that's a mere deceit and gall that some would put upon men that differ from them otherwise) but thus now you are defiled by their presence if you do not do your duty, and the uttermost that you are able to purge them out, yea, then the whole congregation is defiled if they do not do their duty. Now this is the duty of everyone in the congregation to tell their brother, or to take two or three, and after that to tell the Church, and so come to profess against them. Or if the Church will not do their duty as they ought, yet then to free their own souls as to profess, here is one that is so and so guilty, and may be proved thus and thus, and so for my part I, to free my own soul, profess that this man or woman ought not to have communion here.
And thus you come to free your own souls, and when you have done thus, though wicked men be there, you may there eat and drink and not be defiled by their presence, for you cannot be said properly to eat with them now, not to have communion with them, no more than if a dog should come and skip upon the table and take a piece of bread; you cannot have communion with him because he takes it. No more have you with those wicked men when once you have dealt so far with them, you for yourselves profess against them that you for your own particular cannot have communion with them herein; this is not to eat with them.
The Apostle in 1 Cor. 5, latter end, he doth there require in verses 11 and 12 that, "If any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner, with such a one no not to eat; for what have I to do to judge them also that are without?" that is, the heathens, and those that were in no communion with them, I have nothing to do to judge them; "do not ye judge them that are within?" When we have so far freed ourselves as professing against their sin, then we cannot be said to
have communion with them, and then we do withdraw from those that walk disorderly, when we do our duty thus far. 2 Thess. 3:14, "If any man obey not our word by this Epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed." And in the sixth verse of that chapter, he commands them in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ that they "should withdraw themselves from every brother that walked disorderly." So that till we do our duty we come to be defiled; but now, if we do our duty, then it is not the mixture of a congregation that is enough to hinder any from receiving the sacrament there, and this will tend much to satisfy men about the receiving in mixed congregations where any are cast into them and are actual members there.
But now on the other side, if we be in a place where either this congregation will not take upon them any such power to cast out unworthy ones, or are not convinced of this power, then there is no rule that Christ hath set that we must be forced all our days to continue to be in such a congregation as denies one of the ordinances of Jesus Christ; if so be there be any such that are wicked, and we do first what we can to have them cast out, and we wait with patience in such a congregation for to have them cast out, and yet we see that either the congregation doth not understand that they have any such power, or do deny such a power that they have, and so upon that all people are left in a mixed way, I say then there is no rule in all the book of God that should force men to continue to be members of such a communion where they cannot enjoy one ordinance of Jesus
Christ, which is the ordinance of separating the precious from the vile, the ordinance of casting out the wicked and ungodly.
It were a very diseased body and in danger quickly of the loss of life to take in everything into it, and to have no expulsive faculty to purge anything out again; so a congregation that is altogether without such an ordinance as that is of expelling such as are wicked and ungodly, I say, I find no Scripture that doth force people and require them as bound in conscience to continue there where they may not enjoy all the ordinances of Jesus Christ, and the right understanding of what I
say now will help us to answer all those Scriptures that are brought.
As if it be that of Judas, first it is hard to make it out clear whether it were the Lord's Supper that he received yea or no. But suppose it be granted that he did, yet I make no question but such as Judas was, that shall continue to make such an outward profession as he did and could not be discovered in the church-way, but that we may receive with such as are close hypocrites.
You will say Jesus Christ knew him to be faulty, and he told John that lay in His bosom what he was; but though He knew him as He was God, yet He deals with him in His ministerial way, and He had appointed before that none were to be cast out but were to be dealt withal in such a ministerial way; so that it is not enough though I knew by revelation from God that such a man were an hypocrite.
Suppose God should reveal from heaven to me that such a man were an hypocrite, I think I might communicate with him still, when he doth not so far discover himself that I can by witnesses prove his evil.
Therefore, though men be wicked, yet it doth not defile the communion where they are if there hath been that way used that Christ hath appointed for to be observed in His Church. And when that is done, then I am to withdraw from him, and to profess against communion with him, so that it's enough to answer the case.
We read likewise that there were divers wicked men among the Corinthians, and of tares that grew in the wheat. It's true, there were wicked men among them, but they were enjoined by the Apostle to cast out those wicked men, and if they did not do it, it was their sin, and they were defiled by it. And for tares that were among the wheat, take it that this is meant concerning the Church, (suppose it were and yet Christ saith plainly that the field is the world, and 'tis the godly and the wicked living together in the world) and so I find many interpreters take it, but howsoever take it that it is meant of the Church-communion, yet thus far is clear that it was through the fault of the officers that there should be any tares among the wheat; for so the text saith plainly, that while the servants slept there did tares spring up; therefore, there should have been none.
Secondly, they were not such tares as would spoil the wheat, but as Jerome saith in those countries, the tares did grow much like wheat all the while. It was in the blade so that they were hardly to be distinguished, though some that were of more understanding were able to discern them from the wheat. Therefore, though such as do grow up like unto the wheat may be suffered, and yet in this case only, that is, in case that it will prejudice the wheat, that is, when they are so close to the wheat as there will be danger by plucking them up to pluck up the wheat too, then they must be let alone.
Mark, first it was through the negligence of the officers; they should have been kept out. Secondly, if they do get in, yet while they grow so close to the wheat as there will be danger that when you pluck out them to pluck out the wheat too, only in that case it must be forborne. But this gives no liberty that therefore all sorts may be let into the Church, and there should be no kind of ordinance to cast out those that are venomous weeds that will do hurt and mischief.
But if you understand it (as many do) concerning the world, then the meaning is thus, the preaching of the Gospel that comes to a place, and there's only good seed sown, and is a means of the conversion of many, but together with the conversion of some, there are others that do hear the Gospel preached, and the truth is, they being mingled among the hearers of the Word, instead of bringing forth good fruit according to the Gospel, they bring forth the tares; now saith the servant, Lord, how comes it to passe that we preach such excellent truths in this place, and yet there are so many wicked men that bring forth such wicked fruit? Lord, is it Thy mind that we should be wholly separated from them and have nothing to do with them, that there should be a full separation while we live in this world?
No, saith Christ, not so; for then the truth is, if all godly men should wholly withdraw from wicked men, and believe that they may not live among them, they could not live in the world. If you did believe it were your duty not so much as to live near a wicked man, nor to have anything to do in any kind of converse with him, there would be no wheat growing in this field of the world here; and therefore you must
be content, when you live where the preaching of the Gospel is, and the seed brings forth good fruit in some, and in others it brings forth tares. You must not be offended by this, that here in this world God doth not by some visible stroke of judgement come and strike them dead, or that God doth not take some course that there should be a full separation here, but that they might live together till the day of judgement; here, I say, you shall not have such a full separation. So that you see, it carries a very fair sense to take the field to be the world, and the kingdom of heaven there to be the preaching of the Gospel in any place, and so we must be content while we live in this world to be where wicked and ungodly men are. But it doth not follow from this place that we are to have converse in the closest communion, in church-communion with wicked men, to be made one body by eating the same bread, and drinking the same wine; it holds not forth such close communion as this is; so that there's little strength can be taken from that place, but still it holds that wheresoever there is the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, there must be a holy communion of saints.
Object. The Scripture only saith, let us examine ourselves.
Answ. I grant for the benefit to mine own soul; I must look to examine myself more especially; but now for another I am but only so far bound to look to him as to keep myself clean. It is true, I am not bound to go and pry into his life and all his ways so as to force him to give an account of things that are secret, but I am bound to keep a watch, and if anything be done that offends me, then I am bound to go to him according to the former rule of Christ; and if he appears to be wicked, then I am bound to see him purged from the congregation. For take but that other text in 1 Cor. 5:6, "Know you not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?" If I do not do so much as concerns my duty, then I am defiled by it. So as that you must not think that it is nothing to you how many wicked men come to the Lord's Table, and that it belongs only to the ministers and they are to look to it; the truth is, that everyone in his place is to look to it, and everyone may be defiled if he doth not perform this duty that
God requires of him. Do not say, what have I to do with my brother; am I my brother's keeper? It was the speech of Cain; if thou be of the same body, you are to have a care of your brother; do not ye judge those that are within? There is some kind of judgement that everyone may pass upon such as do join with them in the same body; surely it concerns me much; what shall I do in such an action as to join with them to eat bread, whereby I must profess that I do believe myself to be of the same body that this drunkard is of, that this whoremaster is of, that this swearer is of?
Whenever you receive the communion with any company, you do profess yourselves to be of the same body with that company; only in this case, if I have discovered any, and can particularly profess against anyone, then I do not profess myself to be of the same body with him. But now when I come in an ordinary way, and I know such to be wicked, vile, and profane, and I profess nothing against them, nor take any course at all, I do then by partaking with them profess myself to be of the same body that they are of. Thou doest, as it were, openly declare, Lord, here we come and profess that we are all of the body of Jesus Christ. Now when thou knowest such and such as are notoriously wicked and profane, and dost nothing in the world to help to purge them out, dost not thou think that God's Name is taken in vain? Is not God's name profaned here? Therefore, it concerns us very much to look unto it, that it be a holy communion that we receive the bread and wine in.
I beseech you, therefore, understand things aright that I have spoken of; I have labored to satisfy men that there is a way that we may partake of the sacrament though wicked men be mixed with us. But this is that that is required of you for doing your duty, to keep yourselves clean that you may not be accessory any way to any wicked man's coming to partake of this holy mystery of the body and blood of Christ. There are divers things further about this, and the special thing I thought of was to show you the holy qualifications that there ought to be.