Sermon XII - What is Required in Receiving the Sacrament
But this I conceived to be necessary, and I should not have had peace in mine own conscience as being faithful to you in what I am speaking, of sanctifying the Name of God in this ordinance, if I should not have mentioned this that I have spoken unto you, and there's an error on both sides that I desire to meet withal. Either those that come hand over head, and think it concerns them not at all with whom they come to the sacrament, but to look to their own hearts; and there's an error on the other side, that if they do what they can to keep them away, and yet if they should be suffered to come, they may not come to partake of those things. Now, it is very useful for us to know what we should do in this case.
Sermon XII What is Required in Receiving the Sacrament
LEVITICUS 10:3
I will be sanctified in them that come nigh Me.
I shall add something to one particular that I had the last day, concerning peoples withdrawing from such a congregation where they could not receive all the ordinances of Jesus Christ.
As now, if I were in a church where I could have but a piece of the sacrament, suppose they dealt with me as the papists do with the people, that is, they will give them the bread and not the wine, certainly I were not bound to stay with them then, but I were bound to go where I might have the whole sacrament. So, if a church will give me some one ordinance and not another, I confess so long as there is hope that I may enjoy it and that they are in a way for enjoyment, I think there should be a great forbearance to a church as well as to a particular person. As I must not withdraw from a
particular man, where there is hope still of his reformation, and that there may come good of my forbearance, so towards a church much more. But I say, if I cannot enjoy, neither doth there appear any hope of the enjoyment of all ordinances, certainly it were but a cruelty to force men to stay there, when as otherwhere they may enjoy all ordinances for the good of their souls. And this cannot be schism thus to do; as now is this schism? Suppose a man were in a place and joined in such a communion, for his outward benefit he may remove his dwelling from one place to another if he can have better trading in another place; then certainly if he may have more ordinances for the edification of his soul, he may as well remove from one to another, as he may remove if his trading be better in one place than another.
Christ would have all His people look to the edification of their souls; and should I account that schism when a man or woman merely out of tenderness and a desire to enjoy Jesus Christ in all His ordinances for the benefit of their souls, they find such want to their souls of all ordinances, that though they may have some in one place, yet if they cannot have all, their souls do not so thrive. Now if this be all the end why they remove that they might have more edification to their souls enjoying the ordinances of Christ more fully, God forbid that this should ever be accounted such a sin that the Scripture is to brand.
No, that's schism when there is a violent rending out of malice for the want of love; for as apostasy is a rending from the head, so schism from the body, that is, when it is out of an evil spirit, from envy, or from malice, from want of love, or from any base sinister ends, and upon no just ground.
But now when it is merely out of love to Jesus Christ that I might have more edification to my soul, and still I retain love to the saints that are there as they are in a communion, and so far as they have anything good among them, I hold communion with them in that; only I desire in humility, and in meekness that I may be in such a place, where my soul may be most edified, where I may enjoy all those ordinances that Christ hath appointed for His Church,
certainly, that soul that can give this account to Jesus Christ for going from one place to another will be freed by Jesus Christ from such a sin, as this that the world calls schism.
But the truth is, this word is in men's mouths that understand not what it means, and the Devil always will have some word or other cast upon them that are good; for he hath heretofore gained much by it, so still he makes account to gain much by words, and terms, and therefore men should take heed of words and terms that they do not understand, and examine seriously what the meaning of these words, and what is held forth in those words; and thus much for that point, that it must be in a holy communion; wherever there is the receiving of the Lord's Supper, it must be received in a holy communion.
Now we are to proceed to that which is the main thing, and that is, what are the holy qualifications or dispositions of the soul, together with the actings fit in the receiving of the Lord's Supper, what is required in the soul for the sanctifying of the Name of God in this holy sacrament? There are many things required.
As first, there is required knowledge; I must know what I do when I come to receive this holy sacrament, knowledge applied to the work that I am about. When some of you have come to receive this sacrament, if God should have spoken from heaven and have said thus to you, what are you doing now, what do you go for? What account had you been able to have given unto Him? You must understand what you do when you come thither.
First, you must be able to give this account to God: Lord, I am now going to have represented to me in a visible and sensible way the greatest mysteries of godliness, those great and deep counsels of Thy will concerning my eternal estate, those great things that the angels desire to pry into that shall be the matter of eternal praises of angels and saints in the highest heavens, that they may be set before my view. Lord, when I have come to Thy Word, I have had in mine ears sounding the great mysteries of godliness, the great things of the
covenant of grace, and now I go to see them represented before mine eyes in that ordinance of Thine that Thou hast appointed.
Yea Lord, I am now going to receive the seals of the blessed covenant of Thine, the second covenant, the new covenant, the seals of the testimony and will of Thine; I am going to have confirmed to my soul
Thine everlasting love in Jesus Christ.
Yea, Lord, I am going to that ordinance wherein I expect to have communion with Thyself, and the communication of Thy chief mercies to my soul in Jesus Christ.
I am going to feast with Thee, to feed upon the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
Yea, I am now going to set to the seal of the covenant on my part, to renew my covenant with Thee, I am going to have communion with Thy saints, to have the bond of communion with all Thy people to be confirmed to me, that there might be a stronger bond of union and love between me and Thy saints than ever. These are the ends that I go for, this is the work that I am now going about, thus you must come in understanding. You must come with understanding; you must know what you are going about; this is that which the Apostle speaks of when he speaks of the discerning the Lord's body. He rebukes the Corinthians for their sin and shows them that they were guilty of the body and blood of Christ because they did not discern the Lord's body. They looked only upon the outward elements but did not discern what there was of Christ there, they did not understand the institution of Christ; they did not see how Christ was under those elements, both represented, and exhibited unto them.
That's the first thing, there must be knowledge and understanding.
And now for the knowledge and understanding of the nature of the sacrament, there need be knowledge in other points of religion, for we can never come to understand the nature of this sacrament without knowing God, and knowing ourselves, knowing in what
estate we were by nature, knowing our fall, knowing the way of redemption, knowing Jesus Christ, what He was, and what He hath done for the making of an atonement, the necessity of Jesus Christ, and what the way of the covenant is that God hath appointed to bring men's souls to eternal life by. The main points of religion must be known, but especially that that concerns the nature of a sacrament.
Now this knowledge likewise must be actual, not merely habitual knowledge, but there must be a stirring up of this knowledge, that is, by meditation. I must be meditating, have actual thoughts and meditations of what I do know; that ought to be the work of a Christian in coming to receive the sacrament, to quicken up his knowledge, to have a renewed work of his knowledge by actual thoughts and meditations of the main points of religion, and especially of the nature and the end of this holy institution; that is the first thing.
Secondly, as we must come understandingly, without which we cannot sanctify God's Name, so we must come with hearts suitable to the work that we are about, that is, because the great thing that is here is the breaking of Christ's body, and the pouring forth His blood. A suitable disposition to this is brokenness of heart, sense of our sin, of that dreadful breach that sin hath made between God and the soul; our sin should be upon our hearts so as to break them. But this brokenness must be evangelical; it must be through the applying of the blood of Christ unto my soul; I must come to be sensible of my sin, but especially be sensible of it by what I see in the holy sacrament, that must make me sensible of my sin. There are a great many things to make me sensible of my sin; the consideration of the great God that thou hast sinned against, and the curse of the Law that's due to thee, the wrath of God that is incensed against thee for thy sin, and those eternal flames that are prepared for sinners, those everlasting burnings.
But now those are not the things that will break the heart in an evangelical way, in a gracious way. The main thing by which the soul
must come to break its heart must be the beholding of the evil of sin in the red glass of the blood of Jesus Christ, the beholding Him broken. And truly there is nothing in the world that hath that power to break the heart for sin as the beholding of that which is to be beheld in the holy sacrament; and that heart is a hard heart that can see what is there to be seen, and not break in the apprehension of sin. When here I see what my sin cost, what a price was made for my soul, when I see the hatred of God against sin, and the justice of God in not sparing His Son but in breaking His Son for my sin, and in shedding the blood of His Son for my sins, I see here that the making of my peace which God did cost more than ten thousand worlds is worth. I see that by my sin such a breach was made between God and my soul, that all the angels in heaven, and men in the world could never make up this breach. Only the Son of God, He that was
God and man that was thus broken by the burden of the wrath of His Father for my sins, could do this.
The truth is, when we come to this holy communion, we are to look upon Christ as if we saw Him hanging upon the Cross. Suppose thou hadst lived at the time when Christ was crucified, and hadst understood as much concerning the death of Christ as now thou doest, and what Christ was; if so be that thou shouldest have beheld
Him in the garden, and there sweating drops of water and blood, and lie groveling upon the ground, crying, if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me; and shouldest have followed Him to the cross, and there have seen His hands and feet nailed, and His side pierced, and the blood trickling down, and have heard Him crying out, "My God,
My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" Would not such a sight as this is have broken thy heart for thy sin? The truth is, there is more, I won't say only so much, but I say there is more in this sacrament to break the heart for sin then such a sight as that.
You will say if you should have Christ to be crucified again before your eyes, if you should see the body of Christ hanging upon the Cross, and there behold Him crucified, and hearing of Him cry out,
"My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?" you would think if
your hearts did not break for sin then, that they were desperately hard. Know every time that thou hast come to receive the sacrament, thou hast come to see such a sight, and it is as great an aggravation of the hardness of thy heart if it hath not broken at this sight, as it would be if it should not break at that sight. We read in Gal. 3 of Paul's speaking of the preaching of the Gospel, he saith that Christ was crucified before those that did hear the Word; and "Foolish
Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?" He doth not mean that Christ was crucified in Galatia, but that where the Word was preached, He was evidently set forth and crucified among them. But now my brethren, the crucifying of Christ in the Word is not such a real, evident, and sensible setting forth of Christ crucified, as when He is set forth in this sacrament, and 'tis that which works with more efficacy to break the heart than that other sight; and the reason that I give is this.
Because you do never find that God did set that apart as an ordinance, an institution appointed to that end that they should come to look upon that for the breaking of their hearts; there was indeed a naturalness in it, that if they did behold Christ, it might break their hearts, but it was not such an ordinance, it was not a sacrament as this is. Now this being in a sacramental way in the use of an ordinance appointed by Jesus Christ to set forth His sufferings and all the riches of the covenant of grace to the soul, there may be expected here a further blessing than in the other, though it is true, the other might work mightily upon the heart. But yet this being a great ordinance of Christ in the church, a great institution of Jesus
Christ for the setting out of His sufferings, it hath a more special blessing that goes along with it; every ordinance hath a promise, and a more special blessing than any other thing that is not an ordinance.
So, when you come here to behold Christ crucified before you, you cannot see Christ naturally crucified as upon the Cross, but you have
Christ crucified before you in the way of a sacrament, in the way of a solemn institution of Jesus Christ that hath a special blessing which goes along with it. Therefore, if the heart be not broken here, there is
an aggravation of the hardness of the heart as great as if we should behold Jesus Christ upon the Cross and our hearts not broken there.
And indeed, this is a special reason why those are said to be guilty of the body and blood of Christ that receive unworthily; as if a man had been then alive, and had been before the Cross, and there have seen how the blood of Jesus Christ was shed for sin, and should not have been affected with it, but should have accounted it as a common thing; this man in some regard might have been said to be guilty of His death; that is, to have joined and consented with those that did crucify Him. For if a man sees another commit a sin, if he be not affected with that sin, and it does not stir his heart, he may come to be partaker of his sin; so those that shall come to see Jesus Christ crucified and have not their hearts at all stirred with the crucifying of Christ, they are in some regard truly said to be guilty of the body and blood of Jesus Christ. And that is the second thing, brokenness of spirit is suitable to the sight of a broken Christ.
The third thing that is here to be done in the sanctifying of God's Name is the purging and cleansing of the heart from sin; an actual cleansing and purging the heart from sin there ought to be. The Jews in their Passover were to cast out all leaven, and those that write of the custom of the Jews say that they were wont to do three things in the casting out of their leaven. They made diligent search for leaven; they lighted candles to look into every corner lest there should be any bit of leaven left in the house. When they found it, they cast it out.
They used an execration; they did curse themselves if they should willingly keep any leaven in the house.
So my brethren, when we come to partake of this holy ordinance, there should be a diligent inquisition for sin, for sin in Scripture is compared to leaven; thou shouldest make a diligent search what sin there is in thy heart, in any of the faculties of thy soul, what sin there is in thy thoughts, in thy conscience, in thy understanding, in thy will, in any of thy affections, what sin there hath been in thy life, what family sins, what personal sins. Thou shouldest make a diligent search to see whither there be not some leaven, some evil in thy
heart; and whatever sin thou shalt come to find out in thy heart, there must be a casting of it out; that is, thy soul must be set against it to oppose it with all thy might. Whatever beloved sin, whatever gainful sin, whatsoever become of thee, thy soul must renounce that sin of thine; yea and in a kind of execration of thyself. That is thus,
Lord, as ever I expect to receive any good by this body and blood of Christ that I come now to receive, so Lord, here I profess against every sin that I have found out in my heart; I desire to find out all, and profess against all, and renounce all, and would do to the uttermost that I am able for delivering of my soul fully, from every known or beloved sin, oh, that there might not be any remaining in my heart. This must be the disposition of the soul coming hither, and it must needs be thus or else we cannot sanctify God's Name because there is nothing more suitable than this disposition unto the receiving of the sacrament; for we come here to profess that we do acknowledge that sin did cost so much as it did, that it cost the blood of the Son of God. Now this cannot choose but cause the heart to renounce sin. If indeed I do believe that sin hath cost the blood of Christ, that it cost Him so dear as it did, that it did trouble heaven and earth, that there must be such a mighty wonderful way of satisfaction to God for my sin committed against Him, certainly sin hath a dreadful evil in it; oh, let me never have to do with such sin that was the cause of such sufferings to my Savior, that did shed His blood.
If so be that thou sawest a knife that had cut the throat of thy dearest child, would not thy heart rise against that knife? Suppose you come to a table and there is a knife laid at your trencher and it was told you, this is the knife that cut the throat of your child, or Father. If you could use that knife as another knife, would not anyone say, there was but little love to your father or child? So, when there is a temptation comes to any sin, this is the knife that cut the throat of Christ, that pierced His sides, that was the cause of all His sufferings, that made Christ to be a curse; now wilt not thou look upon that as a cursed thing that made Christ to be a curse? Oh, with what detestation would a man or woman fling away such a knife! And with
the like detestation it is required that thou shouldest renounce sin, for that was the cause of the death of Christ. I remember it is reported of Anthony when Caesar was slain, he comes to stir up the people against those that had slain Caesar, and he takes the clothes that were bloody and holds them forth to the people and saith, here is the blood of your Emperor, and upon that the people were enraged against those that had slain him and went and pulled down their houses upon them. So, when thou comest to this sacrament, thou seest the blood of Christ gushing out, and for thy sin, if ever thy sin be pardoned; either thy soul must be eternally damned for thy sin, or else thy sin cost the gushing out of the blood of Christ. Now when thou seest this, this should cause a holy rage in thy soul against sin that caused this, surely the putting away sin, the risings of the heart against sin must needs be a disposition suitable to such an ordinance as this is. And that's the third thing required in the sanctifying of God's Name in this ordinance, the purging out of sin, and rising of the heart against it.
The fourth thing that is to be done for the sanctifying of God's Name here, it is the hungering and thirsting of the soul after Jesus Christ; whosoever comes hither, he comes to a feast, and the Lord expects that all His guests should come with stomachs unto this feast, come with hungering and longing for Jesus Christ. This should be the disposition of the soul, oh that my soul might enjoy communion with Jesus Christ; now, this is the end that I am come for. Oh, the Lord that knows the workings of my heart, knows that this is the great desire of my soul, that I might enjoy communion with Jesus Christ; oh that I might have more of Christ, that I might meet with Christ, that I might have some further manifestation with Jesus Christ, that I might have my soul further united to the Lord Christ, and so have further influence of Christ to my soul. I come with thirsting after the Lord Christ knowing my infinite need of Him, and the infinite excellency that there is in Jesus Christ; my soul doth famish and perish forever without Christ; but in the enjoyment of Christ there is a fullness for the satisfying of my soul.
That I have had of Christ sometimes in the Word and sometimes in prayer, that hath been sweet unto me, but I expect a further communion of Christ here, for this is the grand ordinance for communion with Jesus Christ. Indeed, the Word in this respect it is beyond this ordinance, that is, it is not only for the increase of grace, but for the begetting; this is only for the increase of grace and not appointed for the begetting. Now in that respect the Word is above the sacrament, but now this sacrament is a more full ordinance for communion with Jesus Christ, this is the communion of the body of Jesus Christ, and of His blood, and therefore there ought to be hungering and thirsting desires of the soul after Jesus Christ.
Therefore, you must take heed you do not come with your stomachs full of trash, as children when they can get plums and pears and fill their stomachs with them, when they come to your tables, though there be never so much wholesome diet, they have no mind at all to it. So it is with men of the world, they fill their hearts with the trash of this world, and with sensual delights, and hence, it is that when they come to such a great ordinance to enjoy communion with Jesus
Christ that then they feel no want at all of Christ, only they come and take a little piece of bread and a draught of wine, but for any strong pausing desires to meet with Jesus Christ there in the ordinance to come so as they know not how to live without Christ, even as a man that is an hungered cannot live without his meat and drink, and so for the soul to have such a disposition after Christ, this is a rare thing; but know that God's Name is not sanctified, unless thou doest come in such a way unto this holy sacrament. That's the fourth thing, hungry and thirsty desires after Christ from a deep sense of the need of Him, and the apprehension of the excellency in Him.
In the fifth place, there must be an exercise of faith for the sanctifying of God's Name here. Faith, that is both the hand and the mouth for the taking of this spiritual meat, and spiritual drink; when thou comest to the feast of the Lord, faith first is the eye, and then the hand and mouth; it is the eye of the soul to give a real sight of what there is here, you are not able to discern the body of the Lord but by the eye of faith; if thou comest only with bodily eyes to look
upon what is here, thou seest nothing but a little bread and wine. But now where the eye of faith is, there is a real appearance of Jesus
Christ to the soul, as if Christ were bodily present, and we need not have the bread turned into His body; for faith can see the body of Christ through the bread, and the blood of Christ gushing in the wine. And it is a mighty thing to have Christ and such spiritual things made real and not to be a fancy. If one look upon the fire that is painted, one cannot heat oneself in cold weather with that but fire that is really burning upon the hearth. So those that come to receive the sacrament and not come with faith, that have only the eye of their bodies, they only see, as it were, a painted Christ, they do not see
Christ really. His body and blood and those great mysteries of the Gospel are not presented as real things to their souls; and hence it is that they go away and get nothing. But now when the soul comes with the eye of faith, the soul sees the wonderful things of God, it is the most glorious sight in the world; all the glory of God in the heavens and earth is not like this sight of Jesus Christ and the mysteries of the Gospel that do appear to the eye of faith. Therefore, you may by this know whether you have come with faith or no to the sacrament, whether you have seen the most glorious sight that ever your eyes did behold. Alas, with our natural eyes we behold a minister coming with a piece of bread and a little wine, but when the eye of faith is opened, then we behold the glorious things of the Gospel. Many times, when you come to hear the Word, your hearts burn within you, as they that went to Emmaus; but when you are breaking bread, the eye of faith must look upon Jesus Christ; and in this sense, those that have pierced Christ must look upon Him. That Scripture is fulfilled in Zach. 12, latter end, "they shall look on Him whom they have pierced by their sins," and then mourn and lament; this eye of faith will cause mourning and lamenting for sin.
And then as faith is the eye to make what is here real, so faith is the hand to take it. When you come to a feast, you must have something to take the meat to you. So saith Christ, He brake bread and gave it to His disciples saying, "Take, eat this." Take it; how shall we take it? By reaching out of the hand, if you sanctify God's Name in this
ordinance, as you reach out your hand to take the bread and wine, so there must be an actual reaching out of the soul by faith, putting forth an act of faith to receive Jesus Christ unto the soul, to apply the Lord Jesus Christ to thy soul with all His merits and good things that He hath purchased. When the minister doth give out that ordinance, you should look upon God the Father giving out His Son; as if this were your condition, I am now in the presence of the eternal Father, who now doth actually give out His Son to my soul and saith, Soul, here receive anew this day My Son with all that He hath purchased for thy good. Now then the soul acts upon this, and by stirring up an act of faith, comes and closes with this gift of the Father, and casts itself upon Jesus Christ, and saith as it were, Amen, to what the Father gives. Oh Lord, here I come and embrace Thy Son as my life, as my Savior, as the fountain of all my good, in whom I expect all the good I am likely to have either here or to all eternity; so that there must be a stirring up of the act of faith in an actual taking of Christ, if thou beest a believer.
Canst thou remember what thou didst when first thou didst take Jesus Christ? When the Lord in the preaching of His Word did reveal
Jesus Christ to thy soul, what didst thou then, oh soul? How did thy soul work in closing with Christ? As thy soul did then in closing with Christ, so it must now renew the work, there must be a renewal of the work at that time. So that when you come to the sacrament, you must not think that it is then a time to listen to doubts, fears, and scruples; no, but it is a time that God calls for the exercise of faith, the casting of the soul upon Christ and His merits for life and for salvation, or else the Name of God is not sanctified as it ought. Thou doest not sanctify God's Name when thou art busying thy soul in doubts and scruples in thy receiving of the sacrament.
And then faith is as the mouth; when thou commest to eat and drink, how canst thou if thou hast not a mouth? Thou hast a bodily mouth to take in bread and wine; but know that without faith thy soul cannot take in Christ. Faith is, as it were, the mouth; that is, by the act of faith the soul doth open itself for Jesus Christ, and not only
opens itself, but takes in Christ to the soul and makes Christ and the soul as one. As our bread and wine is made one with our body, so faith takes in Christ and makes Him as one with thee, and turns
Christ into the nourishment of thy soul, and thou and Christ by faith are made as truly one, as the bread and wine that is put into thy body is made one with thy body. This is the work of faith, without which we cannot sanctify the Name of God.
Sixthly, there must be spiritual joy; that must be exercised here, for it is a feast. Here we come to sit with Christ at His Table, we come as children to our Father's Table, and to sit there with Jesus Christ our elder brother. Now as a father doth not love to have his child set in a sullen and dogged way at his table, or to be crying, but he would have the child set in comfort, and with a holy cheerfulness with a holy freedom of spirit, not in a sullen way, but as a child in the presence of his father, and not as a servant with the master.
Object. You told us before that there should be brokenness of spirit and sense of our sin.
Answ. That may be, and joy; we rejoice with trembling. Therefore, that brokenness of spirit that I meant must not be slavish horror and fear, but a kindly melting of the soul from the apprehension of the love of God unto it in Jesus Christ, that was willing to be at so great cost to purchase the pardon of sin. Such a gracious mourning as may stand with joy, and the truth is that that sorrow for sin in the sacrament that is not mixed with joy is a sorrow that doth not sanctify God's Name. Godly sorrow and evangelical joy may stand together very well, and therefore know that this is not the time, neither to give liberty to have your hearts sink. No, there must be no sinking sorrow of heart, but such a sorrow of heart as in the midst of it, you may be able to look upon God as a reconciled Father to you and have a cheerfulness of spirit as in the midst of it, you must look upon yourselves as God's guest, to be merry at His Table. Now this is a great mystery of godliness, that there should be at the same time the sight of Christ crucified, and yet at the same time a spiritual
cheerfulness in the assurance of the love of God in Jesus Christ. I say it is a mystery and only those that are believers are able to understand this mystery, how to have their hearts break, and yet how to rejoice at the same time in that unspeakable love of God that is here presented unto them in this sacrament.
Seventhly, in the next place there must be thankfulness; therefore, it is called the Eucharist, and in one of the evangelists where it is said,
Christ blest the bread, in another it is said, Christ gave thanks.
Christ, when He instituted this sacrament, He gave thanks; He gave thanks for what? He gave thanks to God the Father that He was pleased to send Him into the world to die for poor souls. Now shall
Jesus Christ give thanks unto God the Father for that that did cost Him His life? Yea, saith Christ, I see that here is a way to save souls; and let it cost Me My life if it will, yet I bless Thee O Father, if souls may come to be saved though it cost Me My life. Christ rejoiced in His Spirit in thanking His Father for this; then how should our hearts be enlarged with thankfulness when we come to this that the ancients were wont to call the Eucharist, that is, a thanksgiving? We are to give God thanks for every mercy; you will not eat your own bread without giving of thanks. But when we come to have this bread, this bread of life, here is matter of thankfulness, here is matter of enlargement of soul; thou that hast the deadest and dullest soul, and straightest spirit, yet when thou comest hither and understandest what thou doest, here thou canst not but see matter for the enlargement of thy heart, and wish that thou hadst ten thousand thousand times more strength to express the praises of the Lord.
Here is a thing that must be the subject of the hallelujahs and doxologies, that angels and saints must forever sound out in the highest heavens; dost thou know what the Lord presents to thee here? It is more than if the Lord should say, I will make ten thousand worlds for the sake of this creature, and give all these worlds to him, thou wouldest thinks that thou wert bound to bless Him then. Only when God in the bread and wine reaches out to thee the body and
blood of His Son, here is more matter of praise than if ten thousand thousand worlds were given to thee, and therefore, God expects that thou shouldest say to thy soul, "My soul praise thou the Lord, and all that is within me, praise His Holy Name; bless the Lord O my soul, and forget not all His benefits; who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases." O poor soul, here is the foundation of all mercies. Dost thou praise God for justification, for sanctification?
Here is a glorious application of the mercy of God to the souls of sinners, and therefore, if ever thou wert thankful, be thankful here.
The Sabbath my brethren, that is appointed to be the set constant day of thanksgiving for the great mercies of God in Christ, and there are other days for national mercies. Now a special work of the Lord's
Day is the celebration of this holy sacrament, and the Christians in former times were wont to do it every Lord's Day, because that's the day appointed by God for to be the day of thanksgiving for that great mercy, the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's the reason why the Sabbath was changed; the last day of the week was the Jewish Sabbath, and that was to celebrate the memorial of the creation of the world; and the first day now, it is to be the day of thanksgiving for all the work of God in man's redemption.
Eighthly, a further thing is this, if you would sanctify God's Name, you must be willing to renew your covenant, that's the end of it.
There must be an actual renewing of your covenant with God, that is thus: I come to receive this bread and this wine, and this is to be as the seal of the covenant on God's part; now this will be employed in the nature of the thing, that if I take the seals of God's covenant, that I must be willing to set to my seal too, to renew the covenant that God calls me to. Now know, all men and women that are saved, they are saved by the virtue of the covenant of grace, and there God on His part promises and makes a covenant that He will bestow His
Son, life, and salvation through Him; and thou must likewise come in on thy part and believe on His Son and repent, which is the tenor of the Gospel. Now every time thou comest to receive this sacrament, thou commest to renew this covenant, as if thou shouldest say, Lord,
Thou hast been pleased to make a covenant of grace, as the first
covenant was broken and all men were cast by that covenant, now Thou hast made a covenant of grace, and callest Thy servants whom
Thou intendest to save that they should renew their covenant with Thee in this sacrament of Thine; Lord here I come; and Lord here I renew it and set to my seal, to promise and covenant with Thee, that as ever I expect to receive any good from Christ, so Lord here I will be Thine, I will give up myself forever to Thee. As Thou hast given me the body and blood of Christ for my salvation, so Lord, here I consecrate my body and blood to Thee, the last drop of my heart blood shall be given up to Thee, and so my strength and estate, and name, and whatever I am or have shall be Thine. Have you done thus when you have come to receive the sacrament? Have you actually renewed your covenant with God? You that have taken the body of Christ, have you given up your body to Christ? What is the reason then that you sin so much with your bodies? That you abuse your body with uncleanness and drunkenness and other wickedness afterwards? Oh, you profane the Name of God and the very body and blood of Christ in this, except thou givest up thy body and soul to God in way of covenant.
Ninthly, in the last place for the sanctifying of God's Name there is required a renewing of love, the coming with lovely dispositions and the renewing of the grace of love, not only towards God, but towards our brethren. For it is the feast of the Lord and it is an act of communion, communion not only with Christ, but with His churches, with His saints. And as I have told you that there is a profession of ourselves to be of the same body with Jesus Christ, then the Lord requires that His children should not fall out that come to His Table, but that there should be love and peace. There is a mighty bond upon thee when thou commest to the sacrament, and therefore, first all heart burnings and heart grudges must be laid aside; and secondly you must come with a willingness to be reconciled one to another, willingness to pass by all infirmities in thy brethren. Here I have the seal of God's willingness to pass by all my sins, and therefore I must be willing to pass by all infirmities in my brethren; I must now cast out all ill wishes towards others and come
with a desire of all good unto them, and with a heart ready to embrace any opportunity to do any good. Thou doest lie unto God except thou commest with such a heart as this is; Lord thou knowest that I am willing to take all opportunities to do good to those that I now do communicate with, for it is the nearest communion that possibly can be in this world between one creature and another; and this is the reason why there should be that ordinance of Christ set up everywhere to cast out those that are unworthy, because it is the greatest union and communion that possibly can be, for it is the sacrament and communion of the same body; they are the same members of Christ.
Now if thou doest not think such a one to be a member of Christ, why doest not thou what thou canst to have him cast out? But so long as thou hast done nothing in private to him, or in telling the Church, thou doest own him to be a member of Jesus Christ; if thou doest so, take heed how thy heart be estranged from him, take heed how thou behavest thyself to them; take heed how thou livest in a jarring way, and a contentious way with them, and holdest them off at staves end, or walking at a distance from them, though they be never so poor and mean, know that thou doest profane this holy ordinance every time thou commest to it when thou commest with such a heart as this is. If thou dost not find this renewed love, Lord, there began to be a strangeness between me and those that have communicated with me, but Lord Thou art pleased to vouchsafe us to come once more to this ordinance, and Lord here we do profess that this ordinance shall unite our hearts together more than ever they were. I will study to do what good possibly I can to my brother; that as we join here to the feast of the Lord with comfort, so we may live together in peace and love as it becomes the saints of God, and the members of the body of Jesus Christ; Oh, how far are people from any such work of God as this is! The Lord expects that this should be in you every time you come to the holy communion.
Here hath been nine particulars now mentioned for the sanctifying of the Name of God when we come to partake of the sacrament; but oh
Lord, what cause have we to lay our hands upon our hearts! For if this be to sanctify Thy Name, then it hath been a riddle, a mystery to us. Certainly, my brethren, these things are the truths of God that I have delivered, and so far as you have been wanting in any of these, know so far you have taken God's Name in vain in this holy ordinance, you have not been worthy receivers of this sacrament, you have cause to look back to your former ways and spend much humiliation for your sin herein, and not to be so greedy of it as some are; they must have the communion; but I put it to your consciences, have you repented you for the profaning of God's Name? And that's that we should further have spoken of, that God will be sanctified.
That is thus, if we do not sanctify God's Name, it will quite turn to the contrary; it is the proper end of the sacrament, to seal up our salvation. But if we sanctify not God's Name, it will seal up our condemnation; if it hath not been thy endeavor to sanctify the Name of God so many times as thou hast received the sacrament, so many seals hast thou upon thee for the sealing up of thy condemnation.
But yet for thy comfort, while thou art alive, it is possible that these seals may be broken open; as we read in the revelations that John saw the book that had seven seals upon it, and none could be found that was able to open it; at length the Lamb that was slain He was found worthy to open the book. So, I say, thy condemnation is sealed up with many seals, and there is no creature that is able to cancel these seals, only the Lamb, Jesus Christ, yea that Christ whose blood thou hast shed, and been guilty of, only He is worthy; and He is willing to open these seals. For as it was with those that did crucify
Christ, yet they were saved by the same blood that they had shed, as in Acts 2. So, though thou hast been guilty of shedding the blood of Christ again and again by thy profane coming to the sacrament, yet know, seeing there is life in thee, and the day of grace is continued, it is possible that thy soul may be saved by that blood that thou hast crucified. Oh, how many are cut off that have thus profaned the Name of God in this sacrament, and never came to understand this danger! They are cut off and now are undone forever; then bless God that thou art alive to hear more about this sacrament, and how God's