The Communicant's Companion
that power and grace which has brought you out of the land of Egypt, though you be not yet come to Canaan.
You think you have no grace, because you have not that sensible joy and comfort which you would have; but those are spiritually enlightened who see their own deformity, as well as those that see Christ's beauty. "The child that cries, is as sure alive as the child that laughs." Complaints of spiritual burdens are the language of the new nature, as well as praises for spiritual blessings.
Drooping soul, thou art under grace, and not under the law; and therefore judge of thyself by the measures of grace, and not by those of the law. Thou hast to do with one that is willing to make the best of thee, and will accept the willingness of the spirit, and pardon the weakness of our flesh. Take thy work before thee, therefore, and let not the penitent, humble sense of thy own follies and corruptions eclipse the evidence of God's graces in thee, nor let the diffidence of thyself shake thy confidence in Christ. Thank God for what he has done for thee: let him have the praise of it, and then thou shalt have the joy of it. And this is certain, either thou hast an interest in Christ, or thou mayest have. If thou doubt, therefore, whether Christ be thine, put the matter out of doubt, by a present consent to him: I take Christ to be mine, wholly, only, and for ever mine: Christ upon his own terms, Christ upon any terms.
2. Judge not amiss concerning this ordinance. It was instituted for your comfort, let it not be a terror to you; it was instituted for your satisfaction, let it not be your amazement. Most of the messages from heaven which we meet with in Scripture, delivered by angels, began with "Fear not;" and particularly that to the women who attended Christ's sepulcher: "Fear not ye; for I know that ye seek Jesus." And do not you seek him? Be not afraid then. Chide yourselves out of these disquieting fears, which steal away your spear and your cruse of water, rob you both of your strength and of your comfort.
You say you are unworthy to come; so were all that ever came, not worthy to be called children, nor to eat of the children's bread: in yourselves there is no worthiness; but is there none in Christ? Is not he worthy, and is not he yours? Have you not chosen him? Appear therefore before God in him. Let faith in his mediation silence all your fears; and dismiss their clamors with that—"But thou shalt answer, Lord, for me."
You say you dare not come, lest you should eat and drink judgment to yourselves; but ordinarily those that most fear that, are least in danger of it.
That dreadful word was not intended to drive men from the sacrament, but to drive them from their sins. Can you not say, through grace you hate sin, you strive against it, you earnestly desire to be delivered from it? Then certainly your league with it is broken; though the Canaanites be in the land, you do not make marriages with them. Come then and seal the covenant with God, and you shall be so far from eating and drinking judgment to yourselves, that you shall eat and drink life and comfort to yourselves.
You dare not come to this sacrament; yet you dare pray, you dare hear the word. I know you dare not neglect either the one or the other; and what is the sacrament but the doing the same thing by a visible sign, which is and ought to be done in effect by the word and prayer? Nor ought we to put such an amazing distance between this and other ordinances. If we pray in hypocrisy, our prayers are an abomination; if we hear the word and reject it, it is a savor of death unto death: shall we therefore not pray, not hear? God forbid. Commanded duty must be done: appointed means must be used: and that which unfits and hinders us must be removed, and we must in sincerity give up ourselves to serve God; do as well as we can, and be sorry we can do no better: and then, having a High Priest, who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities, we may come boldly to the throne of grace, and to this table of grace.
You say your faith is weak, pious affections are cool and low, your resolutions unsteady, and therefore you keep away from this ordinance.
That is as if a man should say, he is sick, and therefore he will take no physic; he is empty, and therefore will take no food; he is faint, and therefore he will take no cordials. This ordinance was appointed chiefly for the relief of such as you are; for the strengthening of faith, the inflaming of holy love, and the confirming of good resolutions: in God's name, therefore, use it for these purposes; pine not away in thy weakness, while God has ordained thee strength; perish not for hunger, while there is bread enough in thy father's house, and to spare; die not for thirst, while there is a well of water by thee.
III. This chapter must conclude with an exhortation to those who have given up their name to the Lord in this ordinance, and have sometimes sealed their covenant with God in it, but they come very seldom to it, and allow themselves in the neglect and omission of it. Frequent opportunities they have for it, stated meals provided for them, the table spread and furnished. Others come, and they are invited; but time after time they let it slip, and turn their backs upon it, framing to themselves some sorry excuse or other to shift it off. I desire such to consider seriously, 1. How powerful the engagements are which we lie under, to be frequent and constant in our attendance on the Lord in this ordinance. It is plainly intimated in the institution, that the solemnity is oft to be repeated; for it is said, "Do this, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me." Baptism is to be administered but once, because it is the door of admission, and we are but once to enter in by that door: but the Lord's Supper is the table in Christ's family, at which we are to eat bread continually. The law of Moses prescribed how oft the passover must be celebrated, under very severe penalties; but the gospel being a dispensation of a greater love and liberty, only appoints us to observe its passover oft, and then leaves it to our own ingenuity and pious affections to fix the time, and determine how oft. If a deliverance out of Egypt merited an annual commemoration, surely our redemption by Christ merits a more frequent one, especially since we need not go up to Jerusalem to do it. If this tree of life, which bears more than twelve manner of fruits, yieldeth her fruit to us every month, I know not why we should neglect it any month. Where there is the truth of grace, this ordinance ought to be improved, which, by virtue of divine appointment, has a moral influence upon our growth in grace. The great Master of the family would have none of his family missing at meal-time.
While we are often sinning, we have need to be often receiving the seal of our pardon; because, though the sacrifice be perfect, and "able to perfect for ever them which are sanctified," so that that needs never to be repeated; yet the application of it being imperfect, has need to be often made afresh. The worshippers, though once purged, having still consciences of sin in this defective state, must oft have recourse to the fountain opened for the purging of their consciences, from the pollutions contracted daily by dead works, to serve the living God. Even he that is washed thus, needs to wash his feet, or he cannot be easy.
While we are often in temptation, we have need to be often renewing our covenants with God, and fetching strength from heaven for our spiritual