meaning, the neceffity, and the advantage of receiving worthily; and that there is no danger of receiving unworthily, if a man does but come with an honeft heart, and purposes to ferve God to the beft of his understanding and power.

Now to lay this matter plainly before you, is what, by God's good bleffing, I fhall endeavour to do at this time. And though I am not sure that I fhall fatisfy every body that hears me, yet I do believe, that every perfon of the moft ordinary understanding, who fhall feriously attend to what I am going to say, and who heartily defires to be informed concerning this duty, will be convinced of the truth of these following particulars:—

ift. That to receive the facrament of the Lord's fupper, is one of the most necessary duties of the Christian religion.

2dly. That as the receiving of the Lord's fupper is a neceffary duty, so it is one of the easiest to be understood by any person who in good earnest defires to be faved.

3dly. That as it is most easy to be underftood, fo it may be worthily and fafely received by the most unlearned Christian, to his great and endless comfort.

Laftly. That therefore, generally speaking, whatever it is that hinders people from coming to the facrament, will likewise hinder them from going to heaven.

I. To begin with the first of these particulars: That to receive the facrament of the Lord's Supper is one of the most necessary duties of the Chriftian religion. -Now, in order to make

this appear, I obferve,

ift. That the knowledge and remembrance of Chrift's death is that on which all the other duties of christianity depend.

The reason why we confefs our fins to God, and hope for pardon, is, because we remember that we are reconciled to God by the death of his Son; and that the blood of Christ cleanfeth us from all fin.

We hope for good at the hand of God, but then it is becaufe we call to remembrance, that he who fpared not his own Son, but hath given him up for us all, will with him freely give us all things.

In a word; we fhould neither have hearts to look up to God, nor confidence to expect any thing from him, nor grace to be thankful, but that Chrift, by his death, has given us a right to do fo:-and therefore his death we ought ever to have before our eyes.

2dly. The remembrance of Christ's death in the facrament is the only fupport of finful men. It is not indeed every body that is fenfible of the bleffing of a Redeemer; but if once men come to confider seriously that they are finners, and to believe in earneft that no finner can go to heaven without a share in 1 John i. 7.

• Rom. v. 10.

the

the merits of Chrift, they will then know for a truth, that there is no reft for their fouls, but by coming to Chrift, and thankfully using the means of grace which he has appointed.

It may be, that people may think that the death of Chrift may be remembered without receiving the Lord's fupper; but they ought to confider, that there is a great deal of difference betwixt knowing that Chrift died for mankind, and applying that knowledge to one's felf in particular. For the death of Chrift is only a comfort to any person, so far as he can hope that he died for him; that is, fo far as he knows that he hath done what Chrift hath commanded him to do, in order to be pardoned.

I have feen many inftances of this truth. I have feen people under great affliction of mind, doubting the pardon of their fins. And though the gospel of Chrift, and the exprefs promises therein contained, have been laid before them; namely, that if we confess our fins, God is faithful (to his promife) and just to forgive us our fins:-That all that believe in bim fhall not perish, but have everlasting life. Yet these promises could yield them no comfort; not that they doubted the truth of them, but because God did not, for that time, vouchfafe them grace to apply these promises to themselves.

The cafe was just thus with the people of Ifrael. They were stung by ferpents;-Mofes

was

was ordered by God to fet up a ferpent of brass, with a promise, that whoever in their mifery fhould look upon it, fhould be healed. It was indeed a general bleffing to know this; but nobody had any comfort or share in this bleffing, but those that made use of the means, and went out to look upon it; they only were healed.

Why now let us apply this.

We are finners. Every man knows this for himself. Jefus Chrift came into the world to fave finners. For his fake, God has made us many great and precious promifes. The holy facrament is the means of applying these promises to every man's own cafe, by remembering the death of Chrift after a folemn manner, and owning him for our Lord.

Now, whoever neglects to do what Chrift hath commanded, will not furely expect thofe mercies and favours which he has promised in order to obtain them.-But,

3dly. The receiving of the Lord's fupper is a most neceffary duty, because it is the only means of continuing in covenant with God."

People do not confider what it is to be in covenant with God;-that it is to be one of his church and family, to be under God's efpecial protection and government, to have a right and title to the kingdom of heaven.

Now, are these bleffings to be despised? And yet how many are there, who would rather die than exprefsly renounce the chriftian religion,

religion, who do in truth renounce all its bleffings, by defpifing the means of grace appointed by Chrift!

Let me therefore recommend one thing to your ferious confideration:-Whoever holds not communion with Chrift is under the government of the devil; and therefore the gofpel is faid to turn men from fatan to God; that is, to take them from under his government and fervice, to make them God's fervants, and to put them under his efpecial protection. • Now, to neglect the Lord's fupper is in a manner to renounce communion with Chrift: The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Chrift? that is, Is it not that action by which we declare to all the world that we belong to Christ?

Laftly. The neceffity of this duty appears from the neceffity of keeping up the remembrance of the death of Chrift in the church of God. Why; could the world ever forget the fufferings of Chrift, and the reasons of his fufferings? Yes, as well as the children of Ifrael could forget the wonders which God had done for them. Nay, they forgat God himself, as well as his mercies. And indeed we know not what we fhould forget, if we fhould once forfake the ordinances of God.

с

We know, by faith, that God made of one blood all nations of the earth; all which sprung from one who knew the true God, and taught

с Acts xxvi. 18.

d I Cor. X. 15.

Acts xvii. 26.