2. A second grace which is here
to be exercised in the use of this
Ordinance, and requisite to the
sanctification of God in it, is
Repentance.
The Sacraments they are the
crucifixes of Christ, in which
Christ is represented as crucified
afresh before our eyes: the
bread broken doth preach unto
us the breaking of Christ: The
wine powred forth doth preach
unto us the Blood of Christ
poured forth for our sinnes.
And who is it that can with the
eye of faith, look upon a broken
Christ, but with a broken heart?
a wounded Christ, but with a
wounded spirit? a bleeding Christ
but with a bleeding soule? God
hath made in nature the same organ
for seeing and weeping: And
in grace hee who sees clearly,
weeps throughly, Lam. 3. 5. The
eye will affect the heart.

The Passeover under the Law
was to be eaten with bitter herbs:
So Christ, the true Passover, is
here to be eaten with bitternesse
of soul: as it was prophesied; They
shal look on him whom they have pierced,
and shall lament, and mourne;
first seeing, and then weeping, &c.
Zach. 12. 10.
There is a twofold mourning,
1.Historicall; 2.Spirituall.
1.Historicall mourning; there
is a naturall tendernesse in men
and women, whereby their hearts
doe yearn and melt to heare the
relation, or behold the sight of
some sad story. Such a one as Augustine
confesseth he had when he
read the sad story of Dido: and
yet his heart was hard, he could
not mourn for sin. Or such a one
as they had, whom Christ blamed
in the Gospel, who lamented the
cruell usage of Christ out of naturall
compassion only; to whom

he saith, O daughters of Jerusalem,
weep not for me. Of this the Father
speaks, It is not necessary you lament
his passion, so much as your sinnes,
which have caused his passion. There
is a kind of naturall tenderness in
men and women, which yet is often
joyned with hardnesse of
heart for sinne. As an Historical
faith, with spirituall unbelief, and
an Historicall love, with spiritual
enmity; so a natural tendernesse,
with spirituall hardnesse of heart
for sin.
2.There is a spirituall mourning,
which ariseth from spirituall
grounds and causes, and tends
to spirituall ends. A sorrow
which is caused by faith, looking
upon heart-melting promises, or
taking up heart-breaking considerations,
or beholding a heart-softning
object, by which Faith
doth draw waters out of the fountaines
of the soul for sin, as you

have it, 1 Sam. 7. 6. they drew
water (as out of a well) and poured
it forth before the Lord.
And this is that sorrow which is
here to be exercised, which will
melt and mellow the heart, and
cause it to be more fruitfull in obedience.
Never doth the garden
of graces better grow, then after
such a showre of repentant tears.
And therefore doth God preserve
these springs in the soul, to
water the seeds of grace, and
make us more fruitfull, which it
surely doth when they are Sunshine-showres,
such showres
wherein the Sun appeares Christ
is not hid from the eye of faith.
And, my brethren, here are
many things in this ordinance,
which if but looked upon with
the eye of faith, will open all
the springs of sorrow in the
soule, and call forth all the waters
in him. Bellarnine he layes

G

down twelve considerations to
provoke sorrow, as the miseries
of mankind by nature, the sad
condition of the souls in Purgatory,
and such like stuffe. But we
need not be beholding to him for
such co~siderations as these, to occasion
mourning. Here is enough
in the Sacrament presented
to the eye of faith, to
open all the Springs thou hast,
and if thou had a fountaine of
teares, to spend them all for
sinne. We will name some particulars
here which draw out
mournings.
1. Here is a discovery of the
love and sweetnesse of God, in
giving his Son to die for us. So
God loved the world, &c. enough
to cause us to mourne that ever
wee offended. "Oh that God
should bee more tender to us
then to his owne Sonne, not
spare his Sonne that he might

82

spare us, give him to die, that we
might live, poure the curse upon
him, that the blessing might
bee poured on us!" O how
should this affect us! Who can
think of this, and with-hold from
teares?
2. Here is presented to us the
sufferings and breakings of
Christ, enough to break our hardest
hearts. 1. The sufferings of
Christ, in se, in themselves, as
those upon his body; what breakings?
what woundings? what
scourgings? what crownings,
piercings, did he endure in his body?
and those in his soule: What
conflicts and struglings did he
undergoe with the wrath of God,
the terrors of death, the powers
of darknes? Oh what weight,
what burden, what wrath did hee
undergoe, when his soule was heavie
unto death? beset with terrors,
as the word signifies, when

G 2

he drank that bitter cup, that cup
mingled with curses, which if
Man or Angell had but sipt of, it
would have sunk them into hell,
Nay, it made him, who was God
as well as man, sanctified by the
Spirit, supported with the Deity,
comforted by Angels, sweat such
a sweat as never man sweat; drops,
clods of blood, as the word implies.
2. Consider them in Causa, as
the meriting cause of all our
good, the procurers of all our
peace, salvation, &c.
He was wounded, that we might
be healed; scourged, that we might
be solaced; drunk the cup of
wrath, a bitter cup, to procure all
our sweet draughts: He was slain,
saith Daniel, but not for himself;
he was wounded for our transgressions,
broken for our iniquities;
the chastisement of our
peace was upon him, and by his

7

stripes are we healed, Isa. 53. 5, 8.
3. Consider them as effectus peccati,
as the effects of our sin, as
those things our sins brought upon
him, and needs must this melt
and thaw our Icie &stony hearts.
Oh, will the soul say! it hath been
I who have been the traytor, the
murtherer, my sins which have
been bloody instruments to slay
the Lord of glory. I have sinn'd,
thou suffer'd; 'twas I that did eat
the sowre grapes, yet thy teeth
were set on edge; I have been thy
death, yet thy death hath given
mee life; I have wounded thee,
yet thou hast healed me; yea, and
even out of that wound my sins
made, thou sent a plaister to heal
mee. This consideration must
needs fill the heart with sorrow,
Zach. 12. 10. They shall look upon
him whom they have pierced, and
how shall this sight affect them?
why, it follows, they shall mourn,

G 3

and be in bitterness of soul, as one in
bitterness for their first-born.
They say, if one man kill another,
and you bring the murtherer
into the place, where the slain
person lies, the dead will bleed
afresh: Wee are the murtherers
of Christ, and we come here to an
Ordinance where Christ is represented
in his blood, as broken and
wounded for our sins. O! that our
hearts might bleed! as he bleeds
afresh to us; so that wee might
bleed afresh to him. A Prince wil
weep himself when the Page is
whipped for him: but how should
the Page mourn when the Prince
is scourged for him? My brethren,
there is infinite more disproportion
between Christ and
us, then between the Prince and
the Page, the Lord and the slave.
And how can we then look upon
him as wounded, scourged, pierced,
for us, &not be affected with,

afflicted for our sin, the cause of it.
Bernard saith, If thou would be
conformable to Christ (in the Sacrament)
as thou beholdest a broken
&a bleeding Christ, so labour
to behold him wth a broken bleeding
heart. Look on him in this
Ordinance, as Mary looked upon
him on the Cross, when Simeon's
Prophesie was fulfilled, that a
sword should pass through her
soul; Luke 2. 35. for then indeed
did a sword pass through her soul,
when she saw him pierced on the
cross: so when you see him pierced
and broken in the Sacrament,
which is the lively representation
of Christ broken, Oh, that then it
might be as a spear to our hearts!
as a sword to our spirits, that we
by our sins have wounded and
pierced him!
This is the second grace to
be exercised in this Ordinance.
And beside these two, there are

many more to be exercised here,
viz. Our love to God, our hungring
and thirsting after Christ.
There is that in Christ represented
to the eye of faith in this Sacrament,
that calls out for all the
affections, dispositions, and desires
in you; You cannot see
Christ here, but it will make every
grace within you stir, every
disposition within you to move,
every wheel go. Who can see him
but love him, who is so exceeding
lovely? Who can see him but
prize him, who is so exceeding
precious? Who can see him but
desire him, who is so exceeding
desireable? Who can see him but
delight in him, who is the joy
and delight of the soul? You
cannot possibly see him here, but
all the powers of the soul will
be up. 1. Your judgements to
prize him, your wills to choose
him, and make a new match with

88

him; your affections to love him,
embrace him, delight in him. And
the clearer your sight is here of
Christ by faith, the more will your
hearts be stirred, your spirits moved.
Men that sit here as logs
&lumps of clay never stirred, never
taken up, they see not Christ,
they see no higher then the table,
the Bread and Wine, and therefore
dead and sensless. Oh! but if
one crevise of your hearts were
opened, to let in but one beam,
one glimpse of Christ, it would
set you all on a burning heavenly
fire, this would warm you indeed.
But besides these graces to be exercised,
there is required some
demeanours in the soul in this
Ordinance, if we would sanctifie
God in it.
1. An humble and holy reverence,
which is the fruit of that
dread and fear of God which is
in the heart. There is abundance

of lightness, looseness and vanity
in the spirits of men by nature.
And the Majesty and dread of
that great God, with whom wee
have to do in this Ordinance,
must consolidate, and make our
spirits weighty in these great Ordinances.
The Sacrament is called
an Eucharist, it is a gratulatory
service, and God is fearfull in
praises, Exod. 15. 11. which hath
speciall respect to the affection
wherewith you are to praise him.
2. There is required a discharge
&dismission of all worldly
thoughts and businesses. When
Abraham went up to the Mount
to sacrifice, he left his servants in
the valley. Thou art now to go
up to the mount, where God appears.
Oh! leave all your servile
affections, your worldly thoughts
in the valley. And if any enter,
do as Abraham did by the Birds
that would have eaten up his sacrifice,

90

chase them away; do by
them as you do by straggling
beggars, give them their pass, and
send them away.
In the Temple, though there
was so much flesh for sacrifice, yet
there was not one Flie appeared
stirring; oh that it might be so
with us this day! that not one
thought might arise upon our
hearts, unsutable to the place and
work in hand. It is a thing unbefitting
these great imployments,
to have our hearts and thoughts
taken up with other businesses;
what have you to do here with
your shops, your bags, your
chests? What have you here to
do with things of this world?
Oh make not this place an Exchange,
a Shop for merchandize,
men are not able to do business in
a crowd, nor you so great a business
as this in a crowd of thoughts.
But this is the misery, you are

91

servants and slaves to the world at
other times, and therefore the
world will master you now. If you
pass over your hearts to the service
of the world at other times,
the world will make you serve it
now. Because you have not spirituall
hearts in your temporall employments,
therefore have you
carnall hearts in your spirituall
employments. The lesse of the
Sabbath in the week, the more you
shall find of the week in the Sabbath.
The lesse spirituall you are
in affairs of earth, the more carnall
you will bee in the employments
of Heaven. This is
certain, if the world once take
your heart, it will take your head
also. I say, if ever the world leaven
your hearts, it will also poyson
your heads; it is a leaven diffuseth
it self through the whole man.
And therefore as Christ said
of the leaven of the Pharisees,

92

Take heed
of the leaven of the Pharisees,
h. e. hypocrisie: (for if
once the heart be leaven'd with
that, it will soure the head: if the
Principles are unsound, then are
the purposes also, and performances
too, &c.) So I say here, beware
of the leaven of worldly-mindednesse,
if ever you would
sanctifie God in this ordinance.
Beware of that, this will soure the
soule, and make all you doe to be
carnall and fleshly. I tell you, if
you be servants to the world at other
times, the world will co~mand
and master you now. Thus much
shall serve for the second generall
Head, what is required in the
time for the sanctification of this ordinance.
We come to the third.
To the sanctifying God in an
Ordinance, is required somthing
after. And
That now which is required afterward,
is, That you labour to

see the fruit of this ordinance to
run downe through your lives.
Thou exercisedst faith, labour to
see thy heart more established in
assurance of pardon. See thy graces
more strengthened, thy corruptions
more weakned. I will name
onely two things which are to
follow the performance of this
ordinance, if ever you would sanctifie
God in it:
1. Thankfulnesse,
2. Obedience.
1. Thankfulnesse: Returne
home now, as thy heart, full of the
benefits of the Lord; so thy heart
full of praises to the Lord. Angels
employments are most suteable
to Angels' food: thou hast
had Angels' food, and let thy
heart returne Angels' retribution,
praise and thanksgiving. If
God doe but feed your bodies,
there is none, I hope, such beasts,
as will not return the retribution

94

of praises: And will you be slow
and backward to it when he hath
fed your souls? Shall we blesse
God for a Crumb, and not for a
Christ? Other mercies are but
crumbs in comparison of this
rich mercy, and shall our hearts
favour them so much, &not relish
these? Other mercies he gives
to his enemies, wicked men may
run away wth the greatest portion
of belly-blessings; but these hee
only bestowes on his friends: and
shall we be unthankful for them?
How ever carnall men are most
taken with carnal things; yet sure
I am, those who are spirituall, as
they are most apprehensive of spirituall
wants; so the greatest layings
out of their spirits in thankfulnesse,
is for spirituall enjoyments.
What's corne and wine,
&c. to this? This is a mercie in
which all other mercies are folded
up, the summum genus of mercie,

the top-mercy. God doth eminently
contain al other comforts,
and therefore in the want of all
he can cheere the heart, Hah. 3.
7. So Christ doth eminently
contain all other mercies, and in
the want of all, Christ enjoyed,
is exceeding great reward. Nay,
all mercies are not onely folded
up in him, and intail'd to him, but
he sweetens and sanctifies every
mercie. Let us then return home
as full of the blessing from on
high, so full of praises to the most
high. Thankfulnesse is the great
grace to bee exercised in, and
thankfulnesse is the great grace
to be exercised after; and therefore
while the present sense of
this mercie warmes your hearts,
let the heat of it burst forth into
thankfulnesse towards God; it is
the most sutable service, and the
most sutable time to returne it.
The best time to have thankfulness

in our hearts, is when we can look
there, and finde the mercy for wch
we praise him also. The best time
for praises and thankfulness in
our mouths, is when wee have the
blessing in our hands. Well then,
all you who are right partakers
of this Ordinance, summon up
your hearts to return thankfulness
to God. And let your thankfulness
carry some proportion with
the mercy. The mercy is great, do
but measure it in all the dimensions
of it, how high? how deep?
how broad a mercy? pardoning,
purging mercy, and how long?
even to all eternity; And as the
mercy is great, so should be the
praises. (The more a man's apprehensions
are enwidened to conceive
of the vastness and greatness
of the mercy, the more will the
affections be inlarged to praise
him for it. There was never man
that did know the preciousness of

H

Christ, and his own need of him,
in respect of pardon, purging, and
his own unworthiness to partake
of so glorious a mercy, but had
his heart mightily inlarged to
praise God for it. This is that
then which God expects at your
hands, after he hath filled you with
the blessing of Heaven, that you
should return praises to Heaven.
Though hee doth not reap where
he doth not sow, as that idle servant
charged him; yet where God
sowes blessings, hee expects to reap
praises. Where there is a flood of
mercy, hee looks for a stream of
thankfulness. Oh! then let us
proportion our returns to our
receits, let us set up monuments
of praise in our hearts and lives
for this great mercy; Say with
David, Bless the Lord, o my soul &c.
2. The second thing required
after this Ordinance, is obedience
and fruitfulnes. That now for the

time to come, you should apply
your hearts to walk more worthy
of God unto all manner of pleasing:
1. That we should have our
hearts further set against sin:
2. That we should have our hearts
further strengthned to service.
1. Get your hearts now further
set against sin. Oh! let your
souls say, "Hath God been so
gracious, as to renew and confirm
my pardon, and shall I again
dishonour him? Hath hee wiped
off my former scores, and shall I
run on afresh to offend him?
Hath hee taken off my former
burthen, and cast it on the back
of his dear Son, and shall I again
lay more load upon him? Hath
he spoken peace to me in his Ordinance,
and shall I again return
to folly? No, far be it from me.
I have washed my feet, how shall I
again defile them?
I have put off
my coat, how shal I again put it on?

H 2

saith the Christian soul." Prophane
men, they do by their sins,
as the Serpent with his poyson, lay
it aside when they go to drink, but
afterward take it up: Or, as men
do with a garment, put it off at
night, but put it on in the morning.
And this is fearfull, to return
with the dog to the vomit. But God's
people cast them away, as a menstruous
rag, never more to have to
do with them.
2. Get your hearts further
strengthened to service. Here
is in this Ordinance a mutuall
sealing of Covenants between
God and you. As God seals to
thee, so thou seals again to God.
God seals to the first part of the
Covenant, pardon, mercy, grace;
and thou seals to the second part
of it, service, subjection, obedience:
God gives Christ to thee here
in this Ordinance, and thou gives
thy self back again to Christ. As

100

there is matter of bountie from
God to thee, so there is matter
of duty from thee to God; God
here in bounty bestowes Christ upon
every humble, broken hearted
and believing receiver: They take
him, and re-give themselves back
again to him for subjection and
obedience. There was never any
soul, to whom God said in this
Ordinance, I am thine, whose
hearts did not eccho again the
same to God, Lord, I am thine.
This head is thine to contrive
thy glory, this hand is thine to
work for thee, this hart is thine to
love thee, He that sayes, my beloved
is mine, sayes again, and I am his;
Cant. 2. 16. Let us then labour
to see our hearts further strengthened
to service; let this inable
thee to walk:
1. More strongly; The Sacraments
are our spirituall baitings
and refreshments which God affords

H 3

us to strengthen us in our
journey to Heaven: They are spirituall
meat &drink to strengthen
us in the performance of al spirituall
obedience; such meat as will
not only inable a man to work,
but to work more strongly. And
'tis to be feared, that they who
are never the stronger for service,
feed not upon the substance,
but upon the shadow, they feed upon
the elements, but never tast of
Christ the staff of nourishment;
and tis true here, the meer element
is no nourishment.
2. More willingly and cheerfully;
Then shall wee be able to run
the wayes of God's Commandements,
when God once here inlarges our
hearts. It is said of Jacob, that
when he had been refreshed with
the presence of God, he plucked
up his feet, and went on cheerfully.
So here, when the soul hath
been refreshed with the presence

102

of Christ, he will be able to walk
more cheerfully in the wayes of
God. The food we feed upon is
Angels' food, and will inable us to
Angels' imployments, h. e. to do
our work with an Angels spirit,
with all alacrity, cheerfulness,
joy and delight; though not in
the same equality, yet in the same
quality, though not in the same
measure, yet in the same manner.
And thus much for the second
generall, viz. How we must sanctifie
God in an Ordinance.
Wee will now come to the
third generall, which is the Reasons
why, Who ever have to do with
an Ordinance of God, must sanctifie
God in it.
1. Reason. Because God commands
it. God saith hee will be
sanctified; and God's will is our
law. God doth not only command
the substance, but the circumstances;
not only the matter of worship,

103

but the manner: And though the
matter be good, if the manner of
performance be naught, God doth
not regard it. You see what hee
saith to the Jewes, He that sacrificeth,
is as he who killed a man, and
hee that kils a Lamb, as if he cut off
a Dog's head, and he who burneth incense,
as hee who blesseth an Idoll,
Isa. 66. 3. These seem strange expressions.
What, were not these
such duties as God commanded?
Doth not God command sacrifice?
&c. Yes, but because they
did them not in that manner God
commanded, therefore were they
abominable to him. If therefore
thou gives God the bulk of outward
performance, without the
spirit of devotion, thou deals by
him as Prometheus by Jupiter, who
did eat the flesh, and present him
with nothing but bones, covered
over with skin; Or, to use the
Scripture phrase, you compass God

with a lie, Hos. 11. 12. Thou gives
him the shell of outward performance,
but not the kernell of inward
devotion: thou gives him
a body without a soul; And as the
body without the soul is dead and
stinks, so doth that service which
wants the spirit: As God's will
doth command service, so our
will and affections must perform
service. Though our will
must be no instrument of devising
service, yet it must be an instrume~t
in performing service. Though
God will not own will-worship in
regard of prescription, yet he will
own it in regard of performance,
and none else.
Thus you see God commands
it, and therefore, &c.
2. Reason. Because otherwise
wee get no good by this Ordinance,
no good of Comfort, nor
none of Grace. If indeed the Sacraments
did ex opere operato, confer

Grace; or if that this Sacrament
were an Instrument for the
begetting of Grace in graceless
hearts, then might you get good,
though you came unpreparedly.
The word, it is set up for that end,
to be the instrument of regeneration;
and therefore, though you
come unpreparedly thither, yet
you may be wrought upon there.
Many that have come to the
Word with purpose to scoff, to
taunt, to deride, nay, to insnare
and accuse, who yet have been
wrought on there, and sent away
other men. Were the Sacraments
set up for such an end, to
beget grace, where there is no
grace, then might you get good,
though you come unpreparedly
and unsanctifiedly thither;
but as I have told you, it was
never set up for such an end:
here its true, habenti dabitur, to
him that hath shall be given; he

that hath grace shall in the exercise
improve his graces, but he
that comes graceless hither, goes
graceless away, nay, worse then
he came, which is the next Reason.
3. Reason. Because otherwise
we get much hurt.
The Ordinances are not idle,
but operative, they either work
for life, or they work for death.
As Paul said of the Word, it was
the favour of life and of death; so
I may say of every Ordinance.
There is never a time you come
to hear the Word, but you are set
a step neerer heaven or hell: so
never a time you come to receive
the Sacraments, &c. The fruit of
the tree of Knowledge of good
and evill might be wholsome in it
self: yet Adam did eat his death,
when he tasted of it contrary to
God's command. So here the Sacrament,
though in it self it be

107

good, yet it becomes the bane and
destruction of those souls, who
partake thereof unworthily: As
the Ordinances of God are precious
things when God is sanctified
in them; so they are costly things,
when prophan'd. Hezekiah knew
this full well, and therefore hee
prayes, Now the good Lord pardon
all those who come to seek the God of
their Fathers, though they are not
prepared according to the preparation
of the Sanctuary; he saw the danger
of the unsanctified use of Ordinances.
To be short, it will bring upon
thee, 1. Corporall hurt; you see
this in the Corinthians, 1 Cor. 11.
30. For this cause many are weak and
sickly among you, and many are fallen
asleep. It was some Epidemicall
disease,
flagellum inundans
, some
over-flowing scourge, whereby
God swept away many, in all the
quarters of the Church; and will

you know what was the ground,
what was the reason of it? The
Apostle tels us; that in the beginning,
it was for this cause, viz. the
prophanation, or unsanctified use
of this Ordinance, there was
mors
in olla
, death in the cup, they partaked
of the cup of the Lord unworthily,
and drank their own
death in it; the cup of life was
become a cup of death, the blood
of pardon a cup of guilt.
2. Spirituall hurt; though God
do not break out in visible judgements
upon the carkasses of men
as formerly, yet the curse of God
eats secretly into the consciences
of men. You cause God to give
you up to blindness of minde,
hardness of heart, and these are
curses with a witness; the curse
of curses is a hard heart.
3. It puts you in danger of eternall
judgement. The Apostle tels
you so, 1 Corinth. 11. 29. verse.

He that eats and drinks unworthily,
eats &drinks his own damnation:
Better, saith Ambrose, that a milstone
were tied about thy neck, and
thou cast into the midst of the sea;
then to take the least bit of bread, or
drop of wine from the Minister, with
an unsanctified heart, and polluted
conscience. And thus much for
the doctrinall part, wee will now
come to the application.
Vse 1. If so, that whoever
hath to do with an Ordinance
must sanctifie God in it; and
that there is so much required
before, so much in the time, so
much afterward; Oh! how few
then shall we finde, that sanctifie
God in this Ordinance? Some
there are, who openly prophane
this Ordinance, some who steal
a draught of damnation to themselves,
your close and civill men;
this is the difference, where the
common prophane man goes to

hell the plain road way, this man
steals to hell behinde the hedge;
And indeed, the best of men do
not sanctifie God as they ought
in them. Alas, what preparation
before wee come upon these Ordinances?
What exciting and
stirring up of our graces? What
exercise of grace here? Faith, Repentance?
What thankfulness?
What obedience afterwards?
Where is the fruit of so many
Sermons, Sacraments; have they
not been like rain that falls on the
rocks? Are not all these like so
many clouds which pass over our
heads, and leave never a drop of
moisture behinde? Are wee not
like Pharaoh's lean Kine, never the
fatter for all our feeding? Are we
not like men sick of Atrophy,
who, though they feed upon never
so good nourishment, yet
they grow not thereby? Do wee
not shame our meat, discredit

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those heavenly dainties, that we
thrive no more by them? Other
ages, like Leah, were bleer-eyed,
but fruitfull: ours like Rachel,
beautifull, but yet barren: Wee
answer not God's care and cost
towards us; we profit not; wee
grow not; and what's the reason?
Because we do not sanctifie God
as we ought in these Ordinances;
therefore are we so weak in faith,
therefore so feeble in grace; therfore
corruptions so strong in us:
they who look the Ordinances
should be means for the perfecting
of their sanctification, they
must labour to sanctifie God in
them.
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