this Sacrament; and it's probable, a Man may then be affected with this fublime Myftery, when he rouzes his Soul fome fuch way as this, Doft thou rightly underftand, O my Soul, what this great and tremendous Ordinance means? Behold, thou art going to feast with that God, who ftretches out the Heavens like a Curtain,and lays the beams of his Chambers in the Waters, and makes the Clouds his Chariots, and rideth upon the wings of the wind. What, Feaft with fo glorious a God, and come without a Wedding Garment? Sup with him, who dwelleth in the Heavens, and not purifie thy felf, even as he is pure? Can two walk together except they be agreed? What fellowship hath Righteoufnefs with Unrighteoufnefs? And what communion hath Light with Darkness? What concord hath Chrift with Belial? What agreement hath the Temple of God with Idols? This is the great Ordinance, O my Soul, which must either promote thy everlasting Happiness, or aggravate thy everlasting Condemnation; How happy may'st thou be, if this Sacrament charms thee into a fervent Love to thy dear Redeemer? But how wilt thou escape, if thou neglect fo great Salvation? Here are the greatest Engagements,the greatest Motives to a Life, as becomes the Gospel of Chrift, here God adjures thee (to ufe the Words of the Church) by Chrift's agony and bloody fweat, by his cross and passion, by his death and burial, to bury thy unclean Defires, and inordinate Affections, and to dedicate thy felf, and all thou haft, to his fervice. Here is reprefented the greatest love that ever was vouch

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vouchfafed to Men; here the Son of God appears all bloody to fright thee from thy Sins ; here Chrift is, as it were, Crucified before thine Eyes, that remembring what it was that brought him to his Cross, thou may'ft mourn, as one that mourns for his only Son. Here Christ appears laden with all the Bleffings of Heaven; here the everlasting Trinity feems to use its utmoft endeavours to perfuade thee into a Heavenly Converfation: Here the Defert of Sin is discovered in the Wounds and Torments of an infinite God; and hither thou comeft, O my Soul, to renew thy Baptifmal Vow; hither thou comeft to enter into a folemn Covenant with God, and faithfully to promife him to refign thy felf entirely to him; to fall out with him no more, to defile thy Garments no more; to difhonour, to betray him no more; to be faithful to him, to vindicate his Glory, to esteem his Friends as thy Friends, and his Enemies as thy Enemies, and to live up to thofe Laws which he hath feal'd with his own Blood: To this end thou eatest of his Bread, and drinkeft of his Wine; and thus thou fealeft the Covenant. Doft not thou remember, O my Soul, how the World was loft by eating of the forbidden Tree? Behold, by eating of this Tree of Life, thou shalt be faved for ever: In the breaking of the Confecrated Bread, thou feeft, how Chrift's Body was broken for thee; in pouring out of the Hallow'd Wine, thou feeft, how Chrift's Blood was fpilt for thee: When the Holy Bread is reach'd out to thee, thou feeft Chrift reaching out his Crucified Body to

thee,

thee, that thou may'st fee in his Hands the print of the Nails, and put thy finger into the print of his Nails, and thrust thine hand into his fide, and fhelter thy felf under that wounded and mangled Body, against the Wrath and Indignation of God. When the Sacred Wine is given thee, thou feest how Christ offers thee his Blood for the Remiffion of thy Sins. Canft thou behold fo great Love, and not lofe thy Reason in the Admiration of its greatnefs? When thou feeft fuch condefcenfion, fuch kindnefs, fuch compaffion, O can't thou forbear crying out, O my Lord! what do I fee? What mean thefe longings of Almighty God after my happiness? What means this induftry of that incomprehenfible Being, to be at all this charge and pains to make me bleffed? God that might sport himself with my everlasting groans, what needed he have cared whether I were faved or no? God, who can be happy without company, and needs no fociety but his own; whence is it, that this mighty God humbles himself thus to Duft and Ashes, lays afide his Robes of Glory, and wooes me to be content to lie for ever in his Arms and Bofom? Would no other remedy ferve turn to recover me, but the death of the Son of God? God, on whofe Laws I have trampled, whofe Authority I have flighted, whofe promises and threatnings I have undervalued, that he fhould be thus concern'd for my welfare, and contrive how to advance me unto Glory,and contrive it by fuch ftupendious means too! Will God fuffer, that I may not? Will the Eternal die, that I may not fall a prey to the second death? Will God be Crown'd

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with

with Thorns, that I may wear an incorruptible Crown of Glory? Will God be affronted, abused and fcorned, that I may inherit Glory and Honour, and Immortality? What manner of Love is this? Where is the fpring of it? What's the impulfive cause of it? How full of Miracles is every circumstance here? How pleasant is this contemplation? What! God love a little Slime and Earth? Omy God! how wonderful is thy Love? It is all Ocean; here is no fhore to fet my feet on! Beaftonished at it, O ye Heavens, and tremble, O thou Earth: The Eternal, the Immenfe Creator of Heaven and Earth, stoops to a miferable Creature! The God, who fills Heaven and Earth with his Prefence,bows down to a poor inconfiderable Worm! He that fits on the Circle of the Earth, and before whom all the Inhabitants of the Earth are as Grafhoppers, humbles himself to take notice of a poor forlorn Wretch! Here is love indeed. Stay me with flaggons, comfort me with apples; my Head grows giddy with the Precipice: Here is an abyfs of Love, which I cannot fathom; my Head fwims at the fight of it; Senfe can furnish me with nothing like it, I am filenc'd; here is a Love anfwers all Arguments that are brought for going on in fin. Help me, O thou bleffed Spirit; help me, O thou, who art fairer than the Children of Men; help me, thou who art all Love and Life, help me to admire thy Love. In this Love are a thousand Charms; in this Love are omnipotent Enforcives to love God above all the World. Run, O my Soul, run into this Banqueting-Houfe, the Banner whereof is Love. Is it fo, and must thou have

perished,

perished, and been undone for ever, if the Son of God had not come in the Flesh, and expiated thy Crimes, and doth not Almighty Love deserve thy Love? See how the Ambitious love the Applaufe of Men, and wilt not thou love him who is brighter than the Sun? See how the Rich Man is enamoured with his ftately Palace, and canst not thou love him, who hath done that for thee, which no Friend, no Money, no Gold, no Silver could have purchafed, viz. reconciling thee to an offended God? Wilt thou flight this Love, and hope to go unpunish'd? Wilt thou make this Love a Refuge for wilful Sins, and hope for the Light of Chrift's Countenance? Will not he, who loved thee beyond all Precedents and Examples, double and treble his Indignation upon thee, if this Love cannot melt thee into a truly Spiritual Life? Could the Devils have but fuch an offer, of being partakers of the Love of Christ, how would they rejoice and triumph, and love, and honour,and obey their God again, as once they did when they were Inhabitants of Heaven! and wilt thou be worse than a Devil,and fpurn at that Love which Angels ftand aftonished at? Were it thine own cafe, O my Soul; would it not thou revenge fuch Ingratitude with all the severity imaginable, and doom the Wretch that should affront fuch cond÷fcenfion, to the direct Flames? Be wife, O my Soul, and provoke not that God to fwear in his Wrath, that thou shalt never enter into his Reft, who flees unto thee on the Wings of Mercy to embrace thee; thou canst never have a more glorious fight of God's Love, on this fide Heaven, than

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