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1 Cor. xi. 18, 20, 21.

ver. $1.

ver. 29.

ver. 32.

ver. 30.

A. The Crime charged upon them by St. Paul was their diforderly and irreverent Participation of the bleffed Sacrament; for it being the Custom of the Primitive Chriftians to receive the holy Eucharift after their Feafts of Charity, wherein the Rich and the Poor ate together with great Sobriety and Temperance; in the Church of Corinth this Method was not obferved, the Poor were not admitted to this common Feaft, for in eating every one taketh before other his own Supper; fo that when fome wanted, others were guilty of fcandalous Excefs and grofs Intemperance; and the Effect of it was, that they did not difcern the Lord's Body; they made no Difference between the Sacrament and a common Meal, between what was to sustain their Bodies, and what was to refresh their Souls. And the Punishment inflicted upon them for this irreverent and contemptuous Ufage of the Body and Blood of Chrift, was temporal Judgments, that being chaftened of the Lord, they might not be condemned with the World; for this Caufe many were weak and fick among them, and many flept. They had provoked God to plague them with divers Diseases, and fundry Kinds of Death; by which it appears, that temporal Judgments must be understood by that Word our Tranflators render Damnation. Though, if these temporal Judgments had not produced Amendment and Reformation, fuch a Contempt of holy Things might have made them obnoxious to the eternal Judgment of God.

Q. But doth not the Danger of unworthy Receiving make it fafeft to abstain from receiving at all, or at least to receive but feldom?

A. By no Means; because the Danger of neglecting and condemning a plain Command of our Saviour, is more hazardous to our Salvation, than performing it without fome due Qualification. The Duty therefore being neceffary to be performed,

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the true Confequence we fhould draw from the Danger of performing it unworthily, fhould be to excite ourselves to great Care and Diligence in preparing ourfelves for the due Difcharge of it; but never to delude ourselves by falfe Reasons, to fuch a Neglect as will certainly increase our Condemnation.

Q. What Obligation lies upon all Chriflians to receive the holy Communion?

1 Cor. xi.

A. The plain and pofitive Command of our bleffed Luke xxii. Saviour, to do this in Remembrance of him, makes it 19: a neceffary and perpetual Duty incumbent upon all 24. Christians; and to live in the Neglect of a plain Law of the Author of our Religion, is no Way confiftent with the Character we profefs of being his Difciples. The Circumflances of this Inftitution ftill bind us to have a great Regard to it; for it was the last Command of our beft Friend and great Benefactor, when he was about to lay down his Life for our Sakes. It is a Piece of Worship peculiar. to the Chriftian Religion; and by which in a particular Manner we proclaim ourselves Followers of the bleffed Jesus; upon which Account the Primitive Chriftians (at least in fome Places) on no Day held their public Affemblies without it; and the Faithful, that joined in all the other Parts of public Worship, never failed in partaking of the bleffed Sacrament. If we add to this the Benefits that are conveyed to all worthy Receivers in this holy Ordinance, viz. the Pardon of our Sins, Grace and Strength to perform our Duty, and the glorious Reward of eternal Life; a Man must be very infenfible of his own Intereft, that neglects one of the best Instruments to advance it. Neither can we have any deep Senfe of those great Bleffings which were purchased for us by the Death of Chrift, when he refuses to give fuch an eafy Inftance of a thankful Heart.

Q. What

Mede's

Sacrifice.

Rub. Mendoz. in Can.

22. Conc. lib.

What was the End and Defign of inftituting the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper?

A. To be the Chriftian Sacrifice, wherein Bread Chriftian and Wine are offered to God, to acknowlege him Commun. Lord of the Creatures; and accordingly, in the ancient Church, they were laid on the Table by the Prieft, as they are ftill ordered to be done by the Rubric in the Church of England, and tendered to God by this fhort Prayer, Lord we offer thy own out of what thou hast bountifully given us; which by Confecration being made Symbols of the Body and Blood of Christ, we thereby represent to God the Father the Paffion of his Son, to the End he may for his Sake, according to the Tenour of his Covenant in him, be favourable and propitious to us miferable Sinners. That as Chrift intercedes continually for us in Heaven, by prefenting his Death and Satisfaction to his Father; fo the Church on Earth, in like Manner, may approach the Throne of Grace, by reprefenting Chrift unto his Father in these boly Myfteries of his Death and Paffion. To be a ftanding Monument of the infinite Love of our bleffed Saviour in dying for us; and by outward Signs, as eating Bread and drinking Wine, according to Chrift's own Appointment, to fix in our Souls the Memory of thofe invaluable Bleffings he hath purchased for And to communicate to all worthy Receivers the Benefits of his Sacrifice, upon which Account it is called the Communion of his Body and Blood. And it was farther defigned as a Bond of Union, to knit Christians together in the fame Fellowfhip and Communion. Thus the infinite Love of Chrift appeared not only in giving himself to die for us, but in fo far complying with the Weakness of our Nature, as to inftitute and ordain holy Myfteries, as Pledges of his Love, and for a continual Remembrance of his Death, to our great and endlefs Comfort.

us.

Q. After

Q. After what Manner was the Confecration of the Elements of Bread and Wine performed in the Primitive Church?

C.

1. 5. c. 2.

Tom. 2.

Cat. Myft.

5.95.

Celf. lib.8.

A. The Priest that officiated not only rehearsed the Evangelical Hiftory of the Inftitution of this holy Sacrament, and pronounced thefe Words of our Saviour, This is my Body, this is my Blood; Iren. L, 44, but he offered up a Prayer of Confecration to God, c. 34. befeeching him, that he would fend down his holy Bafil. de Spirit upon the Bread and Wine prefented to him on Spir. San. the Altar, and that he would fo fanctify them, that c. 27.. they might become the Body and Blood of his Son Jefus Cyr. Hier. Chrift; not according to the grofs Compages or Substance, but as to the fpiritual Energy and Vir- Orig. con. tue of his holy Flesh and Blood, communicated Church to the bleffed Elements by the Power and Opera- Cat. tion of the Holy Ghoft defcending upon them; whereby the Body and Blood of Chrift is verily and Ritu. indeed taken by the Faithful in the Lord's Supper. This Prayer is found in all the ancient Liturgies; Juft.Apol. and fome learned Men have thought that St. Paul. p. 227. alluded to fomething of this Nature, when he 16. fpeaks of the Offering of the Gentiles being made acceptable by the Sanctification of the Holy Ghost, there being no less than five liturgical Words in that Text, as hath been obferved by learned Men.

Q. What is meant by doing this in Remembrance of our Saviour Jesus Christ?

A. By doing this in Remembrance or Commemoration of Chrift, is meant the representing and inculcating his bleffed Paffion to his Father, putting God in Mind thereof, by fetting the Monuments thereof before him, teftifying our own Mindfulness thereof unto his facred Majefty, that fo he would for his Sake be favourable and propitious unto us miferable Sinners. It implies moreover a most thankful Acknowledgment of those great Bleffings which he purchased for us by his

2

Sufferings;

Græc.

Grab. in

Rom. xv.

Sufferings; and a public proclaiming to all the World, the great Sense we have of fuch invaluable Kindness. And therefore ought to be accompanied with hearty Repentance for all the Sins we have been guilty of in Thought, Word, and Deed; for this was the End of his Death, to reconcile us to As iii. God, by turning us from our Iniquities, with firm Refolutions of better Obedience; for he gave himfelf for us, to purify himself to a peculiar People Tit. ii. 14. zealous of good Works; with an entire Refignation of our Souls and Bodies to be a reasonable, holy,

26.

and lively Sacrifice unto him; for he hath the jufteft Claim to us, because he purchafed us at the 1Pet. i.19. Price of his own Blood; with a conftant Endeavour to make fome confiderable Proficiency in all the Virtues of a Chriftian Life, because he hath obtained for us, by the Merits of his Sufferings, the Grace and Affiftance of God's Holy Spirit, to Phil.ii.12. work in us both to will and to do of his good PleaJure with a Readiness to be reconciled to all Rom. v.10 thofe that have offended us; because when we were Enemies, we were reconciled to God by the Death of bis Son. And lastly, the Remembrance of his Love in dying for us, fhould engage us to contribute all we can to the Relief of his poor diftreffed Members, by reafon he was fo liberal of his ineftimable Blood for us.

Q. How often ought we to receive this holy Communion?

A. The trueft Measure of our Duty in this Particular, is to be taken from thofe Opportunities which the good Providence of God affords us to this Purpofe; there being no better Way of determining the Frequency of our Obligation to receive, than this of God's giving us the Opportunity. According to this Rule the Primitive Chriftians practifed, who never withdrew themfelves from the Lord's Supper, when it made a

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