ble virtues, and in communicating heavenly joys and foretaftes of happiness; and on our fide, my foul! by repeated acts of adoration and thankfulness, of love and admiration, of refignation and fubmiffion to his holy will, and of fincere profeffions of conftancy and perfeverance in the fervice of our creator and redeemer.

4. Fatal experience convinceth us, that either thro' furprize, or the ftrength of temptation, we cannot always ftand upright; that we do those things we ought not to have done, and leave undone the things we ought to have done. But, my foul! this holy facrament perfects our repentance, and ratifies and confirms. to us the pardon of our fins; repairs those breaches, which our follies have made in our fouls, and applies to us in particular that satisfaction, which our Saviour made upon the crofs; and conveys to us the benefits of that all-fufficient facrifice, whereby God the father is rendered favourable and merciful to all that are fincerely penitent.

5. Afflictions and calamities are often the lot of the best men, in this vale of tears. And where, my foul! fhall we find comfort under thefe difficulties, or ftrength to contend with them, but from that provifion that is adminif

tered

tered at God's table? from thofe fufferings which our Saviour endured for us, and no ways deferved himself? can any one complain of affliction in any kind, that confiders what neceffary correctives they are of our follies? what noble improvements of our virtue? and what a teftimony they are of our love and affection to the bleffed Jefus, when borne with patience and fubmiffion; and that withal remembers that his lord and mafter was made perfect thro' fufferings upon the cross, which he bore for our fins.... We also receive fuch comfortable impreffions from this divine nourishment as make the troubles of this life lofe their fting; and it fupplies us with such inward delights, as furpass all, expreffion, and which are only felt by thofe that frequently make the expe

riment at the Lord's table.

In fine, this is the moft proper method to make us temples of the holy ghoft, and the most effectual means to fit and prepare us for the eternal enjoyment of God in a future ftate.

6. Again we must be very great strangers to ourselves, if we are not acquainted with the impotency and corruption of our nature: we, my foul! muft know but little of our circumftances in this world, if we are not aware of

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those enemies which are continually defigning our ruin: there are few fo happy and fo fteady in their duty, as not fometimes to deviate from it: the ftrength of temptation, and the violence of paffion, too frequently prevail upon the most perfect. Yet if we, my foul! were duly affected with thefe wants we labour under, we should certainly apply ourselves to the ufe of fuch remedies as are proper to relieve us. Nor can any thing be fo effectual as a frequent participation of the Lord's fupper: which will purify our corrupt nature, by applying the merits of Chrift's blood: ftrengthen our weakness, by communicating the influences of his grace, which he has purchased for us by his death: fupport us under all temptations, by a lively reprefentation of those great things Chrift has fuffered for us; reftore that peace and quiet to our confcience, which fin robs us of, by ratifying our pardon, and making our fincere repentance acceptable to God; and subdue the violence of our paffions, by fpiritualizing our affections, and by placing them upon God and

virtue.

The

The fecond Meditation for Tuesday Evening.

Upon the true repentance of a worthy communicant. Repent ye therefore and be converted, that your fins may be blotted out. As iii. 9.

chriftians, conftantly endeavouring to lead a new life; but then remember that to guard against all presumptuous fecurity in matters of eternal welfare, we should never presume to eat of that bread, and drink of that cup, without a previous preparation, if we mean to escape that judgment or condemnation, which the Corinthians brought upon themselves for their irreverent, finful, and diforderly behaviour at this facrament; who were accused of being guilty of the body and blood of Chrift our Sa-viour of eating and drinking their own damnation, not confidering the Lord's body-of kindling God's wrath against them-of voking him to plague them with divers difeafes, and fundry kinds of death, which we shall avoid and escape by coming worthily, by faith and repentance, to the Lord's fupper: If we would call ourselves to account, and judge and condemn what is evil in ourselves, fo effectually as to forsake it; we should not then

pro

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be condemned or punished by God. Let not then these terrible expreffions trouble us or detain us from the holy communion: †butlet us repent and believe, and we are fafe and secure from falling into any of thofe dangers which these sentences may feem to threaten us with. And when we fee fuch afflictions amongst us, we ought, before it be too late, to confider them as chaftisements from the hand of God, in order to our prefent amendment; and defigned for this good end, that we fhould not finally be condemned with the wicked part of the world in the day of judgment.

2. There is nothing dreadful in this facra ment, but to the wilful, impenitent and persevering finner, whofe condition is dreadful; but to the penitent and humble foul, nothing is difinal or affrighting in this holy feast. And the fureft way to prevent our damnation, is to receive the facrament more frequently than men ufually do; that by a conftant participation of this fpiritual food of the living bread, which comes down from heaven,our fouls may be nourished in all goodness, and new fupplies of God's grace and holy spirit may be continually derived to us from our purification, and to enable