tained the excrements of the beast, and the legs and the feet did tread in the mire and puddle, and fo those parts were more defiled than any other part of the body. And all this to teach us, that when we draw near to God in folemn worship, we fhould efpecially wash there, where most filth is likely to be contracted

ift, Our inwards, our hearts and consciences, mult be washed: O what filth and excrements, even a dunghill of filthy lufts, lye there! Jer. iv. 14. " O Jerufalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, how long fhall vain thoughts lodge within thee?" O communicants, you must look well to the inwards at this time, and fee to get all inward and fecret lufts washed out by repentance, and ftrong refolutions in Chrift's ftrength against them

2dly, Our legs and feet must be washed alfo. The fteps of our daily converfation are defiled by walking and treading in foul ways; Oh, how much pollution do even believers gather by the fteps of their daily walk! And hence it is, that he who is already wafhed, needs daily, and upon every new occafion, to have his feet washed, John xii. 10. We fhould then be in earnest, before we come to the Lord's table, to have all the de filement of our outward actions washed away by trie repentance, and reformation of life. Alas, that we fhould come to this holy table with fuch inwards, and with fuch feet, as many times we have! "Lord, purge us with hyffop, and we shall be whiter than the fnow." Our own washing will not do it, if Chrift put not to his hand; yet we must be fincerely using the means, and waiting for the help of his Spirit.

If you would be fuitably prepared for this folemn ordinance, and have a gracious meeting with Chrift at his table, you must not only fearch out your fins, be deeply humbled for them, make confeflion of them before the Lord, and by faith lay hold on Chrift for pardon, as before directed; but you must also be wafhen and cleansed from fin, forfake fin in your life, and caft it out of your heart: For, if you come to Chrift's table with any of his enemies and traitors lodged in your bofoms, with any of your old lufts unmortified, and fins

not

not put away, he will look upon you as his murderers, and fmite you with his judgments; yea, you may expect that the wrath of God will come upon you whilst the bread is in your mouths, as it did upon Ifrael for the fame reafon, Pfal. lxxviii. 30. 31. << They were not e ftranged from their lufts; but whilft the meat was in their mouths, the wrath of God came upon them, and flew the fatteft of them, and fmote down the chofen men of Ifrael." Perhaps, O finner, thou mayeft not feel this wrath at the time, but it may be inflicted infenfibly on thy foul; and every facrament thou receiveft in this condition, thou doft heap and treasure up wrath against the day of wrath; and every time thou bringeft a new faggot to the heap, which will make a terrible fire at laft, when it is thoroughly kindled against thy foul.

O, then, you who defign to approach to the Lord's table, be perfuaded to put a bill of divorce into the hands of all your lufts and idols; Caft away all your former tranfgreffions, and begin a new life: Refolutely turn your back on fins, fatan, and hell; and come take on with a new mafter, and engage in God's ftrength to be good fervants and faithful foldiers of Jefus Chrift for the time to come. If you do this, God promifeth you mercy and pardon, and that your former fins fhall not fo much as be mentioned to you, Ifa. lv. 7. Ezek. xviii. 21. 22. But, if you do not, fevere wrath is threatened, Pfal. lxviii. 21.

The facrament doth work and produce effects, accor ding to the state and difpofition of the receivers thereof; as the water of jealousy did to the woman under fufpicion of uncleannefs, Numb. v. 27. 28. If the woman was clean, then the water did her no hurt, nay, it did her good, made her conceive and become fruitful: But, if he was defiled and unclean, it did her great mifchief; "Her belly did fwell, her thigh did rot, and the became a curfe." It is fo in receiving the facrament: If a man be in a gracious ftate, and made clean by faith, repentance, and reformation, then the facrament brings a bleffing, it makes a man fpiritually healthful and fruitful: But if he be defiled and impenitent, it

doth

doth him great mifchief; like the water of jealoufy, it doth po fon and rot kis foul, and he proves a more rotten and wretched finner than before. O then, let none venture to harbour fin, and deal falfly with God, when he comes to drink this water of jealousy.

The Pharifees quarrelled with Chrift, Matt. xv. 2. "Why do thy difciples tranfgrefs the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread." But on many better grounds maywe quarrel many communicants: Why do ye tranfgrefs the command. ment of the Lord? for ye wash neither hands nor heart, when ye eat bread at the Lord's table; nay, ye prefume to dip your filthy hands into the difh with a holy Jefus : Do you think he will bear with fuch an affront from vile worms, when it is more easy for him to crush you, than for you to trample a worm under your feet? Remember, he is a God of purer eyes than that he can behoid iniquity.

Would you have God to draw near to you in this holy ordinance, then cleanfe your hands and purify your hearts. Wafb ye, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before his eyes, ceafe to do evil, and learn to do well. And, if ye would be accepted by God, your turning from fin muft have these proper

ties :

1f, It must be a cordial turning with all the heart and foul. You must not forfake fin with reluctancy, and by constraint, (as Phaltiel left Michael) but willingby and readily.

2dly, You must turn from your fins presently, and without delay. Do not adventure to lie down and fleep with them another night, left your waking next day be in hell, or under a fentence of final hardness or impenitency: You are not fure the day of grace will laft, or the door of mercy ftand open till to-morrow.

3dly, You must turn from fin finally and everlastingly; your quarrel with fin must be irreconcileable : For, if now ye declare war against your fins, as the traitors and murderers of your Lord and Mafter, ye must draw the fword against them, and throw away the fcabbard, and vow never to be fatisfied till you revenge

Chrifl'e

Chrift's death upon them, and get them utterly destroyed. O, never entertain a favourable thought of, nor give a kindly look to the bloody knife that killed your dearest friend. Do not, like many, who only part with their fins about the time of a communion, or when confcience is awakened; but when that is over, they return with the dog to the vomit. Many fay to their fins, as Abraham to his fervants, Stay at the foot of the mount till I go up and worship, and I will return to you again You ought to fay fo, indeed, to your neceflary wordly af fairs at this time; but, for your fins, you fhould pafs an act of eterna! bagishment upon them, and fay with Ephraim, what have I to do any more with idols?

4thly, You must turn from fin univerfally. You mult not, like Herod, part with many and referve fome, but readily give up with all; with inward heart fins, as well as outward and grofs fins, with fins of omiffion, as well as of commiffion, with fecret fins, as well as o pen Gins. And particularly, turn from your predominant fins whatever they be; and from thofe fins that are common in the age and place wherein you live: Reserve no fin, nor darling luft, but hew thy beloved Agag in pieces before the Lord; leave no grip of thy heart to the devil, left he pull thee to hell by it.

Turn from all tongue fins, rotten difcourfe and corrupt communication. You would reckon it a fad di feafe to have your excrements come out at your mouth; and yet, alas, this is the disease of many. O fwearer, turn from your fwearing: What mean ye to ftudy the language of hell, unless you would have the world believe that you defign to travel thither! For thofe who are to go to a strange country to live, defire to learn fomething of the language of the country ere they go. What profit or pleasure have you in this fin! Why will you dare heaven and defy God's law, without any temptation? What would you say, if men should baffle or abuse your name, or your father's name, as you do the Lord's name!

Object. "O, (fay fome,) it is only the devil's name that we baffle."

Auf.

Auf. There is nothing pleases the devil more than to have his name fo frequently ufed; for thus you make him a god, whom you worship and pray to, by bidding the devil take this or that.

Object. "I do not ban or fwear but when I am in paffion and provoked to it."

Anf. 1. This is an aggravation of your fin, first to be in paffion, and then to fwear: Do you think that one fin will excufe another? 2. Is it just to flee in the face of your Creator, because you are affronted by your, fellow-creature? Will you ftab your father, because your enemy strikes you ? If a man wrong you, will you put forth your anger on God who never wronged you. Object. "I fwear but little oaths, by faith, confcience," &c.

Anf. 1. The devil would have you think thefe but little fins now: But ftay till a death-bed or a judgmentfeat, and you will find him alter his note. 2. Do you think it a light matter to make a common baffle of faith, the precious inftrument of your juftification; or of confcience, that is the deputy of the great God; or of your precious foul, that cost the blood of Chrift to redeem it? 3. These are but creatures, and to fwear by them is plain idolatry: For it is a giving worship, and afcribing divine attributes to the creature.

O cursers and swearers, be perfuaded to forfake thefe fins, and turn to God in Chrift for mercy. What will God fay to you at the great day, if you do not? You wifhed for damnation in your ordinary difcourfe; you are now holden at your word, and damned shall you be. You fwore in your ordinary discourse, therefore God will fwear in his wrath, you shall not enter into his reft: You could not speak without curfing, therefore you fhall be banished out of God's prefence with a curfe: Their tongues, that were fo liberal of oaths and blafphemies, fhall fry in endless and ceafelefs flames, without one drop of water to cool them.

Again, O liar, forfake your lying, and come to Christ. Though this fin be common, yet confider it is most abominable in the fight of God: The devil is the patron VOL. I.

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