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of this fin, and the father of liars; it was with a lie he ruined all mankind. Ye fhall be as gods, faid he to our first parents. There is never a lie thou makeft, but the devil is at thine ear, and whispers it to thee. Remember what God did to Ananias and Sapphira for lying, Acts v. he ftruck them dead with a lie in their mouth; and it will be a wonder of his patience, if he do not fo to thee. Do you know, O liars, whofe children you are? Not God's children, for they are children that will not lie; and therefore you must be fatan's children, for he is a liar from the beginning, and the father of liars. Knoweft thou, O liar, whither thou art going? Even to thy fathers. Should not children be with their father? You cannot look upward, and fay, Our father which art in heaven: but thou mayeft look downward and fay, Our father which art in hell; and there it is (if thou repent not) that thy tongue fhall be tormented in flames for ever. Tremble at this, O liar, and be affured it is no lie that F tell you: "Turn ye, turn ye; for why will ye die?"

Moreover, O drunkard, turn from your drunkennefs, and come to Chrift. While you live in this fin, you lye under many woes and curfes, Ifa. v. 11. 12. Ifa. xxvi. 2. 1 Cor. vi. ro. God's curfes are not light, therefore make not light of them: For, if ye do, O drunkard, remember what is abiding you hereafter, even a cup of red vengeance, filled up with the dregs of God's wrath, which fhall be poured down your throat for ever; and yet you shall eternally cry out, I thirst, Ethirst; and for all the drink you have had on earth, you cannot get there a drop of cold water to cool your tongue.

In the next place, O covetous man, cheater and defrauder, turn from your covetoufnefs, your injustice, and unrighteous gain, and come to Chrift. If you do not, you fhall pay dear for all your unjust gain in another world; "God is the avenger of all fuch as you defraud," Theff. iv. 6. You think yourself very cunning, when you can cheat your neighbour of a little money; but, know you not, that the devil in the mean. time, is more cunning in cheating you of your precious foul, which is infinitely more valuable?

O Sabbath-breaker, fecure and prayerlefs finner, turn from your fins unto God and holinefs; flee to Chrift for fhelter from them, and the wrath due to them; righteousness and redemption are only to be found in him. Would you not count him mad, who being condemned to a cruel death for bafe crimes, and might efcape it if he would accept of a pardon ready provided for him, and leave off fuch vile acts for the future, would yet obftinately refufe to do it? And, are not you yet madder, that flight your Saviour, and hug your lufts, when your danger is a thoufand times greater! What madness is it to difhonour God, and damn your foul, to gratify the devil, or please a vile carcafe, that shortly will be fo lothfome, that men cannot endure it above ground?

O finner, I beseech you, in the name of the great and glorious Jehovah, and in the name of our glorious Redeemer, be reconciled to God, accept of a pardon through Chrift's blood, and engage to quit these fins that would destroy you Will you please God, and fhew kindness to your poor foul by doing it? However much you have abused God's patience, trampled his love, flighted his calls, despised his threatenings, and undervalued his promises; yet he is still standing and befeeching you to be reconciled to him. O will not all this goodness melt your heart, and caufe you, with Ephraim, Jer. xxxi. 18. to bemoan yourself, and cry, Turn thou me, O Lord, and I fhall be turned?" Without this turning, fee that you venture not to this facred ordinance; let none with the running ulcers of fin upon them offer to fit down at this holy table, for God's pure eyes cannot look upon them. And if you would turn a-right, fee that ye turn believingly to God in Chrift: For there is no access to the King of heaven, without bringing the Prince of peace, the King's Son, in your arms; no atonement without Chrift, no acceptance but in the Beloved.

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Lastly, If you would turn to God aright, ye must not only turn from fin, but also turn to the ways of holiness and new obedience. It is not enough to cease to do evil, but you must also learn to do well. Some do part with their fins of commiffion, but continue ftill in fins of omif

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fion; they leave their grofs out-breakings, but still neglect commanded duties. But the tree is not only adjudged to the fire that bears evil fruit, but alfo the tree that bears no fruit:: So that the neglect of duty will damn us as furely as the commiffion of fin.. Communicants that God will fmile upon, are fuch as not only forfake all known fin, but do fincerely endeavour through grace, to yield obedience to the whole revealed will of God, and in Christ's strength do set about the perform ance of every commanded duty.

But as for thofe communicants that do not study new obedience, and do not make confcience of performing every known duty, God will fay to fuch, as he faith to the wicked, Pfal. 1, 16. 17. "What haft thou to do, that thou shouldst take my covenant (or the feal of my covenant) in thy mouth, feeing thou cafteft my words behind thee?" They can expect no communion and fellowship with him at his table.

But, on the other hand, he makes very gracious and comfortable promises to those that study obedience, Jer. vii. 24. "Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you thall be my people." As the prophet Ifaiah speaks to the Jews of the good things of the land of Canaan, fo may we fay to you concerning the good things of the facrament, Ifa. i. 16. "If ye be willing and obedient, ye fhall eat the good of the land." As the land of Canaan produced very precious fruits, fo doth the Lord's fupper; and these far more excellent than those. It is here that the marrow and fatness of God's house is dif tributed to his children. Well, if you be willing and obedient, ye shall eat of the good things of the facra

ment.

But fee that your obedience fpring from right principles, from love and gratitude to God, from a true hatred to fin, and high efteem of holiness. It was an excellent faying of one, Were there neither heaven nor hell, yet fin fhould be my hell, and holiness my heaven. The fpiritually enlightened foul doth fee an unfpeakable deformity in fin, which caufeth him to abhor it: He fees fuch a charming beauty in holiness, that he cannot but love and defire it.

DIRECT.

DIRECT. XIII. Meditate much upon the Death and Sufferings of our Lord Jefus Christ, before you ap proach to his Table.

WOULD you have your hearts put in a fuitable communion-frame, then read and think much of the fufferings of Chrift; and, in a fpecial manner, take a clofe view of them on the Saturday's night before the communion. Think on them till your hearts melt, and affections warm; yea, refolve you will not give over till then; and beg God's bleffing on your meditations for this end.

Think and wonder at the greatnefs of the humiliation of the Son of God. Admire the low ftoop and condefcenfion of the Son of God, and the King of glory, that he fhould be content for us to become a creature, and fuch a mean creature as man; that he, who was equal with God, fhould become less than God, John xiv. 28. yea, less than angels, Heb. ii. 7. yea, to be depreffed below the ordinary condition of man, Pfal. xxii. 6. “ I am a worm," &c. Think how he denuded himself of all his riches and glory; that though he was the heir of all things, yet, for our fakes, he became fo poor, that he had not a cradle of his own to ly in when born, a house to lay his head in while he lived, nor a grave to be bu ried in when he died. He left his throne of state, to lodge in the virgin's womb: He is born, not in his mother's houfe, but in a common inn, and the basest place of the inn, a ftable, the inn being probably taken up by perfons of richer quality: He is cradled in a manger, having no better place allowed him on earth, though the highest heavens were too mean for him.

Think how he was carried to a wilderness to fast and watch, and live forty days among the wild beasts, haunt ed and tempted by the devil, and fadly buffeted by his own flaves; and all this for us.

View him going about on foot, hungry, thirsty, and weary, yet always doing good: And the more good he did to fouls and bodies, the more was he hunted and

perfecuted,

perfecuted, reproached and blasphemed; and all this for our fakes.

View him entering into the garden of Gethsemane, beginning to fear, turn heavy, and cry out, My foul is exceeding forrowful even unto death. What made him heavy, but the dead weight of our fins, and the curfes of the law annexed to them? Behold him complaining to his poor difciples, that could make no help to him; neither they nor the angels in heaven durft touch his load, nor tafte his cup: He could have helped them, but they could not help him. Yea, he got not fo much as fympathy from them; they fell asleep when he was at the worst, and left him to tread out the wine prefs alone, and all for our fakes.

View him in his fearful agony and bloody fweat, falling fometimes on his knees, and fometimes on his face, praying once, praying again, and praying the third time, that the cup might pafs from him, till he is overwhelmed and covered with his own blood. Behold the great drops of blood bursting through and standing above his garments, and falling and lying upon the ground round about him; being at this time preft betwixt the milftone of God's juftice and our fins. Behold him fweating without heat, and bleeding without a wound; the fire and the wound were inward, even in his foul. How freely did the fountain of his precious blood open and run to wash us? Every vein and pore pours out a ftream, not waiting for the tormentors, and all for our fakes.

Behold him betrayed and fold for thirty pieces of filver, taken and bound with cords like a thief; yea, bound faft, as Judas bade, and so fast (as fome fay) that the blood did burft out of his tender hands. Can your hearts or eyes hold, to fee thofe hands, that made heaven and earth, wrung together and bruised with hard cords: To fee him bound that came to set the prisoners free, and loose us who were Satan's bondflaves! Bleft Jefus, had not the cords of thy own love tyed thee faster than the cords of thy enemies, though they had been the strongest cabels or iron chains, they

could

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