the body in health and vigour; so is this bread of God, frequently received, necessary to preserve the soul in spiritual health, and to keep the divine life of faith and holiness from becoming extinct in us.

An ordinance of so sublime and exalted a nature, fruitful of such inestimable blessings, and enjoined on us by that blessed Redeemer who laid down his life for us, one would suppose, would be highly valued, and humbly and gratefully received by all who profess themselves Christians. It is however, a lamentable. truth, that the greater proportion of Christians live in the habitual neglect of this distinguishing badge of their Christian profession, the ordinance which unites them to their Redeemer, and which is the invaluable seal and pledge of his mercy and grace. Let those who neglect this sacred ordinance be persuaded to pause, and seriously to consider the weighty obligations which they contemn, and the folly and guilt of the excuses which they urge.

1

Christians are bound to receive the holy communion by the obligations of duty, of gratitude, and of interest.

Duty urges us. Christ our Lord and Saviour has commanded us to receive the communion, in remembrance of his death and passion. "Do this, (says he,) in remembrance of me." Are we not bound to revere and

k Luke xxii. 19.

cherish, with the most sacred fervor, the command of a dying friend? And shall we be insensible to the pressing injunction of our Lord and Master, who, at the moment when he was about to lay down his life for us, even for us, who were his enemies, commanded us to commemorate his infinite love!

Transcendent

The powerful claims of gratitude urge our obedience to his command. were the love and compassion which he displayed for us. "The Son of God, the brightness of the Father's glory, humbled himself even to the death upon the cross for us, miserable sinners, who lay in darkness and the shadow of death." He instituted and ordained holy mysteries, as pledges of this his infinite love, and for a continual remembrance of his death and passion. And shall we not gratefully commemorate his infinite love towards us, in the way that he hath appointed? Shall we refuse to render him even the tribute of thanks for the inconceivable sufferings he endured for us, for the inestimable blessings. he purchased for us? By neglecting the instituted memorial of his love and mercy, we virtually say to our blessed Redeemer,-We cherish no sensibility for thy sufferings; we care not, though the displays of thine infinite love be forgotten; we set no value on the infinite condescensions of thy mercy.-Pause and reflect, ye who neglect this sacred ordi

nance, how great is the guilt of ingratitude, which you incur.

But, if duty does not impel you, if gratitude cannot excite you, listen at least to the calls of interest. Consider how many great and inestimable benefits are annexed to this sacred ordinance. The pardon of sin; the assistance and consolations of God's holy Spirit; and an earnest pledge of a glorious resurrection to eternal life, these are the blessings assured to us by a worthy participation of the body and blood of Christ. When therefore, we absent ourselves from the holy Sacrament, we wil fully deprive ourselves of the greatest blessings which we can receive in this world, peace of conscience, the guidance and consolations of divine grace, the security of a happy resurrection to life and glory. Shall not then, the powerful considerations of interest urge us worthily to partake of an ordinance which rescues us from the guilt of sin, from the curse of God, from everlasting woe? Shall we deliberately contemn the favour of God, the consolation and powerful operations of his Spirit, and the immortal felicities of his heavenly kingdom! Not less is the folly than the guilt of neglecting this inestimable pledge of divine mercy, of grace, of immortal life and glory.

None of the various pretences that are urged, can justify the neglect of this sacred institution.

The cares of the world are urged by many as an excuse for not coming to the holy Communion. In this manner they reason:-They heartily wish they were more disengaged from the business of the world; but since this is not their lot, they dare not approach so heavenly an institution, with hearts so much possessed and infected with earthly cares. But let such persons consider, that the Christian Religion allows no man, whatever his condition be, to engage his heart so far in the affairs of this world, as to neglect the care of his soul, and the concerns of the next life. Whoever, therefore, pleads that he is unfit for the holy Sacrament because his heart is over-run with the cares of the world, confesses that he leads a life directly opposed to his Christian obligations. They who were bidden to the supper in the Gospel,' excused themselves from coming, upon account of their worldly concerns; but they were pronounced unworthy of the heavenly feast for this very reason, because they "preferred their temporal business before their eternal welfare. No man is rendered unfit for the Sacrament by the occupations and business of this life, who pursues them with moderation and honesty, with a due regard to the laws of God, and his good Providence over us; and whoever pursues them otherwise, makes himself unfit for heaven. The hearts of men be

Luke xiv. 16.

ing apt to dwell too much upon the things of this world, and to be buried in the cares and concerns of it; God has provided the holy Ordinances of the Gospel, to raise our souls from the earth, and to replenish them from time to time with heavenly thoughts and meditations. And therefore, instead of making the cares of this life an excuse for abstaining from the holy Sacrament, those who desire in good earnest to live like Christians, and at the same time find themselves much engaged in the affairs of this world, will, upon that very account, be desirous to attend the ordinances of religion, in order to withdraw their thoughts from these worldly concerns, and to receive upon their souls, such a sense of heaven and heavenly things, as may keep them from being buried in the cares and pursuits of this life.

Others pretend, that they are desirous to come to the Sacrament; but when they look back upon their past lives, they see so much sin and corruption, and are so much humbled and dejected at the sight of it, that they cannot think themselves in any measure worthy to partake of so divine an institution. But such a sense of their vileness (when it produces a resolution to cast off the sins which have made them so vile) is the first qualification of a worthy receiver, because it is the step towards our reconciliation to God, and our being received into favour with him. They whom Christ particularly invites to come to him, with pro