A27107:909
The practice of piety directing a Christian how to walk, that he may please…
The practice of piety directing a Christian how to walk, that he may please God / amplified by the author
London: printed for Edward Brewster, 1695
A27107:909
The practice of piety directing a Christian how to walk, that he may please God / amplified by the author
London: printed for Edward Brewster, 1695
No title page in the transcription: set from the catalogue record.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
but that thy Angel doth comfort me, as he did the woman:1 Fear thou not for I know that thou seekest Jesus which was crucified. It is thou indeed that my soul seeketh after. And here thou offerest thy self unto me in thy blessed Sacrament. If therefore Elizabeth thought her self so much honoured at thy presence in the Womb of thy blessed Mother, 2that the babe sprang in her belly for joy; how should ⟨p. 348⟩my soul leap within me for joy, now that thou comest by the holy Sacrament, to dwell in my heart for ever? Oh what an honour is this, not that the Mother of my Lord, but my Lord himself, should come thus to visit me! Indeed, Lord, I confess with the faithful* Centurion, that I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof: and that if thou didst but speak the word only, my soul should be saved: yet seeing it hath pleased the riches of thy grace, for the better strengthening of my weakness, to seal thy mercy unto me, by thy visible sign, as well as by thy visible word; in all thankful humility my soul speaks unto thee with the blessed Virgin: aBehold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to thy Word. bKnock thou, Lord, by thy Word and Sacraments at the door of my heart; and I will, like thec Publican, with both my fists, knock at my breast, as fast as I can, that thou mayest enter in: and if the door will not open fast enough, break it open, O Lord, by thine Almighty Power, and then enter in, and dwell there for ever, that I may have cause with Zaccheus, to acknowledge, thatd this day salvation is come into mine house. And cast out of me whatsoever shall be offensive unto thee; for I resign the whole Possession of my heart unto thy sacred Majesty, entreating, that I may not live henceforth, but that thou mayst live in me, speak […] me, walk in me: and so govern ⟨p. 349⟩me by thy Spirit, that nothing may be pleasing unto me, but that which is acceptable unto thee. That finishing my course in the life of grace, I may afterwards live with thee for ever in the Kingdom of Glory. Grant this, O Lord Jesus, for the merits of thy death and blood shedding. Amen.
but that thy Angel doth comfort me, as he did the woman:1 Fear thou not for I know that thou seekest Jesus which was crucified. It is thou indeed that my soul seeketh after. And here thou offerest thy self unto me in thy blessed Sacrament. If therefore Elizabeth thought her self so much honoured at thy presence in the Womb of thy blessed Mother, 2that the babe sprang in her belly for joy; how should ⟨p. 348⟩my soul leap within me for joy, now that thou comest by the holy Sacrament, to dwell in my heart for ever? Oh what an honour is this, not that the Mother of my Lord, but my Lord himself, should come thus to visit me! Indeed, Lord, I confess with the faithful* Centurion, that I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof: and that if thou didst but speak the word only, my soul should be saved: yet seeing it hath pleased the riches of thy grace, for the better strengthning of my weakness, to seal thy mercy unto me, by thy visible sign, as well as by thy visible word; in all thankful humility my soul speaks unto thee with the blessed Virgin: aBehold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to thy Word. bKnock thou, Lord, by thy Word and Sacraments at the door of my heart; and I will, like thec Publican, with both my fists, knock at my breast, as fast as I can, that thou mayest enter in: and if the door will not open fast enough, break it open, O Lord, by thine Almighty Power, and then enter in, and dwell there for ever, that I may have cause with Zaccheus, to acknowledge, thatd this day salvation is come into mine house. And cast out of me whatsoever shall be offensive unto thee; for I resign the whole Possession of my heart unto thy sacred Majesty, intreating, that I may not live henceforth, but that thou mayst live in me, speak 〈…〉 me, walk in me: and so govern ⟨p. 349⟩me by thy Spirit, that nothing may be pleasing unto me, but that which is acceptable unto thee. That finishing my course in the life of grace, I may afterwards live with thee for ever in the Kingdom of Glory. Grant this, O Lord Jesus, for the merits of thy death and blood shedding. Amen.
When the Minister bringeth towards thee the bread thus blessed and broken; and offering it unto thee, bids thee, Take, eat, &c. then meditate that Christ himself cometh unto thee, and both offereth and giveth indeed unto thy faith, his very Body and Blood, with all the merits of his death and passion, to feed thy Soul unto eternal life: as surely as the Minister offereth and giveth the outward signs, that feed thy Body unto this temporal life. The Bread of the Lord is given by the Minister, but the Bread which is the Lord, is given by Christ himself.
When thou takest the Bread at the Ministers hand to eat it,1 then rouse up thy Soul to apprehend Christ by faith; and to apply his merits to heal thy miseries. Embrace him as sweetly with thy faith in the Sacrament, as ever Simeon hugged him with his arms in his swaddling clouts.
When thou takest the Bread at the Ministers hand to eat it,1 then rouze up thy Soul to apprehend Christ by faith; and to apply his merits to heal thy miseries. Embrace him as sweetly with thy faith in the Sacrament, as ever Simeon hugged him with his arms in his swadling clouts.
As thou eatest the Bread, imagine that thou seest Christ hanging upon t•• Cross, and by his unspeakable tormen•• fully satisfying God's Justice for thy sins, and strive to be as verily partaker of the ⟨p. 350⟩spiritual grace, as of the Elemental signs. For, the truth is not absent from the sign; neither doth Christ deceive, when he saith, This is my Body: but he giveth himself indeed to every Soul that spiritually receives him by Faith. For as ours is the same Supper which Christ administered: so is the same Christ verily present at his own Supper; not by any Papal *Transubstantiation, but by a Sacramental Participation, whereby he doth truly feed the faithful unto eternal life: not by coming down out of Heaven unto thee, but by lifting thee up from the Earth unto him. According to that old saying, Sursum corda; lift up your hearts: And, where the carcass is, thither will the Eagles resort, Matth. 24.
As thou eatest the Bread, imagine that thou seest Christ hanging upon t•• Cross, and by his unspeakable tormen•• fully satisfying God's Justice for thy sins, and strive to be as verily partaker of the ⟨p. 350⟩spiritual grace, as of the Elemental signs. For, the truth is not absent from the sign; neither doth Christ deceive, when he saith, This is my Body: but he giveth himself indeed to every Soul that spiritually receives him by Faith. For as ours is the same Supper which Christ administ•red: so is the same Christ verily present at his own Supper; not by any Papal
When thou seest the Wine brought unto thee apart from the Bread, then remember that the Blood of Jesus Christ was as verily separated from his Body upon the Cross, for the remission of thy sins: And that this is the seal of the new Covenant, which God hath made to forgive all the sins of all penitent sinners that believe in the merits of his blood shedding. For the Wine is not a Sacrament of Christ's Blood contained in his Veins, but as it was shed out ⟨p. 351⟩of his Body upon the cross for the remission of the sins of all that believe in him.1
As thou drinkest the Wine and pourest it out of the Cup into thy Stomach, meditate and believe, that by the merits of that Blood, which Christ shed upon the Cross, all thy sins are as verily forgiven, as thou hast now drunk this Sacramental Wine, and hast it in thy stomach. And in the instant of drinking, settle thy meditation upon Christ, as he hanged upon the Cross; as if like Mary and John, thou didst see him nailed, and his Blood running down his blessed side, out of that ghastly wound, which the Spear made in his innocent heart: wishing thy mouth closed to his side, that thou mightest receive that precious Blood before it fell to the dusty Earth. And yet the actual drinking of that real Blood with thy mouth, would be nothing so† effectual, as this Sacramental drinking of that blood spiritually by Faith.
As thou drinkest the Wine and pourest it out of the Cup into thy Stomach, meditate and believe, that by the merits of that Blood, which Christ shed upon the Cross, all thy sins are as verily forgiven, as thou hast now drunk this Sacramental Wine, and hast it in thy stomach. And in the instant of drinking, settle thy meditation upon Christ, as he hanged upon the Cross; as if like Mary and John, thou didst see him nailed, and his Blood running down his blessed side, out of that gastly wound, which the Spear made in his innocent heart: wishing thy mouth closed to his side, that thou mightest receive that precious Blood before it fell to the dusty Earth. And yet the actual drinking of that real Blood with thy mouth, would be nothing so† effectual, as this Sacramental drinking of that blood spiritually by Faith.
For one of the Soldiers might have drunk that, and been still a reprobate: but whosoever drinketh it spiritually by Faith in the Sacrament, shall surely have the Remission of his sins, and life everlasting.
For one of the Souldiers might have drunk that, and been still a reprobate: but whosoever drinketh it spiritually by Faith in the Sacrament, shall surely have the Remission of his sins, and life everlasting.
As thou feelest the Sacramental Wine which thou hast drunk, warming thy cold stomach; so endeavour to feel the Holy Ghost cherishing thy Soul in the joyful assurance of the forgiveness of all thy sins, by the merit ⟨p. 352⟩of the blood of Christ. And to this end God giveth every faithful Soul, together with the Sacramental Blood, the Holy Ghost to drink. *We are all made to drink into one Spirit. And so lift up thy mind from the contemplation of Christ, as he was crucified upon the Cross, to consider how he now† sits in glory at the right hand of his Father, making* intercession for thee, by presenting to his Father the unvaluable merits of his death, which he once suffered for thee, to appease his Justice for the sins which thou dost daily commit against him.
After thou hast eaten and drunk both the Bread and Wine, labour that as those Sacramental Signs do turn to the nourishment of thy body, and by the digestion of heat become one with thy substance: so by the operation of Faith, and the Holy Ghost, thou mayest become one with Christ, and Christ with thee: and so mayest feel thy Communion with Christ confirmed and1 increased daily more and more. That as it is impossible to separate the Bread and Wine digested into the blood and substance of thy body: so it may be more impossible to part Christ from thy Soul, or thy Soul from Christ.
After thou hast eaten and drunk both the Bread and Wine, labour that as those Sacramental Signs do turn to the nourishment of thy body, and by the digestion of heat become one with thy substance: so by the operation of Faith, and the Holy Ghost, thou maist become one with Christ, and Christ with thee: and so maist feel thy Communion with Christ confirmed and1 increased daily more and more. That as it is impossible to separate the Bread and Wine digested into the blood and substance of thy body: so it may be more impossible to part Christ from thy Soul, or thy Soul from Christ.
Lastly, As the Bread of the Sacrament, though confected of many Grains, yet makes but one Bread: so must thou remember, that though all the faithful are many; yet are they all but one mystical Body, whereof Christ is Head. And therefore ⟨p. 353⟩thou must love every Christian as thy self, and a member of thy body.
Thus far of the duties to be done at the receiving of the holy Sacrament, called Meditation.
THE duty which we are to perform after the receiving of the Lord's Supper, is called Action or Practice: without which all the rest will minister unto us no comfort.
The Action consists of Two sorts of duties: First, such as we are to perform in the Church, or else, after that we are gone home.
Those that we are to perform in the Church, are either several from our own souls: or else jointly with the Congregation.
Those that we are to perform in the Church, are either several from our own souls: or else joyntly with the Congregation.
The several duties which thou must perform from thine own Soul, are Three: First, Thou must be careful (that forasmuch as Christ now dwelleth in thee, therefore) to entertain him in a clean heart, and with pure affections; for the *most holy will be holy with the holy: for if Joseph of Arimathea, when he had begged of Pilate his dead body, to bury it, wrapped it in sweet odours, and fine Linen, and laid it in a new Tomb; how much more shouldest thou lodge Christ in a new heart, and perfume his Rooms ⟨p. 354⟩with the odoriferous incense of Prayers, and all pure affections? If God required Moses to provide a Pot of pure gold to keep the Manna that fell in the Wilderness: what a pure heart shouldst thou provide to receive this divine Manna, that is come down from Heaven?