The guard of the tree of life, or, A sacramental discourse showing a Christians…The guard of the tree of life, or, A sacramental discourse shewing a Christians…

2. Would you know whether you have sanctified God in this ordinance, see if you have exercised God's graces in the time, what those are, and how to be exercised, I have showed at large.

2. Would you know whether you have sanctified God in this ordinance, see if you have exercised God's graces in the time, what those are, and how to be exercised, I have shewed at large.

3. See whether you do return home wth God's quicknings, with God's enlargements, wth God's inablements? are you more humble? more serviceable? Are you more thankful? Do you find corruptions weakened? your graces strengthened? Doth your endeavours afterward answer your care and conscience before? Is your heart set further against sin? Are the ways of God more lovely to you? Are your souls knit nearer to God, your spirits more inflamed with love of him? These are plain demonstrations that you have sanctified God in this ordinance, ⟨p. 124⟩and that God hath sanctified it to you. But now on the contrary, let me tell you: 1. If thou hast broken God's order and method; that thou hast come hither in a graceless, Christless condition; the soul never yet awakened to see sin, and be humbled for it. Thou knowest what sin is in the Catechism, but dost not know what sin is upon the conscience; Thou canst tell me what faith is in the book, but art not acquainted with the working of it in thy soul; and what repentance is, but yet a stranger to it; The day is yet to come wherein thou set thy self to mourn, and break thy heart for sin. Where are the chambers? where the closets? where the bedsides? that can bear witness of thy mourning for sin? And yet dost thou come? Thou breakest God's order, and so art a profaner of this holy Table. 2. If thou breakest God's rules, that thou dost ⟨p. 125⟩not prepare thy self by examination and excitation of thy graces, but rushest into God's presence, breaks in upon this Ordinance, without any suitable affections to it, thou art a profaner of this Ordinance, &c. 3. If thou dost not observe God's ends, but comes hither, as many do: either to avoid scandal, or the censures of men; or, for custom, or, for fashion sake; because others come, therefore thou wilt not stay away; or (which I cannot express with abhorrency and detestation enough) because thou shalt sit at thy Master's table that day, and go into the fields afterward. Thou art a profaner of this ordinance; And, Oh! that we had some Tirshatha to drive these away: We read in