Gospel-Worship

You will say. Cannot we sit at home and read a Sermon? But hath God appointed that the great ordinance for the converting and the edifying of souls in the way to eternal life? True, there is some use of it, but the great ordinance is the preaching of the word, faith comes by hearing, the Scripture saith, and never by reading, So that though when you come to hear, you do not hear that which you heard not before, yet you come to attend upon this ordinance for the conveyance of some Spiritual good that it may be hath not bin conveyed before, or in a further degree then it hath bin conveyed before, And so you should come to hear the word with your hearts possest with that meditation, that it is the word of God, and the great ordinance that God hath appointed for the conveyance of Spiritual good. So that I come now in obedience to God, and in this do I testify my respect to God, that I will attend upon this ordinance of his for the conveyance of Spiritual good to me, and although I may think that this or the other means may do the deed as well, yet because God hath appointed this to be his ordinance, therefore in obedience to him I will attend upon this means rather then upon other means, as you know Naaman he thought the other waters would have bin as good as the waters of Jordan to have healed him, but if God will appoint him the waters of Jordan that they should heal him rather then other waters he must wash there; No question but other waters had as much natural virtue in them as they had, but because the waters of Jordan were the ordinance that God for that time had appointed to cure his Leprosy withal, he must come and wash in those waters rather then in any other, ⟨p. 168⟩So because preaching of the word is the great ordinance that God hath appointed for to convey himself by, therefore he doth require that thou shouldest show thy respect to him, so far as to attend upon him in this ordinance.

You will say. Cannot we sit at home and read a Sermon? But hath God appointed that the great ordinance for the converting and the edifying of soules in the way to eternal life? True, there is some use of it, but the great ordinance is the preaching of the word, faith comes by hearing, the Scripture saith, and never by reading, So that though when you come to hear, you do not hear that which you heard not before, yet you come to attend upon this ordinance for the conveyance of some Spirituall good that it may be hath not bin conveyed before, or in a further degree then it hath bin conveyed before, And so you should come to hear the word with your hearts possest with that meditation, that it is the word of God, and the great ordinance that God hath appointed for the conveyance of Spiritual good. So that I come now in obedience to God, and in this do I testifie my respect to God, that I will attend upon this ordinance of his for the conveyance of Spirituall good to me, and although I may think that this or the other means may do the deed as well, yet because God hath appointed this to be his ordinance, therefore in obedience to him I will attend upon this means rather then upon other means, as you know Naaman he thought the other waters would have bin as good as the waters of Jordan to have heal'd him, but if God will appoint him the waters of Jordan that they should heal him rather then other waters he must wash there; No question but other waters had as much naturall vertue in them as they had, but because the waters of Jordan were the ordinance that God for that time had appointed to cure his Leprosie withall, he must come and wash in those waters rather then in any other,