A Spiritual Propine of a Pastor to his People, Section 17 – Poem
The forme of tryall and examination, taken of all sik as ar admitted to the Table of the Lord.
1 PART.
VVHat should thou do before thou come to the
Table of the Lord?
Examine and try my selfe.
What is the danger if thou do not?
Condemnation.
Whereanent suld thou try thy selfe?
Anent my naturall miserie, and remeid thereo by God his grace.
Where in standes thy miserie?
In my sinnes, and the reward thereof.
How came sinne in the warld, seeing God made all verie gud?
God maid the Deuils angelles of light, and ADAM &
FVAH our first parents gud & halie: but the Deuills fell fra God and deceiued our parents, and made them and all that ar come of them wicked sinners.
How knowest thou sinne?
By the law and commandements of God, whilk I breake daylie.
How sa? I neither doe my duetie to God not my neighbour as I aught.
What is the reward of sinne?
All the plagues and punishments of God▪ and the first and second death, whilk is euerlasting condemnation with the Deuills in the fyre of hell.
2 PART
Gud Lord saue vsus! that is a horrible thing, and wha can remeid this miserie?
Onelie God, wha made mee and all, was able to remeid and mend my miserie.
What is God?
A Spirite, eternall, infinite in wisedome, power, gudnesse, merciemercy, and justice: In nature ane, and persones three; the Father, Sonne, and halie Ghaist.
What hes God the Father done for remeid of thy miserie?
He hes send his awin onelyonly begotten Sonne in the warld to die for my deliuerance.
What hes the Sonne Iesus Christ done for thee?
He hes tane my nature and sinne, with the rewarde thereof vppon him, and shed his pretious bloud vntounto the dead, to saue me therefra.
What does the halie Ghaist for that effect?
He sanctifies me, and joynes me with Christ, & makes me able to receiue him and his merites, offered to me be my gratious heauenly father.
And how?
By working true faith and earnest repentance in my heart.
What is thy faith?
My sure beliefe, that God baith may and will saue me in the bloud of Iesus Christ, because he is almightie, and hes promised sa to do.
Tell me the promise wheron thou leanes assuredlie?
Whasoeuer (sayes God) will beleeue in the death of my Sonne Iesus, sall not perish, but get eternall life.
What is thy repentance?
The effect of this faith▪ John. 3. 6.working a sorrow for my sins by-past, and purpose to amend in time to come.
How hes God then remeided thy miserie?
He hes forgiuen all my sinnes, and freed me fra the reward thereof, and made me righteous, halie, and happie, to liue for euer, and that of his free grace allanerly, be the merites of Iesus Christ, and working of the haly ghaist.
And what craues God of thee againe for sa great a benefite?
Onelie thankfulnesse, to giuegive him his awin praise, in pressing to louelove and obey him aboue all, whilk is also his free gift and wark of his spirite in me, that all praise may be to him onelyonly.
3 PART.
BY what instrumentes and meanes, warkes the spirit of God, Faith, Repentance, and Thankfulnes in thy heart?
By the word and sacraments.
Where is the word of God to be found?
In the Byble, conteyning the auld & new testament, the law and Gospell.
But it may be thou cannot reade, nor hes learned at schoole?
I hauehave it of Gods merciemercy preached to mee, and the whole substance thereof, shortly comprehended in the Commandes, Beleefe, and Lords prayer.
How many Commands is there?
Ten,The commaunds. contayning the sum of the haill law of God, written by his …win finger, in twa Tables of stone.
What hes the first Table?
Our dutie to God in foure Commands.
What is commanded in the first?
To knaw God, and cleaue to him, with faith, feare, and louelove.
What in the second?
To worship and serue him, by the meanes he hes appoynted; namely, his stiles, word, sacraments, warkes, prayer, and aith.
What in the third?
To vse these meanes rightly, and halelie be preparation going before, right disposition in the time, and expressing of fruite, after alwaies in spirite and veritie.
What in the fourth?
To imploy the seuenth daye heallelie, in the halie, right, and earnest vse of the foresaid meanes, and doing of the warkes of merciemercy and charitie for Gods cause.
VVhat hes the second Table?
Our dutie to all men in sex commands.
What is then commanded in the first?
The duties of them that ar aboue and vnderunder, for gud ordour; that brings forth a halie and happie estate in all societies.
Wha ar aboue?
Fathers, Mothers, Magistrate, Pastour, Elder, Maister, Husband and aged.
What is their dutie?
To hauehave a fatherlie care of the inferiours, to rule, teache, susteine, command, and counsell them in God. Wha ar vnderunder?
Children, subjectes, people, seruants, wiues, and yonger in age.
What is their dutie?
To louelove, reuerence, obey, maintaine their superiours, as fathers of bodies, saule, and gudes.
What in the sext?
To keip my life and my neighbours, and not hurt the same.
What is the seuenth?
To keip my person, and my neighbour cleane and chaste, in, and out of mariage.
What is the eight?
To win and spend lawfully, the things pertayning to this life.
VVhat is the ninth?
To keip my neighbours fame, and mine, by thinking, speaking, and hearing truth.
VVhat is the tenth.
To keip the heart from concupiscence, the mother of all sinne.
VVhat is the vse of the law of God?
It hes twa chiefe and necessarie vses. First, to shew me my sinne and miserie, and sa to leade mee to Christ. Secondly, To shew me how to be thankfull, by preassing to keip his commandements, and make my faith fruitfull in louelove and obedience.
Yet thou sinnes in all thy warke?
Ouer true, but striuing to mende, and preassing to the best, God will accept thereof, for Christs sake.
VVhat contaynes thy Beleefe?The Beleete.
The summe of the Gospell.
In how many parts?
Twa chiefe. First concerning God the Father, Sonne, and halie Ghaist. Next concerning the Kirk, and benefites thereof.
What beleeues thou concerning God the Father?
That he is the almightie, maker, vphalder, and rewler of all, for his glorie and my weill in speciall: Father of Iesus Christ, and in him of me, and all the faithfull.
What concerning God the Sonne?
That he is verie God and man, Prophete, Priest, and King, conceiued, borne, suffered, to perfite the office of the true and onelie Mediatour and Saviour, for all the elect and faithfull, and for me in speciall.
What furder?
As he came lawlie, first to work the warke of redemption, sa sal he come at last in glory, to judge baith al that dyed before, and them that sall then be found aliue.
What a day sall that be?
The best for the godlie, and worst for the wicked that euer they saw.
What beleeue ye concerning the halie Ghaist?
That he is God eternall, alike with the Father, and Sonne in substance, and in ordour the third person proceeding from the Father and the Sonne, for gouernement of all, and namely, for sanctifying of the saules of the faithfull and mine in speciall.
What conteines the second parte of the Beleefe?
My faith anent the Kirk, and the benefites whilk God bestowes thereupon.
What beleeues thou concerning the Kirk?
That God hes chosen a number out of the haill multitude of men to be his in Christ, of the whilk I am ane.
What is the communion of Saintes?
The vnitie and fellowship, that the children of God hes in him, and eueryevery ane with another in Iesus Christ.
VVhat are the rest of the benefites?
Sinne, with the rewarde thereof, and all miseries removed and tane away; and the bodies whilk be death, mon be anes destroyed, sall be raysed vp againe at the latter daye, and joyned with the saule, to liue in perfite happines for euer▪
Now tell me how thou art made righteous, and reconciled to God?
By faith onelyonly, whereby Christ dwelles in my harte.
And how may it bee kend that thou possesses Christ by faith?
By the necessarie effects therof, louelove, and obedience of Gods commandes, as I hauehave said, and namelie, the right exercise of Prayer.
VVhom to pray ye?The prayer.
To God the Father, Sonne, and halie Ghaist, as they are all ane God.
VVhat warrand hauehave ye, that your prayer sall be accepted and hard?
Because God hes commanded me to praye, and promised to heare me for Christs sake.
How manie parts is in the prayer?
Three, the preface, petitions, and conclusion.
VVhat teaches the preface?
That we ought not to go rashly to prayer, but prepared with faith and charitie.
How with faith?
Beleeving God our almightie Father, wha baith may, and will grant our requestes.
How with charitie?
How with charitie?
Praying for our neighbours as our selues.
How many petitions is there?
Sex, three crauing all things perteining to the glory of God, conforme to the first Table of the Lawe, and three, crauing all things gud and neidfull for man, conforme to the second.
Our petitiones then mon be according to his commandes?
Yes verely, for his will mon rule vsus and be done, and not our awin.
VVhat teaches the conclusion?
To joyne thanks-giuing euer with prayer.
VVhat is true thanks-giuing?
Ane acknawledging that God sends all, and ane earnest desire and care, that all may be weill vsed to his honor and glorie.
VVhat meanes the word Amen.
It is ane note of assurance, that God wil graunt our petitiones, sa far as hee thinkes gud, for his honour, and our weill.
VVha mooues the heart to pray and prayse God?
The halie Ghaist, wha of his grace, mote mooue me rightlie mair and mair.
4 PART.
NOwe to the Sacramentes: VVhat are the Sacraments?
Outwarde signes and seales, of the inward grace of God, and the couenant thereof, by the whilk being rightly vsed, Christ and all his benefites, are giuen and receiued for life and salvation.
VVherein standes the right vse of them?
In this, namely, that as we bring the naturall instruments of the bodie to receiue the singes; sa wee bring the spirituall instrument, to wit, true fai…h in our hearts, to receiue the things signified.
How manie Sacraments is there?
Twa: Baptisme and the Lords Supper.
What is Baptisme?
It is the Sacrament of our first entrie within the Kirk of God, wherein by the outward washing of water, is sealed vp the washing away of our sinnes, be the precious blood of Iesus.
What is the supper?
It is the Sacrament of our perpetuall nurishment with in the Kirk, wherein by bread and wine sa vsed as is prescribed, is sealed vp our spiritual nurishment and life in Iesus Christ.
And how is this done in the ane and the vther?
Be true faith and effectual working of the haly Spirit.
How then tryes thou and prepares thy selfe anent thir things?
I try if I vnderstand them aright, and if I hauehave practise, & done them in any measure, be faith and repentance; and finding my ignorance, weakenes of faith, & wrang done to God & my neighbour, I am hartely sorie therefore, and seekes to be reconciled to God and my neighbour, and sa prepares my selfe with a true hearte, and cleane conscience, to come to that table.
How art thou reconciled to God?
Be repenting my sinnes, & beleeuing in Iesus Christ as saide is, and taking ernest purpose of amendement of life, and grouth in faith and halines.
How art thou reconciled to thy neighbour?
Be making a mends for the wrang done, if it lie in my power, at least, be confessing my fault, and crauing him forgiuenes: as als forgiuing with my hearte, all wrang done to me, as I wald God suld forgiue me.
And finally, when thou perceaues in the action of the supper, how God hes sa loued thee, that hee hes giuen his awin onelyonly begotten son, to suffer the maist shamefull death for thy sake, how suld thou be mooued?
Euen to louelove him againe with all my hearte, and my nighbour for his sake, and to bend all the powers of my saule and body, to his honour, seruice and obedience.
FINIS
The saules delight.
OF God I am, in God is my delight,
On God I stay, nought else can me content,
In God I get reliefe and rest perfite,
But God my daies in griefe and gall are spent,
For God I sore abone the firmament.
With God I feede on sweete and secret grace,
Fra God I get, great gaine, great glo…r, great rent,
O God great Iah, my ioye is in thy face.
Fra God, fra hame, enclosed for a space,
At Gods command, in clay I clogged goe.
But God hes height fra hand and heauenly place,
God will performe, he heastes, he heares my woe.
O clay! away, my God thy bandes will bruse,
My God, abode with thee but change I chuse.
M. W. S.
End of the text · James Melville, A Spiritual Propine of a Pastor to his People (1589)