A Guide to Godliness, Paraphrase of the Lords Prayer · Prayer 10
A thankeſgiuing after the receiuing of the Sacrament of the Lords Supper.
O Lord our God, moſt glorious and moſt gracious, infinite in bountie and goodneſſe vntounto all thy children and ſeruants in Ieſus Chriſt, we doe here offer vntounto thee the ſacrifice of prayſe and thankeſgiuing, and doe laud and magnifie thy great and glorious Name, for all thy mercies and fauours vouchſafed vntounto vsus; eſpecially becauſe thou haſt loued vsus with an euerlaſting louelove, yea ſo loued vsus, that thou haſt, of thy meere grace and free good will, euen when we were ſtrangers and enemies, giuen vntounto vsus thy Beſt-beloued and onelyonly Sonne, to worke the great worke of our Redemption, and by his death and precious blood-ſhed to deliuer vsus out of the hands of all our ſpirituall enemies, and to free vsus from euerlaſting death and condemnation, that we might be heires through him of eternall glory and happineſſe in thy Kingdome. We prayſe thee alſo for the free couenant of grace and ſaluation which thou haſt made with vsus in him, whereby thou haſt aſſured vsus of the remiſſion of our ſinnes, our reconciliation with thee, and of endleſſe happineſſe in the life to come; and for confirming this couenant vntounto vsus, by annexing thereunto the ſeales thy Sacraments, that thereby our weake faith might be ſtrengthened and increaſed, and wee more and more freed from doubting and incredulity. We thanke thee (holy Father) for renewing this thy couenant with vsus this day, and for confirming our vnion with Ieſus Chriſt our head, and one with another, by giuing vntounto vsus his precious body and blood, as the Spirituall food of our ſoules, whereby they are nouriſhed vntounto euerlaſting life. O Lord our God, it is thy great merciemercy, that thou nouriſheſt our mortall bodies with food that periſheth, but how wonderfull is this thy bounty and goodneſſe, in that thou feedeſt our ſoules with this bread of Life that came downe from heauen, and with this food that endureth to life eternall! If thou ſhouldeſt permit vsus but to gather vp the crummes that fall from thy Table, we muſt needes acknowledge, that it were a fauour farre aboue our deſerts; O then how ſhould wee admire and magnifie thy merciemercy and bountie, in vouchſafing ſuch vile and vnworthy wretches, this high and holy priuiledge, to be feaſted at thine owne Table, not with ordinary cheare, but with ſuch ſpirituall and diuine delicacies, euen the precious body and blood of thine onelyonly deare Sonne, whereby he becommeth one with vsus, and we with him, euen as thou, holy Father, and he are one, in that holy and happie vnion. O that our narrow hearts were inlarged, that we might in ſome meaſure apprehend this thine infinite and incomprehenſible goodneſſe! O that being cold in themſelues, they were warmed and inflamed with the fire and flame of this diuine louelove; that with the liuely ſenſe and feeling of it, wee might be mooued to returne louelove for louelove, and expreſſe it by our feruent zeale and indeuour in all things, to pleaſe and glorifie thee throughout the whole courſe of our liues and conuerſations! Which becauſe it is not in our owne power, O thou the rich fountaine of all grace and goodneſſe, inſpire and inflame our cold and frozen hearts with the beames of thy louelove, ſhed abroad in them by thine holy Spirit, that we may louelove thee with vnfained louelove, and contemning all things in compariſon of thee, may long and labour after nothing ſo much, as to enioy thee in this life by grace, and the preſence of thy bleſſed Spirit, and by full and perfect viſion and fruition in the life to come. To this end, gracious God, bleſſe vntounto vsus thine holy Ordinances and meanes of our ſaluation, and by the inward aſſiſtance of thy good Spirit, make them powerfull and effectuall to the attayning of thoſe ends, for which thou haſt giuen, and wee receiued them. Let vsus finde hereby our vnion with Chriſt ſtrengthened and confirmed, by feeling the Spirituall life and ſap of grace deriued vntounto vsus, and increaſed in vsus, from this roote of righteouſneſſe, not onelyonly for our further aſſurance of our iuſtification, but alſo for the perfecting of our ſanctification, and the ſtrengthening of vsus vntounto all Chriſtian duties of a godly life. Let vsus by this Spirituall food of our ſoules, finde our ſelues nouriſhed and inriched with all ſauing graces, eſpecially let vsus feele our weake faith confirmed and increaſed, that wee may, without wauering, be perſwaded of all thy gracious promiſes made vntounto vsus, and effectually apply vntounto our ſelues Ieſus Chriſt and all his benefits, ſeeing thou haſt not onelyonly offred them in thy Word and couenant of grace, but alſo ſealed, and thereby fully aſſured them vntounto vsus by thy ſeales the Sacraments. GiueGive vsus grace, that we may approue this faith to be true and liuely, by bringing forth plentifull fruits of it in repentance and newneſſe of life; bewayling our ſinnes, becauſe they hauehave pearced our Sauiour; and fearing to offend thee for the time to come, ſeeing thine exact Iuſtice would not ſuffer them to goe vnpuniſhed, when thine onelyonly and deare Sonne did beare them vponupon his Croſſe. Let vsus not by ſinne, hazard our ſoules againe to death for the wages of worldly vanities, ſeeing to redeeme vsus from them, our Sauiour and ſurety payd vntounto thy Iuſtice the ineſtimable price of his precious blood; but being freed from ſinne, let vsus become his ſeruants that hath redeemed vsus, ſeruing him in the duties of holineſſe and righteouſneſſe all the dayes of our liues. And as wee hauehave profeſſed our ſelues to be of thy Family, by taking vponupon vsus and wearing thy liuerie, ſo let vsus adorne our profeſſion, and glorifie thee our Lord and Maſter, by hauing the light of our Chriſtian conuerſation ſhining before all men; in all things behauing our ſelues as it becommeth thy children and ſeruants. Let vsus hauehave our Lords death in remembrance, vntill he come; not onelyonly that it may ſtirre vsus vp to vnfained thankefulneſſe vntounto thee, for giuing thy Sonne, and to him, for giuing himſelfe vntounto vsus and for vsus, but alſo that it may be as a ſhield of proofe, to arme vsus againſt all our ſpirituall enemies, thy wrath, the curſe of the law, Satan, death, ſinne and condemnation, that they may neuer preuaile againſt vsus. Let vsus alſo, as wee hauehave in this holy communion profeſſed our ſelues members of the ſame body, approue our ſelues to be indeed ſo, by performing all duties of louelove towards one another, both in releeuing thoſe that want, and forgiuing thoſe who hauehave offended vsus. Finally, we beſeech thee (deare Father) to enable vsus by thy grace and holy Spirit, that we may performe our vowes and promiſes which we hauehave made vntounto thee, eſpecially in the time of preparation before wee came to thy Table; and ſeeing in the ſenſe and feeling of our wants and weakeneſſes in thy Spirituall graces, required to the worthy receiuing of the Sacrament, as knowledge, faith, repentance and charity, wee were diſpleaſed with our ſelues, and promiſed that we would indeuour to hauehave them increaſed and ſtrengthened for the time to come; good Lord, we beſeech thee, giuegive vsus grace to performe what we hauehave promiſed, and to labour carefully and conſcionably in the vſe of all good meanes, for the inriching of our ſoules with theſe and all other ſauing graces of thy ſanctifying Spirit, that ſo alſo wee may bring forth the fruits of them in our godly and Chriſtian liues, to the glory of thy bleſſed Name, and the comfort and ſaluation of our bodies and ſoules, through Ieſus Chriſt our Lord. Amen.