The New Covenant, Book 3 · Chapter 13
CHAP. XIII. Of the ſecond vſe of the Lords Supper.
THe ſecond vſe of the Lords Supper is our ſpirituall vnion and communion with Chriſt.1 Cor. 10 16, This the Apoſtle declareth, The cup of bleſsing which we bleſſe▪ is it not the cōmunion of the blood of Chriſt? The bread which we breake, is it not the cō munion of the body of Chriſt? Whereby hee meaneth, that the faithfull which come conſcionably & worthily to the lords table, are ioyned and vnited wholy to Chriſt, by the bread Sacramentally, by faith inſtrumentally, by the Holy ghoſt ſpiritually, and by them almoſt effectually. For wee take the bread in our hands, and likewiſe we take the cuppe into our hands as Chriſt commaunded, ſaying,bMat. 26, 26. Take ye, eate ye, drinke ye, deuide ye, Neither doe wee lay them apart, or hide them aſide, or reſerue them in a boxe, or abſtaine from them: but when we hauehave taken them, we eat them, we digeſt them, we are nouriſhed by them, and they are turned into our ſubſtance. So Chriſt, being eatē of the godly by ſaith, is vnited to them by his ſpirit (as wee hauehave ſhewed before) whereby they are made one with Chriſt and he one with them. And as meate plentifully prepared, daintily dreſſed, and onelyonly ſeene vponupon the table, doth not nouriſh the body, or take away hunger: ſo if the Goſpell be preached, and the Sacraments adminiſtred, except we apply the promiſes of the goſpell, and beleeue that Chriſt with all his guifts is ours, they profite nothing towards our ſaluation. Such therefore as lawfully and worthily come to the Lords Supper, as to a table richly furniſhed, and to a banket liberally prouided, muſt not onelyonly generally beleeue that Chriſt ſuffered in the fleſh and dyed for ſinners, butcGal. 2, 20 particularly for themſelues, yea communicateth himſelfe and all his guifts vntounto them aboundantly, as certainely as themſelues eate of the bread and drinke of the cup.
This vnion and communion is neere, and wonderfull great: and therefore the Apoſtle fitly calleth it a myſtery, euendEph. 5, 32. a great mystery, ſpeaking of Chriſt & of the Church. For what vnion can be greater then that which is betweene the thing nouriſhing, and the thing nouriſhed? We hauehave nothing in Adam, but that which conueyeth death vntounto vsus: ſo that it is needfull to be ioyned to one which may giuegive life to vsus, that as we dye in Adam, eRom. 5, 19.ſo we may liue in him. This vnion cannot by reaſon be expreſſed, or fully vnderſtood. As Chriſt in the daies of his fleſh, had a double kindred, one earthly and carnall kinred, the other ſpirituall, that by faith receiued his word, and beleeued in his name, of whom he ſaid,fMat. 12, 44. Behold my mother and my brethren; for whoſoeuer ſhall do my Fathers will, which is in heauen, the ſame is my brother, ſiſter, and mother: ſo is it in this vnion and fellowſhip with him, one is outward & bodily, which al mankinde hath with him, in that he is partaker of our fleſh and blood, the other inward & ſpirituall, whereby we are made partakers of him and of all his ſauing graces to euerlaſting life. As Chriſt was borne of the Virgin Mary & vnited our nature to him, taking vponupon him,gHeb. 2, 16. not the Angels nature, but the ſeed of Abraham, eueryevery reprobate hath this vnion with him, in that hee tooke vponupon him the ſhape of a man: but there is a myſticall and maruellous vnion, whereby he dwelleth in vsus by faith, whereby we are truely coupled to him, made partakers of him, deliuered from ſin, and made heires of euerlaſting life, quickning and ſuſtaining vsus, as food which preſerueth the life of the body. If the arme ioyned to the body hauehave no life, no ſence, no benefit of vitall ſpirits, it is no part of the body, though it be vnited to it: ſo the wicked liuing without faith, are as it were ſenceleſſe, they hauehave no forgiueneſſe of ſinnes, no ſanctification, no ſaluation, and therefore are no true members of Chriſt. If he poure not life and grace into them, they are not his members: if he kill not ſinne in them, they are not vnited ſpiritually vntounto him. The bodily vnion with him ſhall profite nothing: it is the Spirit that giueth life.
Seeing then the receiuing of the bread and wine which Vſe 1 turne into our ſubſtance, teacheth the myſticall vnion betweene Chriſt and his members: wee learne from hence, that all the faithfull and godly are truly made partakers of Chriſt and his graces, as the members receiue life from the head, and the tree moiſture from the root. For euen as the wife ioyned to her husband in marriage, is thereby made partaker of his body and goods, hath intereſt with him in the commodities of this life,gGen. 20.16. and looketh for nouriſhment, food, fellowſhip, protection, and gouernment from him: ſo being made one with Chriſt, we are indued with his heauenly guifts and bleſsings. This muſt be our comfort in all dangers and tentations in all tryals and aſſaults, to conſider that we are one with Chriſt, we are not onelyonly deare vntounto him, but neerely ioyned with him, as members to the head, as the wife to the husband, and as the branches to the vine, and therefore can neuer be ſeparated from him in life or death. We hauehave in him a communion of goods, ſo that as he hath taken vponupon him our ſinnes and the puniſhments of them, ſo he hath againe communicated to vsus his righteouſneſſe and life, and we may through his free guift challenge as our owne whatſoeuer is his.
We ſee in the corporall marriage, ſo long as one is rich, the other cannot be poore. The Lord is our ſhepheard,Pſal 23, 1. what then can we want? Chriſt Ieſus is rich to all that cal vponupon him, he is become all things vntounto vsus; the light by which we ſee: the life by which we liue: the way wherein we muſt walke: the doore by which we muſt enter: the garment which we muſt put on: the food whereby we muſt be nouriſhed and ſtrengthened. Of our ſelues we are void of all good things. We liue in darknes and in the ſhaddow of death: we are borne dead in ſinnes and treſpaſſes: we wander wide out of the way: we hauehave no entrance into Gods kingdome: the ſhame of our nakedneſſe appeareth to the loathing of our perſons.
But through CHRIST IESVS, both theſe defects are taken away, and all the merits of his paſsion are made ours through this vnion which we hauehave in him ſealed vp vntounto vsus in this Sacrament.
Vſe 2, Secondly, this ſtraight vniting of the faithfull to Chriſt ſheweth plainly that the vngodly hauehave no part nor fellowſhip in him and with his graces: though they be ioyned to a communion of the ſame nature, and hauehave many common guifts of knowledge and vnderſtanding, yet Chriſt neuer dwelleth in them with his ſauing graces, and with his ſpirit of ſanctification; he poſſeſſeth not their hearts; he worketh not in them a particular perſwaſion of their reconciliation to God▪ neither an hungring deſire aboue all things to be at vnity and peace with him, neither a diſtaſt and diſlike of ſinne, neither the comfortable Spirit of grace and prayer, all which are in ſome meaſure in all the faithfull. Wherefore although they may be clothed with the fleſh of Chriſt, they cannot be ſaid to be couered with the grace of Chriſt: although they be like vntounto him in regard of this naturall body, yet they are not indued with his heauenly Spirit: they hauehave many priuiledges through him, but they want ſuch as accompany ſaluation and ſeale vp our redemption.
Vſe 3 Laſtly, hauehave we a communion with Chriſt? then wee may be aſſured by this holy Supper, that there is alſo betweene him and vsus a communion in all eſtates, and he is touched with a compaſsion of all our infirmites. In all our troubles he is troubled: in our afflictions he is afflicted: in our perſecutions he is perſecuted: and he that toucheth vsus, toucheth the apple of his eye. In the naturall body, if at any time the foot be trodden vponupon, the head complaineth, Why hurt you me? and in the myſticall body, if Saul make hauock of the Church at Damaſcus, the head in heauen cryeth out by and by,Acts 9, 4. Saul, Saul, why perſecuteſt thou me? This putteth vsus in minde of two things, one concerning Chriſt, the other concerning our ſelues. Firſt, is there ſuch an vnion betweene vsus? Are we ſo neerely knit together as the husband and the wife,Similites expreſsing the vn…ō between Chriſt and vsus. as the head and the members, as the foundation of the houſe & the reſt of the building, as the Vine and the branches, as the nouriſhment & the thing nouriſhed? Let vsus learne heereby, how Chriſt is affected toward vsus, he ſuffereth with vsus when we ſuffer,1 Cor. 12.16, and accounteth our chaſtiſements as his owne, euen as when one member ſuffereth, all the members ſuffer with it. This is a notable comfort vntounto vsus in all ſorrowes, to conſider that hee is very compaſsionate and pittifull toward vsus: he hath a feeling of our miſeries, and his ſoule is after a ſort greeued for them. Secondly, as this ſheweth how he is affected toward vsus, ſo it teacheth how we ſhould be affected toward him. If we be feeling members of his body, there is nothing done againſt him, or committed to the preiudice of his glory, but we ſhould bee greeued more then if it were done vntounto our ſelues.Pſal. 139, 21. The Prophet did hate them that hated the Lord, and was greeued with thoſe that roſe vp againſt him. Riuers of waters did runne downe his eyes,Pſal. 119, 136. becauſe men kept not his law. But alaſſe, where is this feeling to be found on our parts? When the Lord is ſpitefully abuſed and wounded euen as it were vntounto the heart, who is wounded with him, or accounteth himſelfe euilly intreated? We are as ſenceleſſe men, and hauehave not a teare to ſhed on his behalfe, which argueth againſt vsus, and prooueth to our faces, that the ſpirituall life is very weake in vsus, if there be any life at all.