The Right Administration and Receiving of the Lords Supper, Title page – Bookseller to the reader
A TREATISE OF THE Inſtitution, Right Adminiſtration, and Receiving of the SACRAMENT OF THE Lords-Supper.
Delivered in XX. SERMONS at St Laurence-Jury, London.
By the late Reverend and Learned Miniſter of the Goſpel Mr Richard Vines ſometime Maſter of Pembroke-Hall in Cambridge.
LONDON, Printed by A. M. for Thomas Ʋnderhill at the Anchor and Bible in Pauls Church-yard, near the little North-door, 1657.
Upon the Sight of Mr VINES His Poſthumous TREATISE OF THE SACRAMENT, October 18. 1656.
WHile thou grew'ſt here, thy fruit made glad
The hearts that ſin and death made ſad:
Leſt we ſhould ſurſet of thy fruit,
Thy life retired to the Root,
Deſiring with us firſt to keep,
A Paſſeover before thy ſleep;
Weary of Earth, thou took'ſt thine eaſe,
Paſſing into the Land of Peace:
The threatned evil we fore-ſee,
But hope to hide our ſelves with thee.
Though thou art gone, while we muſt fight,
Wee'le call it Victory, not Flight.
When God had taken up this VINE,
We thought to taſte no more its Wine,
Till in the Land of Salem;s King,
We drink it new, even from the Spring:
But unexpectedly we finde,
Some Clufters which are left behinde:
This Mantle from thy Chariot fell;
We know it by the pleaſant ſmell:
Who know's but from this little ſeed,
Some more ſuch fruitfull Vines may breed?
The Tree of Death beau's precious fruit,
Though in the Earth it have no root.
Dear Brother, thou art gone before,
And I a wretch wait at the doore:
Sin doth not only keep me thence,
But makes me loth to go from hence:
When Chriſt hath heal'd me of this ſin,
And made me fit; hee'le let me in:
Till then, may I but in a Glaſs
See what you ſee with open face;
Sure it will raiſe my heavy Soul,
And theſe diſtruſtfull fears controll!
And make me willing to be gone,
As knowing whither, and to Whom!
If Time be Nothing, as ſome ſay,
You that were with us yeſterday,
Are with us ſtill; or we with you;
Which is the better of the two.
The Soul imbodied in thoſe lines,
Doth make us ſay, that, This is VINES:
And if our hearts with you could be;
Our Lord would ſay, that there are we.
But as according to deſert,
The Heavens have got thy better part;
And left us but ſome of the Wine,
Whil'ſt they have taken up the Vine:
So we look up, and wait, and pray,
And yet ſtill feel we live in Clay.
Here we are keeping ſin's account,
While ſome ſmall ſparks do upward mount,
Crying [How long, Holy and True!]
Till we are taken up to you.
Thus alſo we muſt follow Love,
To finde our HEAD, and LIFE above.
He that is made by the New-Birth,
A BURGESS of the Church on Earth,
And then by Faith can riſe ſo high,
In Divine LOVE to Live and Die,
Shall be tranſlated to your ſoil,
Remov'd from ſin, and fear, and toil;
And from this HoUſe of Worms and Moles,
Unto that Element of Souls.
Where every Branch becomes a Vine;
And where theſe Clods like Stars will ſhine:
God is not there known by the Book:
You need not there the Pruning Hook:
There you have Wine without the Preſs;
And God his Praiſe without Diſtreſs.
There we ſhall finde our Eyes and Sight,
When we come to our Head and Light.
The Kernel is where you now dwell,
And we here ſtrive about the Shell:
You have the Reconciling Light,
Who are paſt Faith, and live by ſight:
No wonder then if you are One,
When Peace from Earth is almoſt gone:
We crowd about a little ſpark,
Learnedly ſtriving in the Dark;
Never ſo bold as when moſt Blinde;
Run faſteſt when the Truth's behinde.
No Hereſies with you are ſown:
There's not a Truth but all will own:
A mixture we get here by rote;
And Errour keep's the major Vote.
There Pride and Faction cannot enter.
There's no Diviſion in the Center.
The Saints there play not Satans part;
They Uſe not any Carnal Art,
Their Righteous Brethren to defame;
And by untruths to blot their Name.
There you are Comely, and not Black:
Each One hath All, yet None do lack.
What ſin or ſmart can you befall,
Where SELF's put off, and God is All?
Look up and ſee, now VINES is gone;
Are not the Stars the more by One?
No: but One fewer, in our ſight;
For we have forfeited his Light.
And ſuch a One, as all do miſs,
Save thoſe whoſe pleaſure darkneſs is.
And who can Number Stars above;
When Saints ſo faſt to Heav'n remove?
If but three ſuch in all our times,
As USHER, GATAKER, and VINES,
Were taken hence by fatal ſleep;
Three Nations ſhould conſent to weep.
And if an Age this loſs repair;
The Church will think it very fair.
They ſhine in Glory now to God,
Who ſhin'd and burn'd here to a Clod.
May ſuch a ſinfull Worm as I,
Aſpire and aſcend ſo high?
That Kingdom's mine in Hope and Right,
Which you poſſeſs by Love and ſight.
That God, that Chriſt hath loved me,
Whoſe Glory bleſſed VINES doth ſee:
We were both waſhed in one ſtream:
And both enlightened by one beam:
One Garment alſo did us cloath:
At once One Pulpit held us both;
Much more One Church: for we agreed,
Both in One Method, and One Creed.
One Evil we did both condole,
As animated by One Soul:
Me think's where thou art, I ſhould be;
Although the loweſt in degree.
Though thou art gone, and I am here;
Yet is my Paſſing-Hour neer:
Time is at work both Night and Day,
Even when it ſeemeth to delay:
My Grave and Coffin are at hand:
My Glaſs hath but a little Sand:
Now I am writing; and anon
They'ſe alſo ſay of me, He's gone.
Then I ſhall ſee the ſhining face,
Which is the Glory of your place.
But leſt in vain I hope and run,
Lord perfect what thou haſt begun!
Richard Baxter.
TO THE READER.
THe Poſthumous Works of Learned Writers, like fatherleſs Children, are expoſed to many wrongs and injuries; Yea ſuch hath been the fraud of ſome Impoſtors in the Church, that they have taken away the live▪ children of famous men, and put their dead ones in the room; Hence are thoſe ſpurious and ſuppoſititious Books which have wandered up and down with their counterfeit Paſſes. That therefore no ſuſpicious thoughts may poſſeſs thee concerning this Treatiſe, which is here publiſhed under the Name of that Learned and Eminent man Mr Vines, I do upon ſure and unQueſtionable Evidences give my publick Teſtimony, that it is his proper and genuine Work, printed by the Copy that was written with his own hand.
Thy Well-wiſher ANTHONY BURGESSE. Sutton-Coldfield, Sep. 20. 1656.
THE CONTENTS.
CHAP. I. OF the Paſſeover or Paſchal Lamb; It's ſignification, and the Analogy or Reſemblance between it, and Chriſt our Paſſeover.
CHAP. II. Of Errours and Corruptions in the Church; How ſoon they ſpring up; When they are a ground of Separation, and when not; That this Ordinance muſt be ſutable to Gods Inſtitutions: And the Communicants muſt be ſutable to this Ordinance.
CHAP. III. That the Lord Jeſus is the Author of this Sacrament.
CHAP. IV. Of the time of this Sacraments Inſtitution, and of Judas betraying Chriſt.
CHAP. V. Why Chriſt deferred the inſtituting of the Supper untill the night in which he was betrayed.
CHAP. VI. Of the Outwards or Elements of this Ordinance of the Supper.
CHAP. VII. Some Obſervations upon the precedent Diſcourſes.
CHAP. VIII. Of the Real Preſence.
CHAP. IX. Of the inward things ſignified or repreſented in this Supper.
CHAP. X. A fonr-fold Exhortation from the premiſes.
CHAP. XI. Of Chriſts Mandate or Charge for the celebration of this Ordinance in Remembrance of him.
CHAP. XII. Of doing this in remembrance of Chriſt; The Properties of this Memorial.
CHAP. XIII. A Lamentation for the neglect of this Ordinance.
CHAP. XIII. How much it concerneth Miniſters to Teach, and all to Learn the true meaning of this Ordinance.
CHAP. XIV. The great Buſineſs that lies upon the Communicant, as oft as he eats this Bread and drinks this Cup, he ſhews the Lords Death.
CHAP. XV. The Lords-Supper is an itterable Ordinance.
CHAP. XVI. Of the Continuance of this and other Goſpel-Ordinances in the Church.
CHAP. XVII. Of Worthy and Unworthy Receiving of the Lords-Supper.
CHAP. XVIII. The Uſes which are to be made of the two laſt Theſes.
CHAP. XIX. What muſt be done where Diſcipline cannot be executed for want of Adminiſtrators.
CHAP. XX. Whether a Godly man lawfully may, or ought to ſtand as a Member of, and hold Communion in the Ordinances of God with ſuch a Congregation as is mixt (as they call it) that is, where men viſibly ſcandalous in Life and Converſation are mingled with the Good in the Participation and Uſe of Divine Ordinances? Or, Whether this Mixture of Heterogeneals do not pollute the Ordinances, and the Communion to the Godly, ſo as they are concerned to ſeparate from ſuch Communion?
CHAP. XXI. Whether the Lords Supper be a Converting Ordinance?
CHAP. XXII. Of Worthy and Unworthy Receiving, with ſome Cautions to prevent miſ-judging our ſelves in the Caſe.
CHAP. XXIII. Of Worthy Receiving, &c.
CHAP. XXIV. That a Godly man may receive the Sacrament unworthily.
CHAP. XXV. Of the Graces which are to be exerciſed and ſet on work in the Uſe of this Sacrament.
CHAP. XXVI. Motives to quicken Endeavors to a fit or worthy Participation of this Ordinance.
CHAP. XXVII. Falſe and inſufficient Qualifications for the Receiving of this Sacrament.
CHAP. XXVIII. The Fruit and Benefit of worthy Receiving.
CHAP. XXIX. The Sinfulneſs of Eating and Drinking unworthily.
CHAP. XXX. The CaUſe of this Sin, Viz▪ Not diſcerning the Lords Body.
CHAP. XXXI. The Aggravations of the Sin of unworthy Receiving.
CHAP. XXXII. The Danger of this Sinne.
CHAP. XXXIII. Of Examination in order to this Sacrament.
The Bookſeller to the READER.
THis Treatiſe was very fairly writ by the Reverend Authour Mr Richard Vines now with God, and perfected for the Preſs with his own Hand; after which a great part of it was lost, and carried by a ſtranger that took it up; thirty miles off, which yet (by a good Providence of God) was brought to his own hands again, to his great rejoycing, and I hope the Churches great benefit, which ſeems to be the deſign of that unexpected Providence, now that it is made publick. He omitted to divide it into Chapters and Sections (for the pleaſure of the Reader) which notwithſtanding is now done, together with the Contents of every Chapter, and of most of the Sections, which I thought good to certifie, leſt any expreſsions therein ſhould ſeem unſuitable to the Authours own Genius, and derogatory to his worth.