the right use of it, ver. 24, 25. Take, eat: This is my body-This cup is the new teftament in my blood.

II. I proceed to confider the fignifying things, or outward elements. These are bread and wine. The bread, ordinary bread, without any determination of what grain it is made, nor whether leavened or unleavened. Our Lord took fuch bread as came to hand, and fo may we without fcruple, though decency is to be observed. The wine, as to the colour of it, is also indifferent; and whether a little mixed with water, or unmixed, is fo too. Neceflity and decency muft regulate these things, the church being no otherwife tied by divine inftitution.

Here let us confider,

1. What is fignified by the bread and wine.

2. The refemblance betwixt the figns and the things fignified.

First, What is fignified by the bread and wine? The body and blood of Chrift, ver. 24, 25. even a whole Chrift with all his benefits, forafmuch as the divine nature after the incarnation was never feparated from the human, though the foul was feparated from the body, and his precious blood from his flefh.

Secondly, The resemblance betwixt the figns and the things fignified.

1. Confider the bread and wine feparately.

1ft, There is a resemblance betwixt the bread and Christ's body.

(1.) Bread is for nourishing of natural life: fo is Chrift's body for nourishment to the foul, John vi. 56. “ For (fays he), my flesh is meat indeed." There the hungry may feed, and be nourished and strengthened, to grow up unto eternal life.

(2.) Bread must be prepared ere it can be bread, or fit nourishment for us, the grain ground, and baked with the fire. So Chrift was grinded betwixt the upper millftone of the Father's wrath, and the nether millstone of the malice of men and devils, and cast into the fiery furnace of justice, that he might be bread to our fouls, Pfal. xxii. 14. (3.) Bread is a common and cheap provifion; it is for poor as well as the rich. Chrift's falvation is the com

the

mon falvation, Jude 3.; free to all who will receive the fame, Rev. xxii. 17.

(4.) Of all provifion it is the most neceffary. Nothing is fo neceffary for us as Chrift; without him we die, we perish, we all perish, John vi. 53. “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.'

(5.) Lastly, It is a fort of food which healthy people will never loath. So is Chrift ever fweet to the foul that feeds on him, though diftempered fouls loath the bread of life.

2dly, There is a refemblance betwixt wine and Christ's blood.

(1.) The wine is squeezed out of the grapes forcibly by the wine-prefs. Thus was Chrift's blood fqueezed out of his body, by the wine-prefs of the Father's wrath, that it might be drink to our fouls.

(2.) Wine has a medicinal virtue, Luke x. 34. Chrift's blood is the great medicine for the wounds of the foul. There are no wounds fo deep, or so hopeless, but an application of Chrift's blood will cleanse them, and heal them too.

(3.) Wine is refreshing and ftrengthening to the body, 1 Tim. v. 23. A draught of this fpiritual drink, exhibited to us in the facrament, and to be received by faith, would make the foul preffed with guilt, and a fenfe of wrath, to ftir as a giant refreshed with wine, John vi. 55. “My blood is drink indeed." tot

(4.) Lastly, It is of a cheering virtue, Prov. xxxi. 6. The blood of Chrift is that whereof those who are of forrowful fpirits, by reafon of guilt, may drink by faith, and forget their forrow, 1 Pet. i. 8.

2. Confider the bread and wine conjunctly, fet before us in the facrament. There is a threefold refemblance. 1ft, There is both meat and drink, bread and wine, in the facrament. In Jefus Chrift we have a full feaft for our fouls, John vi. 55. My flefh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.

There is a fulness in him for all

our wants, a fulness of merit and of Spirit.

2. The bread and wine are separate in the facrament. So was Chrift's blood feparated from his body on the crofs

for us. Many vents were made in that bleffed body by the nails and spear, through which that blood might gush out, for the redemption of an elect world.

3. The bread must be eaten, and the wine drunk, or they will not nourish. So Chrift's body and blood must be by faith eaten and drunk, or it will not profit us to our falvation. It is union with him by faith that makes us partakers of his benefits.

III. Let us confider the fignifying actions in this facra

ment.

First, There are some fignifying actions of the adminiftrator about thefe elements, according to Chrift's institution, which, being facramental, are alfo fignificant.

1. Taking of the bread, and the cup into which the wine has been poured out, taking them into his hand, ver. 23, 24, 25. Nothing is more diftinctly mentioned than this, Matth. xxvi. 26, 27." Jefus took bread, and bleffed it, and brake it, and gave it to the difciples, and faid, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, faying, Drink ye all of it." Whence it is evident, that it is taken to be confecrated. And this reprefents the Father's chufing and defigning the Son to be Mediator, Pfal. lxxxix. 19. "I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chofen out of the people." So in this action we may fee, (1.) Man perifhing for want of fpiritual food, Adam and all his pofterity ftarving in their fouls, and fo their cafe crying for bread. (2.) God in his eternal love deftinating bread for a ftarving world. (3.) The Son of God, as the party on whom the lot fell, to be bread for them. Behold the bread the Father took, If. xlii. 1. "Behold my fervant whom Luphold." He was God's choice, and shall he not be ours?d 1

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12. Confecrating of the elements, ver. 24, 25. The confecrating of the bread and wine apart is reckoned to be an accidental circumftance in the firft adminiftration, agreeable to the custom of the country where it was done, not obliging us, whose custom it is to blefs all together, more than unleavened bread, &c. Nor does there appear any myftery further in the former than the latter. Ca 2

Here confider,

(1.) How the elements are confecrated. By the word of inftitution, thanksgiving and prayer, they are confecrated, or fet apart from common ufe, ver. 23, 24, 25. Our Lord Chrift had power of himself to inftitute the ordinance, and did fo, and bleffed it, and folemnly gave thanks over it. The inftitution ftands in the word, which therefore we read on that occafion, and, according to his example, pray over it, with thanksgiving. The Popish confecration, by muttering over thefe words, This is my body, hit not the mark; for these words, This is my body, were uttered by our Lord after the confecration.

(2.) What is the effect of the confecration on the elements? Not a real change of them into the body and blood of Christ. This deftroys the nature of a facrament, leaving no fenfible fign. It is contrary to the inftitution, where Christ's body was fitting at the table, and reached the disciples bread and wine. It is contrary to the doctrine of Chrift's fuffering once, his afcenfion, fitting at God's right hand, and coming again not till the laft day. And fo it is contrary to fenfe and reafon.

Christ faid indeed, This is my body, i. e. fignifies my body, as the lamb is called the Lord's paffover, Exod. xii. 11. It by these words the Papifts will have the bread changed into the real natural body of Chrift. But these words fuppofe it to be Christ's body before, fince a thing cannot be truly said to be what it is not. So it is no otherwife Chrift's body, but facramentally.

The true effect is a relative change on the elements, fo that they are no more to be looked upon as common bread and wine, but the facred fymbols of Chrift's body and blood. So they are changed in refpect of their use, being fet apart for this holy use.

(3.) The fignification of this facramental action. It represents the Father's fetting apart and confecrating his own Son to, and investing him in, the Mediatory office. So Chrift is faid to be fealed, John vi. 27. ; fanctified and fent, chap. x. 36.; and anointed to his office, If. lxi. 1. So in this a believer may see these three things. Father calling Chrift to the Mediatory office, 5.; to do and to die for the perifhing elect.

(1.) The Heb. v. 4,

(2.) The

Son's accepting of the call, though he knew how hard the work was, Pfal. xl. 7. (3.) Chrift completely furnished for all the ends of his mediation, actually entered on the office. The Father bleffed him, and sent him on the work, and he goes about it, If. Ixi. 1.

3. Breaking of the bread, ver. 24. This is an effential rite of this facrament, it being fometimes called by this very name, Acts xx. 7. It fignifies the breaking of Christ's body for us, and confequently the fhedding of his blood. In the facrament there is not a word of pouring out the wine, though no doubt it was done : for the fhedding of Christ's blood is fufficiently represented by breaking of his body. His body was broken to the fhedding of his blood in his circumcifion, in his foul-fufferings to the fweating of blood, in the plucking off his hair, If. I. 6. in his fcourging, John xix. 1. crowning with thorns, and being fmitten on the fo crowned head, and in his crucifixion. And these his fufferings point to all the refst.

4. Giving of the bread, and then the wine, to the communicants, ver. 24, 25. This fignifies Chrift's giving himfelf, with all his benefits, to the worthy receiver, which is really done in the right use of this facrament. This is plain from the words, Take, eat, &c.

Secondly, There are fignifying actions of the communi

cants.

1. Taking of the bread and wine with the hand, ib. This fignifies their receiving of a whole Christ, as offered in the word, and exhibited in the facrament, closing with him by faith.

2. Eating and drinking. The Papists destroy this laft as to the people, with-holding the cup from them, contrary to Chrift's exprefs command, Matth. xxvi. 27. “Drink ye all of it." These actions fignify their feeding fpiritually on Chrift's body and blood, and uniting with him by faith...

Thefe folemn facramental actions not being accompanied with the things fignified, namely, the duties, make them a folemn mocking of God, which makes unworthy communicating fo great a fin.

IV. I proceed to confider the particular uses and ends of