tion of the Lord's supper is necessary to constitute a

saint.

But personal covenanting with God is that which, amongst other things, qualifies persons for the due participation of the Lord's supper.

Therefore personal covenanting is necessary to constitute a saint.

That those who partake of this ordinance ought to be saints, I think is past doubt-saints professionally in the judgment of the church's charity, saints really in God's account, if they expect any benefit from this blessed ordinance. It was "they that gladly received the word, who were baptized, and so being added to the church, continued stedfastly in the apostle's doctrine, fellowship, breaking of bread, and in prayers," Act. ii. 41, 42. This ordinance "is a communion of the body and blood of Christ,"* and that presupposeth union to him; it is a heap of wheat set about with lillies, lillywhite saints. Dogs are not fit for children's bread. Hypocrites partake of the supper of the Lord, not of the Lord in the supper. It is living persons only that are capable to feed on Christ; "He that eateth his flesh and drinketh his blood," that is, by saving faith, “he,” and he only, "hath eternal life;" this is the truth,(whatever terms of communion churches have, larger or stricter,) that real saintship is necessary to spiritual feasting on Jesus Christ: holy things for holy men.

And that personal covenanting with God is necessary to qualify persons for due and profitable participation of the Lord's supper is clear, if we consider the nature of that precious ordinance. The Lord's supper is a sacred institution, in which, by bread and wine, consecrated, broken, poured out, given, taken, eaten and John vi. 53, 54, 57.

1 Cor. x. 16.

+ Cant. vii. 2.

drunk, the sacrifice of Christ's body and blood for our redemption is commemorated, and the covenant of christianity mutually and solemnly renewed and sealed, in which Christ, with the benefits of his covenant is given to the faithful, and they reciprocally give up themselves to Christ, as members of his church, with which they profess communion. All this implieth and supposeth a personal covenanting; for what is a seal without a bond? This seal is annexed to the bond of the covenant; this bond is mutual and reciprocal. God gives his Son, (and consequently himself,) to the believing soul, and as the worthy communicant accepts him, so he dedicates himself entirely to God, and this is personal covenanting; this is a professing and a confirming of a mutual covenant, by this sacred seal: our Lord saith, "This is my blood of the new testament which is shed for many, for the remission of sins,"* and this is made over to individuals; take, eat, this is my body which is broken for thee, and thee in particular; and no man is a worthy receiver, but he that is in covenant: others eat and drink unworthily, and are guilty of the body and blood of the Lord, and eat and drink judgment to themselves.† Thou hast no right to the Lord of the supper, and therefore not to the supper of the Lord without covenanting; this is the chief thing wherein the communicant must examine himself: eating a morsel of bread, and drinking a cup of wine is not the chief thing in this solemnity; the covenant must be made before, and renewed, and confirmed at this table. The marrow and mystery of this ordinance is a mutual surrendering of God and the soul to each other, with free acceptation. It is true it is a commemoration of this propitiatory sacrifice, but that sup+1 Cor. xi. 27, 28.

• Matt. xxvi. 28. Luke xxii. 20.

poses a person's embracing a crucified Jesus, renouncing the devil, the world, and the flesh, and swearing fealty and fidelity to him all his days.

Seventh argument is this:

That which is essential to the change produced by the Holy Ghost in believers, is necessary to the constitution of a saint.

But personal covenanting with God is essential to the change produced by the Holy Ghost in believers. Therefore personal covenanting with God is necessary to the constitution of a saint.

That none are real saints but those that have the Spirit of God, is clear from Rom. viii. 9, "Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his ;" and ver. 14, "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God;" it is a contradiction to say a man is spiritual, without the Spirit; they are sensual that have not the Spirit; real saints are spiritualized; they receive the Spirit by the hearing of faith, they are baptized into it, are regenerated by it, led by it, walk in it, have the first fruits of it, are assisted in prayer by it, are sealed with this Holy Spirit of promise, and thus it becomes the earnest of their future inheritance, surely all these places are not insig-. nificant.* There are such in the world as have the Spirit; can we imagine the Holy Ghost is withdrawn, when our Lord promiseth it shall continue with his followers for ever? Is he unfaithful to his word? or is the Holy Ghost unfaithful to his office? hath God no church or people on earth? Let not mortal man slight or scorn the Spirit's influence, or deny his operations, lest that sin border upon the unpardonable sin; we assert not immediate and extraordinary inspirations, * Jude 19. Gal. iii. 2. 1 Cor. xii. 13. Gal. v. 16, 18. Rom. viii. 26. Eph. i. 13, 14. John xiv. 16.

or influence, to enable men to indite scriptures, know secrets, or work miracles, but doubtless there are sanctifying, illuminating, regulating operations of the Spirit upon the hearts of believers. If this concern not Christians at this day, we must seek another Bible; surely these expressions were not calculated for the meridian of apostolic days, but are suited to the saints in all ages to the end of the world, since Christ's promise and prayer concern us as well as them.*

Now for the minor, that personal covenanting with God is essential to the change produced by the Holy Ghost upon believers; this is plain, for as the perfective works of God are ascribed to the Holy Ghost, so the due application of Christ's merits, and fruits of his death, resurrection and ascension, is made by the Holy Spirit; yea, all that Christ hath done is ineffectual to the soul without this. The Holy Ghost communicates to the believer, light, life, love and habits of grace, excites acts of grace, works faith, engages him to prefer unseen, heavenly treasures to earthly grandeur, and venture his soul and highest concerns upon God's infallible word; this is the work of the Spirit, to unite God and the soul together, for he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit ;† as this union is by covenanting, so it has the import of the phrases, cleaving to the Lord, and swearing by his name, Deut. x. 20; being thus one spirit means a conjunction of his spirit with the Spirit of Christ, or by one and the same Spirit of God, as the cause of this union, and the Christian thereby becomes actuated by the same spirit, according to the same rule, for the same end, though in an inferior degree, in a lower sphere; yet as he is, so are we in the world, being animated by the same spirit as Christ is. All relation to God, and harmony of affections in saints, proceeds * Matt. xxviii. 20. Joh. xvii. 20. + 1 Cor. vi. 17. 1 Joh. iv. 17.

from the Holy Spirit, where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty; that is, the Holy Spirit dissolves all other bonds of a sinful nature, and being made free from sin, he binds the soul to God to become his servant by this covenant bond; † the Spirit holds the believer's hand, while he subscribes his name to the Lord; this is what forms the blessed agreement, and therefore it is put into the covenant, Isa. lix. 21; we should never join hands with God in covenant, did not the Spirit lift up our hand as high as heaven; and those cannot be saints that are not thus consecrated to God, and united to him by the Spirit; and this leads to the Eight argument, drawn from the nature of sanctifi

cation.

That which includes and supposes sanctification must needs go to the constitution of a saint.

But covenanting with God doth include and suppose sanctification.

Therefore covenanting with God must needs go to constitute a real saint.

Indeed it is a gross contradiction to call a man a saint, without sanctification; this were as absurd as to say a man were a rational creature without a reasonable soul. It is true, some may be nominally or professionally accounted saints, that yet are not savingly sanctified; but none are so indeed who shall be gathered together with saints, and rewarded as such at the last day, but they that are sanctified wholly, or throughout in soul, spirit and body; without holiness no man shall see God; the pure in heart shall see God; if any are chosen to salvation, it is still through sanctification of the Spirit ; ‡ the justified are sanctified; holiness is the badge of all God's children; and though profane wits may scoff 2 Cor. iii. 17.

+ Rom. vi. 22.

1 Thess. v. 23. Heb. xii. 14.

Matt. v. 8. 2 Thess. ii. 13.