need despair,-GOD will exert even Almighty Power in showing mercy on him, if only the sinner will be moved by the fear and love of GOD to desire, pray, and strive to forsake his sins and turn to GOD, and walk in the way of His commandments.

"For as the Heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy towards them that fear HIM."

Why will we continue to neglect that mercy? Why will we continue to strive against His Blessed and Most Gracious SPIRIT, Who is even now moving us to repentance unto salvation?

Resist the SPIRIT once more, one day longer, and HE He may forsake you for ever; reject His mercy again, and it may be withdrawn utterly.

For however great, however boundless God's mercy may be now, the time for mercy is limited; if we once die in our sins, it is lost to us, we know, for ever; and it may be there are some from whom GOD withdraws His mercy even in this life, giving them over to a reprobate mind, to take delight in sin and in the world, till the measure of their iniquity be full!

G. P.

SERMON XXIV.

FREQUENT COMMUNION.

NUMBERS IX. 13.

BUT THE MAN THAT IS CLEAN, AND IS NOT IN A JOURNEY, AND FORBEARETH TO KEEP THE PASSOVER, EVEN THE SAME

SOUL SHALL BE CUT OFF FROM AMONG HIS PEOPLE BECAUSE HE BROUGHT NOT THE OFFERING OF THE LORD IN HIS APPOINTED SEASON: THAT MAN SHALL BEAR HIS SIN.

Ir pleased the ALMIGHTY, through the immediate operations of an extraordinary Providence, to reward the observance, and punish the violation, of the Mosaic Law, by temporal visitations of mercy or of vengeance. Length of days, prolific seasons, and prosperous descendancy were held forth for the encouragement of obedience; whilst offenders were threatened with sudden death, loss of children, and extirpation of their families.

In reference to these appalling consequences of sin, a learned interpreter among the Jews remarks, that, although there are above twenty express prohibitions in the Levitical Law, with the penalty attached of the transgressors being cut off from the congregation of GOD's people, if they commit what is therein prohibited; yet there are but two things commanded to be done, for the neglect of which the Israelite subjected

himself to this sudden extirmination.

And these are

Circumcision, and the right observance of the Passover. The latter is enjoined in the words of the text, with the fatal penalty distinctly stated for forbearing to keep it "at its appointed season," unless disqualified by legal uncleanness or necessary journeying. And even in case of these temporary exemptions, persons thus disqualified were bound to keep the Feast on the second month instead of the first, a special time being appointed' wherein they might atone for the omission. There was thus, in fact, no real exemption from its observance.

The rite of Circumcision was enforced with equal strictness. Long before the promulgation of the Law, it was announced to faithful Abraham, when he received that rite as the seal of the Covenant. "The uncircumcised child shall be cut off from his people. He hath broken my Covenant." And as if to show that the omission of this positive command was fraught with danger, not only to the unconscious child, but also to the negligent or faithless parent, it is recorded3 that the LORD sought to kill Moses in the way on his return to Egypt, because he had omitted to circumcise his son; and the wrath of GOD was only averted by the immediate performance of that rite by the hands of Zipporah.

These ceremonies, however, were but the shadows of good things to come, and aptly typified the two only Sacraments of the Christian Church, "generally necessary to salvation, that is to say, Baptism and the Supper of the LORD." And so close an analogy exists between them, that it is difficult to escape from the conclusion, that to the wilful neglect and omission of

1 Numbers ix. 11. 2 Gen. xvii. 14. 3 Exod. iv. 24-26.

these Holy Ordinances, under the Covenant of Grace, the spiritual penalty of exclusion from that "rest which remaineth unto the people of GOD," is as surely and significantly attached, as cutting off from Israel by temporal death was to the contemner of Circumcision and the Passover. What, for instance, is the language which our Blessed LORD held with Nicodemus ? "Except a man be born of water and of the SPIRIT, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of GOD." And very similar, both in form and meaning, is that address to His Disciples at which we find so many that heard HIM were offended-" Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you." It is true indeed that the Eucharistic Ordinance had not as yet been established; and consequently some eminent commentators, both ancient and modern, have explained our LORD's words in a sense irrespective of the Holy Eucharist. But the great majority of expositors understand the passage to allude by anticipation to that mystical partaking of CHRIST in His Supper and our own Church plainly adopts, what must be confessed to be its obvious application, and embodies the very words of CHRIST in her exhortation -"for then we spiritually eat the flesh of CHRIST and drink His blood."

:

In regard to the initiatory rite of Holy Baptism, its necessity must of course be "understood according to rules of natural equity." We are ready to admit, "that there may be, in

with the judicious Hooker, divers cases, life by virtue of inward Baptism, even where," from unavoidable circumstances, "outward Baptism is not found." On this principle the Primitive Church held that the desire to be baptized supplied 'Hebrews iv. 9.

2 St. John iii. 5.

3 St. John vii. 53.

the place of Baptism, where it could not be obtained. And our Church acts in the same spirit when she admits to the LORD's Supper such as are "ready and desirous to be confirmed," without compelling them to wait for the opportunity.

So likewise, in reference to the Holy Communion, we know that it is not ordinarily the will of God to bestow the Grace of the Sacraments on any, but by the Sacraments. Yet we must in equity, suppose cases where, in the absence of the Priest, or of the outward and visible signs, or of the physical power of receiving on the part of the communicant, the omission will be mercifully forgiven, and (as in the case of Baptism) the will taken for the deed.

These, however, are extraordinary cases, and of rare occurrence within the pale of a Visible Church, such as it is our privilege to enjoy. Instead, therefore, of dwelling upon them at greater length, our time will be more profitably employed, in taking a practical view of the subject. Confining our attention at present to the LORD's Supper (of which the Passover, whose observance is enjoined in the text, was a type) we will inquire into the practice of the early Church, and the theory, at least, of our own Church, touching the duty of frequent communion.

If we look to primitive times and Apostolical authority, we shall find that the Holy Eucharist formed a constant part of the ordinary service. There is not, in fact, upon record, a single solemn stated assemblage of Christians for the purpose of Divine worship, in the whole of the New Testament, without it. When the Disciples met every day for prayer, they every day partook of the Holy Communion, "continuing daily with one accord in the Temple, and breaking bread