·General direflions for the 'Lords day. 571 Thankfgiving to the Joy and encouragement of believers, and in dcClrine fuircd to their tiate. And )'~t 1 mufiadd,that a skilfull Preacher will do both together, and fo declare the Love and Grace of our Redeemer, as by a meet application may both ·draw in the ungodly, aud CO\ntort thofe that are already fand:ified, and raife their hearts in Praifc to God. §· 4 . DirrCl:. 4• J(cmembcr that tlu LordJ day i1 apJfdinted JPeciaVy for p•blicl!,_ rvorfhip and pcr[on"l Di•·•U. 4· Communion of the Cburcbn therein: fee thert[Qrt th.Jt you fprnd at m'ttcb of the d ') tit .YoU can i11 tbM publick worjhip and Church-commun~on ; tJfeci~Uy i1t. the celebration of that Sacr~ment which i~ appoim·c.d for the memorial of the deatl; of Chrijt untzll bu commg, 1 Cor. 1 r. 25, 26. Th1s Sacr.1m:nt m the Prtmirive Church was c<:li!bratcd every Lords day;: yea and ofrcr ; cveu ordinnily on every other day of the week when the Churches aiTrmbled for Communion. And it might be fo 11ow without any hinderance tO Preaching or Pravcr if all things were ordered as they (hould be: f or thofe Prayers and infhuClions and exhortations which are moll fuited to this E.ucharifiical adion, would be the mol\: fuitable Prayers and Stnnons for the Church on [he Lords· dayes. -In the mean time tee that fo much of the day, as is fpent in Church-communion and publick worfhip, be accordingly improved by you; and -be not at that time about your fecret or fJ.mily fi:rvices; but take only thnf~ hours for {uch private duties, in which the Churchis not affcrnbicd. And remember how much the Loveof Saints is to be excrcifed in this CommuniOn; and therefore labour to keep alive that Love, withcut which ~Q man can celebrate the Lords day according to the end of the intlitution. 9· 5• Direct. 5· Vndcrftand boa-great a mer~}' it i~ tb~ yr;ubavdeavetluu to ~ait upo1z God for t/Jc receiving and exe~ci[e of grac~, and to caft off. the dijlra~l~g thoughts {llld bufi~t§ts of the world, and Direl1. )• what an opportunzty is- pm znto y rmr hand, to get more -zn one d..~y, th,.m thu world can ajfr;rd you aU your lives : And_ t~Jtrefore cr~me witiJ gladnt[i as '? _the receiving of fo great a mercy-, and n!ith dcfire Mfter it, ar.drctth hoptlo fpeed, and not WJtb unwzUmgncfi as to il11 un;Jeafaut taJJt, · aJ car;ul bi:arts tbilt Love not God, or his Grace or Ser-<~ice, anJ, art awu:ry of .,u they do.; and gl1d when it i1 done, aJ tbe Ox that i1 u;zyoakpi. Ifa. 58. 13, 14· If t!Jou turn an-ay thy foot from tbeSabb.Jth, ji-om doin7,. thy p!eafure on my boly day, and eaU the Sabbo~th a Dtllght, the holy of the Lord, honoutab[(; and jhalt bomur lrim, not doi1rg thine own wain, nor finding t!Jine own pleajiue, nor fPeakJng tiJine orrn n:ord 1 , then jhalt thou delight tby frlf in the· Lord-- The affeliion that you have to the Lords day much (hewc::th the tempcr of the heart. A holy perfon is ghd when it cometh, as loving it for the holy exercifes of the day : A wicked carnal heau is glad of it only for his carnal eare, but weny of the fpiritual duties. 9· 6. Dirett.. 6. Avoid b!lth the txtreaml· of Prophanentji ~Snd Superjlition in tbe p;itfl c{your ~- - • tCl'UiJl rtft: And (Q that end, Obferve, I· That the ~or'<. is not for t'be day, but the day tdr the • .:[)ircll. a. worlz: As Chritl faith, Muk 2. 27• 1he Sabbath wa1 made f.r man, and·nor malt for' th< Sabbat . It is appointed for ouj gqod, and not for our hurt. 2· The outtl.'~Srd refl. is not appointed for it . fcl[, but as a means to t.he freedom of the mi~d for inward and f~irirual.employments.: And therefore all thofeou~ward and common labour§ and d1fcourfes are unlawful, wh:dt'any waydlfhact the mind, and hin4er either our outward or inv.o:ard attendance upon God, and our edification. 3· And (whatever it was to the Jews ) no common ¥tords or attions are unlawful which are 110 hinderance to this commpnionand worlliip and fpiritual cdific:ation·. 4·· Yea thofe things that arc necc.ff&ry to the fupport of natm(, a,nd the faving of the Life or .health or <}late and goods of dur -ldves or cur neighbours ue netdful dtttits On that day: Not aU th.ofl! works which arc truly ciJaritablt (for it may be a work of mercy to build Hofpiuls, or make Garments for the poor, or Till their ground) but fuch works of mercy as cannot be put<>ff to ~nether .day._., and iuc:h as hinder not the duties o~che day. 5 The fame wm<l Or adion oo the Lords day which is unlawful to one· man, m:1y be l.awful to ~notht:r; as being no hindcrancc, yea aduty to him: As Chritl f1ith, The Prit_ffl ;,, the 'T'tmple break._orprophane the SabbJtb ( that i·s, the outward rcfl, but ~or the ~ommand) and ~Src blamdeji, Matth. 12. '5· ' :.\nd the Cook may lawfully be employed m drelhng meat, when it were a fin in anoth~.;r to do it voluntatil.y wirhout need. 6. The Lords d~y bdng m be kept as a day ,of Tf]ankfgiving, th.e drdling of fuch meat as is fttlora day of Thankfgiving isnot to b~ fcruplcd :· )"he primitive Chritlians in the Apofiles time, had their Love-feath conflandy ( with th,c J..ords Supper or after) on the Evening of the dq. And they could n6t fcajl without drdling rne:1r. 7· Ytt that which is lawful in it felf mull be fo done as confift:cth wirh care and 'ompaffion of the fouls of fervants that arc employed abouc ir, that they may ~e deprived of no more of their fpiritual bendic than ne<;:ds. 8. Alfo that which is /..mfitl mu!t fomctime~ Qe [orbor1t, when it may by fcandal tempt others that are luoli: or weak, ro do that which _is ~lflawful: not that the meer difple~S{;ng of the erroneous fhould put us out of the right way ;· but the fcandal which is fpoken againtl: in Scri~turc, is the l.tying a Tcrript.:ztion blfore mm that are weak._ to make them fin. 9· Take heed ot that bypocriJical and cenforicuJ rcmper Which turneth the h9ly obfervation of the day, into a Cer:monious abfiiocncc from lawful things; 2hd .cenfureth rhofe as ungodly that are not of the fame rnmd, and forbear not fuch thin;.s as weil as they. Mark the diffcrcilCe bcrw·een Chrifl and the Pharifees in this point : Much of thei~contendon with him 'Was about ~he outward obfcrvatiou of the Sabbath:, brcaufe his difcipks rubbed out Corn to eat on the Sapbnh day, and becaufe be healed on the Sabbath, and bid the 'hea'lcd man, '1skt up hu bed and wall!,_: And they faid, Thete are fix daycs in which men ought to work ; they might come and be healed on them. Lul!,_ 6.1, 5, 6. & I3· 12, 14, 15, 16. ] oh. 5· 17, 18. Mor~ 1. 21, 24. <_er 2. 2'h 24, 25, 26, 27. 28. & 3· 2, 3, 5· & 6. 2, s· Lul(,. t4. 1, 3, · 5• .6. Job. 5· 9, 10, t6. & 7· 22, 2), 24. & 9· 14, t6. and a man that isof thr.ir [pirit will think that tfe
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