earth and heaven. What encouragement has our divine Master. given us, to lift our souls to our Father in heaven, and spread our wants and our woes before him! He is more ready to give us all that we need, than we are to give good gifts to our children. Having, therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, and having a high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, and come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.' OF THE LORD'S SUPPER. 'Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake, and gave to the disciples, and said, take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, drink ye all of it; for this is my blood of the new Testament, (or Covenant) which is shed for many, for the remission of sins.' Matt. xxi. 26, 28. And they continued stedfastly in breaking of bread.' Acts ii. 42. 'And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them.' Acts xx. 7. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many, are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.' 1 Cor. x. 16. Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh condemnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.' 1 Cor. xi. 28, 29. For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come.' 1 Cor. xi. 26. These passages of holy truth teach : 1. That the ordinance of the supper is appointed as a per manent duty and privilege in the church, until our Lord shall come 'the second time without sin unto salvation.' 2. That the commemoration of the death of the Son of God, (which is the grand foundation of our hope of immortality) by the breaking of the loaf, was a principal object of the assembling of the disciples on the first day of the week. Every ordinance of Jesus is important. No other, however, is so particularly expressed to have been a special object of their assembling as this. It is not recorded, (as modern practice would require) that when Paul preached to the church at Troas, he administered the Lord's supper; but, that when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached to them. Though they had an apostle for their preacher, the distinguishing object of their meeting was to celebrate the Saviour's love in the appropriate institute. The passage 1 Cor. xi. 20 confirms this, and shows that the professed object of the church coming together was to eat the Lord's supper, although the carnal manner in which they ate and drank, was not recognized by the apostle as an observance of the ordinance. How inconsistent, then, is the modern practice of many churches, who come together every first day of the week, and yet neglect so frequently, the chief object for which the first churches assembled on that day. When we read, that they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine, in fellowship, in breaking of bread, and in prayers;' that they came together on the first day of the week, to break bread, and consider the manifest import of 1 Cor. xi. 20, 33, we learn : 3. That it is the duty and privilege of disciples to observe this ordinance every first day of the week.' If from the above considerations, this does not appear to be a duty, in vain do we attempt to prove the observance of any particular ordinance on every first day of the week. When we hear of a church observing the supper on the first Lord's day in the month; we at once conclude, it is their custom to do so every first Lord's day in the month. So when we read that the first churches came together to break bread on the first day of the week, we cannot with any propriety, avoid the conclusion that this was their constant practice. Acts ii. 46, refers to the daily ministration of food, and not to the Lord's supper. See Acts xxvii. 35. 4. The direction, (1 Cor. xi. 33) When ye come together to eat, tarry one for another,' teaches us that they attended to this ordinance soon after they were assembled. This, indeed, comports with the truth already established, that to eat the supper was a special object of their assembling. It is surely objectionable to adopt an order, which places the distinguishing object of meeting, altogether in the back ground; and which conveys the impression, that the chief object of meeting is to hear the bishop preach. 5. We learn from the new Testament, that is the duty of the churches to break bread, although they may be destitute of officers. It is the duty of the churches to appoint elders and deacons as soon as they can, and it is the duty of elders to preside in all ordinances; but the disciples are not debarred by any part of Scripture, from enjoying Christian ordinances, nor exempted from the duty of observing them, on account of the absence of officers. It is an important principle, that officers, whether in church or in state, are not appointed, because we have no right to religious or civil privileges without them, but because we can enjoy those rights and privileges better with them. The supper is one of the stated ordinances delivered to the churches. 1 Cor. xi. 23. If they are justified in neglecting this ordinance, when they have no elder, it must be, either because it is impracticable, or because they are prohibited in the word of the Lord, in such circumstances. The former will not be pretended; a brother may be appointed to preside, and give thanks, or call upon some brother to give thanks for 'the unspeakable gift' of divine love. In vain, will the most zealous advocate for clerical dignity search the new Testament for a prohibition in this case. We have no more scriptural authority to make the presence of a bishop, or deacon, essential to the observance of the supper, than to make it essential to the observance of the ordinances of prayer, exhortation, or praise. The emblems of the body and blood of our blessed Lord, need no consecrating virtue from official voice or hands, to enable two or three disciples to say, the bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? The cup which we bless, (or for which we bless God) is it not the communion of the blood of Christ?' Some call for precept, or example, or explicit declaration.' They may as well demand the same to justify the churches assembling to pray, or read the scriptures, without elders. There is none of all these to prove, that even the bishop himself should preside in this ordinance.* We do not need them, because we know that he is the ruler, and therefore must preside in every thing.' As plainly do we learn, that it is the duty of the churches to observe ALL ordinances in the best manner they can, if destitute of bishops, unless the apostles have made an exception. If Jesus Christ, by them, has made no exception, we have no right to make any. Alas! to what an incalculable extent have the children of God been deprived of the rich provisions of their Father's *That Acts xx. 11. refers to the apostle's eating for his own refreshment, just before his departure, and not to the ordinance, appears from the following considerations: 1. The eating is stated to be simply the individual act of the apostle. 2. It was then the second day of the week, as the day ended at six in the evening. 3. 1 Cor. xi. 33. teaches that they observed the ordinanec at the commencement, and not at the close of their meeting. house, by the corrupting and degrading usurpations of ambitious lords over God's heritage! When, Christian brethren, shall we return to the simplicity which is in Christ?' OF READING THE SCRIPTURES, TEACHING AND And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.' Col. iv. 16. I charge you, by the Lord, that this Epistle be read unto all the holy brethren.' 1 Thes. v. 27. Give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.' Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another.' 'Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.' For as we have 6 1 Tim. iv. 13. Let the word of many members in one body, and all members have not the same office; so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts, differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our ministering; or he that teacheth on teaching; or he that exhorteth on exhortation.' Rom. xii. 4, 8. These, and numerous other passages, teach us (in accordance with the prayer of our ascended Redeemer, 'sanctify them through thy truth,') the great importance of divine truth dwelling in us richly in all wisdom, that our love may abound in all knowledge, that [we] may approve things which are excellent, and be sincere, and without offence, until the day of Christ. These, and similar passages, also teach us the means which divine wisdom has appointed for this important end : |