SERMON IX.

1 COR. XI. 7.

Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse.

ST. PAUL addressed these words

to the Corinthians in reference to the great abuses which prevailed amongst them at the celebration of the Lord's Supper.

I shall first, therefore, endeavour to lay before you the nature of those abuses; after which I shall proceed to comment on the text, and the remaining part of the chapter from which it is taken; and then conclude with a few observations more exclusively applicable to ourselves.

Now, the early Christians at Corinth, in the time of St. Paul, had established certain feasts, at which all the brethren were in the habit of meeting for the purpose of cultivating their good will one towards another,

and testifying their gratitude towards their common Redeemer. These were called "Love-feasts;" and they usually preceded the celebration of the Lord's Supper.

In process of time (and it must have been very shortly after the establishment of Christianity amongst them), differences of opinion in matters of religion, perhaps, as well as other things, and separations from one another, on these and other grounds, began to prevail; so that, when they met at the table of the Lord, they divided themselves into various parties and distinct circles.

And, as it was customary for these parties to bring to this festival their own refreshments, so it happened that they began to lose sight of the nature of our Lord's institution; and some came to eat and drink as at a regular meal, hungry and thirsty for it; whilst others, from their needy circumstances bringing nothing, tasted not of the provision which elsewhere abounded.

Nor was this all. Eating and drinking were at last carried to great excess, and the

institution of Christ was grossly perverted to riot and drunkenness.

And now you will see what the faults were which St. Paul reproved ;-first, the schisms and consequent separating of themselves into different parties, as if they had no communion with one another; secondly, the making no distinction between the Lord's Supper and a common meal; and lastly, the profaning it by the sins of intemperance and drunkenness-sins which he would have reprehended at any time, and more especially on so solemn an occasion.

I now shall read to you the remainder of the chapter, which, if you bear in mind these remarks, will be very intelligible. You may, therefore, if you please, turn to it. "Now in this that I declare unto you, I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better but for the worse. (1 Cor. xi. 17.)

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For, first of all when ye come together in the Church, I hear that there be divisions among you, (such as I have described), and I partly believe it.

"For there must be also heresies among you"-schisms and separations from one another" that they which are approved may be made manifest among you"-that they who are real and sound Christians may be put to the test, and so be known by you.

"When ye come together, therefore, into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's Supper"-you do not conduct yourselves as you ought to do at this sacred service; "for in eating, every one taketh before other his own supper, and one is hungry and another is drunken.

"What! have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not"-that is, make the poor amongst you feel ashamed in not having food, that they may sit down at the table also. "What shall I say unto you? Shall I praise you in this? I praise you not."

"For I have received of the Lord that which I also delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread:

"And when he had given thanks he brake it, and said, Take, eat, this is my body which is broken for you; this do in remembrance of me.

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After the same manner, also, he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the New Testament in my blood; this do ye as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me :"

So that the bread was to represent his body, and be broken in sign of his crucifixion, and the cup, or wine rather, was to represent his blood shed on the cross as the new covenant between God and man.

"For as often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come"-ye commemorate his death till his return to the world again.

"Wherefore, whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily," as you indeed are now doing by your schisms, by your separations, by your making a common feast of it, and by your intemperance, "shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord"—shall be