comes with a defign or intention of continuing in his former fins, may most properly be compared to Judas, who came and received, and at the fame time continued his refolution of betraying his master.

3. If then, my foul, we refolve to live in the conftant and habitual practice of any known fin, without the leaft defire or intention of amendment, we shall be unfit to receive the holy facrament; and our approach to the holy table, no doubt, will be to eat and drink our own damnation, fince it is a plain mocking of God, and a great contempt and abufe of his divine authority. We muft, therefore, (by the help and affiftance of God's grace) refolve to lead a new life, following the commandments of God: for thus we read in the word of God, he that covereth his fins fhall not profper, but whofe confeffeth, and forfaketh them, thall have mercy. Let the wicked man forfake his ways, and the unrighteous man man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, and he will abundantly pardon.

4. If any man, fays the apostle, be in Chrift, he is a new creature; and, on the conif we ftill continue in our finful ways, trary, if we ftill join with wicked company, and

are

are as yet delighted with immodeft objects, and irreligious books, or difcourfe, we may be fure that our former examinations were but flight and fuperficial, our fight and fenfe of fin trivial and indifferent, our forrow and contrition of fpirit forced and hypocritical, and our confeffions formal and odious in the fight of God.

5. Remember then the direction of the holy apoftle, and let me refolve as he advifes, faying, Let them that fole, fieal no more: If I have been guilty of lying, flandering, fwearing, blafphemy, drunkennefs, intemperance, or impurity, I will henceforward ftudy to speak the truth, and to avoid thofe fins, and all occafions of falling into them, and be continually. upon my guard against all the prevailing. and ufual temptations to them.

P The Hymn for Wednesday Evening..
The character of a worthy communicant.

HE fall afcend thy heav'nly place,

Great God! and dwell before thy face, Who here minds thy religion now, And humble zvalks with God below;

Whofe hands are pure, whofe heart is clean, Whofe lips till Speak the thing they mean;

H 3

No

No flanders dwell upon his tongue;
He hates to do his Neighbour wrong.
Scarce will he truft an ill report,
Nor vent it to his Neighbour's hurt:
Sinners of state he can defpife,
But faints have honour in his eyes.
Firm to his word he ever flood,
And always makes his promife good;
Nor dares to change the thing he fweurs,
Whatever pain or lofs he bears.

He never deals in bribing gold,
And mourns that Juftice fhould be fold:
While others gripe and grind the poor,
Sweet Charity attends his door.
He loves his enemy, and prays
For thofe that curfe him to his face :
And doth to all men ftill the fame,
That he would wish or hope from them.
Yet when his holiest works are done,
His foul depends on grace alone.
This is the man thy face fhall fee,
And dwell for ever, Lord, with thee.

The Prayer on Wednesday Evening. For a full purpose of amendment and to lead a new life. God! the great creator, gracious preferver, and wife governor of the world, I thy unworthy fervant, falling

O

down

down before thee, at this time, to prefent my prayers and fupplications before the throne of grace, admire and adore the incomprehenfible perfections of thy nature, and gratefully acknowledge thy marvellous and undeferved goodness to me and all creatures.

I have nothing, O Lord, but what I received from thee; thou gavest me my being, and didft make me in a capacity to know, and ferve, and enjoy thee for ever. And out of the fame infinite bounty and goodness, thou haft continued to me the being which thou at first gaveft me, and haft delivered me from a multitude of evils, which might have juftly befallen me, and beftowed mercies and favours both upon my foul and body more than I can number.

O Lord, I now do not only with great fhame and confufion of face confefs and bewail the finfulness and vanity of my whole life, but I do steadfastly refolve and purpose (through the affiftance of thy grace and Holy Spirit directing me) to renounce the devil and all his works, the pomps and vanities of this wicked world, and all the finful lufts of the flesh. Be pleafed, O Lord, to ftrengthen and confirm thefe good refolutions in me. And I heartily thank thee, O heavenly Father,

for

for calling me to the ftate of falvation through Jefus Chrift, my Saviour, who died for my fins, and rofe again for my juftification; and I humbly befeech thee, for his fake, to give me grace to continue in the fame unto my life's end.

Oh! that I could fay I had made returns to thee, my God, in any measure fuitable to the benefits which I have received from thee: but, alas! I must with fhame acknowledge, that I have been guilty of great ingratitude toward thee, the fountain of all good; I have been an unprofitable and unworthy fervant, and have neither loved thee, ferved thee, nor obeyed thee, as I ought to have done; therefore it is owing to thy infinite goodnefs, that I have now an opportunity of humbling myself before thee."

O let thy goodness and forbearance lead me, O Lord, to a true and unfeigned repentance of all my fins; and for the fake of thy beloved Son, (in whom alone thou art well pleafed,) ipare me, O good Lord, fpare me, and be not angry with me for all wath away my fins in that fountain which thou haft opened for fin and uncleanness, that nothing may interpofe between thy mercy and my poor foul. Lay not to my charge, O moft merciful God! the fins which I have this day committed;

ever;