II.

to be, as if we were among that bleffed Quire above, where St. John in his Vifion faw the four and twenty Elders falling down before him that fat on the Throne, and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever, and caft their Crowns before the Throne, Saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive Glory, and Honour, and Power; for thou hast created all things, and for thy Pleafure they are and were created, Rev. 4. 10, 11. And where fhould we imitate this bleffed and Heaven-like Harmony, if not at this Divine Solemnity, where we celebrate the memorial of our Redemption too? of our Redemption, I fay; the great work of God, a work fo worthy of God, fo ftupendious, fo full of the Riches of his Grace, that to be unconcern'd among the common Thanksgivings of the Church, muft needs be an Argument of a Mind very dull and infenfate, very deeply possest with a Spirit of Slumber.

4. WHEN you are now to receive the Divine Food, and Jefus, as it were, coming under your Roof, receive with all Humility; let every lofty imagination fall, and every Knee Bend: Not that we may adore the Sacramental Bread and Wine (that were Idolatry to be abhorred of all faithful Chriftians) but as an humble Profeffion of our own great unworthiness, and as a grateful

Ac

Acknowledgement of those infinite Mercies werewith God is pleased to crown us at this time, it is no more than what is decent and becoming us to be proftrate before him.

CHAP. XI.

Of Kneeling when People
Receive.

A

NY Reasonable and Humble Man may think, that of those few Ceremonies which are enjoyned in the Church of England, none can be lefs liable to Objections, than the posture of Kneeling at the Celebration of this Myftery, where we poor finful Wretches are to receive so many ftupendious Mercies at the hand of God. And yet confidering the Scruples which have been created in fome Peoples minds about this Ceremony, and that many have run away from this great Chriftian Ordinance, upon pretence that Kneeling is unlawful; I have thought it needful to infert here a fhort discourse, to undeceive well dif pofed Perfons as to this particular.

FOR

FOR your fatisfaction in this case, I muft lay down this principle, that whatfoever is unlawful, must be contrary to fome Law or other, either Moral or Po fitive, either Natural or Revealed. For a Man cannot be faid to do an unlawful action, if that which he doth be not against fome Rule: because Sin is the Tranf greffion of the Law, i Joh. 3. 4. So that where no Law is, there is no Tranfgreffion, faith St. Paul, Rom. 4. 15. And again, Sin is not imputed where there is no Law, Rom. 5. 13. If then the posture of Kneel ing when we receive the holy Sacrament, be unlawful, we must suppose it to be a Violation of fome Law; and then these three things must be supposed alfo.

1. THAT the Law against Kneeling (if there be any fuch) is plain. For every Law being the Rule of Action, of Neceffity it is required that it must be evident; because, otherwife we cannot know when we go right, or when we go wrong; which would be fo far from governing us, that it would hinder us from acting at all; because in all dark and doubtful cafes infinite Scruples must arife, which would render our Duty impracti cable. As for inftance; if it be faid that there is a Divine Law about receiving the Holy Sacrament in such or fuch pofture,

pofture, unless I can clearly discover and See the Law, it will be impoffible for me to tell what pofture I am to ufe ; and confequently I must be difcouraged from receiving at all; becaufe if I fhould, I must act wholly upon uncertainties, my Confcience being utterly unrefolved, whether I use the right or wrong posture. A Law must be difcernable and eafie to be found out, especially in this cafe, wherein all Christians whatfoever, both Learned and Unlearned, are equally concern'd.

2. IT must be fuppofed, that this Law lieth in fome pofitive Precept or other, or else is fetcht from fome leading and Authoritative Example. For confidering that every posture is indifferent in it felf, neither abfolutely neceffary, nor abfolute ly finful, it is impoffible to conceive how I fhould be determined and bound up to the use of one, rather than another, but by fome Command that peremptorily requires my Obedience, or by fome overruling Example that exacteth my imita tion. One of these things must be the Law in cafes of this nature; or else there can be none,

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3. IT must be fuppofed too, that this Law (whether it be grounded upon fome pofitive Precept, or upon Authoritative

Example)

Example) is clearly and evidently to be found in the Word of God. For, to make that unlawful, which the Word of God hath no where forbidden, is to fay in ef fect, that the Word of God is not the Rule we are to go by, that the Scriptures are fcanty and imperfect, as to the definitions of Good and Evil; that there is another Standard of our Duty over and above that Law of Liberty which is extant in the Bible, and that the great Law. giver of the World did not make fuffici ent Provifions for the Information and Government of Mens Confciences; and then the next thing is, that Men will fet up any pretence against the Law of Chrift, and call Evil, Good; and Good, Evil according as their Fancy is, and juft as the Humour takes them.

THESE three things being premifed, we now defire our Diffenting Brethren to fhew us where any Law against Kneeling at the Sacrament is plainly delivered in the whole Word of God. If they fay the thing is unlawful, when there is no Law against it, all their talk is nothing but an heap of Non-ferice. If they fuppofe fuch a Law, but cannot tell where to find it clearly, they ought to confider that doubtful Suppofitions and uncertain Conjectures are no Rules of Confcience, O 2

nor