9. Ninthly, You must sanctify the Sabbath, hy managhig all the duties of the day ivifh inioard. reverence, seriousness, and spiritnahiess, John iv. 23, 24. It is the pleasure of God that we reverence his sanc- tuary : Lev. xix. 3U, ' Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.' Twice in this chapter the observation of the Sabbath is commanded, that it may be the better remembered, and that men may know that it is not enough to rest on that day, but that rest must be sanctified by a reverent management of all their soul- concernments in all our drawings ni":h to God. We must look that our hearts lie under a holy awe and dread of his presence. To the com- mandment of sanctifying God's Sabbath, this of reverencing his sanc- tuary is joined, because the Sabbaths were the chief times whereon they resorted to the sanctuary. Gen. xxviii. 16, 17.
The Jews made a great stir about reverencing the temple. They tell us that they were not to go in with a staff, nor shoes, not to spit in it, nor, when they went away, to turn their backs upon it, but go sidelong. But doubtless the great thing God points at and expects from his people's hands on this day is, that they do worship him with inward reverence, seriousness, and spiritualness. All other worship abstracted from this, will neither i)leasure God nor profit us: 1 Tim. iv. 8, ' For bodily exercise protiteth little.' Oh labour to be very spiritual in all the duties of this day ! Christ, the Lord of the Sabbath, was sj»iritual in his conception, in his life and conversation, in his death and ])assion, in his resurrection and ascension. He was spiritual in his words, in his works, in his ways, and in his worship ; and therefore let us labour to be very spiritual in all we do on that day, Luke i. 35, 36 ; Mat. iii. 16 ; John i. 32, and vi. 36 ; Heb. vii. 26, and ix. 14 ; 1 Tim. iii. 16. Again, all the ordinances of the day are spiritual, viz., the word, prayer, sacraments, singing of psalms, &c. ; and therefore we had need to be spiritual in all the services of that day. Again, the ends for which the Lord's day was appointed are all spiritual, viz., the glory of God, the illumination, conversion, and salvation of sinners, and the edification, confirmation, consolation of saints; and therefore we had need be spiritual in all the duties of the day, Eph. vi. 12. Again, the
ISA. XLII. 24, 25.] THE LATE FIERY DISPENSATION. 297
grand enemies that we are to encounter witli on this day are spiritual, sin within and Satan without ; and therefore we had need be spiritual in all we do. For there is no way to conquer spiritual enemies but l)y spiritual weapons and by spiritual exercises, 1 Cor. x. 13. Again, grace thrivies most and flourishes best in their souls who are most spiritual in their duties on the Lord's day. Again, the more spiritual any man is in his duties on the Lord's days, the more secured and armed he will be against all spiritual judgments, which are the sorest and dreadfullest of all judgments. Again, the more spiritual any man is in the duties of the Lord's day, the more that man acts like the angels in heaven, and like the spirits of just men made perfect, Heb. xii. 22, 23. Again, this will difference you from hypocrites, formalists, and all profane persons. An external observation of the Sabbath will difference you from heathens ; but a spiritual spending of the Sabbath. will difference you from hypocrites. A hypocrite never rises so high as to be spiritual in the Sabbaths of God, Luke xiii. 14, 15. Mark, Sabbaths spiritually spent are a sure sign of a sincere heart and of a saving estate, Exod. xxxi. 13. Now, oh that all these considerations might greatly provoke you, and mightily encourage you to be very spiritual on the Lord's day, and in all the duties of that day ! But,
10. Tenthly, You must sanctify the Sabbath, by heiiig s])iritual in all natural actions, and holy and heavenly in all earthly enjoyments, 1 Cor. X. 13. It is reported of a Scotch minister, that he did eat, drink, and sleep eternal life.i Luther tells us that though he did not always pray and meditate, but did sometimes eat and drink, and sometime sleep, yet all should further his account. That is a Christian worth gold that hath learned that heavenly art, so to spiritualise all his natural actions as that they shall turn to his account in the great day: Zech. xiv. 20, 21, 'In that day shall there be upon the bells,' or bridles, ' of the horses. Holiness unto the Lord. And the pots in the Lord's house shall be like the bowls before the altar ; yea, every pot in Jeru- salem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the Lord of hosts.' ^ Here is holiness written upon the bridles of the horses they ride on, and holiness written upon the cups and pots they drink in. A holy and heavenly heart will be holy in the use of the meanest things that are for common use. Something of sanctity should run through every piece of your civility. Something of the spirit, life, and power of religion you should shew in all parts of your common convei-sation on every day, but especially on the Lord's day. Tertullian, [Apolog.,] speaking of the carriage of the primitive Christians at their meals, saith,
1.] Our table resembleth an altar, and our supper a sacrifice.
2.] Our table hath nothing savouring of baseness, sensuality, or immodesty. We feed by measure, we drink by the rules of temperance.
[3.] We speak and converse as in the presence of God. Every one repeateth what he knoweth out of the Holy Scriptures, and his own in- vention, to the praise of God.
[4.] As prayer began the banquet, so prayer concludes it. If you
^ Probably Samuel Rutherford. — G.
* Calvin renders it 'stables of horses,' which are the most stinking and contemptible places; and yet these should be holily used.
298 London's lamentations on [Isa. XLII. 24, 25.
beheld us, j'oii would say that we were not at supper, but at a lecture oi holiness.
Should not the practice of these primitive Christians put all such Christians to a blush in our da}^, who on the Lord's day are so carnal in the use of spiritual things, and so earthly in the use of heavenly things ?
Tiuit is a memorable expression that you have in Exod. xviii. 12, ' And Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses' father-in-law before God.' See Deut. xii. 5,7 ; 1 Chron. xxix. 21,22. The word bread is used for all meat. Gen. iii. 19, and xxxi. 14. Now mark, in these words you have,
[1.] The greatness of their courtesy: for though Jethro was a stranger and no Israelite, yet the elders honoured him with their com- pany. ' And Aaron and all the elders came to eat bread with Moses his father-in-law.'