in holiness before him, is to apprehend him as infinitely advanced above the whole creation, and to come with hearts that are separated from common things to him, and elevated above a common frame. A common frame in worship (such as we have about our common business) is mere profaneness. If it be common it is unclean. Look to your feet when you go to the house of God, Eccl. v. 1. Put off the shoes of earthly, common, unhallowed affections, whenever you tread on holy ground, that is, when you are about holy work, and when you draw near the holy God. In reverent adoration say as Jacob, "How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven," Gen. xxviii. 17. See Isa. vi. 1, 3, 5.
Direct. VIII. In the worship of God, remember your communion with the holy angels, and with all the hosts of heaven.7 You are the servants of the same God, and though you are yet far below them, you are doing that which tendeth towards their dignity; for you must be equal with them. Your work is partly of the same kind with theirs: it is the same holy Majesty that you admire and praise, though you see him yet but as in a glass. And the angels are some of them present with you, and see you, though you see not them: 1 Cor. xi. 10, you are commanded to respect them in your behaviour in God's worship. If the eye of faith were so far opened, as that in all your worshipping of God, you saw the blessed companies of angels, though not in the same place and manner with you, yet in the same worship and in communion with you, admiring, magnifying, extolling, and praising the most glorious God, and the glorified Redeemer, with flaming, fervent, holy minds, it would sure do much to elevate your souls, and raise you up to some imitation or resemblance of them.8 You find that in God's public worship, it is a great help to the soul, in holy cheerfulness and fervour, to join with a full assembly of holy, fervent, cheerful worshippers: and that it is very difficult to the best, to keep up life and fervent cheerfulness in so small, or ignorant, or profane a company, as where there is no considerable number to concur with us. Oh then, what a raising help would it be, to praise God as within the sight and hearing of the heavenly praises of the angelical choir! You see how apt men are to be conformed to the company that they are in. They that are among dancers, or gamesters, or tipplers, or filthy talkers, or scorners, or railers, are apt to do as the company doth, or at least to be the more disposed to it. And they that are among saints, in holy worship or discourse, are apt to imitate them much more than they would do in other company. And what likelier way is there, to make you like angels in the worshipping of God, than to do it as in the communion of the angels? and by faith to see and hear them in the concert? The angels disdain not to study our studies, and to learn "by the church the manifold wisdom of God," Eph. iii. 10; 1 Pet. i. 12. They are not so far from us, nor so strange to us and our affairs, as that we should imagine ourselves to be out of their communion. Though we may not worship them, Col. ii. 18, we must worship as with them.
Direct. IX. Take special care to the matter of your worship, that it be such as is agreeable to the will of God, to the holiness of his nature, and the directions of his word; and such as hath a promise of his acceptance. Offer him not the sacrifice of fools, who know not that they do evil, and are adding to their sins, while they think they are pleasing him. Bring no false fire unto his altars: let your zeal of God be according to knowledge. For no zeal will make a corrupt, unlawful kind of worship, to be acceptable unto God.9
Direct. X. See that you perform every part of worship to the proper end to which it is appointed; both as to the ultimate, remote, and nearest end. The end is essential to these relative duties. If you intend not the right end, you make another thing of it: as the preaching of a sermon to edify the church, or putting up a prayer to procure God's blessings, is not the same thing as a stage-player's profane repeating the same words in scorn of godliness, or an hypocrite's using them for commodity or applause. The ultimate end of all worship and all moral actions is the same, even the pleasing and glorifying God, 1 Cor. x. 31; 2 Tim. ii. 4.10 Besides which every part of worship hath its proper, nearest end. These must not only be distinctly known, but actually intended. It is God in Christ that a holy worshipper thirsteth after and seeketh for in every part of worship, either to know more of God, and of his will, and blessings; or to have some more communion with him, or some further grace communicated from him, to receive his pardoning, or cleansing, or quickening, or confirming, or comforting, or exalting grace; to be honoured or delighted in his holy service, or to make known his grace and glory for the good of others, and the honour of his name.11 Here it is that God proclaimeth his name, as Exod. xxxiv. 6. The ordinances of God's worship are like the tree in which Zaccheus climbed up (being of himself too low) to have a sight of Christ. Here we come to learn the will of God for our salvation; and must enter the assembly with such resolutions as Cornelius and his company met, Acts x. 33, "We are all here met to hear all things commanded thee of God: " and as Acts ii. 37, and Acts xvi. 30, to learn what we must do to be saved. Hither we come for that holy light, which may show us our sin, and show us the grace which we have received, and show us the unspeakable love of God, till we are humbled for sin, and lifted up by faith in Christ, and can with Thomas, as it were, put our fingers into his wounds, and say in assurance, "My Lord and my God: " and as Psal. xlviii. 14, "This God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death." Here we do as it were with Mary sit at the feet of Jesus, to hear his word, Luke x. 39, that fire from heaven may come down upon our hearts, and we may say, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he spake to us, and while he opened to us the Scriptures?" Luke xxiv. 32. Here we cry to him as the blind man, Mark x. 51, "Lord, that I may receive my sight." We cry here to the watchmen, Cant. iii. 3, "Saw ye him whom my soul loveth." Here we are in his "banqueting house," under the "banner of his love," Cant. ii. 4. We have here the sealing and quickenings of his Spirit, the mortification of our sin, the increase of grace, and a prospect into eternal life, and a foresight of the endless happiness there. See then that you come to the worship of God with these intentions and expectations; that if God or conscience call to you, (as God did sometime to Elias,) "What dost thou here?" you may truly answer, I came to seek the Lord my God, and to learn his will that I might do it. And that your sweet delights may make you say, Psal. lxxxiv. 4, "Blessed are they that dwell in thy house, they will be still praising thee." If thou come to the worship of God in mere custom, or to make thy carnal heart believe that God will forgive thee because thou so far servest him, or to quiet thy conscience with the doing of a formal task of duty, or to be seen of men, or that thou mayst not be thought ungodly, if these be thy ends, thou wilt speed accordingly. A holy soul cannot live upon the air of man's applause, nor upon the shell of ordinances, without God who is the kernel and the life of all: it is the love of God that brings them thither, and it is love that they are exercising there, and the end of love, even the nearer approach of the soul to God, which they desire and intend. Be sure then that these be the true and real intentions of thy heart.
How to know that we have the right ends in worship.
Quest. But how shall I know whether indeed it be God himself that I am seeking, and that I perform his worship to the appointed ends?
Answ. In so great a business it is a shame to be unacquainted with your intentions. If you take heed what you do, and look after your hearts, you may know what you come for, and what is your business there. But more particularly, you may discern it by these marks: 1. He that hath right ends, and seeketh God, will labour to suit all his duties to those ends, and will like that best which is best suited to them; he will strive so to preach, and hear, and pray, not as tends most to preferment or applause, but as tendeth most to please and honour God, and to attain his grace; and he will love that sermon or that prayer best, that is best fitted to bring up his soul to God, and not that which tickleth a carnal ear. Mark what you fit the means to, and you may perceive what is your end. 2. If it be God himself that you seek after in his worship, you will not be satisfied without God: it is not the doing of the task that will satisfy you, nor yet the greatest praise of men, no not of the most godly men; but so far as you have attained your end, in the cleansing, or quickening, or strengthening of the soul, or getting somewhat nearer God, or pleasing or honouring him, so far only you will be contented. 3. If God be your end, you will be faithful in the use of that
Luke xx. 36; see Eccl. v. 5; Psal. cxxxviii. 1; Isa. vi. 2.
See Mr. Ambrose's book of Communion with Angels; and Zanchy on the same subject: and Mr. Lawrence's and Dr. Hammond's Annotat. on 1 Cor. xii.
Adulterium est, impium est, sacrilegium est, quodcunque humano furore instituitur, ut dispositio Divina violetur. Cyprian. Eccl. v. 1, 2; Lev. x. 1-3; Rom. x. 2, 3.
1 Thess. ii. 4; Col. i. 10; John viii. 29; 1 Cor. vii. 32; Heb. xi. 6; 1 John iii. 22.
Psal. xlii.; lxxxiv.
