No. V. PRAYERS to be used in Preparation for the SACRAMENT, from Bishop WILSON. A Prayer for retaining a grateful Remembrance of what Christ has done for us in the Divine Institution of the Lord's Supper. OJESUS! who hast loved us, and washed us from our sins, and redeemed us by thy blood, and didst ordain this Sacrament, as a grateful remembrance of what thou hast done and suffered for us, make me truly sensible of thy love, and of our sad condition, which required so great a sacrifice! May I always receive this pledge of thy love, the offers of mercy, pardon, and grace, tendered to us in this holy ordinance, with a thankful heart, and in remembrance of Thee, our great and best be2A2 nefactor; nefactor; in remembrance of thy holy example, of thy heavenly doctrine! of thy laborious life, of thy bitter passion and death, of thy glorious resurrection, of thy ascension into Heaven, and of thy coming again to judge the world! And may I never forget the obligation thou hast laid upon us, to live as becomes thy disciples; and to forsake every course of life contrary to thy gospel: Cease not, O Lord, to love us; and by thy grace vouchsafed in this ordinance, cause us to love Thee with all our hearts. Amen. A Prayer for Repentance. BLESSED be God, who by his grace, and by the voice of his church, hath called me to repentance! Grant, O thou Searcher of Hearts, that I may know, and confess, and forsake the sins I have fallen into. Give me that true repentance, to which thou hast promised mercy and pardon, that I may amend where I have done amiss, and that iniquity may not be my ruin. And, O blessed advocate! who ever livest to make intercession for us, let thy blood and merits plead for me, and by thy mighty intercession procure for me the pardon of ny past offences! That thou may'st say unto me in this holy Sacrament, as thou didst unto the penitent in the Gospel, THY SINS ARE FORGIVEN THEE!" Amen. A Prayer for Faith in God's Mercy. I BESEECH thee, O God! by that love which moved thee to give thine own Son for lost mankind, give me a faith in thy promises for his sake, as firm as thy word, on which my faith is grounded: and let me never presume upon thy gracious promises, without sincerely endeavouring to perform the conditions on which they were made, and without being zealous of good works for which we were redeemed. May the remembrance of our Saviour's love, and of thy great mercy, be ever seasonably present with me, to keep me from despair! And may my faith in thy promises support me in the hour of death: May my Redeemer be my refuge, his blood and merits plead for me, that I may have 2A3 have my lot and portion with those whom he hath purchased with his most precious blood! Amen. A Prayer for true Charity, and Love of all Mankind. "THIS is my commandment that ye "love one another, as I have loved you." Hear, O my soul, what thy Saviour has commanded thee; he who loved us, and gave himself an offering and a sacrifice to God for us. May this thy love, O Jesus! be the motive and pattern of my love, and charity for all mankind! Where this hath not been my practice, I implore thy gracious, pardon; and beseech thee to fortify my soul against all suggestions of Satan, or my corrupt nature, and blind passions that I may always be prepared to go to thine altar, with the same charitable dispositions with which I desire to die! Thou, O Jesus! madest thine enemies thy friends, by laying down thy life for them. Be thou my advocate with God for grace to follow thy heavenly charity and and example, that I may overcome evil with good; that I, and all the members of thy unnumbered family, may love as brethren that we who are now going to thy table may always meet as sincere friends, and part with true love and affection, as becomes thy disciples. Amen. : A Prayer for worthily receiving the Grant, O God! that I may never draw down thy judgments upon myself, either by turning my back upon this ordinance, or by going to it without thought, and unworthily. May thy mercy pardon what is past, and give me grace, for the time to come, to consecrate my life to thee, and to embrace every occasion of remembering my Redeemer's love, and thereby securing thy favor, and my own salvation! And, if it be thy will, grant that I may always find such comfort and benefit in this ordinance, as may encourage me to observe it with joy unto my life's end! Permit me, gracious Lord, humbly to recommend to thine infinite mercy the miserable 2A4 |