A SERMON CONCERNING Public Worship, Preached before the QUEEN, ON Wednesday the 23d of March, 1691/2. By Thomas Manningham D. D. Chaplain in Ordinary to Their Majesties, and Rector of St. Andrew Holborn. Published by Her Majesty's Special Command. LONDON: Printed for W. Crook at the Green Dragon without Temple-Bar, and S. Smith at the Prince's Arms in St. Paul's Churchyard. 1692. Dr. MANNINGHAM's SERMON Before the QUEEN, AT WHITEHALL, March the 3d, 1691/2. Isaiah LVI. and the latter part of the 7th Verse. — Mine House shall be called an House of Prayer to all People. IT may not be improper, for our better understanding of these words, to reflect upon some few things relating to that Great and Magnificent Temple which King Solomon built unto the Lord. 1. That althô that Temple was erected to serve chief for the Ceremonial Worship among the Jews, yet the building of a Temple to God was no part of Ceremonial Duty. There were always, even from the Creation of the World, set and appointed places for the more Solemn Worship of God: That which was commanded in the * Deut. xii. 5, 11. Law concerning this matter, was consonant to the Light of Nature, and the same that Religion taught all Mankind to observe: for a main part of the External Acknowledgement of God, is by dedicating of Altars and Temples to him, and by separating of Places for his peculiar Service. The Design of Building a Temple to the Almighty, entered first into King David's * 2 Sam. seven. 2. Heart, from an Instinct and Principle of Natural Religion, and from an ardent desire of leaving some standing Testimony of the Extraordinary Devotion of his Soul; but the actual performance of that glorious Design was reserved, by the * V 13. immediate Appointment of God, for the more peaceable and quiet Reign of King Solomon. 2. When Solomon Dedicated that Temple to the Lord, he took especial care to prevent all unworthy and idolatrous Thoughts concerning God, that the Minds of the Jews might not be possessed with any such gross Conceptions as the Heathen entertained concerning their Temples, which they generally esteemed as a sort of Confinement to their Gods: 1 Kings viij. 27. whereas Solomon asks, Will God indeed dwell upon the Earth? behold the Heaven, and the Heaven of Heavens cannot contain Thee! how much less this House which I have builded? All that he intended and desired, was, That God would have respect unto the Prayers and Supplications, and the Religious Duties that were performed in that place, V 28, 29. and That his Eyes might be open towards that House day and night. 3. Solomon did not beg That God would regard only the Prayers and Supplications of the Jewish Nation, when either they Worshipped in or towards that Temple; but his concern reached further, even to the Stranger * V 43. and to All the People of the Earth. Accordingly there was a particular place of Worship appointed for the use of the Strangers amongst them, which was called The Court of the Gentiles: And this was the place where the Buyers and Sellers, and Money-changers sat, whom our Saviour drove out with an exceeding Transport of Zeal, making use of this Text, and adding to it another passage out of the Prophet * Chap. seven. 11. Matth. xxi. 13. Jeremiah, Mine House shall be called an House of Prayer, but ye have made it a Den of Thiefs. The Jews were too Zealous a sort of People to suffer any such profanation of That part of the Temple in which their own Worship was performed; but as to That, which was allowed to the Strangers, they looked upon It as profaned already by the very Worshippers themselves, and that nothing could well defile it more. But our Saviour, to show that the Ceremonial Worship was now to expire, and that the Nations were to be received into his Kingdom, exercised a most surprising and extraordinary act of Zeal in Their behalf; and required as much Reverence for the Court of the Gentiles, as they did for the most Sacred part of the Temple. It is here called an House of Prayer and not of Sacrifice; because Prayer is an Universal Duty, the chief and most eminent part of Religious Worship, and without which Sacrifice itself was not accepted. An House of Prayer to All people; whereby the extent of This Duty was signified, and how suitable it was that God should be worshipped by all people, and all Nations, as The Great Lord of Heaven and Earth, as The God of the Gentiles, as well as the Jews: that his Honour should be made known throughout all the world, and that he should be acknowledged and served in as Public a manner as the Circumstances of Mankind could admit. The Text being thus opened and explained, is capable of affording great variety of Matter; either for justifying the Sacredness of Religious places, and the Reverence that is due unto them; or for enlarging on the Nature of Prayer, and showing the Excellency of that Duty: But because by Prayer in this place we are to understand the whole Body of Religious Duties, consisting of Prayers, Praises, Thanksgivings, Sacraments, and Dedications of ourselves to God, which altogether make up our Spiritual Sacrifice; and because this Duty is here extended to All People, to All Nations, to signisie the most public and solemn performance of it: Therefore the only thing which I shall endeavour from these words, shall be to lay before you some Considerations in order to raise your esteem for the public Worship of God, to encourage your Constancy in it, and to increase your delight and joy in that most acceptable Service. And this I take to be a very seasonable Subject in this Holy Week which the Church has thought fit to distinguish from the rest of the Lent, by a peculiar enlargement of her Public Devotions. The many unreasonable Exceptions that have been made against our Form of Worship; The placing the main of Religion in the Hearing of Sermons; and the fanciful opinion of some, that they can serve God as acceptably at Home, as in the Church; have very much lessened that Zeal among many, which is due to that Worship which is performed in the Public Assemblies. But I shall endeavour to make it appear, That the best Homage, which we can pay to God, is that which is most Public; and that the best part of Religion is that, which we exercise in Common with united Hearts and Voices in full and solemn Congregations. I. This is the way of giving the greatest Honour to God. It is but a poor and a very unworthy sort of Honour, which we, the lowest of all Rational Creatures, such Rational Creatures as are united to corruptible Bodies, which depress and clog the Soul, are able to pay to our great Creator: But if we take care to glorify Him according to those Abilities he has given us, and according to that Manner he has prescribed unto us, he will accept of our sincere Homage, though it be but a mean Sacrifice, and will make us capable of Adoring him hereafter in a more Perfect way. He has several Orders of Pure and Spiritual Being's to glorify him with the immediate Adoration of their Minds; but we are confined to Bodies, and must give him glory, as he has made us capable of giving it: we must declare his Greatness and his Goodness to one another, and give outward Testimonies of the inward sense we have of his Perfections, of his Majesty, of his Power, and of his Mercy. Now to do this in the most Public manner is the way of giving the greatest Honour to God, and is a Veneration most suitable to the Majesty of him we Adore. When a Multitude of People meet together to Worship the Almighty, and to set forth his Praises; it makes some little Figure of Heaven, it raises our Minds to more magnificent Conceptions of God, and more fully represents him to us as the Governor of the World: Whereas, if we look upon him, as only intending our private Interest, as busied only to serve our present wants, we may be thought to conceive of him, rather as an Idol, than as that Infinite Being, whose Care and Providence are extended to the concerns of the whole Creation. To Worship God truly, is to make him known to be the Lord of the Universe, the Common Parent, Preserver, and Benefactor of all Mankind; and therefore, Public Assemblies are the best signification of his glorious Perfections, and vast Dominion: for They are a Visible expression of the greatness of God, they enlarge our Idea of him, and make us more sensible of his Majesty, than words and language can do. They who cannot use their Minds to any abstracted ways of Thinking, may be wonderfully confirmed and heightened in their Acknowledgements and Thoughts of a Deity, when they see how the Learned and the Rich, and the Honourable, and the greatest Persons upon the Earth, do bow and kneel before their Maker, and humble themselves in the Dust of the Sanctuary to witness their profound Veneration of an Infinite Wisdom, Power, and Goodness. What becoming Thoughts and Affections towards God must this needs inspire into the Multitude, when they shall observe those, whose Knowledge and Judgement, whose Virtues and Excellencies they exceedingly admire, to behave themselves most Reverently and Devoutly in the Presence of God? What Excuse can they have to neglect that Religion which they plainly perceive to be in such high esteem with those of the greatest Place and Dignity, and of the clearest repute for Wisdom and Piety? What Desire, what holy Ambition must it raise in the Common People, to appear often in the Place of Divine Worship, and to make up the great Congregation; that they may mingle themselves with the Noble and Wise, and be equal Worshippors with them, of the same God, and the same Mediator? II. The Nature of Religion is such, that it especially requires a Public Exercise. That which makes all our Actions religious, is the performing them in Obedience to God, and with an Intention of his Glory; whatever the particular Duties are in which we are engaged, whether they immediately respect our Neighbours or ourselves, if the chief Motive of doing them be derived from the Will and Pleasure of God they are a Religious Service. But what we more properly call Religion, is that which has an immediate Respect to God, and is directly intended for the promoting of his Glory; and the most eminent part of this Religion, is the Public Service of the Church, which is still more eminently so, as it is more Public and Solemn, because more becoming the Honour and Greatness of him we Worship. This Religious Service is a Natural Debt which we own to God, as we are his Creatures; and had we continued Innocent, would have principally consisted in Praises and Thanksgivings, and high Admirations of God's Power and Wisdom and Bounty! But since we are in a Fallen Condition, and a State obnoxious to the displeasure of God, there is a Necessity of glorifying him by an humble Confession of our Sins, and an earnest Importunity for Pardon and Forgiveness. And this can never, be so Acceptable, as when it is Public; for by that means we take more shame to our, selves by making a more Solemn Acknowledgement of our guilt, and we give more glory to God by our open Confessions and Humiliations. Most of the Psalms of David were designed to a Public end, and to make up the Service of the Congregation: and he himself reckons it as one of the more bitter Afflictions of his Life, that the Troubles of his Kingdom sometimes banished him from the Public Service of God: For though we have no reason to doubt but so Religious a Person maintained a continual intercourse with God by way of private Prayer; yet the Solemn Service of the Sunctuary was that in which the Honour of God was so signally acknowledged and displayed, and his Name so eminently glorified, that nothing else could properly carry the Title of Divine Worship among the Jews: and therefore in their Captivity, whenever they made their private Addresses to God, they directed themselves towards Jerusalem, where the Temple of the Lord was founded. Our blessed Saviour, in the Reformation he made of Religion, was most tender of the Honour of his Father, and took nothing from the Public Worship that did any way conduce to his Glory. He put an end to the repeated Sacrifices of Beasts, by fulfilling what they signified, in offering up his own Body, once for all, upon the Cross; and leaving to the Church that Alsufficient Sacrifice of himself for their perpetual Commemoration. He taught that God was to be worshipped in Spirit and in Truth; St. John iv. 24. not in the least to derogate from the Public Worship of God, but to show that the Typical Service was within a while to cease, and that the Heart and Inward Affections were always to accompany the External Worship. He gave an especial Command for Secret Prayer, St. Matth. vi. 6. because there was no need at that time of Exhorting to the Public Worship, which was then sufficiently frequented, and in which the Hypocrisy, of that Age did so much Reign. And besides, by that Precept of his, he tacitly reproved the Ostentation of the Pharisees, which was so notorious in all their Public Devetions. Our Saviour was so far from Discountenancing the Public Service of Religion, that he came to remove the Jewish Confinement, and to make way for all the Nations of the Earth, to come in and glorify God with one Heart, and with one Voice. Wherefore our Christianity does consist in serving God as Parts of the Body of Christ, and in a Joint and Festival Commemorating of the exceeding great Blessing of our Common Redemption. Had an Inward Faith, and a Private Devotion been sufficient to have carried Christians to Heaven, they would never have Assembled together in the hottest Times of Persecution, when their Meetings exposed them so much to the Observation and Rage of their Enemies: But they very well knew than Christ had required an open Confession and Acknowledgement of his Religion from all his Followers, and had made it their Duty to keep up a constant Communion with him, and with one another in the Public Offices of Divine Worship; and that to be excluded that Public Worship, upon the account of any notorious Crime, was so dreadful a punishment, that it was no less than an Anticipation of the Future Judgement of the last Day, when the Wicked shall be Eternally separated from all Communion with the Righteous. Christians are not to look upon themselves as single Persons, of distinct and separate Interests; but they are to consider themselves as Members of the same Mystical Body, as Parts of the same Spiritual Society; that they are Redeemed as a Church, and are to glorify God as a Church; that their chief, Blessings are those they enjoy in Common, and that no Private Devotions are acceptable to ●od, when set in opposition to the Public. ●o●●…ny indeed, say what we can to the con●●●●…, are apt to suppose themselves good Christians, barely by Believing in Christ, and by Praying in private; but they would do well to consider, that the Carechumen of old, or those, who were but in a preparation for their Baptism, were accounted Believers, were taught their Creed, and instructed how to pray, before they were admitted into the Christian Union, or into the Society of the Church by way of Baptism; and before they were made Partakers of those Privileges which Christ has purchased for such, who serve him in the Assembly of the Saints. Wherefore upon these, and several * See Mr. Thorndike of Religious Assemblies, Bishop Patrick, Dean Sherlock, on the same Argument. other Accounts which I shall not insist on at present, it may plainly appear, that the Nature of our Religion is such, that it especially requires a Public Profession and Exercise. III. There is nothing that so much promotes a Spirit of Universal Charity, as a due esteem and practice of the Public Worship. The best Natural Argument that we have for the loving one another, is the Consideration that we are Creatures made for Society, that our private welfare is infinitely advanced by mutual Beneficence, and that our truest Interest is enfolded in the Public Good. But Christ, who has formed us into a Religious Society, and made us Members of the same Body by a Mystical and Sacred Union, has laid a Foundation for a stronger Tie of Friendship, and for more generous Acts of Love. For how can the things of this World divide us, when we must expect them not otherwise than as the Effects of our Prayers, and must desire them no further then as they are serviceable, or at lest no Impediment, to our everlasting good? What can bring us to a greater concern for one another, and more Unite our Affections, than a frequent Meeting at the same place of Worship, and joining together in the same Duties of Religion? If common Conversation has so many Attractives, so many Charms in it, how must a Sacred Familiarity endear us? Where we have but one great Business to prosecute, and 'tis the Interest of us all to promote that: where we endeavour to appear in the best Temper, the mildest Disposition, and the most humble frame of Mind: where we lay by the distinctions of Family, Place, and Title, and all the little Differences that the order of this Life creates: where we advance no particular ends that are contrary to the general Good, but rejoice to promote each others Salvation: where we withdraw our Minds from Earthly things, which occasion so much Passion in Mankind; and set our Hearts upon that Heaven which is large enough to receive us all, and to satisfy us with full content. How can we be angry with those Persons, who meet at the same place of Worship with ourselves, and appear in such Postures of Reverence and Humility, as plainly signify that they are Repenting of all their Sins, and humbling themselves for their Infirmities? How can we retain any Enmity against our Fellow-Christians, when the very Duties which we ourselves are engaged in, must needs suggest the many Provocations we have offered to God, the gracious Pardon we have received from him, and the Condition upon which that Pardon was dispensed, viz. the Forgiving of one another? Or how can there be any Entertainment for those narrow and sor did Passions of Malice, and Hatred, and Revenge in the Breasts of those who are the Worshippers of God in Public, who cannot but have their Minds raised, their Affections sweetened, and their Hearts enlarged by the Solemn Praises in the Congregation? 'Tis in the Church that we must learn the truest Union of Hearts and Affections; where we are all concerned for our Common Salvation, and all rely upon one Common Saviour and Redeemer; where all the Girts and Graces of Christ are bestowed for the Edification of his Body, and all our greatest Benefits are enjoyed in Common? where we are disposed to pray for one another, to rejoice with one another, to suffer with one another. But the greatest part of the Christian World are as yet Strangers to this Happiness, for they are most divided in that very thing which should pecullarly Unite them: what Peace therefore can be expected in Temporal Matters, when Men will not endure a Communion in Holy things? And what more probable Reason can we assign of the Divisions and Hatreds, and the malicious Oppositions of one another throughout the Christian World, than that we are unhappily Divided in the Public Worship of God? That some men's Devotions are held either Idolatry or Superstition to others? and that many look upon it as a main part of Religion to expose and vilify the Worship of others? O gracious God, the Lord of Peace and Concord, look down in Mercy upon thy Universal Church; and give us, through the Light of thy Gospel, and the Influence of thy Spirit, such an understanding of the True Christian Worship, that we may all come to glorify Thee with one Heart and with one Voice! That all Factions and Persecutions, and bloody Wars may cease in the Christian World, and all who call upon thy Name may be at Unity among themselves! That we may be as tender of other Rights, and as sensible of their Calamities, as if they were our own! That at length we may become one Holy People, one City of God, one Body of Christ! iv The frequenting the Public Worship, with that Preparation, and with those Dispositions which it requires, is the best way, whereby we may attain to Solid Piety. It is a great Blessing to have a Soul inflamed with the Love of God, and then to be able to guide that Flame with Discretion; to keep it regular, and within the compass of the Altar, and not to suffer it to waste away in violent Agitations, or an Enthusiastical Zeal. It is much better to be pious in the old way of daily attending upon God in the Public Service of the Church, than to affect new Ways, and new Liberties, and such singularities of Holiness, as will make People more Fanciful, but less Humble and Devout. What can a Christian want towards the real Edification of his Soul in Faith and Knowledge, in Virtue and Godliness, who makes a Conscience of Attending the Public Assemblies, as often as he reasonably can? For there he shall meet with the pure Word of God, and feel the mighty Efficacy of it on his Heart; his Mind shall be many times more enlightened by attentively hearing a Chapter read in the Church, than if he had industriously consulted the best Commentators: The Majesty of the Place, the Authority of him who Officiates, and the Sense we have that God is speaking to us, are apt to put our Thoughts into such a Religious Frame, that we have as it were a New-understanding created in us: And besides, the Holy Spirit loves to go along with his own Ordinance in some peculiar Vouchsafements. The devout * Psal. 73. Prophet could not well understand some of the Dissibulties about Providence, till he went into the Sanctuary of the Lord, but that soon gave him a sufficient knowledge of them, and what is more, a Contentment under them too. True Christian Knowledge does not come in so sound and so useful by hand Study, as by having a Temper fit to receiver it; and we have many times a Divine Truth more strongly imprinted on our Minds, or more fully confirmed unto us, when our Hearts are Tender and Devout, then when our Heads are exercised in the deepest Thinking. It is further observable, That Men are generally much more subject of Impressions and Affections, when they are Assembled, then when they are Alone; and this holds good in relation to Sacred, as well as to Civil Affairs: Thus in the Church, or in our Public Devotions, besides the direct Influence which we singly feel, we then receive a Collateral enforcement from that Union of Consent which we observe in others, and which may be easily and quickly known; because the very Gestures of the Body, the Tone and Accents of the Voice, and the different Appearances of the Countenance, are a sort of Universal Character, which naturally express the more prevailing Passions, and inward Sentiments of the Soul: and therefore we are encouraged more freely to indulge those Religious Affections, which we find are no Singularities of our own particular Complexion, but such as are common to all People, whenever they are truly sensible of the Majesty of God, and of the power of Religion. But further, The Public Offices of the Church are such an equal Nourishment, so well-prepared, and so kindly fitted for all the wants of a Devout Worshipper, that if they be constantly made use of, they will not fail of bringing us to a strong habit of Piety. There may be other ways of Devotion more gratifying to the Fancy, but not so productive of sincere Godliness: They who are content with the wise Methods of the Church, shall be gradually raised into a Divine Life, as their other Grace's increase, their Humility shall be equally enlarged; and their Zeal shall never outrun their meek Obedience. Though they feel no Extraordinary Transports, (for the very Custom of doing Good things will go near to lessen those) yet they shall not fail of a lasting and an abiding Comfort; and though they do not rise into Holiness with any Luxuriant Growth, yet they shall have a sound Proficiency, for they shall increase, with the Increase of God. The true Improvement in Christianity does not lie in any singular and affected Austerity of Life, scrupulousness of Mind, Unquietness of Zeal, separated Sanctity; or in reaching after such Spiritual Heights as are beyond the proportion of Humanity: but it lies in a temperate, humble, serious and wise deportment of ourselves, in a Constancy of Duty, a Regular Piety, a Condescending, Brotherly Mildness of Soul, in an Extensive Charity, and a Sincere Concern for the welfare of all Mankind: And this is the very Improvement towards which all the Public Offices of the Church seem to conspire; for they are apt to fill our Minds with the most Awful Sense of the exceeding Majesty of God, and with the most Humbling Thoughts of our own Unworthiness. They are fitted to work in us the Obedience of Creatures, and the Humiliation of Sinners; to raise and enlarge our Affections, with proper Forms of Praises and Thanksgivings, and to extend our Hearts in Supplications and Intercessions for others. Add to all this, That our Public Worship is a True Spiritual Sacrifice to God, which no Private Prayers or Praises can be, though otherwise of Excellent use; for 'tis the Nature of all Sacrifice to be an Open, Bishop Laney on Hebr. xiii. vers. 15. External and Public Acknowledgement: and therefore the solemn performance of This, is a distinct Virtue from all other Acts of Obedience, and of a different Obligation from all other Duties: Those of the most Improved Minds can never be excused from Offering up this peculiar Sacrifice, and those of the meanest Attainments may comfort themselves in discharging this Necessary Homage to God: for certainly, it must needs be a wonderful satisfaction to any good Man, when he reflects that he has done something that is acceptable and wellpleasing to him, who is able to reward him with endless Glory. To conclude, Private Prayer is the best Argument of our own Sincerity, but Public Prayer of our open Confession of God. The first may be performed by the Heart alone, and the inward Motions of the Soul; but the other requires the Reverend Deportment of the Body, and the Attestation of the Voice to glorify our Maker. By the one we best declare the Omniscience and Spiritual Nature of God; and by the other his Greatness; his Majesty, and his Power. Let this therefore be our constant Rule in all our Public Devotions, to have ever an especial regard to the Life and Soul, to the Spirit and Truth of God's Worship; to enliven all our outward Actions and Demeanour with the holy Intentions of the Mind, and the devout Affections of the Heart; and to make all those Ceremonies and Decencies which our Church has either innocently Retained, or prudently Instituted, to be as Instrumental to our Spiritual Worship, as we can possibly make them; and not to run into such vain Fancies, as if the Gospel were an Enemy to Bodily Worship, or that were too gross a way of Honouring God. Alas! all our most Inward and Refined Worship of Soul and Spirit, can never reach the Dignity, the Majesty, and the Spirituality of That God we Adore; but in its highest Exaltation is Unequal, and Imperfect, and can find no Acceptance with God, but through the Infinite Merits of his Son! What are all the sublimest Acts of the Soul when employed in the Worship of God, but Ignorance, Blindness, and mere Disparagements of his Glory, when we consider the Transcendency of the Divine Nature? though as it proceeds from us, it be an honest and a well-meant Service. And now, since God has given us Bodies as well as Souls, we have no reason to conceive otherwise, but that he requires to be Honoured by Both, according to that State and Condition of Nature in which we are Constituted, and that Order of the Creation in which we are placed: for what can we do more than Glorify the Almighty in those Capacities he has given us. Let the Seraphim and Cherubin, and the Angels that are round his Throne, bless him and praise him in their more Exalted way, and with the pure Emanations of the Mind; but let us Magnify God with that, with which they cannot, viz. with the lowest Prostration of our Bodies too. Accept, most mighty God, that Tribute of Worship which thou hast enabled us to perform; and when thou givest us New Powers, they also shall be employed to magnify thy great and wonderful Name. All the Glory which we can give thee, is but the Reflection of that Light which thou dost first dart on us; and when thou takest us nearer thy Presence, we shall then more perfectly Reflect thy Image Since thou hast designed a most Glorious Resurrection for our Bodies, we may conclude that they also shall bear a part in that most spiritual Worship which shall be paid thee in the highest Heavens to all Eternity; and since thou hast consecrated even these Corruptible Bodies of ours into the Temples of the Holy Ghost, thou wilt not disdain that Present Worship which they now can pay. We will therefore Glorify thee with our Souls and with our Bodies, because thou hast Created and Redeemed them both; we will constantly pay thee an External Bodily Homage, but such as shall be Animated with the Mind, and the Spirit, without which we cannot truly Worship Thee, who art an Infinite Mind, an Infinite Spirit. Let us always remember what a zealous Concern the Humble and Meek Jesus showed against the Prophaners of the Temple; and when we enter into the House of Prayer, let us lay aside all our Worldly Cares, lest we make it a House of Merchandise: let us not come with any Covetous, , or Malicious Designs, lest we make it a Den of Thiefs: But let the Sacredness of the Place, and the Weightiness of the Business we come about, which is no less, than the Glorifying of God, and the Saving of our Souls; Let these Considerations fill us with Holy Thoughts and Affections, and compose us to such a Reverend Behaviour, as may best express the Humility, and Seriousness, the Love, the Joy, and all the Inward Piety of our Souls. FINIS.