Popular Objections to the Book of Common Prayer Considered, 4 Sermons (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: SERMON II. 31 Ftirtucatton ot tije ffiommfnatlon Seraice. " And Moses charged the people the same day, saying, These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when ye are come over Jordan; Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin: and these shall stand upon mount Ebal to curse; Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. And the Levites shall speak, and say unto all the men of Israel with a loud voice, Cursed be the man that maketh any graven or molten image, an abomination unto the Lord, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and putteth it in a secret place. And all the people shall answer and say, Amen Deut. xxvii. n ?I5. YOU are to hear after this Sermon the denunciation of God's anger against impenitent sinners, called the Commination. In order to prepare your minds to join in this Service intelligently, I shall make it thesubject of a Sermon, and shall attempt, not only to vindicate it from hasty and ill-considered objections, but to exhibit to you its scriptural significance. But before I proceed to consider the main feature of this Service, there is one expression at the opening of it which may require a word of explanation. Favourable and honourable mention is made of the godly discipline which existed in the Primitive Church, of putting to open penance and punishing in this world such persons as stood convicted of notorious sin; and the Commination is said to be a substitute for such discipline?the best substitute that can be devised under present circumstances. But the second best thing is not the first best thing. And in a parenthesis there is a sigh after the old discipline, at which offence is taken by some. The words are, " Instead whereof (until the said discipline be restored again, which is much to be...