15. No business therefore
can hinder any man from
having that preparation
which alone is necessary,
unless it be such as
unprepares him for heaven,
as puts him out of a state
of salvation. Indeed every
prudent man will, when he
has time, examine himself
before he receives the
Lord’s Supper: whether he
repents him truly of his
former sins; whether he
believes the promises of
God; whether he fully
designs to walk in his ways,
and be in charity will all
men. In this, and in
private prayer, he will
doubtless spend all the time
he conveniently can. But
what is this to you who have
not time? What excuse is
this for not obeying God?
He commands you to come, and
prepare yourself by prayer
if you have time; if you
have not, however, come.
Make not reverence to God’s
command a pretence for
breaking it. Do not rebel
against him for fear of
offending him. Whatever you
do or leave undone besides,
be sure to do what God bids
you do. Examining yourself,
and using private prayer,
especially before the Lord’s
Supper, is good. But
behold! ‘To obey is better
than’ self-examination, ‘and
to hearken’ than the prayer
of an angel.
16. A third objection
against constant communion
is that it abates our
reverence for the
sacrament. Suppose it did?
What then! Will you thence
conclude that you are not to
receive it constantly? This
does not follow. God
commands you, ‘Do this.’
You may do it now, but will
not; and to excuse yourself
say, ‘If I do it so often,
it will abate the reverence
with which I do it now.’
Suppose it did. Has God
ever told you that when the
obeying his command abates
your reverence to it then
you may disobey it? If he
has, you are guiltless; if
not, what you say is just
nothing to the purpose. The
law is clear. Either show
that the lawgiver makes this
exception, or you are guilty
before him.
17. Reverence for the
sacrament may be of two
sorts: either such as is
owing purely to the newness
of the thing, such as men
naturally have for anything
they are not used to; or
such as is owing to our
faith, or to the love or
fear of God. Now the former
of these is not properly a
religious reverence, but
purely natural. And this
sort of reverence for the
Lord’s Supper the constantly
receiving of it must
lessen. But it will not
lessen the true religious
reverence, but rather
confirm and increase it.
18. A fourth objection is,
‘I have communicated
constantly so long, but I
have not found the benefit I
expected.’ This has been
the case with many
well-meaning persons, and
therefore deserves to be
particularly considered.
And consider this first:
whatever God commands us to
do we are to do because he
commands, whether we feel
any benefit thereby or no.
Now God commands, ‘Do this
in remembrance of me.’ This
therefore we are to do,
because he commands, whether
we find present benefit
thereby or not. But
undoubtedly we shall find
benefit sooner or later,
though perhaps insensibly.
We shall be insensibly
strengthened, made more fit
for the service of God, and
more constant in it. At
least we are kept from
falling back, and preserved
from many sins and
temptations. And surely
this should be enough to
make us receive this food as
often as we can; though we
do not presently feel the
happy effects of it, as some
have done, and we ourselves
may when God sees best.
19. But suppose a man has
often been at the sacrament,
and yet received no
benefit. Was it not his own
fault? Either he was not
rightly prepared, willing to
obey all the commands, and
to receive all the promises
of God; or he did not
receive it aright, trusting
in God. Only see that you
are duly prepared for it,
and the oftener you come to
the Lord’s table the greater
benefit you will find there.
20. A fifth objection which
some have made against
constant communion is that
‘the Church enjoins it only
three times a year.’ The
words of the Church are:
‘Note, that every
parishioner shall
communicate at the least
three times in the year.’
To this I answer, first:
What if the Church had not
enjoined it at all? Is it
not enough that God enjoins
it? We obey the Church only
for God’s sake. And shall
we not obey God himself? If
then you receive three times
a year because the Church
commands it, receive every
time you can because God
commands it. Else your
doing the one will be so far
from excusing you for not
doing the other that your
own practice will prove your
folly and sin, and leave you
without excuse.
But, secondly, we cannot
conclude from these words
that the Church excuses him
who receives only thrice a
year. The plain sense of
them is that he who does not
receive thrice at least
shall be cast out of the
Church. But they do by no
means excuse him who
communicates no oftener.
This never was the judgment
of our Church. On the
contrary, she takes all
possible care that the
sacrament be duly
administered, wherever the
Common Prayer is read, every
Sunday and holiday in the
year.
The Church gives a
particular direction with
regard to those that are in
Holy Orders. ‘In all
cathedral and collegiate
churches and colleges, where
there are many priests and
deacons, they shall all
receive the communion with
the priest, every Sunday at
the least.’
21. It has been shown,
first, that if we consider
the Lord’s Supper as a
command of Christ, no man
can have any pretence to
Christian piety who does not
receive it (not once a
month, but) as often as he
can; secondly, that if we
consider the institution of
it as a mercy to ourselves,
no man who does not receive
it as often as he can has
any pretence to Christian
prudence; thirdly, that none
of the objections usually
made can be any excuse for
that man who does not at
every opportunity obey his
command and accept this
mercy.
22. It has been
particularly shown, first,
that unworthiness is no
excuse, because, though in
one sense we are all
unworthy, yet none of us
need be afraid of being
unworthy in St. Paul’s
sense, of ‘eating and
drinking unworthily’;
secondly, that the not
having time enough for
preparation can be no
excuse, since the only
preparation which is
absolutely necessary is that
which no business can
hinder; nor indeed anything
on earth, unless so far as
it hinders our being in a
state of salvation; thirdly,
that is abating our
reverence is no excuse,
since he who gave the
command, ‘Do this,’ nowhere
adds, ‘unless it abates your
reverence’; fourthly, that
our not profiting by it is
no excuse, since it is our
own fault in neglecting that
necessary preparation which
is in our own power; lastly,
that the judgment of our own
Church is quite in favour of
constant communion. If
those who have hitherto
neglected it on any of these
pretences will lay these
things to heart, they will,
by the grace of God, come to
a better mind, and never
more forsake their own
mercies.
As published in John
Wesley’s Sermons: An
Anthology edited by Albert
C. Outler & Richard P.
Heitzenrater. Nashville:
Abingdon Press. 1991. pp.
501-510.
