Come and claim your share in
Christ, and see if He disappoints you.

"_Ah_! _I believe_," _says the poor man_, "_I believe_, _but I am
afraid_, _afraid of partaking unworthily_, _and so provoking God_, _as
the Prayer-book says to plague me with divers diseases and sundry kinds
of death_."

My Friend, if God was the devil, you might be afraid indeed. But He is
the loving, righteous Father, who knows your weakness, and remembers that
you are but dust. Can you not trust Him to pardon your mistakes about
the Sacrament, which you do not wilfully intend to commit, when He has
borne with, and pardoned all the sins from your youth up until now, which
you have wilfully committed? Surely, you may trust Him in such a thing
as this,--He who has had long-suffering enough to keep you alive, with a
chance of salvation all this time? and as for sundry diseases, _have_ you
avoided them? You have certainly not avoided them, at least, by staying
away from the Sacrament, and breaking Christ's command to take it? If
you are so afraid of God's anger, are you more likely to provoke Him by
disobeying His strict commands, or by obeying them? It needs no
philosopher, my friend, to find out that.

"_But I shall have to make good resolutions_," _says the sinner_, "_and I
am afraid of breaking them_."

Well, if you break them, you can but make them again. You would call him
a fool who determined never to walk, because he was afraid of falling.
But you are to claim in that Sacrament your share of Christ's Spirit,
Christ's life, and Christ's strength, which is just what you want to
enable you to keep your good resolutions. You will be no stronger, no
more righteous of yourself after the Sacrament than before. Your spirit
will still be a poor weak sinful spirit, but you will have claimed your
share in God's strength, God's righteousness, God's Spirit, and _they_
will make you love the good you hated, and hate the evil you loved. They
will make you strong to do God's will whatever it may cost you. Oh
believe the good news, and show that you believe by coming to Christ. He,
the Blessed One, died for you. For you He was born and walked this
earth, a poor suffering, tempted, sorrow-stricken man. For you He hung
upon the shameful cross. For you He ascended up on high. For you He
sent down His Spirit. For you He sits at the right hand of God, praying
for you at this moment. For you He gave the signs of His body and His
blood, that you