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pray at once to the whole Trinity, both to the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. So when we pray according to that holy form which Christ hath taught us, Our Father, which art in heaven, Father there denotes not only God the Father, the First Person in the Trinity; but it is a relative attribute belonging equally to all the Persons in the Trinity. God is the Father of all men, by creation and providence; and he is especially the Father of the faithful, by regeneration and adoption: now as these actions of creation, regeneration, and adoption are common to the whole Trinity, so also is the title of Father common to the whole Trinity. God, the First Person, is indeed eminently called the Father, but that is not in respect of us, but in respect of Christ his only begotten Son from all eternity: in respect of us, the whole Trinity is Our Father, which art in heaven; and, when we pray so, we pray both to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, to all the Three Persons. Yea, and it may seem very probable, that when Christ prayed, Matth. xxvi. 39. Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not my will, but thy will be done: I say, it is probable that this prayer was not directed to God the Father personally, but to the whole Trinity; for we must consider that Christ prays here only as he was man, and that appears by his distinguishing of his will from and submitting it to God's will: now not only God the Father, but the whole Trinity was the Father of Christ as man; yea, Christ himself, according to his divine nature, was the Father of his human nature; and, therefore, praying, as man, to his Father, that that cup might pass from him, he prayed to all the Three Persons, both to God the Father, and to God the Son, and to God the Holy Ghost.

And, thus much, for the Object to whom we must direct our prayers; and that is to God only, whether considered personally or essentially.

3. Observe also the Matter of our Prayers. It must be a representation of our desires to God, for such things as are according to his will.

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So we have it, 1 John v. 14. If we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us. God's will, in bestowing a desired mercy upon us, is best known by the promises, that he hath made to Which promises are of two kinds; some refer to temporal blessings, and others refer to grace and glory,

-us.

(1) Grace and Glory are promised absolutely.

It is that, which we are commanded all of us to seek after :

and, therefore, here can lie no mistake upon us, while we beg these; for there is no doubt while we pray for grace and glory, but that we do it according to the will of God. Here, we may be earnest and importunate, that God would sanctify and save our souls: and, while we ask this, and make this the matter of our requests, we are under an impossibility of asking amiss; yea, and the more violent we are, and the more resolute to take no denial at the hands of God, the more pleasing is this holy force, since it shews a perfect conformity and concurrence in our wills unto his will, who hath told us, It is his will, even our sanctification: 1 Thess. iv. 3. This was one part of that violence, which our Saviour saith the kingdom of heaven suffered in the days of John the Baptist. It is an invasion that is acceptable unto God, when we storm heaven by prayers and supplications, with strong cries and tears: when we plant against it unutterable sighs and groans, this is such a battery, that those eternal ramparts cannot hold out long against it. We may pray absolutely for Grace and Glory.

(2) Though we may pray thus, absolutely and with a holy peremptoriness, for grace and glory, saying to God as Jacob to the angel that wrestled with him, I will not let thee go until thou hast blessed me with spiritual blessings, in heavenly things in Jesus Christ: yet, secondly, for the Degrees of Grace and for the comforts of the Holy Ghost, we must pray conditionally; if the Lord will.

For these things are not absolutely necessary, neither are they absolutely promised to us by God. Neither any degree of grace nor any consolation of the Spirit is absolutely promised to us. But, however, our prayers ought to be, so much the more fervent and importunate for these things, than for outward, temporal things; by how much these are of far greater concernment, than the other.

(3) To pray for outward and worldly blessings is not contrary to the will of God, for he hath promised to bestow then.. But then, as his promise is conditional, if it may stand with our good: so, truly, must our prayers be conditional, that God would give them to us, if it may stand with his will and with our good. Whatsoever we thus ask, we do it according to the will of God; and we are sure of speeding in our request, either by the obtaining of our desires, or by being blessed with a denial, For, alas! we are blind and ignorant creatures, and cannot look

into the designs and drift of Providence, and see how God hath laid in order good and evil in his own purpose: oftentimes, we mistake evil for good, because of the present appearance of good that it hath : yea, so short-sighted are we, that we can look no farther than outward and present appearance. But God, who sees through the whole series and connexion of his own counsels, knows, many times, that those things, which we account and desire as good, are really evil: and therefore it is our wisdom, to resign up all our desires to his disposal, and to say, “ Lord, though such temporal enjoyments may seem good and desirable to mé at present, yet thou art infinitely wise, and thou knowest what the consequence and issue of them will be: I beg them, if they may stand with thy will; and if thou seest they will be as really good for me, as I suppose them now to be. If they be not so, I beg the favour of a denial." This is the right frame, that a Christian ought to have upon his heart, when he comes to beg temporal mercies of God; and, whilst he thus asks any worldly comforts, he cannot ask amiss. It was an excellent saying of the Satirist, "We ask those things of God," says he," which please our present humours and desires: but God gives those things, which are best and fittest for us for we are dearer to him," saith the Heathen, " than we are to ourselves." "And," says another, very well," it is mercy in God, not to hear us when we ask things that are evil:" and when he refuseth us in such requests, it is that he might not circumvent us in our own prayers; for, indeed, whilst we ask rashly and intemperately whatever we foolishly set our hearts upon, God need take no other course to plague and punish us, than by hearing and answering us.

So much for the Matter of our prayers: it must be for things, that are according to God's will.

4. Observe, also, THE MANNER, IN WHICH OUR PRAYERS MUST BE DIRECTED UNTO GOD.

That is,

(1) We must pray in the Name of Christ.

Before the Fall, man might boldly go to God, in his own name; and speak to him, upon his own account: but, since the great breach made betwixt heaven and earth, since that great quarrel and enmity arose betwixt God and man, there is no hope of man's finding acceptance with God, upon his own account; and therefore he must go to God, in the name of a Mediator, Hence Christ saith, If ye ask any thing in my name,

Now to ask in the name

I will do it for you: John xiv. 14. of Christ, is nothing else, but, in all our addresses to God, to plead his merits; and to depend upon his mediation, for the obtaining of those good things, which we desire. It was truly said, God heareth not sinners: John ix. 31: and how then can we, who are sinners, yea the chief of sinners, hope for audience and acceptance with him, who heareth none such? But, though God heareth not sinners, yet he always heareth his Son, who is continually making intercession for sinners; yea, and he always heareth sinners, who come to him in the name of his Son, and by faith tender up his merits, through which alone they expect favour and to prevail with God. All things go by favour and friendship, in the Court of Heaven: if we stand upon our own merits and deserts, we shall be shamefully disappointed in our expectations: no merit takes place in heaven, but only the merit of the Lord Jesus Christ; and, while we argue that by faith with God, we come to him in the name of his Son.

(2) Our prayers must be put up with Faith.

James i. 6. Let him ask in faith, says the Apostle, nothing wavering. For let not such a man, that is, let not such a man that wavers, think to receive any good thing of God. So, in Heb. xi. 6. He, that cometh to God, must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him. Faith is the soul's hand, whereby it receives those blessings, which God willingly bestows. This is the reason, why, though we do so often pray to God, yet we are still so indigent and necessitous: God's ears are not heavy, his arms are not shortened, neither are his bowels dried up: no; still he hath the same power, the same will, and the same love to his children that ever he had; but we want a hand to receive those mercies, which God hath a heart and a hand to give forth unto us: and that is the reason of our necessitousness, notwithstanding we do so often come before God in prayer.

(3) Our prayers must be put up as with faith, so with Fervency also.

And therefore it is required, that we should be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord: Rom. xii. 11. and so the fore-cited place, The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. We should strive to kindle in our souls a holy flame of heavenly affections,when we come to God in prayer. The prayers of the saints were typified, under the Old Law, by inbut no incense was to be offered up, without fire: so,

cense;

truly, there should be no prayer offered up to God, without the fire and flame of holy affections and fervency. How do you think that a dull and heavy prayer should mount up as high as heaven? or, that God should hearken to or regard what we speak, when we scarce regard what we speak ourselves?

This for the Manner of our prayer.

5. We must observe THE END AT WHICH WE OUGHT TO AIM IN OUR PRAYERS; and that is, the glory of God. We must pray for those things which we want, with submission to his will and with reference to his glory. That must be the end of our prayers.

Our design, in begging any thing from God, should be, that he may have it out of us again in his service, and to his honour and glory; and, while we propose this to ourselves, we are like to speed in our requests: we may well hope our prayers will be successful, when we beg mercies, not to consume them but to husband them; that the increase of all may return again to God, who gave them. And can we think that God will be sparing, when, if I may so speak with reverence, it concerns his own gain to be liberal? Wicked and unthankful men are but like vapours and exhalations drawn up out of the earth, which do but eclipse the sun that raises them: so, when God raiseth up wicked men by his bounty and goodness, they only serve to eclipse and stain his glory in the world. Whereas, godly men are like rivers, which, as they receive all their streams from the sea, so they return all again into the sea: so these, whatever they receive from God, they improve all for and return all again unto God. And, therefore, they may well hope to speed, who beg mercies at the hand of God, that they may return all again unto the glory of God.

So much for the qualifications of prayer. It must be made by the assistance of the Holy Ghost; in the name and mediation of Jesus Christ; with faith and fervency; making an humble representation of our wants and desires unto God, for those things, which are according to his will, with submission to his pleasure, and with reference to his honour.

And, thus much, for the First thing, What it is to pray.

ii. The Second thing propounded, was to shew you, What it is TO PRAY WITHOUT CEASING.

And this I shall do Negatively and Positively.

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