the Scriptures doe not yeeld 2 Tim. 3.16 2 Pet. 1.19 For all Scripture is given by Inspiration of God and so is a sure word to which thou must take heed as unto a light that shineth in a darke place because it hath this threefold testimony in one God which cannot faile thee Doth the Scripture give any precept make any promise denounce any threatning Rest upon it that thou must obey it Imbrace it and tremble under it as Gods truth confirmed by three witnesses which shal stand when all other witnesses shall fail Wouldst thou powre out thy devoutest prayers to God Thinke upon this one God three Persons as a fountaine to supply all thy defects Hast thou any brack or defect in the nature of thy body and soule Pray to God the Father as thy faithfull Creator that for the merits of Christ and by the working of the holy Ghost he would perfect thy parts to doe him service Hast thou sinned against thy good Maker Pray to God the Sonne as thy faithfull Redeemer that from the love of the Father for his merits and by the operation of the holy Ghost he would procure a pardon sealed to thy conscience Hast thou for want of beleeving in his name sinned against thy good Saviour Pray to God the Holy Ghost as thy faithfull Sanctifier that from the love of the Father for the holy bloud-shed of the Sonne and by his blessing worke of preparation and Insition he would apply thee to Christ and make thee one with him that thou mayst have all the benefits of his Passion Now my child remember what I have said Q. Who made thee A. God Q. What is it to make thee A. To give mee that being which I have Q. Who Redeemed thee A. Jesus Christ Q. What is it to Redeeme thee A. To buy me again when I was lost Q. How camest thou to be lost A. By the sinne of Adam Q. How did Christ buy thee again A. By laying down his life for me Q. Who sanctified thee A. The holy Ghost Q. What is it to sanctifie thee A. To make me holy Q. How doth he make me holy A. By taking away sinne and giving me grace Q. By what means doth he this A. By the Word Sacraments and Prayer Q. How many Gods are there A. Three persons for all my necessities and but one God to serve alone Thinke of these points seriously and the Lord give thee understanding in all things It may be thou canst not so clearely conceive some of these high mysteries as of three in one in a more excellent way then can be expressed or of Essence which is one Nature in three or of Persons which are the severall manners of being in the selfe same God as in respect of Creation God is the Father in respect of Redemption God is the Sonne in respect of Sanctification God is the Holy Ghost These things I say are above reasonable capacitie But it is otherwise with thee in the understanding of other things and of these mysteries In other things thou must first know and then beleeve but in these things thou must first beleeve and then know as Peter said We beleeve and are sure Joh. 6.69 that thou art that Christ the Sonne of the living God And if thou adde but this Joh. 7.17 To will to doe thy God's will thou shalt know of the doctrine whether it be of God and so rest with confidence upon these most divine mysteries to comfort thy soule Now let us goe on Tell me 5. Q. What is God A. He is that Almightie one who made and governeth all things Know my child that we cannot know God as he is in himselfe Thou canst not know God as he is for he dwels in a light that no man can attain unto And therefore we may say as that Heathen did of old when he was asked what God was By how much more I thinke by so much lesse I understand what that is which we call God Yet may we know Gods back-parts that is those works Exod. 34. and names by which he is made known unto us in the Scriptures For thus he hath manifested himselfe unto us for this end Object Obiect It may be thou mayst thinke that if God cannot be known it is unlawfull for me to enquire of thee what he is Sol. Sol. This is true if it were impossible for us to know God any wayes But Yet thou must labour to know him as he will because we may and must know him as he hath manifested himselfe unto us therefore surely it is not unlawfull to search into him so farre For otherwise it might be said of us as Christ of the Samaritanes Joh. 4. They worship they know not what Yea without this we cannot according to our measure ascribe unto him such excellencies as his nature doth deserve for we cannot say that is gold which we cannot affirme to be gold or brasse Yea without this we cannot love and desire God We cannot desire and love what we know not The love of God must not be a groundlesse love which is more in the lover then in the thing loved but a well grounded love which must proceed from the knowledge of the amiablenesse of the thing loved Of this alone we can give a true reason from the worth of God or any person or thing else which we love Vse Therefore good child know the wickednesse of all our and thy natures which care least to know God Doe but mark and you shall see your selfe ready to know every thing and yet thou takest no notice of God though thou art continually in his presence Yet I hope better things of thee and that which doth accompany thy salvation If the Heathens groped after him and rather then they would not find him Acts 17. erected an altar to the unknown God much more wilt thou who art crowned with more blessed favours of light and love But why should I presse thee to enquire after God when thou tellest me plainly what God is You tell me that God is that Almightie one that doth make and governe all things Though thou knowest him not as he is in himselfe yet thou describest him as he hath manifested himselfe to the Church If I should aske thee what the Apostle Paul was You would answer that he was an able and extraordinary Minister of the New Testament Herein you did not tell me what he is or was in himself for so he was a living creature endued with a reasonable soule but you tell me what Paul was as God did imploy him in and for the Church so in this description thou tellest me what God is with reference to the whole world Thus thou tellest me two things of God 1. His sufficiency He is that Almightie one 2. His Efficiency or how he hath manifested it in part two waies 1. By making all things 2. By governing all things First God is the Almightie thou
the husband hath his wife Prov. 2. and the wife hath her husband by vertue of the Covenant of God by which they are made one flesh So mayst thou have God by Covenant when thou cleavest unto him by knowledge faith feare love confidence worship and the like Use Be thou sure my good child to have the true God onely to be thy God thus When thou knowest not God and doest not beleeve love and feare him nor put thy trust and confidence in him that thou mayst enjoy him and use him as thine thou hast him not no nor thou doest not give him these graces alone Thou hast there articles of the Covenant for him alone and for other things and persons under him and for his honour onely 10. Q. What is the second Commandement A. Exod. 20.4 5 6. Thou shalt not make to thy selfe any graven Image nor any likenesse of things that are in heaven above nor in the earth beneath nor in the waters under the earth thou shalt not bowe down to them nor worship them For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God visiting the iniquitie of the Fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me and shewing mercy to thousands of them that love me and keep my commandements Here God requires the worshipping of God with his own outward worship What God requires in the second commandement God sees the vaine wickednesses of Idolaters Because they are carnall they must have carnall helps of their own inventions Hence is it because they have not bodily communion with their gods they ordinarily see them not heare them not feele them not therefore they set up their Images likenesses and similitudes they doe honour and worship to them in the place of their gods they adorn them they cense to them they kneele bowe courtesie and pray to them they think that there is a religious and divine power and presence in them to be a chariot of their devotions and to convey the Influences of their hearts and words to their patrons their great gods But God will not be worshipped in this carnall way Deut. 4.15 16 17 18. He manifested no similitude on the day that the Lord spake out of the midst of the fire lest we should corrupt our selves and make a graven Image the similitude of any figure the likenesse of male or female God is a consuming fire Deut. 4.24 and a Jealous God and will have none of his worship conveyed to any devises of man or by them to him but he will have his own worship by an acknowledgement of such divine excellencies as are in him in the way and by the means that he hath appointed that is by the Word Sacraments and Prayer Vse Therefore my child look upon all Idolaters so as to hate their abominable course Doe not thinke to please God by devices of thine owne or others Imagine not that Images or Idols either graven or carved or painted can carry thy worship to those Gods or divine things or Persons whom they represent Bestow not thy divine respects upon any thing or person but God alone Frame not any will-worship thy selfe for the true and good God But as thou learnest out of the word the worship to give him all manner of prayers and prayses to heare his word to receive his Sacraments and to offer up any spirituall sacrifices so doe that thou provoke not God to jealousie and so to hate thee and to plague thine before thy face to thy confounding discomfort 11. Q. What is the third Commandement A. Exod. 20.7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vaine for the Lord will not hold him guiltlesse that taketh his name in vaine Here God requires the worshipping of him in his owne manner What God requires in the third Commandement so as it may not be in vaine If it be not done as he would have it as good never a whit as not done as he would have it The name of God is God himselfe any wayes made knowne unto thee Thou art knowne by thy name and God hath a name whereby he is or may be made known to all mankind to wit his works his word his titles his attributes his religion his worship this is his name To take it signifies to take it up or to challenge it from contempt and blasphemy so as God may not be dishonoured by thine or others use of it To take it in vaine is to use it to no end to a fruitlesse end or to a wicked end as when thou usest the names titles and attributes of God to tosse them like Tennice balls to no use but as fruitlesse imbellishments of thy speech when thou usest them in asseverations and oathes to belch out the passions and bitternesse of thy heart to or against others and when thou usest them in word or actions to vent the malice or hypocrisie in thy heart Vse Take heed of doing thus my child Thou art a Christian and wouldest be accounted godly and so thou takest up Gods name Do it so as God and his people may not be ashamed to acknowledge thee for such Thou sometimes takest up the name of God in thy mouth doe it with all reverence When thou swearest doe it when thou art justly called unto it Joh. 7. Heb. 6. Jer. 4.2 to cleare the innocency or to end strife among men in truth in righteousnesse and in judgement When thou prayest hearest vowest or receivest the Sacraments doe them as sincerely desiring to draw thy self into communion with God in Christ If thou doe not though men are found to be carefull for preserving of their owne names more then Gods yet God tenderly respects his owne name and will account thee guilty and bind thee over to be plagued in this world and for ever 12. Q. What is the fourth Commandement A. Exod. 20.8 9 10 11. Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day Six dayes shalt thou labour and doe all thy work But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God In it thou shalt not doe any worke thou nor thy sonne nor thy daughter thy man-servant nor thy maid-servant nor thy cattell nor thy stranger that is within thy gates For in six dayes the Lord made heaven and earth the sea and all that in them is and rested the seventh day wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it Here God requires the worshipping of God by his owne meanes upon that time which is appointed It is said What God requires in the fourth Commandement That the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it which thou must not conceive to be an idle repetition of words of the same value in so short a summe and therefore compare other Scriptures and the sense will be cleare and distinct unto Esau cries out to Jacob Gen. 27. Blesse me even me also my father and then Jacob gave him a
the word by the preaching of his faithfull servants for if conscience be imperfectly sighted there will lurke many a secret sin which will wound at the latter end Secondly by Art when the devill useth all his skill his methods and depths to make a sinne secret to us Ordinarily he useth foure Commendation of others thus pride is commended for cleanlinesse drunkennesse for good fellowship duelling for gallantnesse of spirit and then conscience sleeps and there lies a secret sinne Custome is a second when men have long traded in it the guilt lies hid Certe quum fuit mos nec fuit culpa Thus came in the Polygamy of the Patriarchs and thus bribery extortion and common-swearing by God or faith or troth come to be hid from conscience Yea have not we done many things of custome about the Lords day the Lords worship beside in our ordinary course which upon better Information we rejoyce now to be rid of Profit is a third When a course brings in gain lulls the conscience in the glorious sight of it awhile and it falls asleep Then you may bring in profit enough and conscience takes no notice of it and thus lurks a secret sinne This makes covetousnesse to many counting gaine godlinesse to some and many lying and cousening tricks in trading to be secret sinnes seldome or never noticed to Conscience Pleasure is a fourth When thoughts words or deeds have pleasure in them conscience is soone charmed to take no notice of them and so growes a secret sinne Thus pride wantonnesses drinkings and a thousand dalliances are hid from the eyes of this worlds wantons to be sins thorough the pleasures of them and this is Satans art to make many sins secret sinnes Thirdly sinnes may be secret by the Just Judgement of God When God justly blinds the eyes of sinners that will not come to Christ that they might be saved Joh. 5. and gives them to blindnes of mind that seeing they may see Rom. 1. not perceive Of this we have three fearful examples in Scriptures The Gentiles whom God gave over to vile affections to which they Indulged without sense because they basely dishonoured God in their heathenish Idolatry The Jews who because they shut their eyes against the beames of Christs Majestie in his preaching and miracles were given up to call for his bloud upon them and upon their children This was a secret sinne to them 1 Cor. 3. for if they had known they would not have crucified the Lord of life Antichristian Christians who because they receive not the love of the truth 2 Thess 2. that they might be saved God gives them over to believe lyes that they might be without repentance damned and so all their foolish abominations and wicked Idolatries are secret sinnes to them And thus have I demonstrated this object that the best in some kind or other have secret sinnes Use Therefore this must stirre up your care to set your watches to finde out these secret ones as well as you can If you knew there were a thiefe lurking secretly in your house you would feare the danger set watches and search every corner much more must you doe it for your souls which are in danger every minute by your secret sinnes Nature is blind flye to the light of Gods word The course of the world is deceitfull walke in the path of the righteous Gods Judgement is grievous provoke him not with the love of any sinne The very thought of a secret sinne me thinks should make you watch and watch again and again Ob. You will say that you have enough sinne which you know to look unto Sol. That is true and more then enough For sinne is worse then hell and to be in sinnes hand is worse then to be in Satans for sinne onely makes him hold fast Ob. But if sinnes are secret you will say surely they are of little value Sol. But I tell thee sinnes are not valued by their secresie but by their nature and object against whom c. The smallest sinnes doe no small hurt Drops of raine are very small yet may they make great flouds A bird may be caught by one claw as well as by the whole body A boy may creep in at a window better then a man and let in the strongest thiefe that is to come in so may the smallest sinne let in the greatest Therefore I say to all watch against secret sins If you will close with me now ask Q. How you may find out a secret sin How secret sinnes may be discovered Prov. 28. I shal give you the best light I can First you may find thē out by fear Blessed is he that feareth always for such a man wil not harden his heart Fear will make a man suspect every thing that hath not sound warrant and thoroughly to examine all thoughts words deeds A man finds by the daily losse of things that a secret thiefe doth hant his house He is loth to suspect those that are approvedly known to be honest people but he will have a strict eye upon every man else and examine his busines his calling Jon. 1. his living and his expenses and so at last he wil discover him So you loose every day some strength in grace some comfort some peace some good or other You will not suspect known inclinations thoughts words or deeds which are approved by the plaine words of Scriptures But if they be other grounded upon ignorance custome profit pleasure honour suspect and try them and out will the secret sins come which must be abandoned Secondly thou maist finde them out by drawing things from trade to truth To make a trade of any sinne doth at last make a sinne secret Commit it once and it is grievous Commit it a second time and it is light Commit it a third time and it is desireable Commit it a fourth time and it is delightfull Commit it a fift time and it is defensible Commit it a sixt time and it is insensible and so it becomes a secret sinne But now draw it before the truth of Gods word and the light of it will shew the foulnesse of it and the foulnesse of it will make it questionable the questioning of it will open the guilt the guilt bindes the conscience and then except conscience be out-faced by impudency it will be secret no longer Thirdly thou maist finde them out by Repentance Let the terrours of the Almighty the love of God the bloud of Jesus Christ and the ghastly sight of death and judgement work thy guilty soul but to repent or to repent of one sinne and thou wilt finde out many secret sinnes A penny is but a little piece of silver in it self but put it into a Payle of fair water and it seems as big as a shilling So put thy least sinne into a watery and penitent soul and it will be of a vast bignesse Thou shalt see that in due
Scriptures as may beat down sinne Doth thy faith work thus Gal. 5. True faith worketh by love and in truth it will work thee to love the word of Christ as the meanes Christ as the meriter and therefore thou must set an higher price upon Jesus Christ then all things else and the Saints Phil. 3. and members of Christ as those that are in communion with thee for salvation For we must not stroke the head and strike the members pretend to love Christ and hate those that are Christs Indeed thou must not so farre dote upon Christs members as therefore to suck in all errours and miscarriages in them who do but know in part 1 Cor. 13. and therefore may aym and practise imperfectly but so farre as we see Christ in them so farre we must love them and is thy faith thus then hast thou this faith fit for the Sacrament Fourthly thou must examine the fitnesse of thy thankfulnesse Thankfulnesse Luk. 22.19 This is one of the main duties of those that partake at the Lords Table and it will argue thy love to it and thy need of it and thy desire to enjoy the benefit of that for which thou art thankfull yea it is that rent Ps 116.13 Psa 107.1 and tribute which the Lord requireth upon the receipt of any favour Therefore thou must perform this both in word and work In word for before thou comest to the Sacrament thou must praise God who is pleased to ordain so familiar a means to confirm thy faith and give thee communion with Christ when thou art in the use of it thou must thankfully remember the Lords death which is signified and sealed unto thee with the fruits of it And when thou hast received thou must thank God for the benefit and comfort thou hast enjoyed by it yea though for the present thou feel it not Thou must be thankfull in work by a constant obedience unto his will 1 Sam. 15. for obedience is better then sacrifice In obedience thou might'st offer beasts and goods but in obedience thou offerest thy self Vse Therefore my childe put thy soul to the question here also O my soul hast thou this thankfulnesse meet for the Lords Supper Doest thou know the benefit of thy redemption of which this Sacrament is a seal Hast thou a secret joy in heart for it Doest thou admire the mercy providing and performing it Doest thou resolve to love God for it and to set forth his praises to him and his praises to others Doest thou resolve and endeavour by grace given to obey him in all things who hath comforted thee in this which is above all things unto thee If it be thus with thee then hast thou this thankfulnesse fit for the Lords Supper Lastly thou must examine the fitnesse of thy Charity Charity I would have thee know that there is no service acceptable without this charity If thou prayest thou must lift up pure hands without wrath 1 Tim. 2.8 If thou hearest the word thou must be slow to wrath Jam. 1.19 20. because the wrath of man doth not accomplish the righteousnesse of God If thou sacrifice thou must leave thy gift at the Altar and go Matth. 5.23 24. and be reconciled And thus it is by way of proportion when thou comest to the Lords Supper Yea mark that it is impossible that sound faith should be without charity The pulse of faith beats this way therefore James saith Jam. 2. shew me thy faith by thy works Yea thy very coming to the Sacrament doth require charity A loaf of bread is made of many grains and we that are partakers of one loaf must be one bread 1 Cor. 10.16 17. We come to have communion with Christ our head and when members attend for direction and comfort from the head there must be no jars The shoulder must not say to the arm nor the arm to the hand nor the hand to the foot I have no need of thee and thee The God of peace will fill thee with all peace by beleeving and practising this Q. If thou ask me to whom thy charity must have respect A. I tell thee first to God in Christ and next to all Christian brethren for Christs sake Thou must love God any way made known unto thee but especially in Christ thy Saviour 〈…〉 He that that loves not the Lord Jesus Christ let him be an execration Maran Atha What Not to love him that is an Advocate a Surety all in all to us in us for us Too great punishment cannot be inflicted on such too much unworthinesse to come unto the Lords Supper cannot be imputed unto them Next thou must shew thy charity to all Christian brethren both by forgiving and performing the offices of reconciled persons In forgiving thou must pacifie thy heart from all bitternesse Ro. 12.19 and desire of revenge Vengeance is mine and I will repay saith the Lord and thou must discharge them from the offence to thee though thou canst not discharge them from the offence to God Indeed thou art not bound to think and judge him good or a friend who by long proof hath manifested himself otherwise neither art thou alwayes bound to discharge a penalty if it be great for then Christianity should give a license to ungodly men to offer all manner of injuries to the godly but thou must discharge so farre from the offence as it may seem to deserve the least revenge For thou must not be overcome of the evill of thy enemy Ro. 12.21 or of thy own malicious heart but thou must overcome thy enemies and thy own evill also with goodnesse In performing the offices of Charity thou must labour to unite others by making them friends if thou canst that all our matters may be done in love and thou must communicate to the necessities of the Saints For thou receivest an inestimable favour from God and therefore thou must do good Heb. 13. and to distribute thou must not forget for with such sacrifices God is pleased Vse Therefore my dear childe reflect once again upon thy soul and examine it Hast thou O my soul that charitie which fits thee for the Lords Supper Hast thou a ground of all true charity to men the love of God in Jesus Christ Doest thou love to walk before him that he may see and correct all thy wayes Doest thou love his familiar presence above the greatest presences of the world Doest thou love to hear him speak unto thee in the word and to speak unto him in prayer Doest thou rejoyce when thou seest the tokens of his love in his graces and Sacraments come rowling upon thee Doest thou for his sake love all that are his his ministery his worship his ordinances and his Saints Doest thou love to have peace with all men Rom. 12. so farre as is possible and to be friends with Christs members as they are such Doest thou really
discharge thy heart from all desire of revenge and canst thou be content to be nothing for Christ Art thou willing to perform all offices of charity in working reconciliation betwixt neighbour and neighbour and communicating to the necessities of the Church If it be thus with thee thou hast that Charity which is fit for the Sacrament Now look backward and let me see what thou hast profited Seeing there are but two Sacraments Baptisme and the Supper of the Lord Tell me Q. What is Baptisme A. A washing with water consecrated by him that hath authority to preach in the name of the Father Son and holy Ghost to signifie and seal our grafting into Christ Q. What is the Lords Supper A. Bread and wine consecrated broken and given by a Minister received eaten and drunk by Gods people to signifie and seal our growing in Christ Q. What comfort do you receive by Baptisme A. A confirmation of my new estate above what I had by nature Q. What gottest thou in this new estate A. The forgivenesse of my sins Q. How can Baptisme forgive thy sinnes A. As a signe and seal Sacramentally Q. How is that A. With reference to the covenant when I make it a baptisme of Repentance to amendment of life God makes a baptisme for forgivenesse of sinnes Q. Why then should'st thou be baptized before thou repentest and beleevest A. Because I am while I am in Infancie a beleever in state though not in manifested act Q. How doth that appear A. By the promise which GOD makes to beleevers and their seed Q. Was not this made onely to the Jewes A. No but to them also that were a farre off even to so many as God shall call Q. What followes hereupon A. That if Jewes children had right to circumcision which was a seal of the righteousnesse of faith so have the children of Christians to Baptisme which is no more though more clearly Q. What comfort doest thou receive by the Lords Supper A. A reall communion of the body and bloud of Christ Q. How canst thou do that seeing Christ is in heaven A. By vertue of the covenant of God with my beleeving soul Q. How doth God offer Christ unto thy soul A. In a promise Q. How doth thy soul receive him A. By beleeving Gods promise Q. How must thou prepare thy soul to receive Christ in the Sacrament A. By examining my self Q. What is it to examine thy self A. To commune with my heart by asking my soul questions how fit it is Q. What must thou examine thy self of A. Whether I have a fit desire repentance faith thankfulnesse and charity Q. Why must thou have desire A. Because God filleth the hungry with good things Q. What must thy desire be grounded on A. Upon the knowledge of my God my sinne my Christ and the doctrine and use of the Sacraments Q. What must thou desire A. To renew my Covenant with God Q. Why must thou have repentance A. Because there can be no communion betwixt light and darknesse Q. What must be the ground of thy repentance A. An assurance that I have broke my covenant in Baptisme Q. How doest thou know thy repentance A. By sorrow for my sinne and a conscionable care to doe the will of Christ with all my strength Q. Why must thou have faith A. Because the Lords Supper is appointed to encrease and confirme faith Q. What must be the ground of thy faith A. The offer of Christs body and bloud in the Lords Supper Q. How knowest thou whether thou hast faith A. If my heart close with Christs promise and I rest upon him for salvation with confidence and rejoycing Q. Hast thou a license to rest upon Christ thus A. Yes if I am weary and heavy laden under the burthen of sinne Q. Why must thou have thankfulnes A. Because the end of the sacrament is a thankful remembrance of Christs death Q. What must be the ground of thy thankfulnesse A. A speciall love to God for this high favour Q. How knowest thou whether thou art thankfull A. If I speake of this mercy to others praise God himself for it and submit unto him in all things Q. Why must thou have charitie A. Because we that are partakers of one bread are one bread and one body Q. What must be the ground of thy charitie A. The Communion of Saints and samenesse of nature Q. How knowest thou whether thou hast charitie A. If my heart be pacified from all desire of revenge and I be willing to live in love with all especially with the houshold of faith and communicate to their necessities Thou must remember now my good child how farre we are gone I have learned thee to know God and thy self Thou hast seen thy creation thy fall thy curse thy remedy by our Lord Jesus Christ Thou hast seen that Christ must become thine by faith I have discovered how faith is begotten in thee and how it is encreased namely by the word of God and Sacraments I have shewed thee the nature the number and the use of the Sacraments from God I have shewed thee how thou shouldst use them for thy comfort and especially how thou must prepare thy self for the Lords Supper so as thou mayst carry Christ home with thee from thence There is but one thing more wherein I desire to informe thy childish understanding in and that is prayer Tell me then 34. Q. Is not prayer an excellent means to make thy faith grow A. Yes It is a speciall means appointed of God Mark this truth Prayer is an excellent means to encrease faith The word of God and Sacraments are sweet means But how these will be made effectuall without thy prayer thou canst not tell Christ saith Matth. 7.7 Aske and ye shall have seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you All these phrases presse upon thee prayer for the enjoying of any blessing Act. 4.31 When the Disciples had prayed the place was shaken where they were assembled and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost God answered them extraordinarily to confirm them upon their prayers And therefore when the Apostles found their faith weake for the forgiving of wrongs Luk. 17.5 they prayed Lord encrease our faith Gods promises goe along with power Psal 145.19 Psal 34.15.17 He will fulfill the desire of them that feare him His eares are open to their cry Therefore David looks upon God with confidence and saith Psal 4.3 The Lord will heare when I call And thou canst not wonder that prayer should be such a powerfull means to encrease thy faith For it moves God to be mindfull of us amid a thousand vexations When Christ was on the crosse and vexed from heaven and earth yet when the good thiefe prayed Christ he answered This day shalt thou be with me in Paradice Yea prayer doth in a manner binde God and therefore when Moses prayed God said Now Moses let