Duty thus to observe the Works and wayes of GOD so that we may be enabled to make a wiser Observation of them 't will be necessary to follow the Light and Direction of the holy Scripture By which means we shall both â—…ee the more clearly and shall also understand the ends and uses of GODS works more fully Many things which lye hid from the light of nature may be discerned by the Word of GOD this gives us a better view of many of GOD Actings then what is possible to have otherwise And hereby only we are instructed in one Work of GOD which of all others is the greatest and most wonderfull I mean the Work of Mans Redemption This is a deep Mystery and of the greatest importance both for it self because helps to unriddle all the other Mysteries of Divine Providence Such as are ignorant may with the Greeks count it Foolishness but who seriously examine it shall find it the Power of GOD and Wisdom of GOD Therefore it is said the Angels desire to look into it 1 Pet. 1. 12. And seing it concerneth us more then them certainly we can never sufficiently either Consider it or Admire it If it be our Duty to observe the Divine Transactions as we have made it appear sure we ought to Contemptlate this which is the chief Contrivance of his Wisdom and the very end of all the other purposes of his Eternal Counsel In the Mystery of the Gospell are hid all the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge as St. Paul speaks Col 2. 3. Here we see the most amazing things viz. An union betwixt two Natures infinitly distant a Reconciliation betwixt infinite Iustice and infinit Mercy the greatest severity towards Sin and the greatest kindness towards Sinners expressed by one and the same Act. All Gods works declare his Glory but never any more or so much as this his Power Wisdom Goodness Holiness Justice Mercy and other Perfections were never so Illustriously Displayed as here On this therefore we must in a more speciall manner fix our Thoughts and that not meerly to satisfy our Curiosity or to stuffe our Heads with Notions but to fill us with a greater Knowledge of GOD to raise our Admiration of him to excite our Love to him and to stirre up our Souls and all their Powers and Faculties to Blesse and Praise Him for his Goodness and Wonderfull Works to the Children of Men. And as this should be our End in Observing and Contemplating the Wayes and Works of God so upon this very account we are oblidged thereto because that this is the proper and necessary mean to carry on this End we cannot Love nor Admire nor Adore nor Trust c What we do not know and we cannot know GOD otherwaves then by his Works and those Manifestations which he hath given of himself for there can be no Immeditat intuition of his essence and the Idea which we have of him by nature will soon be defaced if it be not cherished by such Meditations That therefore we may know GOD and knowing him be engaged to those Acts of Love Praise Trust Dependance c. Which is due to him we ought to observe those Works and Actions of GOD which he hath laid before us in Nature and in his Word and which daylie appear by the Administration of his Providence towards our selves and others Wherefore also we must not do this only now and then or in a slight overly manner But we ought to be taken up frequently with such Contemplations and when we set about them it should be with all Seriousness and Attention that we may understand what we Consider and that it may have a due Impression on us short and Superficiall glances do little good Indeed what occurs to us as we Converse with others or go up and down about our A 〈◊〉 we need not stay long thereon but may observe passingly But 't will be necessary besides to set a part some particular time for this purpose that our Meditations may be more Deliberate and free of Distractions How much time should be allotted and what hours are best must be left to each ones Prudence and Discretion for there can be no general rules prescrib'd to all some have their time at their own Disposal and can use it as they please others are not so The First sort may keep hours and are oblidged to spend more time in this Exercise but for the Last they must take the Evening or the Morning or Midday as is most convenient for them and must continue long or short as agrees best with their Station and Imployment Every one hath the Lords day almost free and therefore it is every ones Duty to imploy this Day thus which is indeed the Main end of the Day and they who cannot command much time all the Week are above all others oblidged to use this Day well to the present purpose As to the Order and Method of Meditating it is not very Material neither need any be nicely Curious in what Order or after what Way and Manner they proceed in considering these Works of God Providing they seek them out seriously labour to understand them truely and make proper and usefull Reflections on them At every Retirement we cannot make serious and deep Observations of all Gods Works therefore to consider them well 't will be requisite to consider them severally Sometimes our inward Disposition Externall state the present occasion and other Circumstances make some of Gods Works more proper and sutable then others when it is so we should determine our Meditations to these especially But ordinarly when there is no such particular Reason to determine us 't will be best most profitable to follow the course order of the Scripture for we may call the Scripture Divine Momâ—…ires which hold forth to us the great and admirable Actions of the Universall Monarch of the World And thus much of the Second instance of Walking with God Of Consulting GOD. The third particular meant by walking with GOD is the consulting Him about what concerns us For as is usuall for such as are in Company together to Advise with one another so by walking with God we are to understand the asking his Counsel and Direction and the Guidance of his unerring wisdom The more eminent any one is the more others are oblidg'd to advise with him especially if with all he hath a Jurisdiction Authority over them and that there be Obligations on them to study the pleasing him Thus Servants and Children ought to consult their Parents and Masters not only because they should think them more wise then themselves but also because it is their Duty to Humour and Please them and so it being our Duty to walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing as it is Col. 1. 10. Therefore we should do nothing without his Warrant and Advice The way of Man is not in himself as the Prophet hath it it is not in him that walketh
natural light and usually called the Moral law The observance whereof is required by the very Order of Nature for if we act rationally we ought to follow this Law as closely as the Brute Creature do their Natural instinct But besides the commands of this first kind there be others Meerly Arbitrary which God hath enjoined cheifly to hold out his absolute Soveraginity over us and to prove our Subjection to him These Divines ordinarly term Positive Precepts and they are only known by Revelation GOD never suffered Man to be without some command of this Nature the Iews had many such but Christians have few and those few too are made very serviceable to the great ends of Religion the perfection of our souls and their Union with God How ever though 't were otherwise they ought to be observed if we would have it appear that we serve and Worship God for if it be a part of Divine Worship to own Gods Authority as we have made it appear then we ought to observe positive Precepts as well as the Duties of the Moral Law seing thereby we signifie a true respect to the Authority of GOD because there is no other Reason which induceth us to such an Observance Our chief motive to the obedience of the Moral Law should be the Will and Authority of GOD otherwise it is no Act of Religious worship but it cannot appear that our Obedience to that Law is for GOD if we refuse to observe the positive Precepts of Scripture for that Obedience is no true Obedience which consider rather the Reason of the thing then the authority of the Injoyner Indeed if Moral and positive Duties come at any time in Competition together then these last should give place to the first for this is the Will of GOD according to that Rule I will have Mercy and not Sacrifice that is rather then Sacrifice But when there is no such Reason for suspending them it is a great sin and contempt of GOD to slight or neglect them It was by the breach of a positive precept that our first Parents revolted from GOD and which brought all this Masse of Sin and Misery upon Mankind Which shews Divine Authority is affronted by small things as well as great and that the Wrath of GOD may be provock'd by the neglect of positive Commands no lesse then of What is Moral Wherefore they are grosely mistaken who think they are only concern'd to be what we call Moral good Men and that it is little matter whither they observe the positive Ordinances of the Scripture He is indeed no true servant of God nor a right Worshipper of him who is Vicious and whose Conversation is not Honest and Righteous for that is a Weighty matter of the Law but neither can He be said to Worship God who makes no Conscience of doing these Acts of Religion which God hath been pleased to enjoyne to shew his Authority and to try what regard we have thereto One may be Chaste Temperate Iust Bountifull c Not for God's cause but for his own because 't is agreeable to his Constitution and for his Health Interest Reputation c but who is all these also carefull to expresse his devotion those otherwayes which are peculiar to the Scripture gives a true proof that he owns God and doeth what he doeth only for him Thus wee have given a General View of thaâ—… Worship and Service which is Due to GOD. To condescend to Particulars and to treat of them Severally would be a tedious Taske who are desirous must be at the pains to gather them from the Scripture and they may be much helped herein by that Excellent Book The whole Duty of Man But for the present we shall only speak to one or two points which may help to a farther understanding of the Nature of Gods Worship SECTION V. Of the Fear of GOD. THAT we may shew more Particularlie how and wherein GOD is to be Worshipped and Acknowledged we shall instance first that of Fear And here we shall not need to prove from Scripture that GOD should be feared it being so known and manifest a thing that all who have ever acknowledged a GOD have also Acknowledged that he ought to be feared so that not only in Scripture but even amongst all Nations all Religion and Divine Worship is frequently expressed by this one particular he Fear of the LORD And indeed it would be very strange if any should think GOD ought not to be Feared a greater Parodox was never vented among Men Fear ye not Me saith the Lord Will ye not tremble at my Presence which have placed the sand for the bound of the Sea by a perpetuall decree that it cannot pass it and though the Waves thereof toss themselves yet can they not prevaile though they rear yet can they not pass over it Ier 5. 22. And again as the same Prophet hath it Chap. 10. 6. 7. Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee O Lord thou art great thy Name is great in might who would not fear thee O King of Nations For to thee doth it appertain yea it is a saying of that excellent Roman Oratour quis non timeat amnia providentem cogitantem animadvertentem omnia ad se pertinere putantem curiosum plenum negotii Deum That is who would not fear that GOD who sees and takes notice of all things so carefull and full of business as to have a Particular concern for every Action and Person in the World But as it is certain that GOD is to be feared so by this we do not mean that servile and slavish fear which makes Men only apprehensive of the hurt and evil which GOD may do them and which such have who consider GOD only as a Being of great Might and Power which he useth Arbitrally without considering that his Power is alwayes managed by his Wisdom and determined by his Goodness This Kind of Fear ingendereth Superstition and doth as oft avert a Man's mind from GOD as incline it to him Plutarch observeth in his Treatise of Superstition that this ordinarly turneth to Atheism and nourisheth it such was the Fear of the Israelites when they saw the Lightnings and heard the thunderings from Mount Sinai as we read Exod. 20. 18. for it is said there when the People saw these things they removed and stood a far off and they said unto Moses speak thou with us and we will hear but let not God speak with us lest we die It was this fear also which possessed our First Parents after they had eaten the forbidden fruit they were afraid of God and therefore they hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the Garden Gen. 3. 8. Nay the Divels themselves are seased with this Fear they also fear and tremble but by doing so they do not please God nor find any acceptance with him The True and Commendable fear of God is what we call
Delicious if we have Cloaths that are Useful and Comely though they be not Gaudy and Splendid and for great Ostentation if we have as much as serves to relieve our present necessities and to afford us Necessary and Convenient Accommodation though not for Lavish and Prodigal Spending or so much as others have or equal to what our Ancestours enjoyed in this case we have no Reason to complain And if we do complain in these Circumstances we shall never be satisfied in any he that is not contented with a Moderate and Reasonable Competency will never think the greatest Abundance enough when Mens desires once go beyond their necessities no measure of Wealth or Riches can stay them Crescit amor nummi quantum ipsa pecunia crescit And Solomon tells us he that loveth Silver viz. with an immoderate Love shall not be satisfied with Silver nor he that loveth abundance with Increase Eccl. 5. 10. The best and readiest way to become Rich is not to seek to increase our Substance but to Moderate and Abridge our Desires The true way to fill a leaking Vessel is not to carry it to the Ocean or some great River but to stop the leaks for so long as they continue it were no more possible to fill it at the Ocean then at some small Rivolet even so if we would draw Contentment and Satisfaction from our present State and Condition we must not let our Desires reach farther then what is Just and Equitable otherwise the whole World will not be able to content or satiat them But suppose that it shall be found even by the narrowest Measures that thou art in an Estate of Want and hast not a Sufficiency answerable to thy Necessities in this case indeed thou hast not full matter of Contentment but however thou must Labour to support thy self with Patience considering that this is the Lot which the All wise GOD hath given thee to whom thou owest an intire Submission and who may have appointed this as to punish thy former Follies and Sins so likewise both to further thy greater good and also to prevent greater mischiefs and evils which might have befallen thee And though thou mayest very lawfully seek to be out of this present Necessitous Condition providing it be by Lawfull Means and Moderat Cares and Endeavours yet thou hast no reason to Fret and Repine thereat For consider that as thy Estate is little here so thy account shall be the less hereafter and thou art also at present delivered from many Dangerous Temptations which perhaps thou couldst not well have resisted and art rid of many Incumbrances and Intanglements which would either have hindred thy Progress in Vertue and Hâ—…liness altogether or else rendred it very difficult Remember also that even in this State there are fair and good Opportunities of wining Heaven and Eternal Life as well as in any other and if that be sufficiently secured it 's the less matter what come of other things iâ—… we be sure to be happy hereafter we need not be much concerned how we fare here And 't is certain that neither our Praise nor our Reward depends upon any external condition of this World but upon our living Vertuously and Uprightly Devoutly and Piously in whatsoever Condition GOD puts us The state of Man in this World may be compared to a play whereof we all are the Actors and as in a play it is of no great moment what part a Man act providing he act the part alloted him handsomely and well for he that acts the part of a Servant or Clown rightly gets as much Praise and Reward as he who playes the part of a Prince So let it not trouble thee whither this or the other Condition hath fallen into thy share whither GOD hath given thee this or the other Station to shew thy self in but whatever it be do thou what becomes thee walk sutably to thy place and Circumstances see that thou carry thy self so as that GOD may be Glorified thy self Praised and others Edified and when the Play is done when this Life is ended great shall be thy Reward Lastly if thou find that GOD hath put thee into an Estate of Redundance Plenty so that besides the liberal supplies of thy Necessities thou hast much considerably over and above if so then thou owest first great thanks to GOD for his Bountyt and Liberality to thee whilst many others in the World are Pinched and Strained Thou broughtest as little into the World with thee as they did and therefore if the Divine Providence had not made the difference and kept it up thou shouldest have felt their Poverty and they might have enjoyed thy present Plenty Make therefore an thankfull Acknowledgement unto GOD'S Goodness as this Iacob did afterwards upon the like Consideration O GOD said he I am not Worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which thou hast shewed unto thy servant for with my staff I passed over this Iordan and now I am become two bands Gen. 32. 9 10. But as thou art thus oblidged to Gratitude and Thankfulness so in the next place you will do well to consider what Warriness and Circumspection and Watchfulness thy present condition requires and calls for A Plentifull State is Difficult and Dangerous it produceth many and strong Temptations so that thou hast need to take head to thy self that thou be not overcome keep a strict Watch and Guard over all thy wayes that thou wax not Proud and Wanton that thou be not ensnaâ—…ed to Rioting and Excess that thou oppress not thy Inferiours Let not thy Abundance make thee Forgetfull of GOD or keep thee from the thoughts of another World for if these be the effects and Consequences of thy Plentifull Condition it is a Curse and not a Blessing and it hath brought thee to utter Ruine and Destruction if thou thus abuse thy Plenty thou shall one day pay sadly for it and the more thou Satiats thy self here the greater shall be thy Penuâ—…y and Want hereafter Then thou shalt feel the folly of Abusing Plenty-after this sort and shalt be Glad to have one sent that he may Dip the tip of his finger in water to cool thy tongue but it shal not be granted in steed of this thou shalt hear Son Remember that thou in thy life time receivedst thy good things Luk 16. 25. Now he that would not have such a Comfortless Memorandum to be given unto him in the other World let him Remember to walk warriâ—…y in this let him not give himself to Pride and Luxury and Voluptuousness but let him Exercise himself to Godliness and keep that charge which the Apostle gives and which he commands all Pastours of the Church to give them that are Rich in this World that they be not high minded nor trust in uncertain riches but in the living God who giveth us richly all things to enjoy that they do good that they be rich in good works ready
our deeds and actions if our knowledge of God doth not lead and excite us to the honouring of him it will prove much to our hurt and dammage as we may learn from Rom 1. where we see what plagues and judgements God gave them up to who when they knew God did not glorifie him as God neither were thankful It is said he gave them up to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not convenient that they all might be dâ—…mn'd who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesâ—… as we have it 2Thes 2. 12 Seing therefore we have found out the True GOD and that he hath revealed himself to us let us not slight or neglect him and be careless to please him But let us with all Readiness and Cheerfulness pay that Homage Worship and Service which is due unto him To shew which was the third Particular we promised to speak to and we shall treat thereof in the following Sections SECTION IV. Shewing what Worship and Service is due to GOD and how we may come to know the same THE Knowledge of this is most necessarie for it is not enough that we find out who is the True GOD unless we also own and acknowledge him which is not done unless we pay him that Homage and Worship which is due unto Him For as He is our Master whom we serve and Obey and as He is our Soveragin to whom we swear Loyalty and pay the proper Acts of allegiance so He is our GOD to whom we give the Worship due to GOD which can never be rightly performed unless we know well what it is Now to find out this we must proceed Warrily and take right Measures otherways we cannot choose but fall into gross Mistakes we ought not to follow at random the Devices and Imaginations of our own Hearts for what pleaseth us may Displease GOD be unsuitable to his Majesty and improper for the advancing his Honour and Glory Nor will it justifie and warrand any way of Worshipping GOD that the same is observed by others for whither we view the old or the present World we shall find that the generality of man-kind have deviated much from the true way of worshipping God they have set up various forms of Religion and Worship which are not acceptable to God because in modelling these they have studied more their own several humours and dispositions then what was proper in it self or sutable to the Divine Majesty Thus for example the manner after which the Heathens worshipped God was an abomination unto him for how could he who is a spirit be but displeased with empty outward shewes with sensless insignificant actions How could it but offend his unspoted puritie to be worshipped by debauchery and acts of filthiness and impurity How odious to his infinite wisdom that Foolish and ridiculous Gestures should be thought his Honour and delight and how unsutable to his goodness and mercy to be courted with Cruelty and Barbarity As Lucian saith they rather deserve the name of Impious then Religious who think God takes pleasure to be worshipped after that manner The practices of the Heathen in their Worship destroy the very Ideâ—… of GOD and chock these Sentiments of him which we have by Nature for they were the occasion of these Poetical fables which made their Gods guilty of theft murder adultery and the like vices which Fables were again necessarly keept up that they might the better defend and support that Foolish and unreasonable Worship which was so far from holding forth the Glory of GOD that it did only serve to beget mean and unworthy thoughts of him The practices of men therefore is a very uncertain rule to walk by as well as our own Fancy and seing men have differed about nothing more then the way and manner of worshipping GOD it would be a tedious task to examine their various sentiments The surest and nearest way to be informed wherein the true and acceptable Worship of God consists is to apply our selves to the consideration of the Divine Nature and â—…o search out his will and pleasure concerning us for as when we are about to make presents and to offer gifts we do not so much consider what we our selves would be taken with as what will be gratefull and acceptable to the person whose favour we are seeking so the worship of God being design'd to please him we ought not to seek therein the satisfaction of our own humors inclinations as what will find acceptance in his sight And nothing will find acceptance with him but what is agreeable to his Nature conform to his will and which doth properly express the glory of his Attributes and perfections So none can shew us these things but God and if he doe not declare them we cannot be sure not to erre an expresse particular Revelation therefore is necessary to determine the Worship of God for who besides himself should presume to order it It is our part to set about the service of God but it belongs to him only to prescribe it 'T is true something of GOD'S mind and will and consequently part of his true Worship may be learn'd by Natural light for the will of GOD is founded upon his Nature which never varies but is still the same Wherefore a due and serious consideration of the Divine Nature and Attributes might bring us to the knowledge of His will and of what is acceptable to him the Dictates also of Reason and Conscience being from GOD they do teach us his Will But though Natural light may thus teach us part yet it can not shew all that is necessary it is good and usefull so far and ought not to be slighted but it is not full or sufficient neither so very certain now by Reason of that darknesse which Sin hath raised which is too thick to be dispelled by Natural Light yea Sin hath so mingled it self with our very Nature and Constitution that it is sometimes difficult to distinguish betwixt the Dictates of right Reason and Conscience and the erroneous sentiments of that Sinfull contagion And farther seing wee have not kept our First state but are become Sinners some other Homage and Worship is requisite then if it had not been so For it is not Reasonable to think that such as have offended GOD should do no more then if they had still retained their uprightnesse another acknowledgement is due from Traitors and Rebels then from these who have been always Loyal els it will not be accepted But what Homage Sinners should pay or how they should Address themselves to GOD cannot be known unlesse he declare it Natural Reason doth not teach this for though it were cleared of its present incumbrances it is only adapted to the State in which we were Created that is a State of Innocency and doth not serve to direct our behaviour if we fall from that state Thus it is evident that some new Revelation is necessary to
very proper and convenient to set apart one particular Room of our House for this end that we may perform our Devotions with the greater freedom and be less lyable to disturbance and those interruptions which persons usually meet with who want this conveniency But to leave the circumstance of the place and to come to the thing it self Prayer is a speciall part of Divine Worship enjoined by clear precepts recommeded by the example of all holy Men and so necessary that who prayeth not at all or but seldome cannot be said to Worship GOD whatever elâ—…e they doe For their other Acts cannot be properly referred to GOD if they be not accompanied with Prayers Our obligation to Prayer ariseth not from one but from all the Divine Attributes and by Prayer there is an acknowledgement of all of them He who prayeth declareth GOD'S Omnipresence His Omniscience His Omnipotence and All sufficiency and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him But who neglecteth Prayer doth not believe these Divine Perfections or doth not seriously consider them he maketh no actuall acknowledgment of them nay he lives in open defiance of them and arrogates to himself an independency and self-sufficiency which are GOD'S prerogative Again there can be no Intercourse with GOD but by the means of Prayer Without Prayer we can never arrive at he end of Religion viz. Union with GOD and participation of the Divine Nature He who is not exercised in Prayer hath his Heart alienat from GOD and is wholly indisposed for receiving the Spirit of GOD and the impression thereof without which there is no advancing towards perfection Prayer is by some compared to Breathing and not unfitly for what that is to the Body Prayer is to the Soul respiration is no more necessary to our NaturallLi'e then Prayer to the Spirituall Life for hereby it â—…s preserved as the stiffling our breath ends our Life so the ceasing to pray destroyes the life of God in the Soul The bâ—…dy which breaths not has no sense or feeling nor is it capable of motion even so the man who prayeth not is without all due sense of GOD neither maketh he any motion towards him Prayer is a sign of Spirituall Life and shews a desire and capacity to receive what is necessary to growth and perfection and as the want of such a desire and capacity obstructs the communication of GOD'S Spirit so where this is he will certainly manifest his Lâ—…ve and bestow his Grace To him who hath the desire and capacity shall be given He who asketh shall receive he who seeketh shall find and who knockâ—…th it shall be opened unto him Mat. 11. But to make Prayer acceptable to GOD and thus profitable to our selves it must be rightly performed and duely qualified true Prayer is alwayes acceptable as incense and never failes to bring down a Blessing but many deceive themselves with a meer shew they are contented that they seem to Pray but do not Pray really some Pray much but yet are never a whit nearer GOD nor move more forward in Holinesse which is both the undoubted Sign and the certain Effect of true Prayer We ought then not only to Pray but to pray aright else all the Labour we bestow this way is in vain Ye ask saith St. Iames and ye have not why because ye ask amiss Now that our Prayers may be proper Prayers and effectuall first We must take heed that they be the Work of the Spirit and not the Labour of the Lips For GOD is a Spirit and will be Worshipped in Spirit and Truth That is by free and proper Acts of the Mind and not by empty shews which have no Solidity or Reality in them If our Hearts be removed he cares not for our drawing near with our mouth or the honouring him with our Lips as we learn from Isa 29. 1â—… To prostrate our Bodies before GOD and to let our Minds â—…ove and wander is to offer a dead Sacrifice which is no Reasonable or acceptable Service to utter words which we do not understand or whose meaning we attend not to is not to pray but to prat it is to bable without sense to make a sound which signifies nothing and deserves no more to be regarded then the pronunciation of Puppets and Mechanicall Engines which is performed by Wheels and Springs without understanding Our Prayers are but bruitish gruâ—…tlings if they come not from the Heart and be not performed by the understanding Wherefore when we are to Pray we should first fix our Spirits and compose our Minds to a serious Attention and should endeavonr to wind up our Souls to that fervour and earnestness which is Sutable to the weight and importance of Prayers And to this purpose â—… will be necessary to bestow some time in Meditation and Reading of the Seriptures or some other devout book Having thus reduced our Minds to a due Attention and secured as much as possible against wandering thoughts in the next place we must consider the several parts of Prayers the Nature and Property of each and the Affections sutable thereto and frame our Prayers accordingly For they cannot be acceptable if lame and defective nor though they have all necessary parts if each part be not rightly Adjusted and Properly qualified To clear this better we will touch a little on them The first part of Prayer is Adoration and Invocation This we should alwayes begin with for as in our addresses to Kings and great Personages we use first to do them reverence and to testify their dignity before we present our requests So in our addresses to GOD we should first adore his Majesty and invocate his Audience Now the right way to do this is not to be accoast him with a heap of bigge tittles but to call to mind his incomprehensible Nature and Adorable perfections visible in his manifold Works And if our apprehensions of GOD be worthy of him we will be abashed at our selves as unfit for so great a presence and most unworthy to be regarded by one so highly exalted above all our thoughts To expresse which and to cherish it too 't is requisite to throw our selves in some humble posture Thus the Publican to signify his own vileness and GODS greatness he stood a far off and would not lift up his eyes as one ashamed of himself But lest the reflecting upon GODS Majesty and Greatness should take away the hopes of Acceptance and rather fill us with dread then confidence in him we must remember his Goodness his Love his Mercy and how that he is reconciled to us in his Son IESUS CHRIST Therefore our Saviour hath taught us to draw near to GOD as in a sense of his Ineffable Greatness whose throne is in the Heavens so under the notion of a Father who is alwayes ready and easie to be entreated When ye pray saith he say Our Father which art in Heaven c. Confession is another part of Prayer This
must by no means be omitted GOD requires it the rules of Justice and Equitie make it necessary and there is no Remission without it he who confesseth hath the promise of pardon but who covereth his Sins shall not prosper To perfom this aright we must consider both our Generall and particular State and make an acknowledgement of them In the Generall we ought to acknowledge what is common to us with all others that we are of a rebellious Race miserably corrupted and prone to all evil but we must not rest here but must subjoine also a confession of our own particular faults all our sinful inclinations and actual transgressions with their Aggravating Circumstances for which purpose we ought to search our hearts to examine our Dispâ—…sitions and to take account of our Lives But if we make only a simple Confession it will avail us little we must not confess our sins to GOD as usual People do the offences they give one another or some great Man which they do clearly out of Complement or out of Constraint to shun some present inconveniency without any dereâ—…ation of the thing But as we must be ingenuous in confessing our Sins so we ought to confesse them with sorrow and contrition Confession is a meer mockery if it proceed not from an abhorrency at Sin and be not attended with indignation at our selves and backed with unfeinged purposes to abandon Sin and guard against it wherefore when we confesse 't will be necessary to consider how every sinful act is a complex of Injustice Ungratitude Arrogancy madness and Folly that sin is most loathsome in its Nature and most mischeivous in its Consequences But because GOD requires us not to remember and confesse our Sins that we may be filled with despair But to stirr up in us desires of Mercy and to prepare us for it So having humbled our Souls with the sight of our sins and wrought our selves to an earnest Desire of being delivered from the stain and Guilt of them we should next support our selves with the comfortable consideration of GODS infinite Mercy how that he is most ready and willing to forgive and how that to make way for his Mercy to Sinners he hath sent his own Son to satisfy for our sins and to repair his Honour which by our sins is affronted and baffled we should consider that IESUS CHRIST is the True Sacrifice and Propitiation for sin which by Faith we should offer up to GOD and thereupon both ask forgivenesse and confidently hope for it A third part of Prayer is Petition or a humble Representation of our Desires to GOD which he calls for to teach us our Dependance on him that 't is in him we live move and have our being and that we may acknowledge Him the Authour and Giver of all good To the right performance of this part we must first have a sense of our own indigency and a strong Faith in Gods Power and Goodness in his Power that he is able and in his goodnesse that he is willing to give us what we aske For 't is a vain thing to ask of another what we think we need not or what we may get without him and 't is no less vain to address our selves to one in whom we have no Confidence whose Power or Goodness we very much doubt Now to perswade us of GODS Power and Goodness and of our own Misery and Poverty we need but to read the Scripture call to mind the Nature and Works of GOD and take an impartial view of our selves Secondly we ought to look to the Aime and Reason of our Desires that we have a right end before us for if we have an evil intention our Desires are sinful and unworthy to be presented to GOD who is most Iust and Holy and who cannot be perverted from what is right Our Desires therefore must not terminate in our selves we must not intend our own Honour Glory Pleasure c in this World that must be the cheif end of our Desires and Petitions which is the last end of our Life and Beeing viz. GOD himself and his Glory This our Saviour teacheth us in that short Prayer he prescribed for there we are commanded in the first place to Pray that GODS name be hallowed that his Kingdom may come But this doth not debarr us from respecting our own Eternal Felicity for the Glory of GOD which we should seek includes that in seeking the Glory of GOD we seek our own Eternal interest and we cannot aime at Heaven without aiming at the Glory of GOD these two are inseparable 3ly We ought carefully to consider the matter of our Requests that in this also they be good and proper that is agreeable to the will of GOD for it is not lawful for us to crave what he hath not approved And therefore we must acquaint our selves well with the Holy Scripture in which GOD hath revealed his Will and thereby regulate all our Desires what he hath allowed we may what he hath commanded we ought to ask but what he hath forbidden we should pray against From hence it follows 4ly That we ought to pray with all earnestnesse for all Spiritual Blessings but as for Temporal things though we should Pray for them too yet not Peremptorly but with a Resignation to the wise Disposal of GOD'S Will the Reason of this Difference is because he hath absolutely approved of Spiritual Blessings but hath declared otherwise anent Temporal Benefits and because he hath made it alwayes necessary for us to be Good Holy Chaste Sober Meek c. But it is not always expedient for us to have health and outward Peace Prosperity and other temporal good things nor is it expedient for us to know when they are fit for us Fifthly and lastly each time we pray we should not only consider our general State as Men and Christians and ask what is agreeable thereto But also our particular Station the Condition of our Body and Soul the tentations we are in or lyable to and in a word all the Circumstances of our Affairs both Spiritual and Temporal and lay them open before GOD and frame Desires sutable to each of these things as a Man goeth to his Friend with a thing which befalls him and as the Sick and Infirm make the Physitian acquainted with all their Distempers so we should never fail to impart our State and all our Concerns to GOD and to ask the Direction and Assistance he knows we stand in need of Which being done in Faith of his Power and Good-will as was said before cannot but be a great Ease and Satisfaction to our Minds because then we may have this confidence that we shall have the Petitions we desired of Him 1 Iohn 5. 15. For as all things are possible to GOD so all that is good and fit shall be done to them who believe in Him or rely upon Him Blesseod are they who believe for there shall be a performance of these
is both lovely in it self and in the eyes of all the World this gains the Hearts and wins the Affections of all Wit Learning Dexterity and Courage will be talkâ—…d of indeed with some Admiration but Bounty and Charity is truly lov'd and Esteemed instances of these do tickle the Fancy chiefly but this really affects the Hearts of all who know it Every ones heart is open to embrace him whose hands are alwayes ready to the relief of the Poor and Miserable every Mouth blesseth him and every tongue speaks of his Praise People honour his Presence Pray for his Life and count it a Blessing and when he is gone hence his memory is dear to them Such an one needs no Brass Statue or Marble Tomb to perpetuate his Name it never rots but lasteth to many Generations and like precious Ointment has still a sweet Savour which refresheth the Spirits of those who smell it The Righteous saith the Psalmist that is the Charitable Man as appears from the context shall be in everlasting remembrance Ps. 112. 6 And how can it be otherwise for Thirdly Charity is a God-like thing it makes a Man truly resemble GOD in the most Lovely of his Attributes if I may be allowed to speak so GOD'S Omnipotence and Omniscience are proper Objects of fear and Reverence but 't is the consideration of his Goodness which especially begets our Love to him yea 't is this which makes him most Glorious therefore when he shewed his Glory to Moses he did it by proclaiming his Name the LORD GOD Merciful and Gracious long suffering and abundant in goodness c. Exod 34. 6. Because Goodness is the chiefest of the Divine Attributes therefore the rest are set on work for the manifestation thereof his Wisdom contrives and his Power Acts that by both he may shew his Goodness his Mercies are over all his Works Now as 't will be acknowledged the Highest Perfection to be like GOD so the best and truest Likeness to him is to study to be good and Merciful as he is Good and Merciful Though we could come to some resemblance of his Wisdom and Power 't would neither endear us to Him nor to others so much as the imitation of his Goodness Who therefore would be Like GOD who are Acted with such an High and holy Ambition let them busie themselves in doing good and according to their Power let them abound in Works of Charity and Mercy For hereby they shall become partakers of the Divine Nature and shall purchase a right to the same Tittles which GOD takes to himself in Scripture and indeed glories in as the Father of Mercies and Comforts the Helper of the helpless the Reliever of the needy such as are distressed c. The half of the Money which some lay out for Worldly Tittles would procure these Divine Designations which are by far preferrable and upon many considerations more Honourable Fourthly this Duty of Charity is most pleasant and taking 't is not more for the Comfort of the distressed then 't is for the satisfaction of the Charitable Man himself wherefore our Saviour said It is more blessed to give then to receive Acts 20. 35. Acts of Bounty and Charity truly rejoice the Heart and fill the Soul with large measures of solid joy there is far more Joy in Spiritual Exercises then in any other other pleasures are but skin deep they are only some Titillations in the Body which soon evanish but the Joy which results from Vertue and Religious exercises peirceth the Heart and causeth the very Spirit to exult and there is in Particular a special Pleasure in doing Good As the desires of doing Good are of all other the Noblest which made a Heathen Poet to call them Sensus pars Optima Nostri so certainly the fulfilling thereof is attended with the Chiefest Satisfaction has a gust and relish proper to delight a Heaven born Soul 'T is but small delight which cometh from dainty Morsels quaffing of Healths for these are Bruitish exercises and inferiour to the Dignity of our Natures But to feed the hungry to afford drink to the thirsty Soul to cloath the naked to comfort those who mourn to save the life which is ready to perish and other the like Charitable deeds are Exercises worthy of GOD himself he delights in them and how can it but delight and rejoyce us to be so Nobly and Divinely imployed If Men have reared up magnificent Structures great Buildings and made fine Gardens about them they are ready to contemplate them with vanity as Nebuchadnedzar did his Babylon saying Is not this great Babylon which I built O how mean a thing is it to be vain of these works which Wind and Weather can deface Storms batter down and time wear out But certainly there is Reason to rejoyce in being instrumental to rear up living fabricks to repair the Temples of the Holy Ghost and to preserve those who are capable to sound forth the praises of GOD to all Eternity If People will but consult their Reason and reflect on their own little Experience they cannot but be perswaded of the unspeakable Pleasure in doing Good in contributing seasonable comfort and relief to their fellow Brethren in being able to step in and pull them out of some Sad Straite or to hold off the weight of a Crosse whose pressure is likely to fill them with excessive grief 'T is only the consideration of this pleasure which makes Worldly Greatness desireable or Supportable for abstracting from this 't is an uselesse burden and a great impertinence which a Wise Man would shun and seek to be rid of Fifthly Acts of Charity and Bounty are most profitable and that upon many Accounts First they are Profitable because hereby the Creatures of GOD are Sanctified to our use and our enjoyment of them becomes Lawful Every creature of GOD is good saith the Apostle and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving 1 Tim 4 4. The Creatures are only good then when thanksgiving is Joined to the use of them which thanksgiving doth consist in a deep sense of GODS Propriety in the Creatures and of his goodness in bestowing them upon us this sense must be expressed not only in Words but Deeds The violating the Signs of GODS Dominion over the Creatures brought a curse upon them for this cause the Earth was cursed to us and this curse is not removed but by returning to our Allegiance by making an acknowledgement of GOD'S Right and Dominion in paying the Tribute which is due and which he requires The neglect of this keeps GOD from blessing our enjoyments this is the reason why some as the Prophet Haggai speaks sow much and bring little eat but have not enough drink but are not filled with drink Cloath themselves but are not warm earn wages but 't is put as 't were into a bagge with holes Hag 1 6 And as the giving GOD his due sanctifieth the Creatures by taking