discourse of the soul with God It is a conversing with God by which Gods love to us and our love to God is encreased It is an humble hearty and holy request made according to Gods will and offered up by Faith to God in the Name of Christ Elton on the Lords prayer for things needful for the body or soul It is a putting up of our requests to God according to his word Perkins on the Lords prayer from a contrite heart in the Name of Christ with assurance to be heard It is the breathing of the Spirit of God Gal. 4.6 Rom. 8.14 28. and a proper action of the sonnes of God You see what the duty is It is a work of Gods Spirit Therefore beg the Spirit that thou maist pray Ps 51.12 Luk. 11.13 It is a free Spirit because it is freely promised to those that ask it Rom. 8.26 And it so helpeth us in the duty of Prayer that it makes us which before we streightned to be free in the work 2 Cor. 3.17 For where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty And from hence it is that Gods Children are so frequent in the Duty which is the second thing I propounded to speak too Believe it God hath never a Child but it is ever craving They pray continually 1 Thes 5.17 because they find continual need of Gods grace and help and they find continual supplies thereof as an answer of Prayers I read That Constantine the Great made his Court a Church where Prayers were made Jerom lived four years with Watchings Fastings and Prayers Bernard prayed day and night till his knees were so weary with fasting and prayer that they could not uphold his body Latimer many times continued so long in fervent Prayer that he was not able to get up without help And I read that Clemens Alexandrinus prayed thrice a day Luther let no day passe over his head in which he spent not three hours at least in Prayer Master Robert Bolton prayed constantly six times a day twice with his Family twice with his Wife and twice in secret Master John Bruen prayed seven times a day And why are Gods servants thus frequent in prayer Surely it is because they find no trade that hath so quick and gainful returnes as this and therefore they follow it so hard And this leads me to the third and last thing I propounded to speak to and that is the excellent and great priviledges that belong to Gods people that are frequent and constant in this Duty O! praying Christian how great are thy priviledges Although thou maiest be slighted and dis-esteemed by man yet thou hast free liberty to conferre with the King of Heaven Cant. 2.14 who not onely delights to hear thy voice but inviteth thee to come unto him and promiseth to give thee whatsoever thou askest of him Mat. 7.7 As long as thou constantly acquaintest thy self with God by prayer thou shalt be sure to have him thy constant friend Job 22.21 24. who will never fail Heb. 13.5 nor forsake thee but will abundantly supply unto thee the want of all unfaithful and unconstant friends that desert thee where prayer is not wanting grace and comfort cannot be wanting John 16.23.24 Thou that art a child of God and dost the will of God let the desires of thy heart to God in Prayer be never so much enlarged God will satisfie all thy desires Joh. 15.7 Psal 37.4 And it must needs be thus for that God that is able to do for his children and many times doth for them exceedingly above all that they ask or think Eph. 3.20 He will not and for his promise sake he cannot deny any of those needful things his children ask of him Ps 81.10 By prayer Gods people not only obtain all the good things they pray for 1 Tim. 4.5 but also a sanctified use of all those good things Whatsoever is given by God to man in a way of mercy is given him as an answer of his Prayers 1 Joh. 5.14 15. Prayer is the key that open all the Treasures of God 1 Kings 8.33 35. It is the great instrument of removing all evils from the soul and the body It is the Character of the Saints It is the condition of Gods promises Ezek. 36 37. the forerunner of Gods performances Jer. 31.9 The happy priviledges of the praying Christian are beyond expression They have a constant Communion with God They have dayly supplies of grace from God 1 Joh. 1.3 whereby they are enabled to serve and please God while they live here Heb. 4.16 and they shall be made everlastingly happy with God hereafter Rom. 10.13 No greater priviledges can be obtained then these yet these are the priviledges of the praying Christian Would you be happy pray pray that your joy may be full John 16.24 He deserves to be miserable that might be made happy by praying and yet will not set upon the Duty But I shall pray and hope that these my labours may be succesful for the ends intended in directing in and exciting to the Duty those that have not used it in comforting and encouraging those in the Duty that dayly practise it And in whomsoever either of these ends be promoted let God have the glory and forget not to pray for him who is to his power Thine in all Christian services for thy souls good Sampson Tounesend July 1. 1658. A TABLE OF THE Contents DOct. It is the duty of the people of God to pray pag. 3 1. What prayer is It is 1. A work of Gods Spirit pag. 4 2. It floweth out of the spirit and heart of man or it is a talking of the heart and soul with God pag. 5 2. The several kinds of prayer Are 1. Mental pag. 6 2. Vocal Publick Private 3. The preparations to prayer Are 1. Prayer 2. Meditation pag. 8 Meditate upon 1. Gods infinite greatnesse 2. The promises 3. Thine own wants and vileness pag. 9 4. The duties or graces requisite in prayer are 1. Knowledge pag. 9 2. Faith 3. Humility pag. 10 4. Purity of heart 5. Love to our brethren 6. Zeal and fervency pag. 11 7. Unwearied constancy 8. We must pray in the Holy Ghost pag. 12 9. In the name and mediation of Jesus Christ pag. 13 10. For things agreeable to Gods will 11. We must use a due order in prayer pag. 14 12. Take heed of loving long prayers pag. 15 Lastly hate the sin you pray against and love the grace you pray for pag. 16 5. The gestures in prayer are 1. Kneeling pag. 18 2. Lifting and spreading forth the hands pag. 20. 3. Lifting up of the eyes pag. 22 4. For men to be uncovered pag. 23 In what case gestures may be omitted pag. 25 Reprehension for these that neglect the forementioned or use contrary gestures pag. 29 Exhortation to use more reverence in prayer pag.
be free from sinne but Prayer is a special means to free us from the dominion of sinne While we are in the body sinne will be there yet shall it not raign in our mortal bodies so as we shall obey it in the lusts thereof Rom. 6.12 if we daily seek God for pardon of it and strength against it and that leads me to Reas 6 The sixth and last Reason why we are to pray every day It is because we have need continually to begge pardon of sin We have not more need of daily bread to preserve the body from perishing than of daily pardon of sinne that the Soul may not perish And therefore it followes in the Lords Prayer after Mat. 6.11 12. Give us this day our daily bread Forgive us our trespasses It is requisite we should begge pardon in the morning for the sinnes of the night past and we should begge pardon at night for the sinnes of the day past And so continue seeking of God every day that our sinnes may be pardoned that our Souls may be saved And so much for this seventh thing propounded the times of Prayer I come now to the eighth and last thing propounded Lastly and that is to answer divers Objections about Prayer Ob ∣ jection 1 First some may object It is to no purpose to pray 1. Mat. 6.8 Because God knoweth our wants 2. Ephes 1.11 He hath Decreed what shall befal every man 3. Phil. 4.6 He is ready to give us what is fit for us Answ 1 I Answer first although God knoweth our wants yet it is his will we should make them known to him by Prayer Saith the Apostle Let your requests be made known unto God Christ knew that blinde Bartimeus had need of his sight and yet he would have him to pray for it before he would give him it Mark 10.51 52. Jesus answered and said unto him What wilt thou that I should doe unto thee the blinde man said unto him Lord that I might receive my sight and immediately he received his fight Secondly As God determins what he will doe he hath determined also that Prayer shall be the means whereby we shall obtain what he hath determined to give us God promises to give a new heart and a new spirit with many other blessings Ezekiel 36. and yet in the 37 Verse he saith For all this I will be inquired by the house of Israel Ezek. 36.37 God promises the restauration of Israel Jeremiah 31. yet he saith in the nineth Verse Jer. 31.9 They shall come with weeping and with supplications will I lead them They shall be led out of their captivity but it shall be as an answer of Prayers Thirdly this praying doth not at all derogate from Gods goodnesse and readinesse to give but it rather demonstrateth his goodnesse 1. In that he saith but ask and have Mat. 7.7 2. In that he alone stirs us up to pray to the end he may doe us good Psal 10.17 Thou preparest their heart thou wilt cause thine ear to hear 3. God will have us pray before he gives blessings because he delighteth in the work of his own Spirit in us Cant. 2.14 Le me hear thy voice for it is sweet saith Christ to his Church 4. And lastly Lastly God knoweth that his blessings will be then most sweet and comfortable to us when we have obtained them by Prayer Saith Hannah 1 Sam. 1.27 For this Child I prayed and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him When mercy comes as an answer of Prayer this engages the Soul to love God and quicken up the heart yet more and more to seek him so it was with David Psal 116.1 2. I love the Lord because he hath heard my voice and my supplication Because he hath enclined his ear unto me therefore will I call upon him as long as I live You see because God heard his prayer he resolves to go on in this course of praying as long as he lived And thus you see notwithstanding the Objection it is to good purpose we should pray Again it may be Objected 2. Objection It is needlesse to pray because the good successe of things depends upon second causes and natural means God useth to work by as Physick Bread and the like I answer Answ this is a most prophane and heathenish Objection For although God works by means yet is it not in the means without Gods blessing to do us good First It is a sinne to use the means without seeking of God as Asa 2 Chron. 16.12 In his disease he sought not the Lord but to the Physitian Secondly It is a sinne also and tempting of God to pray and yet neglect the means You shall finde that God blameth Moses for resting upon Prayer with the neglect of the meanes And the Lord said unto Moses Exod. 14.15 wherefore cryest thou unto me speak unto the Children of Israel that they goe forward Why dost thou pray and stand still and dost not use the means March on doe not only pray but use the means He that prays and uses not the means tempts God and saith Christ Mat. 4.7 Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God But when we pray to him and trust in him in the use of means then and not till then may we expect Gods blessing Arise therefore 1 Chron. 22.16 and be doing and the Lord be with thee For all our labours are to no purpose without Gods blessing 1 Chron. 3.7 and our ordinary food cannot nourish us without Gods blessing Mat. 4.4 Therefore I conclude although God work by secondary causes yet those doe it not without his blessing And we cannot expect Gods blessing without Prayer It is therefore needful in the use of all means to pray to God for a blessing Thirdly It may be Objected 3. Objection That they that never pray doe as well as they that pray most What neede therefore is there of this constant praying I Answer Answ it is most false to say those that pray not doe as well as those that pray most For First The blessings that those that never pray receive they are but temporal Mat. 5.45 He maketh his sunne to shine on the evil and on the good and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust But Gods children that pray unto him are filled with all spiritual blessings in heavenly things Ephes 1.3 Secondly Those that pray not can have no assurance of the enjoying the outward comforts they have Job 20.15 to ver 19. God hath threatned to blast upon them But those that pray have a promise to build upon yea many promises especially this Psal 34.10 They that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing 3. And lastly They that pray not have no right to any outward thing they do enjoy neither can they have any sound comfort in it
others So much for the second thing I come to the third thing propounded Thirdly The Preparations to Prayer I shall mention onely two 1. Prayer 2. Meditation First Prayer Pray that you may pray Pray that God would direct you how to pray Thus did David Psal 141.1 2. Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice Set a watch O Lord before my mouth keep the dore of my lips As if he should have said O Lord do thou so order and direct me in my Prayers that there may not a word proceed out of my mouth but what is acceptable unto thee When a man prays dayly that he may pray by his constant custome of praying he will be the better fitted for Prayer A second preparation to prayer is Meditation Especially meditate on these three things First Meditate upon the Infinite greatnesse of the Majesty of that God to whom thou prayest Be not rash with thy mouth Ecles 5.2 and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God For God is in Heaven and thou upon Earth therefore let thy words be few This meditation of Gods greatnesse will make thee humble as it did Jacob Gen. 32.9 10. who acknowledged he was not worthy of the least of all the mercies of God Secondly Meditate on the Promises of God Psal 50.15 Call upon me in the day of trouble and I will hear thee Mat. 7.7 Ask and it shall be given you With many others of the like nature this Meditation will make thee confident in Prayer Thirdly and lastly Meditate on thine own wants and vilenesse and acknowledge them to God so did Ezra Ezra 9.6 7. This Meditation will make thee fervent in Prayer and it is the Prayer of the humble faithfull fervent soul that shall prevail with God So much for the third thing propounded Fourthly Fourthly I shall shew you the duties or graces requisite in Prayer and there are divers requisites in Prayer First Knowledge and understanding I will pray with the spirit 1 Cor. 14.15 and I will pray with understanding also As if he should say I will understand and know what I pray for Secondly Faith It is the condition upon which the promise of answer of Prayers is made Let him ask in Faith nothing wavering c. Jam. 1.6 7. Let not that man think he shall receive any thing of the Lord that asks doubtingly Thirdly Humility It is the humble soul that shall prevail with God in Prayer Psal 10.17 Lord thou hast heard the desire of the humble He giveth grace to the humble Jam. 4.6 4. Fourthly Purity of heart Let us draw neer with a true heart Heb. 10.22 in full assurance of Faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil Conscience He that draws nigh to God with an evil heart or defiled conscience shall never speed in his Prayers Psal 66.18 If I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me If thy heart incline to sinne Gods ear will not incline to thy Prayer Fiftly Love to our brethren is an other duty required in Prayer If thou prayest for pardon of sin and hast not so much love to thy brother as to forgive him an injury done to thee God will not hear thy prayers nor pardon thy sinnes for the promise of pardon is upon that condition Mat. 6.14 15 For if ye forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father will also forgive you But if you forgive not men their trespasses neither will you Father forgive you your trepasses Sixthly Zeal and Fervency is required in Prayer The colder the sutour the greater the sinner The effectuall fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much Jam. 5.16 Prayer is not effectuall unlesse it be fervent though it proceed from a righteous man Seventhly Unwearied constancy we must not give over praying because we have not present answers For this purpose our Saviour Christ mentions the Parable of the unjust Judge and the Widow Luke 18.1 to 9. That men ought alwayes to pray and not to faint And the woman of Canaan teacheth us this lesson of Constancy She would not give over praying though she had many repulses Mat. 15.22 to 29. Gen. 32.26 till she had that she prayed for And Jacob he would not let God goe till he had a blessing All which examples shew we must use unwearied constancy in prayer Eighthly We must pray in the holy Ghost so we are commanded Praying in the holy Ghost Jude 20. that is by the help of the holy Ghost This help is promised in Prayer Rom. 8.26 Likewise also the spirit helpeth our infirmities for we know not what to pray for as we ought but the spirit it self maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered Without this help our Prayers will not be prevalent Those are the best Prayers that have most of the spirit of Gods help in them Ninethly Pray in the name and mediation of Jesu Christ saith Christ 1 John 14.13 14. John 16.23 Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name that will I do Whatsoever ye shal ask the Father in my Name he wil give it you To ask in the name of Christ is to ask relying upon the Promises Merit and Mediation of Christ or to desire to be heard for the merit and mediation of Christs sake Tenthly Pray for things agreeble to Gods will saith the Apostle 1 John 5.14 This is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us We can have no confidence of being heard in that which we doe not know whether or no it be according to Gods will Christ did justly deny the request of her that askt she knew not what Mat. 20.21 22. Eleventhly Use a due order in Prayer Seek Heavenly things first and most seek earthly things in the second place Saith Christ Mat. 6.33 Seek first the Kingdome of God and his righteousnesse So we are taught in the Lords Prayer to seek first the things that concerne Heaven and Happiness before we seek Earthly blessings We must seek Heavenly things absolutely but Earthly things conditionally because Heavenly things are absolutely necessary for us as Faith Repentance Sanctification c. these things we know are agreeable to the will of God and therefore we are to pray for those things absolutely and not with a condition if it be thy will But now for Temporall things they are not absolutely necessary for us as health or freedome from the malice of unreasonable men or deliverance out of this or that trouble or to prosper or increase in their estate in the world or the like For these things we must pray with condition if it be the will of God Because God giveth or denieth these things to his children according as he sees best or most fit for each of their
conditions For want of observing these things and so using a due order in Prayer many times instead of a blessing God makes a breach upon them for seeking him disorderly as it is acknowledge 1 Chron. 15.13 The Lord our God made a breach upon us for that we sought him not after the due order Twelthly Take heed of loving long Prayers and think not to be heard because your Prayers are long Saith Christ When you pray Mat. 6.7 use not vain repetitions as the Heathen doe For they think they shall be heard for their much speaking Long prayers can hardly maintain their vigour commonly there will be vain repetitions as you see it was with the Heathen Know that God takes not mens Prayers by tale but by weight It is not gifts but Grace that moves God to hear prayers He that is fervent in Prayer prays much though he speak but little Let not your words and matter exceed your affections and then pray and spare not otherwise break off the sooner the better Lastly Lastly Hate the sinne you pray against and love the Grace you pray for First Hate the sinne you pray against a man cannot pray hearttily for the pardon of and strength against those sinnes that he does not hate but when the sinne of his heart is the grief of his soul now may he exspect pardon 1 Kings 8.38 39. When every one shall know the plague of his own heart then hear thou in Heaven c. When every one shall know his own fore 2 Chron. 6.29 30. and his own grief then hear thou in Heaven c. When a man may pray for pardon of sinne with inward hatred of it and heart grief for it then may he with comfort expect pardon Secondly Love the Grace you pray for A man cannot pray fervently for that he doth not love heartily Saith our Saviour to the woman of Samaria Joh. 4.10 If thou knewest the gift of God c. thou wouldst have asked c. If thou hadst known me and the worth of the Grace that I give this would have quickned thy desires to have asked of me and then I would have given thee living water The sence of the worth of grace draws love to it and these strengthen the desires of it And so much for this fourth thing propounded the duties or graces requisite in Prayer Fifthly Fifthly I shall shew you the gestures that are to be used in Prayer And I finde in Scripture principally these four Kneeling sifting up and spreading forth the Hands lifting up the Eyes and for men to uncover their Heads First Kneeling This is commanded O come let us worship Psal 95.6 and bow down and kneel before the Lord our Maker Here we see that religious kneeling is part of Divine worship It is but equity that he that made the body should be worshipped by or with the body And for as much as Jesus Christ hath redeemed our Bodies as well as our Souls he ought to be worshiped with our Bodies as well as Soules And so the Apostle argues 1 Cor. 6.20 For ye are bought with a price therefore glorifie God Our bodies and soules are Gods not onely by right of Creation but also by right of Redemption therefore we must glorifie God by worshiping of him with our bodies as well as our souls And we finde in Scripture divers examples for kneeling in Prayer David he kneeled in prayer Psal 95.6 1 King 8.54 Dan. 6.10 and Solomon his sonne he kneeled on his knees in prayer Daniel he kneeled on his knees in prayer Stephen Acts 7.60 he kneeled down and prayed Peter Acts 9.14 he kneeled down and prayed Saint Paul Acts 20.36 he kneeled down and prayed he bowed his knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Ephes 3.14 and he in Mark 10.17 Mark 10.17 came kneeling to our Saviour And we find that all the people men women and children kneeled down and prayed Acts 21.5 All these Examples you have for kneeling in prayer Take one more who is the Pattern of all patternes our blessed Saviour himself Luke 22.41 He kneeled down and prayed A second Gesture used in Prayer is lifting up and spreading forth of Hands We must not onely lift up our hearts but also our hands to God in Prayer Lift up your hands in the Sanctuary Psal 134.2 and blesse the Lord 1 Tim. 2.8 I will that men pray every where lifting up pure hands And for this gesture also we have several Examples Moses Exod. 17.11 12. he held up his hands to God in prayer And David desired that the lifting up of his hads to God in Prayer may be acceptable as an evening sacrifice Psal 141.2 2 Chron. 6.13 Solomon he spread forth his hands to God in prayer and so did Ezra And I conceive this lifting up of the hands in Prayer is to be used to signifie these two things First that the heart is lift up to God saith the Prophet in the Lamentations Lam. 3.41 Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the Heavens That is let let your hearts be lift up as well as your hands Some lift up their hands while their hearts hang down in Prayer but doe you lift up your hearts first and then lift up your hands to signifie your hearts are also lift up to God Job 11.13 If thou prepare thine heart and streach out thine hands towards him Streach out thy hands to him to signifie thou hast already given thy heart to him in Prayer Secondly lifting up the hands in prayer it signifies our depending upon Gods power to help and assist us in time of need As a Child that is in danger of falling he stretcheth out his hand to his Father for help So in Prayer the hands are lift up to God as a signe of expecting help from him Saith David Hear the voice of my supplication Psal 28.2 when I cry unto thee when I lift up my hands towards thy holy Oracle By stretching forth our hands to God in Prayer we doe as it were tell him that we depend wholly upon him for help favour mercy and pardon and that unlesse he help and deliver us we are lost and undone for ever A third gesture in Prayer is lifting up of the Eyes For this we have the example of our blessed Saviour John 11.41 Joh. 17.1 Psal 123.1 2.3 He lift up his Eyes and prayed And so did David Unto thee lift I up mine Eyes This lifting up of the Eyes in prayer it hath the same signification with the former of lifting up of the Hands Lifting up the Eye it signifies the eye of Faith and Hope depending upon Gods help and assistance The fourth and last Gesture in prayer Lastly is for men to have the Head uncovered This the Apostle teacheth where he saith 1 Corin. 11.4 Every man praying or prophesying having his head
peoples prayers but anguish and trouble of mind is the cause why they regard it not And thus I have gone through the eight things I propounded at first concerning Prayer I have shewed you 1. What Prayer is 2. The several Kindes of Prayer 3. The Preparations to Prayer 4. The Duties in it 5. The Gestures of Prayer 6. The Motives to Prayer 7. The Times of Prayer 8. And lastly I have answered divers Objections concerning Prayer I come now to make Use and Application of all that hath been said And the Uses shall be 1. For Instruction 2. For Reprehension 3. For Consolation 4. And lastly For Exhortation The first Use shall be for Instruction 1. Use Instruction And what hath been said may Instruct us 1. Concerning the right manner of praying 2. Concerning the power and efficacy of Prayer 1. We may be instructed in the right manner of Prayer 1. Instruct Ye heard in the Definition of prayer that it is a pouring out of the heart and soul to God c. First then It lets us see that dead dull formal heartlesse Prayers are not pleasing unto God If we lift up our hands and eyes to God and not our hearts and soules we can have no comfortable hopes of being answered This was that which gave David confidence of being answered in his Prayer For I lift up my soul unto thee Psa 14.38 Rejoyce the soul of thy servant Psa 86.4 for unto thee O Lord doe I lift up my soul Cold heartlesse prayers are sinful prayers Observe this evermore as a certain truth in prayer the colder the sutour the greater thr sinner Secondly It lets us see that wicked men that have not the Spirit of God cannot please God in their praying True prayer is a work of Gods spirit and so floweth from the spirit and heart of man as ye have heard Prov. 15.8 And therefore the heartlesse prayers of wicked men are abomination unto God Their cryes are no better in his esteeme then the howlings of beasts Saith the Lord They have not cryed unto me with their heart Hos 7.14 when they howled upon their beds Their cryes in Gods ears are no better then the cryes of a Dog when they cut off his neck Isa 66.3 Thus odious are the Prayers of wicked and ungodly men in Gods esteeme A second Use of Instruction Is to let us see the power of Prayer Instruction I told you in the Motives to prayer That by prayer we obtain whatsoever we ask at the hands of God I shall now shew you several Examples in Scripture of the power of Prayer 1. Jam. 5.17 18. By prayer Elias staied the Rain 3 yeers and again obtained rain 1 King 17.21 22. By Prayer also he restored to life the Widowes sonne And by Prayer he obtained Fire from Heaven to destroy the Captains 2 King 1.10 to 13. and their Fifties 2. 2 King 2.9 10. By Prayer Elisha had the spirit of Elias doubled upon him By Prayer he raised from death the Shunamites sonne And he prayed 2 King 6.17 18. and his Servants eyes were opened and his Enemies smote with blindnesse 3. Gen. 21.17 to 20. By Prayer Hagars eyes were opened whereby she saw a Well to refresh her and her son And by Prayer Sampson had water out of a Jawbone to strengthen and revive them Judg. 15.18 19. 4. 1 Sam. 12.18 By Prayer Samuel procured Thunder to punish the Israelites 5. Iosh 10.12 13. By Prayer Joshua caused the Sunne and Moon to stand still a whole day 2 King 20.11 And by Prayer Isaiah caused the sunne to goe back tenne degrees 6. Gen. 19.19 c. By Prayer Lot saved Zoar when the Cities of Sodom and Gomorah were burnt with fire from Heaven 7. Job 42.8 9 10. By Prayer Iob pacified the Wrath of God being kindled against his Friends and obtained a double Portion of that he lost 8. Exod. 8 9 chap. By Prayer Moses moved God to take away many Plagues that were brought upon the Aegyptians Lastly That I may not be too tedious I shall mention some of the multitude of Deliverances that are mentioned in Scripture which were procured as an answer of Prayer By Prayer Iacob was delivered from the wrath of Esau Gen. 32.11 12. By Prayer the Israelites were delivered out of Aegypt Exod 3.7 8. By Prayer Iossiah was delivered from the Plagues threatned to come upon him 2 King 22.19 21. By Prayer Iehoshaphat was delivered from the Moabites and Amorites 2 Chron. 20.12 22. By Prayer the three Children were delivered from the Fiery Furnate Dan. 3. By Prayer Daniel was delivered from the Den of Lyons Dan 6.22 By Prayer Ionah was delivered out of the Whales belly Jona 2.10 By Prayer Nineveh was delivered from the Judgement threatned Jona 3.10 By Prayer Iehoahaz was delivered from the oppressing hand of the King of Syria 2 King 13.4 5. By Prayer Manasseh was delivered from the Babylonian Captivity 2 Chron. 33.11 12 13. By Prayer Peter was delivered out of Prison Acts 12.5 c. And by Prayer also Paul and Silas were delivered out of Prison Acts 16.25 26. O the Power of Prayer O the many Miraculous things that have been done by Prayer I could instance in many examples that I have read in History but I forbare to mention them let those formerly mentioned be sufficient And so much for this first Use which hath been for Instruction 2. Use Reprehension I come now to the second Use which is for Reprehension It is the duty of the people of God to pray and that constantly every day in the manner that hath been before mentioned Then here come divers persons to be reprehended First those that pray not at all First Certainly it is a most grievous sinne to be ever in the neglect of this duty It is given as a note of a most wicked and ungodly person not to call upon God Psal 14.4 5. Wicked men will have nothing to doe with God and God will have nothing to doe with them They cast off God and God will cast off them Whosoever they be that goe on in the constant neglect of this duty they are exposed to Gods wrath and curse Jer. 10.25 Pour out thy wrath upon the Heathen that know thee not and upon the Families that call not upon thy Name They who neglect Prayer expose themselves to all manner of sinnes and temptations for Prayer is the onely remedy to prevent sinne Saith Christ Luk. 22.46 Pray lest ye enter into temptation And therefore he that neglects to pray often will lie open to all assaults of Satan and be in danger of utter falling away from all goodnesse into all manner of sinne and lewdnesse and hereby expose himself to Gods eternal Curse Secondly Secondly Those are to be reproved that are lasie and
abundantly encrease according to that promise Job 8.7 Though thy beginning was small yet thy latter end shall greatly encrease And that of our Saviour Mat. 25.29 For unto every one that hath shall be given and he shall have abundance He that faithfully improves that little grace he hath in an humble constant seeking of God for more grace he shall have grace for grace or grace upon grace John 1.16 one grace after another a daily encrease of grace until he hath abundance of grace Thirdly 3. Encourag God is more ready to answer his people then they are to ask more forward to grant then they are to crave For if any with an upright heart resolve to seek God and in their hearts are studying how to seek him God will hear them before they pray and will answer them when they pray according to that promise Isa 65.24 Before they call I will answer and whiles they are yet speaking I will hear Our Heavenly Father knoweth what things we have need of before we ask him Mat. 6.8 And therefore before we call while we are yet thinking to speak he will hear and answer us by giving us assistance in speaking to him so as while we are speaking he will also hear and answer us according to that promise also in Isaiah Then shalt thou call Isa 58.9 and the Lord will answer thou shalt cry and he shall say here I am Upon thy cry he will readily hear and help thee Psal 46.1 For he is a very present help in time of trouble The fourth and last Encouragement I shall mention Lastly is this God is so well pleased with Prayer as that he maketh his readinesse to hear his peoples Prayers and to pardon their sinnes upon humble acknowledgement thereof a ground of Encouragement to quicken them to the duty Saith David I acknowledge my sinne unto thee Psal 32.5 6. and mine iniquity have I not hid I said I will confesse my transgressions unto the Lord and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sinne For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou maiest be found As if he should have said because thou hast been so merciful to me in hearing my Prayer and pardoning my sin therefore shall every godly man be encouraged to pray unto thee for the like mercy What an encouragement is this to Prayer when we hear that every one that went to God humbly acknowledging their sinnes Prov. 28.13 obtained mercy according to that Promise Whoso confesseth and forsaketh his sinnes shall have mercy And that of the Apostle 1 Joh. 1.9 If we confesse our sinnes he is faithful and just to forgive us our sinnes and to cleanse us from all unrighteousnesse For this shall every one that is godly pray unto God in a time when he may be found This argument of God so readily hearing others will undoubted be an Encouragement to every godly man to pray unto God But as for wicked and ungodly men neither this nor any other argument I have used in all my several Sermons on this subject will in the least move them to the performance of this duty of Prayer I have shewed you what Prayer is The several kindes of Prayer The Preparations to Prayer The Duties in Prayer The Gestures of Prayer The Motives to Prayer The Times of Prayer And I have answered divers Objections about Prayer I have also gone through the several Uses of Information Reprehension Consolation and Exhortation In all which I have used my uttermost endeavour to perswade you to this so necessary a duty And shall all my labour be in vain I hope better things of you and such as accompany Salvation Wherefore I beseech you for the Lords sake For the Churches sake For your own Souls sake Pray You that have not heretofore prayed Pray You that have formerly prayed pray more That which was the conclusion of a godly Martyrs Letters John Careless shall be the Conclusion of my Sermon and this subject Pray pray pray