Caryl - Houston-Packer Collection BS1415 .C37 v8

Chap. z, t Expo tin tapers sbe Doak of J o B. Verf. g 94 all that call upon him in truth ; and indeed others doe nor, truly, call uponGod at all. Secondly, the Lord hath promiCed toheart prayer, but whole prayer ? the prayer of a Weever ; now an hy- pocritehath no faith ; he bath muchprefumption, but no faith ; it is an eafiematterto beleeve, betides the promife, or without a promifc, ( as every hypocrite doth) but it is a hard matter to be- leeve upon, or in the promife. And the Apoille concludes, (Hob. it. 6. ) that without Faith it w impofble to pleafe God,for be that cometb to god (in prayer )+naffbeleeve, that God ie, and that he is a rea ardor ofall them that diligently feeke him. What- foever ye'ball ,mrkin prayer beleeving( faith Chrift, Math.2 r. 22. ) ye (hall receive ; and his meaning is, that without beleeving, we shall receivenothing. They who praybeleeving, aske according to thewill of God, both for matter and manner , and are there- foreheard : But they who pray prefuming, aske contrary to the will ofGod, either for the matter or the manner, and therefore are not heard. Thirdly, God bathp:omifed to heare prayer, but whole prayer ? the prayerof the bumble, of the broken. hearted, and contrite, ( Pfal. sit. t7.) He that huh nor faith, bath nothing to get a mercy with, and he that bath not a broken heart, bath nothing to put a mercy in. Now the hypocrites heart is a proud and anunbroken heart,therefore his prayer is not under a promife tobe heard. Fourthly, the Lord promileth to heart prayer, but whole prayer ? it is the prayer of awilling people, or of fuch whole prayer is a free-will-offering. David prayeth Pfal. r 19. tog. ) *Accept I befeeeb thee, the free-will-offeringsof my mouth; chat is, thofe fupplicationswhich my mouth freely offers. But the hypocrites prayer is not a free- will - offering,he prays not becaufe he is free to the duty of prayer, but becaufe hewould befreed from trouble by prayer. He prayes only ro have his turne fer- ved, orto get an acmes. Now that prayer which isnor a free- will-offering, isnot accepted of theLord. From the indu&ion of there particulars ( and many more might be added) it appears that thehypocrites prayer is unheard, and uninrwered, not be- caufe God doth in the !call forget or fayle in his promife of hear- ing prayer, but bemire the hypocrites prayer cornes not into the account and qualification of thole prayers which God bathpro- mired to here and anfwer. God only heares the prayer of the up- right,of the beleeving, of the broken-hearted, of the willing, the O 2 hypo-

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