252 SERMONS upon Serro. XXX V, name, that ftirreth up himfelf to take hold of thee, a Tim. i. 6. Wherefore I put 'thee in remembrance; that thouJile up the gift of God which is in thee, and hi the way of du- ty to wait and cry for the neceffay influences of the Lords Spirit, Cant. 4. 16: A w 'ke, 0 north - mind, and come tboufouth. wind, blow upon my garden, that the fpices thereof may flow forth ; let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleafant fruits. And to obey his San&ifying motions, Pfal. 27.8. When thou faidli, Seekye my face : my heart fard' unto thee,Thy face, Lord, will I fcck 3. We cannot fay we have not the Spirit of Prayer, becaufe we have not filch freedom of words as may give vent to fpiritual «ffellions. If there be a fenfe of fuch things as we mainly want, that is, Chrift and his graces, and an affeEtionate delire after them g and we addrefs our felves to God with thefe defres in the belt fafhion we can, that we may have help and relief from him, and you are refolved not to give him over till you have it ; you have the Spirit of Grace and fupplications, tho it may be you cannot in- large upon there things with fuch copioufnef of expreflion as others do. Therefore let us confider what is the Spirit of Prayer ; and how far doth he make ufe of our na. tural faculties. I conceive it thus. A man is convinced that his happinefs lyeth in the injoyment of God ; that there is no injoyment of God, but by Chrift, till he be jufti- fled, and fan&ified, and walk in Holy obedience to him. The Spirit of God upon this changeth his heart, and 'tis let within -him to Peek after God in this way, r Chron, 2.2, 19. Now fit your heart, andyour foul, to Peek the Lord your God: And Pfal. 119.36: Incline my heart unto thy teftimonies. Now becaufe the will without the affe &ions 'doth not work firongly, but is like a Chip without fails ; affe&ions are the vigorous, and forcible tnations of the will, without which it would lie fluggifh, and idle; or' like a Chariot without wheels and hones ; or a Bird when her wings are clipped 5 therefore the_Holy Ghoft ftirreth up thefe affe&ions, and our heart within us makes us willing, and this bringeth the Soul to God; for no other can give us fatisfa &ion, but he alone. And the difficulties of Salvation are fo many, that we cannot overcome them, but in his power and Rrength. Now fence of wants, and an earoeft delire of a fupply,will ordinarily put words into a mans mouth,and atfe&ions beget expreffions: Yet becaufe many accidental reafons may hinder it, the weight of Prayer is not to be layed fo much upon the exprefíìon, as the affè&ion ; ifthere be a Wrong and an earnet delire after grace, it will make us exprefs our felves to God in the bell manner that we can. As long as yoW Pray for necceffary graces, and other things in fubordinatioii thereunto , and can heartily groan and ugh to God for what you want, ,with refped to your great end, the Prayer is well pertormed ; there may be a great petulancy and extravagance of words, where there is not agood and an honett heart; vain bablingst without faith, or feeling, or fpiritual affe &ion. 4. 'lis not to be underftood as if all that pray gracioufly, had the fpirit in a like meafure, or the fame perlons always in the fame meafure. No, the wind bloweth where it lifieth, John 3. 7. And he giveth us to till and to de. We cannot find the affiftance at our own pleafure; tome have it in a more plentiful, others in a fcanty meafure, the all have it. Jelus Chrift himfelf, 'tho he had not the fpirit by meafure, yet he exercifed and acted the fpirit of Prayer more at one time, Luke 22. 44. stud being in an agony he prayed t1,, c,sr more earnefily. His love to God was always the fame, but the ex= preú:on of it different. So Gods Children feek Heavenly things with a weaker deg gree of delire, and fometimes with a ftronger ; at fometimes we have the directing work of the Spirit, and are not fenfible of thofe earneft and urexpreClible groans: That is to fay, we put up our requefts for things lawful,and ufeful, and molt necceffary for us at the time, but not with that ardour and fervency that we do delire ; we can= not fay that -the Holy Ghoft loth not aflrft thefe Prayers ;as fometimes the affiftance ii given us more largely as to the groaning part ; and men are all in a flameiftrong and paffionate afe &ions do moti bewray themfelves. Sometimes as a fpirit of confidence and Holy liberty with our Father; and faith is clearly predominant in Prayer ; at other times repentance and Child -like, reverence and fear are altogether in adios id the Prayer, and there is a great fèrioufnefs , tho not fuch life and vigour, or flrength of faith, as grief for fin, bemoaning our failings. 5. Gifts are more necceffary when we joys with others,and are their mouth to God. But the Spirit of Prayer is of moll: ufe when we are alone, and we have nothing to dít but tofet our felves before the fearcher of hearts, and draw forth our delres after hinii when without taking in the neceClities of others , we prefent our petfonal requefts td God, and lament the defe&s of our own Hearts, and the plague of out own Souls, When e
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=