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ther our Duty nor Difcretion to enquire or determine any thing of their final State. Our way lies plain before us, and we fhall affuredly fare worse than they, if we are not careful to walk in it.

To conclude, We fee here abundant matter of Praise and Thanksgiving, and how fitly our Church hath taught every baptiz'd Perfon to fay, I thank our heavenly Father, who bath called me, &c.

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DISCOURSE XVIII.

PSALM V. latter part of the 2d Verfe.
Unto thee will I pray.

AM yet upon the Fourth Queftion and Answer of the Catechifm; in which the Catechumen having folemnly own'd the Obligation of his baptifmal Vow, and likewife made a thankful Acknowledgment of the many and great Benefits receiv'd thereby (both which have been spoken to) he is,

In the last place, directed to pray to God, to be enabled to continue in that happy State, into which he is by this means admitted, in those words; And I pray unto God to give me his Grace, that I may continue in the fame unto my Life's end.

In handling of which Words, I must confider,

I. The A&t or Duty of Prayer, together with the Object to whom it is directed; I pray unto God; or, Unto thee will I pray.

II. The particular Matter here pray'd for, viz. To give me his Grace.

III. The End or Defign of it, That I may continue in the fame to my Life's end. Of each of which fomething diftinctly. And,

I. For the Act or Duty of Prayer: That may be defin'd to be a pious Addrefs of the Heart and Soul to God, with a due Sense of the Divine Majesty, and an humble Depen

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dence upon him for the fupply of all our Wants. Where 'tis ftyl'd,

1. An Addrefs of the Heart: "Tis not a Bufinefs of the Tongue, as fome would have it, or a Matter of Words, as too many make it; who put themfelves and others upon the daily Study and Invention of new Words for the fame Things: but a Work of the Heart, and confifts in the inward Defires and Breathings of the Soul after God. 'Twas the mistake of the Heathens, to think they should be heard for their much speaking; and the Folly of the Pharifees, to place their Religion in long Prayers. And 'tis no less a Weakness of fome in our days, who think that God Almighty is taken with the Multitude, the Novelty, and Variety of Expreffions; and therefore in all their Prayers, labour hard to addrefs to him in new Words. Whereas God neither regards any, nor many Words; he hears the filent Language of the Heart, and anfwers the fecret Sighs and Breathings of a devout Soul; and to prevent many Words, he has exprefly charg'd, that our Words unto him fhould be few, Eccl. 5. 2. So that the great Work and Bufinefs of Prayer lies in the Heart, which is the only true Seat of all Devotion.

2. I ftyle it an Addrefs of the Heart and Soul to God; and this teaches us the fole Object to whom our Prayers are to be directed, viz. not to Saints or Angels, or the Virgin Mary, as the manner of fome is, but to God only: for tis written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only fhalt thou ferve, Mat. 4. He has flyl'd himself a God hearing Prayer, and therefore to him alone must all Flesh

come.

3. Prayer must be accompany'd with a due Sense of the divine Majefly; that is, not only with a Senfe of his infinite Greatnefs and Perfections, to beget in us the greater Awe and Reverence in our Approaches to him, but more particularly of his infinite Power and Ability to help us ; and likewife, of his infinite Readiness and Willingness to grant what according to his Will we fhall ask of him. We are to addrefs to the Divine Majefty, with a grateful Sense of the Mercies we have already receiv'd; and that will. both encourage him to give, and us to expect more, as our Neceffities fhall require.

Laftly, Our addreffing to God in Prayer, must be attended with an humble dependence upon him for the fupply of all our Wants, This is a neceffary Ingredient of an ac

ceptable

ceptable and fuccefsful Prayer, which must be offer'd up with a deep Senfe of our Wants, and of our own Inability to fupply them; as alfo with a firm Reliance upon the Power, Truth, and Faithfulness of him we apply to for the Relief of them. This is to ask in Faith, and a full Affurance of being heard, which adds an Efficacy, and procures an Answer to our Prayers.

Without this, we fhall come wavering in Doubts and Uncertainties; ftill queftioning either his Power or his Will, or both, to help us, which will mar the Success of all our Petitions: For let not that Man think (faith St. James) that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double-minded Man is unftable in all his Ways, and will be unsuccessful in all his Requests; James 1. 7, 8.

Thus we see the A&t or Duty of Prayer, which the Church here directs, and the Catechumen promifes to offer unto God, in those words, And I pray unto God. But,

II. What is the particular Matter here directed to be pray'd for? Why that is for Grace to enable him to perform his Vow; I pray unto God to give me his Grace, &c.

By Grace here we are to understand, not any fuch extraordinary Affiftance as may fuperfede the Ufe of Means, or render our own Endeavours needlefs, but a super-added Strength to our natural Faculties, to help our Infirmities, and make our Endeavours effectual: for God's bestowing his Grace, is only his affording fome fpiritual Aid to our natural Powers, not his creating any new Habit in an instant. He does not now over-power our Faculties, nor influence our Souls by any irrefiftible Motions of his Holy Spirit; but he gracioufly feconds our Endeavours, and furthers us with his Bleffing in the use of all good Means. And therefore we are requir'd to do our part, by exerting the utmost of our Abilities; and where they fail, they fhall be fupply'd, and fupported too, by the Succours of Divine Grace. Hence, tho God is faid to work all our Works in us and for us, and to work in us to will and to do according to his Good-pleafure; yet we are call'd upon to work out our own Salvation, to fignify, that we are to use the natural Powers which God. has given us, and to co-operate with him as far as they will reach towards our own Salvation. And when we thus do our beft, he will fupply what is wanting by the Affiftance of his Grace, and crown all our Actions with Succefs

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and

Part I. and Victory. God Almighty delights to bless our Endeavours, and ever meets and encourages them with the defir'd Iffue; but he dafhes the vain Expectations of the Slothful and Negligent; and an idle fuperficial asking, inftead of a Bleffing, brings only a Difappointment and a Curfe. Hence our Bleffed Saviour joins Watchfulness with Prayer; Watch and pray, faith he, that ye enter not into Temptation, Mat. 26. 41. thereby teaching us, that moral Induftry in the ufe of all good Means, is neceffary to procure an Answer, and prevail for the gracious Return of our Prayers. This Leffon we are taught in that divine Form which Chrift himself gave to his Difciples; in which tho we are directed to pray for our daily Bread, yet our Labour must accompany our Petitions, or elfe 'tis but vanity and prefumption to expect it. In like manner, tho we are taught to pray against our ghoftly Enemies, and to be deliver'd from their Temptations, yet we are bid to refift the Devil before he will fly from us; and we must ftrive against Sin in all its Motions and Occafions, or elfe our ftriving against it in Prayer will be of no avail.

Our Petitions then for Grace are to be attended with the other great Inftruments of Religion, fuch as Reading, Hearing, Meditating on God's Word, together with all other Exercises of Virtue and a holy Life; without which, the loudest and longeft Prayer will find neither Audience nor Acceptance. I have infifted the more on this, to rectify a dangerous Miftake of fome, who fondly imagine that Chrift has done all for them, and expects nothing but their Acceptance of what he has done: his Grace is free, fay they, and is not clogg'd with any Conditions; fo that 'tis but ask and have, tho they do nothing towards it.

This is a Delufion of Satan, or a falfe Suggestion of a corrupt and deceitful Heart, and will neceffarily deprive fuch of all Grace and Favour at God's Hand, who harbour or lead their Lives by it; for God requires our Endeavours to go along with our Prayers, and will furely turn the deaf Ear to the latter, where the former are wanting.

Thus you fee what is meant here by Grace, and likewise how it is to be pray'd for,' in order to the obtaining of it. But,

III. For what end is the Catechumen here directed to pray for God's Grace? That, our third Particular will inform us which is, that he may be enabled to continue in

that

that State of Salvation, into which by Baptifm he is receiv'd, unto his Life's end: So that 'tis Perfeverance, or holding out to the end, that is here made the Subject of our Prayers; which is a matter highly worthy of our Prayers, and likewife abfolutely neceffary to be pray'd for.

I. I fay, Grace to perfevere to the end, is a matter highly worthy of our moft hearty and affectionate Prayers; for 'tis this alone that crowns our Actions, and procures for us the promis'd Reward: We shall reap, faith the Apottle, if we faint not, Gal. 6. 9. If we hold out to the end of our Chriftian Race, we fhall furely obtain the Prize; but if we faint and tire, we fhall reap nothing but Shame and Confufion. We must be faithful unto Death, before we receive the Crown of Life; and 'tis they only, who by patient continuance in well-doing feek for Glory, that shall receive Eternal Life.

The Pfalmift tells us of fome that ftart afide like a broken Bow; and of others that reel and ftagger like a drunken Man, and feem by their Fickleness and Inftability to be at their Wit's end. This kind of Levity and Inconftancy we find fharply rebuk'd in the Galatians, Chap. 3. where the Apoftle afks, Who bad bewitch'd them, that they Should start from the Faith which they had embrac'd? And why they became fo foolish, as having begun in the Spirit, they fhould end in the Flefh?

This then being a matter of fuch vaft confequence to us, our Eternal Happiness and Salvation intirely depending upon our holding out to the end; it highly concerns us to pray for Grace to be enabled fo to do.

2. Again, as this is a matter highly worthy of our Prayers, fo our Prayers are abfolutely neceffary to the obtaining of it for befides our natural Weakness, we are befet with so many and fuch ftrong Temptations, that without the affiftance of Divine Grace 'twill be impoffible for us to persevere, which we are therefore to call for by diligent Prayer. Our Saviour pray'd that St. Peter's Faith might not fail, which was greatly in danger by the Siftings and Affaults of Satan: And ours would daily and hourly fail too, without the continual Succours and Supplies of Divine Grace; and therefore we have continual need to pray, that we may be kept by the Power of God through Faith unto Salvation, 1 Pet. 1. 5. So that Perfeverance is a Virtue, which not only deferves, but needs our earnest and fervent Prayers. Again,

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Laftly,

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