hath clearly made known all that he requires of us in order to be accepted in his fight; and that not only he has revealed the rule of duty, but also hath pointed out to us in the gospel, the direct method of reconciliation with him, through faith in the Lord Jefus Chrift. Providence hath condescended to become our inftructor in this great article; hath taught us in what way our fins may be forgiven, our imperfect fervices be accepted, and an intereft in the divine grace be attained by means of our Redeemer. Inexcufable we must be, if all this offered grace we shall wantonly throw at our feet. In a world fo full of viciffitudes and uncertainty, let us take pains to fecure to ourfelves one refting place; one habitation that cannot be moved. By piety and prayer, by faith, repentance, and a good life, let us feek the friendship of the Moft High; fo fhall he who directeth the steps of man now, conduct our path in fuch a courfe as fhall bring us in the end to himself. SERM. XVIII. SERMON XIX. On PRAYER. XIX. PSALM lxv. 2. O Thou that beareft prayer, unto Thee fball all flesh come! SERM. THE Supreme Being is reprefented under many amiable characters in the facred writings; as the Father of Mercies, the God of Love, the Author of every good and perfect gift. But there is no character which carries more comfort, or which renders God fo properly the object of confidence and truft, as this, of his being the Hearer of Prayer. This view of the Almighty accommodates his perfections to our neceffities and wants, and in our prefent frail and diftreffed ftate affords a con ftant XIX. ftant refuge to which we can fly. Unto SERM. Thee shall all flesh come. To thee, fhall an indigent world look up for the fupply of their wants; to Thee, fhall the proudest finner, at fome time or other, be.compelled to bow; to Thee, fhall the diftreffed and afflicted have recourse, as to their laft relief and hope. Prayer is a duty effential to natural religion. Wherever the light of nature taught men to acknowledge the being of a God, to that God alfo it directed them to pray. In the Chriftian revelation great ftrefs is laid upon this duty, and great encouragement given to it. Cur bleffed Saviour not only fet the example himself, and enjoined the practice to his followers, but thought it worthy his exprefs inftruction to teach them in what manner to pray, and even to put words in their mouth. We are affured that prayers are not in vain; but that as the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, fo his ears are open to their cry; that if we afk aright, we shall receive; if we feek, we fhall find; if we knock, it shall be opened to It is, indeed, hard to fay, whether prayer is to be moft properly confidered us. XIX. SER M. as a duty incumbent on all, or as a privilege allowed to them. But a bleffed circumftance it is, that our duty and our privilege thus concur in one; that we are commanded to do what our wants naturally dictate to be done; even to ask what is good from God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not.—In treating of this fubject, it will be proper to confider firft, the nature and the fubjects of prayer, next, its proper qualifications; and lastly, the advantages and bleffings which attend it. I. THE Nature of Prayer fuppofes, in the first place, that we have a just sense of our own wants and miferies, and of our dependence on God for relief. To be suitably impreffed with this sense, we need only think what our prefent fituation is. We live in a world, where every thing around us is dark and uncertain. When we look back on the paft, we must remember that there we have met with much disappointment and vanity. When we look forward to the future, all is unknown. We are liable there to many dangers XIX. dangers which we cannot forefee; and to SER M. many which we forefee approaching, yet know not how to defend ourselves against them. We are often ignorant what course we can steer with fafety; nay, fo imperfect is our own wisdom, and fo great the darknefs which covers futurity, that while we imagine that we are in the road to profperity, we are often rushing blindly into the most fatal evils.-Befides thefe contingencies of life, which make us feel fo deeply the neceffity of looking up to fome more powerful Guide and Protector, there are other circumftances in our ftate which lead to reflections ftill more alarming. We know that we are the fubjects of a fupreme righteous Governour, to whom we are accountable for our conduct. We were fent into this world' by his appointment, and we are removed from it at his decree. How foon the call for our removal may be given, none of us know ; but this we profefs to believe, that upon our going hence we are to be brought into new and unknown habitations, fuitable to our behaviour here. Who amongst us can say that he is perfectly ready to appear before his VOL. V. Dd Creator |