Chapter 5: The Third Use Is of Instruction

SECT. 1.

My next and main work is to help us in the duty of Closet-Prayer, by propounding some helps and rules for our direction: which I shall reduce to these four heads.

namely - 1. Preparatives to it. - 2. Essentials in it. - 3. Circumstances about it. - 4. Consequences upon it.

1. Look to your state and standing: If you be not real saints, you are not fit for this spiritual duty: Your relation must be changed by converting grace: Hence the text says, Pray to your Father. See then that God be your Father in Jesus Christ; else you cannot truly cry Abba, Father; If we must be reconciled to our brother before we offer our gift, much more to God, for how can two walk together except they be agreed? I deny not but a carnal soul should retire himself into a corner, examine his state, fall down on his knees, and beg converting and pardoning grace; and thus they must acquaint themselves with God, that they may come before him; for unsound unconverted sinners have no right as children to call to the King of Heaven, though as creatures they may and must seek to God, yet they worship afar off. It is the gracious Christian only that prays acceptably; wicked men's prayers are abomination; a hypocrite shall not come before him (John 13:16). And indeed, till you be real saints, you'll have no mind to buckle close to this duty: truth of grace will capacitate you for secret approaches to God; strength of grace will elevate you to God; and evidence of sincerity will make you come boldly to the Throne of Grace: Therefore try your state, inquire what relation you have to God, or else expect no familiarity with him. God will not take the wicked by the hand to lead them into these chambers of communion the throne of iniquity has no fellowship with him. Our Lord Jesus marries none but widows that are divorced from all other husbands, and he opens his heart to none but his betrothed spouse, her he leads into a solitary place and speaks to her heart: Oh sirs! come over clearly to God, by closing with Christ, renounce yourselves, get united to him, and then come and welcome to enjoy communion with him in Closet-Prayer.

2. Dispatch other things off your hearts and hands: Let not your earthly occasions intrude into your closet exercises: Say to the cares and affairs of the world as Abraham to his servants, Stay there while I go and worship the Lord yonder: Or as Nehemiah in another case, I am doing a great work, and I cannot come down to you: So do you say, I have appointed other times and seasons for attending worldly businesses, let me alone with my God, every thing is beautiful in its season: Communion with God is as much as I can attend at once, I must not be diverted by other objects, the business I am about is of the greatest importance, I must consult how I may attend upon the Lord without distraction, and worldly matters have distracted me in God's service, and have cost me many a tear; therefore get away from me. Why should the work of the Lord cease? Why should I be hindered from my God? What can you afford me that can be worth one hour's communion with my God? Thus do you actually renounce the world, for you cannot mind two things at once: And observe it, If you leave any matters of the world tarrying for your attendance, the thought of them will attend you, and make you cut your duties short, and run away before your hearts be warmed: Therefore, if it may be, dispatch them, however rid your hearts of them: The Heathen left their shoes at the Temple-doors, to show that all earthly occasions and affections must be left behind when we go to God.

Let vain or busy thoughts have there no part, Bring not your plow, your plots, your pleasures there, Christ purged his Temple, so must you your heart, All worldly thoughts are but thieves met together To cozen thee— Herbert.

SECT. 2. Two more Preparatives to Secret Prayer.

3. Set your selves in God's presence: Although you be not within the view of any mortal creature, yet the eternal God sees what you are going about: So says the text, Your father sees in secret, darkness or [reconstructed: closeness] hides not from him: and it is more that one God sees you, than if all the men on earth gazed at you: His eyes are ten thousand times brighter than the sun, and he is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity; therefore wash your hands in innocency before you compass his altar: For if you regard iniquity in your heart, God will not hear your prayer: Therefore set the Lord always before you, especially now you are setting your selves before the Lord; if that warning was enough to beget reverence in a Heathen, Cato sees you: Oh what reverence would the sense of God's omnipresence beget in your heart, if duly weighed? Christians, weigh your spirits with such meditations as these, God's eye is never off me, I am daily walking in the sun; but now, I am setting myself to pray in secret; I come to appear before God in a special manner; I may deceive men and myself, but God will not be mocked; I need now to engage my heart to approach to God, that's the thing he looks for. Oh for a spirit suitable to such a majesty whom I come to worship! Lord, draw out my affections, unite my heart, excite my graces that my whole soul may be carried after God: Thus commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts shall be established: when you are setting your face towards a duty, where you are sure to meet Satan, and carry with you a corrupt deceitful heart, let God know from your mouth where you are going, what your fears are. Never (says one) does the soul march in so good order, as when it puts itself under the conduct of God; and never is it so awful, as when it sets itself under the eye of God (Genesis 17:1). I am God Almighty, walk before me, and be perfect. When you sensibly discern you are kneeling before God, will not this make you perfect, sincere, and grow holier? If you think God be not in your closets, what do you go to pray there for? And if you know he sees you there, why do you not think so, and set your selves as in his presence? The child will stand demurely before his father, the scholar before his master; and so will the gracious soul before God in duty, if sensible of his presence.

4. Muster up your thoughts and ways: Our thoughts and affections are like the strings of an instrument out of tune, and therefore we must take some pains to wind and screw them up. This is that which Zophar advises to (Job 11:13), to prepare the heart, and then stretch forth the hands: And for this end, it would not be amiss when you come into a private room to pray in secret, first to read some portion of Scripture, which may be of use to compose your spirits; and like David's harp to Saul, drive away your wild imaginations: indeed the word read, may afford you suitable matter of prayer to God. More particularly, let me add one experienced help, which is this: When you are addressing yourselves to God in secret prayer, endeavor to fix your thoughts upon some particular subject to enlarge upon; there's no question, but you have sometimes one special errand to God, sometimes another, if you observe your condition well; be sure to mind that, whether it be to confess some predominant sin, to beg pardon of it, power against it. You may have in your eye some grace that you need more than ordinarily, and see your weakness and defect therein, etc. Now do not satisfy yourselves in running out into generals only, but set yourselves to plead the cause of your souls in that very case, which you have found out by serious inquiry, would most engage you at that time to go to God about; expatiate principally upon that subject: And this I conceive to be a taking to ourselves words (which the Holy Ghost directs us to, in prayer) not a form of such and such phrases, but some special subject matter to speak to our God about: the word in Hebrew imports so much.

Now an intent and earnest pursuit of such a special subject at the throne of grace is of use in these two respects:

1. You will find it a help against distractions, wanderings, withdrawings from God; when you purposely set yourselves to mind one thing, you'll be more intent upon it, and lay out more pains about it, than when you allow yourselves liberty in variety of matter. When the stream runs one way, it is stronger than dispersed into several channels, so, when the Christian unites his strength to plead with God about a particular business, he is usually more warm and affectionate, and so less subject to distraction.

2. It will help you to enlarge yourselves in spreading particular cases before the Lord, in apt and proper expressions, even before others as you have a call and opportunity; and this is that which is called, the gift of prayer, which is of singular use, when a person can particularly and pathetically lay open a condition, plead with God, improve promises, and rationally expostulate even with the Almighty about a spiritual or temporal concern: This holy art is got by a frequency in secret prayer, and particular pleading for a man's own soul: This is the last preparatory; think beforehand what business you have to God in a peculiar manner, and drive that nail (as it were) to the head: you cannot think to speak of all things to God at one time, but take that which is of present emergent use and importance, and set yourselves to enlarge upon that; follow that home till you feel your hearts be warmed and affected, and so have some tokens for good that God will return a sensible answer: You'll say, Must we thus prepare ourselves before every duty of secret prayer; we have not time for it? I shall answer this in the words of my dear and reverend Father Angier: there are some separating duties that prepare for others, as examination, meditation, prayer; and they do prepare by stirring up the grace of God, and providing a heavenly assistance to begin with us in the duty: If you cannot always have separating time between other occasions and God's worship, yet have some separating thoughts before you enter upon the duty; you are not fit else to meddle with wisdom: Thus he. It is true, some have not the leisure that others have, yet so much preparation is necessary for every duty as may withdraw the heart from other objects, and weight the spirit with a due sense of the work we have in hand, and sometimes this may be done suddenly; yet as for such as have more time to work upon their hearts, and state their souls' case by mustering up themselves to the work, neglect a duty and cannot groundedly expect the Lord's presence: and this I conceive is the reason why the Lord's people miss of God in secret prayer, at least one reason is, because they do not make such conscience, and take such care of preparing their hearts as they ought: Ah Christians, when you come into your closet, sit down and pause a little, before you fall down upon your knees, clear up your state, shake off other business, set yourselves in God's presence, and muster up your sins or wants, or mercies you purpose to spread before the Lord; a client will consider all his matters, before he comes to state his case to his advocate; a poor patient will bethink himself, how he is, that he may tell his ailments to his physician; and a petitioner will not go hand over head to his prince, but order his cause beforehand, that he may plead it more effectually: And shall not we much more prepare ourselves to wait upon the God of Heaven.

Section 3. Directions concerning the essentials of secret prayer.

2. The second sort of rules is concerning some things essentially requisite to the right performance of the duty of secret prayer, which you are to look to in the duty; and these are such as are required in all sorts of prayer.

namely, that it be performed, - 1. With the heart. - 2. By the help of the spirit. - 3. According to God's will. - 4. In the name of Christ.

1. Secret Prayer must be hearty Prayer: a heartless duty is a worthless duty; indeed the whole heart must be engaged in it (Psalm 119:10). With my whole heart have I sought you: It is the heart that God chiefly looks after (Proverbs 23:26). My Son, give me your heart: nothing else can please God, if the heart be wanting; if the heart be engaged in the duty, he will rather dispense with other weaknesses, where there's not willful negligence. Observe it, in that worship of God we perform with others, a man's gifts may be of use, though his heart go not along with his voice; but in Closet-Prayer it does no good at all, except the heart be engaged; therefore God principally requires the heart in other duties, in this he only requires the heart, for the voice is not necessary. To love and serve the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, strength, is a keeping of the Law, and more than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices. We should pray with every faculty of the soul, and with the utmost strength of every faculty: God deserves and requires our strongest affections. That's but a vain worship that's performed without the heart; right attendance on God is an engaging the heart to approach to God. Christians, in all your addresses to God, mind the object of worship; let the subject worshipping, and object worshipped, be closely united; look beyond the duty: it's one thing to have communion with an Ordinance, and another thing to have communion with God in an Ordinance. God's dear Children know what this means; for sometimes they are more taken up with expressions, affections, or some accidentals in the performance, than with the object of worship they should be intent upon. But this is very dangerous; for whatever interposes between the soul and God, to divert the thoughts from God, is an Idol (Ezekiel 14:3). These men have set up their Idols in their hearts. The Septuagint reads it, they have put their thoughts upon their hearts, that is, They have committed Idolatry with their own imaginations: instead of worshipping God, their minds have stuck upon something short of God, after which they have (as it were) run a whoring even in the duty. I shall not deliver that as the sense of the place, yet it may be a useful note. I fear many of us are guilty of a kind of spiritual fine-spun Idolatry, by heterogeneous thoughts in holy duties, that pluck us from God, when we are approaching to him. The Lord humble us for this, and fix our thoughts upon God, that we may say as the Church (Isaiah 26:8), The desire of our soul is to your name, and to the remembrance of you. Cyprian says, every secular thought must depart, and the mind must be taken up with nothing but what we are about. He tells, the practice of the Church in his time was, that the Minister before Prayer, prepares the people's mind, saying [Sursum corda] Lift up your hearts, and they answer [Habemus ad dominum] we have them up to the Lord: whereby, says he, we are admonished, that in Prayer we must think of nothing but the Lord. What the Minister said to the People, do you say to yourselves; [Sursum corda] lift up your hearts. Let every one say, I am now worshipping a Heart-searching God. Oh that my heart were with God. The Ancients (says Luther) finely described Prayer, to be an ascent of the mind to God: Oh that I did experimentally know, what this means in Syntaxi, that is, in coupling and joining of my heart to God. Lord, gather in my roving and wandering spirit: This is the first direction, Mind the frame of your hearts.

2. Implore and expect the Spirit's assistance: Prayer must be by the Spirit's enlarging influence; hence it is called the spirit of grace and supplication. It helps our infirmities by making souls to cry out Abba Father, with unutterable groans. A Christian should spread the sails of his soul for the gales of God's grace, which will carry the praying Saint apace towards God, indeed and reach the ear of God, for he knows the mind of the Spirit. This is that which is called, a worshipping God in the spirit, a praying in the holy Ghost, that is, either as to the matter of the Prayer dictated by the Spirit, or as to the manner of praying, the soul being actuated by the holy Ghost. For I conceive it may import the former as well as the latter, as other Scriptures compared hold forth. Alas, flesh and blood will put up such petitions as God will not accept, or in such a manner as is no way suitable to his spiritual Nature. The truth is, Christians, you will but bungle at the work without this help of God's Spirit, and God will take notice of you except he hear his own language. Do not think you can wrestle out the business yourselves, you must be beholding to God for help in Prayer, as well as for hearing your Prayer; your own spirits will not carry you to Heaven. That which is from the earth is earthly, and rises no higher than earth, but the holy Ghost will elevate your souls to God. Therefore, I beseech you, Sirs, beg the Spirit, yield to its motions, improve its operations; say when you are going to duty, Lord, now stir up yourself, and stir up your grace in my heart. Awake, oh North-wind, and come; you South, blow upon your Garden (Canticles 4:16). [My Soul] that the spices thereof may flow out [that graces may be exercised and exerted.] Lord, I am low, flat, hard; send the powerful arm of your blessed Spirit to work all gracious dispositions in me, and raise up my affections to you. I see I am below the duty, and infinitely below you in the duty, but you, and you alone can raise me up, quicken, soften my dead and rocky heart; come Lord, and show your powerful Arm, let it appear what God can do for a sorry worm. Oh lift me up to you, that my soul may enjoy some sweet communion with you. Send your spirit to fetch in my wanton wandering heart. Oh for some fire from Heaven to burn up my sacrifice, or else it will lie like a lump of flesh, and be no true Holocaust of pure Incense before you. Let your Spirit scatter these mists of ignorance, and drive away these flies of distracting thoughts, that my heart may be with you, and my performance may be as sweet savor in the nostrils of God.

Section 4. More Essentials in secret prayer.

A third ingredient in prayer is, that it be according to God's will; it must have a warrant from the Word; a word of precept, or promise, or example, must be the ground of our petitions: a command is our warrant, a promise our encouragement; an example is our tract, and the footsteps of the flock wherein we must walk: He that asks amiss shall not speed, but if we ask any thing according to his will he hears us; and then we know we have the petitions that we desired of him (1 John 5:14-15). Now, we ask according to his will, when both the matter of our petition is aright, and our end in asking is God's glory, and our own or others' spiritual good: otherwise, if we ask of God what we conceive to be a mercy, and have not asked counsel at God's mouth; or ask so as to consume it upon our lusts, we may well meet with a denial: My friends, you may not say what you please in the presence of God. Consider, God is in heaven, you are on earth, therefore be not rash with your mouth, and let not your heart be hasty to utter any thing before God, let your words be few, and well weighed (Ecclesiastes 5:2). The work you are about is a solemn business, do not ramble in extravagant desires of unlawful things; think not that God will patronize your lusts: and when you have asked that which you conceive is according to his will, refer it wholly to his will, say, The will of the Lord be done: submit yourselves to his dispose, for time, manner, means, and all circumstances for giving of it: ask temporal mercies conditionally, and spiritual comforts with submission to God's will; learn that petition, Your will be done, to pray it, as well as say it. Indeed Luther could say, Let your will be done, but he came off with this, My will, Lord, because my will is melted into yours, there's but one will between us: Let God's will be your will; it is fit it should be so, our heavenly Father is wiser than we: Consider, a man cannot pray in faith, for that which he has no warrant to ask: Besides, Amesius says, If a man come not with an humble submission to God's will, it were not a religious prayer directed to the supreme Creator, but a kind of command by a superior to an inferior, or a familiar discourse as among equals: Therefore let us humbly plead God's will as Abraham did (Genesis 18:27). Further consider, the design of prayer is not to incline God before unwilling, to our mind and desire; for with him there is no variableness nor shadow of change; but that we may obtain of him by prayer what we know beforehand he is willing to give: Lastly, consider Christ's example (Matthew 26:39). If it be possible, let this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will: This is right praying, to ground our petition upon a promise, yet freely to leave all at God's feet, to dispose of us as he sees good: Our prayers and God's promises should point towards each other as those two figures 9 and 6. Promises do bend downwards, and after the same motion must our prayers ascend upwards; so will there be a blessed harmony and seasonable return: This is the third direction; let your prayers be warranted by the Word.

4. Improve your advocate (John 14:13). Whatever you ask in my name, that will I do: To ask anything in his name is not, rudely, customarily, or perfunctorily to conclude with these words, Through Jesus Christ our Lord, &c. but, in confidence of his merit and intercession to call upon our heavenly Father, as Daniel pleads, for the Lord's sake (Daniel 9:17). For, since the fall, none can come immediately to God but through a mediator; nor are we to fetch a compass by the groundless invocation of saints and angels: I hope you have otherwise learned Christ: I am most afraid in the practical part, that, in particular acts (at least) precious souls are in danger to miscarry, especially in closet prayer; when a Christian is got alone, and there finds a sweet gale of the blessed Spirit, helping his heart to mourn for sin, bewail his misery, plead for mercy, and giving God the glory due to his name; oh then he goes away much satisfied, and God must needs accept his person and hear his prayer: Why so? Why he has found abundant assistance, meltings, quickenings, and enlargements: Alas, sirs, where is Christ all this while? I am afraid your advocate is quite forgotten, your surety set aside as a poor insignificant cipher: And tell me, soul, you who boast thus of your enlargements, dare you appear before a holy God in those rotten rags? Suppose your rags be velvet, they are but rags still, and are too scant a garment for your naked soul; you come to unlock the ear of God, and open his heart with a wrong key; we are accepted only in the Beloved, and not because we are enlarged. It is true, evangelical assistance may be a sign of acceptance, but it is no cause thereof: No, no, our persons and prayers are owned only upon the account of our surety and intercessor: Our dear Lord Jesus, who died for us, he lies leaguer at the court of heaven as our ambassador, to plead for us, and to see matters carried fairly, between God and ransomed souls, and shall we not employ our advocate, and find him work? Or shall we think to go our own errand? Lord, forgive this gross ingratitude: Oh Christians, whatever your constraint or enlargements be, make use of him, who is at God's right hand, lay your sacrifices on this golden altar; lay the whole stress of your acceptance upon Christ's meritorious intercession; act faith on him who mingles his sweet incense with your sorry performances: Oh look after our Aaron who is gone into the Holy of Holies for us: Consider, friends, it would be sad with you if you were to be judged according to the best secret duties that ever you performed: It is good to have an enlarged heart in secret, yet there is danger in it, and it may undo us, because our naughty hearts are apt to boast of, and trust to our enlargements; therefore it is better for us sometimes to be constrained than constantly enlarged in our closet prayers: This is that which has made some say that their duties have done them more hurt than their infirmities; and the reason is plain, because our corrupt hearts are so apt to depend upon the former, when as we are daunted and emptied of ourselves by considering the latter: The Lord help us all in this main business of prayer, yes, this principal part of our religion, to depend wholly upon the righteousness and intercession of Jesus Christ; for access to, and acceptance with God: Study these Scriptures, (John 16:23-24; Ephesians 3:13; Hebrews 4:15-16; 10:19-22; Philippians 3:3, 18). The Gospel is full of this, yes, this is the main hinge of our religion: you are not Christians, unless you make Jehovah your righteousness in all you do, as well as God your ultimate end: You will go away as the proud Pharisee without acceptance, if you plead your enlargements with God: but if you come as the publican, pleading only God's mercy and Christ's merits, you shall be owned and crowned with abundant incomes.

There are also several other necessary ingredients in all prayer, which I might urge with reference to this duty of secret prayer, as 1. A right understanding (1 Corinthians 14:15). I will pray with understanding: For blind devotion is not pleasing to God: 2. A sensible feeling of our wants, we must come weary and heavy laden (Matthew 11:28). Pressed with the guilt of sin, pinched with want of grace: 3. Fervency of spirit (James 5:17), arising from a consideration of the necessity and excellency of what we desire, burning zeal: 4. A reverent disposition (Ecclesiastes 5:2), an unfeigned abasing of ourselves before him, from the sense of his infinite Majesty and our own indignity: 5. Secret persuasions of prevailing (1 Timothy 2:8), grounded on God's all sufficiency and fidelity, though the soul be unworthy: 6. A charitable disposition, forgiving others (Matthew 6:14), bearing an endeared affection to all saints: 7. Perseverance in prayer, holding on without cessation (Ephesians 6:18). Following God in the duty all our days: Such as these constitutive ingredients essentially requisite in the duty of prayer, I might urge, but must contract.

This is the second sort of directions.