Proposition 2

PROP. II.

Prayers for life are then, and only then rightly qualified, when they have respect to the praises of God.

To clear this matter, there are these things to be conceived.

One conclusion is, that the living on earth have many peculiar opportunities to be praising of God. Indeed, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, for they too are always praising of Him. But yet they rest from some praises, when they rest from their labors here. The departed saints are continually shouting, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, before the Throne of God. The saints, they are joyful in glory; and the high praises of God are perpetually proceeding from those blessed souls. But Christians in this world have their peculiar opportunities, to be glorifying of Him that made them. This did the Psalmist speak in (Psalms 88:11), Shall the dead praise you? To instance in some particulars:

The living here may be praising of God by the discharge of many relations, which the dead saints are strangers to. We may now praise God as parents, as masters, as officers in the Church or Commonwealth. All those capacities will die with us, when we shall go hence and be no more.

Again, the living here may be praising of God, by bearing many a witness to the truths and ways of the Lord Jesus Christ. We may now bestow many rebukes upon the errors and the evils of a sinful world. We may part with and esteem, an estate, with our ease, and our life itself, out of respect to the name of God. But our testimonies expire with our lives.

Once more, the living may be praising of God by advancing His kingdom here below. In this life we may be instrumental to convince and convert unregenerate sinners, to build up the Church of the Lord Jesus, and to do good among the ignorant by an exemplary conversation. But this is to be done only below the stars.

Furthermore, there are graces proper to this life which God is praised by the exercising of. The tears of sorrow for sin will be dried up, when we come to the state in which all sorrow shall flee away. Charity in giving and forgiving to them that need it — there is no occasion for that charity among them that are above; they are all perfect and happy there. Patience under trials belongs to our present condition only; there are no afflictions to trouble us, when our few days full of trouble are passed away. In a word, our spiritual warfare is to be attended only in this valley of the shadow of death. We cannot fight the battles of the Lord, and therein we cannot show the praises of the Lord, when we are arrived at the end of our faith the salvation of our souls. Our fight is done, our crown is come when we have been faithful to the death.

A second conclusion is, that opportunities for the praising of God are the things for which we should desire to be living on earth. There is a three-fold desire of life which the living have. There is a natural desire of life. This is common both to good men and bad men. Nature itself startles at the approach of death; innocent nature shivers and recoils, when this king of terrors is ready to lay his cold icy hand upon us. This was Joab's desire: that valiant soldier, the Lord-General of Israel himself, in (1 Kings 2:28), being in cold blood under apprehensions of death, fled to the horns of the altar, as a sanctuary to save his life. There is also a sensual desire of life. This is that which bad men are under the power of. Many are loath to die because they would not leave the pleasures and profits and honors which did surround them here. They are like the miser who on his death-bed, hugged his bags of gold, and cried out, Must I leave you? Must I leave you? Their love of their life, comes from their love of their flesh. This was the rich fool's desire, in (Luke 12:20). He wished for many years, that he might eat and drink, and be merry here.

There is likewise a gracious desire of life. And this is that which good men are affected with: they desire to live, because they desire to praise. They would live, because they would honor God in those matters and those manners for which their lives do afford them blessed opportunities and advantages. Now this gracious desire of life is a regular desire. A desire of life for the praise of God, is the only desire of life, that will have praise of God. This was David's desire when he was visited with sickness, when he was weak, and his bones were pained, then said he in (Psalms 6:5), O save me, for in death there is no remembrance of you, in the grave who shall give you thanks? Such desires are the only right and chaste desires. It is not fit for a Christian to say, I desire to live, because I am afraid to die. Much less is it fit for him to say, I desire my life in the world, that I may turn and wind still the affairs of the world. But this is that which legitimates the desire of life: as every thing is to be improved for God, so every thing should be desired for God. And thus life itself. We are daily praying, as he in (Psalms 102:24), O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days. Well, our God enquires of us, Why are you unwilling to be taken away in the midst of your days? We should have this to be our true account of it, Because, O Lord, I am loath to be taken away in the midst of my praise.