every day in their Family or in secret or both in their Family or secretly For your Comfort go along with me in these eight or nine things following First There is no Family where Prayer is constantly used Morning and Evening but God usually blesseth those Families As God blessed the house of Obed Edom 2 Sam. 6.11 because the Ark was in his house So God blesseth those Families where prayers are daily used Secondly There are no secret prayers made unto God but shall be answered Saith Christ When thou Prayest enter into thy closet Mat. 6.6 and when thou hast shut thy door pray to thy Father which is in secret and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly Thirdly If thou canst pray in Faith it is a certain signe thou haft the truth of Grace thou art a child of God and shalt be saved 1. It is a signe of the truth of grace Saith the Lord I will pour upon them the spirit of grace and supplication Zach. 12.10 He that hath the spirit of Supplication hath the spirit of Grace first otherwise he could not have the spirit of Supplication 2. It is a signe thou art a child of God Saith the Apostle Gal. 4.6 Because ye are sonnes God hath sent forth the spirit of his Sonne into your hearts crying Abba Father If thou wert not a sonne thou couldest not call upon God as a Father 3. It is a certain signe thou shalt be saved Rom. 10.13 For whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved He that by Faith calls upon God may misse of the particular mercy he begs for here but he may be assured he shall not misse Eternal Salvation hereafter For the spirit of Supplication is a certain signe of Salvation 4. If thy heart be sincere in thy Prayers to God God will accept of thee although thou hast many failings For if there be first a willing minde 2 Cor. 8.12 it is accepted according to that a man hath and not according to that he hath not God accepts not of our service according to the worthinesse of the work but the willingnesse of the mind in the work So as he that unfainedly prays for and earnestly desires Faith Repentance and other graces he hath these graces in Gods esteem because God accepts of the will for the deed 5. If thou in the want of ability to utter words to God as thou desirest canst weep before the Lord and sobbe out thy complaints with sighs and groanes These thy desires is a certain signe thou hast the spirit of Prayer for these sighes and groanes could not be in thy prayers to God but from the Spirit of God helping thy infirmities in the duty as the Apostle saith Rom. 8.26 The spirit helpeth our infirmities for we know not what we should pray for as we ought but the spirit it self maketh intercession for us with greanings which cannot be uttered These unutterable groanes proceed from the supernatural motion of Gods Spirit in thee Sixthly If thou canst sincerely seek God by Prayer thou maiest have comfort in all afflictions and trials that befal thee You shall find David complaining of the unkind dealing of his Adversaries Psalme 109. but saith he ver 4. I give my self unto Prayer Psa 109.4 As if he should have said I use no unlawful meanes against them but my onely refuge and defence is prayer unto God So did Job Job 16.20 My friends scorne me but mine eyes poureth out tears unto God I weep in my prayers and wait upon God to right my case And doubtlesse those that accustome themselves to a constant course of seeking God shall have cause to rejoyce and magnifie God in the greatest trials that can befal them according to that prophetical prayer of David Psa 40.16 Let all those that seek thee rejoyce and be glad in thee let such as love thy salvation say continually the Lord be magnified Seventhly If thou keepest thy heart in a constant course of praying unto God It is a certain signe that the sinne or judgement thou prayest against shall be removed or the mercy thou prayest for shall be granted Exod. 17.11 While Moses held up his hands in Prayer Israel prevailed There was no fear of enemies Conquering while Moses was praying And you shall find Moses devotion prevented Gods indignation against his people Exodus 32.10 to 15 verse saith the Lord to Moses Let me alone that my wrath may wax hot against them and that I may consume them But Moses would not let God alone but continued praying for them His Prayers are answered the Judgement is diverted Verse 14. Exod. 32 14. And the Lord repented him of the evil which he thought to doe unto his people And Jacob Gen. 32.26 29. who continued wrestling for a blessing obtained it If Prayer be not slackned mercy shall be speeded If thou continuest in a constant course of praying against sinne for grace and for the removal of judgements or afflictions know for thy comfort thy sinnes shall be pardoned grace shall be conferred and the judgements or afflictions shall be removed from thee or sanctified to thee for thy good Eightly It is certain That that God that calleth thee to the duty of Prayer he is able ready and willing to hear and help thee When Bartimeus went to Christ for his eye-sight and it was told him Be of good comfort Mark 10.49 arise he calleth thee Out of all question at this report the heart of Bartimeus leapt within him and he was confident that seeing Christ called him he intended to grant his request in restoring his sight So beloved you may be confident that God that calls you to the duty of Prayer he intends to hear and answer you For he is able to help you Psa 115.3 Our God is in Heaven and he doth whosoever he pleaseth And he is willing to help and comfort you For like as a Father pittieth his children Psal 103.13 so the Lord pittieth them that fear him Ninethly and lastly Lastly All the Prayers of Gods faithful servants on earth shall undoubtedly be heard and answered in Heaven This is alwayes true with these three Cautions First That thou beest a Righteous person that doth the will of God Jam. 5.16 The Prayer of the Righteous availeth much Saith Christ Joh. 15.7 If ye abide in me and my words abide in you ye shall ask what ye will and it shall be done unto you Secondly If ye ask in the Name of Christ For so saith Christ Iohn 16.23 Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my Name he shall give it you Thirdly If your Prayers be according to the will of God Saith the Apostle This is the confidence that we have in him 1 John 5.14 that if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us Onely know this That although the Prayers of Gods servants shall be
conditions For want of observing these things and so using a due order in Prayer many times instead of a blessing God makes a breach upon them for seeking him disorderly as it is acknowledge 1 Chron. 15.13 The Lord our God made a breach upon us for that we sought him not after the due order Twelthly Take heed of loving long Prayers and think not to be heard because your Prayers are long Saith Christ When you pray Mat. 6.7 use not vain repetitions as the Heathen doe For they think they shall be heard for their much speaking Long prayers can hardly maintain their vigour commonly there will be vain repetitions as you see it was with the Heathen Know that God takes not mens Prayers by tale but by weight It is not gifts but Grace that moves God to hear prayers He that is fervent in Prayer prays much though he speak but little Let not your words and matter exceed your affections and then pray and spare not otherwise break off the sooner the better Lastly Lastly Hate the sinne you pray against and love the Grace you pray for First Hate the sinne you pray against a man cannot pray hearttily for the pardon of and strength against those sinnes that he does not hate but when the sinne of his heart is the grief of his soul now may he exspect pardon 1 Kings 8.38 39. When every one shall know the plague of his own heart then hear thou in Heaven c. When every one shall know his own fore 2 Chron. 6.29 30. and his own grief then hear thou in Heaven c. When a man may pray for pardon of sinne with inward hatred of it and heart grief for it then may he with comfort expect pardon Secondly Love the Grace you pray for A man cannot pray fervently for that he doth not love heartily Saith our Saviour to the woman of Samaria Joh. 4.10 If thou knewest the gift of God c. thou wouldst have asked c. If thou hadst known me and the worth of the Grace that I give this would have quickned thy desires to have asked of me and then I would have given thee living water The sence of the worth of grace draws love to it and these strengthen the desires of it And so much for this fourth thing propounded the duties or graces requisite in Prayer Fifthly Fifthly I shall shew you the gestures that are to be used in Prayer And I finde in Scripture principally these four Kneeling sifting up and spreading forth the Hands lifting up the Eyes and for men to uncover their Heads First Kneeling This is commanded O come let us worship Psal 95.6 and bow down and kneel before the Lord our Maker Here we see that religious kneeling is part of Divine worship It is but equity that he that made the body should be worshipped by or with the body And for as much as Jesus Christ hath redeemed our Bodies as well as our Souls he ought to be worshiped with our Bodies as well as Soules And so the Apostle argues 1 Cor. 6.20 For ye are bought with a price therefore glorifie God Our bodies and soules are Gods not onely by right of Creation but also by right of Redemption therefore we must glorifie God by worshiping of him with our bodies as well as our souls And we finde in Scripture divers examples for kneeling in Prayer David he kneeled in prayer Psal 95.6 1 King 8.54 Dan. 6.10 and Solomon his sonne he kneeled on his knees in prayer Daniel he kneeled on his knees in prayer Stephen Acts 7.60 he kneeled down and prayed Peter Acts 9.14 he kneeled down and prayed Saint Paul Acts 20.36 he kneeled down and prayed he bowed his knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Ephes 3.14 and he in Mark 10.17 Mark 10.17 came kneeling to our Saviour And we find that all the people men women and children kneeled down and prayed Acts 21.5 All these Examples you have for kneeling in prayer Take one more who is the Pattern of all patternes our blessed Saviour himself Luke 22.41 He kneeled down and prayed A second Gesture used in Prayer is lifting up and spreading forth of Hands We must not onely lift up our hearts but also our hands to God in Prayer Lift up your hands in the Sanctuary Psal 134.2 and blesse the Lord 1 Tim. 2.8 I will that men pray every where lifting up pure hands And for this gesture also we have several Examples Moses Exod. 17.11 12. he held up his hands to God in prayer And David desired that the lifting up of his hads to God in Prayer may be acceptable as an evening sacrifice Psal 141.2 2 Chron. 6.13 Solomon he spread forth his hands to God in prayer and so did Ezra And I conceive this lifting up of the hands in Prayer is to be used to signifie these two things First that the heart is lift up to God saith the Prophet in the Lamentations Lam. 3.41 Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the Heavens That is let let your hearts be lift up as well as your hands Some lift up their hands while their hearts hang down in Prayer but doe you lift up your hearts first and then lift up your hands to signifie your hearts are also lift up to God Job 11.13 If thou prepare thine heart and streach out thine hands towards him Streach out thy hands to him to signifie thou hast already given thy heart to him in Prayer Secondly lifting up the hands in prayer it signifies our depending upon Gods power to help and assist us in time of need As a Child that is in danger of falling he stretcheth out his hand to his Father for help So in Prayer the hands are lift up to God as a signe of expecting help from him Saith David Hear the voice of my supplication Psal 28.2 when I cry unto thee when I lift up my hands towards thy holy Oracle By stretching forth our hands to God in Prayer we doe as it were tell him that we depend wholly upon him for help favour mercy and pardon and that unlesse he help and deliver us we are lost and undone for ever A third gesture in Prayer is lifting up of the Eyes For this we have the example of our blessed Saviour John 11.41 Joh. 17.1 Psal 123.1 2.3 He lift up his Eyes and prayed And so did David Unto thee lift I up mine Eyes This lifting up of the Eyes in prayer it hath the same signification with the former of lifting up of the Hands Lifting up the Eye it signifies the eye of Faith and Hope depending upon Gods help and assistance The fourth and last Gesture in prayer Lastly is for men to have the Head uncovered This the Apostle teacheth where he saith 1 Corin. 11.4 Every man praying or prophesying having his head
covered dishonoureth his head I read the Turkes neither kneel nor uncover the Head in prayer esteeming it unmanly But Christians in all places and in all Ages have used both these gestures in Prayer And for men to be uncovered in Prayer I conceive this reason holds good because it is usual amongst Christians when Inferiours are speaking to Superiours to have their heads uncovered to manifest their subjection and it is a shame and a dishonour to a man to doe otherwise So when poor weak frail mortal man is by Prayer speaking to the great God of Heaven and Earth it is requisite he should manifest his reverence and subjection unto God by being bare-headed otherwise as the Apostle saith he dishonoureth his Head But may some Object Object Will you tie us to these gestures seeing we finde that Gods people stood and prayed Neh. 9.2 And the Publican and Pharisee stood and prayed and it is said Luke 18 11 13. Heb. 11.21 Iacob leaned upon his staffe and worshiped To which I answer I doe not tie you at all times to the Gestures before mentioned No For first outward gestures may be omitted when they shall hinder us in the service of God As for example If the Minister should kneel the people could not so well hear him and the seats of some in the Church are so placed that if they should kneel they should not hear the Minister In this case standing is better then kneeling because God accepts not of that gesture that hinders us in his service And it is like in this case Neh. 9.2 3 4. the Levites did stand and pray and the people also stood and prayed And for the Publican and Pharisee their prayers were but short Ejaculations not the solemne setting themselves to the dutie of Prayer therefore their example in standing can be no rule for our practice in the set performance of the duty Secondly outward gestures may be omitted when we cannot use them without evident danger of health or without such pain to the body as trouble and distract the mind in Gods service Some cannot kneel in prayer through bodily weaknesse and infirmities in this case God perfers mercy before sacrifice Mat. 12.7 And in this respect old Iacob rose upon his bed Heb. 11.21 leaned upon his staffe and worshipped And so if a man through age or weaknesse cannot be bare-headed he may have some covering Onely take this rule in these cases if a man cannot kneel or be bare-headed in Prayer yet must he use some other bodily gesture to shew as much bodily reverence as he can For so did Iacob who being aged and ready to give up the Ghost yet would he not lie along on his bed and pray but he rose up and leaned on his staffe he shewed as much reverence as he could he was not able to kneel or sit upright therefore he leaned and this gesture is given as an effect of his Faith By Faith he did thus to teach us that those that have true Faith in God will shew as much bodily reverence to him in prayer as they can If yet it be objected Object Why may not a man sit or lie along or be covered and pray I Answer Answ If they can use the other Gestures which are most sutable to the duty and yet doe not they sinne For if sitting or lying be as fit gestures in Prayer as kneeling what needed David to have rose at midnight to performe the duty as we finde he did resolve upon Psal 119.62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks to thee Psal 119.62 When others were sleeping he was praying and that he might apply himself to such a posture as was most sutable to the duty he rose at midnight to performe it To teach us that a lazie posture in the duty of Prayer is not to be used As a full answer to all cavils take these two Conclusions First those gestures that bring a deadnesse and dulnesse and shew no reverence to God in the duty of Prayer ought not to be used But sitting lying and for men to be covered in Prayer when there is no infirmity or necessity constrains them to it brings deadnesse and discovers no reverence to God in the duty therefore they are not to be used in it Secondly those Gestures in publick that are of bad example to others are not to be used But sitting lying along or being covered are of bad example to others therefore they are not to be used in Prayer Now although it be my purpose to make a general application of all in the close yet observing that many in the Congregation are defective in the gestures of Prayer give me leave to speak a few words by way of Use to this before I passe to the next thing propounded And 1. For Reprehension 2. For Exhortation First by way of Reprehension 1. Use Reprehension is kneeling lifting up the hands and eyes and being bare-headed commanded and commended in Scripture as gestures requisite in Prayer Tell me then doe not those deserve to be reproved that neglect these Gestures or use the contrary That instead of using these gestures they sit or lie along and are with their Hats half off and half on are not these lazie and irreverent postures more fit for those that give themselves to sleeping then those that set themselves to Prayer If any of your Children should greatly offend you and then come and sit down before you or lie along or be with their hats half off and half on and ask you forgivenesse would you not be displeased with them and condemne their want of reverence Beloved we ought to come to God as a Father but if we come to him with irreverent postures may he not say unto us Mal. 1.6 If I be a Father where is mine honour More reverence becometh children to their Father Can your Consciences serve you to use lesse reverence to God then you would use to man think of it Secondly for Exhortation 2 Use Exhortation I beseech you be exhorted to use more reverence in Prayer God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the Saints Psal 89.7 and to be had in reverence of all that are about him If thou hast grace it will teach thee to serve God reverently Therefore Heb. 12.28 Let us have grace whereby we may serve God with reverence and godly fear God accepts not of that service that is not reverently performed He therefore that will serve God acceptably must serve him reverently That man that does not behave himself reverently in respect of the outward man in Prayer he can have no reverent nor high esteeme of God in his heart for where that is it will cause an humble and reverent deportment of the body Wherefore I Exhort and beseech you for time to come use not such irreverent postures in Prayer as if you scorned the Ordinance but let the outward postures
of the body expresse the inward reverence and humility of the heart Use all the reverence that is sutable to the duty unlesse age or extream weaknesse of body disinable thee Ezek. 33.31 We finde examples in Scripture of sitting to hear the Word but throughout the whole Book of God I remember not any example of sitting in Prayer Wherefore I beseech you use as much reverence in the duty as you can And so much for this fifth thing propounded Sixthly Sixthly I come to lay down some Motivies to presse you to the performance of the duty of Prayer and they shall be of two sorts 1. The necessity of the Duty 2. The benefit that comes by the performance thereof First of the necessity of the duty of Prayer First It is necessary in these four repects First it is necessary because God hath commanded it In the Text and in several places throughout the Book of God I shall not need to mention them It is necessary we should manifest our obedience by yeilding to Gods commands therefore Pray Secondly it is necessary because without Prayer we can have no sanctified use of the Creatures For every creature of God is good 1 Tim. 4.4 5. and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving For it is sanctified by the Word and Prayer It is one thing to have the Creature an other thing to have a Sanctified use of the creature this is not obtained but by Prayer Thirdly it is necessary because there is no drawing water out of the wells of Salvation but by the bucket of faithful Prayer Isai 12.3 With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation Gods Ordinances are the wells of Salvation and faithful Prayer is the bucket that fetcheth the water of Consolation out of these wells Fourthly Lastly and lastly Prayer is necessary because without it we cannot obtain Gods blessing but are exposed to Gods curse ler. 10 25. Psal 79.6 Pour out thy wrath upon the Heathen and upon the Families that call not upon thy Name A second sort of Motives to Prayer Secondly shall be taken from the benefits that come by Prayer and they are many First If you pray aright to God you shall not lose your labour but you shall be sure to speed Ask and ye shall have c. Mat. 7.7 I said not to the house of Jacob seek ye me in vain To be sure Isa 45.19 if you labour in this or in any work of God your labour shall not be in vain in the Lord. 1 Cor. 15.58 Secondly Prayer is a signe of true Conversion by this the Lord would manifest unto Annanias that Saul was converted and he might safely goe to him For behold he prayeth Acts 9.11 Thirdly Prayer is alwayes accompanied with Salvation Whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord Rom. 10.13 shall be saved Fourthly Prayer it is sweet and pleasant in Gods ears Saith Christ to the Church Cant. 2.14 Let me hear thy voice Psal 141.2 Rev. 5.8 chap. 8.3 4. for sweet is thy voice The Prayers of the Saints are unto God as Incense and sweet Odours for so they are called in Scripture Fifthly When nothing else can give comfort and ease the heart of grief yet Prayer will Saith David Psal 31.22 I said in my haste I am cut off before thine eyes neverthelesse then thou heardest the voice of my supplication when I cryed unto thee It is good to have a bosome friend and the very opening of our grief to such is an ease to the heart Sixthly Prayer is the onely way to get the heart filled with spiritual Graces as Joy John 16.24 c. Ask and ye shall receive that your joy may be full Let those that seek thee rejoyce and be glad in thee Psal 40.16 The Apostle uses Prayer as a means by which all Grace should be wrought in the Ephesians Ephes 3.14 16. to 20 ver Seventhly By prayer we approach into Gods presence Psal 95.2 God will not hide his face from his praying servants Psal 22.24 But of an Hypocrite it is said Job 13.16 He shall not come before him A rogue may beg without the gate but he may not be suffred to come within doors The upright soul that seeks God Psal 140.13 shall dwell in his Presence The eighth and last Motive that I shall use to presse you to the duty of Prayer Lastly it shall be taken from the goodnesse and power of God And that doth appear in these four things First he hath stiled himself a God hearing Prayer Psal 65.2 O thou that hearest prayer unto thee shall all flesh come And of the righteous that seek him 1 Pet. 3.12 it is said his ears are open to their Prayers Secondly God is able to supply all his peoples needs So saith the Apostle 2 Cor. 9.8 God is able to make all grace to abound towards you He is able to doe exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think Ephes 3.20 But may some say If God be able to supply my need if he be not willing what encouragement is this to Prayer And therefore in the third place Gods is as willing to hear and help his people as he is able And this doth appear in that he saith He delights to exercise loving kindnesse Jer. 9.24 He waits that he may be gracious Isa 30.18 He is very pittiful Jam. 5.11 and of tender mercy Psal 103.13 As a Father pittieth his children No sooner do Gods people in their distresse cry unto him but he being nigh at hand he readily hears and helps them The righteous Psal 34.17 18. cry and the Lord heareth and delivereth them out of all their troubles the Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart Fourthly and lastly Lastly God hath made many promises to hear and help those that pray unto him and these you shall find in several places throughout the whole book of God I shall onely mention two Isa 65.24 Before they call I will answer and whiles they are yet speaking I will hear The Lord is nigh unto all that call upon him Psal 145.18 19. to all that call upon him in truth He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him he also will hear their cry and will save them Thus you have heard divers Motives to the duty of Prayer Now I beseech you let them take impression upon your hearts whereby you may be moved to set upon and be constant in the duty of Prayer So much for the sixt thing I come now to the seaventh thing propounded to be spoken to and that is The times of Prayer Saith the Apostle in the words following my Text Without ceasing 1 Thes 5.17 or continually I shall 1. Shew you what is meant by praying continually or without ceasing 2. I shall shew
Saith Solomon Prov. 1.32 The prosperity of fooles shall destroy them They have no right to it they shall be the worse for it But lest I should be mistaken when I say wicked men that pray not have no right to the outward things they doe enjoy my meaning is they have no right to them by the vertue of any promise neither can they have a sanctified use of them but they have a right to them in regard of Gods free bounty Psal 17.14 for he giveth them the things of this world as their portion and it is all the comfort they shall ever have Son Luk. 16.25 remember that thou in thy life time receivedst thy good things You see the things of this world are called the wicked mans portion his good things therefore they have a right to them and no man ought in the least to wrong or injure them in them But on the contrary Gods faithful servants that pray unto him they have a right too and a sanctified use of all the blessings they doe enjoy First they have a right to them saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 3.22 23. All things are yours and ye are Christs And secondly by Prayer every creature is sanctified unto them for their good 1 Tim. 4.4.5 It must needs therefore be farre better with him that prays than with him that pray not But may some say 4. Objection I am unable to pray I would pray but I want Faith and the Spirit of Prayer I Answer Answ It is a good signe in the sense of the want of Grace to desire it Let not this therefore detain thee from the Duty For first thou maiest have Faith though thou feelest it not In Christs feeling his Father had forsaken him Mat. 27.46 If thou mournest for nothing more then the want of Faith it is a signe thou hast it In the Gospel Mar. 9.24 The Father of the Child cryed out with tears Lord I believe help thou my unbelief If thou desirest nothing so much as to believe it is a signe thou hast Faith For as lusting after a woman is Adultery Mat. 5.28 so lusting after Christ is Faith because God accepts of the will for the deed therefore let not this discourage thee Secondly a man may have the Spirit of prayer and pray effectually and acceptably when in his own feeling his heart is utterly indisposed to prayer Thus it was with Asaph in Psal 77.2 3 4. My soul refused to be comforted I remembred God and was troubled c. I am so troubled that I cannot speak Psal 77.1 Yet for all this verse the first God gave ear unto him And saith David I am feeble and sore broken I have roared by reason of the disquietnesse of my heart And yet in the next Verse he saith Lord all my desire is before thee and my groaning is not hid from thee Psal 38.8 9. O how sadly did Hezekiah mourn Isa 38.14 ver 5. and chatter in his Prayers yet God heard and answered him It is not the brokennesse of our expressions that hinders the answer of our Prayers if the heart be throughly broken for sinne No no when words fail tears will speak and they have a voice in Gods ears Saith David The Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping Psal 6.8 Psal 39.12 Hold not thy peace at my tears Thou tellest my wandrings Psal 56.8 put thou my tears in thy bottle are they not in thy book Yes yes beloved all the tears that Gods servants shed before him for their sinnes they are all put into his Bottle and recorded in his Book Therefore let not the sense of thine own weaknesse and inability keep thee from thy duty but goe to God mourn for thy wants and begge supply of him and he will answer thee Fifthly I would fain pray 5. Objection but I am so sinful and unworthy a wretch I dare not I know God heareth not sinners John 9.31 yet such a one am I and therefore I dare not pray I Answer Answ Take heed thou dost not mistake the Text nor thy condition If God heareth no man that sinneth then no man should be ever heard of God For there is not a just man upon earth that doth good Eccles 7.20 and sinneth not And therefore for the meaning of the Text know that the sinners that God will not hear They are such as live and lie in their sinnes without repentance rejecting the worship and will of God such sinners as these God heareth not he will not accept of a good motion from such a bad mouth but as it followeth in that place John 9 31. If any man be a worshipper of God and doth his will him he heareth In every Nation Acts 10.35 he that feareth God and worketh righteousnesse is accepted with him But for a further and fuller answer to the Objection know First the sense of thy finfulnesse and unworthinesse should not keep thee from thy duty of praying Psal 40.12 13. David cryed out of his sinnes that they were more then the haires of his head yet he prayed And Ezra Ezra 9.6 by reason of his sinnes was ashamed to lift up his face to God yet he prayed Saint Paul had a deep sense of his sinnes 1 Tim. 1.15 Ephes 3.8 Acts 9.12 he said he was the chief of all Sinners and lesse then the least of all Saints yet behold he prayeth Secondly The more heinous our sinnes are the more need have we to seek to God for mercy They that be whole need not a Physician but they that are sick Thirdly The sense of sinne makes us more capable of mercy none more welcome to God then they that are most sensible of their sinnes See it in five examples in Scripture First The woman that was cured of her bloody issue she came behind Christ as being ashamed to look him on the face and she desired but to touch the hem of his garment Mat. 9.20 21 22. yet she was cured Secondly The Centurion who thought himself not worthy to come to Christ or that Christ should come under his roof Luke 7.6 7 10. yet his request was granted Thirdly The Prodigal who acknowledged to his Father his sinnes and unworthinesse to be called his sonne Luke 15.20 21 22. yet his Father embraced him and entertained him Fourthly The Publican who in the sense of his own unworthinesse durst not lift up his eyes to Heaven and to shew his indignation against himself for his sinnes he smote upon his breast yet was he justified Luk. 18.13 14. acquitted for his sinnes and received to mercy The fifth and last example is the woman of Canaan she acknowledged her self to be a Dog Mat. 15.27 28. yet her prayer was answered By all which examples you see that those that are most sensible of their sinnes are most welcome to God It is not so much sinne as