Selected quad for the lemma: grace_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
grace_n	prayer_n	spirit_n	supplication_n	3,599	5	11.3996	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41120	Practicall divinitie: or, gospel-light shining forth in severall choyce sermons, on divers texts of scripture Viz. 1. The misery of earthly thoughts, on Isa. 55. 7. 2. A sermon of self-denial, on Luke 9. 23. 3. The efficacie of importunate prayer in two sermons on Collos. 1. 10. 5. A caveat against late repentance, on Luke 23. 24. 6. The soveraign vertue of the Gospel, on Psal. 147. 3 7 A funeral sermon, on Isa. 57. 1. Preached by that laborious and faithfull messenger of Christ, William Fenner, sometimes fellow of Pembroke Hall in Cambridge, and late minister of Rochford in Essex.	Fenner, William, 1600-1640.	1647 (1647)	Wing F693; ESTC R222658	119,973	322

it that man shall never speed well before God Thirdly as men have mean thoughts of their sinnes so they have base thoughts of God They cannot think that God should damne a man for drinking a pot with his friend I cannot think God will be so strict No no I love God with all my heart say they and they think that God is of their mind and if they were as God they would not be so strict So Psal 50. They thought I was such a one as themselves they think God will pardon them and therefore because of this men are not importunate with God God hath sent me a crosse saith one but I hope to rub it off well enough Why God will not keep his anger for ever Jer. 3. 5. Suppose a man be absent from Church or break out into some unsavoury speech will God be angry for this Suppose a man be negligent in a good duty will God require every dayes work Tush tush God will not Psal 10. 13. A company of Puritans say he will but I know he will not and hence it is that men will not be importunate Lastly because they have wrong conceits of importunity If a man knock once or twice or thrice and none answer presently he will be gone this is for want of manners thou wilt knock seven times if thou be importunate with them They within may say Hold thy peace be gone c. but thou wilt not so be answered Beloved men are close-handed they are loth to give and they are close-hearted too they are loth to take the pains to ask of God they are loth others should be be importunate with them and therefore they are loth to be importunate with God Examine your selves then in this duty for importunate prayer is ever more the prayer of an importunate man THE EFFICACIE Of Importunate PRAYER The second Sermon BY That laborious and faithfull Messenger of CHRIST WILLIAM FENNER Sometimes Fellow of Pembroke Hall in Cambridge and late Minister of Rochford in Essex THE EFFICACIE OF Importunate Prayer LUKE 11. 9. Ask and it shall be given unto you Seek and you shall find Knock and it shall be opened unto you TO proceed then There be six signes to know whether our Prayers be importunate or no. First importunate prayer is evermore the prayer of an importunate man and the man is importunate if his praier be importunate But how can a man importune God for mercy when his person importunes God for vengeance It must be the prayer of a godly heart Preserve my soule for I am holy Psal 86. 1 2. David makes a prayer and he was holy when he made it his prayer could tell him that he was one that labored to work in holines Therefore when thou goest to God in praier consider whether thou canst say Lord hear me for I am holy and I would fain be holy but if the saying of these words choak thee then thy prayer condemns thee Of all begging it is a great matter who it is that begs at the door Who is that saith the indweller and when he opens the door and sees it is a thief c. Oh is it you saies he you may stand long enough you shall never have alms of me So in praier it is all in all who it is that prayes The woman in the Gospel having an issue touched our Saviour he looking about asked who touched him and when he saw the woman Oh is it you saies he bee of good chear Luk. 8. 48. So when a man prayes to God Who is that saies God that would have these mercies And when the Lord sees it a Drunkard or a covetous man c. is it you saies the Lord you may stay till Dooms-day and yet never find mercie The spirit of supplication and the spirit of prayer is called the spirit of grace Zach. 12. 10. If then thou hast not the spirit of grace thou canst not pray The text saith not Whosoever asketh the Father in my name but whatsoever you ask the Father in my name there is many a man may use the name of Christ at the throne of grace but certain it is none but those that are in Christ can pray and with them every thing operates A man that will walk with God in obedience to his laws must be a holy man hence is that saying of our Saviour John 15. 7. a place fit for the purpose If you abide in me and my word abide in you c. as if he should have said You may ask what you please intreat God all the daies of your life yet unlesse you abide in me you cannot speed That man that walks not in holinesse of life can never be an importunate orator as was Moses the man of God but a wicked mans prayer as Augustine speaks is tanquam latratus canum c. no betrer then the barking of dogs or the grunting of swine therefore you whose consciences tell you that you live in sin your praiers never speed at the throne of grace for eternal mercie Secondly an importunate praier is the praier of a pure conscience Suppose a man doth not see that he lives in sin yet if his conscience crie guilty if he have a foul conscience his praier never prevails with God If I regard wickednesse in my heart the Lord will not hear my praier saith David Psal 66. 18. that is if I can say or my conscience can tell me that I regard iniquitie in my heart the Lord will not hear me A man must have a pure conscience 2 Tim. 1. 3. else let him not look God in the face beg he may but he shall never speed as long as he goes on with a conscience that can tel him he regards iniquitie There be many pray for indeed their conscience will make them pray but they may pray till they come to hell yet they shall never be delivered if there be but one sin unrepented of I remember a storie of a poor woman being troubled in conscience and many Ministers using to visit her at last came one which after much talk and praying hit upon one sin which she was guilty of and loth to part with Then the woman cried out Till now you have spoken to the post but now you have hit the mark my conscience tels me I have been loth to part with this sin but I must leave it or else I cannot be saved Mala conscientia bene sperare non potest The Pagans had so much divinitie as to say The gods must be honoured with puritie therefore they wrote on the doors of their temples Let none having a guilty conscience enter this place Thirdly Importunate prayer is evermore a prayer that is full of strong arguments And hence it is that Job saith I will fill my mouth with arguments Job 23. 4. like an importunate man who will bring all reasons and arguments to effect his cause even so an importunate man at the throne of grace will bring

all arguments to perswade God If a man be to pray for any particular grace he will bring all the arguments he can devise to get it as Lord it is a grace of the Covenant for the want whereof I endure many temptations thou hast made me a Minister I cannot work on mens consciences untill I have it he presseth all arguments he can devise A good orator before God must be a good logician It was noted of the High-Priests that were to pray before God they were to have Vrim and Thummim and that was two parts of Logick viz. knowledge and perfection such a one should a Minister be he must be a good Logitian at the throne of grace Fourthly importunate prayer is a stout prayer Continue in praier saith the Apostle Col. 4. 2. a weak-hearted praier is a cold praier a praier without a spirit yet these men that have weak spirits to pray have strong enough to sin and wit enough to sin and knowledge enough to sin but bring them to grace then they have no strength Thou canst not strive to prevail with God unlesse thou stand to it How came Jacob to prevail with God but by wrestling Prayer is called fighting it is a holy kind of violence Thou canst not obtain a mercie at Gods hand unlesse thou lay all thy force on it Even as a Father who hath an apple in his hand and his child would fain have it he first opens one finger then another till the apple drop out So is it with a poor soul at the throne of grace the Lord opens his hands and fills all things living with plenteousnesse What is the meanes that is used why the praiers of his children they by their praiers open Gods hand and so make the blessings to descend Go for grace why the Lord will say unto thee Thou art proud thou must be humble and so open that finger Thou art carelesse thou must go quicken thy self and so open that finger God saies thou wilt not make much of this grace when thou hast it but thou wilt turn it into a wantonnesse then thy soul must learn to mortifie its members and so open that finger thou canst not get grace at Gods hand unlesse thou do open all his fingers and then it will fall down There is a severall power in all Gods children some have more some have lesse yet all must be powerful else none can prevaile with God Fifthly if thou pray importunately thou praiest wakefully he must be deeply awake that praies his soul his heart his understanding must be awake that man that praies drowsilie praies not powerfullie Watch therefore saith Christ and pray Luk. 21. 36. Watch to pray q. d. for as there is a sleepie head so there is a sleepie heart As a Begger who is begging is all awake head feet hands c. all is awake to beg so must that soul be that means to speed in praier Sixthly importunate praier is an assureance-getting praier a praier that will not be quiet till it have got assurance that God hath heard it Wicked men pray and presume that God hears them but God hears them not nay many of Gods dear children pray many times and are not heard How long wilt thou be angry with thy people that praieth Ps 80. 4. Not only with their persons but with their praiers also How then think you is the praier of such as live in their sins taken who pray but their praiers vanish away in the aire like clouds these may pray and pray but they get nothing Behold he praies saith the voice to Saul Act. 9. 22. What did he not pray before Yes he had made many a long praier else he could not have been a Pharisee but now he did not onlie pray but he praied unto God as David did who did lift up his heart to God Psal 25. 1. or else his heart could not have praied and then in the next verse David begins his praier Our hearts are just like a bell which so long as it lies on the ground will make no musick till it be lifted up Our hearts are not like the bell of Rochea which they say will ring of its own accord but our hearts must be lifted up else they will make no delightful musick in the eares of God Wherefore if you pray and labour not to bring your hearts home to God that so he may hear them in mercie he will it may be heare them but it will be to your condemnation as he hears the praiers of wicked men therefore if thou praiest pray ferventlie There be six or seven marks of Praier that is not importunate and he that praies so may go to hell for ought I know The first is a lazie praier An importunate man works hard to bring up his suit his understanding his counsel and all his policie works so if the soul be importunate then it is a working praier Praier is a labour 2 Cor. 1. Labour with me in praier That man that plowes his field and digs his vineyard that man praies for a good harvest if a man pray to God never so much yet if he do not use the meanes he cannot obtain the thing he praies for Even so it is with grace A man may pray for all the graces of Gods spirit and yet never get any unlesse he labour for them in the use of the means God cannot abide lazie beggers that cannot abide to follow their calling but if they can get any thing by begging they will never set themselves to work So many there be that if they can get pardon of sin for begging then they will have it but let such know that the Lord will not give it for such lazie kind of praying but if thou wilt have pardon of sin thou must labour for it thou must get it with thy fingers ends God gives not men Repentance Faith c. by miracles but by means Thou must then use the means and keep watch and ward over thine own soul that so thou maiest get the grace thou praiest for Secondly a praier that is not a full praier never speeds with God but an importunate praier is a full praier it is a pouring out of the heart yea of the whole heart Psal 62. 8. the Psalmist saith poure out your hearts before him trust in him at all times poure out your hearts the addition is made in the Lamentations of Jeremie like water It may be thou pourest out thy praier like tar out of a tar-box half sticking by the sides but when thou praiest thou must out with all before God When thou givest thanks dost thou labour to remember all the blessings of God when thou dost petition to God dost thou poure out all thy heart before him dost thou cast all thy care on God Thirdly Snatch-prayer is no importunate prayer when men pray by snatches or peecemeals by breaking off a limme of their praier because of sluggishnesse or because their hearts are eager about

other businesse it is not good to trust fits of devotion 't is a base kind of praying when men gallop over their praiers that so they may come to an end quickly Should I accept this at your hands saith God by his Prophet when they brought a sheep it wanted a lim they were loth to give God a whole offering Mal. 1. 13. Many pray a peece of a praier in the morning and then they go after the world he down's on his knees and gives God a rag of a praier a companie of ragged ends And God counts it an indignitie shall I accept this saith he What a lame praier No no the Lord looks for a prayer that hath its full growth it is a shame to speak in the congregation what men do in secret before God which many have confessed after they have been converted how they have gone into Gods presence and have shuffled over their praiers thinking every houre seven untill they had done Fourthly Silent praiers are never importunate I mean by silent praier when a man is silent in that which God looks he should most insist upon David made a praier Psal 32. and the Lord looked that he should stand much upon his adulterie and murther which he had committed to see what shame he took on him for it but he shuffled it over and what saith the text When I kept silence what did the Prophet roare and yet keep silence these are contradictions Yea the Prophet roared and kept silence as if he should say the Lord counted his praier but roaring so long as he laid not open that sinne which the Lord lookt he should have stood on the Lord let him roare and roare he might long enough but saith he I brake my silence I said I will confesse my transgressions and then thou forgavest the wickednes of my sin So many go to God and tell God they must needs have mercie and fain they would have mercie and yet they are silent in confessing the sinne they should I say the Lord will never hear that man he may pray to God all his life and yet go to hel in the end Hast thou been a drunkard and dost thou think that the Lord will forgive thee for crying Lord forgive me c No no thou must insist on it and say Against thy word I have been a drunkard my conscience told me so but I would not heare I haue felt the motions of thy holy spirit stirring against me and I regarded not Now if thou shouldest turn me into hell I were well requited so many Sermons have I neglected I have wronged others in this kind and I have been the cause why many are now in hell if they repented not I have praied for mercie yet with the dog to his vomit have I returned and therefore for all my praiers thou maiest cast me into hell for ever and now I haue praid yet it is a hundred to one but I shall run into my old sin again yet as I expect forgivenesse so I desire to make a covenant to give over all my sinful courses and I am justly damned if I go to them again Such a kind of praier the Lord loves Fifthly Seldome praier is no importunate praier when the soul contents it self with seldome comming before the throne of grace an importunate soul is ever frequenting the way of mercie and the gate of Christ he is often at the threshold before God in all praier and humiliation The reeling'st Drunkard in the world sometimes can do so too the basest Adulterer in the world sometimes can be chaste the Devil is quiet so long as he is pleased and the wicked may sometime have a fit in praier But this is the condition of an importunate heart he is frequent at the throne of grace The Propher David praied seven times in a day and Hannah continued in praier night and day Sixthly Lukewarm praier is not an importunate praier when a man praies but is not fervent when a man labours not to winde up his soul to God in praier That man that praies outwardly only that man teaches God how to denie his praier Though you make many praiers saith God yet I will not hear you why Your hands are full of blood Qui frigidè orat docet negare They are like luke-warme water that never boils out the blood So they have been guiltie of murder and abundance of other sinnes and they did indeed pray against them but they were never but luke-warme they never boiled away the blood of their sins Thou must pray fervently with a seething-hot heart if thou meanest to get pardon for all thy sinnes as securitie and deadnesse of heart c. And as it is Jonah 3. let every man crie mightily unto the Lord. Seventhly and lastly Bie-thoughts in praier keep praier from being importunate as when a man praies and let his heart go a wooll-gathering I remember a storie of an unworthy Oratour who being to make an acclamation O earth O heaven when he said O heaven he looked down to the earth and when he said O earth he looked up to heaven So many when they pray to God in heaven their thoughts are on the earth these praiers can never be importunate When a man praies the Lord looks that his heart should be fixed on his praier for our hearts will leake and the best child of God do what he can shall have bie-thoughts in praier And that First from corrupt nature Secondly from nature curbed Thirdly from Sathan Fourthly from a mans own sluggishnesse For the first The best children of God have corrupt natures and when they have done what they can distractions will fasten on them They would performe good duties better if they were able saying with Paul The good which I would I do not c. Secondly from Nature as it is curbed The more grace binds nature to its good behaviour the more rustling it keeps Even as a Bird being at libertie keeps no stir but being in a cage it flutters about because it is abridged of its libertie so when thou hast curbed thy corrupt flesh it will be skittish in every good dutie thou goest about and hence it is that the Apostle useth this phrase viz. I find another law in my members rebelling against the law of my mind c. When grace curbs the law of sinne then nature rebels Thirdly from Satan as in Job Satan stands at his right hand as a Plaintiffe as Aegidius compares it which puts in all Cases to hinder the Defendant Even so the Devil puts in all bie-thoughts that he can devise to hinder a mans suit for going on before the throne of grace But thou must do as Araham did when he was sacrificing when the birds came he drave them away so must thou do by they bie-thoughts if thou wilt have fruit of thy supplications before God Fourthly they come from spiritual sluggishnesse that creeps on the best if they take not heed And this was

what mens thoughts are and therefore the best way for a man to judge himself is to judge himself that way which God doth even by his thoughts The Lord knowes the thoughts of man Psal 94. 11. Examine your selves in this then concerning your thoughts whether they be metamorphosed or no A man may say he hath good thonghts of God but let him examine himself whether it be so or no. 7. Thoughts are the conscional acts of the heart they are the greatest accusers or excusers of the heart they are Consciences Nose as we may so speak True it is the words of the tongue and the actions of the hands are all in the light and sight of the conscience but the nearer a thing is unto the conscience the more able it is to judge of the conscience And therefore Saint Paul puts the accusing or excusing especially on the thoughts Rom. 2. 15. We grant a wicked man may have good thoughts but they are thoughts descending not ascending they are cast into the heart by God not raised out of the heart Moses thought in his heart to visit his brethren Acts 7. ver 23. Good thoughts grow out of the heart of the godly they come from the bottome of it a wicked man may have good thoughts cast into his minde but he will fling them out again Secondly we grant wicked men may have good thoughts but examine whether they be close with the heart or no all the proper thoughts of a man are the possessions of the heart Job 17. 11. They take hold of the heart and they are at home in the heart Here then examine thy heart whether the thoughts of God close with thy heart Doth repentance close with thy heart dost thou think of death and do the thoughts thereof make thee die daily Or dost thou think of death dost thou not love to be holden with that thought Dost thou think of hell and wilt thou not be holden with that thought of hell but thy thoughts are on thy pleasures So then if thy thoughts close not with thy heart it is nothing to the purpose Thirdly there may be good thoughts in thy heart but t is questionable whether good thoughts or no if they come out of due season it is nothing to the purpose If a Printer print never so well and make never so good letters yet if he place one word where another should stand he marrs all So good thoughts if they be seasonable and in their proper place they are the effects of the Spirit but if out of season they may be the thoughts of Reprobates As if thou be at Prayer and then to be thinking of a Sermon is nothing to the purpose They must be seasonable and bring forth fruit in due season Psal 1. 3. When thou art at prayer thou must have thy thoughts suteable to prayer for it thy thoughts be never so good yet if they be not seasonable and suteable to the action thou hast in hand they are not actions of grace grace cannot away with them Fourthly thou hast good thoughts in thy heart but the question is whether they be counselled thoughts such as thou hast determined to think on Thoughts are called the counsels of a mans heart 1 Cor. 4. 5. it may be thou maiest stumble on a good thought now and then it may be when thou art swearing thou wilt say God forgive me when thou hast been drinking all the day it may be a good thought steps in and cries God mercy but thou goest not to schoole to learne the arte of meditation or the science of holy thinking or to say with David O God my heart is fixed Vse 1 Now if that sin in thought be so great a sin this should teach us what a horrible sin it is to sin in deed therfore thoghts are the smallest sins and the Psalmist makes it an argument of Gods quick-sighted power to see thoughts thou seest my thoughts afarre off you will say that man is quick sighted that can see a pins head a 100 myles off even so God sees thoughts if a pins point can stab a man then a sword can much more Now if thoughts be so haynous and capitall a sin how fearfull a sin is it to commit sinne in deed for thee to sweare to lye to commit adultery to keepe wicked company to mocke at Gods people to live in coveteousnesse c. this is to commit in deed if small sins be so damnable what then are the greatest If the cockatrice in the egge be such poyson what will it be when it is hatcht sins in thought are imperfect but outward actions are perfect T is a wicked distinction to say that some sing are Contra legem or Praeter legem for all sins are against the Law as Saint Iames saith when lust is conceived it bringeth forth sin and sin when it is finished it bringeth forth death thou that art a drunkard thy sin is finished thou art a true sinner in deed if thou livest in the execution of any outward sin Againe sins in thought are simple sins but sins in deed are compounded sin in thought is part of sin but when it is indeed it may be the cause of a 1000 sins for a man to think too much of his bellie is a sin but for a man to be drunken this is abundance of sins for it is an abuse of Gods creatures a spending of his substance a weakning of his parts a scandall to others c. Sin in deed is a sin with an addition sin in deed is an impudent sin see Esay 65. 2 3. c. that man is impudent with a witnes that will commit sin in deed for he is neither ashamed of Gods nor mans presence if any man be a desperate siner this is he Object But it may be objected how then can thoughts be said to be such sins even sins of the highest part of a man Sol. I answer a Theife or Rogue hath burnt a mans dwelling house yet he may proceed further and burn his stable too a 1000 pound and a shilling are more then a 1000 pound Sins in thought are included within sins in deed The souls part of sin is the greatest part of sin Now thonghts are the souls part of sin yet sins in deed must needs be worse in regard of the progresse of sin and also because thoughts are included in them thoughts and deeds are more then thoughts alone Vse 2 I exhort and desire you therefore to consider First what great reason you have to set your thought on God God himself merited this dutie at your hands God hath taken a number of thoughts for us Innumerable are thy thoughts O God to us ward Ps 40. 5. the Lord thinks on us from the Cradle to the Crosse If the Lord should have intermitted his thoughts of thee thou couldst not subsist when thou wast up the Lord thought how to feede thee when thou wast in bed he thought how to preserve thee he

did interrupt Christ yet Christ asked him not why he did so but sayes Man be of good comfort thy sins be forgiven thee Let us therefore come with boldnesse unto the Throne of grace Heb. 4. 16. with freedom to talk any thing Not as if God had given us leave to be irreverent but as to a loving generous man of whom we use to say He is so kinde you may say any thing unto him come to him at dinner he will rise up and hear you or what businesse soever he be about yet he will hear you Even so it is with God he is such a God that all poor souls may be bold before him to speak what they will they may lay open their cases and shew their estates Now when soules come boldly and give the Lord no rest till he establish them Esai 62. 7. then saith God How now cannot I be at rest for you c. This holy kind of impudencie is in prayer and it will give the Lord no rest Reasons why wee must seek importunately are three First in regard of Gods majesty he loves to be sought unto and it is fit he should be sought unto Among men we account it a matter of too much statelinesse to be much intreated and we use to say he loves to bee intreated this is a fault among men yet for all this Quis vestrum c. as Seneca speaks what man of us can be content to be but once or sleightly entreated when a man comes to intreat a kindnesse of a man there is Ifing and Anding and shall I c. nothing but importunitie can get a kindnesse of a man and this is a sinne among men because men are bound to doe good but the Lord is not bound to us If we sinne he is not bound to pardon us therefore the Lord being a God of majesty lookes to be sought unto of us for his mercie and he lookes that wee should be importunate and hence it is that God saith I will give you a new heart Ezechiel 36. I will vouchsafe you all these favours yet I will look to be inquired for of you verse 76. I will look that they shall send to me for these things Suppose a man should need a 1000 pound What saith the gentleman doth he think a Thousand pound is nothing I will have good security for it So when we come for such high mercies as these for such infinite compassions these are somewhat and God looks to be sought unto for them and Christ the son of God is a great heire and those that are faulters to him must be importunate with him if they mean to be at peace with him If one will marry a rich heir who hath all the preferment dignity that the country can afford he looks to be well sued unto So the Lord Jesus is a great heire heire of the whole world if thou goest to be married unto him thou must sue unto him and he looks for prayer he loves to heare his children crie this is one of his titles though he be a God yet he is the hearer of prayer Psal 65. 2. Again we have wronged his Majestie Suppose thy servant wrong thee thou wilt say thou wilt pardon him but first thou wilt make him humble himself unto thee he shall must know that be hath wronged a good master So God is willing to pardon thee but yet he will make thy bowels know that thou hast sinned against a good God he will make it appeare by thy prayer he will make thy spirit melt he will fill thy face with shame and confusion he will make thee know what a patient God thou hast rebelled against or else the Lord will never pardon thee Doest thou think to pacifie God with a lazie prayer with comming to Church and saying Have mercy upon me most merciful Father Doest thou think that the Lord will have mercy upon thee for this No no he may send thee quick to hell for all this he will make thee cry and cry again with groans he will make thee cry out and pray on another gates fashion and he will make the soveraignty of his mercy to be seen in thy salvation therefore in regard of Gods majesty he loves men should be importunate Secondly in regard of Gods mercy it is a disgrace for Mercy to be begged frigidly 't is a disgrace to Gods bounty for a man to beg it with lukewarm importunity What makest thou of the mercy of God dost thou think that it is not worth a groan with the running over of a Pater-noster doest thou make Gods mercy of such base reckoning this is a disgrace to Gods goodnesse to be so cold or frigid in prayer Thou hast offered many offerings yet I scorn them saith God Esa 43. 23. Thou hast not honoured me with them thou hast not called on me thou hast been weary of calling on me thou hast too short a breath in thy prayers thou carest not how soon thou commest to an end Do you come and lay lazie prayers upon my altar Thou hast not honoured me It was a custome among the Romans when any was condemned to die if he looked for mercy he was to bring father and mother and all his kinsmen and acquaintance and they should all come with teares in their faces and with tattered garments and kneel down and beg before the Judge and cry mightily and then they thought Justice was honoured Thus they honoured justice in man for a man condemned to die and so the Lord loves his mercy should be honoured c. and therefore he will have prayer to be importunate that it may appear by groans how highly we esteem of grace our soules must pant and gasp after grace the breath of the Lord being the soul of our souls our hearts will die without it This is to the honour of mercy therefore the Lord will have us importunate Thirdly as importunity must be in regard of Gods mercy so it must be in regard of our selves else we cannot tell how to esteem it Soon come soon gone lightly gotten suddenly forgotten I have it come let us be jovial and spend it when this is gone I know where to have more But if he had wrought for it and also must work for more if he meant to have more he would better esteem it The world little esteems Mercy what 's the reason The greatest covetous men are they that once were poor when a poor man hath gotten store of riches he is more covetous then he that was borne to hundreds or thousands they are carelesse of it and spend lavishly whilst a covetous mans teeth water at it and the reason is because they come lightly by it Therefore the Lord loves that we should come hardly by our mercy not as if he sold mercy for our pains but for our good yet we are not capable of it See Jer. 31. 9. where the Lord speaks thus to his people They shall come with weeping and