Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n
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A94771
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The Christians dayly practice; or, A practical discourse of prayer. By Sampson Tounesend, minister of Gods word at Hackford in Whitwell in Norffolke. Imprimatur Edm. Calamy.
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Townsend, Sampson.
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1659
(1659)
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Wing T1985; Thomason E1803_2; ESTC R209927
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46,210
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172
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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
others So much for the second thing I come to the third thing propounded Thirdly The Preparations to Prayer I shall mention onely two 1. Prayer 2. Meditation First Prayer Pray that you may pray Pray that God would direct you how to pray Thus did David Psal 141.1 2. Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice Set a watch O Lord before my mouth keep the dore of my lips As if he should have said O Lord do thou so order and direct me in my Prayers that there may not a word proceed out of my mouth but what is acceptable unto thee When a man prays dayly that he may pray by his constant custome of praying he will be the better fitted for Prayer A second preparation to prayer is Meditation Especially meditate on these three things First Meditate upon the Infinite greatnesse of the Majesty of that God to whom thou prayest Be not rash with thy mouth Ecles 5.2 and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God For God is in Heaven and thou upon Earth therefore let thy words be few This meditation of Gods greatnesse will make thee humble as it did Jacob Gen. 32.9 10. who acknowledged he was not worthy of the least of all the mercies of God Secondly Meditate on the Promises of God Psal 50.15 Call upon me in the day of trouble and I will hear thee Mat. 7.7 Ask and it shall be given you With many others of the like nature this Meditation will make thee confident in Prayer Thirdly and lastly Meditate on thine own wants and vilenesse and acknowledge them to God so did Ezra Ezra 9.6 7. This Meditation will make thee fervent in Prayer and it is the Prayer of the humble faithfull fervent soul that shall prevail with God So much for the third thing propounded Fourthly Fourthly I shall shew you the duties or graces requisite in Prayer and there are divers requisites in Prayer First Knowledge and understanding I will pray with the spirit 1 Cor. 14.15 and I will pray with understanding also As if he should say I will understand and know what I pray for Secondly Faith It is the condition upon which the promise of answer of Prayers is made Let him ask in Faith nothing wavering c. Jam. 1.6 7. Let not that man think he shall receive any thing of the Lord that asks doubtingly Thirdly Humility It is the humble soul that shall prevail with God in Prayer Psal 10.17 Lord thou hast heard the desire of the humble He giveth grace to the humble Jam. 4.6 4. Fourthly Purity of heart Let us draw neer with a true heart Heb. 10.22 in full assurance of Faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil Conscience He that draws nigh to God with an evil heart or defiled conscience shall never speed in his Prayers Psal 66.18 If I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me If thy heart incline to sinne Gods ear will not incline to thy Prayer Fiftly Love to our brethren is an other duty required in Prayer If thou prayest for pardon of sin and hast not so much love to thy brother as to forgive him an injury done to thee God will not hear thy prayers nor pardon thy sinnes for the promise of pardon is upon that condition Mat. 6.14 15 For if ye forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father will also forgive you But if you forgive not men their trespasses neither will you Father forgive you your trepasses Sixthly Zeal and Fervency is required in Prayer The colder the sutour the greater the sinner The effectuall fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much Jam. 5.16 Prayer is not effectuall unlesse it be fervent though it proceed from a righteous man Seventhly Unwearied constancy we must not give over praying because we have not present answers For this purpose our Saviour Christ mentions the Parable of the unjust Judge and the Widow Luke 18.1 to 9. That men ought alwayes to pray and not to faint And the woman of Canaan teacheth us this lesson of Constancy She would not give over praying though she had many repulses Mat. 15.22 to 29. Gen. 32.26 till she had that she prayed for And Jacob he would not let God goe till he had a blessing All which examples shew we must use unwearied constancy in prayer Eighthly We must pray in the holy Ghost so we are commanded Praying in the holy Ghost Jude 20. that is by the help of the holy Ghost This help is promised in Prayer Rom. 8.26 Likewise also the spirit helpeth our infirmities for we know not what to pray for as we ought but the spirit it self maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered Without this help our Prayers will not be prevalent Those are the best Prayers that have most of the spirit of Gods help in them Ninethly Pray in the name and mediation of Jesu Christ saith Christ 1 John 14.13 14. John 16.23 Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name that will I do Whatsoever ye shal ask the Father in my Name he wil give it you To ask in the name of Christ is to ask relying upon the Promises Merit and Mediation of Christ or to desire to be heard for the merit and mediation of Christs sake Tenthly Pray for things agreeble to Gods will saith the Apostle 1 John 5.14 This is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us We can have no confidence of being heard in that which we doe not know whether or no it be according to Gods will Christ did justly deny the request of her that askt she knew not what Mat. 20.21 22. Eleventhly Use a due order in Prayer Seek Heavenly things first and most seek earthly things in the second place Saith Christ Mat. 6.33 Seek first the Kingdome of God and his righteousnesse So we are taught in the Lords Prayer to seek first the things that concerne Heaven and Happiness before we seek Earthly blessings We must seek Heavenly things absolutely but Earthly things conditionally because Heavenly things are absolutely necessary for us as Faith Repentance Sanctification c. these things we know are agreeable to the will of God and therefore we are to pray for those things absolutely and not with a condition if it be thy will But now for Temporall things they are not absolutely necessary for us as health or freedome from the malice of unreasonable men or deliverance out of this or that trouble or to prosper or increase in their estate in the world or the like For these things we must pray with condition if it be the will of God Because God giveth or denieth these things to his children according as he sees best or most fit for each of their