Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	according_a	know_v	zion_n	26	3	9.0041	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64241	Jacob wrestling with God, and prevailing: or, a treatise concerning the necessity and efficacy of faith in prayer Wherein divers weighty questions and cases of conscience about praying in faith, are stated and resolved. For the comforting and satisfying of weak and scrupulous consciences: the conviction of formal hypocrites, and awakening of all saints, both weak and strong, great and small, to this great duty of prayer. By one who hath obtained mercy to be a minister of, and sufferer for, the gospel of Jesus Christ in this hour of temptation.	Taylor, Thomas, 1624 or 5-1700.	1663 (1663)	Wing T555; ESTC R222503	60,235	214

this therfore come into the hands of any prayerless souls know thou art yet without the spirit and so art none of Jesus Christs Rom. 8.9 Where-ever the Spirit of Grace is it is a Spirit of prayer Zach. 12.10 Dost thou feel the guilt of sin the want of pardon peace grace holiness thou wouldst not need the words of others to help thee in praying but thou wouldst know what it is for the spirit to help the proper and onely help in prayer thy infirmities and couldst bee no more satisfied with dry and empty forms then a hungry man with Air. If thou art a weak doubting soul and complainest of an unbelieving heart which is a good symptome here thou mayest meet with plain and spiritual resolves to thy doubts about the acceptance of thy prayer and the looking for answers thereof and what faith thou art to exercise on promises in order thereunto Yea all Saints may be further instructed in the efficacy and prevalency of prayer and to be encouraged that the Lord will not cast off a praying Generation that cry day and night unto him The Lord hasten to power forth the spirit of light and prayer upon his people and upon the world as the best sign of his own approaching to judge the earth In the waiting for which let all that have received the first fruits thereof be found at this day To which expectation Reader I commend thee and this spiritual treatise to thy perusal and it and thy self to the blessing made over to the seed of Jacob that wrastle it out with God and prevail over him The Saints do in a sense govern the World with Jesus Christ already by the spirit of Prayer that is in them making intercession in them according to Christs intercession in heaven and usually wee may know what God is about to do in the world by the prayers of his Saints especially in this last age of the world when their souls travel and are in pangs for Sions Redemption and the earth-quake to come into the Nations of the world till all the foundations of it as laid for the interest of Babylon and Antichristianism are shaken and out of course which the Lord will hasten in his time But I must break off and be-speak thy prayers for the Author and my self and all the Lords afflicted Ministers that are mourning in corners resting Thy Servant for Jesus sake Jacob wrestling with God and prevailing Matthew 21.22 And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in Prayer beleeving ye shall receive THis Text is brought in as an Epiphonema or Closing speech to the history of the fruitless Fig-tree which being cursed by Jesus Christ for its barrenness presently withers and is dried up v. 19. to the great admiration of the Disciples vers 20. which action as it was extraordinary and miraculous in its self so in the tendency thereof it was of extraordinary use to the Disciples and did carry along with it a double instruction First To beware of an outside formal Profession without spiritual fruit and a suitable conversation which is alway attended with the wrath and displeasure of God and is nigh unto cursing Heb. 6.8 Secondly To teach the great Efficacy and Power of Faith and what great things may be done thereby either extraordinary according to that dispensation of working miracles which was but for the time present and peculiar to some vers 21. for all had not this gift nor faith of miracles 1 Cor. 12.29.30 2. Or else ordinary according to the gift and force of prayer which is perpetual and common to all the Saints by which they have a constant and joynt access to the Throne of Grace in all causes whatsoever and may accordingly prevail with God provided they pray in Faith as in the Text. And all things whatsoever c. In this Text of Scripture there are two things principally taught and commended to our consideration 1. The Necessity of Faith in Prayer 2. The Efficacy of Faith in Prayer The first viz. The Necessity of Faith in Prayer is gathered from the word Beleeving which is brought in as a specifical and qualifying adjunct or necessary ingredient to all our prayers And all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer beleeving ye shall receive The Necessity of Faith in Prayer is also gathered from other Texts of Scripture as Heb. 11.6 But without Faith it is impossible to please God for he that cometh to God must beleeve c. And again James 1.5 6. If any of you lack wisdome let him ask of God c. But let him ask in Faith And look as the body without the soul is dead and useless and cannot perform the actions of a man So also Prayer without Faith is dead and unprofitable James 1.6 7 8. So that Faith is the soul and life of Prayer and therefore a necessary ingredient thereto 1. Quest or Case of Conscience But what kinde of Faith is that which is so necessarily and indispensibly required in all our prayers to God is it the Faith of Assurance or the Faith of Relyance seeing James saith it must be without wavering and in nothing doubting Therefore it would seem that there is required in all our prayers to God a Faith of Assurance yea of full and perfect Assurance which admits of no doubting or uncertainty of the mind in the thing asked and that a Faith of Relyance is not sufficient seeing that is alwaies attended with some doubting as in Esther If I perish I perish she relyed upon God in the use of means but yet was doubtful as to the success and event thereof Now if this Faith be not accepted in prayer then the prayers of most of the Children of God are ineffectual seeing most of them have not the Faith of Assurance That saying of the holy man James shall be cleared in its proper place Answ But in answer to the Question it is affirmed That although it be the duty of all Christians to press after the Faith of Assurance as that which tendeth exceedingly to their comfort and inward joy Yet where there is a Faith of Relyance i.e. the heart doth inwardly rest upon Gods alsufficiency mercy faithfulness truth c. yet with doubting and uncertainty of the mind whether the thing shall be done which is asked of God in prayer the prayer is accepted of God and shall certainly have a gracious return in due time But that we may be the more clear and distinct in our handling this point to the satisfaction and comfort of weak and scrupulous consciences we shall first give a brief description of these two kinds of Faith in their distinct and different natures that so the person who is scrupulous may the better judge of his Faith of what kinde it is And then wee shall by Scripture and experience make good our assertion viz. that a Faith of Relyance is accepted of God in prayer where the faith of Assurance is wanting Faith of Assurance described The Faith of Assurance

and stretch out thine hand over the Sea and divide it and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground thorow the midst of the Sea And vers 22. The children of Israel went into the midst of the Sea upon the dry ground and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand and on their left Oh the admirable and marvellous strength and power of Faith in prayer that by it the waters of the Sea the depths of the Sea should be divided and made to stand upon heaps as a wall to Gods Israel and yet so it is Moses cryeth to the Lord at the Sea even the Red Sea and the waters are divided and become a wall to Israel in their passage towards Canaan on the right hand and on the left All which with many other blessed experiences of the Saints which might be instanced in do amount to a sufficient testimony and witness to the truth in hand and do abundantly evince the truth of this blessed promise of the Lord Jesus to his poor servants here on earth And all things whatsoever yee shall ask in prayer beleeving yee shall receive The grounds and reasons of the point upon which this great truth is established and wherein the evidence and demonstrations thereof do yet more fully appear are briefly these three Reason 1 The prayers of Faith or beleeving prayers of the Saints and servants of God here on earth are heaven-born They are influenced from Heaven by the conduct and guidance of the holy Spirit whose office it is to influence and manage the Saints in this great concern and work of prayer So that the things which they ask of God in prayer when they ask in Faith are not so much the fruit of the inward breathings and unfeigned desires of their own hearts and spirits as of the holy and blessed Spirit of grace breathing in them and teaching them to pray as they ought which of themselves they neither know nor can do Rom. 8.26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities for wee know not what we should pray for as we ought But the Spirit it self maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered And hee that searcheth the heart knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit because he maketh intercession for the Saints according to the will of God So that the holy Spirit of God doth not onely help and assist the Saints in the right manner of prayer exciting their graces quickening and drawing out their affections helping them to right ends and aims in prayer all which are also necessarily required but doth also suggest and teach them the very matter of their prayers how and what to pray for and ask of God both for themselves and others The Spirit also helpeth our infirmities for wee know not what to pray for as wee ought But the Spirit it self c. So that the Saints are taught from Heaven what to pray for as they ought the Spirit of God from Heaven doth teach and assist them to pray here on earth according to the will of God And how reproachfully and blasphemously soever wicked and ungodly men do speak of the so called extemporary prayers of the Saints yet they are no less than heaven-born the things which they are taught by the Spirit of God from Heaven to ask of God in prayer And let wicked men know that in blaspheming the reproaching the prayers of the Saints they do blaspheme the Spirit it self But the Spirit it self maketh intercession c. Wicked and ungodly men who are ignorant of the Spirit of prayer do exceedingly magnifie and cry up their stinted forms and book-prayers because as they imagine composed and indited by holy and learned men and that with the deepest judgement and most serious consideration had of the things meet to be asked of God in prayer And do condemn the prayers of Gods Saints because as they judge in the darkness of their carnal mind which is alwaies enmity against God extemporary Rom. 8.7 rash and inconsiderate without any deep consideration and matter prepared before-hand but let such know that the best of their stinted Forms and Book-prayers are but indited by men on earth and on the other hand the prayers of Gods Saints and servants offered up in Faith though extemporary are indited by the Spirit of God in Heaven and given in immediately by the ministration of the holy Spirit who knoweth better what is meet to be asked of God in prayer extemporary than the greatest Bishops Doctors and learned men upon earth can do by their deepest consultation And let such resolve this question whether are most agreeable to the will and mind of God those prayers which are indited by the Spirit of God in Heaven and given in from above as all the prayers of the Saints are which they put up in Faith or those which are composed and imposed by the carnal wisdome and coercive power of men on earth contrary to the Word of God And let mee adde this one word more that the prayer of the poorest Saint though encompassed with utmost humane frailties and infirmities yet being breathed by the holy Spirit into his heart and breathed out again in Faith by the help of the same Spirit hath more of heavenly wisdome and true spiritual excellency in it than the most magnified and admired Form that ever was composed by the greatest Doctors and learned men in the world For Joh. 3.6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit And again vers 31. He that is of the earth is earthly and speaketh of the earth hee that cometh from Heaven is above all As Jesus Christ came from Heaven and therefore was above all the Prophets and Apostles so also the Spirit of God cometh from Heaven and is above all the Doctors Bishops and learned men in the world in teaching as how and what to pray for as wee ought And hence it is that true spiritual and heavenly prayer is distinguished from all hypocritical shews and pretences of prayer by this character Ephes 6.18 Praying alwaies with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit True prayer and supplication is alwaies in the Spirit And again Jude 10. Praying in the Holy Ghost The summe and close of the matter is prayers of Faith do come from God and therefore must needs prevail with God prayers of Faith are heaven-born and therefore must needs finde acceptance there Reason 1 The prayers of Faith or the beleeving prayers of the Saints and People of God do alwaies fall in with the will of God The stinted Forms and composed Prayers of formal Hypocritical pretenders to Religion do alwaies in one thing or other run counter to the will of God In the very matter of their petitions it being impossible that such as keep themselves to a stinted Form of Prayer and oblige themselves to use such a form of words in prayer and no others should avoid

this Rock upon which they must inevitably fall and split themselves that the things which they so ask must of necessity run cross to the will of God let them take what Form they will and stint themselves to the constant use of it as the Hypocrites do and experience will quickly teach them that in so doing they must contradict the revealed will of God in their petitions and therefore such prayers must needs be very fruitless But the prayers of the sincere children of God which are indeed prayers of Faith and the breathings of Gods own Spirit in them do alwaies concur and fall in with the will of God And as hee that searcheth the heart knoweth what is the mind of the spirit in the hearts of his children so the Spirit searcheth all things yea the deep things of God Rom. 8.27 1 Cor. 2.10 11 Because hee i.e. the holy Spirit of God maketh intercession for the Saints according to the will of God Faith looks at the will of God as her rule in asking and in things about which the will of God is revealed Faith will be positive and ask absolutely without an if but in things about which the will of God is yet secret and unknown Faith will ask with submission to the will of God Not my will but thy will be done is the language of Faith in such cases And it is as impossible for Faith to erre in this particular and to miss of the will of God in asking as it is for the Sun in the Firmament to mistake his way in his heavenly perambulation or for the waters of the Rivers to mistake their way into the Sea that they should not come into and coincidate with the Ocean Whatsoever therefore the Saints do ask in Faith they do ask according to the will of God whether it be secret or revealed For the rule which Faith looks at is an unerring rule viz. the whole light of Scripture-revelation And the conduct and guide by which Faith is directed in asking is an unerring guide even the holy Spirit of God Rom. 8.26 which perfectly knoweth and searcheth what is the mind and will of God in all cases whether secret or manifest And it is worthy observation how the poor Saints of God are oft times by a secret instinct and conduct of the Spirit guided in prayer to ask those very things of God which hee is about to do and bring to pass beyond what is revealed or made known As when Lot asked of God in Prayer the preservation of the City Zoar which was threatned and in visible danger of perishing in the common destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and yet was preserved by the prayer of righteous Lot who was questionless guided in his asking that City above any other Gen. 16.19 20 21 by the secret instinct of the Spirit who knew what was the secret will and purpose of God in that matter and therefore taught Lot to make intercession for it according to the will of God Thus also that holy woman Hannah when shee prayed for a Son and in the pouring out of her spirit to the Lord in prayer did before-hand dedicate and devote him to the Lord all his daies was questionless guided by a secret and special instinct of the spirit to ask of God that very thing that was in the heart and purpose of God concerning her and her Son though as yet secret and unknown 1 Sam. 1.10 11. Thus also the last Martyrs that suffered in the Marian daies were taught from Heaven by the secret conduct of the spirit to ask of God in prayer that they might be the last that should suffer in that manner and that the Lord would put an end to the afflictions of his people And were in that petition graciously heard and answered for presently the life of that wicked Queen was cut off by the hand of God And though many others were condemned and warrants issued out for the burning of them Fox Martiro vol. 3. p. 893. yet the tydings of the Queens death stayed the execution and those precious souls were according to their petition the last that suffered in that bloody persecution Whatever therefore the Saints do ask of God in prayer by the help of his holy Spirit and by Faith in the Name of Jesus Christ they do ask according to his will and therefore must needs prevail in Heaven and have such petitions granted and fulfilled on earth 1 Joh. 5.14 15. And this is the confidence that wee have in him that if wee ask any thing according to his will hee heareth us And if wee know that hee heareth us Whatsoever wee ask wee know that wee have the petitions that wee desired of him Reason 3 The prayers of the Saints offered up in Faith do fall under the blessing of the mediation and intercession of Jesus Christ Heb. 4.14.16 that great High Priest over the House of God who is entred into the Heavens even Jesus the Son of God whose office it is to offer up the prayers of all the Saints with the spiritual incense of his merits whereby they do become acceptable to God It pertained to the office Exod. 30.6 7 Levit. 16.12 and was the custome of the Priests under the Law to enter within the vail and offer up the sweet Incense with the prayers of the Congregation who usually were without the door of the Tabernacle praying at the time of Incense Luke 1.8 9 10 And the time of the Priests offering up Incense was observed by the Congregation as a special time and season for prayer And all this was to typifie and point out something of the Priestly and Mediatorial Office of Jesus Christ Heb 6.19 20. and 9.24 who is now entred within the vail into the holy of holies i. e. the heavenly places themselves there to appear in the presence of God for us as a Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedeck to offer up all the spiritual sacrifices and services of the Saints unto his Father with the sprinkling of his blood and sweet perfume and incense of his precious merits upon them whereby their persons though compassed with many sins and infirmities and their services though weak and imperfect in themselves are made infinitely acceptable and well pleasing unto the Father through him 1. 1 Their persons Their persons are made acceptable unto the Father through him Ephes 1.6 To the praise of his glorious grace wherein hee hath made us accepted in the beloved Oh ye precious Saints of God know that the acceptation of your persons with the Father stands not in your own Saintship and personal righteousness but in the imputed righteousness precious blood and merits of Jesus Christ which is made yours by Faith So that by the blood of Jesus ye are now made Kings and Priests unto his Father and may come to the throne of grace with acceptation Rev. 1.5.6 Unto him that hath loved us and washed us

had promised So that by comparing these two Scriptures which relate to the same person and action it is manifest that Sarahs doubting through weakness of Faith did not hinder her acceptance with God in that action wherein there was the real exercise of her Faith though weak and wavering for saith the Text Shee judged him faithful who had promised therefore she did believe the promise and relye upon the faithfulness of God for the performance thereof notwithstanding the great doubting and stirring of unbeleef in her heart at the same time which yet she resisted and also at length did overcome Whence these two things may truly be gathered 1. That great doubting and wavering of the mind may consist with the real though weak exercise of Faith in the same holy action 2. That such holy actions are accepted of God in Christ notwithstanding such doubtings Instance 2 The truth of this doth also appear in the case of him who brought his childe to Christ being possessed with a dumb spirit And now finding his case to be exceeding difficult in that he had already tryed the Disciples and they could not cast out this dumb spirit out of his Son Mark 9.18 hee begins through unbeleef to haesitate and doubt concerning the power of Christ also and puts an if upon the matter vers 22. But if thou canst do any thing have compassion on us and help us so that here was great doubting and stirring of unbeleef which Christ reproves vers 23. and replyes to him If thou canst beleeve all things are possible to him that beleeveth which reproof of Christ prevails so far upon him to the breaking of his heart and humbling of him for his unbeleef that hee cryes out with tears from a sense of his sin as well as of his childes misery Lord I beleeve help mine unbeleef Now here was some Faith mixed with great doubting and unbeleef yet being bewaile● and confessed the prayer of this distressed and afflicted Father o● the behalf of his childe is heard and answered for the dumb spirit is cast out and his child● healed vers 25 26 27. Oh the infinite riches an● condescention of free grace tha● ever such a prayer as this shoul● be heard and answered that pu● an if upon the power of Christ If thou canst do any thing have compassion on us And yet there being found some Faith in this prayer though attended with so great doubting and acting of unbeleef it is accepted and owned by the Lord Jesus The answer and resolution therefore of the question is That although it be the duty of the people of God to press after such Faith in prayer as is without doubting and wavering of the mind And all such doubting and wavering of the mind is in it self sinful and to be reproved and by no means to be cherished and allowed Yet such doubting and wavering as doth arise onely from weakness of Faith in the minde of a beleever where there is also a real exercise of Faith though in the weakest and lowest degree doth not nor can at any time hinder the acceptance and efficacy of their prayers with God Ephes 1.6 1 Pet. 2.5 James 5.17 18 but their persons and prayers are acceptable to God through Christ Jesus with a Notwithstanding to all such infirmities 4. Quest or Case of Conscience If the exercise of Faith be necessarily required in all our prayers to God then whether is it at all times and in all cases required that hee who cometh to God in prayer doth absolutely and determinately believe for the very thing that he prayeth for or that hee prayeth with a submission to the will of God either to have the thing that he prayeth for or that which the Lord may see to be better for him The occasion and ground of this Question is That some Christians being earnestly carried out in prayer against some particular lust or corruption as pride envy inordinate love to the creature or against the inward motions and lustings of any other sin which they feel stirring in themselves praying that the same may be removed and taken out of the way or for any other particular mercy which they have an earnest desire to obtain at the hands of God Now because they finde not an answer in the very thing asked but the same lust or corruption remaineth still unsubdued and the mercy so greatly desired still denied notwithstanding all their prayers They usually conclude that they prayed not in Faith and that their prayers are not at all accepted or answered because they have not the thing asked referring their case to that of James 4.3 Yee ask and receive not because yee ask amiss And not only in this case of inbred corruption but also in many other cases Christians are much put to it to know when they ask in Faith and when they ask amiss Many concluding they ask not in Faith because they have not the very thing asked Ans The exercise of our Faith in prayer must be either absolut● and determinate in the very thing asked or conditional and latitudinary referring to what may b● most agreeable to the will o● God whether it be the ver● thing asked or something else according to the nature of th● thing which we ask The Rule therefore which th● Apostle proposeth to himse●● concerning prayer is diligent●● to be observed by every Christ●an 1 Cor. 14.15 I will pray wi●● the Spirit and I will pray with u●derstanding also It therefore co●cerns every Christian to unde●stand the nature of the thing which hee asks of God in praye● otherwise hee may ask amiss The things which we ask of God in prayer may fall under a double distinction 1. In respect of God 2. In respect of our selves which every Christian ought diligently to mark and consider that so hee may frame his petitions and exercise his Faith therein according to the Rule of the Word for Faith is guided by the light of the Word and cannot go against the Word nor without the Word in any thing 1. In respect of God The things which we come to ask of him in prayer are either clearly and absolutely revealed promised and fore-told in his Word or else secret and not revealed which hee hath reserved in his own power 2. In respect of our selves The things which we come to ask of God in prayer are either absolutely and perse good and necessary for us or they are good and necessary for us onely upon such and such variable considerations and suppositions as wee are very apt to mistake about Now to apply these general Rules to our case and question in hand Rule 1 In things which are clearly revealed absolutely fore-told and promised in the Word of God we ought to act our Faith absolutely and determinately for the very thing we pray for and not to admit the least doubt or question but to maintain an holy confidence that such prayers are alwaies heard though not presently answered as 1 John