understand and not by thrusting Bibles privately into their hands of the ineffectualness of which we have had an Experiment of 150 Years 6. But lastly Instead of all other Arguments None of us are ignorant that the Word of God cannot be presumed to have the same Efficacie when read privately as it hath when read in the Assemblies of Christians according to God's appointment Since he has given us a peculiar promise to be present in such Assemblies And there are no diligent Hearers of the Word Publickly read but are able from their own experience to testify that they often find it to have a different force and efficacy when they hear it read as a part of his Ordinance in the Publick Assemblies in which he has peculiarly promis'd his presence than when they read it in private by themselves The Third pretence I have found alledged for omitting the regular reading the Bible in your Meetings is That it takes up too much time and is a hindrance to the more profitable Duty of what you commonly call Preaching 1. I intreat you to consider That there is a time for every thing and since God has appointed reading his Word a time and room in our Publick Assemblies who are we that we should presume to throw it out This surely is to set up our selves against God and to think that we are able to Order things better for the Edification of his Church then he has done Surely we ought rather to take care so to dispose our Sermons that they may not interfere with any other Institution of God But that whatever time we allow them there may remain sufficient for reading God's Holy Word Which I have proved is in Scripture Language Preaching And therefore to justle this out to make our own discourses longer is plainly to prefer our way of Preaching to God's If there were a necessity that one or the other must be omitted Modesty ought to Teach us to omit our own Words rather then God's 2. Suppose that upon some Extraordinary Occasion it may be Lawful to omit Reading God's Word in our Assemblies that we may have the more time to manage a discourse for the Instruction of the People yet it can never be justifiable to make this a common practise which is to put a manifest Contempt on the Word of God A Fourth Pretence against reading the Scriptures publickly in a Regular Method is That they are hard to be understood or applyed and therefore only so much of them ought to be read at a time as the Minister may explain and apply to his Auditory And that one Verse thus Applyed is better than many Chapters read without such Application 1. It is to be consider'd First That it is against the general opinion of the Reformed Churches who universally teach that the Scriptures are plain in all things necessary to Salvation And therefore there is not that universal necessity of an explanation of every place of Scripture that is to be read as is pretended 2. The Holy Scriptures when heard with Humility and Attention apply themselves better then any Man can do it The Words of them are the Words of God and they have a plainness force and spirit in them which no Humane Eloquence can improve and therefore it is a great affront to them to say that they have little efficacy except a Minister apply them 3. Suppose one verse well applied to be better than many Chapters for which there is no colour yet this would not justifie the omission of reading them publickly for no Application can be so well made of them whilst people are not thoroughly acquainted with them It ought therefore to be our first care to read them to the People often and solemnly that they may be acquainted with the whole Body of them and then one word of Application may do more good then many Sermons to People not so prepared with the general knowledge of them The literal knowledge of the will of God must always go before the saving and is the best Introduction to it Now the reading the Law in the ears of the people is the means appointed by God to teach them that literal knowledge and therefore while your Teachers have laid aside this means of God's Appointment they have in a great measure debarred people of the Spiritual and Saving knowledge of his Will 4. Fourthly Reading a verse or two and trusting to the Ministers Application without the peoples being acquainted with the whole body of the Scriptures does put Christians too much in the power of their Teachers and makes them liable to be seduced by them This is the very Artifice whereby the Romish Priests keep their people in ignorance and your Teachers using the same Method while it is manifest that so great a part of their people either do not or cannot read them at home seems too like a design on their Hearers and tempts the World to suspect that they are affraid of the naked simplicity of the Scriptures since they dare not trust their people with Hearing them Publickly read except they add their own glosses to them The Fifth Pretence that I have met with for laying aside the publick reading the Word of God is That the dead Letter as some call it is a dull formal thing without Spirit or Life where it is not applied to the Souls of Men by the Spirit of God speaking in his Ministers and that without such Assistance the Scriptures have little Efficacy on the Heart I hope there are few of any Communion will own this pretence since it is so horrid a Reflection and affront on the Word of God I will however in answer to it offer these following Considerations 1. That the Holy Scriptures give a Character of themselves very different from this They represent the Word of God as the Sword of the Spirit as quick and powerfull as able to make a Man wise to Salvation as giving wisdom to the simple as Converting the Soul with many other Expressions to denote the Efficacie thereof on the hearts of Men and therefore to reflect on the Word as dull and formal as a meer dead Letter that cannot engage the attention of the Hearers or reach their Hearts is too near Blasphemy 2. We are certain that God speaks to us immediately by his Holy Spirit in his Word And where the Spirit of God is there is Power But when Men speak their own Words or pretend to apply the Words or Passages of Scripture tho' they seem to do it with the greatest Zeal and Learning yet they may be mistaken nay they may decieve us And therefore wholly to lay aside the immediate dictates of the Holy Ghost recorded in the Scriptures for any pretended Explication or Application made by Men is manifestly to exchange God's undoubted Words and Command for what may be a meer Humane Invention 3. 'T is to be considered that the people have always been apt to grow weary of the Service of God in
the Man of God When such a person by the Inspiration of the holy Ghost used and left to be used by us in our Supplications such a set and prepared Form of Words we ought not to doubt but that manner of Address is acceptable to God 3. The third part of Prayer is Intercession in the behalf of others Now Blessing is an eminent sort of Intercession and for the use of a set Form of Words in this we have likewise the Command of God Numb vi 23 On this wise ye shall bless the Children of Israel saying unto them The Lord bless thee and keep thee c. Here we have not onely a Blessing but an earnest Intercession with God for his people and the Form and Words prescribed by Himself which were not to be used by mean ignorant people who are only now supposed by some to need the help of Forms but by Aaron and his Sons the Chief Priests From which we may be assured That God approves that manner of Address in our Blessings and Intercessions for one another not onely from mean people but from the greatest 4. The fourth part of Prayer consisteth in Petitions for averting evil commonly called Deprecation and for this purpose we have several Forms prescribed by God Joel i. 14 Gather the Elders and all the Inhabitants of the Land into the House of the Lord your God and say unto the Lord Alas for the day the day of the Lord is at hand c. We have God's Commandment for another Form Joel ii 17 Let the Priests the Ministers of the Lord weep between the Porch and the Altar and let them say Spare thy people O Lord and give not thine heritage to reproach c. From whence it clearly follows that God approves the use of a Form in this part of Prayer tho' commonly the most earnest and importunate and such as seems least to admit of being bounded by a Form so that we have the Approbation and Commandment of God for the use of a set Form of Words in all the parts of Prayer II. And accordingly we find Holy Men of God tho' full of Wisdom and of his Spirit using the same set Form of Prayer always on the same occasion Thus the Scriptures inform us concerning Moses Num. x. 35 When the Ark set forward Moses said Rise up Lord and let thine Enemies be scattered and let them that hate thee flee before thee And when it rested he said Return O Lord unto the many Thousands of Israel From whence it appears that God approves the use of one set constant Form of Words in our Prayers as long as the occasion of repeating them is the same for I presume none will suspect it was for want of Words or of the Spirit of Prayer that Moses confined himself to this Form I shall add further that the whole Book of Psalms is a Collection of Prayers of all sorts And there are few of them but what are most Excellent Forms of Prayer expressed in such pathetick significant and moving words that we have great reason to thank God for furnishing us with them and which we can never hope to equal by any of our own invention such are the 4 5 6 7 9 10 12 c. On this account they were used by the Jews as the constant Service and Liturgy performed in their Temple as we may gather from what I formerly quoted 2 Chron. xxix 30. III. But perhaps some may think these Commands and Examples of set Forms of Prayer not to be a sufficient Warrant to Christians because they are taken out of the Old Testament before the Spirit was poured out in so plentiful a measure as under the Gospel I shall therefore proceed to examine the Commands and Examples of the New Testament and here 1. I think it is certain that our Saviour and his Apostles prayed by a Form for they joyned in the Worship of the Temple and Synagogues which consisted in Psalms as I have already shewed and in some certain Forms of Prayers added to them and constantly used in their daily Service as we learn from those that give an Account of the Jewish Worship at that time Now our Saviour and his Apostles being frequently present at their Service both in the Temple and Synagogues 't is manifest they approved the manner of Addressing themselves to God in a set Form of Words 2. But our Saviour has put this matter out of all dispute with impartial Men by prescribing a Form to his Disciples when they desired him to teach them to pray as John taught his Disciples For we find his way of Teaching them was not by directing them to wait for the impulses of the Spirit and immediate Inspiration from God of what they were to offer up to him We do not find him saying When ye pray speak what shall then come into your minds or what shall be given you in that hour without taking thought about what they should say as He did in another case that is when they should be brought before Governours and Kings for his sake Mat. x. 19 But in addressing themselves to God he prescribed them a Form of Words and Commanded them to use it Luke xi 2 And he said unto them When ye pray say Our Father which art in Heaven c. Here is an express Command of Christ to his Disciples to use these Words when they pray Our Father c. A Command for the use of a Form so plain that it is impossible to express it in clearer terms 'T is not to be doubted but Religious Persons among the Jews offer'd up constantly prayers to God We see it in David Psal. lv 17 and in Daniel Chap. vi 10 And no doubt the Disciples of our Saviour were not wanting in this Duty nor in skill to perform it since we find that other devout Persons of their time had their hours of Prayer as we see in Acts iii. 1 Therefore what they desired of our Saviour was not to teach them absolutely or in general to pray but to teach them to pray as John also taught his Disciples that is to give them a Form of Prayer proper to His Institution as they saw the Disciples of Moses and John had proper to theirs Upon which our Saviour gave them the Lord's-Prayer as a summary of the main points of his Doctrine and as a constant badge of their being his Disciples As if he should have said When ever you offer up to God your usual Prayers which Religious Custom has taught you as Jews and Disciples of Moses or of John whether in Secret or Publick add this always to your other prayers for a continual Remembrance to you of those Duties Priviledges and Qualifications which belong to you as My Disciples and as a means of obtaining Grace from your Heavenly Father to enable you to persevere in them The Lords-Prayer is therefore a badge of Our Profession imposed by Christ himself and to be used by Us
iv 16 When this Epistle is read amongst you cause that it also be read in the Church of the Laodiceans and that ye likewise read the Epistle from Laodicea And it was but reason since the Gospel contained the Christian Law that it should be read in the Christian Assemblies as well as the Law of Moses was in the Synagogues And that it was so read in the first Christian Assemblies I might shew by many instances out of the Antient Fathers if there were occasion IV. This publick Reading the Law was of so great Reputation that it is termed Preaching it as we may see from Acts xv 21 For Moses of old time hath in every City them that preach him being read in the Synagogues every Sabbath day The word Preaching has a peculiar sense in the New Testament and signifies properly to Declare or Proclaim the Word of God as a Herauld or Cryer proclaimes the Laws or Orders of a King Hence only those that Proclaim'd the Gospel to such as had not heard it before or read the Old Testament to the people are said to Preach Preaching is distinguished from Teaching and Exhortation and 't is observable that in the whole New Testament tho' reading the Scriptures is called Preaching yet interpreting them applying them or exhorting the people from them in a Christian Auditory is never called by that name If it be objected that St. Paul is said to preach to the Disciples Acts xx 7 when he only in probability made a Sermon or Exhortation to Believers as is usual now I answer that the Original of this Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is never translated preach in any other place of the New Testament and should not have been here but discours'd disputed spake or reason'd so it is translated in Acts xvii 2 17. xviii 19 xix 8 9. Heb. xii 5 c. for the Original Words which properly signifie preaching are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 From all which it is manifest that there are only two ways by which the Word of God is properly preached the first is when it is declared to those that never heard of it before and the second is when the very words of the Scripture are read publickly to the peodle as a Cryer doth a Proclamation which he doth not word himself but reads it in the words in which it is delivered to him In short The Scriptures are Sermons out of the Mouth of God being dictated by his Holy Spirit for the Reading of which to the People for their Conviction and Instruction there is a peculiar Command of God and where this Ordinance is duely observed they are sure of the Word of Life and 't is impossible they should be ignorant of their Duty for the Scriptures are sufficient to mak◠them wise to Salvation and the hearing them with Humility and Attention is a means sufficient to beget Faith in the Hearts of those that hear them for they are profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction for Instruction in Righteousness that the Man of God may be perfect thorowly furnished to all good Works as we see 1 Tim. iii. 16 17. V. We find in Holy Scripture that the Publick Reading of the Word of God was with great Solemnity 'T is observed Nehem. viii 5 When Ezra opened the Book all the people stood up and Ezra blessed the Lord the great God and all the people answered Amen Amen with lifting up their hands and they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground and I find it generally agreed that both the Readers and Hearers stood up whilst the Law was read tho' not when other things were read or taught hence it is observed Luke iv 16 that our Saviour stood up for to read and Vers. 20. after closing the Book that he sat down to teach Hence Rev. v. God is represented in allusion to the High-Priest with a Book in his Right Hand containing the Revelations of his Will and the Lamb as his Minister takes it out of his Hand to declare the Contents of it and Vers. 8. When he had taken the Book the four Beasts and four and twenty Elders fell down before the Lamb And they sung a New Song The Angels joyn with them Vers. 11. and the whole Creation Verse 13. From whence we see the Scriptures teach us to receive the Revelations of God's Will out of the Book of Life with Adoration and Praises And therefore we find that at the Reading the Law Confessions and Praises of God were intermixed and succeeded one another Neh. ix 3 And they stood up in their place and read in the Book of the Lord their God one fourth part of the Day and another fourth part they Confessed and Worshiped the Lord their God VI. We find that the Word of God is to be read in such a Language as the People understand After the Captivity the People being Born and Educated in a strange Land their Language was changed and they did not understand at least Universally the pure Hebrew in which the Law was first written therefore when Ezra read in the Law a certain number of the Priests and Levites interpreted the Words of the Law as Ezra read them to the People Neh. viii 7 And they caused the people to understand the Law and the people stood in their place so they read in the Book in the Law of God distinctly and gave the sence and caused them to understand the reading And this Custom continueth among the Jews to this Day first the Hebrew Text is read and then a Translation or Paraphrase in a Language understood by the Hearers And indeed there may be good reason for reading the Originals in Publick Assemblies such a Custom being an effectual means to preserve the knowledge of them but they cannot be useful to the People without a Translation Therefore St. Paul doth not absolutely forbid speaking in Unknown Tongues in the Church but orders 1 Cor. xiv 27 Let one interpret but if there be no Interpreter let him keep silence in the Church VII We find that after reading the Word of God there was sometimes an Enlargement or Comment on some part of it and an Exhortation to the People Thus when our Saviour had read a portion of Scripture He applied it to the people in a Discourse to that purpose But it doth not appear that this was constantly done on the contrary it is rather probable that it was not For had there been a constant Provision for such Enlargement and Exposition of the Law and Exhortation from it there had been no occasion for the Rulers of the Synagogue Acts xiii 15 to send to St. Paul and Barnabas after the reading of the Law and Prophets that Message we find there Ye Men and Brethren if ye have any Word of Exhortation for the People say on St. Paul supposes him who Teaches and him whose Office it was to Exhort distinct from him that Ruled
the way of his own appointment and complain of it as dull and tedious so Mal. i. 13 Ye said also what a weariness is it and ye snuffed at it And the reason is because the way of God's appointing is always more Spiritual in respect of that which is of Man 's own Invention and therefore it cannot be so easy or agreable to the Carnal minds of Men. 4. It ought therefore to be considered by you when people complain of being dull and unaffected by meer Hearing the Word of God read whether this do not truly proceed from a Carnal and Wicked Heart estranged from the Spirit of God and whether the reason that Sermons please and affect more then a Chapter out of the Bible be not the novelty and outward Ornaments of them rather than the Spiritualness of the discourse We are sure St. Paul supposeth such as are not affected with the Words of God to be meer Natural or Carnal Men 1 Cor. ii 13 where having taken Notice of speaking Not in Words which Man's Wisdom Teacheth but which the Holy Ghost Teacheth he adds but the Natural Man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God For they are foolishness to him neither can he know them for they are spiritually discerned From whence it clearly follows that the reason why Men do not understand or receive the things of God delivered to them in the Words of Scripture dictated by the Holy Ghost is because they are meer Natural Men and want the Spirit of God Whoever therefore is more affected or delights more in a Sermon then in a Chapter of the Bible has reason to look into his Heart and examine himself whether he have the Spirit of God Those mentioned in Scripture that had that Spirit delighted in the Law of God It was the joy of their Hearts they preferred it to all things they meditate in it Day and Night And were so far from turning it out of their Publick Assemblies that the Hearing it read was a great part of their Worship Whoever therefore lays aside this practise have reason to suspect that they want that Temper and Spirit with which those Holy Men were inspired and notwithstanding all their pretences to a more then ordinary Spiritualness and Reformation are little advanced above the Natural Men that neither receive or relish the things of God at least not as they ought I find it alledged as a Sixth pretence for not Reading the Word of God in your Meetings That a Child may read them and perform this Duty and then what need it take up the Ministers time To which there needs no other answer then that the Service of God is not less his or the less to be valued because it is easy On the contrary 't is the more sinfull to neglect it the more easy it is Ministers are not set apart for difficult things only which others cannot perform but they are to execute the Office that God has imposed on them whether it be easy or difficult As for Example God has Commanded his Ministers to Baptise In the Name of the Father c. Now to pour on Water in this Form is no such difficult thing but a Child or any else might perform it Neither is there any greater difficulty in the Sacrament of the Lord's-Supper as to the Essentials of it Yet I suppose it will be granted by all that it belongs only to the Minister's Office to perform these and that they must not delegate them or any part of them to others or omit them because they are easy And that they have a quite different Sacredness Efficacy and Force when performed by a Person Ordained and Authorized to this purpose then when performed by another and the same Rule holds in offering up our Prayers and in Reading the Scriptures A Man may read them at home a Child may read them in Church but they have not the same assurance of Efficacy and a blessing as when they come from the Mouth of a Person set a-part by God's Ordinance for this purpose I make no doubt but the Experience as I have said of most Christians from what they have felt in their own Hearts in Hearing the Word of God publickly read will attest the Truth of this Now if you my Friends know and own this as I hope the generality of you do you must see the unreasonableness of this pretence If any of you do not know it you must give me leave to say that I fear it is from ignorance and not considering the Scriptures And 't is your Teachers Duty to inform you better Reading the Scripture being allowed by their Directory to be a part of God's Publick Worship We have this Rule there in express words That it is requisite that all the Canonical Books be read over in order that the people may be better acquainted with the whole Body of Scriptures Now if you can shew but one Meeting in the last Age in which this has been duly performed we will not accuse you so generally of violating God's Command in this point but if there be not one such Meeting you ought to consider how you will excuse your selves before God And I think it necessary here to observe to you how insignificant general Rules are without descending to a particular Determination of Circumstances Here we have in your Dirâ—ctory a general Rule such as it is for Reading the Scripture but for want of being particular as the Calender in our Common-Prayer-Book is I question if it yet was ever once observed or indeed that it is Practical to observe it And it is so almost in every other general Rule and therefore to leave the Service of God to be Ordered by such general Rules only is in effect to Teach people to neglect it V. These are all the Reasons that I can possibly think of or have heard urged for Your practice in this point I will not say but others may be pretended but I must profess that I do not remember to have met with them if I had I would have given them a due consideration I am perswaded that they cannot be of greater force than those I have examined And that they can never excuse You in this matter from manifest breach of God's Command in preferring Mens Inventions to his Institutions After all I must profess to You That I look on all these to be only Pretences and that the true Reason of Mens Negligence in this Duty is given us 2 Tim. iv 3 For the time will come saith the Apostle when they will not endure sound Doctrine but after their own Lusts shall they heap up to themselves Teachers having itching Ears An itching Ear here can signifie nothing so properly as an Ear that loves Novelty and Variety Because therefore our Church gives the people little that is New in her Prayers or Reading the Scriptures but retains a Form of sound Words in the one and the plain Word of God in the other Hence
in thine Heart that God hath raised Him from the Dead thou shalt be saved For with the Heart Man believes unto Righteousness and with the Mouth Confession is made unto salvation To profess solemnly that we expect no Happiness but from the good pleasure of God and that we freely acquiesce in his Provisions for us is no small Evidence of the submission of our Minds to God and upon that account may be reckoned an Instance of External Worship and accordingly many of the Psalms contain such Confessions 3. You sit generally at your Publick Prayers 4. At the holy Sacrament you sit not only whilst you Receive but likewise at the Thanksgiving and Blessing before and your Directory imposes this posture on Communicants tho' contrary to Holy Scripture in respect of that part that concerns the Prayer and Thanksgiving and without any Command or so much as Example from Scripture in respect of the sitting at the time of Receiving 5. Too many of your perswasion condemn us who conform to God's Word in these particulars as guilty of Superstition and endeavour to render our Conformity ridiculous not being content to lay aside the Commands of God themselves but endeavouring likewise to condemn and scoff at the Observation of them in Vs. In short I entreat you to consider That you have not any one Visible Act of Adoration amongst you in your Assemblies except we reckon in this Number That your Men Vncover their Heads at Prayer and yet even this is not required by your Directory III. And now let me a while Examine calmly with you the Pretences I have met with for laying aside this part of God's Worship for it is not probable that any would banish Adoration out of their Assemblies and alledge no Reason for their doing so 1. First therefore I find that place of Scripture produced to this purpose John iv 24 God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth Some think that all Bodily Worship is here forbidden and that only the Worship of the Spirit or Mind is required of us under the Gospel Upon this some have declared against all Churches or separate places for Worship Others are against all Bodily VVorship Others against all Sacraments Others against all Vocal Prayers Praises and Thanksgivings And even in the Apostle's time some were against all Visible Assemblies And indeed if we understand this place as some do that all Bodily Worship is excluded by it and that it is sufficient to Worship God in our Spirits or Minds only I do not see but all these are in the right and those who pretend to be above Ordinances and worship God no-where are most conformable to this Rule and next to them the silent Meetings of the Quakers without Sacraments without Vocal Prayers or Praises are the most spiritual service For if other Dissenters think Bodily Worship such as Bowing Kneeling c. Unlawful or Unnecessary because they are Acts of the Body and unfit on that account to be offered to God who is a Spirit why may not the Quakers omit the Sacraments and the Words of the Mouth which are Outward Things as well as the other Nay why should not outward Teaching or Preaching cease Since the Spirit is a sufficient Teacher and has promised us Heb. viii 10 I will put my Laws into their Minds and write them in their Hearts Vers. 11. And they shall not teach every Man his Neighbour and every Man his Brother c. The Principle and Reasoning is the same in all these and will justifie the Silent Meetings of the Quakers nay the Extravagance of Those that pretend to be above all Ordinances as well as the Irreverence of other Dissenters But we ought to interpret Scripture so as one place may not contradict another and since the Holy Scriptures shew us that God requires our Vocal Prayers and Praises our Visible Sacraments and Adoration we ought not to interpret worshiping in the Spirit so as to exclude these but rather conclude that they may be offered up to God in such a manner as to become proper for spiritual VVorship or God would never have required them When therefore our Saviour represents the Worship He taught the World as a Worship in Spirit and Truth his meaning doubtless is not to exempt us from worshiping his Father with our Bodies whereof He Himself has given us an Example but to teach us That the Outward Acts of Worship that we pay to God are only Acceptable to Him when they proceed from and are accompanied with a hearty submission of our Souls and that every Act is more or less Acceptable as it has more or less of our Hearts and Affections in it But that Circumstances of place and the like give us no Advantage and are of no value towards making our Worship Acceptable This meaning of the words directly answers our Saviour's design which was to shew the Samaritan Woman that the time was coming that the Worship offered to God under the Gospel would be nothing more acceptable for being offered at Jerusalem or Mount-Gerezim or any other place But the Heart being right all places were alike Which was directly contrary to the Jewish Law that allowed no Sacrifice or Oblation to be acceptable to God that was not offered at the Temple and consequently their Worship derived its acceptance from the place and not from the Heart alone of him that offered it We affirm therefore as our Saviour has here taught us that it is only from the Heart or Spirit that our Worship becomes acceptable to God and that the time or place where it is offered contributes nothing to our acceptance But that in whatever place at whatever time in whatsoever posture we offer up our Spirits and Hearts to God we are accepted by him But then we say likewise a Man who neglects the Assemblies of Christians cannot have a good Heart towards God because he breaks his Command that such as do not take care to provide a convenient and decent place and set it apart for Christians to meet and to perform God's Worship in cannot have a value for it that such as neglect the Holy Sacraments want Faith in His promises as well as Obedience to His Commands and that those who neglect to Worship him with their Body and to pay outward Reverence and Adoration when they come into his presence must want inward submission of their minds because they do not approach as he requires If a Man truly Worship God in his Spirit it will oblige him if able to perform these outward Acts and if he be not able God doth not require them It is in this as in Faith Jam. ii 18 A Man may say Thou hast Faith and I have Works Shew me thy Faith without thy Works and I will shew thee my Faith by my Works After the same manner a Man may say Thou Worshipest God inwardly in Heart and Spirit and I Worship him outwardly and in
to express our Desires in or enables us to make one 't is sufficient and we ought to be thankful 7. In confirmation of this Account of the Spirit of Prayer we may further observe 1. That no Worship is Acceptable to God that is not offer'd to Him in Spirit and Truth John iv 24 and therefore the Scripture recommends to us prayers in and by the Spirit but that praying with the Spirit doth not signifie extemporary unpremeditated prayers or exclude Forms will appear from 1 Cor. xiv 15 I will pray with the Spirit I will pray with the Vnderstanding I will sing with the Spirit I will sing with the Vnderstanding also Here we find singing with the Spirit as well as praying with it and whoever sings otherwise doth not worship God as he ought but tho' we are obliged to sing with the Spirit yet we must and ought to sing in the Congregation with a set Form of Words and therefore for the same reason tho' we pray with the Spirit we may pray by a set and prepared Form of Words The most spiritual Songs consist of a set Form of imposed Words and so may the most spiritual Prayers Praying therefore with the Spirit in this place is so far from meaning or being an Argument for the Use of extemporary unpremeditated prayers that it is rather an Argument against them For either we are obliged by it to sing to God in extemporary Hymns or we are not obliged to pray to Him in extemporary Prayers since it is Unreasonable to interpret singing with the Spirit in one sense and praying with the Spirit in a contrary 2. And to confirm this further we find the most spiritual Persons addressing themselves to God in Forms so did Moses so did David as I observed before and so did our Saviour himself on the Cross when in his Agony he repeated the first Verse of Psal. xxii in Syriack and as some believe the whole Psalm by which Act He recommendeth to us Forms of Prayer in his Dying Breath as the most proper means of expressing our condition to God and as most suitable to the Divine Majesty and therefore praying in the Spirit Ephes. vi 18 Praying in the holy Ghost Jude 20. and with the Spirit 1 Cor. xiv 15 signifie praying with Grace in our Hearts by the Assistance and Motion of the Holy Spirit And a man may as well pray with Grace in his Heart when he prays by a Form as sing with Grace in his Heart when he sings by a Form 3. We have a Promise that God's Spirit will assist us with this Grace in our Hearts but we have no Promise that He will help us to Words without the Use of Forms as will appear from Rom. viii 26 The Spirit also 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 groanings that cannot be uttered those inward motions in the Heart called here groanings are that Grace in the Heart with which we ought to pray and to which the Spirit of God doth and indeed only can help us and to pray with this Grace is to pray in and with the Spirit whether we use words or no and if we do use them whether we reduce them into a Form first or pour them forth as they present themselves to our Minds but we have no Promise that the Holy Ghost will always furnish us with fit words on all occasions and therefore ought not to presume that He will 4. T is certain that he did furnish some with such words for we find both Prayers and Hymns dictated immediately by him of which we have Examples in the Hymns of the Blessed Virgin and Zacharias and in the Song or Prayer of Simeon and in Acts iv 24 But then it is manifest that this was an extraordinary Gift of God and a part of Prophecy and we may not depend on the holy Ghost for this Gift more then for any other Extraordinary Gift till it be made appear that it was to continue alwaies in the Church and to be communicated to All the Children of God Praying and singing the Praises of God are Duties incumbent on all Christians but we are no more obliged to pray Extemporary Prayers from any Example of inspired Men in Scripture than to sing Extemporary Hymns from the like Examples to which yet none I think pretend 5. 'T is very observable that even those who composed their Prayers and Hymns by immediate inspiration did not generally offer them to God in the Congregation till they had first reduced them into a Form Thus David first penned his Psalms and then delivered them to be sung 1. Chron. xvi 7 and 't is probable the Prophets 1. Cor. xiv 26 did the same for they are supposed every one to have a Psalm a Doctrine a Tongue a Revelation c. that is to have them ready and reduced into Form for the use of the Church when they came together That this is the meaning of having a Psalm c. in this place will appear very probable not only from the words which naturally import this and can hardly be otherwise interpreted but likewise from the Apostles making a difference between what these Prophets had prepared and what was revealed immediately at the time of their being together vers 30. If any thing be revealed to another that siteth by let the first hold his peace Which shews that these Psalms c. were to give place to such as were immediately inspired So far were these inspired Men from countenancing an extemporary unpremeditated way of serving God except where there was an immediate Revelation for it and so utterly void of Scripture-proof is this great principle of the Dissenters Worship that the Spirit of prayer is given to every one of the Faithfull to enable them to conceive with the Heart and express with their Tongues their necessities to God without a Form of Prayer 8. It lies therefore my Friends on your Teachers who are of this persuasion to produce plain Scripture for your principles or else to confess that you have laid aside Prayers by Forms commanded by God and practised by holy Men in Scriptures to make room for this way of Praying of Men's own invention But further that place Eccl. v. 1.2 seems to me to afford a strong Argument against such Prayers When thou goest to the House of God Be not rash with thy Mouth and let not thy Heart be hasty to utter any thing before God for God is in Heaven and thou upon Earth Therefore let thy words be few It is hard to say what it is to be rash with our Mouths or hasty to utter any thing before God if it be not rashnesh to trust the expressing all our desires to such uncertain and unpremeditated words as our invention suggests unto us when we come before him which as I have shewed the Scriptures give us no promise of being supplied to us
by the Spirit on ordinary occasions I appeal to you whether it would not be looked on as rashness for an ordinary person to speak to a Prince or solemn Assembly concerning a matter of great moment in words unpremeditated and unformed and we shall hardly find any so rash as to venture on it King Solomon here seems to have recommended the same modesty to Men in their Addresses to God 9. But in as much as God has not expressly forbidden all extemporary prayers I would not be understood by this to condemn all such as unlawful There may be some Men tho' not very many able to express themselves significantly and decently extempore and there are some occasions that require it even in Publick and on these occasions when a Man has not time allowed him to reduce his desires into form before he offers them he may depend on the assistance of God's Spirit as we may in all other cases of of necessity or at least hope for pardon of course to our infirmities But to depend on that Spirit and neglect the means God has given us to provide our selves looks so like tempting him that we ought carefully to avoid it And I find Prudent Modest Men are aware of this and tho' they be very famous for extemporary prayers yet they pray really as much by a Form as if they had the Common-Prayer before them The secret is only this they compose Forms of Prayer of several sorts digest them well in their minds and commit them to memory so that they can on occasion transpose the parts of them change add or leave out as they see reason and thus they are in effect provided with a Form tho' the people cannot perceive it and admire them for their readiness and fluency It is easie for any Man of Moderate Parts to manage the matter thus but the more ignorant and ordinary Preachers that know not or are not capable of the method of it fall into very indecent and vain repetitions and are often at a loss when they strive to practise this way of Addressing to God Another account may be given of these seeming Extemporary Prayers not much different from the former namely That good Men who make a Conscience of secret prayer to God and have grown up in a constant Discharge of this Duty do by degrees fall into a Form even with themselves for how much soever their prayers were Extempore at first yet having continual Occasion of praying to God for the same things they find in time that there is but one best way of expressing the same thing which necessarily leads to a form However the various ways they made use of before they settled on one serve them as so many forms when they come in publick And by changing of these they seem to pray extempore 10. Lastly let me observe that the use of Extemporary conceived prayers even in cases of necessity is founded on a general Rule of Scripture only which commands us to ask of God what we lack Of which Rule our own prudence makes the Application in such extemporary occasions but when we set up this Human Application of this general Rule in opposition to that particular manner of asking commanded by God and practised by Holy Men which is by set and premeditated Forms in the ordinary Worship of God and turn God's way out of his Worship to make room for one of our own This is to displace a particular command of God on pretence of guiding our selves by a general one In which we are not only more liable to mistakes but we fail of paying due respect to God's Directions For general Commands ought only to take place in such Cases where God has not laid down a particular Rule And thus I have examined the First Principle of Dissenters That the Spirit of Prayer is given to all the Children of God whereby they are enabled to conceive with the Heart and express with the Mouth convenient desires to God IV. I come now to speak to the Second That all Forms of Prayer are Vnlawfull to Christians and that it is a sin to join in a Worship where they are used or so much as to be present at it If there be any of you for whom I intend these Papers of this opinion as I fear some of you are and all of you do in your practice comply with those that maintain it and therefore cannot acquit your selves from countenancing it I desire you to observe that if there were no harm in the opinion or if it were a meer Speculation we should not be much concerned at their mistake But by what I have shewed of the Scripture Authority of Forms it is plain that they who maintain this principle do not only teach for Doctrines the Commandments of Men but in effect set themselves up above Christ and countermand what he has required They not only add to the Gospel a new command by Teaching that to be unlawful which Christ has no where condemned but they Teach that to be unlawful which he has positively commanded Whoever therefore do Teach Forms of Prayer to be unlawful or countenance those that do Teach this Doctrine of Men cannot acquit themselves from the imputation of resisting the Holy Ghost by whose inspiration the word of God is penned I can foresee only one thing that can be alledged in favour of those who maintain this opinion and 't is that to pray with or without a Form excepting the Lords-Prayer is in it self indifferent and that therefore the asserting the use of Forms is not a matter of such weight as to justify our contending with our Brethren about it and that it seems uncharitable in us to insist on a thing which they are fully perswaded is unlawful and we our selves count indifferent 1. But in Answer to this it is to be observed First That an opinion which necessarily divides him who believes it from the Communion of all the Established Churches in the World cannot be of so little moment as the objection would make it And such is this opinion of the unlawfulness of Forms of Prayer since there neither is nor has been any Established Church these 1500 years but has maintained their Lawfulness and used them in the Service of God and therefore whoever believes them to be unlawful in whatever Age he had lived he must have separated from all the Established Churches of the World at that time and surely an opinion that necessarily produces such a Division must be of mighty consequence whether true or false ought to be carefully examined and if false to be zealously opposed But 2. I suppose it will be granted that eating Swines Flesh or drinking Wine are as indifferent as using a Form of Prayer and of less concern to the Souls of Men and that therefore to Teach these to be unlawful would be as innocent a mistake as to Teach the unlawfulness of Forms For if we compare these two Doctrines together
the unlawfulness of forms prevails and therefore all good people are obliged to oppose it as they would retrieve the constant use of secret prayers which shews that this is no indifferent matter as the objection would suggest but of great weight and fit to be contended for I will not mention some other Reasons that are of great moment because they would but exasperate and tend to make the Duty of Prayer when performed extempore ridiculous which ill men might extend as it too often happens to expose Devotion in general such are the indecent Expressions which sometimes fall from persons that pray thus I will only observe to you that Extemporary Prayers of some Preachers have too often given occasion of Offence to serious persons even among your selves 'T is certain that to print some of them as they have been spoken as those that we make use of are printed would not be for the Honour of the Holy Spirit to whom they are ascribed nor much recommend them to serious Men. But I esteem it an ill thing for Men to ridicule one anothers Devotion whatever it is V. There remains yet the Third Opinion of Dissenters which they advance against us in this matter of Prayer to be Examined That the Minister is the Mouth of the Congregation and that the People have nothing to do but to joyn with him in their Hearts An Opinion far from any Authority of Scripture which expresly requires us Rom. xv 6 with one Mind and one Mouth to glorifie God We produce this and many other places and Examples in Scripture for the People's joyning their Voices and bearing a part in their praises and prayers and we are assured there is no Scripture forbids it and therefore when you Condemn it or teach it to be Unlawful we must charge it upon You as an instance of Your Teaching for Doctrines the Commandments of Men. Which is all I think needful to be said to this Head after what I have shewed before in defence of our contrary practise from Scripture and I think sufficient to induce you seriously to consider it And thus I presume I have faithfully examined the Rules and Examples the Scriptures afford us for the performance of that part of our publick Worship that consists in Prayers and compared the Service of our Church and the Dissenters way of Praying with them and made it appear that our performance of this Duty both as to the Matter and Manner is agreeable to the Commandments of God and to the Examples of Holy Men recorded in Scripture And that the Service the Dissenters have substituted in the room thereof has in many particulars laid aside God's Commands and deserted the Examples of Scripture and is in the main part thereof an immediate Invention of Men. And I intreat you who are of this Persuasion and adhere to these Principles of Worship which I have now mentioned and shewed to be disagreeable to Scripture to consider seriously whether you are not thereby literally guilty of that Sin with which our Saviour taxeth the Jews Mark vii 7 of Teaching for Doctrines the Commandments of Men And also of that Superstition condemned by St. Paul Col. ii 21 which saith Touch not taste not handle not that is which teaches to forbear those things which God has made Lawful after the Doctrines and Commandments of Men And I beseech God to inlighten your Minds to make a true Judgement in it that you may deliver your Souls CHAP. III. Of Hearing Sect. 1. What the Holy Scriptures prescribe concerning it I. ONE great design of Our Christian Assemblies is Hearing and that which is to be heard is the Word of God I shall proceed in examining this in the same manner as I have done in the former Chapters And consider First What Directions the Scriptures afford us for the publick performance of this Duty Secondly Shall compare our own practice with them And Thirdly That of the Dissenters First then God has positively Commanded us to read His Word in our publick Assemblies So Deut. xxxi 10 In the feast of Tabernacles when all Israel is come to appear before the Lord thy God in the place where the Lord shall choose Thou shalt read this Law before all Israel in their Hearing Gather the people together Men Women and Children and thy Stranger that is within thy gates that they may hear and that they may learn and fear the Lord your God and observe to do all the Words of this Law And 't is observed Jos. viii 35 that there was not a word of all that Moses Commanded which Joshua read not before all the Congregation Neither was this confined to their Solemn Assemblies at Jerusalem It was likewise a constant part of their Sabbath Service in their Synagogues As we may learn from Acts xiii 14 where it is observed that Paul and Barnabas went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath day and sate down and after the reading of the Law and the Prophets the Rulers of the Synagogue sent unto them c. and St. Paul takes notice vers 27. that the Prophets were read every Sabbath day meaning undoubtedly in their Assemblies And St. James Acts xv 21 of Moses his being read in the Synagogues every Sabbath day II. This reading the Law was the great and most effectual means God provided for preserving the knowledge of himself amongst his people and where it was omitted the people immediately sunk into Idolatry and the best Reformation began and was carried on by Restoring this Ordinance Thus 't is observed of Josiah 2 Chron. xxxiv 29 that he gathered together all the Elders of Judah and Jerusalem And all the Inhabitants of Jerusalem and the Priâ—sts and the Levites and all the people great and small and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the Covenant that was found in the House of the Lord. The like is observed of Ezra Neh. viii 3 And he read therein before the street that was before the Water-gate from Morning untill Mid-day before the Men and the Women and all that could understand 'T is remarkable that after the Captivity the Jews never fell into Idolatry and the chief reason given by themselves was the strict Observation of this Ordinance of God the Law being constantly read to them afterwards publickly in their Synagogues so powerfully doth God bless his own Ordinances to preserve those that use them from Error and Sin III. From the practice of the Synagogue in reading the Law and the Prophets the like Order was brought into the Christian Church and Reading was made a part of the Office of the Christian Elders as it was before of the Jewish And hence it is that Timothy is Commanded by St. Paul 1 Tim. iv 13 To give attendance to Reading as well as to Exhortation and Doctrine And the inspired Writings of the Apostles were read in the Christian Assemblies as well as the Law and Prophets among the Jews According to St. Paul's Command Col.
Religious Communion yet they might much contribute to our living easily with one another and take off that Uncharitableness which our Religious Dissentions are apt to cause amongst us However it wou'd be a great Satisfaction to Me and I shou'd reckon it some kind of Success in my Office if I cou'd prevail with any sort of people that profess to meet in the Name of Christ to come nearer to his Institutions in their Worship tho' I should not be able to perswade them to the Communion whereof I am a Member To the Conforming LAITY of the Diocess of DERRY AS to You my Friends and Brethren of the Laity who profess your selves Members of the Established Church It hath pleased God to place Me amongst you and to give Me an Inspection over you and 't is chiefly on your Account that I have written and published this Treatise that it may be a Pledge and Testimony to you of my concern for you and make my care to reach as far as may be amongst you I hope my Labours this way may be Useful to you to settle the Minds of the Doubtful and to awaken you all to Diligence and Zeal in the performance of the Service of God The great Principles of your Religion as you are Members of the Established Church are Uncontroverted on all hands and I have here endeavoured to shew that your particular Way of Worship is warranted by the Holy Scriptures You have reason to bless God that He has afforded you so many conveniencies of frequenting it In which He has been pleased to give you so manifest Advantage above your Dissenting Neighbours that notwithstanding their Numerousness you have Five places for Worship for One that they have This will render you inexcusable if you neglect attendance at them or spend any Lord's Day as is too common in this Country in a meer Rest from Labour without any Publick Worship I must likewise put you in mind that our Service is not only fitted for the Publick but is likewise proper for private Families And therefore I would advise you to make use of the words with which Our Church has furnished you in your Houses as well as in the Church At least to use such select Hymns and Collects as seem most adapted to that purpose And at more solemn times I conceive our Litany is as full and proper a Service as any Master of a Family can desire to offer to God I must therefore most earnestly passionately exhort you by the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ for his Church's sake and your own that you will add Diligence and Zeal to this your reasonable Service and prepare your hearts to seek the Lord your God in his Holy Worship And particularly that you wou'd endeavour to convince the World that it is not Faction or a Party you contend for but the Fruits of Righteousness And thereupon strive rather to out-live those that differ from You then to out-argue them Let the innocency of your Lives and your Christian Moderation convince them of the unreasonableness of their separation from You. I beseech the God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ to multiply his Grace and Peace upon You and to influence You by his Holy Spirit that You may be perfect in every good Work and particularly in that of Worshiping him in purity and Holiness To the Dissenting-LAITY of the Diocess of DERRY AS to You My Friends that dissent from Our Communion it remains only that I beseech You in the Spirit of Meekness as one that is appointed by the Providence of God and the care of a Christian Magistracy to watch over Your Souls That You will seriously consider and lay to heart what I have here tender'd to You. I cannot prevail with you to come and receive Instruction from my Mouth And therefore I have taken this way to inform You. I will only add a few Observations which I recommend to You and shall leave the success intirely to God 1. Therefore You may observe that in this Treatise I have not led You into long Reasonings or the intricacies of Human Learning but I have referred You to your Bibles and You need go no further then to them to be satisfied whether the things I have said be as I have represented them or not Those of Berea are reckoned a Noble People Acts xvii 11 because they searched the Scriptures and I pray most heartily to God to give You a part in that Nobleness of mind that You may search and find the Truth 2. I wou'd desire You to observe that it ever has been and in all probability ever will be the humour of the World to be more fond of Their Own Inventions then of what God Commands If we look thro' the whole Scriptures we shall find that the Prophets sent by God the Doctrines revealed by him and the Worship he Commanded have had but ill Entertainment amongst the people There never appeared half so much Zeal or inclination in the generality of Men for the true God and his Worship as for the false Gods and their Prophets And there is an obvious natural reason for it since what Man invents must needs have a near agreement to the Carnal and Corrupt inclinations of our depraved Nature then what God prescribes which is the very reason that induces Men to change the Institutions of God and substitute their own Inventions instead of them A thing that wou'd never come into any Man's mind if he did not find more ease or gratification to his humour in them then in observing God's Commandments If it were proper to refer you to the History of the Church you would find that most of all the Corruptions in the Worship of God were introduced by the fondness and violent inclinations of the people for them And that the Church Governours did long oppose them and were brought with difficulty at last to comply with them Thus the Worship of Images Prayers for the Dead Purgatory the intercession of Saints half Communion being present at Church Assemblies without receiving the Lord's Supper and Worshiping the Host were all vulgar practices at first against the Opinion of the Governours of the Church who generally Opposed and Condemned them but being Human Inventions the People were so violent for them that there was no withstanding them so that if the Governours they had would not comply the people did set up those that wou'd Now let me entreat you to reflect a little and consider with all seriousness whether there may not be something like this in your own Case especially in the matter of Extemporary Prayers It is plain you have brought them into practice against the opinion and constitution of the Church Governours and of the First Reformers who all did settle Lyturgies in the Churches which they Reformed This Knox did in Scotland whose Lyturgy we have ready to produce to the Conviction of those who pretend to be his Successors and yet condemn Forms of Prayer as