THE INTEREST OF THE SPIRIT IN Prayer By H. Lukin LONDON Printed by J. D. for Brabazon Aylmer at the three Pigeons in Cornhil 1674. READER THe following Discourse was a Sermon preacht some years since and one that heard it desiring a Copy of it I did at length yeeld to his importunity and sent it him as now you see it with the addition of these few Latin Quotations which I do not use to interrupt the attention of ordinary hearers with in popular Discourses and this I did not purposing to make it thus publick but having once transcribed it I consented further to the desire of some to have it printed but never had opportunity to review what I had written from the first time that I sent it till I saw it from the Press This I thought meet to advertise you of that you may not expect much accurateness though you knew not the Authour before nor a clear and full discussion of such things as a discourse of this nature would allow only some brief touches of it I hope none will complain of a bold pressing of Scripture to serve an Hypothesis of propension to any party of a slavish subjection to the Authority of great Names of a Sceptical or Magisterial censuring of other Men of their Opinions I have endeavoured to shew that candour freedom impartiality moderation that I may not be afraid of or ashamed to own it as a Man a Scholar a Christian a Minister either when it is exposed to the censure of others or at that day when every mans work shall be made manifest I have for the finding out of the truth herein attended to two things Scripture and Experience both of which we should have a due regard to in our search after Truth As in Physick through practice and Experience be a great advantage to Men and make things more clear as Examples do Rules yet if Men trust wholly thereto the Emperical Physician may be deceived assoon as the Rational or Methodical because there being so many things that effects depend upon or may proceed from it is very easie to mistake that for the cause of a thing which is not the cause of it and though they see the effects they know not what concurs thereto or what hath the chief influx into them and I have oft observed and lemented Mens being imposed upon by this fallacy of non causa pro causa or taking that for the cause of a thing which is not especially in matters of Religion Besides Men are apt to infer general conclusions from particular experiments and so either measure themselves by others or make their own experience a standard for the tryal of others So on the other hand many times Men attain not the true sense of Scripture while thay consider things only in the Idea or notion without examining how things are really in particular Subjects I know we must not make Man the measure of all things as Protagoras in another sense Men must be tryed by Scripture not the Scripture by Men. Yet we must acknowledge the Scripture speaks sometimes according to what really is or it speaks as things are sometimes found to be not according to what is constantly or universally true Wherefore I have endeavoured to find out what the Scripture according to its ordinary stile and manner of speaking may intend in such places as I have had occasion to inquire into and have likewise observed and examined what is the ordinary experience of sober serious Christians who dare not boast of such things as they have not really found in themselves but have that experience of God's Gracious working in them which they would not want for the whole world and which doth establish them more firmly in the belief of Spiritual things than to be shaken by such 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or vain-spirited persons as are not likely to be acquainted with such matters or to be competent Judges of them There are some Erratas in the Printing for those who are in the few words of Hebrew Greek and Latin as the Learned only can take notice of them so they know how to correct them There are some small faults in pointing and omissions of a letter in some places which any ordinary Reader may know how to rectifie The more considerable you may correct thus ERRATA Pag. 35. l. 13 r. as he knows P. 39 l. 3. r. riches of his Mercy P. 48. l. 19 r. desultorians P. 55. marg r. Gen. 45.26 P. 59. l. 17. r. do confidently P. 61. l. 4. r. the Philosopher speaks P. 73. l. 17. r. ingenuously P. 75. l. 4. r. desired P. 83 l. 12. r. to assist P. 100. l. 6 r. in Prayer The Interest of the Spirit in Prayer Rom. 8.26 Likewise 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 which cannot be uttered THere are two Things which are the chief Trouble of Christians in this world inward Corruptions or the Remainders of Sin and outward Afflictions or Tribulations Against both these doth the Apostle comfort and encourage them in this Chapter and in these words especially wherein he shews how the holy-Ghost whom our blessed Saviour had promised as a Comforter to his People doth perform this Office particularly by assisting us in our Prayers For the better understanding of the Words we may observe that by Infirmities in Scripture are understood either Afflictions which we call natural Infirmities or sinful Defects or Imperfections which we call Moral or Spiritual Infirmities It is likely the Apostle understands the former where he saith 2 Cor. 12.10 he takes Pleasure in Infirmities It can hardly be conceived how he should take pleasure in moral Infirmities and without question he understands outward Afflictions where he saith Christ was compassed about with Infirmities Heb. 5.2 for he was free from all sinful Defects 1 Pet. â—2 22. He did no sin neither was Guile found in his Mouth Now if the Apostle should here speak of these natural Infirmities it is certain the Spirit helps us against them by assisting us in our Prayers Prayer being an excellent Remedy against afflictions Wherefore David when he was in a great Strait Psal 109.4 resolves to give himself to Prayer Which Words have much exercised Criticks But I think our English Translation hath fully expressed the Sense of them and Prayer is a Remedy against Affliction 1. As thereby we ease our Minds by pouring out our Hearts to God Psal 62.8 So the Psalmist expresses the Nature of Prayer It is an Ease to us in Trouble to pour out our Complaints into the Bosom of a Friend Job 32.20 and we refresh our selves by giving vent to our passion if it be a Friend that will consider our Condition and pity us in it so by Prayer we open our Cause to God or reveal our Cause to him Jer. 11 20. Cap.
the Scripture makes an Evidence of Adoption and that the Spirit doth witness so plainly and clearly as to set a man above all suspition of Delusion as it did the Apostles and Prophets when they were inspired thereby Though it is not denied that men may verily think that the illusions of Satan are the Testimony of the Spirit as he that is awake may certainly know that he is so though he that dreams may verily believe he is awake Yet to affirm that this is the Testimony of the Spirit which Believers may ordinarily expect would rather create Scruples in the minds of many who not daring to speak by guess or hear-say or boast of what Christ hath not wrought in them cannot say that they ever had any such Testimony Neither will these places of Scripture which are alledged in this case prove any such thing for not only things are said to witness in Scripture which can do it only objectively as the heap of stones cast up by Jacob Gen. 31.48 Job 16.8 Job's Wrinkles and Leanness our sins But persons according to Scripture Isai 59.12 do witness objectively by their actions in respect of which those mentioned by the Apostle Heb. 11. are called Witnesses Heb. 12.1 And if it be further urged that the Apostle saith the Spirit himself witnesseth not his Graces I answer Acts 5.32 God himself is said to witness when he doth it only by the Effects or Operations of the Holy Ghost Heb. 2.4 So that the Spirit himself may be said to witness to our Spirits or with our Spirits when he acts us and leads us Yet I will not deny that the Spirit doth more towards assuring us of our adoption as a Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation Eph. 1.17 in the knowledge knowledg of Christ He may assist or enlighten our understandings both to discern those Characters of Divinity which are in the Scripture evidencing the Authority of it and likewise to know the things that are freely given to us of God or to discern or make a right Judgment of the Work of Grace in our own Souls 1 Cor. 2.12 some way answering to the gift of discerning of Spirits in the Primitive Church And this is one effect of the Spirit 1 Cor. 12.10 to enlighten our Understandings to know the exceeding greatness of his Power towards those that believe Eph. 1. â—2 But what ever we determine concerning the manner yet for the thing it self the Scripture plainly affirms that the Spirit witnesses that we are the Children of God Thirdly the Spirit helps our Unbelief by bringing things to our Remembrance Mat. 16.9 Forgetfulness is many times a cause of Unbelief Deut. 7.17 and the Remembrance of what God hath done both for our selves and others Psal 77.11 a great support to our Faith Now Christ promised that the Spirit should bring to Remembrance whatsoever he had said to his Disciples Ps 78.35 Joh. 14.26 I know this might be verified in his effecting or accomplishing what Christ had foretold As when the Disciples saw the Zeal of Christ in purging the Temple John 2.17 it put them in Mind of that which was written in the Psalms the Zeal of thine House hath eaten me up But yet this may have a further meaning and as he doth assist our other faculties so he may the memory also not only by habitual Grace disposing our hearts to the love of heavenly things Psal 119.97 which makes us more frequently think of them but by suggesting things to us as occasion requires which is not improbable Luk. 8.12 If we consider that the Divil steals things out of our hearts whereby we become forgetful hearers and not doers of the Word so that the holy Spirit to counter-work him doth often keep things in the Imagination of the thoughts of our Hearts 1 Chron. 29.18 and bring back what the Devil hath stollen away And further we know by experience that it hath been with many Christians as with Hagar that sate and wept as if there was no way but her Son must perish for want of water Gon. 21.16.19 till God opened her Eyes to see a well of Water So many have refused to be comforted forgetting the exhortation or consolation which speaketh to them as to Children Heb. 12.5 till some Promise or other passage of Scripture hath been suggested to them from which as from Wells of Salvation Isa 12.3 they have drawn Water with Joy and Comfort I might add that the Spirit of God may make some extraordinary Impression of confidence upon the Hearts of Christians in their Praiers for some temporal Mercies as in Luther when he prayed for his Friend Myconius and Edward the sixth when he prayed for his Tutor Sir John Cheek But these are extraordinary cases Matt. 21.22 neither is want of Faith herein an Infirmity That Faith of Miracles Mark 11.24 which some had in Prayer in Christ's time James 5.15 and the times of the Apostles not being now repuired of us Another Infirmity which we are liable to in our Praiers is Hypocrisie when we flatter God with our mouth Psal 78.36 and lye to him with our Tongue And this happens happens in two cases first when we pray according as we are convinced in our consciences we ought to pray or as we have been taught by Forms or otherwise to pray and so the matter of our prayers is such as it ought to be but we cannot bring our hearts freely to consent thereto or our corrupt lusts put in exceptions and plead for an indulgence as Austin Ingeniously confesses of himself Confess l. 8. c. 7. At ego adolescens miser valde miser in exordio ipsius adolescentiae etiam petieram a te castitatem dixeram da mihi Castitatem Continentiam sed noli modo Timebam enim ne me cito exaudires cito sanares a Morbo Concupiscentiae quam malebam expleri quà m extingui That is I a wretched young man unhappy in the very beginning of my youth had even then desired Chastity of thee and said give me Chastity and Continency But do not give it me yet for I was afraid lest thou shouldst hear me too soon and shouldst too soon cure me of my Disease of Incontinency which I desire rather to have satisfied than extinguished Thus many take up the words of David as it is too ordinary for men to make use of expressions borrowed from Scripture to fill up their prayers without that spirit wherewith they were there spoken Set a Watch O Lord Ps 141.3 before my Mouth keep the door of my Lips When they would be loth to be taken at their words and be kept from speaking many things which God would keep them from should he set a watch before them Again many pray that God would not lead them into temptation when they would be loth to be kept from many things which are a
20.12 as Jeremiah expresses it Isa 63.9 He is afflicted in all our Afflictions and pities us therein Psal 103.13 as a Father pities his Children 2. Prayer is a Remedy against Afflictions Psal 138.3 as thereby we obtain support and Comfort under them or Deliverance from them And I may say as much of Prayer Heb. 11.3 c. as the Apostle doth of Faith Jam. 5.16 the effectual fervent Prayer of a righteous Man avails much It turned the Heart of Esau Gen. 32.11 it put to Flight the Amalekites Ex. 17.11 Numb 14.17 It held God's Hand Exod. 23.11 It turned away his wrath Joshua 10.12.13 It stay'd the Sun in the Firmament It opened Heaven Jam. 5.17.18 and shut it again Yea time would fail me to tell of David Asa Jehoshaphat Hezehiah Esther The Prayer made by the Church for Peter which open'd the Prison-doors The thundering Legion in the Time of Aurelius which were so prevalent for the Emperour against his Enemies when he was in a great Strait that he thereupon wrote to the Senate to forbear the Persecution of them of which amongst others we may read Tertullians Apology Cap. 5. and Eusebius Lib. 5. Cap. 5. And the Reason of this Efficacy of Prayer is because they are his Children that pray to him their Prayers are indited by the Holy-Ghost and presented by Jesus Christ 3. Though God do not alwayes answer the Desires of his People in Prayer yet he many Times quiets their Hearts so as they go away satisfied as one that hath left the Management of his Affairs in the hands of a Friend who he knows is both faithful and able to look after them As Hannah when she had poured forth her Soul before the Lord 1 Sam. 1.15.18 went away and her Countenance was no more sad And we find that often verified which Bernard saith of himself Serm. 32. In Cant. Quoties me Oratio quem pene desperantem suscepit reddidit exultantem et de Venià presumentem he went to Prayer oftentimes even despairing and returned rejoycing and confident of Pardon Thus we shall find David beginning his Psalms many times with mournful complaints which he ends with Thanksgiving and Triumph as particularly Psal 6. Psal 13. Psal 22. Psal 28. Psal 69. Psal 142. But Secondly hereby sometimes are meant moral or Spiritual Infirmities Psal 10. as the Psalmist accounts it his Infirmity when he was ready to give up his Hopes and to complain of God as if he had forgot to be gracious And these are the Infirmities which the Apostle requires the strong to bear with in the weak Rom. 15.1 Now here it seems to signifie those spiritual Infirmities which we are subject to in our prayers by what followes in the Text and I shall make it more fully appear in mine ensuing discourse Rom 8.35 It is said he makes Intercession for us Which is not to be understood as if he did mediate or intercede for us as Christ doth who doth also make Intercession for us Neither doth he intercede in us using us only as Instruments to express his Mind as evil Spirits speak by those who are possessed by them but what he doth is by way of Assistance lifting over against us as the Greek word is by many interpreted as he that lifts over against another to help him when he is lifting at something that is too heavy for him And he is said to intercede because he helps us therein or causeth us to intercede As in one Place it is said the Spirit of Adoption cryeth Abba Father Gal. 4.6 in another Place that We thereby cry Abba Rom. 8.15 Father 1 King 8.13 As Solomon is said to build the Temple at Jerusalem because he directed encouraged and furnished Materials for the Building of it Both Christ and the Holy-Ghost are concerned in our Prayers Ephs 2.18 It is by Jesus Christ through one Spirit that we have Access to the Father 1 Jo. 2.1 Jo. 14.16.26 And the same Word translated Advocate when applyed to Jesus Christ is likeways frequently applyed to the Holy Ghost And as Advocates do not only plead for their Clients but many times dictate to them what they should say So both Christ and the Spirit are as Advocates to us And as Nathan did first suggest to Bathsheba what she should say 1 King 1.12 c. and then came in himself to confirm her Words to second them further to urge them So the Spirit doth first assist us in drawing up our Petitions for which Cause we are said to pray in or by the Spirit or Holy Ghost Ephes 6.18 Jude 20. And in this respect as is generally supposed he is called the Spirit of Supplication Zech. 12.10 And when we have presented our Petitions then Christ doth by his Intercession further confirm them and plead with the Father on our Behalf Now I shall shew particularly what are those Infirmities which we are subject to in Prayer and how the Spirit helps them And the first Infirmity I shall speak of is that which the Apostle here mentions in the Text that is Ignorance we know not what we should pray for as we ought He saith not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which might be understood of an Inability in General as that they know not to do right which is according to the ordinary manner of Expression in several Languages particularly the French and Italian and our English Bibles do well express that of the Evangelist which hath puzled many Criticks make it as sure as ye can Matt. 27.65 But it is here 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we know not what we should pray for as we ought And this may be understood two wayes either of the Matter of our Prayers that we know not as we should indeed know what to pray for or of the manner of them we know not what to pray for as we should pray It is certainly true of both As will appear by what I have here to say First we know not what we should pray for we know not first what we stand in need of such is the Latitude of the Commands of God Psal 119.96 and consequently the extent of our Duty that although we may know how to express our Desires in some Comprehensive Petitions which according to a large Interpretation of them may reach to our several necessities Yet we cannot pray explicitely for those several Mercies which we need And again so various are the Occurrences of our Lives that we know not what particular temporal Blessings to pray for As God caused a Gourd to grow up for Jonah which he laboured not for So he prevents us with many Favours which we cannot by our foresight or forecast contribute any thing to Now as it is in Learning those who have some Infight into it may possibly if they have Opportunity to furnish themselves with Books provide such as may serve
such are soon weary of being there and may come home as soon as they please But those that are men of much Business and great Dealing have many Occasions to take up their time which cause them many times to stay late Formal Christians have little to do with God when they come to him only for Company or Custom but a serious Christian that understands the Business of Christianity hath so much to do when he comes to the Throne of Grace and the Favour of God to desire towards him in so many particular Cases and on so many Occasions that he hardly knows how to get away He hath such Duties to perform which he wants Help in to perform them as he knows he ought such Graces to be strengthened which are ready to dye such difficulties to be directed in such Temptations to be strengthened against Secondly by this Wisdom and Understanding we come to approve the things that are more excellent Phil. 1.10 to value things according to their real worth and so not to insist too peremptorily on temporal Mercies As Christ submitted his natural Desires to the Will and Designe of his Father Matt. 26.39 So that we do not too much urge Petitions for outward Blessings but as David Jo. 12.27 look upon it as an Answer to our Prayers in Trouble or Affliction if God strengthen us with strength in our Souls and account a sanctifyed use of Affliction so Psal 138.3 Heb. 12.11 as thereby to be made Partakers of Gods Holiness as better than Deliverance from it It is true these acts of the Spirit upon the Soul do but habitually qualifie it for Prayer and many suppose there is yet a further actual Assistance of the Spirit in Prayer whereby he doth suggest our very Words to us 1 Cor. 2.13 Now to look a little more narrowly into this matter we may observe that God who worketh all things according to the Counsel of his own will Eph. 1.11 is pleased to work variously as the nature of things doth require or as may best serve his own wise and holy Ends. Our Salvation depends chiefly upon his effectual heart-turning Grace But yet he makes his Providence many times subservient to this Grace For we see he doth hereby usually cast men under such means and into such Circumstances as may best serve his Grace though when he would make manifest the power of his Grace and the rights of his Mercy he will turn a man in his ful Career to Hell as he did Paul So he usually makes Nature and other Means subservient to his Power and to the operations of his Spirit Yet when he would give clearer Proof of his divine Power and when such subservient means fail he shews that he hath no need of them Of old he fed his people with Bread from Heaven while they were in a Wilderness and could not be supplied with Bread in an ordinary Way But when they came into the Land of Canaan and had Opportunity to eat of the Corn thereof Josh 5.12 the Manna ceased So when God gave a new Law by Moses for gaining the greater Credit thereto he indued him with extraordinary Gifts and inspired him immediately by his Spirit And so he did other Prophets when he would recover his Church from some notorious Defection But ordinarily we know he served himself of such as had an Education which fitted them for that work which he imploied them them in as will appeare to any that shall consider that there were places of Education which were called Schools of the Prophets For it is evident from Scripture that there were certain Companies of them which did abide together in some considerable Number because they were forced to go and build them another Place and they were called Sons of the Prophets 2 Kings 2.3 Cap. 4.38 Cap. 6.1 c. because they were instructed by some famous or eminent person whom they called Father For there were Fathers by Instruction as well as by Generation Matâ— 23.9 It is further evident that it was lookt upon as an unusual thing for the Spirit of God to come upon any but such as were thus trained up because it was lookt upon as such a strange thing that Saul should prophesie 1 Sam. 10.11 Cap. 19.24 and by the Apology of Amos Amos 7.11 Zech. 13.5 and the Confession of the false Prophet Now to bring this nearer to our Purpose At the first preaching of the Gospel God was pleased to confirm it by signs and Wonders Heb. 2.4 and diverse Miracles and Gifts of the Holy Ghost for the gaining of more Credit thereto And then there were Persons to be sent forth into several Nations of the World which could not speak their Languages nor were instructed in many things which might be useful to them in such an Imployment So God did supply that Defect by the extraordinary work of his own Spirit But when the Gospel was confirmed by these Gifts and Miracles and was planted in the several Nations of the World It hath pleased the Lord to make use of ordinary Means as he did of Old to be subservient to his Spirit in such Ministrations as are for the Good of his Church so that there is not such a distinct evident Assistance of the Spirit now in preaching and praying 1 Cor. 14.15 as was in the Primitive Church Yet we may observe whom it hath pleased God to make use of for the work of the Ministry Eph. 4.12 for the perfecting of the Saints for the edifying of the Body of Christ If any shall to what I have said object That of old when any were acted by the Spirit of God though there were Societies of Prophets it came evidently upon them and there was such a divine Power upon them as it did plainly appear they were not acted by their own Spirit but by the Spirit of God I answer the Spirit of God did then act them according to that dispensation which they were then under and agreeable to his manner of working upon the Prophets of old And we may observe a manifest Difference betwixt the Work of the Spirit upon the Prophets under the Old Testament and such as were extraordinarily gifted under the New Those had the Spirit coming upon them onely at certain times as it is frequently said the Word of the Lord came to them at such a time 2 Kings 4.27 or at such a time they had such a thing revealed to them and it came upon them in such a manner that they were as men in a Rapture or extacy out of themselves so that they used strange Gestures sometimes 1 Sam. 19.24 and in their stile they speak not after the manner of men but pass from one thing to another not observing any Method or Connexion of things of the same Nature or Argument But under the New Testament they had a more constant habitual Assistance of the Spirit whereby they
particularly when he would set himself to Prayer his Mind wandered from him and drew him to other things and before he was aware his Prayer was interrupted and he was deceived by his Imagination and a little after he adds Quare Anima mea si sapis noli de viribus liberi arbitrii gloriari donec pervenias ad libertatem gloriae filiorum Dei that is Wherefore O my soul if thou be wise do not boast of the Power of Freewill till thou come to the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God Grad 8. pag. 176 177. and Grad 16. pag. 321. speaking of those words of the Apostle Jam. 3.2 in many things we offend all he adds What must we say that fall so far short of the perfection of the Apostles We pray to God and presently our Imaginations carry us away to think of other things and we turn the back as it were on God Now thus to trifle with God in Prayer is very unsuitable to the Majesty and Greatness of that God whom we should serve with Reverence and godly Fear Heb. 12.28 very unbecoming those that have or should have such a sense of the Worth of those things we pray for and the need which we stand in of them and such Prayers are no way answerable to those expressions of Scripture whereby the Nature of Prayer is set forth Gen. 32.24 as wrestling with God striving with him Rom. 15.30 Esa 26.16 Psal 102.1 pouring out a Prayer to him out our heart before him crying to him Psal 62.8 searching for him with all our heart Jona 2.2 Jer. 29.13 Esa 64.7 stirring up our selves to take hold on him lifting up our Soul to him So that we lose much of the Comfort and Benefit of our Prayers and finding little Sweetness therein and rare returns thereto another evil followes hereupon and that is Tediousness or Weariness of Spirit therein It is with us as with Servants that goe with their Masters when they visit their Friends The Master who is taken into some inner Room and hath the delightful Converse of his Friend and some Collation or Banquet to entertain him thinks time hastens too fast away while the Servant that stayes without and hath no Company to converse with nor any thing to refresh him thinks time long and tedious Or it is with men in Duties of Religion as in reading Books A School boy to perform his task toyls about words without regard to the Matter thereby expressed and burdens his Memory with what he understands not But when he comes to be a man and capable of Understanding the Matter of the Book and to suck out the Marrow and Sweetness of it what was a burden to him before is now a Delight So while we are Christians only by Profession we tire our selves with the meer out-side or shell of Duties But when we come to be Christians in truth we come to the marrow and kirnel thereof and so they are sweet and delightful to us Now the Spirit helps the distraction and wandring of our minds and consequently the tediousness and weariness that followes thereupon by making intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered inspiring us with those earnest and fervent desires which our tongues that ordinarily out-run our desires are not able to express And it is the first direction that a learned Man in his exercises of holy living gives against Wandring Thoughts in Prayer that besides the moral Industry that we should add to be steady in our Thoughts we should pray for the Spirit of Supplication and use Prayer to be assisted in Prayer Psâ—l 86.11 And as God can unite our Hearts to fear his Name so he can unite them or keep them close unto himself in Prayer For not to insist upon that immediate or Physical Influx that he may have upon our Minds to determine them to any particular Object we may conceive how this may be done in a moral way as a Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation assisting our Understandings in the knowledge of Spiritual things that having a due Sense of the Majesty and Greatness of God with whom we have to do and the Necessity and Excellency of the things we pray for our Minds may be more intent and fixed on the Object and Matter of our Prayrs Acts. 3.5 as the lame man gave heed to Peter and John expecting to receive something from them Further the Spirit of God doth both encourage our moral Industry and likewise assist us therein And as I before explained the Greek Word here used in the Text helps or takes over against us by giving us some sweet tasts of Spiritual Comforts in Prayer As the learned man last mentioned observes in the beginning of Religion most frequently and at other times irregularly God complies with our Infirmities and encourages our Duty with little overflowings of spiritual Joy and sensible Pleasure and Delicacies and Prayer so as we seem to feel some little beam of Heaven and great refreshments from the Spirit of consolation though he addes that it is not safe for us always to expect them for when we do so it is apt to make us cool in our enquiries and waitings upon Christ when we want them This seems to be that which the Church means by being brought into the chambers of her beloved Cant. 1.4 which are places of most intimate and familiar converse and into the Banquetting-house Cant. 2.4 or Wine-cellar to taste those spiritual Comforts which are as the best Wine Cant. 7.9 that causeth the Lips of those that are asleep to speak and though we tast not these Comforts alwayes in Prayer nor frequently though this be as Bernard saith rara Hora a time that seldom happens yet Psal 63.1 as David's Soul longed to see Gods Power and Glory as he had seen it in his Sanctuary so this will make us long and hope to taste the like refreshments in prayer as a good man when he had lost a Son and was very much afflicted thereby he was observed on a sudden to be very chearful and being asked what was the reason of so sudden a change he answered that to enjoy those comforts which he had found with God in prayer he could be content to lose a Son every day in the year The Fifth and last infirmity which I shall speak of is Sorrow or Grief which many times makes the soul as a Vessel without vent Cura livis loquuntur ingentis stupent Esa 26.16 light afflictions do many times makes us pour out our prayers to God but great afflictions amaze and stupifie So the Psalmist was so troubled Psal 77.4 that he could not speak Yet this is an infirmity for we should pour out our complaint before the Lord even when we are overwhelmed Psa 102.1 Now according as this sorrow or trouble is different so is the means whereby the Spirit doth help or ease us Sometimes our affliction may be