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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	holy_a	spirit_n	worship_v	3,077	5	9.0447	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A43573	Closet-prayer a Christian duty, or, A treatise upon Mat. VI, VI. tending to prove that worship of God in secret is the indispensible duty of all Christians ... together with a severe rebuke of Christians for their neglect of, or negligence in, the duty of closet-prayer, and many directions for the managing thereof ... / by O. Heywood.	Heywood, Oliver, 1629-1702.	1671 (1671)	Wing H1762; ESTC R24371	90,506	148

reach the ear of God for he knoweth the mind of the Spirit Phil. 3.3 Jude 20. This is that which is called a worshipping God in the spirit a praying in the holy Ghost i. e. either as to the matter of the Prayer dictated by the Spirit or as to the manner of praying the soul being actuated by the holy Ghost See Mark 11.36 13.11 For I conceive it may import the former as well as the latter as other Scriptures compared hold forth Alas flesh and blood will put up such petitions as God will not accept or in such a manner as is no way suitable to his spiritual Nature The truth is Christians you will but bungle at the work without this help of Gods Spirit and God will take notice of you except he hear his own language do not think you can wrestle out the business your selves you must be beholding to God for help in Prayer as well as for hearing your Prayer your own spirits will not carry you to Heaven that which is from the earth is earthly and riseth no higher than earth but the holy Ghost will elevate your souls to God Therefore I beseech you Sirs beg the Spirit yield to its motions improve its operations say when you are going to duty Lord now stir up thy self and stir up thy grace in my heart Awake oh North-wind and come thou South blow upon thy Garden Cant. 4.16 My Soul that the spices thereof may flow out that graces may be exercised and exerted Lord I am low flat hard send the powerful arm of thy blessed Spirit to work all gracious dispositions in me and raise up my affections to thee I see I am below the duty and infinitely below thee in the duty but thou and thou alone canst raise me up quicken soften my dead and rocky heart come Lord and shew thy powerful Arm let it appear what God can do for a sorry worm Oh lift me up to thee that my soul may enjoy some sweet communion with thee Send thy spirit to fetch in my wanton wandring heart Oh for some fire from Heaven to burn up my sacrifice or else it will lye like a lump of flesh and be no true Holocaust of pure Incense before thee Let thy Spirit scatter these mists of ignorance and drive away these flies of distracting thoughts that my heart may be with thee and my performance may be as sweet savour in the nostrils of God SECT IV. More Essentials in secret Prayer A Third ingredient in Prayer is that it be according to God's will it must have a warrant from the Word a word of Precept or Promise or Example must be the ground of our petitions a command is our warrant a promise our incouragement an example is our tract and the footsteps of the flock wherein we must walk He that asks amiss shall not speed but if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us and then we know we have the petitions that we desired of him 1 Joh. 5.14 15. Now we ask according to his will when both the matter of our petition is aright and our end in asking is Gods glory and our own or others spiritual good otherwise if we ask of God what we conceit to be a mercy and have not asked counsel at God's mouth or ask so as to consume it upon our lusts we may well meet with a denial My friends you may not say what you please in the presence of God Consider God is in Heaven you are on Earth therefore be not rash with your mouth and let not your heart be hasty to utter any thing before God let your words be few and well weighed Eccles 5.2 The work you are about is a solemn business do not ramble in extravagant desires of unlawful things think not that God will patronize your lusts and when you have asked that which you conceive is according to his will refer it wholly to his Will say The Will of the Lord be done submit your selves to his dispose for time manner means and all circumstances for giving of it ask temporal mercies conditionally and spiritual Comforts with submission to Gods will learn that petition Thy will be done to pray it as well as say it Indeed Luther could say Let thy will be done but he come off with this My will Lord because my will is melted into thine there 's but one will betwixt us Let God's will be your will 't is fit it should be so our heavenly Father is wiser than we Consider Haec repraesentatio debet esse submissa humilis alias enim non esset precatio religiosa à creatura subdita ad supremum Numen Creatorem directa sed vel imperium superioris ergo inferiorem vel quasi familiaris collocutio quatis est inter aequales Ames medull theol lib. 2.6 p. 255. a man cannot pray in faith for that which he hath no warrant to ask Besides Amesius saith If a man come not with an humble submission to Gods will it were not a religious prayer directed to the supream Creator but a kind of command by a superiour to an inferiour or a familiar discourse as amongst equals Therefore let us humbly plead Gods Will as Abraham did Gen. 18.27 Further consider the design of Prayer is not to incline God before unwilling to our mind and desire for with him there is no variableness nor shadow of change but that we may obtain of him by Prayer what we know afore-hand he is willing to give Lastly consider we Christs example Mat. 26.39 If it be possible let this cup pass from me nevertheless not as I will but as thou wilt This is right praying to ground our petition upon a promise yet freely to leave all at Gods feet to dispose of us as he sees good Our prayers and Gods promises should point towards each other as those two figures 9 and 6. Promises do bend downwards and after the same motion must our prayers ascend upwards so will there be a blessed harmony and seasonable return This is the third Direction Let your Prayers be warranted by the Word 4. Improve your Advocate Joh. 14.13 Whatsoever you ask in my name that will I do To ask any thing in his name is not rudely customarily or complementally to conclude with these words Through Jesus Christ our Lord c. but in confidence of his merit and intercession to call upon our heavenly Father as Daniel pleads for the Lords sake Dan. 9.17 For since the Fall none can come immediately to God but through a Mediator nor are we to fetch a compass by the groundless invocation of Saints and Angels I hope you have otherwise learned Christ I am most afraid in the practick part that in particular acts at least precious Souls are in danger to miscarry especially in Closet-Prayer when a Christian is got alone and there finds a sweet gale of the blessed Spirit helping his heart to mourn for sin bewail

positive Scripture-warrant to bind my conscience I dare not do otherwise I may say If I be deceived thou hast deceived me but I am sure plain Texts are no cheats I cannot otherwise understand such a Command and oh my God since thou hast thus ingaged me in thy work wilt thou suffer me to miscarry therein 4. He pleads a particular promise I will deal well with thee Surely a comprehensive word containing in it all that Jacob wanted Thus must a Christian search the Scriptures get hold of a promise spread it before the Lord whether for spiritual grace inward comfort or outward supply as thus Lord I find a promise in such a place to a person in my very case pat and pertinent to my very condition as if it had been calculated purposely for me in this juncture now Lord make it good to my Soul and Seed thou hast made it good to others in my state and why not to me Am not I an heir of promise And must not I have a share therein 5. Jacob lays himself under the sense of his own unworthiness I am not worthy saith he of the least of all thy mercies This is the property and excellency of a Saint to nullifie himself and Omnifie God as I may so say thus Abraham in his pleading calls himself dust and ashes and the Centurion judged himself not worthy that Christ should come under his roof Thus then abase thy self Lord I am not worthy to enjoy any common mercy not fit to lift up mine eyes to thee less than the least of thy mercies behold I am vile I am not only destitute of merits but full of demerits Hell is my desert I can challenge nothing as mine but sin and the fruits thereof Lord I condemn my self do not thou condemn me and cast me from thee 6. He is affected with Gods faithfulness in the performance of his promises acknowledging the truth of God shewed to his servant There is mercy in Gods making a promise to Abraham Mic. 7.20 truth in making it good to Jacob. Well then with Jacob thus plead Lord 't is true there was nothing of desert in me to engage thee either to make or keep thy gracious promise but sure the word is gone from thee yea and notwithstanding all my treachery and unfaithfulness thou hast kept it to this day Oh keep it still it depends wholly on thee let not my vanity alter the course of thy mercy but pardon and accept as thou hast done from my Aegypt until now 7. Jacob further recounts his former meanness his low condition With my staff I passed over this Jordan I came hither in a poor contemptible manner a sorry pilgrim thus do you plead Truth it is Lord thy grace is absolutely free there was neither wit nor wealth to move thee to do what thou hast done I can remember the time when I was as sorry and silly a creature as was in all the Countrey there was no capacity in me to do thee any remarkable service thou didst not set thy love upon me for any natural or moral accomplishments even so Father because it pleased thee and wilt thou now forsake me Thou mightest have done that at easier rates 8. Here 's Jacob's Stone of memorial for by-past and present mercies Now saith he I am become two bands i. e. two great companies of wives children servants flocks herds I may say These where had they been 'T is strange to see poor worm Jacob thus rich oh the bounty of God! So do thou say Lord take notice what thou hast done for me must all this be in vain Wilt thou throw away these good things Wilt thou not rather crown these gifts with continuance of thy kindness Wilt thou return to do me hurt after thou hast done me all this good Dost thou not remember my convictions consolations my fears tears doubtings refreshments Oh the passages of love betwixt thee and me Shall I be the grave of these mercies Lord forget me not 9. Here 's his sense of approaching danger Deliver me I pray thee from the hand of my Brother for I fear him c. A Brother offended is harder to be won than a strong City Jacob's danger was a spur to his Prayer A pursued Hart runs fast for shelter so do thou Soul when afraid flie to the Lord and say Oh my God I have deadly enemies within without my case is forlorn desperate I have none to run to but thy self Hast not thou said that in thee the fatherless find mercy Other refuge fails me no man cares for my soul Lord relieve deliver this sinful wretch else I go down into the pit 10. Once more doth Jacob plead the promise and inlarge the granted Charter Thou saidst I will surely do thee good and make thy seed as the sand of the Sea Thus do you still seek out suck sweetness from and put in suit the promises by earnest prayer In this manner Lord hast thou not promised an heart of flesh a broken heart Why then is my heart hardened from thy fear Dost thou not say thou wilt give thy holy Spirit to them that ask it This Lord I want to be a spirit of truth and illumination a spirit of prayer and supplication a spirit of grace and sanctification and of satisfaction Oh bestow this mercy upon me Dost thou not promise to take away my inqiuities by pardoning Grace for thine own Name sake And to subdue my corruption and increase grace and bring me to glory Lord remember thy word unto thy servant in which thou hast caused me to trust Thus much for helps in pleading with God and for that use of Instruction CHAP. VIII An Vse of Exhortation urged SECT I. THe last Use is for Exhortation to put us on to the performance of this sweet duty of Closet-Prayer My beloved friends I beseech you suffer the word of Exhortation you see the work before you you see a plain Scripture-warrant for it you have heard many Instances of Scripture-patterns you see the manner of the performance let none now plead ignorance or look upon it as needless or make excuses or evasions Is it not equal and reasonable Is it not worth the while to converse with your God in a Corner Look over the reasons of the Doctrine and see if there be not some weight in them But besides those I shall propound to you these expostulatory Motives 1. Would you not be such as make conscience of every commanded duty You are no real Saints unless you have respect to all Gods Commandments Psal 119.6 If you pick and chuse in your obedience you are hollow-hearted hypocrites And can you deny this to be a duty And will you stand dodging with God Must he raze this Sentence out of the Bible to humour your conceits and sloth Is not Closet-Prayer a Christian duty Dare you argue against it Out of what Topicks will you fetch your Arguments And do you acknowledge it to be a duty and

earth yea sometimes be layeth aside these and rather useth the former that all the glory might be his And that no flesh might glory in his presence 1 Cor. 1.29 But such as I am or have is all devoted to the honour of our Redeemer and welfare of Souls Octob. 31. 1668. Whiles I am Oliver Heywood Books to be sold by Thomas Parkhurst at the Golden-Bible at the lower end of Cheapside AN Exposition of Temptation on Mat. 4. ver 1. to the end of the eleventh by Dr. Tho. Taylor fol. Daille on the Epistle to the Colossians containing 49. Sermons fol. A practical Exposition on the third Chapter of the first Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians with the Godly Mans Choice on Psa 4. v. 6 7 8. By Anthony Burgess fol. The view of the holy Scriptures By Hugh Broughton fol. These six Treatises next following are written by Mr. George Swinnock 1. The Christian Mans Calling or a Treatise of making Religion ones business in Religious Duties Natural Actions his Particular Vocation his Family Directions and his own Recreation to be read in Families for their Instruction and Edification The first part 2. Likewise a second Part wherein Christians are directed to perform their Duties as Husbands and Wives Parents and Children Masters and Servants in the conditions of Prosperity and Adversity 3. The third and last part of the Christian Mans Calling wherein the Christian is directed how to make Religion his business in his dealings with all Men in the Choice of his Companions in his carriage in good Company in bad Company in solitariness or when he is alone on a week-day from morning to night in visiting the sick on a Dying-bed as also the means how a Christian may do this and some motives to it 4. The Door of Salvation opened by the Key of Regeneration 5. Heaven and Hell Epitomized And the True Christian characterized 6. The Fading of the Flesh and the flourishing of Faith Or One cast for Eternity with the only way to throw it well All these by George Swinnock M. A. Large Octavo's An Exposition on the five first Chapters of Ezekiel with useful observations thereupon By Will. Greenhil 4to The Gospel-Covenant or the Covenant of Grace opened Preached in New-England by Peter Bulkely 4to God's holy Mind touching Matters Moral which himself uttered in ten words or ten Commandments Also an Exposition on the Lords Prayer By Edward Elton B. D. 4to Fiery Jesuite or an Historical Collection of the Rise Increase Doctrines and Deeds of the Jesuites Exposed to view for the sake of London 4to Horologiographia Optica Dialling Universal and Particular Speculative Practical By Sylvanus Morgan 4to The Rebuilding of London encouraged and improved in several Meditations By Samuel Rolles The sure way to Salvation or a Treatise of the Saints Mystical Union with Christ wherein that great Mysterie and Priviledge is opened in the nature properties and the necessity of it By R. Steedman M. A. A defence against the fear of Death By Zuch Croston Gods Soveraignty displayed By Will. Geering The Godly Mans Ark or City of Refuge in the day of his distress in five Sermons with Mrs. Moor's Evidences for Heaven By Edm. Calamy The Almost Christian discovered or the false Professor tryed and cast By Mr. Mead. Spiritual Wisdom improved against Temptation By Mr. Mead. 1. A Divine Cordial 2. A word of comfort for the Church of God 3. A Plea for Alms in a Sermon at the Spittle 4. The Godly Mans Picture drawn with a Scripture-pensil 5. The Doctrine of Repentance 6. Heaven taken by Storm 7. The Holy Eucharist or The Sacrament of the Lords Supper briefly opened These seven by Mr. Tho. Watson The true bounds of Christian Freedom or a Discourse shewing the extents and restraints of Christian liberty wherein the truth is setled many errors confuted out of John 8. ver 36. Comfortable Crumbs of Refreshment by Prayers Meditation Consolation and Ejaculations with a Confession of Faith and sum of the Bible Aurifodina Linguae Gallicae or the Golden Mine of the French Language opened By Ed. Costlin Gent. Sins Sinfulness By Ralph Venning Sober Singularity By R. Steedman The Parable of the great Supper By John Crump late of Maidstone The Christians daily Monitor By Joseph Church A Memento to young men and old By J. Maynard A Little Book for Little Children By Tho. White The History of Moderation or the Life Death Resurrection of Moderation The Conversion of a Sinner explained and applied from Ezek. 33.11 Worthy Walking By Nat. Vincent Method of Meditation By Tho. White Antidote against Quakerism The Contents of the Book Sect. 1. THe context cleared 1 Sect. 2. The words explaind 4 Sect. 3. Doctrines raised 7 Sect. 4. Instances for Closet-Prayer 1 Abraham 12 2 Isaac ibid. 3 Jacob 13 4 Moses 14 5 David ibid. Sect. 5. More Instances of 6 Elijah 15 7 Jeremiah 16 8 Daniel 17 9 Peter ibid. 10 Jesus Christ 18 CHAP. II. Sect. 1. Reason 1. Conveniency of Privacy 20 For 1 Expostulation 21 2 Act distraction ibid. Sect. 2. Reas 2. Relation betwixt God and Soul 24 1 The hearts free opening to a Father ibid. 2 God communicates himself to it ibid. Sect. 3. Reas 3. God sees in secret i. e. 1 He takes notice whether thou Pray 27 2 He hath seen thy secret sins 28 3 Thou losest not thy labour 29 4 Thou ownest Gods omnipresence 30 Sect. 4. Reas 4. God rewards openly fo●… ways 31 1 Returning visible Answers 32 2 Discriminating providences 33 Sect. 5. 3. Increase of Graces 35 Sect. 6. 4. Solemn owning at the great Day 36 CHAP. III. Sect. 1. Vse 1. Of information concerning places of Prayer 42 Sect. 2. The nature of Prayer 1 It is an immediate Worship 45 2 Cannot be interrupted ib Sect. 3. 3. The power of Prayer 48 Sect. 4. 4. The property of a Christian 50 CHAP. IV. Sect. 1. Vse of Reprehension 1 Of Wicked 53 Sect. 2. 2 Of Godly for neglecting this herein 56 1 They are unlike Jesus Christ ibid. 2Vnlike the Saints of God 57 3Vnlike themselves formerly 58 Sect. 3. 4 They lose much spiritual good 59 5 Expose themselves to temptation 60 6 They express little love to God 61 7 Gross ingratitude to him ibid. Sect. 4. 8 They contradict the Spirits motions 63 9 May be deprived of Helps 64 10 What if Christ surprize them in neglect 65 CHAP. V. Sect. 1. 3. Vse of Instruction about Closet-Prayer wherein are 1. preparatives to it 1 Look to your state 68 2 Lay aside other business 69 Sect. 2. 3 Set your selves in Gods sight 70 4 Muster up your thoughts wants 71 Sect. 3. 2 Essentials required in secret Prayer 1 Ingage the heart in it 74 2 Beg the Spirits assistance 77 Sect. 4. 3 Pray according to Gods will 78 4. In the name of Jesus Christ 80 CHAP. VI. Sect. 1. 3 Circumstances about Closet-Prayer Referring to Place 8 Referring to Posture 84 Referring to Season 85 Referring to Voyce

86 Sect. 2. 4 Duties consequent to it 87 1 Observe Gods appearance ibid. 2. Walk suitably 88 Sect. 3. 3 Wait for Returns 90 4 Communicate Experiments 91 CHAP. VII Sect. 1. Concerning matter or words of prayer 94 1 Lords-Prayer is paraphrased 95 Sect. 2. 2 Wherein an example propounded from Jacob Exod. 32.10 in ten particulars 98 CHAP. VIII Sect. 1. 4 Vse of Exhortation to Closet-prayer pressed by ten Expostulatory Arguments 103 Sect. 2. Objections answered as 1 I perform Family-duty Answ 110 2. I am a poor Labouring man Ans ibid. 3. I am a Servant and cannot Ans 111 4 I want a convenient place Ans 112 5 I know some Christians against it Ans 113 Sect. 3. 6 I find not my heart prepared Ans 114 7 I meet with temptations Ans 115 8 I get no good by it Ans 116 9 I want gifts for it Ans 117 10 'T is too much ado labour Ans 118 Sect. 4. Cases of conscience answered 1 What difference betwixt Saint and hypocrite 120 2 Whether may a man ingage by vow 121 3 How may we know communion with God 122 4 What must I do if I find no good ibid. The Whole concluded with Exhortation 124 MATTH 6.6 But thou when thou prayest enter into thy Closet and when thou hast shut thy door pray to thy Father which is in secret and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly CHAP. I. SECT I. The Context cleared IN this excellent Sermon of our precious Saviour in the Mount we have both the Gospel clearly Propounded and the Law solidly expounded The corrupt and carnal Pharisees had degraded God's holy Law from its spiritual extent and regiment by their low and literal glosses but our Saviour restores it to its dignity and authority over hearts and consciences In this Chapter the best Preacher that ever opened his mouth doth admirably explain the Adjuncts Offices and Exercises of true Piety which are principally three Alms Prayer and Fasting to ver 19. Particularly concerning the Duty of Prayer there were two material destructive Faults which the Scribes and Pharisees were guilty of in that sweet and solemn Ordinance Those were 1. Hypocrisie 2. Battologie or vain-babling Jesus Christ rebukes and rectifies both 1. They were wont to perform their private devotions in publick places meerly for vain-glory to be seen of men as in the Synagogues or in the Streets ver 5. Now for the Disciples practice in this case he commands them to withdraw themselves out of the view of men into some solitary place and there perform that Duty where they are least exposed to the danger of ostentation ver 6. 2. Another fault that our Redeemer rebukes in the Duty of Prayer is vain Repetitions And though he only mention it here as the Heathens fault ver 7. yet certainly the Scribes and Pharisees might also be guilty of it for they are censured for their long Prayers Mat. 23.14 Yet upon different accounts Here the Heathens use vain repetitions that they may move God There the Scribes and Pharisees make long Prayers that they may deceive men and devour Widows houses This Text saith They think they shall be heard for their much speaking just as Baal's Priests 1 King 18.26 They called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon saying O Baal hear us they leapt upon the Altar and cryed aloud and cut themselves with knives and lancers till the blood gushed out upon them No doubt this was done to move their cruel god or rather stupid block to some pity and compassion Just as the frantick Papists do at this day in their self-tormenting penances But our God who is the searcher of hearts delights more in ardent affections than in either extension of the voice or multiplication of words or excruciating afflictions of the outward man Therefore our Saviour tells us that when we pray we come not to inform God of any thing he is ignorant of ver 8. Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him But we pray that our own hearts may be affected and that we may have the condition of acceptance And for the rectifying of this abuse of vain babling in Prayer Christ propounds and presents to us an exact draught and compendious platform of Prayer in that which is commonly called The Lords Prayer not as though men should say only those words and no more for then the Apostles had failed in praying in other terms but that this might be a directory for Prayer So that every thing we ask Ut aliter orare quam docuit non Ignorantia sola est sed Culpa Cyp. serm ad orat Domin pag. 408. should be reducible to some of those heads mentioned in this perfect platform So that as Cyprian saith To pray otherwayes than he hath taught either as to the manner or substance of the matter 't is not only ignorance but an offence and indeed we cannot expect to be heard except we ask as well according to Christs mind as in his name But this is not the subject I have chosen to insist upon That which falls under our present cognizance from this Text is The modification of Prayer with respect to the circumstance of privacy solitariness or retirement The Text holds forth the warrant for and manner of carrying on the great work of Closet-Prayer a copious Subject a precious Duty In which are 1 The Place for it a Closet 2 The clossness of the place Door-shut 3 The object of the worship Thy Father 4 The Arguments to inforce thy Duty 1 Gods omniscience he sees 2 His munificence will reward SECT II. The words opened FOr a more distinct opening of the words according to the parts before-mentioned consider 1. What is meant by a Closet here Some understand and interpret it not literally but mystically making an Allegory of it as though it did import interiorem cordis recessum the inner recesses or motions of the heart but though that be a truth and duty That we must pray in the closet of the heart yet I humbly conceive that is not the proper meaning of this place for we need not interpret this plain word in such a borrowed sense since multitudes of Scriptures are so express for worshipping God with the heart Besides that is not suitable to the scope of the place which opposeth self-retirement to the Pharisaical modes of devotion Leigh in Crit. Sac. in verb. The word then is to be literally taken and in general imports any secret place where a thing is laid up Mat. 24.26 Luk. 12.3 particularly it signifies a Safe or Cupboard to lay victuals in or a locked Chest wherein a treasure is usually reserved or it s taken as indeed here and oft elsewhere for a closs or secret chamber a withdrawing-room Quemvis locum occultum notat Par. retiring-place where a person is not seen or heard nor yet is disturbed in his devotions by any noise or