The religious servant should be as careful in'the choice of his master, as the religious master is careful in the choice of his servant. Gracious servants are great blessings to the families where they live ; and that master may well be called the uniiappy master, who will rather part with a gracious servant, than spare him a little time in a day to pour out his soul before the Lord in a corner. But,
(■i.) Fourthlij, I answer. If thou aii a gracious servant, then thou art spirited and principled by God, to this very jpurpose, that titou mayest cry, Abba, Father, when thou art alone, when thou art in a corner, and no eye seeth thee, but his who seeth in secret, Rom. viii. 15 ; Gal. iv. 6 ; 1 Cor. vi. J 9 ; 2 Tim. i. 14. If thou art a gracious servant, then thou hast received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, 1 Cor. ii. 12. Now, he that hath this tree of life, he hath also the fruit that grows upon this tree : Gal. v. 22, 23, •■But the fruit of the Spirit is iove, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance, &c. Now, grace is called, not the works of the Spirit, but the fruits of the Spirit.
(1.) Because all grace is derived from the Spirit as the fruit is derived from the root. And,
(2.) To note the pleasantness and delightfulness of grace, for what is more pleasant and delightful than sweet and wholesome fruits ? Cant, iv. 16, vi. 2.
(3.) To note the profit and advantage that doth redound to them that have the Spirit ; for as many grow rich by the fruits of their gar- dens and orchards, so many grow rich in grace, in holiness, in comfort, in spiritual experiences, by the fruits of the Spirit. Now why hath God given thee his Spirit, and why hath he laid into thy soul a stock of supernatural graces, but that thou mayest be every way qualified, disposed, and fitted for private prayer, and to maintain secret com- munion with God in a corner ?
Certainly God never gave any poor servant a talent of gifts, or a
^ Justinus the second emperor's motto was, Liberttu ret inestmabilis. Liberty is in- valuable.
212 THE PRIVY KEY OF HEAVEN. [MaT. VI. 6.
talent of grace, but in order to his driving of a secret trade heaven- ward.
(5.) Fifthly, I answer, Though king Darius had made a decree that none should ask any petition of any god or man, for thiHy days, upon the penalty of being cast into the den of lions, yet Daniel, who was both a subject and a servant to king Darius, and one upon wlwse hand^ tJie chiefest and greatest affairs of the kingdom, did lie, did keep up his private devotions. In the first and second verses of that sixth of Daniel, you will find that Daniel had abundance of great and weighty employments upon his hands ; he was set over the whole affairs of the whole empire of Persia, and he with two other presidents, of whom himself was chief, were to receive the accounts of the whole kingdom from all those hundred and twenty princes, which in the Persian monarchy were employed in all public businesses. And yet, notwithstanding such a multiplicity of business as lay upon his hands, and notwithstanding his servile condition, yet he was very careful to redeem time for private prayer ; yea, it is very observable that the heart of Daniel, in the midst of all his mighty businesses, was so much set upon private prayer, upon his secret retirements for religious exer- cises, that he runs the hazard of losing all his honours, profits, pleasures, yea, and life itself, rather than he would be deprived of convenient time and opportunities to wait upon God in his chamber. Certainly Daniel will one day rise in judgment against all those subjects and servants who think to evade private prayer by their pleas of much businass, and of their being servants, &c. But,
(6.) Sixthly, I answer, If you who are gracious servants, notwith- standing your masters' businesses, cannot redeem a little time to wrestle with God in a corner, what singular thing do you ? What, do you more than others ? Do you hear ? So do others. Do you read ? So do others. Do you follow your masters to public prayers ? So do others. Do you join with your masters in family prayers ? So do others. Oh ! but now gracious servants should go beyond all other servants in the world, they should do singular things for God : Mat. v. 47, ' What do you more than others V ri 'jti^iaah '^onTn ? What ex- traordinary thing do you ? What more ordinary than to find servants follow their masters to pubhc prayers and to family prayers ? Oh ! but now to find poor servants to redeem a little time from their masters' business to pour out their souls before the Lord in a corner, this is not ordinary, yea, this is extraordinary, and this doth wonderfully well be- come gracious servants. Oh ! that all men's servants, who are servants to the most high God, would seriously consider,
[l.J How singularly they are privileged by God above all other servants in the world. They are called, adopted, reconciled, pardoned, justified before the throne of God, which other servants are not, &c., 1 Cor. iii. 22, 23. And why then should not such servants be singular in their services, who are so singular in their privileges ?
[2 ] Secondly, Gracious servants are made partakers of a more excellent nature than other servants are. 2 Pet«r i. 4, ' Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises ; that by these you might be made partakers of the divine nature.' The apostle in this expression doth not aim at any essential change and conversion of
Mat. VI. 6.] the privy key of heaven. 213
our substance into the nature of God and Christ, but only at the eleva- tion and dignifying of our nature by Christ. Though that real, that near, that dear, that choice, that mysterious, that peculiar, that singular, union that Christians have with Christ, doth raise them up to a higher similitude and likeness of God and Christ than ever they had attained to in their primitive perfection ; yet it doth not introduce any real transmutation, either of our bodies or souls, into the divine nature. It is certain that our union and conjunction with Christ doth neither mingle persons nor unite substances, but it doth enjoin our affections, and brings our wills into a league of amity with Christ' To be made par- taker of the divine nature notes two things, say some. ^First, A fellowship with God in his holiness ;