Now mark, the Spirit of God that is in all the saints, is a Spirit of prayer and supplication : Rom. viii. 15, 'Ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.' While the child is in the womb it cannot cry, but as soon as it is born it cries. Whilst Paul did lie in the womb of his natural estate, he could not pray; but no sooner was^e born of the Spirit, but the next news is, 'Behold he prayethT » Qu. ' moral ' ; that is, merely moral, as distinguished from ' holy ' ?— Ed.
234? THE PRIVY KEY OF HEAVEN. [MAT. VI. 6.
Acts ix. 11, Prayer is nothing but the turning of a man's inside out- ward before the Lord. The very soul of prayer lies in the pouring out of a man's soul into the bosom of God. Prayer is nothing but the breathing that out before the Lord that was first breathed into us by the Spirit of the Lord. Prayer is nothing but a choice, a free, a sweet, and familiar intercourse of the soul with God. Certainly, it is a great work of the Spirit to help the saints to pray : Gal. iv. 6, ' Because you are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, cry- ing, Abba, Father.' God hath no still-born children. The gemination, ' Abba, Father,' notes fiducial, filial, and vehement affection. The first is an Hebrew or Syriac word, the second a Greek,* whereby is signified the union of the Hebrews and Grecians, or the Jews and Gentiles, in one church, 'Abba, Father.' What is Abba ? say others in Hebrew, Father ; and it is added, because in Christ the corner-stone both peoples are joined, alike becoming sons, whencesoever they come : circumcision from one place, whereupon Abba; uncircumcision from another, where- upon Father is named : the concord of the walls being the glory of the corner-stone.
The word Abba, say others, signifies father in the Syriac tongue, which the apostle here retaineth, because it is a word full of affection, which young children retain almost in all languages, when they begin to speak. And he adds the word father, not only to expound the same, but also the better to express the eager movings and the earnest and vehement desires and singular affections of believers, in their crying unto God ; even as Christ himself redoubled the word Father, Mark xiv. 86, to the same purpose, when he was in his greatest distress. This little word Father, saith Luther, lisped forth in prayer by a child of, God, exceeds the eloquence of Demosthenes, Cicero, and all other so famed orators in the world. It is certain that the Spirit of God helps the saints in all their communions with God, viz., in their meditations of God, in their reading and hearing of the word of God, in the com- munions one with another, and in all their solemn addresses to God. And as to this the apostle gives us a most special instance in that Rom. viii. 26, ' Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities : for we know not what we should pray for as we ought ; but the Spirit itself maketh intercessions for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.' When we are to pray, there is in us sometimes an infirmity of ignorance, so that we know not what to pray for, either in regard of the matter or the manner. And there is in us at other times an infirmity of pride and conceitedness, so that we cannot pray with that humility and low- liness of spirit as we should, spiritual pride having fly-blown our prayers. Sometimes there is in us an infirmity of deadness, dulness, drowsiness, &c., so that we cannot pray with that warmth, heat, life, spirit, and fervency, as we should, or as v/e would ; and at other times there is in us an infirmity of unbelief and slavish fears, so that we can- not pray with that faith and holy boldness, as becomes children that draw near to a throne of grace, to a throne of mercy, &c. But now the Spirit helps these infirmities by way of instruction, prompting and teaching us what to pray for, and how we should spell our lesson ; and by telling us as it were within, what we should say, and how we should ' Pareus [in loco, as before. — G.]
Mat. VI. 6.] the privy key of heaven. 235
sigh and groan ; and by rousing and quickening, and stirring of us up to prayer, and by his singular influence and choice assistance opening and enlarging our hearts in prayer ; and by his tuning the strings of our affections, he prepares us and fits us for the work of supplication ; and therefore every one that derides the spirit of prayer in the saints, saying These are the men and the women that pray by the Spirit ! blas- pheme against the Holy Spirit ; it being a main work of the Spirit to teach the saints to pray and to help them in prayer. Now, all the saints having the Spirit, and the Spirit being a Spirit of prayer and supplica- tion, there is no reason in the world why a saint should say, I would pray in secret, but I cannot pray, I cannot pour out my soul nor my complaint before the Lord in a corner.
(6.) Sixthly and lastly, Thou sayest thou canst not pray, thou hast not the gifts and parts which others have. But thou canst manage thy callings, thy worldly business as well as others ; and why then canst thou not pray as well as others ? Ah, friends ! did you but love private prayer as well as you love the world, and delight in private prayer as much as you delight in the world, and were your hearts as much set upon closet-prayer as they are set upon the world, you would never say you could not pray, yea, you would as quickly pray as well as others. It is not so much from want of ability to pray in secret. that you don't pray in secret, as it is from want of a will, a heart to pray in secret, that you don't pray in secret. Jacob's love to Rachel, and Shechem's love to Dinah, carried them through the greatest diffi- culties, Gen. xxix. and xxxiv. Were men's affections but strongly set upon private prayer, they would quickly find abilities to pray. He that sets his affections upon a virgin, though he be not learned nor eloquent, will find words enough to let her know how his heart is taken with her. The application is easy. He in Seneca complained of a thorn in his foot, when his lungs was rotten. So many complain of want of ability to pray in their closets, when their hearts are rotten. Sirs ! do but get better hearts, and then you will never say you can't pray. It is one of the saddest sights in all the world, to see men strongly parted and gifted for all worldly businesses, to cry out that they can't pray, that they have no ability to pour out their souls before the Lord in secret. You have sufiicient parts and gifts to tell men of your sins, your wants, your dangers, your difficulties, your mercies, your deliverances, your duties, your crosses, your losses, your enjoyments, your friends, your foes ; and why then are you not ashamed to complain of your want of parts and gifts, to tell those very things to God in a corner, which you can tell to men even upon the housetops? &c. But,