Use of direction. When you come to wait on the word, or receive here any quickening exhortation, call God into the business, that the thing may not die away in your hearts. Make conscience of praying as well as hearing. You hear from man in God's name, but carry it again to God, that he may bless it. All religion is carried on between the pulpit and the throne of grace. You will thrive if you conscien- tiously make use of both ordinances — if you hear of Christ in the word, and make use of him in prayer.
II. Observation. That prayer must be made to God alone : Ps. Ixv. 2, ' 0 thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come.' The apostle here addresseth himself to God, and so must all flesh.
1. He alone is capable of hearing prayers. AVe conceive of God as an inflnite being, wise, powerful, and good ; as knowing all things, as able to do all things, as willing to give all things that we can in reason and righteousness ask of him.
[1.] He knoweth all things, our persons, wants, necessities, prayers. Our persons : God knoweth that there is such a creature in the world as thou art ; for surely God knoweth whom he hath made, and whom he supporteth and goverueth. A notable instance we have : Acts ix. 11, ' And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street that is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus ; for behold he prayeth.' What a description is here of God's particular providence ! — the city of Damascus ; the street called Straight; the house of one Judas; the person (a lodger there), one Saul of Tarsus ; the action he was employed in, behold, he prayeth ! He knoweth our wants and necessities : Mat. vi. 8, ' Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before you ask him.' He ob- served every weary step of David in the wilderness, and all his tears ^nd sorrows : Ps. Ivi. 8, 'Thou tellest my wanderings; put thou my tears in thy bottle : are they not in thy book ? ' He particularly took notice •of all the troubles and sorrows of his exile and wandering condition, as if his tears had been preserved in a bottle, and his troubles registered or recorded in a book. The doctrine of the Gentiles was, Dii magna c-urant, jmrva negligunt — that great and weighty matters the Lord took into his care, but left other things to their own event and chance ;
138 THE FOURTEENTH SERMON. [2 TilES. II. IG, 17.
l)ut the doctrine of the scripture is otherwise; God taketh notice of every })articular jierson. For our prayers : Ps. xxxiv. 6, ' This poor man cried unto the Lord, and the Lord lieard liim, and saved him out of all his troubles/ How obscure soever the worshi[)per be in the ac- count of the world, if he depend on God, the Lord will rejj^ard him.
[2.] For his i)ower. He is able to do all things : Mark xiv. 3G, * Abba, Father, all things are possible to thee.'
[3.] For his goodnes.s. He relieveth all his creatures ; heareth the moans of the beasts, much more the prayers of the saints : Ps. cxlv. 1.5, IG, ' The eyes of all things wait upon the Lord, and thou givest them their meat in due season,' &c. Kow this he makes a ground of ' fultilling the desires of them that fear him, and being near to all that call upon him,' vers. 18, 19. He that feedeth a kite, will he not j)rovide for a child ? 8iu-ely we have more reason to trust in God than they, if you think this belongeth to his common bounty. But in spiritual things it is otherwise ; he is most pleased when we ask spiritual blessings: 1 Kings iii. 10, ' It pleased the Lord that Solomon asked this thing.' Well, then, since none other is capable, and God is, to him must we come.
2. The scri])tures, which are the proper rule of worship, direct us to no other. When Christ taught his disciples to \)vay, he directed them to God : Luke xi. 2, ' When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven.' Invocation is divine worship, and so done to God alone.
3. When the Spirit m(n'eth us to pray, he inclineth us to come to God: Pvom. viii. 1.5, 'Ye have received the Spirit of adoption, where- by we cry, Abba, Father ; ' Gal. iv. 5, 6, ' Because ye are sons, he hath sent forth the Spiiit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.' He doth not move us to go to the saints, but to God.
The use. Well, then, if any trouble befall us, let us call on God, un- bosom ourselves to him : Ps. 1. 15, ' Call upon me in the day of trouble, I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.' If we want any grace, let us go to the God of all grace, in the name of Christ : Heb. iv. IG, ' Seeing, therefore, we have a great high priest that is en- tered into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to hel}) us in a time of need.' We can pray to none but to him in whom we trust : Ps. Ixii. 8, ' Trust iu the Lord at all times ; })our'out your hearts belore him.' Tru.st is the foundation of j)rayer. Tiiey that look to God for all will frequently apply theniselvcs to him. Our necessities and wants are continual. l)oth as to the temporal and spiritual things. We need not only daily bread, but daily pardon, daily strength against tem])tations ; therefore let us often come to God.