A duty this is of great importance and necessity, now hypocrisy hath made so great an inroad on profession, and gifts have defloured grace in its principal operations. No persons are in greater danger of walk- ing at hazard with God than those who live in the exercise of spiritual gifts in duties unto their own satisfaction and [that of] others; for they may countenance themselves with an appearance of every thing that should be in them in reality and power, when there is nothing of it in them. And so it hath fallen out. We have seen many ear- nest in the exercise of this gift who have turned vile and debauched apostates. Some have been known to live in sin and in indulgence
of their lusts, and yet to abide constant in their duties, Isa. i. 10-15.
288 OF SPIRITUAL MINDEDNESS. [PART I.
And we may hear prayers sometimes that openly discover themselves unto spiritual sense to be the labour of the brain, by the help of gifts in memory and invention, without an evidence of any mixture of humility, reverence, or godly fear, without any acting of faith and love. They flow as wine, yet smell and taste of the unsavoury cask from whence they proceed. It is necessary, therefore, that we should put ourselves on the severest trial, lest we should be found not to be spiritually minded in spiritual duties.
Gifts are gracious vouchsafements of Christ to make grace useful unto ourselves and others; yea, they may make them useful unto the grace of others who have no grace in themselves. But as unto our own souls, they are of no other advantage or benefit but to stir up grace unto its proper exercise, and to be a vehicle to carry it on in its proper use. If we do not always regard this in their exercise, we had better be without them. If instead hereof they once begin to impose themselves practically upon us, so as that we rest in spiritual light acting our inventions, memories, and judgments, with a ready utter- ance, or such as it is, there is no form of prayer can be more preju- dicial unto our souls. As wine, if taken moderately and seasonably, helps the stomach in digestion, and quickens the natural spirits, en- abling the powers of nature unto their duty, [and] is useful and help- ful unto it; but if it be taken in excess it doth not help nature, but oppress it, and takes on itself to do what nature should be assisted unto, it fills men’s carcasses with diseases as well as their souls with sin: so whilst spiritual gifts are used and employed only to excite, aid, and assist grace in its operations, they are unutterably useful; but if they put themselves in the room thereof, to do all that grace should do, they are hurtful and pernicious. We have need, therefore, to be very diligent in this inquiry whether our spiritual thoughts, even in our prayers, be not rather occasioned from the duty than spring from a gracious principle in our hearts, or are the actings of real saving grace.
(2.) Where thoughts of spiritual things in prayer are occasional only, in the way before described, such prayers will not be a means of spiritual growth unto the soul. They will not make the soul humble, holy, watchful, and diligent in universal obedience. Grace will not thrive under the greatest constancy in such duties. It is an astonishing thing to see how, under frequency of prayer and a seem- ing fervency therein, many of us are at a stand as to visible thriving in the fruits of grace, and it is to be feared without any increase of strength in the root of it. “The Lorp’s hand is not shortened that it Cannot save, nor his ear heavy that it cannot hear.” He is the same as in the days of old, when our fathers cried unto him and were delivered, when they trusted in him and were not confounded,
CHAP. IIl.] INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE OF SPIRITUALITY. 289
“ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever.” Prayer is the same that it was, and shall lose nothing of its preva- lency whilst this world endureth. Whence is it, then, that there is so much prayer amongst us, and so little success? I speak not with respect unto the outward dispensations of divine providence, in afflic- tions or persecutions, wherein God always acts in a way of sove- reignty, and ofttimes gives the most useful answer unto our prayers by denying our requests; I intend that only whereof the psalmist giveth us his experience, Ps. cxxxviii. 3, “In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul” Where prayers are effectual, they will bring in spiritual strength. But the prayers of many seem to be very spiritual, and to express all conceivable supplies of grace, and they are persisted in with constancy,—and God forbid we should judge them to be hypo- critical and wholly insincere,—yet there is a defect somewhere, which should be inquired after, for they are not so answered as that they who pray them are strengthened with strength in their souls. There is not that spiritual thriving, that growth in grace, which might be expected to accompany such supplications.
I know that a man may pray often, pray sincerely and frequently, for an especial mercy, grace, or deliverance from a particular temp- tation, and yet no spiritual supply of strength unto his own experi- ence come in thereby. So Paul prayed thrice for the removal of his temptation, and yet had the exercise of it continued. In such a case there may be no defect in prayer, and yet the grace in particular aimed at may not be attained; for God hath other holy ends to accomplish hereby on the soul. But how persons should continue in prayer in general according to the mind of God, so far as can be outwardly discovered, and yet thrive not at all as unto spiritual strength in their souls, is hard to be understood.