A Spiritual Propine of a Pastor to his People, Section 8 – Section 10
A Praier for the Sabboth day at Morne.
BLessed God and bountifull father, wha hes commanded vsus to keip holie the Sabboth, absteyning haliley from our awin warkes, for vsing of thy warkes, worde, sacraments, and vther meanes of thy worshipping holelie and rightly, for thy honor and prayse, and the life and weill of our saules and inward man euerlasting. We acknowledge and confes, as the truth is, that we ar altogidder, wicked, corrupt, vnhalie, vaine, wandring, profane, and earthly; and that thou art gud, puir, holie, constant, and full of heigh & heauenly majestie; sa that we ar vn-worthie, and maist vnmeit to tred in thy courtes, or approch to thy presence; yea, to behold the light of thy heauens a moment, to let be to set our selues to sanctifie and keip holie a Sabboth vntounto thee: neverthelesse, since it hath pleased thee sa to command vsus, and promise to accept of vsus in thy Holy ane, the Lord IESVS our Mediatour, and of thy vn-speakable merciemercy and gudnesse, to giuegive this libertie, occasion▪ health of body, and vther things neidful for the samin: We humbly beseik thy grace to be mercifull vntounto vsus, and purge vsus in the precious bloud of the Lamb the Lord IESVS; to wound our hearts with vn-fayned sorrow for our sinnes; & heal the samin againe by a plaister of his heart bloud, applied by faith vntounto our consciēce, and sa to sanctifie vsus by that holie comforter, that wee may come before thee rightlie prepared, for all the holie & spirituall exercises of thy Sabboth: Disposed accordingly in the mean while thereof, & finde in end the effectual and solide fruites of the samin, to our growth in godlines and direction aright in all thy holie waies, with heauenly strength and vigour, to follow out the samin this oulk, and all the dayes and oulkes of our jorneying in this wretched wildernesse, till we atteine till that comfortable Canaan and heauenlie inheritance, whair halelie and holelie but any corruption, impediment, or interruption, we fall sanctifie to thee a Sabboth and rest everlasting. Lord furnish to thy servands that thou sends out this day to speake in thy name vntounto thy people, sik store of sound and holsome doctrine, prayer, prayse, and thanks-giuing, with the grace of vttering the samin, with sik force, evidence, zeale, and weight of thy spirite, as may baith instruct thy people clearely, and ravish and mooue them mightely, to the feruent reverence, feare, and louelove of thee their God, detestation of them selues for their sin, and feilling of the sweitnes of thy grace in Iesus Christ, that sa they may rightlie serue and worship thee their God and Father, and earnestly seik thy face, & not depart there…a, with out a spirituall comforte and blessing. Lord resist Satan and stay all his impediments, and purge vsus in speciall from this vennome of hypocrisie, whilk is maist detestable in thy sight, when outwardly comming before thee in our bodies, and yet the heart is far from thee; and keip vsus Lorde from that curse pronunced vppon sik as dois thy work negligently. Lord draw vsus awaie from this earth and thought of thinges earthlie, that wee may bee haillie set vppon thee, and things heauenlie and incorruptible. Lighten our vnderstanding whilk is darke and blinde in the selfe, stablish our wandring mindes, confirme our slipperie memorie, bow our rebellious willes, purge al our corrupt affections, & grant sufficiēt ability of the inward man, both to will & do according to that measure of grace, that thou thinkst meit for vsus, & for that effect we beseik thy majesty, yet againe to work in our harts be the force of that inward teacher, disposer & mover, & let alwaies our intentions, meditations of our harts, & words of mouthes, & al our actions & doings be acceptable in the name, & for the merites of our high law-giuer, King & Priest, the Lord Iesus Christ. In whose name wee ask thir and all vther things thou kennis to be meit this day and alwaies for thy glorie, the weill of thy Kirk, of vsus, and all the members thereof, praying as he hath teached, Our father, &c.
For the Sabboth at Night.
NOw Lord of thy great merciemercy, we hauehave enjoyed this Sabboth, and the maist comfortable exercises thereof; for the whilk we offer to thee in the name of thy son Iesus, what thanks our harts ar able to conteine & present vntounto thee. But alas, O Lord, if thou suld enter in judgement with vsus, thou might lay maa and greater sins to our charge this day, nor any day of the oulk: forsa-meikle the halier a thing it is, to sanctifie thy holy name aright on the Sabboth; sa meikle the greater guiltines doe they contract wha takes the same in vaine, setting themselues to the exercise therof without right preparation, disposition, & seiking of fruit & comfort, and luik how meikle the higher & greater ar thy warks nor our awin, so meikle the mair heauie is the curse vpō sik as dois the same negligently. And alas, ô lord, if thou try vsus, what sal we be found to hauehave done this day, but taken thy haly name in vaine. In hearing of thy worde, meditating on thy warks, vsing of praier & thāksgiuing without right preparation, dispositiō or fruit, & so done thy wark negligently. O Lord therefore be merciful vntounto vsus, and giuegive vsus grace to wey this great sinne that we commit against thee, euen when we ar about to be best & maist hailely occupied, to be sorie for it, & humblie beg thy mercy, for Iesus Christs sake, & freith vsus for thy mean grace from that curse of neglegence, for of a truth when we hauehave done all that we can, we ar but vnprofitable, & vnworthie servants. And yet Lord, whatsoeuer hes flowed from thy gud spirit working in vsus, accept it as fra vsus, for thy Christs saik, as the markes & dueties of thy servands & children, assuring & comforting our saules and consciences thereby. And make the instructions, admonitions, comfort, and consolation that wee hauehave heard of thy word, and found in mutual example and conference, amang our selues to hide in our memories, and shew forth the fruite in our liues and conversation this oulk following, and all the time of our life; yea Lorde, if it bee thy pleasure, make vsus sa earnest and deepe in meditation thereof this Night, that euen in our sleepe, wee may finde our saules filled and occupied with the thought & consideration therof, and taken with the delight, comfort and joy of the samin, that when we awaike, we may finde our selues with thee, and that thy word be the working of thy spirit, hath transformed and changed vsus in the verie nature thereof, in wisedome, veritie, cleannes, halines, and sanctification, to stand and abide in happines and permanent felicity for euer. Now for Iesus Christ sake, wha is Lord of the Sabboth, graunt vsus this, and what euer thou knawis to be gud for thy selfe, for vsus, and for al thine, adding his perfite prayer, Our father, &c.
A prayer before the halie Communion.
MOste mercifull God, and gratious father, wha knawis the weakenes and vnabilitie of man, to conceaue the mysteries of thy grace, hes not onelyonly appointed thy word to instruct him be hearing: but also the vse of thy haly Sacraments, wherein his haill senses being outwardly occupied, the minde within might clearely conceaue, and the heart firmely beleeue and imbrace the samin. That be the right vse of these signes & seilles of thy couenant of grace; to wit, the outward and inward matters and actions coupled togidder bee the Sacramentall vnion, that is, be vertue of the institution, command & promise of Christ declared and beleeued, and be the prayer and obedience of the Kirk in doing as is required, Christ Iesus with his hail blessings may not onelyonly clearely be represented, bot giuen and receaued for life and saluation, yea, euen verelie, really, and with maist mightie force and effect applyed, convoyed into,& sealed vp in the saules of the beleeuer, as bee a maist commodious and effectuall instrumente of the halie Ghaist. Graunt we beseik thee, that as thou in halie and secreit vnitie and substance of nature and trinitie of persons in on Godhead, presents thy Christ a sanctified and perfite mediator, consecrate and perfyted be his awin prayers and suffering, euen in thir actions of thy Sacraments, ordaned bee thee for that effect, and sa offers and exhibits him with all his merits & blessings on that ane part. Sa it wald please thee on that vther part, to giuegive vsus a trew and liuely faith, be the vse of thir actions and power of thy halie spirite, mair and mair quickned, steired vp, confirmed, & augmented, wherby we may receaue and apply, grippe injoye, and possesse Iesus Christ mair and mair, for righteousnes and sanctification, and sa for life and Saluation euerlasting. O Lorde prepare vsus aright therevnto, be an earnest and diligent tryall of the knawledge of the poincts of thy heauenly veritie, and practise thereof, in fayth & repentance: that finding out and feiling our wants in the ane and vther, we may be reconciled with thee, and our neighbours, & seeke confirmation, & increase of that small measure we hauehave, in the vse of thir actions according to thy ordinance: that in the meane time therof, we may be wounded and humbled with a sense and conscience of our sinnes, and yet raised vp againe and healed with an assurance, and feiling of thy mercy grace and louelove in Iesus Christ, sa that moued with exceeding ioy and gladnes of spirite, we may burst out in thy prayses. And namely now Lord in this Sacrament of the holie Supper and present action thereof, graunt that we may seale vp our continuall growth, & increase in that blessed communion and fellowshippe of Iesus Christ, that we may be nurished and fed mair & mair in our saule and inward man, be declaring the death of thy sonne Iesus Christ, constantly beleeuing his bodie to hauehave bin broken, and his precious blood shed, yea, him to hauehave suffered whatsoeuer might satisfie the justice of thee our God, for our sinnes and safetie. And sa to magnifie and extoll thy gudnes, louelove, merciemercy, and grace, thy justice, power, and wisedome, quhilk are infinite, passing the reatch of all consideration. And finally, that we may set our selues thus waies, fed & strenghned in the inwarde man, to doe the dewties of thy redeemed seruants and children, in louelove, fear, obedience, and holines al the dayes of our life. Amen.