The Trial and Triumph of Faith, Sermon 6
SERMON VI.
IN her Prayer, as it is expressed by Matthew, we have, 1. The maner of it, She cryed. 2. The compellation or party to whom, she prayeth, O Lord, thou son of David. 3. The Petition, Have mercy on me. 4. The Reason, For my daughter is vexed with a Devil.
She cryed: The poor woman prayed (as we say) with good will, with a bent affection. Why is crying used in praying? Had it not been more modesty to speak to this soul-redeeming Saviour, who heareth sometimes before we pray, then to cry out and shout? For the Disciples do after complain, that She cryeth so after them: Was Christ so difficile, to be intreated? The reasons of crying; are, 1. Want cannot blush; the pinching necessity of the Saints, is not tyed to the law of Modesty: Hunger cannot be ashamed, Psal. 55.2. I mourn in my complaint, and make a noise, saith David, and Ezekiah, Esa. 38.14. Like a Crane, or a Swallow, Crying in Prayer necessary.so did I chatter; I did mourn as a Dove, Job 30.28. I went mourning without the Sun; I stood up (and) I cryed in the congregation. 2. Though God hear Prayer onelyonly as Prayer offered in Christ, not because very fervent; yet fervour is a heavenly ingredient in Prayer; an arrow drawn with full strength, hath a speedier issue; therefore the Prayers of the Saints are expressed by crying in Scripture, Ps. 22.2. O my God, I cry by day, and thou hearest not, Ps. 55.17. At noon wil I pray, and cry aloud, Ps 18.6. In my distresse I cryed to the Lord, Ps. 88.13. VntoUnto thee have I cryed, O Lord, Ps. 130.1. Out of the depths have I cryed, Jon. 2.2. Out of the belly of Hell, I cryed, Psal. 28.1. VntoUnto thee will I cry, O Lord, my Rock: Yea it goeth to somewhat more then crying, Job. 19.7. I cry out of wrong, but am not heard, Lam. 3.8. Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my Prayers: He who may teach us all to pray, sweet Jesus, Heb. 5.7. In the days of his flesh offered up prayers and supplications, with strong crying and tears, he prayed with war shouts: 3. And these prayers are so prevalent, that God answereth them, Psal. 34.6. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard and saved him from all his fears, Ps. 18.6. My cry came before him, even to his ears: the cry addeth wings to the prayer, As a speedy Post sent to Court upon life and death, Ps. 22.5. Our fathers cryed unto thee, and were delivered, Psal. 34.17. The righteous cry and the Lord heareth: We all know the Parable of the poor Widow, and the unrighteous judge; if the oppressed be not delivered, Christ and his Father, and Heaven, shall hear of it: hence, 4. Importunity in praying, I will not let thee go (saith Iacob to his Lord) till thou blesse me: So James calleth it, chap. 5. v. 16. foreign Prayer possessed with a spi…it, but a good spirit-Prayer, steeled with fervor of spirit, so fervent that David is like the Post, who layeth by three horses as breathlesse; his heart, his throat, his eyes, Ps. 69.3. I am wearie of my crying, my throat is dried, mine eyes fail, while I wait for my God: 5. There is violence offered to God, in fervent prayer, Exod. 32.10. Moses is answered, when he is wrestling with God by Prayer, for the people, Now therefore let me alone, that my anger may wax hot against them: Let me alone, is a word, of putting violent hands in any: there be bones and sinews in such prayers, by them the King is held in his Galleries, Cant. 7.5.
Object. Obj. 1. Praying sometime wanteth words, so as groaning goeth for Prayer.But if so be that prayers must bee fervent, even to vocal crying and shouting, then I cannot pray, who am often so confounded, that I cannot speak one word. Ans. So was the servant of God, in a Spirituall kind of praying, in uttering the Psal. 77. when he saith v. 4. Thou holdest mine eyes waking, I am so troubled that I cannot speak; yea groaning goeth for praying to God, Psal. 102.20. The Lord looked down from heaven, to hear the groaning of the prisoner, Rom. 8.26. The spirit intercedeth for us, foreign with sighes that none can speak. Faith doth sigh prayers to heaven, Christ receiveth sighs in his censure for Prayer: words are but the body, the garment,Obj. 2. How many other expressions, beside vocal prayer, go under the worth of prayer in Gods accompt. the outside of Prayer, sighs are neerer the heart-work, a dumb beggar getteth an almes at Christs gates, even by making signes, when his tongue cannot plead for him, and the rather because he is dumb.
Object. 2. I have not so much as a voice to utter to God; and Christ saith, Cant. 2.14. Cause me hear thy voice. Ans. Yea, but some other thing hath a voice beside the tongue, Psal. 6.8. The Lord has heard the voice of my weeping: Tears have a tongue, and Grammar, and language, that our Father knoweth. Babes have no prayers for the breast, but weeping, the mother can read hunger on weeping.
Object. 3. But I am often so as I cannot weep, weeping is peculiar to a man as laughing is, Obj. 3. Some affections in p…ayer are greater and above weeping.and spirituall weeping is peculiar to the renewed man. Ans. Vehemencie of affection doth often move weeping, so as it is but spilt weeping that we can attain hence, Ezechiah can but chatter as a crane, and a swallow, and moan as a dove, Is. 38.14. Sorrow keepeth not alway the Roadway, weeping is but the scabberd of sorrow, and there's often more sorrow where there is little or no weeping, there's most of fire, where there is least smoak.
Obj. 4. Looking up to heaven goeth for praying.Object. 4. But I have neither weeping one way or other, ordinary, nor marred. Ans. Looking up to heaven, lifting up of the eyes, goeth for Prayer also in Gods Books, Psal. 5.3. My Prayer will I direct to thee, and I will look up, Isa. 48.14. Mine eyes fail with looking upward, Psal. 69.3. Because, 1. Prayer is a pouring out of the soul to God, and Faith will come out at the eye, in lieu of another door, often affections break out at the window, when the door is closed as smoak venteth at the window, when the Chimney refuseth passage; Steven lookt up to Heaven, Act. 7.55. He sent a Post, a greedy, pittifull, and hungry look up to Christ, out at the window, at the neerest passage, to tel a poor friend was coming up to him: 2. I would wish no more, if I were in Hell, but to send a long-look up to Heaven; there be many love looks of the Saints, lying up before the Throne, in the bosome of Christ: the twinkling of thy eyes in Prayer are not lost to Christ; elie Stevens look, Davids look should not be registred so many hundred years in Christs written Testament.
Object. 5. Alas, I have no eyes to look up; Obj. 5. Breathing goeth for praying.the Publican, Luk. 18. looked down to the earth, and what senses Spirituall have I to send after Christ. Ans. There's life going in and out at thy nostrils: Breathing is praying, and taken off our hand, as crying in Prayer, Lam. 3.56. Thou hast heard my voice, hide not thy ear at my breathing, at my cry.
Object. 6. I have but a heard heart to offer to God in Prayer, and what can I say then, Obj. 6. Wherein is that least in which praeyer may be conserved.wanting all praying disposition? Ans. 1. Therefore pray, that you may pray: 2. The very aspect, and naked presence of a deed spirit, when there is a little vocall praying, its acceptable to God; or if an overwhelmed heart refuseth to come, its best to go and tell Christ, and request him to come and fetch the heart himself: 3. Little of day light cometh before the Sun, the best half of it is under ground, Ro. 8.23. We our selves groan within our selves; All is here transacted in our own heart, the soul cryeth, O when will my Father come, and fetch his children? When shall the Spousely in her Husbands bosome? 4. If Christs eye but look on a hard heart it will melt it: 5. I shew heer the Minimum quod sic, the smallest of Prayer, in which the life and essence of Prayer may breath and live: Now Prayer being a powring out of the soul to God, much of the affections of love, desire, longing, joy, Faith, sorrow, fear, boldnesse, comes along with prayer out to God, and the heart is put in Christs bosome, and its neither up nor down to the essenc of sincere praying; whether the soul come out in words, in groans, or in long-looks, or in sighing, or in powring out tears to God, Job 16.20. or in breathing.
Obj. 7.Object. 7. What shall be done with half praying, and words without sense? Ans. This is the woman of Canaans case, Piscator observeth an Elepsis of the word or Particle foreign or (because) or (for) Have mercy on me, my daughter is vexed, she should have said, because my daughter is vexed: But the minde is hasty, that she lets slip words: so are broken Prayers set down in Scripture, as Prayers, Psal. 116.1. I love, because the Lord hath heard my voice: There's nothing in the Hebrew but one word,Broken Prayers a…e Prayers. foreign I love, but he sheweth not whom he loveth; its a broken word, because as Ambrose saith, He loved the most desireable thing: I have love (he would say) but its centure and bed is only God, Psal. 6.3. My soul is sore vexed, but thou, O Lord, how long? That is a broken speech also, Psal. 109.4. For my love they were my enemies, in the Hebrew its foreign Vani Tephilla, at ego oratio: But I prayer; or, I was all Prayer, as if I in soul and body had been made of Prayer. The reasons of broken Prayers, are often; 1. The hastinesse of the affections, not the hastinesse alwayes of unbelief, Esa. 28.16. But often of Faith, 2 Pet. 3.10. Love and longing for Christ have Eagles wings, and love flyeth, when words do but creep as a Snail: 2. It cometh from a delique in the affections (they are broken as a too high bended Bow) that there's a swooning and delique of words; every part of a supplication to a Prince is not a supplication: a poor man out of fear may speak Non-sense, and broken words that cannot be understood by the Prince, but non-sense in Prayer, when sorrow, blacknesse and a dark overwhelmed spirit dictateth words, are well known in, and have a good sence to God; therefore to speak morally,The Lord knoweth nonsense in a broken Spirit to be good sense. Prayer being Gods fire, as every part of fire, is fire: so here every broken Parcell of Prayer, is Prayer; so the Forlorne son forgot the half of his Prayers, he resolved to say, Luk. 15.19. Make me as one of thy hired servants; but v. 21. He prayeth no such thing, and yet his Father fell on his neck and kissed him; a Plant is a tree in the potency, an infant man, seeds of saving grace, are saving grace; prayer is often in the bowels and womb of a sigh; though it come not out, yet God heareth it as a Prayer, Rom. 8.27. And he that scarcheth the hearts, knoweth what is the minde of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the Saints according to the will of God, Psal. 10.17. Lord thou hast heard the desire of the humble: Desires have no sound with men, so as they come to the ear, but with God they have a sound as Prayers have: Then when others cannot know what a groan meaneth, God knoweth what is under the lap of a sigh, because his Spirit made the sigh: he first made the Prayer as an intercessor, and then as God heareth it: he is within praying, and without hearing.
Object. 8. But are all my cryings in Prayer works of the Spirit? Obj. 8.Ans. The flesh may come in and joine in Prayer, and some things may be said in haste, not in Faith, as in that Prayer, Ps ▪ 77.9. Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Nor is that of Jeremiahs to be put in Christs golden censure to be presented to the Father, Jer. 15.18. Wilt thou be altogether to me as a Liar, and as waters that fail? nor that of Job 13.24. Wherefore holdest thou me for thy enemy? Christ washeth sinners in his blood, but he washeth not sin: he advocateth for the man that prayeth to have him accepted, but not for the upstarts and boylings of corruption, and the flesh that are mixed with our Prayer, to have them made white: Christ rejecteth these things in prayer that are essentially ill, but he washeth the prayer, and causeth the Father accept it. There be so many other things that are a powring out of the soul in prayer, as groaning, sighing, looking up to heaven, breathing, weeping, that it cannot be imagined how far short printed and read prayers cometh of vehement praying; for you cannot put sighs, groans, tears, breathing, and such heart messengers down in a printed Book, nor can paper and ink lay your heart in all its sweet affections out before God, the Service-book then must be toothlesse and spiritlesse talk.