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OF CONTINUING IN PRAYER AND FREQUENT MEDITATION, AND THE DESIGN OF THIS THIRD PART.

THAT Holy Catholic Church, which is one of the twelve articles of the Holy Christian faith, is partly triumphant in Heaven, and partly militant on earth: both make but one spouse of Christ; and therefore the true members of both are alike minded and alike employed, though not with an equal intenseness of devotion, in reference to the worship of the common Lord of both.

2. They who are true members of Christ's Church below, are conformed to the glorious saints in Heaven above: "They do the will of God on earth, as it is done in Heaven," and that is undoubtedly the way to

Heaven: we cannot possibly lose our way thither, whilst we follow their steps who are thither gone before

us.

3. Those triumphant saints in Heaven, rest not, day nor night, saying, "Holy, holy, holy Lord God almighty." Whereunto conforms the man after God's own heart, saying, "O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before Theed" Our Lord commends it as a duty incumbent, "that men ought always to praye." and by His Apostle commands it positively, "Pray without ceasing f." giving thanks alwaysg:" "praying alway, with all prayer and supplication"."

a Exod. xxv. 40; Acts vii. 44; Heb. vi. 11.
Isaiah vi. 3; Rev. iv. 8.
d Psalm lxxxviii. 1.

f 1 Thess. v. 17.

8 Eph. v. 20.

h Eph. vi. 18.

B

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b Matt. vi. 10. Luke xviii. 1.

1. But these examples and commands are not so to be understood as if we should do nothing else but pray; which was an old heresy of the Messalians and Euchites, long since condemned by the Church of Christ, as being a thing impossible to "pray without ceasing," in the bare literal sense; because this corruptible body presseth down the soul, and corporeal necessities do call for supply. Nor yet,

2. That we should make long prayers; which is the new error and great mistake of these times: the which, though generally the most used, and best liked, as being set off with the paint of seeming zeal, and pretence of the Spirit, yet the unlawfulness of such long prayers will appear, if we will without prejudice and partiality consider, that

1. They are forbidden by our Lord, saying, "When you pray, use not vain repetitions'," in which words, our Lord means not, the same prayers repeated, (as is falsely objected against the prayers of the Church ;) for thus our Lord prayed Himself. Matt. xxvi. 39. 44,

iS. Aug. 1. de Hær.

where His prayer was short, and three times repeated.

And therefore undoubtedly, by "vain repetitions" in praying, is understood multitude of words, and variety of expressions to the same purpose, or rather to no purpose; since our desires both may and ought to be expressed in few words and pertinent, according to the pattern our Lord hath given us.

And that it is the meaning of our Lord, when He saith, "after this manner, pray ye," that our prayers should be generally formed to the length of His prayer prescribed, will appear,

1. From the context, if seriously weighed, and rightly understood; wherein is manifest, that the manner of praying by such a short form is commanded in opposition to the heathenish use of much speaking in prayer.

2. From the parallel text in the margin, "Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thy heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in Heaven, and thou upon earth; therefore let thy words be few","

3. From the prayers of Christ's Church, which are in all liturgies of the Christian Theod. Eccl. Hist. 1. iv. c. 10. m Eccles. v. 2.

1 Matt. vi. 7.

world, for the most part, of the same length: and surely the general practice of the Church is the best interpreter of Holy Scripture.

4. Such are generally also all the prayers of the Holy Spirit of God, which stand upon record in Holy Writ, viz. the Book of Psalms, with many more; we meet with none that are of such a continued length as are in use amongst us; but they are all divided, by distinct verses, into so many several shorter prayers.

2. Long prayers are forbidden by our Lord, because such is the custom of the heathens"; as (" the heathen do,") who mind more the oratory and language, tone and pronunciation, than the humility and devotion of the soul in prayer and it is much misbecoming Christians to worship the true God, as the heathen do their false and feigned deities. And,

3. Because they imply a false notion of the Majesty of Heaven, and a misbelief of His divine perfections; as if He were asleep and must be awakened, or did not understand our wants and desires, or being other

wise employed, He could not attend our petitions, except in multitude of words expressed, and loud bawling for audience: so prayed the priests of Baal, and so saith our Lord of all heathen people, that "they think they shall be heard for their much speaking;" which is directly contrary to the true faith of a Christian, who believeth and acknowledgeth the omniscience and omnipresence of God; as it followeth in the eighth verse, "Your heavenly Father knoweth what things you stand in need of before you ask :" which divine truth is implicitly denied by loud and long prayers.

4. Long prayers are not only forbidden by our Lord, as the custom of the heathen, but also frequently reproved by Him as the practice of "hypocrites, who love to stand praying in the synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men"," that they may be taken notice of for godly men, desiring rather to seem, than really to be religious, loving the praise of men more than the praise of God.

n Matt. vi. 7. • 1 Kings xviii. 27. Mark xii. 40; Luke xx. 47; John xii. 43.

To pray continually then,

P Matt. vi. 5. and xxiii. 14;

is neither to be understood of doing nothing else but pray, nor yet of using long prayers; the one being prohibited by our Lord, and the other condemned by His Church: but in this and the like expressions is commanded,

1. The intense devotion of the soul in prayer: so our Lord expounds His own command, "that men ought always to pray," viz. "that they faint not," to wit, for want of that holy fervour and devout zeal which is the life and soul of an effectual prayer: and this same, celestial fire of holy zeal in prayer, spends not itself in multitude of words, and much babbling of the lips, but is expressed "in sighs and groans which cannot be uttered'," which are truly the breathings of the Holy Spirit of God in prayer, Who dwells not upon the tongue, but in the heart.

2. To "pray continually," enjoins the constant and continued returns of this holy duty; that we lose no time, neglect no opportunity either of the public prayers of the Church, or of private prayer and closet devotions, upon the set, solemn and ac

q Luke xviii. 1.

customed times thereof: re membering that the time only which is employed in the sacred acts of piety towards God, and charity towards man, is redeemeds, out of the all-devouring jaws of death, and dark oblivion, to be the seminary of a blessed eternity', when time shall be no more. It is to this end our Lord commands us to "watch and pray":" by our constant prayers at evening, at midnight, at the cock-crowing, and in the morning to watch for the coming of our Lord, to put an end to time, and to all that is by time limited and circumscribed.

3. That "we ought always to pray," i. e. (say the Fathers upon the text) at those appointed hours observed by the Church of God both under the Law, called therefore "the hours of the Temple ;" and under the Gospel, called "the Canonical hours :" so generally observed formerly of all devout Christians, that St. Jerome, with his quis nescit ? takes it for granted, that no godly Christian is either ignorant or negligent in the observation of such hours, as being probably observed by holy

Rom. viii. 8, 26.

" Mark xiii. 35.

Eph. v. 16. ▾ Epist. ad Eustoc.

Gal. vi. 8.

David, or from his example | derived, saying of his own daily practice," Seven times a day do I praise Thee, because of Thy righteous judgments *."

4. To" continue in prayer," is to have our hearts so inflamed with the love of God, as to be in a continual disposition to pray; and this not only at all set and accustomed times, but at all times, and upon all occasions, and objects presented, to raise up our souls upon the spiritual wings of holy meditations, celestial affections, devout colloquies, and ejaculatory converses with Heaven.

Thus "Enoch walked with God, and was translated "." Thus King David professeth, "I have set God always before me" and, "I will give thanks unto the Lord; His praise shall ever be in my mouth :" no time omitted; evening, and morning, and noon-dayb:" early and late no place pretermitted; in the wilderness, in the land of Jordan, and the unbeaten paths of Hermon d

It is the great and con

Psalm cxix. 164. Psalm xxxiv. 1. d Psalm xlii. 8.

stant employment of a true Christian life, to depend upon God; to fix all our hopes, and all our joy and consolation, all that we can reasonably desire to enjoy, conducing to our happiness both in this and in the other world, in God alone, who is the beginning, the mean, and the end of our being.

were

In the first and purest times of Christianity, when the blood of Christ was yet warm, and more inflamed the souls of true believers, than in these later and colder times; then the hearts of the religious continually in Heaven, by holy and divine aspirations, even when their hands were employed in any and every of their works upon earth; so the divine Ephreme; Sive opereris, sive sedeas, sive comedas"In all thy

works, even in eating, and drinking, and travelling, sitting, going, standing, lying,- -pray without ceasing take hint from every thing thou seest, hearest, tastest, to lift up thy heart unto God, and refer all to His glory.'

وو

It is recorded of St. Bar

Psalm xvi. 9.

y Gen. v. 24; Heb. xi. 5. b Psalm lv. 17, 18. • Psalm 1xiii. 1, 7. Ephrem, tom. i. Hom. de Orando Deum. So the

great St. Basil, Hom. in S. Jud. So St. Chrysostom, Hom. 23. in Matth.

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