faith in God's sufficiency, that so we may be prepared to glorify his name when the mercy is received.

INQUIRY 2. Why is God so ready to hear the prayers of men? To this I answer.

1. Because God is a God of infinite grace and mercy. It is indeed a very wonderful thing, that so great a God should be so ready to hear our prayers, though we are so despicable and unworthy; that he should give free access at all times to every one; should allow us to be as importunate as we will, without esteeming it any indecent boldness; should hear all sincere prayers put up to him; should be so ready to hear, and so rich in mercy to them that call upon him; that worms of the dust should have such power with God by prayer; that God should do such great things in answer to their prayers, and should show himself, as it were, overcome by them. This is very wonderful, when we consider the distance between God and us, and consider how we have provoked God by our sins, and how unworthy we are of the least gracious notice.

And it can be resolved into nothing else but infinite mercy and grace. It cannot be from any need that God stands in of us; for our goodness extendeth not to him. Neither can it be from any thing in us to incline the heart of God to us : It cannot be from any worthiness in our prayers, which are in themselves very miserable polluted things. But it is because God delights in mercy and condescention. nitely distinguished from all other gods: fountain of all good, from whom goodness flows as light from the sun.

He is herein infi

He is the great

2. We have a glorious Mediator, who has prepared the way, that our prayers may be heard consistently with the honor of God's justice and Majesty. Not only has God in himself mercy sufficient for this, but the Mediator has provided that this mercy may be exercised consistently with the honor of God. Through him we may come to God, and God may show mercy to us: He is the way, the truth, and the life; no nan can come to the Father but by him. This Mediator YOL. VIII. H

hath done three things to make way for the hearing of our

prayers.

(1.) He hath by his blood made atonement for sin, so that our guilt need not stand in the way, as a separation wall between God and us, and that our sins might not be a cloud through which our prayers cannot pass; and by his atonement he hath made the way to the throne of grace open. God would have been infinitely gracious if there had been no Me diator; but the way to the mercy seat would have been blocked up. But Christ hath removed whatever stood in the way. The vail which was before the mercyseat "is rent from the top to the bottom," by the death of Christ. If it had not been, for the death of Christ, our guilt would have remained as a wall of brass, to hinder our approach. But all is removed by his blood, Heb x. 17, &c.

(2.) Christ has, by his obedience, purchased that the prayers of those who believe in him should be heard. He has not only removed the obstacles to our prayers, but has merited a hearing of them. His merits are the incense that is offered. with the prayers of the saints, which renders them a sweet savor to God, and acceptable in his sight. Hence the prayers of the saints have such power with God; hence the prayer of a poor worm of the dust had such power with God, that in answer God stopped the sun in his course for about the space of a whole day; hence such unworthy creatures as we are able to overcome God; hence Jacob as a prince had power with God, and prevailed. Our prayers would be of no account, and of no avail with God, were it not for the merits of Christ; for in themselves they are miserable worthless things, and might justly be odious and abominable to God.

(3.) Christ enforces the prayers of his people, by his intercession at the right hand of God in heaven. He hath entered for us into the holy of holies, with the incense which he hath provided, and there he makes continual intercession for all that come to God in his name; so that their prayers come to God the Father through his hands, if I may so say; which is represented in Rev. viii. 3. 4. "And another angel came and stood

at the altar, having a golden censor; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar, which is before the throne. And the smoke of the incense which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God, out of the angel's hand."

This was typified of old by the priest's offering incense in the temple, at the time when the multitude of the people were offering up their prayers to God; as Luke i. 10. "And the whole multitude of the people were praying without, at the time of incense."

APPLICATION.

I. Hence we may learn, how highly we are privileged, in that we have the Most High God revealed to us, who is a God that heareth prayer. The greater part of mankind are destitute of this privilege; they are ignorant of this God; the gods whom they worship are not prayer hearing gods. Whatever their necessities are, whatever calamities or sorrows they are the subjects of, if they meet with grievous and heavy afflictions, wherein they cannot help themselves, and man is unable to help them, they have no prayer hearing God to whom they may go. If they go to the gods whom they worship, and cry to them ever so earnestly, it will be in vain. They worship either lifeless things, that can neither help them, nor know that they need help; or wicked cruel spirits, who are their enemies, and wish nothing but their misery, and who, instead of helping them, are from day to day working their ruin, and watching over them, as an hungry lion watches over his prey.

How are we distinguished from them, in that we have the true God made known to us; a God of infinite grace and mercy; a God full of compassion to the miserable, who is ready to pity us under all our troubles and sorrows, to hear our crics, and give us all that relief which we need; a God who delights in mercy, and is rich to all that call upon him! How highly privileged are we, in that we have the holy word of

this same God, to direct us how to come to him, and seek mercy of him! And whatever difficulties or distress we are in, we may go with confidence and great encouragement tó him with all our difficulties and complaints. What a comfort may this be to us! And what reason have we to rejoice in our own privileges, highly to prize them, and to bless God that he hath been so merciful to us, as to give us his word, and reveal himself to us; and that he hath not left us to cry for help to stocks, and stones, and devils, as he has left many thousands of others!

OBJECTION. I have often prayed to Cod for these and those mercies, and God has not heard my prayers.

To this I shall answer several things.

(1.) It is no argument, that God is not a prayer hearing God, if he give not to men what they ask of him, to consume upon their lusts. Oftentimes, when men pray for these and those temporal good things, they desire them chiefly to gratify their lusts. They desire them for no good end, but only to gratify their pride or sensuality. They pray for worldly good things chiefly from a worldly spirit: It is because they make too much of an idol of the world; and if so, it is no wonder that God doth not hear their prayers: James iv 3. Ye ask and receive not, because ye ask amiss, to consume it upon your lusts."

It is no argument that God is not a prayer hearing God, that he will not grant your request, when you ask him to give you something of which you will make an idol, and set it up in opposition to him; or that he will not hear you, when you ask of him these and those things to use as weapons of warfare against him, or as instruments to serve his enemies. No wonder thatod will not hear you, when you pray for silver, or gold, or wool, or flax, to offer them to Baal. If God should hear such prayers, he would act as his own enemy, in as much as he would bestow on his enemies the things which they desire out of ennuity against him, and to use against him as his enemies, and to serve his enemies.

(2.) It is no argument that God is not a prayer hearing God, that he heareth not insincere and unbelieving prayers. How can we expect that God should have any respect to that which has no sincerity in it? God looketh not at words, but at the heart; and it is fit that be should do so. If men's prayers be not hearty, if they pray only in words, and not in heart, what are their prayers good for? And why should that God who searches the heart and tries the reins have any respect to them?

Sometimes men do nothing but dissemble in their prayers; and when they do so, it is no argument that God is ever the less a prayer hearing God. that he doth not hear such prayers; for it is no argument of want of mercy. Sometimes men pray for that in words which they really desire not in their hearts. Sometimes men pray to God that he would purge them from sin, when at the same time they show by their practice that they do not desire to be purged from sin, but love sin, and choose it, and are utterly averse to parting with it. So they will pray for other spiritual blessings, of which they have no real desire. In like manner they often dissemble in the pretence and show, which they make in their prayers, of a dependence on God for mercies, and of a sense of his sufficiency to supply them. In our coming to God, and praying to him for such and such things, there is a show that we are sensible that we are dependent on him for them, and that he is sufficient to give them to us. But men sometimes seem to pray, who are not sensible of their dependence on God, nor do they think him to be sufficient to supply them. For some things that they go to God for, they all the while trust in themselves; and for other things they have no confidence in God.

Another way in which men often dissemble is, in seeming to pray and to be supplicants in words, when in heart they pray not, but challenge and demand. They show in words as though they were beggars; but in heart they come as creditors, and look on God as their debtor. In words they seem to ask these and those things as the fruit of free grace; but in heart they account it would be hard, unjust, and cruel, if