weaknesses are perfectly known, wait for our prayers, before he will part with what is fo much needed by us? Why doth he, who knoweth our frame, and remembers that we are dust, unneceffarily throw obftructions in our way, and wrap himself up in darknefs, to difcourage our approach?

:

But how does this furprife increase, when we confider how unequal we are for the conflict, if no ftrength but our own is opposed to the Almighty nay, that our ftrength for resistance must come only from himself so that he wounds, and he heals; he oppreffes, and he fuftains; he difcourages, and he invites. It is by prayer that we must obtain every blessing from the Father of lights; and one of the greatest and moft neceffary of these bleffings is the fpirit of prayer itself. My brethren, when either unbelief or profanity moves any fuch difficulties as these, I think it my duty to call upon you, in the first place, to bow yourselves before the fo vereignty of God. There is an unfearchable impenetrable depth in the divine wisdom, whe-ther we look upon the works of nature, or of grace. As creator of the world, he could, no doubt, in a moment, with one word of his power, have raised the whole fabrick in perfection; yet it pleafed him, in a gradual manner, to finish every part by the addition of another, for the space of fix days. When he gave the firft promise to Adam, or when he renewed it

to the father of the faithful, he could, no doubt,

have fent the Saviour into the word, to finish tranfgreffion, and make an end of fin; yet he faw it proper to give only distant intimations of this bleffed period, and to defer the long-expected appearance till the fulness of time, while the nations were fuffered to fit for many ages in darkness, and in the region and fhadow of death. In the fame manner, he often takes a great variety of steps with his people before they are made partakers of his promises.

But notwithstanding that fomething muft ftill remain mysterious, and beyond the comprehenfion of a finite creature, in the management of God, who "giveth not account of any of his matters," we may fee much propriety and beauty in this part of his procedure. And is it not our duty to attend to it? We may fee the reasonableness, nay we may perceive the wisdom, of his requiring a holy fervency, wreft. ling, and importunity in prayer: for it ferves to engrave upon our hearts, and even to work in. to our affections, fome of the most important truths of religion, and fuch as will have the moft powerful and extenfive influence upon our temper and practice. This will plainly appear from the three following confiderations.

1. Fervency of spirit, and importunity, in prayer, is fuitable and necessary, because of the greatness and glory of that God with whom we hold communion, as well as it ferves to ftrengthen and improve the fenfe of this upon our minds. The infinite majesty of God, and the unmeasu

rable

rable diftance at which he is removed from all created weakness, is often spoken of in fcripture with admiration with admiration of his condefcenfion Pfal. viii 3. 4. "When I confi. "der thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the "moon and the ftars which thou haft ordain"ed; what is man, that thou art mindful of "him? and the fon of man, that thou visitest "him?" Under a deep impreffion of the fame great truth, Solomon fays, 2 Chron. vi. 18. "But will God in very deed dwell with men on "the earth? behold, heaven, and the heaven "of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less "this house which I have built!" Is not, then, fome fervour of affection due to the greatness and glory of that God whom we worship? Our affections fhould always, in their ftrength and exertion, be in proportion to their object, its dignity and worth. Indifference and carelessnefs in an inferior towards a fuperior is always counted a mark of difdain. We naturally fup. pofe, that thofe in great and high ftations ought to be approached with reverence, and folicited in the humbleft manner, by their inferiors, who hope to fhare in their bounty; and the more exalted the perfon, the more fubmiffive the po fture, and the more carneft the fupplication. ought this to take place between

Much more

God and us.

On this account it is, probably at least on this amongst others, that indifference and coldnefs in religion is reprefented as peculiarly the object of divine deteftation: Rev. iii. 15. 16. “I know thy works, that thou art nei

"ther

"ther cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or "hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, " and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out my mouth."

"" of

2. Our own great unworthiness, who are the objects of divine love, and admitted to this fa cred intercourse, fhould powerfully excite us to fervency in pleading. This is precisely a counterpart to the former confideration, and greatly ftrengthens the conclufion. Even the higheft of the fpirits above, most eminent in knowledge and fanctity, who stand nearest to the throne of God, we are told, cover their faces with their wings, as loft in respect and wonder, when they look to him who dwells in inacceffible light. How much more << man, who is a worm, and the fon "of man, who is a worm, whofe foundation is "in the duft, who dwells in houses of clay, " and is crushed before the moth!" Accordingly, in fome of the examples we have of the most importunate pleading and wrestling in prayer, this is the very difficulty which feems to ftand in the way, and requires the greatest efforts of holy boldness to overcome; as in the account we have of Abraham's interceffion for devoted Sodom, Gen. xviii. "And Abraham anfwered and faid, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the "Lord, which am but duft and ashes." And again, in the 32d verfe, " And he said, Oh let "not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet "but this once ; Peradventure ten shall be found "there. And he faid, I will not destroy it for "tens fake."

27.

VOL. I.

B b

But,

But, my brethren, I beseech you remember, it is not our frail nature, and limited powers only, that point out our unworthiness; but our guilt and impurity, fo oppofite and fo odious to the divine nature. This, I have shown you in the preceding difcourfe, is one of the greateft hindrances of our access to God in prayer. And may we not say, How fuitable, how neceffary is it, that, in order to keep us ftill deeply humble, God should sometimes cover himself with a cloud, and exercise the finner with ftrong crying and tears, before he will vouchfafe the intimations of his love? This reafon will be felt, and that the most fenfibly, by the best and most dutiful of his children, as their fanctification continues imperfect fo long as they are here below. How fhould a fenfe of guilt and mifery at once increase our self-abafement, and add to the earneftnefs of our defires! There cannot be a jufter description, both of our state and duty, where mifery and weakness conspire in showing the neceffity and difficulty of wrestling with God, than the apoftle hath given us, Rom. viii. 26. “Like"wife the Spirit alfo helpeth our infirmities: "for we know not what we should pray for as "we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh inter"ceffion for us with groanings which cannot be " uttered."

3. The duty and reasonableness of wrestling and importunity in prayer, appears from the ineftimable value of the mercies to be obtained. Should there not be a proportionable strength of defire to the worth of the bleffings in profpect?

Now,