(2.) That we may be taken into covenant with God, and admitted into a relation to him. Be thou to us as a God, and take us to be to thee a people,a and make us a willing people in the day of thy power.b called thy chil that have been us the pleasant call thee our Shall we not Father, thou Though we are no more worthy to be dren;c for how shouldst thou put us, rebellious among the children, and give land? but thou hast said, That we shall Father, and not turn away from thee.d therefore from this time cry unto thee, our art the guide of our youth.e Lord, we take hold of thy covenant,g to thee we join ourselves in a perpetual covenant ;h O that thou wouldest cause us to pass under the rod,i and bring us into the bond of the covenant, that we may become thine.k Make with us an everlasting covenant, even the sure mercies of David./ (3.) That we may have the favour of God, and an interest in his special love. We intreat thy favour, O God, with our whole hearts ;m be merciful to us according to thy word, for in thy favour is life,n yea, thy loving-kindness is better than life itself.o Lord, make thy face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us; Lord, lift up the light of thy countenance upon us, and give us peace.p Remember us, O Lord, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people; O yisit us with thy salvation, that we may see the good of thy chosen, and may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation, and may glory with thine inheritance.q (4.) That we may have the blessing of God. O God, be merciful to us, and bless us, and cause thy face to shine on us; yea, let God, even our God, give us his blessing.r a Heb. 8. 10. b Psalm 110. 3, i Ez. 20. 37. c Luke 15. 19. g Isa, 56, 4. k Ez. 16. 8. The Lord that made heaven and earth, bless us out of Zion; a bless us with all spiritual blessings in heavenlythings, by Christ Jesus.b O that thou wouldest bless us indeed !c Command the blessing upon us, even life for evermore :d for thou blessest, O Lord, and it shall be blessed,e Let us receive the blessing from the Lord, even the righteousness from the God of our salvation.g Hast thou but one blessing! Yea, thou hast many blessings bless us, even us also, O, our Father;h yea, let the blessing of Abraham come upon us, which, comes upon the Gentiles through faith. And the blessing of Jacob, for we would not let thee go, except thou bless us.k (5.) That we may have the presence of God with us, If thy presence go not up with us, carry us not up hence ;/ never leave us nor forsake us.m O cast us not away from thy presence, nor ever take thy holy spirit away from us ; but let us always dwell with the upright in thy presence.o 3. We must pray for the comfortable sense of our reconciliation to God, and our acceptance with him. (1.) That we may have some evidence of the pardon of our sins, and of our adoption. O make us to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which sin hath broken may rejoice.p Say unto each of us, son, daughter, be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee.q Let the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge our conscience from dead works, to serve thee the living God.r Let thy Spirit witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ.s Say unto our souls that thou art our salvation.t a Palm 134. 3. ¿ Eph. 1. 3. e 1 Chron. 17. 27. P. 51. 8. c 1 Chron 4. 10. (2.) That we may have a well grounded peace of conscience; a holy security and serenity of mind arising from a sense of our justification before God, and a good work wrought in us. The Lord of peace himself give us peace, all peace, always, by all means ;a that peace which Jesus Christ hath left with us. which he gives to us, such a peace as the world can neither give nor take away; such a peace as that our hearts may not be troubled nor afraid.5 Let the work of righteousness in our souls he peace, and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.c Speak peace unto thy people, and to thy saints, and let not them turn again to folly.d O create the fruit of the lips, peace, peace to them that are afar off, and to them that are nigh, and restore confort to thy mourners.e Where the sons of peace are, let thy peace find them out, and rest upon them.g Cause us to hear thy loving kindness, and to taste that thou art gracious, for in thee do we trust.i Let the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep our hearts and minds, through Christ Jesus ; and let that peace rulé in our hearts, unto which we are called./ Now the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing, that we may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.m (3.) We must pray for the grace of God, and all the kind and powerful influences and operations of that grace. We come to the throne of grace, that we may obtain not only mercy to pardon, but grace to help in every time of need; grace for seasonable help.n From the fulness that is in Jesus Christ,o (in whom it pleased the Father, that all fulness should dwell,p) let every one of us receive, and grace for grace. 1. We must pray for grace to fortify us against every a 1 Thess. 36, 19. b John 14. 17. c Isa 32. 17. evil thought, word and work. Having been earnest for the removing of the guilt of sin, that we may not die for it as a crime, we must be no less earnest for the breaking of the power of sin, that we may not die by it as a disease, but that it may be mortified in us. O let no iniquity have dominion over us, because we are not under the law but under grace.a Let the flesh be crucified in us, with its affections and lusts; that walking in the Spirit we may not fulfil the lusts of the flesh.b Let our old man be crucified with Christ, that the body of sin may be destroyed, that henceforth we may not serve sin; and let not sin reign in our mortal bodies (in our immortal souls) that we should obey it in the lusts thereof: But being made free from sin, let us become the servants of righteousness.c Let the law of the spirit of life, which is in Christ Jesus, make us free from the law of sin and.death.d Give us grace to put off the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, that we may put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.e That the world may be crucified to us, and we to the world by the cross of Christ.g And that the temptations of Satan may not overcome us. We pray that we may not enter into temptation: or however, that no temptation may take us, but such as is common to men, and let the faithful God never suffer us to be tempted above what we are able, but with the temptation make way for us to escape.¿ Put upon us the whole armour of God, that we may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil, to withstand in the evil day, and having done all to stand; let our loins be girt about with truth, put on us the breast plate of righteousness, and let our feet be shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Give us the shield of faith, wherewith we may quench all the fiery darts of the wicked, and the helmet of salvation; and let the a Rom. 6. 14. d Rom. 8.12. h Matt. 26. 14. b Gal. 5. 16, 24. c Rom. 6. 6, 12, 18, g Gal, 6, 14. sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, be always ready to us,a Enable us so to resist the devil,b as that he may fly from us; to resist him steadfast in the faith.c And the God of peace tread Satan under our feet, and do it shortly.d 2. We must pray for grace to furnish us for every good thought, word and work; that we may not only be kept from sin, but may be in every thing as we should be, and do as we should do. Let Christ be made of God to us, not only righteousness, but wisdom, sanctification, and redemption.e Let us be planted together in the likeness of Christ's death and resurrection, that as he was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also may walk in newness of life.g (1.) That the word of grace may be wrought there where it is not yet begun. Lord, teach transgressors thy ways, and let sinners be converted unto thee;h and let the disobedient be turned to the wisdom of the just, and make ready a people prepared for the Lord i Let those be quickened that are yet dead in trespasses and sins say unto them, Live; yea, say unto them, Live; and the time shall be a time of love. Open their eyes, and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and an inheritance among them who are sanctified.m By the blood of the covenant send forth the prisoners out of the pit, in which is no water, that we may turn to the strong hold, as prisoners of hope.n Let the word of God prevail to the pulling down of strong holds, and the casting down of the imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and let every thought be brought in obedience to Christ.o |