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this true, That the Lord Jesus Christ,takes every Prayer, of the meaneft of Gods Children, and carries it into the bofom of God the Father? and fhall I fpit upon that that Chrift owns? fhall I dare to oppose that that the Lord Jefus Chrift presents unto his Father? The Lord in mercy pardon me: I have finned and done foolishly, and for ought I know, I may have spoken evil of that Duty, that Christ hath carried into the prefence of God the Father: Oh! through the Lords Grace then, for ever will I leave to make any oppofition, against any of the good waies of God again, and I will never fpeak one word against the perfons, meetings, or fupplications of the godly again.

Again, In cafe a man be Ungodly, a wicked man: Here is mighty incouragement, for to come unto Jefus Chrift; I, and to come prefently. For, is Jefus Chrift the Ladder that Jacob faw, by whom we go up to Heaven? doth he take all our Duties, and Prayers, and present them to God the Father for acceptance? Then, till I do come to Christ, all is nothing, all is loft: if I be a Drunkard, and will not come to Chrift, Prayer is all loft; ifl be a Swearer, and will not come to Chrift, an Unclean wreth, and will not come to Chrift; all my Prayers, and all my Duties are loft: Oh! the Lord pity me, (may many a poor foul fay) I have loft too many Prayers already; through the Lords grace, now I will lofe no more: Oh! I come to Chrift, Lord, I come, I come. This is a mighty incouragement, to make every man now for to come unto Jefus Chrift: because the Lord Jefus, our High-Prieft, takes every Duty, and carries it into the bofom of God the Father for acceptance. Thus for Ungodly.

Secondly, In cafe a man be Godly; this truch doth conduce to our Further Holiness, and growth in Grace.

If I be Godly: Then here I fee infinite reafon, why I fhould be much in Duty; not only pray, but be much in prayer. Why? for the Lord Chrift taketh all, and carries all into the bofom of the Father, mingles his own o

dours,

dours, interceffions with it, although it be but a figh, and a groane. The Apostle upon this account, makes this ufe of it? having spoken of Chrift our High-Prieft? Therefore (faith he let us come with boldness unto the Throne of grace, Heb.4.16 The word fignifies, to fpeak all ones mind? let us come Speaking all. Having fuch an High - Priett indeed, as will Carry all into the prefence of God the Father, for acceptance, every figh, and every groan? then, who would not be much in prayer? speak all to Chrift, be free with Christ, come with boldness? There's many a poor foul, that is much difcouraged, and he dares not go to prayer, many times, afraid to go to the Throne of grace. The reafon is because he looks upon his Prayer, or Duty, as it lies upon his own heart, or as it comes from himself. Whereas, my. beloved. 'tis with your Prayers, and Duties, as it is with fire: Your Kitchin fire is troubled with abundance of (moak, and there is filth about it; fire upon the hearth hath much (moak: but fire above, in the Element of fire, there's no fmoak. So, your Prayer, when it lies upon your own hearth (as I may fay) there's a great deal of fmoak; but when it gets once into the hands of Jefus Chrift, there's its Element, and it is freed from all its fmoak. Or as it is with a mans Body: fo long as he lives here upon the earth, he is feeble, and weak, and many times fickly: aff on as he is come into Heaven, all his weakness is taken away, and his body being in Heaven, 'tis prefently glorified, and ftrength put upon it, and all his Difeafes are gone. So'tis with our frayers: So long as they are here below, in our own bofoms, they are full of weakness; but affoon as our Prayer is out of our mouth, 'tis in the hand of Chrift, 'tis in Heaven, 'tis glorified, the weakness is now done away; Oh! 'tis a glorified prayer when once 'tis gone from you, 'is in the hand of Chrift. And therefore, this is a mighty incouragement unto all thofe that are godly, to be, not only in prayer, but to be much in prayer, come with boldnefs unto the Throne of Grace.

Again, If ye be Godly; yea, if ye be Ungodly: Here I

fee

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fee infinite reason, why I fhould receive every Truth that comes from Chrift, though accompanied with many failings in him that speaks it. The Lord Jefus Chrift, he accepts of every prayer,and duty that comes from me; though it have many weakneffes: yea, he takes my Prayer, and carries it into the prefence of God the Father for acceptance, my poor Prayer, labouring with many weakneffes: Then when a Truth comes from Christ, fhall not I accept of it? what though the Minifter, or Preacher that speaks ic, labour with this or that weakness? There is Pride, or there is fome miscarriage in the delivery, or the like: Shall the Lord Chrift take my Prayer, labouring under infirmity, and accept thereof, and carry it into the prefence of God the Father for acceptance, notwithstanding all the failings of my Duty? and fhall not I accept of Truth that comes from Chrift, notwithstanding all the failings of the poor meffenger that brings it?

Fmrther, The more Evangelical you are in your Obedience, the more Holy ye are in your lives. This truth that is now before ye, well ftudied and confidered, will make you more Obedient in an Evangelical way. And ye fhall find therefore, that the Lord himself from Heaven does make this use of it: pray confult with the 17. of Matthew, and the 5. verfe. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased: hear ye him. Thofe words follow, Hear him. Hearing notes Faith, and Obedience; not a bare Hearing with the ear. Compare this, and the fame fpeech together, which ye have in the 3. of Matthew, and the 17. verfe. Lee, a voyce from Heaven, saying. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Heare ye him, is not there in the 3. of Matthew; but here in the 17. of Matthew, thefe words are added, Heare ye him: What fhould the reafon be, that, Hear ye him, should be added here in the 17. of Matthew,and not in the 3. of Mat them? Give me leave to give you fome reafon for it, so far as may make to our prefent purpose: Not to fay any thing of that which Mofes faid, In his daies a Prophec will the Lord your God raife up unto ye like unto me, hear ye him.

And

And now here, in the 17. of Matthew, at the transfiguration, Mofes and Elias appeared, which they did not in the 3. of Maitber.

First, Confider, that the Emphafis may lie upon the word Hear, and not upon the word Him, only: This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased: Hear ye him; His face did fhine as the Sun, and his rayment was white as the light. And Chrift appeared in great glory, and they food looking upon him; Nay, (faies the Lord from Heaven) do not make it a gazing matter, but, Hear him : don't ftand looking upon him, but Hear him. He don't appear in fuch a glory in the 3. of Matthew, when he was bapti zed; and therefore those words are not added there.

But again, Here now in the 17. Chapter of Matthew, at the Transfiguration, appears Mofes, and Elias. Behold (at the 3. verfe) There appeared unto them, Mofes and Elias talking with bim. Mofes that gave the Law; Elias that reftored it. Then answered Peter and faid unto Jefus; Lord, 'tis good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three Tabernacles; one for Thee, and one for Mofes, and one for Elias. Peter and fo the reft of the Difciples, began for to equallize MoJes to Jefus Chrift: One for Mofes, and one for Elias, and one for Jefus Chrift; no more for Chrift than for Mofes. Now the Lord takes Peter off from all his miftakings: Your eye is upon Mofes (faith he) but I (faith the Lord God Almighty) am wel pleafed in my Son: This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleafed. I am well pleafed with you, and with your Duties, through this my Son, and not through Mofes; and therefore hear Chrift, and not Mofer. He laies this in upon it, that therefore they fhould be Evangelical, and hear Jefus Chrift, because the Lord Chrift gives acceptance unto all, and by him God is well pleafed

with them.

Again further, The more glory, Chrift does appear in, the greater reafon there is why we should bear him. Now here the Lord Jefus Chrift appeared in glory; his face did thine as the Sun, and his raiment was white as the light. In the 3.

ก

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of Matthew, he was there baptized, and he did not appear in glory but now here he appears in glory; and therefore faies the Lord, now Hear him; this is your glorious Saviour, Hear him. Beloved! what greater glory can Jefus Chrift appear to your fouls in, than this, the glory of his love? he takes every one of your Duties, and your Prayers, and he carries them in to the bosome of God the Father, and by him you have acceptance. Oh! what a glorious Saviour have ye! therefore Hear him: This is that, if any thing, will make ye very Obedient to Chrift, more than to Mofes, to be Evangelical in all your Duties.

:

Yet further, The more a man can rejoyce in fpiritual priviledges with humility and the more bumble a man is, and yet can rejoyce in bis fpiritual priviledges, the more holy he is there goes. a great deal of Holiness to it, to joyn these two together: for a man to rejoyce in his fpiritual priviledges and yet to be humble and to walk very humbly. Some there are, that look upon their fpiritual priviledges, and rejoyce much; but they don't walk humbly: Some labour to walk humbly, and are much troubled in the confideration of their own evil; but they don't rejoyce in their fpiritual priviledges. Give me a Chriftian that doth both, and he is a blessed man. The ftudy of this Truth that is now before you, will teach you to do both, to do both cogether For, what a great priviledge is this, not a figh, not a groane, not a duty, but the Lord Chrift takes it, and carries it in, and prefents it to God the Father for me, whereby I have acceptance? Confidering this; here is matter of much joy and rejoycing. I but, It is Chrift that does it; there is no fuch worthinefs in mine own duty; it were loft, and caft away, if Jefus Chrift did not take it in his hand,and carry it in to the bofom of God the Father; and therefore, why fhould I not walk humbly.

I conclude all with this, Ifthat the Lord Jefus Chrift, our great High-Prieft, offers up all our Gifts unto God the Father, whereby we have acceptance: What infinite

caufe