Pfal. xxxii. 2,3, 5. cxxx. 3,4. Prov. xxviii. 13. 1 Jo. i. 9. Mark xi. 25. 3.2. What do you mean by forgiving of Trespaffes? A. I pray that God would do away All my Sins of what Nature, or Quality foever they be that he would wash away the Guilt, and remit the Punishment of Them. 4. 2. Do you truft that God will do this? A. Yes, if I take care to make Good the ConLuke vi. 37. dition upon which I ask it of him; by forgiving of those who trefpafs against Me. Mat. vi. 14, 15. Jo. i. 8, 9. See above, Seft, xviii. Luke xi. 4. 5.2. Will that alone fuffice to intitle you to God's Forgiveness? A. No, it will not: Without forgiving of Others, I fhall never be myself forgiven: Mat. vi. 15. But that I may be forgiven by God, I muft not only forgive Others, but muft Myfelf Repent of my Sins, and ask Pardon for them, in the Name, and through the Merits, and Mediation of Jefus Chrift our Saviour. 6. 2. Why then is this added, as the Condi tion upon which we are to pray to God for his Forgiveness? A. It was fit to be mentioned upon feveral AcCounts: 1ft, As a Confideration very proper to be Offered by Us to God, to induce him to forgive Us. If we who are Proud, and Peevish: Easy to be Affronted, and hard to be Reconciled; yet, for God's fake, and in Obedience to his Commands, forgive those who have offended Us; how much more fhall our moft Gracious and Merciful Father, forgive Us, in what we have Offended him. It was fit to have been added, Mat. vi. 14. 2dly, As a Motive upon the fame Grounds, to affure Us, that if we truly Repent of our Sins, and beg of God the Forgiveness of Them, God will certainly Remit them to Us. It was fit to have been added, 3dly, To put Us continually in Mind of the Neceffity we lie under to forgive Injuries, 35. Injuries, though never fo many, never fo great, Mat. vi. 15. never fo often, and provokingly Committed; xviii. 21, to and to engage Us readily, and heartily fo to do: Mar. xi. 25, Confidering that 'till we have done it, we can- 26. not pray to God for his Forgivenefs; and that Luke xvii. if we do not Do it fincerely, God will certainly 3, 4. find it out: And though by pretending a Reconciliation where really it is not, we may delude Men, yet we cannot poffibly deceive God. 7. 2. What think you of those who say their Lord's Prayer, and yet either continue at Variance with their Neighbour, or at least do not truly, and from their Hearts, forgive Him? A. I think that they do not pray for Pardon, but for Vengeance: They Imprecate the Wrath of God upon their own Heads; and do, in Reality, Pray after this defperate Manner: Thou, O God! haft Commanded me to forgive my Brother his Trefpaffes: Thou hast declared that unless I do fo, thou wilt not Forgive me my Sins. Well; let what will come, I am refolved to ftand to the bazard of it. I will not Forgive, nor be Reconciled to my Brother; do thou deal as thou pleafeft with Me. 1.2 WHAT is the Sixth and laft Petition of this Prayer? Of the Sixth not into 1. A. Bnd lead us not into Temptation, but but deliver Deliber Ms from Evil. 2.2. What is meant by Temptation? us from Evil. A. It, in General, fignifies no more than Tri. Mal. iii, 13.. al, and may be taken in an Indifferent, or even Mat. xxii. in a Good Senfe, to denote any Occafion of Acts v. 9. proving and experimenting a Man's Faith, or Jam. 1.2, 12. Obedience. So God tempted Abraham: Gen. xxii. 1. Christ, Philip; Jo. vi. 6. And thus Afflicti ons, Acts i. 14. ii. 1, 46. I Cor.xi.20. 15. 2. Do you think it to be a Matter of ne cellary Duty, to Pray Publickly with the Church? A. In General it certainly is; especially upon the Lord's Day, and fuch Other Solemn Times iii. I. xx. 7. of Prayer, as both the Laws of the Realm, and the Canons of the Church, require of Us. As for the daily Prayers, if we live in a Place where Heb.xii. 25. they are publickly Read, and are not hinder'd by any neceffary Bufinefs to come to Them, I do not fee how we can excuse ourselves from ufually joining in Them. xiv. 16, 19, &c. 16. 2. Has our Saviour left Us any particu lar Direction how we fhould Pray? A. He has left Us a Form of his Own Com pofing, not only to be continually made Ufe of by Us; but allo to be a Pattern to Us, after what manner we ought to put up our Own Addreffes to God. 17. 2. In what does that Form chiefly direct Us to compofe our Own Prayers aright? A. It teaches us especially thefe Four Things: Firft, That we fhould make our Prayers fhort, and pertinent; as being moft fuitable both to the Wisdom and Majefty of God; and to our Own Weaknefs, and Infirmities. Secondly, That we fhould Pray for Others, as well as for Ourselves; and that in our Private, as well as our Publick Prayers. Thirdly, That we may pray for the Neceffaries of this Life; though our main Concern fhould be, in our Prayers, as well as our Endeavours, after Thofe of the Other.. Fourthly, That we fhould Pray to God ONLY, and to Him as our Father, through Faith in Chrift Jefus, Gal. iii. 26. 18. 2. Have you any thing elfe to Obferve from the Form of this Prayer? A. This only, that to Pray to God by a Setform, is fo far from being a Thing either in itsfelf Unlawful, or Injurious to the Holy Spirit ; that I 2. 2. What do you mean by a Doxology? A. A Form of giving Glory, and Praife, and 1 Chr. xxi Honour to God. 1 Tim. i, 17. Rev, v. 12. vii. 12. 3.2. Why was this Doxology here added by Our Saviour? II. A. To fhew us that all the Religious Service 1 Cor. x. 31. we pay to God: whether we Pray, Confefs, Give Col. iii. 17. Thanks: or whatever we do, we ought to defign 1 Pet. iv. 11, it All to his Glory. It was alfo added to keep Pfal. xcvi. 7, up in our Minds a due Senfe of the Reafon we 8, 9, 10. have both to pray to God for all the things we have before confider'd; and to expect a fuitable Return of them at his Hands. 4. 4. How does this Doxology fhew, that we ought to Ask thefe Things of God? A. Very plainly: For because God is the King Pfal. xxii. of all the World; therefore he ought to be apply'd 28, to by all his Creatures. Because his is the Power; He is able both to hear, and to answer our 2 Chr. xx. Requests; therefore of him it is moft fit to defire. whatfoever we ftand in Need of. Because his is the Glory of all our Religious Invocation; ('tis a Worship that peculiarly belongs to God; as diftinguifh'd from the Creature) therefore to him only ought we to make our Prayers, and not to any Other. 5. 2. How does this Doxology encourage us to Hope that we fhall Receive what we ask of God? A. Because we do hereby profess to believe that he can Grant what we defire; and the things we ask are so much for his Own Glory, as well as Our Advantage, that we ought not to doubt but that we shall Receive them from Him. 6. 2. After what manner do we acknowledge thefe Excellencies to be in God? A. In a fuper-eminent manner, beyond what they Are, or Can be, in any One befides. Others may have Authority; but as derived from him, who only is the Supreme King over all the Earth. Others Pfal. xcvi. 8, 9. 7, Dan, ii. 37, 47. iv. 3, 34. Tim. i, 17. Phil. iv. 23. Others may have Power, but God only is Almighty. Others may have Glory; a Majesty fuit able to their Station, and Character in the World But to God only belongs the Excellency of Divine Honour, and Worship. To him only is Prayer, and Religious Invocation to be made: He only is either capable of it; or can pretend any Right to it. 7. 2. Why do you to this Doxology add, for Ever and Ever? A. To fhew that these Divine Perfections, and Tim.vi.17. Prerogatives, did always belong to God; and 2 Tim.iv. 18. will always continue to belong, in this fingular ■ Pet. iv. 11. manner, to Him. Nam, v. 22. 8. 2. What does Amen import? A. It is a Word of Wish, and Approbation; and Kings 1:36. denotes our Affent to that to which it is fubjoin'd, Jer. xxviii. with an Earneft Defire of its accomplishment. So that putting its feveral Significations together, it is as much as if we fhould fay; God of his 2 Cor. i. 20. Goodness Grant what I have here pray'd for; and fo I truft he will do, of his Mercy towards me through Jefus Chrift our Saviour. x Cor. xiv. 16. PART |