The Riches of Bunyan Part 30

WHAT is prayer? A sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the soul to G.o.d, through Christ, in the strength and a.s.sistance of the Spirit, for such things as G.o.d hath promised.

The best prayers have often more groans than words.

Alas, how few there be in the world whose heart and mouth in prayer shall go together. Dost thou, when thou askest for the Spirit, or faith, or love to G.o.d, to holiness, to saints, to the word, and the like, ask for them with love to them, desire of them, hungering after them? Oh, this is a mighty thing; and yet prayer is no more before G.o.d than as it is seasoned with these blessed qualifications.

Wherefore it is said, that while men are praying, G.o.d is searching the heart to see what is the meaning of the Spirit, or whether there be the Spirit and his meaning in all that the mouth hath uttered, either by words, sighs, or groans, because it is by him and through his help only that any make prayers according to the will of G.o.d.

Rom. 8:26,27.

PREPARATION FOR PRATER.

Before you enter into prayer, ask thy soul these questions: To what end, O my soul, art thou retired into this place? Art thou not come to discourse the Lord in prayer? Is he present, will he hear thee?

Is he merciful, will he help thee? Is thy business slight, is it not concerning the welfare of thy soul? What words wilt thou use to move him to compa.s.sion?

THE THRONE OF GRACE.

We know the throne of grace from other thrones by the glory that it always appears in when revealed to us of G.o.d: its glory outs.h.i.+nes all; there is no such glory to be seen anywhere else, either in heaven or earth. But I say, this comes by the sight that G.o.d gives, not by any excellency that there is in my natural understanding, as such: my understanding and apprehension, simply as natural, are blind and foolish; wherefore, when I set to work in mine own spirit and in the power of mine own abilities, to reach to this throne of grace and to perceive somewhat of the glory thereof, then am I dark, rude, foolish; I see nothing, and my heart grows flat, dull, savorless, lifeless, and has no warmth in the duty; but it mounts up with wings like an eagle when the throne is truly apprehended.

This throne is the seat of grace and mercy, and therefore it is called the mercy-seat and throne of grace. This throne turns all into grace, all into mercy; this throne makes all things work together for good. It is said of Saul's sons, 2 Sam. 21:10-14, they were not buried after they were hanged until water dropped upon them out of heaven; and it may be said of us, there is nothing suffered to come near us until it is washed in that water that proceeds from the throne of grace. Hence afflictions flow from grace; persecutions flow from grace; poverty, sickness, yea, death itself is now made ours by the grace of G.o.d through Christ. Psa. 119:67-71; 1 Cor.

3:22; Rev. 3:19; Heb. 12:5-7. O grace, O happy church of G.o.d! all things that happen to thee are for Christ's sake turned into grace.

They talk of the philosopher's stone, and how if one had it, it would turn all things into gold. Oh, but can it turn all things into grace--can it make all things work together for good? No, no; this quality, virtue, excellency--what shall I call it?--nothing has in it but the grace that reigns on the throne of grace, the river that proceeds from the throne of G.o.d. This, this turns majesty, authority, the highest authority, glory, wisdom, faithfulness, justice, and all into grace. Here is a throne; may G.o.d let us see it. John had the honor to see it, and to see the streams proceeding from it. O sweet sight, O heart-cheris.h.i.+ng sight! "He showed me a pure river of water of life proceeding out of the throne of G.o.d."

Indeed, as was hinted before, in the days of the reign of antichrist there are not those visions of this throne, nor of the river that proceedeth therefrom: now he holdeth back the face of his throne, and spreadeth a cloud upon it; but the preserving, saving benefits thereof we have, as also have all the saints in the most cloudy and dark day. And since we can see so little, we must believe the more; and by believing, give glory to G.o.d. We must also labor for more clear scripture knowledge of this throne, for the holy word of G.o.d is the perspective-gla.s.s by which we may, and the magnifying-gla.s.s that will cause us to behold with open face the glory of this Lord.

2 Cor. 3: 18.

"A throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne;" that is, G.o.d. And this intimates his desirable rest for ever; for to sit is to rest, and Christ is his rest for ever. Was it not therefore well worth the seeing-yea, if John had taken the pains to go up thither upon his hands and knees?

It is grace that chooses, it is grace that calleth; it is grace that preserveth, and it is grace that brings to glory, even the grace that, like a river of water of life, proceeds from this" throne of grace;" and hence it is, that from first to last, we must cry, Grace, grace, unto it.

Thus you see what a throne the Christian is invited to: it is a throne of grace whereon doth sit the G.o.d of all grace; it is a throne of grace before which the Lord Jesus ministers continually for us; it is a throne of grace sprinkled with the blood, and in the midst of which is a Lamb as it had been slain; it is a throne with a rainbow round about it, which is the token of the everlasting covenant, and out of which proceeds a river, a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal.

Look then for these signs of the throne of grace, all you that would come to it, and rest not until by some of them you know that you are even come to it: they are all to be seen, have you but eyes; and the sight of them is very delectable, and has a natural tendency to revive and quicken the soul.

PRAYER IN THE NAME OF CHUIST.

He that thinks to find grace at G.o.d's hand, and yet enters not into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, will find himself mistaken, and will find a dead instead of a living way. For if not any thing below or besides blood can yield remission on G.o.d's part, how should remission be received by us without our acting faith therein? We are justified by his blood, through faith in his blood.

Wherefore look, when thou approachest the throne of grace, that thou give diligence to seek for the "Lamb as it had been slain," that is in the midst of the throne of grace; and then thou wilt have not only a sign that thou presentest thy supplication to G.o.d where and as thou shouldst, but there also wilt thou meet with matter to break, to soften, to bend, to bow, and to make thy heart as thou wouldst have it. This sight shall dissolve and melt down the spirit of that man that is upon his knees before the throne of grace for mercy; especially when he shall see, that not his prayers, nor his tears, nor his wants, but the blood of the Lamb, has prevailed with a G.o.d of grace to give mercy and grace to an undeserving sinner.

G.o.d hath prepared a golden altar for thee to offer thy prayers and tears upon, coming sinner. A golden altar! It is called a _golden altar_, to show what worth it is of in G.o.d's account; for this golden altar is Jesus Christ--this altar sanctifies thy gift, and makes thy sacrifice acceptable.

This altar then makes thy groans golden groans, thy tears golden tears, and thy prayers golden prayers, in the eye of that G.o.d thou comest to.

BENEFIT OF PRAYER.

Pray often; for prayer is a s.h.i.+eld for the soul, a sacrifice to G.o.d, and a scourge for Satan.

Look yonder! Ah, methinks mine eyes do see Clouds edged with silver, as fine garments be; They look as if they saw the golden face That makes black clouds most beautiful with grace.

Unto the saints' sweet incense of their prayer, These smoky curled clouds I do compare; For as these clouds seem edged or laced with gold, Their prayers return with blessings manifold.

Prayer is as the pitcher that fetcheth water from the brook, therewith to water the herbs: break the pitcher and it will fetch no water, and for want of water the garden withers.

The G.o.dly have found all other places, the throne of grace excepted, empty, and places that hold no water. They have been at mount Sinai for help, but could find nothing there but fire and darkness, but thunder and lightning, but earthquakes and trembling, and a voice of killing words.

They have sought for grace by their own performances; but, alas, they have yielded them nothing but wind and confusion; not a performance, not a duty, not an act in any part of religious wors.h.i.+p, but they, looking upon it in the gla.s.s of the Lord, do find it specked and defective.

They have sought for grace by their resolutions, their vows, their purposes, and the like; but alas, they all do as the other, discover that they have been very imperfectly managed, and so are such as can by no means help them to grace.

They have gone to their tears, their sorrow, and repentance, if perhaps they might find some help there; but all has fled away like the early dew.

They have gone to G.o.d as the great Creator, and have beheld how wonderful his works have been; they have looked to the heavens above, to the earth beneath, and to all their ornaments; but neither have these, nor what is of them, yielded grace to those that had sensible want thereof.

They have gone with these pitchers to their fountains, and have returned empty and ashamed; they found no water, no river of water of life.

Paul, not finding it in the law, despairs to find it in any thing else below, but presently betakes himself to look for it where he had not yet found it: he looked for it by Jesus Christ, who is the throne of grace, where he found it, and rejoiced in hope of the glory of G.o.d.

O, when a G.o.d of grace is upon a throne of grace, and a poor sinner stands by and begs for grace, and that in the name of a gracious Christ, in and by the help of the Spirit of grace, can it be otherwise but such a sinner must obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need?

All the sorrow that is mixed with our Christianity proceeds, as the procuring cause, from ourselves, not from the throne of grace; for that is the place where our tears are wiped away, and also where we hang up our crutches: the streams thereof are pure and clear, not muddy nor frozen, but warm and delightful, and they make glad the city of G.o.d.

DISCOURAGEMENTS IN PRAYER.

There is an aptness in those that come to the throne of grace, to cast every degree of faith away that carries not in it self-evidence of its own being and nature, thinking that if it be faith, it must be known to the soul; yea, if it be faith, it will do so and so--even so as the highest degree of faith will do: when, alas, faith is sometimes in a calm, sometimes up, and sometimes down, and sometimes in conflict with sin, death, and the devil. Faith now has but little time to speak peace to the conscience; it is now struggling for life, it is now fighting with angels, with infernals; all it can do now, is to cry, groan, sweat, fear, fight, and gasp for life.

I know what it is to go to G.o.d for mercy, and stand all the while through fear afar off, being possessed with this, Will not G.o.d now smite me at once to the ground for my sins? David thought something so when he said as he prayed, "Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy Holy Spirit from me."

None know, but those that have them, what turns and returns, what coming on and going off, there are in the spirit of a man that indeed is awakened, and that stands awakened before the glorious Majesty in prayer.

It is a great matter, in praying to G.o.d, not to go too far; nor come too short; and a man is very apt to do one or the other. The Pharisee went so far, he was too bold; he came into the temple making, such a ruffle with his own excellencies, there was in his thoughts no need of a Mediator.

It has been the custom of praying men to keep their distance, and not to be rudely bold in rus.h.i.+ng into the presence of the holy and heavenly Majesty, especially if they have been sensible of their own vileness and sins, as the prodigal, the lepers, and the poor publican were. Yea, Peter himself, when upon a time he perceived more than commonly he did of the majesty of Jesus his Lord, what doth he do? "He fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."

Oh, when men see G.o.d and themselves, it fills them with holy fear of the greatness of the majesty of G.o.d, as well as with love to, and desire after, his mercy.

What is poor sorry man, poor dust and ashes, that he should crowd up, and go jostlingly into the presence of the great G.o.d?

For my part, I find it one of the hardest things that I can put my soul upon, even to come to G.o.d, when warmly sensible that I am a sinner, for a share in grace, in mercy. Oh, methinks it seems to me as if the whole face of the heavens were set against me. Yea, the very thought of G.o.d, strikes me through; I cannot bear up, I cannot stand before him; I cannot but with a thousand tears say, "G.o.d be merciful to me a sinner." Ezra 9: 15.

At another time, when my heart is more hard and stupid, and when his terror doth not make me afraid, then I can come before him and ask mercy at his hand, and scarce be sensible of sin or grace, or that indeed I am before G.o.d. But above all, they are the rare times, when I can go to G.o.d as the publican, sensible of his glorious majesty, sensible of my misery, and bear up, and affectionately cry, "G.o.d be merciful to me a sinner."

At certain times the most G.o.dly man in the world may be hard put to it by the sin that dwelleth in him; yea, so hard put to it, that there can be no way to save himself from a fall, but by imploring heaven and the throne of grace for help. This is called the needy-time, the time when the wayfaring man that knocked at David's door shall knock at ours; or when we are got into the sieve into which Satan did get Peter; or when those fists are about our ears that were about Paul's; and when that thorn p.r.i.c.ks us that Paul said was in his flesh. But why, or how comes it to pa.s.s, that the G.o.dly are so hard put to it at these times, but because there is in them--that is, in their flesh--no good thing, but consequently all aptness to close in with the devil and his suggestions, to the overthrow of the soul?

But now, here we are presented with a throne of grace, unto which, as David says, we must continually resort; and that is the way to ohtain relief and to find help in time of need.

DISCOURAGEMENTS TO PRAYER REMOVED.

QUERY. What would you have a poor creature do, that cannot tell how to pray?

ANSWER. Thou canst not, thou complainest, pray; canst thou see thy misery? Hath G.o.d showed thee that thou art by nature under the curse of his law? If so, do not mistake. I know thou dost groan, and that most bitterly; I am persuaded thou canst scarcely be found doing any thing in thy calling. But prayer breaks from thy heart. Have not thy groans gone up to heaven from every corner of thy house? I know it is thus: and so also doth thine own sorrowful heart witness thy tears and thy forgetfulness of thy calling. Is not thy heart so full of desires after the things of another world, that many times thou dost even forget the things of this world? Prithee, read this scripture: Job 23: 12.