6-18 < to whom thou wilt, unto all eternity, communicate a fulness of the vifion of thyfelf, according to the meafure of their perfected, but finite natures; and 'from that communication of thy glory to them, they 'fhall everlastingly return glory to thy name; faying, Bleffing, honour, glory, and power, be unto him that fitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever. Amen "'.' 1 Rev. v. 13. THE 5-79 THE LORD'S PRAYER PARAPHRASED. Our Father. O ETERNAL and glorious Lord God, thou art our Fa ther by Creation, for thou gaveft at first being to the common parents of all mankind: thou art our Father by Nature; we owe our own immediate being more to Thee, than we do to our immediate parents; for thou art the Father of our Spirits: thou art our Father by our Prefervation, we could not fupport ourselves in being one moment of time, without the inceffant influence of thy Providence and Goodness: thou art our Father by Adoption, receiving us in a more special manner to be thy children in and through Jefus Chrift. In all the courfe and paffages of our lives, thou haft manifested unto us the love, and compassion, and tenderness, and goodness, and affection, and kindness of a Father; forgiving our offences, healing our backslidings, pitying our weakneffes, fupplying our wants, delivering us from dangers, accepting our weak endeavours to please and serve Thee; providing things neceffary for us, and an immortal inheritance of glory and happinefs. Bleffed be thy Name that art pleased even from heaven to commiffionate us to come unto Thee, and to call upon Thee under that encouraging, comfortable, and near relation and title of our Father; which carries in it the most full and ample affurance of audience and acceptation: for with whom can we expect acceptation or accefs? From whom can we expect the conceffion of 5-30 what we need, if not from our Father? To whom fhould we refort for fupplies, but to our Father? Which art in Heaven. It is true the fathers of our flefh did bear to us tendernes and affection: but, alas! they are mortal fathers, fathers on earth, fathers that either are dead, or muft die; and, befides, though their affections might be large to us, they were ftraitened in power; they were earthly fathers; and poffibly their affections to us were larger than their ability. But thou art Our Father, an abiding Everlafting Father, a Father in Heaven. As thy love is abundantly extended to us as a Father, fo thy power and ability to answer us is as large as thy goodnefs. Thou art an Heavenly Father, an All-fufficient Father; we are not ftraitened in thy love to us, becaufe thou art our Father: neither are we ftraitened in thy Power, Wisdom, Goodness; for thou art infinite in all thy attributes. And yet, though thou art in heaven, as thy throne, yet earth is thy footstool: though thou dwelleft in the heavens by the glorious manifeftation of thy Majefty, yet the heavens, nor the heaven of heavens, cannot contain Thee; thou art in all places by thy power, prefence, and effence. Our prayers have no long journey to Thee; for thou art near unto us, and acquainted with all our thoughts, and wants, and defires. And thou art not only prefent to hear our prayers, but to relieve, fupply, fupport us; and art pleased, by a special promife, to make the poor cottage of an humble, fincere, praying foul to be thy Temple, and to be prefent there, and to be near to all them that in integrity call upon Thee 3. Hallowed be thy Name. And fince thy glory and honour is the great end of all thy works, we defire that it may be the beginning and end of all our prayers and fervices. Let thy great 1 Isaiah xi. 1. 21 Kings viii. 27. 3 Psalm cxlv. 18. name name be glorious, and glorified, and fanctified through all the world: let the knowledge of Thee fill all the earth, as the waters cover the fea; let that be done in the world, that may most advance thy glory: let all thy works praise Thee: let thy wifdom, power, juftice, goodness, mercy, and truth, be evident unto all mankind, that they may obferve, acknowledge, and admire it, and magnify the name of Thee the eternal God. In all the difpenfations of thy providence, enable us to fee Thee, and to fanctify thy name in our hearts with thankfulness, in our lips with thanksgiving, in our lives with dutifulness and obedience. Enable us to live to the honour of that great name of thine by which we are called; and that as we profess ourfelves to be thy children, fo we may ftudy, and fincerely endeavour, to be like Thee in all goodness and righteoufnefs, that we may thereby bring glory to Thee our Father, which art in heaven; that we and all mankind may have high and honourable thoughts. touching Thee, in fome measure fuitable to thy glory, Majefty, goodness, wifdom, bounty, and purity; and may, in all our words and actions, manifeft thefe inward thoughts touching Thee, with fuitable and becoming words and actions. * Thy Kingdom come. Let thy kingdom of grace come. Let all the world become the true fubjects of Thee the glorious God, And let the Gofpel of thy Kingdom, the everlafting Gospel, run victoriously over the face of the whole world; that the kingdoms of the earth may become. the kingdom of God and of his Chrift 2. Let thy grace, and thy fear, and thy love, and thy law, rule in all our hearts, and in the hearts of all mankind; and fubdue and exterminate the kingdom of Darknefs, the kingdom of Satan, the kingdom of Antichrift; bring all men to the knowledge and obedience of the truth: and let the fceptre of thy kingdom be fet up and up 1 Isaiah xi. 9. 2 Revel. xi. 15. 2 P3 held held as long as the Sun endureth. And let thy kingdom of Glory come 1. Alfo make us fit veffels of it; and that having this hope, we may perfect holiness in thy fear, waiting for, and haftening unto the coming of our Lord Jefus Chrift, and the day wherein he fhall deliver up the kingdom unto the Father, that God may be all in all 2. Thy Will be done. And fince thy will is a moft holy, righteous, gra. cious, just, and wife will, let it be evermore our choice to make thy will to be ours, and to refign up our wills unto Thee, and to thy will. Let the Will of thy Counfel be done and although we know it is not in the power of men or devils to hinder it, yet fo we do tef tify our duty unto Thee, in praying that nothing may impede or retard the will of thy counfels; for thy counfels are full of goodnefs, and benignity, and purity, and righteousness. And we beg Thee to give us hearts moft entirely to wait upon Thee in whatsoever thou fhalt appoint concerning us: that if thou fhalt give us profperity and fuccefs in this life, we may receive it with all thankfulness and humility, and ufe it with fobriety, moderation, and faithfulness; if thou fhalt fend us adverfity, we may entertain it with all fubmiffiveness, patience, contentednefs; cheerfully fubmitting to the difpenfation of our heavenly Father; ever acknowledging thy will to be the best will, and that whereunto it becomes us with all humility to fubmit; and in the midst of all to rejoice that our portion, and patrimony, and happiness, is referved for us in a better life. And as we defire the will of thy counfels may be done upon us, fo we defire the Will of thy Commands may be done by us, and by all mankind; that we may conform our hearts and lives to the rule of thy bleffed word; that we may live in all piety to Thee our God, in all righteoufnefs towards men, in all fobriety towards ourfelves; that we may 12 Cor. vii. 1. 2 Pet. iii. 12. 21 Cor. xv. 24, 28. follow |