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2 Cor. 3. 5.

PART IV. THE LORD'S PRAYER.

CATECHIST. My good child, know this, that thou art not able to do these things of thyself, nor to walk in the Commandments of God, and to serve Him, without His special grace, which thou must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer. Let me hear, therefore, if thou canst say the Lord's Prayer.

ANSWER. Our Father Which art in Heaven; hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. Amen.

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HE that is not sensible of his own weakness, will never look out for help. Wherefore it is necessary for all to know this, that they are not able of themselves, or by their own natural power, to keep God's Commandments: for, we are not sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God." And although He giveth all men so much grace or power to do His will, as makes them inexcusable before Him, if they do it not; yet, notwithstanding, none do all that is required of them, without something more than what is common to all men, therefore called His special grace,' which He giveth in a special manner to those who, believing in Jesus Christ, the One Mediator between God and men, have Him to intercede for them, that they may have it: Who therefore saith, John 15. 5. "Without Me ye can do nothing." But, as His Apostle Phil. 4. 13. said, "I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me."

This special grace,' therefore, we must learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer.' For as we read in the James 1. 5. Epistle of St. James: "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." And our Saviour Him

Luke 11.13. self saith, "If ye then, being evil,

know how to give good

things unto your children, how much more shall your

Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask
Him?"

And if His Holy Spirit, then His 'special grace:' it being by His Holy Spirit that we are sanctified, and specially enabled to keep His Holy Commandments. This, therefore, we must learn to call for, not only now and then, but at all times, every day at least, twice or thrice, if not oftener, either at church or in our closets; and that, too, not in a careless, indifferent manner, but by diligent, hearty, and earnest prayer.

16. 23.

And having no ground to expect any such special grace or favour at the hands of God, but only through Jesus Christ our Lord, we must learn to pray for it in His Name, Who said, "If ye ask any thing in My Name, I will do it." John 14. 14; And therefore having His word for it, when we have asked it, we must believe and trust on Him for it; not doubting but that He, according to His promise, will give it us, in the use of the means which He hath ordained and appointed for that end; such as private and public prayers, fasting and watching, and humbling ourselves before God, reading and hearing His most Holy Word, and receiving the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper; which are, therefore, called the means of grace,' because it is by them that God ordinarily conferreth His special grace' upon us.

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But we not knowing what to pray for as we ought, the Lord, even our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, was graciously pleased to compose a prayer for us; and commanded, that when we pray, we should say that: "When ye pray," (saith Luke 11. 2. He), say, Our Father which art in Heaven," &c. Not but that we may say other prayers too; but we must say that, whensoever we pray, both because He hath commanded it, and because it is the only prayer that we are sure is perfectly agreeable to the will of God, as being made by Himself; and most acceptable to Him, as being given us by Him, by Whom alone any of our prayers or duties are accepted of Him.

So that when we pray in the very words, as well as in the Name of our Mediator, we have no reason to doubt but our prayers shall be heard, and all the good things we asked shall be granted to us, through His merits and mediation;

that is to say, for the sake, or upon the account of His death, whereby He merited, or deserved and purchased for us, all the good things we can desire: and by the power of that mediation or intercession, which He, by virtue of His said death, is continually making at the right hand of God the Father for us.

And besides, although we may use many other words, there is nothing that we can ever want or desire, that is really good for us, or necessary either for life or godliness, but we ask it in this prayer of our Lord's composure; and that too in the same method, and in such terms as He Himself would have us ask it in, by Whose mediation only it can be granted.

Hence it is that the Church, in His Name, requires every one of her members to learn this Prayer; and here asketh, by her Catechist, or him that catechiseth them, whether they can say it. Not doubting, but if they can say this Prayer aright, they may obtain God's special grace to keep His Commandments, and to serve Him faithfully all the days of their life. But for that purpose it is necessary that they should understand the true meaning and extent of every expression of it.

First, therefore, we here call Almighty God " Our Father," and so address ourselves and our prayers to Him, not as He is only the Supreme Governor of the world, absolutely in Himself considered, but as He is related to us so as to be John 1. 12. Our Father. But He is Our Father only in Jesus Christ; and therefore it is in His Name only that we say this prayer and none can truly say it, but such as are baptized into Him, and made members of His body, and so are become the children of God in Him. And every one that is thus made a child of God, although He saith this prayer only by Himself as well as together with others; yet notwithstanding, He doth not say, 'My Father,' but Our Father: because he saith this prayer only as he is a member of Christ, and so in communion and conjunction with all the members of his body, children of the same Father. "Which is in Heaven:" that is, Who rules and reigns on high over the whole world, and therefore can give us whatsoever we ask.

"Hallowed be Thy name:" that is, as if we should say, 'holied,' or 'sanctified be Thy name;' let it be acknowledged and accounted holy, infinitely above all other names, and accordingly admired, celebrated, glorified, and praised by all the creatures in the world. So that in this, we both pray that His Name may be sanctified by all others, and we do it ourselves for hereby we join in effect with the holy Angels, in singing, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts: Isa. 6. 3. the whole earth is full of His glory," which is the first thing that we here desire and do, because it is the first and chief end of all things.

:

"Thy Kingdom come." That is, let the Kingdom and power of Thy grace come into our hearts: let Thy Holy Spirit rule there, subdue us to Thyself, and rest continually upon us; that by Thy 'special grace' preventing, exciting, assisting, and strengthening us, we may serve and honour Thee, our Almighty King and Governor, all the days of our life. And let the Kingdom of Thy glory come, let it come quickly, that we may all glorify and enjoy Thee together.

"Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven." That is, grant, we beseech Thee, that we and all mankind may, by Thy assistance and grace, perfectly submit to, obey, and do Thy will on earth; and the holy Angels, and the spirits of just men made perfect, do it continually in Heaven: that we may be perfect as they are, and fulfil Thy Holy Will perfectly as they do.

"Give us this day our daily bread." That is, give us, we humbly beseech Thee, the Author and Giver of all good gifts, give us this, and so every day, all things necessary both for life and godliness, both for our souls and bodies. "Feed us with food convenient for us," and supply us con- Prov. 30. 8. tinually of Thy infinite goodness, with all such things as Thou knowest to be anywise needful for us in this mortal

state.

"And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us." That is, as we, from the bottom of our hearts, forgive all the wrongs and injuries that other men have done us; so be Thou graciously pleased, of Thy infinite mercy in Jesus Christ, to forgive all the trespasses, transgressions, or sins, that we have ever committed against Thee,

so as never to punish us for any of them, either in this world or that which is to come.

"And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." That is, lead us not Thyself, nor suffer us to be led by the Devil, our ghostly enemy, nor by any other, into any temptation or trial that may be too hard for us, so as to cause us to fall; but deliver us from the Evil One, and from all manner of evil, both of sin and misery. So that we here pray for every thing that is or can be good for us: it being a great evil to want any thing that is good.

Here endeth this Divine Prayer, as it was once delivered Luke 11. 2. by Our Lord. But at the delivery of it another time, He Matt. 6. 13. added, "For Thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen." And therefore our Church, following His example, in her Liturgy sometimes accordingly omits, and sometimes adds those words, called the Doxology, or giving glory, as setting forth the glory of God, in the reasons wherefore we ask these things of Him; even because His is the Kingdom,' or empire of the world; He rules over all, and hath all things at His command: and His is the power;' He can do what He will, and therefore can give us whatsoever we ask, if He please: and His is the glory; it is for His glory that we ask these things, that the glory of His Divine perfections may shine forth more clearly among us; the glory of His mercy and truth, in granting them to us; and the glory of His power and supreme authority in effecting them for us. And all the glory that shall arise from our having, using, and improving of them, will redound wholly to Him, and be for ever His.

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And then we conclude with saying, " Amen ;" which, in Hebrew, signifies both so be it,' and 'so it is;' whereby we therefore both repeat or renew our desires of what we have asked; and likewise express our trust and confidence, that Our Heavenly Father will accept of what we have done, and grant all that we have desired of Him, for the glory of His great Name, in Jesus Christ our Lord.

QUESTIONS.

Can you of yourselves keep God's Commandments?
Do any keep them without His' special grace?'

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