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is a Spirit, John 4. 24, that he is Invifible, Coloff. 1. 15. that he is unexpreffible and unconceivable by any Corporeal Shape or Form, Isa. 40. 18. To whom will ye liken God? Or what likeness will ye compare unto him? That he is Immenfe and Incomprehenfible; that all the Nations of the World are unto him but as a drop of a Bucket, and are counted as the Small Duft of a Ballance; that all Nations before him are as nothing, and that they are counted to him less than nothing and Vanity, Ifa. 40. 15. 17. And to the end that Men might not mifapprehend him, or frame conceits of him by any of these things which are his Creatures, and the work of his Hands, when at the giving of the Law in Mount Sinai, he did most Gloriously reveal himself, he appeared not in any visible Shape or likeness, Deut. 4. 15. Wherefore when God fets forth himself by any of the Creatures, or by any thing that is in them, he thereby only intends to lead us to the apprehenfions of those his Attributes or Works which fomething in fuch Creatures fhadoweth forth unto us. So when the Scripture faith, The Lord is a Man of War, it thereby gives us to understand, that he is Armed

with Power to overcome and fubdue all his Enemies, and the Enemies of his Church and People. When it Attributes Arms and Hands to him, it would thereby make us apprehenfive of his Might and Activity, when it Attributes Eyes unto him it would have us understand his Knowledge and Providence to be thereby intended, when he threatens that he will be unto Wicked Men as a Lyon, or a Leopard, or a Bear, we are under those Representations to understand the fierceness of his Indignation, and the Severity of his Justice.

Object. 4. But unless we should apprehend God under fome Shape, how could our thoughts be fixed on him?

Anfw. 1. To frame thoughts of God that are not agreeable to his Nature, or confonant to thofe Revelations of himfelf to us which he hath made in Scripture, is a very ill and undue means for fixing our thoughts. By the fame Reafon you might as well fay, it were very expedient and useful for the fixing of our thoughts on God the better, to have an Image or an Idol before our Eyes when we Pray, to represent him to us. If God had judged this a Meet expedient,or useful help for fixing our thoughts A a 4

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on himself, he would never have fo exprefly forbidden that way of Worship, and fo feverely threatened the practices of it, as in the Second Commandment he hath done.

2. For the fixing of our thoughts on God in Prayer, let us make use of fuch means as he himself allows and approves of.

1. Let us often Meditate on the Attributes of God, his infinite Power, Wisdom, Justice, Holinefs, Goodness, Truth, Omnipresence, Omniscience, Unchangeableness; and let us get deep and abiding Impreffions of thefe and other Attributes upon our Hearts.

2. Let us upon all emergent occafions fingle out those Attributes that are most fuitable to our prefent Condition, and Exigencies, as his Wisdom when we need his Counsel and Direction; his Power when we are conflicting with any great difficulties; his Juftice and Holinefs when we are Tempted to any Sin, or through the ftrength and violence of our Corruption in prefent danger of running into Sin; his infinite Mercy when we are ready to Despair; his Truth when we find we begin to doubt of his Promifes; his Unchange

ableness

ableness when we question the continuance of his Favour to us. If we thus fet those Attributes of God before us that best fuit the present Condition of our Souls, we fhall find it fo much the more eafie to fix our thoughts upon them.

3. Let us be ever watchful over our Thoughts and Fancies, and keep our Hearts with all diligence at all times, that we may never entertain any undue thoughts of God, or frame to our felves any fuch conceptions of him as are not agreeable to his Nature. The more narrowly we watch our Hearts, and the more heedfully we obferve and govern our Fancies at other times, the less fhall we be molested with undue thoughts of God in Prayer.

4. Let us not rush into the prefence of God rudely and irreverently, but so far as our occafions will permit, let's take a little time to call in our thoughts, and fix them on God before we enter upon the Duty of Prayer. A few ferious thoughts of God into whose prefence we are to come, immediately before we addrefs our felves to the Duty, will be a good help to prevent those our extravagant Fancies and mifconcep

tions of him which we find we are too apt to give way to, and entertain. And thus I have done with the second part of this Chapter, in which Charity is commended from its duration, and in that refpect preferred before Prophefies, Tongues and Knowledge.

I now proceed to the last Verse of the Chapter; And now abideth Faith, Hope, Charity, these three, but the greateft of thefe is Charity. In thefe words we have the Conclufion of the Apostles Difcourfe concerning the excellency of Charity, which, according to the Judgment of fome of the best Interpreters, contains another Argument to prove the excellency of that Grace. Before the Apostle had preferred it before the most excellent Gifts; here he prefers it before the chief of all other Graces, Faith and Hope. For our better understanding of the words, two things are to be inquired into, what Faith the Apostle here understands, and what the importance of the particle Now in this place is; Now abideth Faith, Hope, Charity. For the first of these, although the Apostle ver. the 2d. had been speaking of the Faith of Miracles, yet 'tis not that

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