5. And then, that we might better use it when we have it. Then we use
life of desires. The life of accomplishment is heaven. Then all our desires shall be accomplished, and all promises performed, and not before then. This is a life of desires, and we must be in a state of desires and prayers still till we be in heaven.
Quest. What is the reason that God doth not presently accomplish our desires?
Ans. There be diverse reasons. First of all he loves to hear the desires of his servants, he loves to be sued unto; because he knows it is for our good. It is music that best pleaseth God's ears to hear a soul come to him to request, especially spiritual things of him, which he delights most to give, which he knows is most useful and best for us.
This pleaseth him so marvellously, that he will not presently grant it, but leads us along and along, that still he may hear more and more from us.
2. And then to keep us in a perpetual humble subjection and dependence on him, he grants not all at once, but leads us along, by yielding a little and a little, that so he may keep us in a humble dependence.
3. And then to exercise all our graces; for a spirit of prayer is a spirit of exercise of all grace. We cannot pray, but we must exercise faith, and love to God and his church; and a sanctified judgment to esteem what are the best things to be prayed for; and to exercise mortification. 'If I regard sin, God will not regard my prayers,' Ps.
66:18. A spirit of prayer is a spirit that puts all into exercise; therefore God, to keep us in the exercise of all grace, answers not at the first.
4. And then he would have us to set a high price upon what we desire and seek after. If we had it at the first, we should not set so high an esteem and price of it.
5. And then, that we might better use it when we have it. Then we use things as we should do when we have gotten them with much ado;
when we have won them from God with great importunity, then we keep and preserve them as we should. These and the like reasons may be given, and you may easily conceive them yourselves.
Therefore let us not be offended with God's gracious dispensation if he answer not our desires presently, but pray still; and if we have the spirit of prayer continued to us, that spirit of prayer is better than the thing we beg a great deal. Ofttimes God answers us in a better kind, when he gives us a spirit of prayer; for increasing a spirit of prayer in us, he increaseth all graces in us. What is it we would have? this or that particular grace. But when God gives us a spirit of prayer, he answers us better than in the thing we ask, for there is all grace. He will answer in one kind or other. But I will not be large in these points. You see then what was the affection of the holy prophet, to that one thing. 'One thing have I desired.' And he did not only desire it, but turned his desire into a prayer. He prayed to God; and he not only prayed once or twice, but he seeks it still, till God vouchsafed to grant it.
Obj. Well, but that that he prayed for, he was assured of, and therefore what need he pray for it? He had a promise, 'He shall prepare a table before mine enemies, my cup doth overflow,' Ps.
23:5, 6. But what is that to this? These be things of this life. Oh! but, saith he, God will be good to me in the things of another life, and all the days of my life too. 'Doubtless the lovingkindness of the Lord shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord.' He takes in trust his dwelling in the house of God; and that the lovingkindness of God should follow him all the days of his life, he was assured of it, and yet here he seeks it and prays for it.
Ans. I note it, to shew that the assurance of the thing takes not away the earnestness of prayer. Daniel was assured (Dan. 9:4, seq.) that God would deliver the Jews out of Babylon. He had read Jeremiah's prophecies, he knew the time was accomplished; yet we see what an earnest prayer he makes there. Christ knew that God heard him in all his desires, that he should have all good from God, being his only
Son, yet he prayed whole nights sometimes, and a whole chapter,
John 17, is an excellent prayer of his. So that the assurance of the thing takes not away prayer to God; nay, it stablisheth it, for God so makes good his promises for the time to come, as that he makes them good this way, he will be sought to by prayer. And I may know hence that he will make good his promises for the time to come to me, if I have a spirit of prayer for them; if I pray for perseverance to the end, that God would vouchsafe me grace to live in the church, and to grow up as a cedar. God surely means to grant this, because he hath given me holy and gracious desires, which he would not have given me, but that he means to give the thing. For this is an encouragement to pray, when I know I shall not lose my labour. I pray, because I have a promise to have it, and I know the promise runs upon this. 'But I will be sought unto of the house of Judah for this,' Ezek. 36:37. For if we have it, and have not sought it by prayer, for the most part we cannot have a comfortable use of it, unless we have things as the fruit of our prayers. Though there be not a particular prayer for every particular thing we have of God, yet unless it be the fruit of the general prayer, that we put up daily, we cannot have comfort in it; if God give it by a general providence, as he fills 'the bellies of the wicked with good things,' Ps. 17:14. But if we will have things for our good in particular, we must receive them as the fruit of our prayers from God. You see here he seeks, and desires that that he had a promise to have, 'One thing have I desired of the Lord, and that will I seek.'
'That I may dwell in the house of the Lord.'
It was generally propounded before. 'One thing have I desired, and that will I seek after,' with all my might. And what is that? The specification of it is this:
'That I may dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.'
His desire is, not only to be in God's house, but to dwell in it, to abide; and not for a little while, but to dwell, and to dwell 'all the days of my life.'
The house of God then was the tabernacle, the sanctuary. The temple was not yet built. He desired to be near the tabernacle, to dwell in the sanctuary, the place of God's worship. In the tabernacle, which in those times was the house of God, there was the ark and the mercyseat, types of many glorious things in the New Testament; the holy of holies, &c. And he desired to dwell in the tabernacle, to be near the ark, the house of God. Why? Because God manifested his presence there, more than in other places. The ark hath God's name in diverse places of Scripture; because God gave his answers in the ark, in the propitiatory, or mercy-seat. They came there to know his meaning, what he would have; he gave his answer there. He is said to dwell between the cherubins. There were two cherubins upon the mercyseat, and God is said to dwell between the cherubins, Exod. 35:22; that is, there he was present to give answers to the high priest, when he came to ask. David knew this well enough, that God had vouchsafed a more special presence in the tabernacle, than in all the places of the world, and therefore, saith he, 'I desire to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.'
'House,' we take for the persons that are in it, and persons that are ordered, or else it is a confusion, and not a house. It is a company of those that are voluntary. They come not by chance into our house, those that are members of our society; but there is an order. There is a governor in a house, and some that are under government, and there is a voluntary conjunction and combination. So the church is a voluntary company of people that is orderly, some to teach, and some to be instructed; and thereupon it is called a house.
And it is called the house of God, because he is present there, as a man delights to be present in his house. It is the place where God will be met withal. As a man will be found in his house, and there he will have suitors come to him, where he reveals his secrets. A man rests, he lies, and lodgeth in his house. Where is a man so familiar as in his house? And what other place hath he such care to protect and provide for as his house? And he lays up his treasures, and his jewels in his house. So God lays up all the treasures of grace and comfort in
the visible church. In the church he is to be spoken with as a man is in his house. There he gives us sweet meetings; there are mutual spiritual kisses. 'Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth,' Cant.
1:2. A man's house is his castle, as we say, that he will protect and provide for. God will be sure to protect and provide for his church.
Therefore he calls the church of God, that is, the tabernacle (that was the church at that time), the house of God. If we apply it to our times, that that answers the tabernacle now, is particular visible churches under particular pastors, where the means of salvation are set up.
Particular visible churches now are God's tabernacle (b). The church of the Jews was a national church. There was but one church, but one place, and one tabernacle; but now God hath erected particular tabernacles. Every particular church and congregation under one pastor, their meeting is the church of God, a several church independent. Our national church, that is, the Church of England, because it is under a government civil, which is not dependent upon any other foreign prince, it is a particular church from other nations.
In that God calls the church his house, it shews the special respect that he hath to his church. God, though he be present everywhere, yet he is present in another manner in his church. As for instance, the soul is present in all the parts of the body; but the soul, as far as it understands, is only in the brain; as far as it is the fountain of life, it is in the heart. It hath offices and functions in all the parts; but in the special function, the rational function of it, as it discourseth and reasoneth, it is in the brain. So for our apprehension's sake, God is everywhere; but as he sanctifies and pours out his blessings, and opens, and manifests his secrets, so he is in his church especially.
God is everywhere, but he is in another way in heaven than in other places. He is there gloriously. So in earth he is everywhere, but he is in another manner in the church (the heaven upon earth), than in other places. He is there as in his house to protect them, and provide for them as his family; and there he abides by his ordinances, and takes solace, and delight. God delights himself in his church and children that attend upon his ordinances. 'Where two or three are met together, I will be in the midst of them,' Mat. 18:20. When God's