tual sin repented of. He has fulfilled the law of righteousness through the mystery of redemption; not that man should sin, that grace may abound, but that he should not faint or despond. A perfect obedience is not expected from a degenerated creature, but only sincerity to employ the measure of grace afforded him (as fully illustrated in the parable of the talents). He is now bought with a price, and has always a Power at hand to help him, against which the gates of hell shall not prevail. In short, the conditions of this new covenant in Christ Jesus are repentance and faith.

Having now given you a short view of the doctrine of grace, by which we are saved through faith, and this being most truly the gift of God, I shall proceed to the more immediate subject of the Lecture, and that is, a clear understanding of the means which God has bountifully ordained for the conveying this grace to us, and by which alone we can be enabled to fulfil the duties he has required of us. The principal means of grace are these three: God's holy word, prayer, and the sacraments. The instruction our Catechism further delivers to us on this point, relates chiefly to the two last-hearty prayer to God, and the right use of the holy sacraments. The Church concludes her examination respecting the foregoing instruction of her members in their duty to God

and their fellow-creature, by proposing the following admonition or exhortation in the way of preface to the Lord's Prayer, which is short, plain, and strictly evangelical. It enjoins us to remember," that we are not able of OURSELVES "to do any of the above duties, nor to walk in the "commandments of God, and to serve him, with"out his special grace (or aid), which we must "learn at all times to call for by diligent prayer:" and it then requires the scholar to repeat the Lord's Prayer, which being the sublime and comprehensive form of words delivered by Christ himself as a pattern for his immediate disciples and followers, whereby to regulate their addresses to the throne of grace, nothing can be more proper than that all Christians should be able to say and understand this divine Prayer, both in honour of Christ the author, and as a most efficacious means of prevailing with God to help them, and bestow that measure of grace they daily stand in need of.

In the next Lecture I shall proceed to explain and enlarge upon this blessed form of words, which contains in a narrow compass every needful petition that can advance and profit a Christian in this state of trial and warfare. At present it will be more advantageous to submit to your consideration some thoughts upon prayer in general: first, by showing you

what it is; and, secondly, by making some observations on the form and manner of it.

The word prayer, in the Hebrew tongue, signifies an appeal to, and calling upon, or referring to a superior; an intercession, that is, an earnest entreaty, either personally, or by mediation of another, Prayer is that religious language by which we approach and call upon the Supreme Being, by which we acknowledge our dependence upon him, the mighty and undeserved privilege granted by God to his weak and helpless creatures, whereby they give proof of their faith in him; and which is capable of conveying to them the utmost consolation that can be communicated to mankind in their present afflicted and mortal state of trial. Prayer, to be effectual, must be founded on a belief both of God's infinite knowledge, power, and presence, and also of his gracious goodness and mercy towards us in Jesus Christ. As to the first character of prayer, as it relates to the Father, it is finely described in Psalm iv. 1; Hear me when I call, O God of my righteous ness: thou hast set me at liberty when I was in trouble; have mercy upon me, and hearken unto my prayer. And as it respects our faith in God the Son, and the Mediator, it is equally marked by these words of Jesus Christ himself (John, xvi. 23, 24): Verily, I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give

it you: hitherto ye have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. By virtue, therefore, of prayer, God is not only always present with us, to hear and receive our prayers, according to the Psalmist (lxv. 2), Thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come: he is not only thoroughly acquainted with all our wants; for, as our blessed Lord assures us (Matt. vi. 8), the Father knoweth what things ye have need of before we ask him, and is fully able to supply them: but what is the strongest encouragement to this duty, he is also willing and ready so to do, if we will call upon him as we ought to do; the manner of which is particularly described by our Saviour, Matt. xxi. 22, All things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, BELIEVING, ye shall receive. By which words we perceive, that faith must be the foundation of all prayer, to render it effectual. Now, as faith is one vital part of the Christian religion, if we really possess this gift, we shall always approach God with such a sense of his purity, and our own imperfections, as to render us very cautious of not presenting any petition that is inconsistent with our Christian character, which cannot possibly be done in Christ's name; and thereby we shall take the sure way of having our prayers granted as far as they are expedient to our best happiness, and according to the wisdom of God's foreknowledge. Humility and

resignation to the divine will must likewise ever accompany our petitions; this being another indispensable qualification of Christian devotion.

Prayer, again, considered as the offering up of our desires to Heaven for things lawful and needful, to the praise of the mercy, truth, and power of God, and with an humble confidence to obtain them, through the alone mediation of Jesus Christ, may be justly termed calling upon God, whether we utter our requests to him with our mouths, or only lift up the thoughts of our hearts to him; both which are to God alike, provided sincerity is added to the other beforementioned requisites of prayer.

Having briefly shown you what prayer is, it will, in the next place, be proper to consider the necessity of it. Now, as the prayers that we make unto God, are the ordinary conveyancers of the graces that we receive from him, the expediency of prayer becomes self-evident; for, besides that it is a part of that religious worship which we are bound in duty to pay to God, and, when publicly performed, is one of the highest acts of outward honour that we are capable of giving him, it is likewise necessarily founded on these two principles: first, a due sense of our own weakness and wants; this we see in Solomon's prayer, confessing that he could do nothing to celebrate the Majesty of heaven wor