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Show No CROSS, NQ CROWN. Vot t. 300 I66S. 0./fcrints? With Calves of a Ji:or old? WiO the Lord be Pi<'ofed' wit b. Tb,.. ~ fand.r of Rams, or With Ten Thoufand~ of Rwers of Od · ~h:'/1 1 gtvt my Chlp. Vl. Firjlbornfor mY Tronfgrcj}ion, the Fwt of my Body for tbrStn of my Soul! He barb }hewed thee, 0 Man, what is Good. .And whar doth ;be ~ord rt~mrc of thee, bJJt to do j 11fliy, to love Me:cy, and ro roalk humbly ttttb thy (jgJ? p~ ~~- s~, The Royal Prophet, Senfible of rh1s, call! thus alfo upo~ God; 0. LorJ, 16, 17· open rbOu my Lips, and my )l1o,utb .foaU jhtw [drrb thY, Prr'/!:,· He did .ll?t dare op·en his own Lips, he kne'YV th:H cou~d ~ot pr:11fe JOd ; And w~y? For rbou drjirefl not Sacrific~, c!fe would I gtve If: (If ~y Formal 9ffenngS would ferve, thou fhouldft not want them) Th~u. de!rgbufi not M Burn_r~ 0./feri,gs. The Sncrifius of Godar~ a Broke11 Spmt, a broken an~ ,,_Conrm,e Heart, 0 God, rho11 t~ilt not defpife: And why? Beca~fe t~ts IS Gods Work, the EffeCt of his P'ower; and HH own Works prnife .h1m .. To the fame Purpofe doth God himfelf fpelk by the Mouth of Jfawb, tn Oppofition to the Formalmes and Ltp-Worfhtp of the degenera~e ]ett;!: Thus faith the Lord The Heaven is my Throne, and tl# E.arth u my Fon-Stool, PC 66• '' 2' where u the Houfe rbat ye build to me ? .And where is the Piau. of my Reft~ 3' For allthefe Things bath my Han_d ma1~· But to this Man will I look, Ct'en him that ir Poor, and of a Contnte Spmt, ,a.ndTrtJ~bieth .atmJ ryord: 0 he"' hold the True Worlhipper ! One of ~.od s prep::mng, c~rcumctfed }11 He~n. and Ear, thlt refifts not the Holy Spmt, as thofe lo~ty profeffing fews dt~. W:1s this fo then, even in the Time of the Law, whtch was the Dlfpenfauon of E.Xrrrna/ and Shtzdowy Per/ormancu, and can we now expect Acceptance without the Preparation of the Spirit af the Lord in tb~fe GofpeiTimes, which are the proper Times for th~ Effufi~n of the Spu~t? By no Means: God is what he was; and none elfe are hts True WorjJnppers, but fuch as Worfhip him in his own Spirit: Theii! he tenders as the Apple of his Eye: The reft do bnt mock him, and he defpifes them. Hear what fol~ lows to that People, for it is the State and Portion of Chrifimdom at this Day : He tbar killetb an Ox, U tU if be flew a Alan; He tht~t ji1crijicetb a Lamb, as if1Je C11t off a Dog'.r Neck; He that offeretb an Oblrllicn, as if be of fered Swincs Blood; He that h11rnetb Incenjr, ns if be b!e.ffed an Idol. Tta, they have cbofen their own Ways, and their. So11l Jdit,bte~h in their Jib~lltinationt. Let none f::~y, we offer not thefe Ktnds of Oblations, for that IS not the Maner; God was not offended with the Offerings, but Offerers. Thefc. were the Legal Forms of Sacrifice by God appointed ; but they not prefcnt· ing them in that Frame of Spirit, and under that right Difpofition of Soul that was required, God declares his Ahhorrence, and that with great Ag• gravation, and clfewbere by the fame Prophet, forbids them, to Bring any Jraot. 11. tb mort vain Oblations before him: Incenfe (faith God) 1! an .Abomination to me: sS. Yaur Sabbat1u and caNing of .A.ffmzhlies I cannot away with; it is InitJuiry, evtlt the Solemn A1eetiirg. And when yo1~ .fprcad forth your Hands, I WI~ bide mine Eyes from )'OU; when 1011 make many Prayers, I will not hear JOlt. A ri1ofi: terrible Renunciation of their Worfhip; and why~ Becaufe rheir Hearts were polluted; they loved not the Lord with rheir whole Hearts, bUt broke his Law, and Rebelled ngainfl bis Spirit, and did not that which was Right in his Sight. The Caufe is plain, by the Amenrlment he requires: Wajh yo11, (fays the Lord) make JOU clean, put away tbe Evil of your Doings from before mine Eyer: Ceafe to da Evil, learn to do Well : Seek ]tdgmNtt, Relieve the Oppreffed, Judge the Father!eJ.r, plead /or the Widow. Upoli thefe Terms (and nothing fhort} he bids rhem come to him, and tells them, That though their Sim be n.rScarler, they }hall beWbire as Snow; and rho11th they be 11.1 Crimfon, they foall be White as Woo/. 'Pr.46.16.;lo. So True is that Notabl't Paff'age of the Pjalmifl: Come nnd hellr, all ye tb,tt fear God, and I will declare what he barb done for my Soul: I cryed to him with my Mo11tb, and be reaJ extolled with my Tongue. If I 1 egard bti']uiry i11 my Heart, the Lord win not hear me. But verily God hatb heard me, be btttb attended to the Voice of my Prdyer. B!effcd be God V.'bidJ hruh not turned 4U'aJ my Prn;rr, 1ror His Mrrcy from mt. §.X. Much VoL. 1. No CROSS~ No C'R.OWN. §. X. Much of this Kind might be cited, to !hew the Difpleofute of God againlt, even his own Forms of Worfhip, when performed without his own Spirit, and that n.eceJTarJr ~reparation of the Heart in Man,, that nothing elfe c:Jn work or gtve: Whtch above all other Pen~men of Sacred Writ, is moll freq_uently and emphatically recommended to us by the Example of the Pfalmijl, who, ever and anon calling to Mind his own great Slips, and the Caufe of them, and the Way by which he came to be accepted of God 1668. ~ Ch,p. VI. and obtain Suengt_h and Comfort from him, 1eminds himfelf to wait up: on God. Lead me m tby Trruh and teach me, for rhou ,nrt the God of my Sal- Pral. 2~. ~; vat!on, on thee do _I wait all th~ Daylon.t:. His So.ullook'Q to God for Sal· • ''anon, to be dchvered from the Snares and Evlls of the World. This thews an Inward Exercife, a Spiritual Attendance, that ftcod not in Exrer· nal Forms, but an inward Divine Aid. And-rruly, David had great Encouragement fo to do, the Goodnefs of Go~ in\'ited him to it, and firengthened him in it. For fays he, I waited P(;~.J, 4o. 1,2, pat1ently upon the Lurd, and he inclined unto me, and heard my Cry. He 3• brought me out of !be Miry Clay, and [et tny_ Feet upon a Rock, That is, the Lord appeared mwardly to confolate Davzd"s Soul, that waited for his Help, and to deliver it from the Temptations and Affii8:ions that Were' ready to overwhelm it, and gave him Security and Peace. Therefore he fays, The Lord htlth Eflahlijh'd my Going; that is, fixt his Mind i"n RighrCo~' oufnefs.. Before, ~very Step he took bemired Qim, and he was fcarccly able to go Without-Falhng: Temptations on all Hands; bur he waited pari .. enrly upon God; his Mind retired watchful and intent to his Law and· Spi-rit; and he felt the Lord to incline to him. His needy and fenfihle Cry . enrred Heaven, and pre\•ail'd; then came Refcue and Deliverance to David (in God's Time, not David's) Srength to go through his Exercifes and fur- ~ount an his Troubl_es. For which he tells us, A !'~cw Song Wils' pw into bu Mo11th, even Praife, fays he, to our God. But Jt was of God's makin~ and putting, and not his own. Another Time, we have him crying thus: .A.s tbe H,zri pantctb afrer tbe Wt~ter-!Jrook.s, jo panrerb my So11l after thee, 0 God. ll'ly Soul tbirflerb for God, }or the Lzvmg God; when ]hall I come and appcnr be/ore hii!J? This goes beyond Formality, and can be tied to no Leffon: Bur we may by this fee, that True Worfhip is an inward Work; that the Soul muft he touch'd and raifed in its Heavenly Defires, by the Heavenly Spirit, and that the True Worfhip is in ~od's Prefence. When }hall I co111e nod appear? Not in the Temple, nor W1th outward Sacrifices, but before God, in his PreH:nce. So th~t the Souls of True Worfhippers fee God, make their Appearance be· fore hrm; and this they wait, they pant, they thirft for. 0 how is the better Part of Cbrijlendom degenerated from David's Example! No Wonder therefore.that. t~is Good Man ~ells us, Trttly my Soul wniteth upon God; and that he gtves a m Charge to hts Soul fo to do, 0 my Soul, wait thot~upon God; for my Expdlatioh is from himJ As if he had faid, None c!Je can pre .. pare my lieart, or Jupply my Wants\ fo that my ExpeOation is not from my own vol11nrary Performanc_es, or the Bodily Worjhip _1 can give him; they are of no Value: They can nett her help me, nor pleaJc b1111.. Bur I aM it upon him for Srre'!grh and Power to prifent my [elf fo before hm~, as may he mofl plea'"' ./ing r~ bun: For he tbat prepares the Sacrifice, wtll certmnly accept it. Where-fore m two Verfes he repeats it thrice, I wait /or the Lord- .J11y Soul tlorb PCalotJ0·1,~ Wllit -:- Jl1y Soul wniteth for the Lord, 1nore than they that watch for tb6 .M.ormng. Yea, fo intently, and wirh that Unweariednefs of Soul that he f::~ys in one ~lace, Mi1te Eyes fail, while I uuzit for my God. He, was not Pral. 69. 3; contented wtth fo m~ny Prayers, fuch a fet Worfhip, or limited R~etition; no: He le~ves ~ot ull he finds tlte Lord, that is, the Comforts o} Hi$ Pre~ fenu; wh1ch bnng the Anfwer of Love and Peace to his Soul. Nor was this his Practice. only, as a Man m6re titan ordinarily Jnfpired, for he fp_ca~s.o.f it as the Way of Worfhip, then amongft the true People of God, theSpmtual lfrael, and Circumcifion in Heart, of that Day. Bebold (fays PCaf.n3.2; he) as tbe Eyes of Servants look to tbe Hmd of thtir Majlers, and as rbe E;:e t ~ |
