A guide to go to GodA guide to goe to God

5. That with all reverence we prostrate our selves before God our Father in heaven. ¹For this end, first a true fear of God must be planted in our hearts,² according to this pathetical wish of God himself,³ O that there were in their hearts a fear of me! Then must this fear be manifested by beseeming gesture and words,⁴ neither over-curious, nor over-careless. Hereof we have an excellent pattern in the Lords Prayer, wherein there is admirable art (as we have showed^* before) and yet no frothy curiosity. The wise man, upon the ground here noted, giveth a like direction. His direction is this, Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God. His ground is this, God is in heaven. As for our gesture, on a due consideration of the greatness of God, we are exhorted to fall down, ⁶and kneel before him. The Publican with all humility carried himself in Prayer before God:⁷ and kneel before him. The Publican with all humility carried himself in Prayer before God: and he who pardoneth the humble heard his Prayer. To conclude this point, all the reverence both inward and outward, that possibly may be, is to be manifested to our Father in heaven, lest his father-hood make us over-bold. Thus shall we in truth say unto God, Mercy is with thee, ⁸that thou mayest be feared.

5. That with all reuerence we prostrate our selues before God our Father in heauen. ¹For this end, first a true feare of God must be planted in our hearts,²