The right method for a settled peace of conscience, and spiritual comfort in 32…

7. Prayer hath two parts, Desire is the soul of it, and Expression is the body: the soul can live separated from the body, but so cannot the body separated from the soul: so can Desire without Expression, but not Expression without Desire. When our blind Antinomians (the great subverters of the Gospel, more then the Law) do rail against Ministers for persuading wicked men to Pray, they are against us for persuading men to Desire that they pray for: Prayer having Desire for its soul. And do not those men deserve to be exterminated the Churches and societies of the Saints, who dare say to a wicked unbeliever, Desire not Faith: Desire not to ⟨p. 64⟩leave thy wickedness: Desire not Grace, or Christ, or God: and that will proclaim abroad the world (as I have oft heard them with zealous reproaches,) that our Ministers are Legalists, Seducers, Ignorant of the Mysteries of the Gospel, because they persuade poor sinners to Pray for Faith, Grace, and Christ; that is, to Desire these, and to express their Desires; which in effect is to persuade them to Repent, Believe and turn to God. Indeed if these blind Seducers had ever heard our Ministers persuading wicked men to Dissemble and lye to God, and ask Faith, Grace and Christ with their tongues, but not Desire them in their hearts, then had they sufficient grounds for their reviling language (but I have been too long on this.) I may therefore boldly conclude, that they that find themselves unbelievers, that is, unwilling to have Christ to deliver them from sin, must use this second Means to get faith, even earnest frequent Prayer for it, to God.

7. Prayer hath two parts, Desire is the soul of it, and Expression is the body: the soul can live separated from the body, but so cannot the body separated from the soul: so can Desire without Expression, but not Expression without Desire. When our blind Antinomians (the great subverters of the Gospel, more then the Law) do rail against Ministers for perswading wicked men to Pray, they are against us for perswading men to Desire that they pray for: Prayer having Desire for its soul. And do not those men deserve to be exterminated the Churches and societies of the Saints, who dare say to a wicked unbeliever, Desire not Faith: Desire not to ⟨p. 64⟩leave thy wickedness: Desire not Grace, or Christ, or God: and that will proclaim abroad the world (as I have oft heard them with zealous reproaches,) that our Ministers are Legalists, Seducers, Ignorant of the Mysteries of the Gospel, because they perswade poor sinners to Pray for Faith, Grace, and Christ; that is, to Desire these, and to express their Desires; which in effect is to perswade them to Repent, Believe and turn to God. Indeed if these blind Seducers had ever heard our Ministers perswading wicked men to Dissemble and lye to God, and ask Faith, Grace and Christ with their tongues, but not Desire them in their hearts, then had they sufficient grounds for their reviling language (but I have been too long on this.) I may therefore boldly conclude, that they that finde themselves unbelievers, that is, unwilling to have Christ to deliver them from sin, must use this second Means to get faith, even earnest frequent Prayer for it, to God.