An exposition with practical observations continued upon the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters of…An exposition with practicall observations continued upon the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters of…

This negation of his faith in prayer, implies the need of faith in prayer. When I pray I should believe, but as my case stands I cannot believe, clouds and darkness are upon me. Faith is the strength of prayer, Whatsoever ye ask in prayer believing, ye shall receive, Mat. 21.22. Prayer without faith, it is like a Gun discharged without a bullet, which makes a noise, but doth no execution; we may put out a voice in speaking, but except we put out faith in speaking, we do but speak, we do not pray. As the Word of God coming upon us doth us no good, prevails not upon our hearts, unless it be mixed with faith (Heb. 4.2.) The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. So the word that goes out from us, the word of prayer, prevaileth not at all with God, obtaineth nothing from him, unless it be mixed with faith; All the promises are made to believers, All things are possible to them that believe (Mar. 9.23.) Ask in faith, nothing wavering, for he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed (Jam. 1.6.) To ask in faith, is to ask, resting upon the power of God, whereby he is able, upon his truth, ⟨p. 274⟩whereby he is faithful, and upon his goodness in Christ, whereby he is ready to make good his promises. He that asks thus doth not waver. Few are without doubting, but all sound believers are without wavering. The Greek word signifies to question, or dispute a thing, a degree beyond doubting; as when a man is at no certainty with himself, being sometime of one mind, sometime of another. The judgement being so carried, that the man is at variance with his own breast, or is between two ways, not knowing which to take. We translate the word (in the 4th of the Romans, vers. 20.) by staggering. Abraham staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief. The similitude which the Apostle James uses, illustrates this sense, He that wavereth is like a wave of the sea, which by tempestuous winds is sometimes carried up to heaven, and anon down to the deep. A man who is tossed with such waves of unbelief, staggers like a drunken man, in his practice and profession; he is now on this side, to morrow on that; he doth not only stagger or halt in his way, but he staggers and halts between two ways, and is therefore called (vers. 8th) A double minded man;