The sound believer, or, A treatise of evangelical conversion discovering the work of Christs…The sound beleever, or, A treatise of evangelicall conversion discovering the work of Christs…

3. To pray in his name, is to pray for his ends; for the sake and use of Christ, and glory of Christ, thus the phrase is used? Mat. 10.41, 42. To receive a Prophet in the name of a Prophet, i. for this end and reason, because he is a Prophet. A servant comes in his Masters name to ask something of another, when he comes, as from his command; so also for his Masters use: So when we pray for Christs sake, i. for his ends, not our own; these ever prevail. James 4.3. You ask and have not, because you ask amiss, to spend it on your lusts; Joh. 12.27, 28. Ps. 145.18. this is to ask in truth, to act for a spiritual end; to make it our utmost end, ariseth from a special, peculiar, supernatural presence of the Spirit of life: and consequently a Spirit of prayer which is ever heard. And hence you shall observe, the least groan for Christs ends is ever heard; because it is the groaning of the Spirit, because it is an act of spiritual life, the formality of which consists in this, that it is for God: Gal. 2.19. the Lord cannot deny what we pray for Christs ends, because then he should crush Christs glory: and therefore let a Christian observe, when he would have any thing of ⟨p. 309⟩God that concerns himself, not be solicitous so much for the thing, as to gain favour and nearness to God, and a heart subject unto God in a humble contentedness, to be denied as well as to be heard, and he shall undoubtedly find the thing it self; a lust is properly such a desire (though for lawful things) wherein a man must have the thing because it pleaseth him, as when Rachel asked for children, she must have them, else she must needs dye: Give us water that we may drink, was their brutish cry, Exod. 17.1, 2. not that we may live to him that give• it: holy prayers or desires (opposed unto lusts) are such desires of the soul, left with God, with submission to his will, as may best please him: now the Lord will hear the desires indeed of all that fear him, but not fulfil their lusts.