With the prayers of our hearts we With my whole heart have I pray Thee, sought Thee. Ps. cxix (cxviii). Hear the prayers of Thy suppliants. 10. Hear my prayer, O God. Ps. lxi (lx). 1. Whom have I in heaven but Thee? Ps. lxxiii (lxxii). 25. And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us. 1 John v. 14.
Thou who shuttest heaven by I have the keys of death and of Thy word, hell. These things saith He that And loosest its bars, is holy, He that is true: He that hath the key of David. He that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man { 267} openeth. I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it. Rev. i. 18; iii. 7,8
Release us by command, we pray Thy sins be forgiven thee. Thee, Matt. ix. 22. Bless the Lord, O From all our sins. my soul ... who forgiveth all thine iniquities. Ps. ciii. 2. This is your blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Matt. xxvi. 28. Have mercy upon me, O God ... according to the multitude of Thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. Ps. li (l).
Thou to whose word is subject Bless the Lord, O my soul ... The health and weakness of all, who healeth all thy diseases. Ps. ciii (cii). 2, 3.
Do Thou heal us who are morally Create in me a clean heart, O diseased, God, and renew a right spirit Restoring us to virtue; within me. Ps. li. 10 (4.) That when Thou, the Judge, shalt appear in the end of the world, Thou mayest grant us to be partakers of eternal joy.
This would be a Christian prayer, a primitive prayer, a scriptural prayer, a prayer well fitting mortal man to utter by his tongue and from his heart, to the God who heareth prayer; and him who shall in sincere faith offer such a prayer, Christ will never send empty away. But if this prayer, fitted as it seems only to be addressed to God, be offered to the soul of a departed saint--I will not talk of blasphemy, and deadly sin, and idolatry,--I will only ask members of the Church of Rome to weigh all these things well, one by one. These are not subjects for crimination and recrimination. { 268}
We have had far too much of those unholy weapons on both sides. Speaking the truth in love, I should be verily guilty of a sin in my own conscience were I, with my views of Christian worship, to offer this prayer to the soul of a man however holy, however blessed, however exalted.