. Ministers must pray much, if they would be successful.—The apostles spent their time this way. (Acts 6:4.) Yea, our Lord Jesus preached all day, and continued all night alone in prayer to God. Ministers should be much in prayer. They use to reckon how many hours they spend in reading and study; it were far better both with ourselves and the church of God, if more time were spent in prayer. Luther's spending three hours daily in secret prayer, Bradford's studying on his knees, and other instances of men in our time, are talked of, rather than imitated. Ministers should pray much for themselves; for they have corruptions like other men, and have temptations that none but ministers are assaulted with. They should pray for their message: how sweet and easy is it for a minister (and likely it is to be the more profitable to the people) to bring forth that scripture as food to the souls of his people, that he hath got opened to his own heart by the power of the Holy Ghost in the exercise of faith and love in prayer. A minister should pray for the blessing on the word; and he should be much in seeking God particularly for the people. It may be, this may be the reason why some ministers of meaner gifts and parts are more successful than some that are far above them in abilities:—not because they preach better, so much as because they pray more. Many good sermons are lost for lack of much prayer in study.
"Heaven is my throne...Isaiah 63"
GOD'S REJECTION OF ALL MATERIAL TEMPLES. There was a time when it could be said that there was a house of God on earth. That was a time of symbols, when as yet the Church of God was in her childhood. She was being taught her A B C, reading her picture-book, for she could not as yet read the Word of God, as it were in letters. She had need to have pictures put before her, patterns of the heavenly things. Even then, the enlightened amongst the Jews knew well that God did not dwell between curtains, and that it was not possible that He could be encompassed in the most holy place within the veil It was only a symbol of His presence. But the time of symbols is now passed altogether. In that moment when the Saviour bowed His head, and said "It is finished! " the veil of the temple was rent in twain, so that the mysteries were laid open. So, one reason why God saith He dwelleth not in temples made with hands, is, because He would have us know that the symbolical worship is ended...
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