(October 10, 1990)
The old fashioned midweek church prayer meeting isn’t a sold-out event these days. People still pray but it seems many are reluctant to get together to do it. Busy life styles, maybe less faith, any number of things could contribute to the empty chairs, but one other thing could have something to do with it: inexperienced pray-ers feeling intimidated by those who obviously have been practicing for years.
I remember how I felt as a new Christian at prayer time. I could pour my heart out to God when alone, but in a group, my tongue tied itself in knots and ALL words escaped me, never mind words that sounded right. I felt like the disciples must have felt the day they heard Jesus praying. (Luke 11)
While not too many of His prayers are recorded in the Bible, we can conclude from those that are, this one was communication par excellence. When He was finished, it is no surprise that one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray...”
Who wouldn’t want to pray like Jesus prayed? Maybe the disciples thought if they could say it like He did, they would be more apt to be heard. Or maybe they believed if they just could memorize those beautiful words, their prayer life would be more dynamic.
But saying the right thing is only part of it. The prayers of Jesus had two other important qualities. First, they were entirely within the will of God. Secondly, they were delivered in complete faith. With those two distinctives, the importance of saying the right words lines up a weak third, if that.
In all graciousness, Jesus did tell the disciples the words to pray: “When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.”
I remember praying those words every day as a school child. All twenty-five of us learned them by rote and I doubt any of us understood what we were saying. I can’t recall myself ever thinking God heard me or that I was saying anything that fit in with His plans. They were only words.
Teaching someone how to say the right words is easy. My grade school teachers did it by repetition. Teaching someone to believe in the God to whom those words are directed is another matter. Jesus used two illustrations to explain what He is like. The first was the persistent request of one who keeps on asking because he knows his friend will come through. The second was about a son who can ask his father for bread and fish with confidence, knowing he won’t get a stone or a scorpion. Jesus wanted the disciples to understand that it makes no sense saying the right words to God if you don’t know what He is like and don’t really believe He will answer.
Praying is not mere ritual nor is it oratory requiring great skill. It is simply talking to God about what is on our hearts, giving Him the honor due Him, expressing praise and thanksgiving, and making requests regarding our needs. Prayer is also the avenue by which God gives us the qualities we need to overcome sin and deal with problems in relationships.
Thank God eloquence isn’t the issue. He is interested in our hearts --and the reasons why we pray (or fail to pray) to Him.
Showing posts with label asking in faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label asking in faith. Show all posts
Friday, February 20, 2015
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Asking in Faith ..................... Parables 079
The kids in the backyard were hungry. Their young host suggested they go inside and tell his mother their problem, so in they went.
She didn’t seem to hear them at first. One of the children from next door wondered if she was angry. Another child wondered if she even cared that they were hungry. One of the older ones thought maybe she might give a cookie to her own child but wouldn’t be too interested in feeding half the neighborhood. Another little one started for the door, certain her silence meant that this was not the time to ask.
Her son looked at his friends and smiled. He turned to his mom for the second time and asked, “Mother, can we have a cookie?” The initial lack of response didn’t bother him; he believed in her generous love. She smiled and reached for the cookie jar.
A Canaanite woman had a daughter who was demon-possessed. (Matthew 15:21-28) She came up to Jesus Christ and told Him her problem. But He didn’t answer her. Soon the disciples came on the scene and told Him to send her away. They said she had been crying after them.
This woman was a not Jewish but a gentile, despised by most Jews, even called “dogs”. Besides that, no self-respecting Jewish man would even speak to a woman publicly. They put women in the same category as Gentiles. But Jesus turned to this woman and explained that He “had been sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”. In other words, His priority was to bring the gospel to the Jews.
The woman did not give up. Instead she worshiped Jesus, falling on her face before Him. She asked again, “Lord, help me.” She believed in His mercy, and bowed to His Lordship, calling Him Lord three times. Jesus responded, “It is not appropriate to give the bread that belongs to the children to the dogs.”
This sounds like a tremendous rebuff. Dogs! But the Greek word that Jesus used was not the same word for “dog” that the Jews used to curse the Gentiles. Instead, it was a word that means “a little puppy.” He likened her, not to a cur, but to a family pet.
The woman responded, “Even the pups lick the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
At that, Jesus told her she had “great faith” and granted her request.
The Bible says that faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8,9) and this gift is available through “hearing the Word of God” (Romans 10:17). Therefore, having great faith in Jesus is possible to anyone open to receiving it. It should not be any more difficult than trusting the goodness of a mother to give what she has, even to those who might not feel they deserve anything.
Faith belongs to those who do not turn away in discouragement, even if they initially find God’s Word doesn’t really “speak” to them. The discouraging remarks of others also will not affect them. Instead, there will be a persistence to rely on the Lord. Great faith realizes that none have any “rights” before God, but instead makes its appeal on the ground of His mercy, not our worth.
Also, great faith knows that He is Lord of all - and will humbly tell Him so.
She didn’t seem to hear them at first. One of the children from next door wondered if she was angry. Another child wondered if she even cared that they were hungry. One of the older ones thought maybe she might give a cookie to her own child but wouldn’t be too interested in feeding half the neighborhood. Another little one started for the door, certain her silence meant that this was not the time to ask.
Her son looked at his friends and smiled. He turned to his mom for the second time and asked, “Mother, can we have a cookie?” The initial lack of response didn’t bother him; he believed in her generous love. She smiled and reached for the cookie jar.
A Canaanite woman had a daughter who was demon-possessed. (Matthew 15:21-28) She came up to Jesus Christ and told Him her problem. But He didn’t answer her. Soon the disciples came on the scene and told Him to send her away. They said she had been crying after them.
This woman was a not Jewish but a gentile, despised by most Jews, even called “dogs”. Besides that, no self-respecting Jewish man would even speak to a woman publicly. They put women in the same category as Gentiles. But Jesus turned to this woman and explained that He “had been sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”. In other words, His priority was to bring the gospel to the Jews.
The woman did not give up. Instead she worshiped Jesus, falling on her face before Him. She asked again, “Lord, help me.” She believed in His mercy, and bowed to His Lordship, calling Him Lord three times. Jesus responded, “It is not appropriate to give the bread that belongs to the children to the dogs.”
This sounds like a tremendous rebuff. Dogs! But the Greek word that Jesus used was not the same word for “dog” that the Jews used to curse the Gentiles. Instead, it was a word that means “a little puppy.” He likened her, not to a cur, but to a family pet.
The woman responded, “Even the pups lick the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
At that, Jesus told her she had “great faith” and granted her request.
The Bible says that faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8,9) and this gift is available through “hearing the Word of God” (Romans 10:17). Therefore, having great faith in Jesus is possible to anyone open to receiving it. It should not be any more difficult than trusting the goodness of a mother to give what she has, even to those who might not feel they deserve anything.
Faith belongs to those who do not turn away in discouragement, even if they initially find God’s Word doesn’t really “speak” to them. The discouraging remarks of others also will not affect them. Instead, there will be a persistence to rely on the Lord. Great faith realizes that none have any “rights” before God, but instead makes its appeal on the ground of His mercy, not our worth.
Also, great faith knows that He is Lord of all - and will humbly tell Him so.
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