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Understanding Prayer
By Loren M. Chamberlain
There is an abundance of prayer in the Bible; beginning from the time of Seth when we are told, “At that time men began to call on the name of the Lord” (Genesis 4:26) to the culmination of history in Revelation, the people of God pray.
Recorded in the Scriptures are some fifty lengthy prayers in prose sections and several hundred shorter prayers or references to praying. Those who wrote the Scriptures seem far more interested in showing people at prayer than in telling about prayer. Therefore, the Bible shows us the actual practice of Prayer. “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before” (Daniel 6:10).
Conversation With God
Prayer in the Bible is Conversation with God. In the Hebrew Scriptures the primary image of prayer is simple asking, in a conversational manner. It presupposes that the asker is both humble and expectant. The godly are those who are faithful and devoted to God. David knew that God would hear him when he called and would answer him. “Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself; the Lord will hear when I call to Him” (Psalm 4:3). We too can be confident that God will listen to our prayers and answer us when we call upon Him whole-heartedly.
There are certain primary elements such as speaking, waiting and listening in Biblical prayer, suggesting a tone of conversation face to face with God the Father and Jesus Christ. “I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; and their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles” (Psalm 34:4-6).
David also notes there are times when we must wait on God in prayer. “I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry” (Psalm 40:1). Again, David also describes calling out to God and receiving an answer. “In your distress you called and I rescued you, I answered you out of a thundercloud; I tested you at the waters of Meribah Selah” (Psalm 81:7).
We must never fall into the trap of thinking that because we have fallen short of God’s high standards for holy living God will not hear us. If we have trusted Christ for salvation, God has forgiven us, and He will listen to our prayers. We have been set apart, Jesus having reconciled us to God, and He loves us. He does hear and He does answer, however, sometimes His answers may not be what we expect or necessarily want. We must always look at our problems in the light of God’s power, instead of looking at God in the shadow of our problems.
We find in the prayer of Abraham for Sodom the elements of ordinary speech and even a persuasive tone. “The men tuned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. Then Abraham approached Him and said: Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked alike, Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right” (Genesis 18:22-25). Did Abraham change God’s mind? Of course not! What is more likely is that God changed Abraham’s mind. Abraham knew God is just and that He punishes sin, but he probably had a question about God’s mercy. Abraham seemed to be probing God’s mind to see just how merciful He really was. When he left off his conversation with God he was convinced that God was both kind and fair.
Our Praying Savior
It was Jesus Himself that models for us the intimate nature of prayer as conversation. He revealed much to us by always referring to God as His Father, using the Arimaic abba (an intimate term for “father”), yet this intimacy in no way diminished His sense of God’s holiness, and neither should it ours. Except for the time of His crucifixion when He cried out in agony “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—that means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46), He always addresses God as Father in prayer and taught His disciples to follow His example. In answer to their request to be taught how to pray, Jesus said to them, “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come” (Luke 11:2). This prayer Jesus taught his disciples was not intended to be a formulaic prayer, but rather, it was a “how to” prayer. These were not meant to be magical words prayed like an incantation over and over. It was simply meant to be a pattern for prayer.
Sharing of Trust
When we come before God in prayer we assume the stance of a trusting child and pray with faith that is matched by obedience. God remembers our frailty, reaching out to us and loving us as His children.
God is not impressed with symbols of prayer, such as certain times and postures, bowed heads, closed eyes, folded hands, or a kneeling position. While all are mentioned in relationship to prayer none are absolutely necessary. When Hezekiah prayed for deliverance he took a threatening letter to the temple and “spread it out before the Lord” (Isaiah 37:14).
Whether the prayers were offered in the Old Testament or the New Testament, all agree the main goal of prayer should be for the power to come to the aid of others. Abraham, Moses, Joshua and Daniel all prayed for the well being of the Israelites, as did all the prophets. The Apostles all prayed for the churches and requested prayer from the churches for their ministry, “Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints there” (Romans 15:31). “May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing His will, and may He work in us what is pleasing to Him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever” (Hebrews 13:20).
Jesus taught His disciples that prayer was never to be used as a means to personal power, but to be used as a way of service to others. Jesus prayed for those seen as a burden such as children. Jesus said, “let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these” (Matthew 19:14).
Prayer is quite unique, allowing God’s children to take part in two worlds. In Revelation the elders who minister before the Lord hold “golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (Revelation 5:8)
Many times our prayers are like inarticulate groans coming from a little child. Only a loving father can listen to our confused complaint and respond to what is deeply wished but not well expressed.
Conclusion
If we take the time to study God’s Word, we will come to “know” God is love, and that His will is for our good. His revealed word to us will help us to think like He thinks, and our prayers will then be within His will.
God has made many promises to us in the Bible, but if we do not “believe” God in faith we cannot expect to receive what we pray for. We must trust God implicitly to fulfill His promises.
In this world of some six billion people, we find few who know the true God. God is the real authority in life, but few accept Him and look to Him as the real authority in their lives. If we do not have an awesome respect for Him and “obey” Him, how can we say we know Him?
Modern man has a very self-sufficient attitude and thinks he can get along fine without God. He neither fears God nor respects God’s word as an authority in his life. Man is vain, egotistical, self-important, and full of vanity, jealousy, lust and greed. This is a very dangerous overall attitude that man has. All Christians are well aware that an attitude of “fear and humility” is a must in our relationship with Jesus Christ and God the Father if we expect an answer to our prayers.
What we learn from those who prayed in the Bible is that they prayed in a very “fervent” manner. They put their whole heart into their prayers. Jesus of course is the best example of how to pray. “And being in anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Luke 22:44). Time is running out, especially for us for we are living in the “Last Days.” Being fervent in our prayers is very important and necessary if we expect to be taken seriously by our Father.
In these “last days” we must be “persistent” in our prayers until the answer comes. However, to be persistent in prayer does not mean endless repetition or painfully long prayer sessions. Always praying means keeping our requests constantly before God as we live for Him day by day, always believing He will answer. God may delay answering, but His delays always have good reasons with our welfare in mind. No matter what trials we face it is comforting to know that we are not alone, God the Father will be with us through the power of the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ our Lord and soon coming King! i
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