those who have followed my blog know that i have been in e.m. bounds' book on prayer for a long time now. i am still only halfway through, but his insight into Scripture has blessed me so much and challenged me in my prayer walk that i thought i'd share. here are some bits from what i've read lately:
Putting God to Work
...God has of His own motion placed Himself under the law of prayer, and has obligated Himself to answer the prayers of the saints. He has ordained prayer as a means whereby He will do things through saints as they pray, which He would not otherwise do... Thus while prayer moves God to work, at the same time God puts prayer to work. As God has ordained prayer, and as prayer has no existence separate from people, but involves people, then logically prayer is the one force that puts God to work in earth's affairs through saints and their prayers...
If prayer puts God to work on earth, then, by the same token, prayerlessness rules God out of the world's affairs, and prevents Him from working.
Prayer affects three different spheres of existence - the divine, the angelic, and human. It puts God to work, it puts angels to work, and it puts people to work. It lays its hands upon God, angels, and people. What a wonderful reach there is in prayer!
"I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day or night: ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence. And give Him no rest, till He establish, and till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth." (Isaiah 62,6-7)
there is so much goodness, but i'm cutting huge chunks out just because there is just so much. please go and buy the book. em bounds classic collection on prayer.
The Church Needs Praying Saints
Saints of prayer are the only saints who do or can represent God in this world. No cold, irreligious, prayerless saint can claim the right. They misrepresent God in all His work, and all His plans. Praying saints are the only saints who have influence with God, the only kind of saints to whom God commits Himself and His Gospel. Praying saints are the only saints in which the Holy Spirits dwells, for the Holy Spirit and prayer go hand-in-hand. The Holy Spirit never descends upon prayerless saints. He never fills them. He never empowers them. There is nothing whatever in common between the Spirit of God and saints who do not pray. The Spirit dwells only in a prayer atmosphere....
.... Piety flourishes nowhere so rapidly and so rankly as in the closet. The closet is the garden of faith.
Asking of God
In Bible terminology, prayer means calling upon God for things we desire - asking things of God. Thus we read: "Call unto Me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which though knowest not," "Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee," "Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer: though shalt cry, and He shall say, Here I am." (Jeremiah 33,3; Psalm 50,15; Isaiah 58,9)
Abraham Prays for Sodom (Genesis 18)
This is a representative case illustrative of Old Testament praying, and disclosing God's mode of working through prayer. It shows further how God is moved to work in answer to prayer in this world, even when it comes to changing His purposes concerning a sinful community. This prayer of Abraham was no mere performance, no dull lifeless ceremony, but an earnest plea, a strong advocacy, to secure a desired end - to have an influence, one person with another person.
How full of meaning is this series of remarkable intercessions made by Abraham! Here we have arguments designed to convince God, and pleas to persuade God to change His purpose. We see deep humility, but holy boldness as well. Perseverance and advances based on victory in each petition. Here we have enlarged asking encouraged by enlarged answers. God stays and answers as long as Abraham stays and asks. To Abraham, God is existent, approachable, and all powerful, but at the same time, He defers to praying saints, acts favorably on their desires, and grants them favors asked for. Not to pray is a denial of God, a denial of His existence, a denial of His nature, and a denial of His purposes toward humanity.
God has specifically to do with prayer promises in their breadth, certainty, and limitations. Jesus Christ presses us into the presence of God with these prayer promises. He does it not only by the assurance that God will answer, but that no other being but God can answer. He presses us to God because only in this way can we move God to take a hand in earth's affairs, and induce Him to intervene in our behalf.
"All things, whatsoever ye ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." Matthew 21,22
1 comment:
I can't believe I finally caught up on your blog! Sounds like life in Korea continues to grow on you. When you first moved there you asked me to pray that you would come to love that land. Sounds like God has answered that prayer!
PS: I might have to get a copy of this book!
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