No. 1.
IT has been said that every blessing, save the gift of Jesus, has come in answer to prayer; God having, by the Spirit, breathed those desires into the hearts of His children, which He had previously intended to answer. The gift of Jesus, on the contrary, occupied the Divine mind without man’s partaking of the wondrous plan, so as to make it a matter of prayer. It originated with Himself; the idea was exclusively His own. In the fullness of time He performed His wondrous intention.
Prayer, it will be admitted, occupies a most serious and important place in scripture; it stands next the atonement in value before God. Whilst it is true that He can only answer prayer through the virtue of the atonement made by our Great High Priest, yet, it is equally true, that a vast amount of present blessing is open to prayer, and depends upon it. The prayers of Saints are all treasured up in Heaven; not one is forgotten, for they are precious in the Divine mind.
The judgment and blessing of the last days seem to be connected with them― “Shall not God avenge His own elect, which cry day and night unto Him, though He bear long with them? (Luke 18:77And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? (Luke 18:7).) “And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the Saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. And the angel took the censer, and filled it with the fire of the altar, and cast into the earth: and there were voices, and thundering’s, and lightnings, and an earthquake (Rev. 8:4, 54And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand. 5And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. (Revelation 8:4‑5)). What a wondrous idea, that the prayers of Saints should thus stand connected with the future judgments! With fearful vengeance God will recompense the oppressors for all the offenses they have committed against His people! “Golden vials full of odor’s, which are the prayers of Saints,” have also their appointed place in the glorious scene presented in Revelation 5. The prayers of Saints, and the merits of the Lamb, seem to mingle together before the throne, and to cause the glories there proclaimed to shine forth.
God seems to wait on us, and He would have us to wait on Him. He says, I am willing to give you anything you ask: make all your requests known to Me; tell Me your every need, every sorrow, and every care. I am interested in them all, for I am your Father, and your Friend. Jesus has said, “Ask and it shall be given you, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you.” Our Father desires to keep up this link of filial, prayerful confidence. He opens the door to us without restriction, and is glad to hear and answer the feeblest cry of His child. Would that we better understood the secret prayer that brings the open answer. How blessed are those intercessory moments spent in communion with God, in the happy consciousness that we are really dealing with God Himself, when the soul, full of all that concerns the heart and counsels of God, is engaged in bringing before Him those things which relate to His glory!
Intercession is the proper place for the Church now, day and night. Our spiritual power and blessing depend mainly upon it. The more spiritual the soul is, the more prayerful it will be, because it is then the most occupied in heart and desire about the things of God. What a field is opened, to us! How wide! Our prayers will be few and feeble, if our walk with God be of a low character. If we have only some two or three ideas about God and His purposes, our prayers will be also narrow and confined. If we are unstable, unbelieving, and unspiritual, our prayers may return unanswered. Faith, a good conscience, a large heart, knowledge of the mind and will of God, and a sense of our utter weakness, are the proper prerequisites of prayer. Not many words are needed: the desires of the Spirit in our hearts, with groanings that cannot be uttered, God will attend to. He that searcheth the heart and knoweth the mind of the Spirit, will give heed to the feeblest cry. It is, surely, far more important to consider the condition of our souls, and the truthfulness of our requests, than the mode of utterance or form of speech. In prayer we have to do with the Divine ear, and not with man’s. It is a direct speaking to God Himself if we gain His attention it is everything. Alas! our prayers are often gone through for form’s sake, even in our closets and in public, to please the ear of man more than God. Hence we possess so little unction and fullness of the Spirit’s cry, such as God delighteth in.
We very little know how much blessing daily comes to as in answer to prayer, or how much we lose by the want of it. If we depended less upon our own energies, and more upon God’s helping and guiding hand, we should find ourselves more cast upon Him in prayer, and more inclined to wait for the answer. He can do everything; with Him all things are possible. Where man utterly fails, He is most pleased to come in, and thus show His wisdom, grace, and power. His strength is made perfect in our weakness. We are never straitened in Him. Let us then, beloved brethren, “pray without ceasing,” and make all our requests known unto Him. Let us rely on the Lord, and wait patiently on our God. “I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my try” (Ps. 40:1).