“In prayer there is intimacy, common interests with God, though in dependence on Him” (J. N. Darby).
The sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man are found once again involved in the subject of prayer. Prayer as we know it was not the privilege of Old Testament saints, although some, like David and Elijah, rose above the day in which they lived and prayed. It is recorded that Elijah even “prayed earnestly” (James 5:1717Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. (James 5:17)). But as God was not fully revealed in the Old Testament, so man could not in most cases fully enter into God’s mind and thus could not pray intelligently. Now that the Lord Jesus Christ has come, God has been fully revealed, the Holy Spirit has been given, and every believer has the wonderful privilege of prayer.
Prayer as we know it today was first exemplified in the life of our blessed Lord. Although fully God, He took the place of the perfect, dependent man. He was often found in prayer, so that His disciples, seeing this, made the request, “Teach us to pray” (Luke 11:11And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. (Luke 11:1)). When the Lord Jesus was about to go to the cross, He emphasized to His disciples that prayer would be their resource in His absence. In the so-called upper-room ministry, particularly in John 161These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. (John 16:1), He told them, “Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My name, He will give it you” (John 16:2323And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. (John 16:23)). Prayer to the Father in His name would be answered. Following these exhortations, we have abundant reference to prayer in the epistles, showing us the importance God attaches to it in our lives. Truly, as another has said, “A prayerless life is a powerless life.”
Here questions are sometimes asked. Thinking of God’s sovereignty, souls will ask, “Does my prayer really change what God is going to do? Does God not act in His sovereignty in every situation and know already what He is going to do? What happens in a particular situation if someone does not pray? Will prayer, or the lack of it, really change what is going to happen?” Others, thinking of their responsibility in prayer, will claim that prayer will accomplish anything they wish. They feel that prayer is a striving to believe that something shall be, and that if they pray hard enough it will certainly come to pass. They quote such verses as, “All things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive” (Matt. 21:2222And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. (Matthew 21:22)), and, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:1717Pray without ceasing. (1 Thessalonians 5:17)). Some will form a so-called “prayer chain” so as to have as many people as possible pray for a certain thing, feeling that if more people are praying, there will be a much greater certainty of God’s answering.
In both of these cases, one aspect of the ways of God is being emphasized at the expense of the other, and thus both viewpoints are defective. Again we are in the realm of that which can be understood only in the Lord’s presence. It is quite true that God is sovereign, and “known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world” (Acts 15:1818Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. (Acts 15:18)). God does not need us to accomplish His purposes and could choose to act in every situation without us. But (we speak reverently) this would be a loss for God Himself and for us too. In the first place, God loves us and loves our company and our confidence. He delights to hear His own make their requests to Him, even if He already knows what those needs are. It brings joy to His heart to hear us address Him in prayer.
For ourselves, prayer is based on God’s love for us and our faith in Him. It is the expression of our dependence on God. It is true that there are certain limits on God’s answering our prayer in the way that we might wish, and thus we have such qualifications as “if ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will.” However, if God Himself has given us the faith to pray in a certain way, there is really no limit on what we can expect from God. The secret is to be in His presence and to pray according to His will.
Do we sometimes pray when we are not sure of His will? Yes, and it is always right to pray, subject to His will. The answer may not be exactly what we have prayed for, but in every case the answer will be more glorious than the request and will bring more blessing to our souls, even if we do not get just what we have prayed for. As one has put it, “Prayer does not change God; it changes me.”
Thus we see that God’s sovereignty and our responsibility are both involved in prayer. How many times have saints prayed and been gratified in the Lord’s answer! How many exhortations there are in Scripture as to prayer, both individual and collective! Yet all must be of God, and real prayer supposes both faith and communion with the Lord, so as to pray according to His will. We know from Romans 8:26-2726Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. 27And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. (Romans 8:26‑27) that often we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit makes intercession for us, not according to our limited understanding of what we need, but rather according to the will of God. What wondrous grace!
May God give us to see these things in His presence and to realize that while they cannot be reconciled in the human mind, all is presented in this way to glorify God and for our blessing. I can never boast that I prayed and thus something happened. No, for if God answers, it is because He gave the faith to pray according to His will. But I can never excuse myself for not heeding the exhortations to pray, for prayer brings me into God’s presence and expresses my dependence on Him, while at the same time it brings God’s power to bear upon the situation. In all things God is honored and glorified, and we are blessed in our souls.
W. J. Prost