presence

Faith and prayer may one day be too late

Close-Up Of Man Praying

There is an open invitation given by myself and many others telling whoever will listen that they can look to God for help. Strength comes from God by faith and prayer.

Go to the Lord for help;
    and worship him continually – Pslam 105:4  GNT

I do that because I know seeking God is not a practice that comes up empty – when I seek Him, I find Him and He does not reject me.

I have not spoken in secret
    or kept my purpose hidden.
I did not require the people of Israel
    to look for me in a desolate waste.
I am the Lord, and I speak the truth;
    I make known what is right. – Isaiah 45:19  GNT

However, there is a scene in Revelation that would suggest there will be a day when this opportunity will no longer exist.

The temple was filled with smoke from the glory and power of God, and no one could go into the temple until the seven plagues brought by the seven angels had come to an end. – Revelation 15:8  GNT

By faith and by prayer we enter the presence of God, but here it has become impossible – no one could go into the temple. There is a time coming when it will be too late to pray.

“Thomas Goodwin, a seventeenth-century Puritan pastor, wrote that one day he saw a father and son walking along the street. Suddenly the father swept the son up into his arms and hugged him and kissed him and told the boy he loved him—and then after a minute he put the boy back down. Was the little boy more a son in the father’s arms than he was down on the street? Objectively and legally, there was no difference, but subjectively and experientially, there was all the difference in the world. In his father’s arms, the boy was experiencing his sonship.” – Timothy Keller

 

What we should and should not pray

Power-of-Prayer-Grace-College

There was a time in Moses leadership where God suggested that He step aside and leave the presence of His people.

The Lord said to Moses, “Leave this place, you and the people you brought out of Egypt, and go to the land that I promised to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and to their descendants. I will send an angel to guide you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. You are going to a rich and fertile land. But I will not go with you myself, because you are a stubborn people, and I might destroy you on the way.” – Exodus 33:1-3 GNT

Moses pleads for that not to happen. He prays for God’s presence and according to His promises.

Moses said to the Lord, “It is true that you have told me to lead these people to that land, but you did not tell me whom you would send with me. You have said that you know me well and are pleased with me. Now if you are, tell me your plans, so that I may serve you and continue to please you. Remember also that you have chosen this nation to be your own.” – Exodus 33:12-13 GNT

Moses wants to know. He wants to know God’s plans so that with God revealing more of Himself, Moses would get to serve Him and know Him more. He also wants God’s favour and to be able to please God. It is a prayer asking God for His grace.

 For it is by God’s grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God’s gift, so that no one can boast about it. – Ephesians 2:8-8 GNT

It is one of the reason I rarely pray to God for justice for myself. I actually do not want God to give me what I deserve. I need to pray for God’s mercy and for His grace to extend to me. When God extends me mercy, He does not give me what I deserve. When God extends His grace, He gives me what I do not deserve.

The fourth petition. “Give us this day our daily bread.” Say: “Dear Lord, God and Father, grant us thy blessing also in this temporal and physical life. Graciously grant us blessed peace. Protect us against war and disorder. Grant to our dear emperor fortune and success against his enemies. Grant him wisdom and understanding to rule over his earthly kingdom in peace and prosperity. Grant to all kings, princes, and rulers good counsel and the will to preserve their domains and their subjects in tranquility and justice. Especially aid and guide our dear prince N., under whose protection and shelter thou dost maintain us, so that he may be protected against all harm and reign blessedly, secure from evil tongues and disloyal people. Grant to all his subjects grace to serve him loyally and obediently. Grant to every estate-townsman or farmer-to be diligent and to display charity and loyalty toward each other. Give us favorable weather and good harvest. I commend to thee my house and property, wife and child. Grant that I may manage them well, supporting and educating them as a Christian should. Defend us against the Destroyer and all his wicked angels who would do us harm and mischief in this life. Amen.” – Luther (an example of how he would pray each petition in the Lord’s Prayer)