Prayer As Rebellion

"What is the nature of petitionary prayer? It is in essence rebellion - rebellion against the world in its fallenness, the absolute and undying refusal to accept as normal what is pervasively abnormal...Petitionary prayer only flourishes where there is a two-fold belief: first, that God's name is hallowed too irregularly, His kingdom has come too little, and His will is done too infrequently; second, that God Himself can change this situation."

- David Wells from Perspectives On The World Christian Movement

The Best Thing You Can Do For Your Pastor

From The Blazing Center:

The absolute, most important, best thing that you can do for your pastor is to pray for him.

I was freshly reminded of that fact this morning when I read 2 Corinthians 1:11 - "You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many."

This is Paul talking. The apostle. The dude who wrote a significant portion of the New Testament. The guy who got blindsided by Jesus on Damascus Road. The guy who had the whole “taken up to the third heaven and seeing things too glorious for words” experience. This isn’t a little ol’ Average Pastor With Minimal Gifting. We are talking about THE Apostle Paul who studied under THE Gamaliel. If anyone could feel sure of his ministry success it was Paul. I would expect Paul to say, “I am confident of my success in the Lord, but your prayers would also be helpful.”

But that’s not what Paul says. He says, “You also MUST help us by prayer.” There’s a hint of desperation in his voice. He is pleading for the prayers of the Corinthians. Why? Why does Paul feel such a deep need for the prayers of others?

Because he knows that the depth of his fruitfulness hinges on the prayers of others. He knows that he will not be successful unless he is propelled forward by the prayers of the saints.

That’s why he says that many will give thanks for the blessing granted through the prayers of many. In other words, Paul is expecting people to be grateful to God for his ministry and for the blessings that they have received through his ministry. But how did those blessings come about in the first place? Through the prayers of Paul’s friends! Paul’s ministry was fruitful because others were praying for him.

Your pastor desperately needs your prayers. I desperately need the prayers of the people in my church. The best thing that a person can do for me is pray on my behalf. The more people pray for me, the more fruitful my ministry will be.

So how can you pray for your pastor? Here are a few practical ways:

Pray that they will have spiritual and emotional endurance. Being a pastor is a wonderful job, but it can also be a very draining job. I need endurance to continue working with joy.

Pray that they will have rich fellowship with the Lord. The pastor’s power comes from the Lord. I need God to meet me and refresh week after week.

Pray that your pastor will be protected from temptation. If Satan can take down a shepherd, the sheep are much more vulnerable. I need the Lord to protect me from the temptations of pride, greed, lust, impatience, and a host of other sins.

Pray that your pastor will preach with power. Apart from the power of the Holy Spirit, a sermon will be nothing more than an eloquent boatload of crap. I need the Holy Spirit to put power behind my words.

I cannot more urgently endorse those words. Any pastor is a fool who is not yet convinced of his desperate need for the prayers of God's people. When asked by people, "How can I pray for you?" (A beautiful question, by the way) my answer is usually the same: "Pray for me the way you pray for yourself. I'm a husband, father, and sinner. Also pray for me with reference to Paul's words in 2 Corinthians when he classified 'the anxiety of caring for the churches' alongside things like Roman scourging, being beaten with rods, being stoned and shipwrecked."

There is nothing more vital you can do for your pastor than pray for him as if his life depends on it, for it does.

How To Pray For Your Pastor...

From R.W. Glenn:

About nine years ago I developed the following list of prayer requests that I gave to every willing hand. I haven't passed them out in at least four years, but I decided to resurrect them. Why? I need prayer...badly! And so does your pastor. As leaders in the church we have unique and often more intense temptations ("Strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter"). So will you consider praying for your pastor the way I ask my people to pray for me?

1. That the gospel would be the focal point of my life and identity - not manhood, not being a husband, not being a father, not being a pastor, but who I am in Christ.

2. That I would not fear man by desiring the admiration of people; that the Lord's "Well done" would be ever before my eyes.

3. That the Lord would not allow me to go long between repentances; that I would keep short accounts with him and be sensitive to and ruthless with my sin.

4. That I would continue to grow in the character qualities of the man of God (1 Tim 3:1-7; 2 Tim 2:22-26; Titus 1:5-9).

5. That I would have a consistent, powerful, diligent life of private prayer; that I would grow in my dependence on the Holy Spirit.

6. That the Lord would give me great diligence in study and sermon preparation, making the most of my time.

7. That my preaching and teaching ministry would be empowered by the Holy Spirit; that the Lord would effect real change in our lives through it; and that by it we would be more endeared to Christ.

8. That I would boldly and faithfully and humbly and joyfully and intentionally share the gospel with the non-Christians in my social orbit.

9. That I would see Jesus as supremely valuable, my greatest treasure, and as my dear friend.

Fuel for your devotional life...

When you get a chance, check out the "devotional" tag on the right hand column of this blog.

It includes devotions from Charles Spurgeon (Here), daily Bible reading from the ESV (Here), daily Bible readings and reflection from Ref21 (Here), and guidance in praying the Bible from Matthew Henry (Here).

Great Gift Idea

It is my wife's birthday.

To celebrate the day, a friend from church took her out to eat and do a little shopping. What struck me as a particularly good gift was the prayer journal that she presented to my wife. It was the prayer journal this lady began keeping in the days prior to the church's vote on me as pastor all the way through the early days of our arrival in Pennsylvania. There are prayers for each member of my family. Prayers for our safety and well being. There are prayers for needs of my children in their transition to a new school and church. Also recorded are specific answers to prayers. Though she had never intended to give it Karen, the journal is a profoundly moving gift.

We are blessed to be surrounded by people who pray for us. The gift Karen received today was a powerful reminder of this.

Pray for Muslims During Ramadan

A good way for Christians to be engaged during Ramadan is to pray for Muslims. Check out this helpful guide.

HT: Justin Taylor

"Pray the Bible"

I have posted a link to a great resource for prayer under the "devotions" section in the right-hand column. It is called "Pray the Bible" and is based upon Matthew Henry's classic Method for Prayer.

A Praying Life

A Praying Life by Paul Miller is an outstanding new book. Instead of writing my own review I will show you what Sean Lucas over at Ref21 has written:

One of the best books that I've read recently is Paul Miller's A Praying Life. I had quoted from it a few days ago, but that does not sum up the impact the book made on me. I've read a lot of books on prayer, but I've not read one as practical and thought provoking, realistic and hopeful.

In 32 short chapters, Miller draws the reader into his praying life, which means drawing us into his life. In so many books on prayer, I feel like the prayer expected is formal, orderly, technique-driven (i.e. the acronym ACTS). I can pray like that--in fact, I often do each morning as part of my morning worship. But at least for me, such prayer often feels divorced from my life once I leave my study. Miller freely describes the messiness of his life, especially connected with his physically challenged daughter Kim, and helps the reader envision how praying happens in the midst of a real, messy life.

But even more, Miller shows us that praying means come to a Father who loves us, his own blood-bought children. And since we are children, we are helpless--which is why we come to our Father: we recognize that we can do nothing without him. But since we are children, we should beunrestrained--like my children, who constantly burst into my conversations with my wife expecting me to care for their immediate needs. My kids don't wait for an appointment; rather, they rush into my presence with their needs and requests. Why don't I live that way with God my Father?

There is a great deal else I took from this book--most notably, because I can't change my kids but because God can change my kids, rather than trying to change my kids through the force of my words, I'm taking my concerns to God and asking him to change my kids through the power of his Spirit. Specifically, I've begun praying Scripture for my children in the areas in which I perceive their greatest needs--"Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others (Phil 2:4)"; "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil 4:13)"; "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger (Prov 15:1)." It is part of praying through my life and hopefully by God's grace develop a praying life.

I can't recommend this book highly enough. There are few books that are life-changing; this is one of them.

I echo Lucas' words. A Praying Life is not only a good book on prayer it is an important book. The only thing I would add is that Miller quotes from a wide range of Christian writers and theologians. Among those he refers to are Roman Catholic mystics which should not be taken as an endorsement of their theology. Other than that I strongly encourage you to read A Praying Life.

Prayer and the Name of Jesus

That we approach God in the name and by the merit of Jesus is good news for sinners. As for me, a cheif among sinners it is profoundly good news. I have no merits to plead. My name is wholly unimpressive. Even my best works bear the stink of selfish motives. If not for the active obedience, atoning death, and present intercession of Jesus then all hope for me would be lost.

Imagine that your prayer is a poorly dressed beggar reeking of alcohol and body odor, stumbling toward the palace of the great king. You have become your prayer. As you shuffle toward the barred gate, the guards stiffen. Your smell has preceded you. You stammer out a message for the great king: ‘I want to see the king.’

Your words are barely intelligible, but you whisper one final word, ‘Jesus, I come in the name of Jesus.’ At the name of Jesus, as if by magic, the palace comes alive. The guards snap to attention, bowing low in front of you. Lights come on, and the door flies open. You are ushered into the palace and down a long hallway into the throne room of the great king, who comes running to you and wraps you in his arms.

The name of Jesus gives my prayers royal access. They get through. Jesus isn’t just the Savior of my soul. He’s also the Savior of my prayers. My prayers come before the throne of God as the prayers of Jesus. ‘Asking in Jesus’ name’ isn’t another thing I have to get right so my prayers are perfect. Is it one more gift of God because my prayers are so imperfect.

From A Praying Life by Paul Miller

Prayer Week Sermons

Click HERE for the sermon audio from Prayer Week 2009.

The theme was "The God to Whom We Pray."

Messages in the series:
1a. Praying in Light of Eternity
1b. Praying in Light of Eternity (The Vine)
2. Praying To the Father - (Philip Ryken)
3. Praying Through the Son
4. Praying By the Holy Spirit

Prayer Week Message 1

You can listen to or download my first message from Prayer Week (Praying in Light of Eternity) by clicking HERE.

Praying By the Holy Spirit

“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life;
who proceedeth from the Father and the Son;
who with the Father and the Son together
is worshipped and glorified;
who spake by the prophets.”


In Scripture it is made clear that the Father is the object of our praying. But it is equally clear that we are able to call upon the Father only because of the Spirit of adoption who brings us into the relationship with the Father. Paul writes:

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8:14-17).

It is the Holy Spirit who gives us the freedom and confidence to approach the Father’s throne.

The Holy Spirit has been described as “the shy member of the Trinity.” This is not because he is somehow a lesser part of the Godhead. Rather, it seems that the Holy Spirit constantly points us to the Father and the Son rather than Himself. He is the means of regeneration by which we become children of the Father. Also, the Spirit seems to take particular joy in glorifying the Son (Jn 15:26; 16:14).

We also know that the Holy Spirit is our Comforter who is just like Jesus. He dwells within the hearts of God’s people (Jn 14:17). He is the Counselor who leads us into the truth (Jn 16:13). He is the One who convicts of sin (Jn 16:7-11). The Holy Spirit is also the agent of inspiration by which the Word of God was inscripturated (2 Peter 1:19-21).

Additionally, the Holy Spirit plays a vital role in our praying. Paul writes:
“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (Romans 8:26-27).

When it comes to knowing how and for what we should pray we must be taught. The Spirit is the agent of the Godhead who teaches us to pray. What is more, like Jesus, the Spirit intercedes for us. Imagine it. In the courts of heaven we have the blessing of both the Son’s and Spirit’s intercession on our behalf. Once again we see the beautiful mystery of God’s Trinitarian nature being revealed through the means of prayer. Tim Chester writes:

“True prayer is thoroughly Trinitarian and can only be Trinitarian. The Father invites us to call upon Him through the Son by the Spirit…The Father is the one to whom we pray and who graciously hears our prayers. The Son is the one who mediates, giving us access to the Father. The Spirit is the one who enables us to pray, disposing us to pray to God where once we were hostile towards him.”

When we pray...

“When we pray we make our request known to God by the help of the Holy Spirit; in the name, authority, and mediation of our Lord Jesus Christ; with faith, fervency, and submission to the will of God; and with sole reference to his honor and glory.”

- Walt Kaiser

Praying Through the Son

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea;
A Great High Priest whose name is Love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.
- Charitie Lees de Chenez


What does it mean when Christians end their prayer with, “in Jesus’ name”? Too often those words are treated as little more than a postscript or a magic charm invoked to make the prayer more effective. But what is the real significance of praying in Jesus’ name? In the book of Hebrews God reveals to us the role of Jesus in our praying:

“Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:14-16).

One of the roles of a priest is that he intercedes for God’s people. That is, he prays for them. He takes their sins, their needs, and their frailties before the throne of God. Every priest under the Old Covenant served merely as a shadow of the substance to come in Christ who would be our great and final High Priest. What an intercessor we have in Christ!

The One who knows us even better than we know ourselves intercedes for us in the courts of heaven. The Lord is on our side. We pray in Jesus’ name because as a member of the Godhead, the dearly loved Son of God, Jesus occupies a place of unique authority and power. We pray in Jesus’ name because, while we are weak, He is strong.

J.I. Packer sums up the doctrine of Christ as our heavenly intercessor with characteristic insight:

The reigning Lord intercedes for his people (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25). Though requesting from the Father is part of the interceding activity (John 14:16), the essence of Christ’s intercession is intervention in our interest (from his throne) rather than supplication on our behalf (as if his position were one of sympathy without status or authority). In sovereignty he now lavishes upon us the benefits that his suffering won for us. “He pleads [for us]—by his presence on his Father’s throne” (B. F. Westcott). “Our Lord’s life in heaven is his prayer” (H. B. Swete). From his throne he sends the Holy Spirit constantly to enrich his people (Acts 2:33; John 16:7-14) and equip them for service (Eph. 4:8-12).

Prayer, for the people of God, is an act of trust in God’s complete satisfaction in the cross work of Christ. Christians do not pray in order to appease God. Rather we are able to pray precisely because Jesus drank the cup of God’s wrath so that we could approach with confidence His throne of grace. Our praying is made possible by the atoning work of Christ.

Graham Goldsworthy writes:

“Problems emerge when the task of praying is urged without the motive and pattern of the unique saving role of Jesus. It then becomes a legalistic burden that cannot promote godliness…Prayer that is not the grateful response of the justified sinner is likely to degenerate into an attempt to gain acceptance.”

John Calvin wrote:
“Since no man is worthy to present himself to God and come into his sight, the Heavenly Father himself, to free us at once from shame and fear, which might well have thrown our hearts into despair, has given us his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, to be our advocate and mediator with him, by whose guidance we may confidently come to him, and with such an intercessor, trusting nothing we ask in his name will be denied us, as nothing can be denied to him by the Father.”

Praying to The Father

“Pray then like this: ‘Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be Your name.’”
- Matthew 6:9

“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.”
- Romans 8:15


We generally begin prayers by addressing the Father. This is not by accident or personal preference. There is a profound theological and historical coherence attached to addressing our prayers to God our Father. Long before the baptism of Jesus when God announced from heaven, “This is my beloved Son…” he referred to the people of Israel as His son: “Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, ‘Let my son go that he may serve me’” (Ex. 4:22, 23). In this way God established that His people would be as a son to Him.

Notice that God grants to His people the status of sons as He prepares to deliver them from captivity that they might worship Him. God’s first reference to His people as sons happens as He prepares to perform the greatest act of redemption under the Old Covenant. Tim Chester writes, “To begin prayer by calling on the liberating Father was to recognize in Jesus the beginning a new exodus – a new act of liberation. Calling on God as Father in this way was a way of aligning oneself with this act of liberation."

In this way we understand that the arc of biblical revelation points us to the reality that having God as Father is something granted only through his work of redemption. That is, God is our Father only through Jesus Christ. We are not born children God. Indeed we are born “sons of disobedience” and “children of wrath” (Eph 2:1-3). We are God’s children only by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Calvin writes, “In calling God ‘Father’ we put forward the name ‘Christ’.”

We must remember that the Fatherhood of God in no way diminishes the full range of His attributes. God is neither indulgent nor capricious. He is not cruel nor is He our pal. He is the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth. He is the Sovereign Lord over history. He is the Judge of all the earth. God is a consuming fire. But rather than diminishing His love these truths make God’s tender love all the more profound. The One who told Moses, “No one can see me and live” has, through Christ Jesus made us His sons and daughters.

This ought to give to us a strong sense of freedom in our praying. God would be within His rights to insist that we come before Him as slaves before a frightening master. But in His mercy God insists that we relate to Him as Father. Certainly we come to God our Father in reverence and awe. But we also approach His throne of grace in confidence as dearly loved children approach a loving parent.

“I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”

- Galatians 4:1-4

Our Father in Heaven

Next week Church of the Saviour launches Prayer Week 2009. With that in mind I will be posting some essays dealing with prayer, particularly The Lord's Prayer.

Michael Horton, always worth reading, wrote a series of articles on the Lord's Prayer for Modern Reformation.

Here is a portion of an essay he wrote on Jesus' words "Our Father in Heaven."

St. Augustine spoke of the essence of original sin as being "curved in"on ourselves, much as an older person might be bent over, unable to see more than a few feet ahead. Such a person's world is often tragically limited and joyless, as he or she is unable to take in the beauty of the world beyond his or her own two feet.

It cannot be denied that in our worship, we may as well pray, "Our Audience, which art on earth"; in our religion, "...hallowed (or at least greatly esteemed) be our name"; in our lifestyles, "...our kingdom come, our will be done in heaven as it is on earth. Give us today our daily indulgences and help us to love and forgive ourselves just as we love and forgive others. Lead us not into difficulty, suffering, or unhappiness, but deliver us from unmet needs. For ours is the kingdom, the power and the glory, at least here and now, which is what really counts anyway." We suffer from the disease Augustine described as incurvitas, we are "curved in"on ourselves. Or, to reverse Nebuchadnezzar's confession, we have not raised our eyes to heaven and have thus caved in to the culture's Siren song of insanity.

Read the entire essay HERE.

The God to Whom We Pray

“I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.”
- Jeremiah 24:7

“And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”
- John 17:3

“You have made us for Yourself and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in Thee.”
- Augustine

There is nothing more important for us than to know God. There is no more precious knowledge than the knowledge of God. He is the object of our worship, the author of our salvation, and the hearer of our prayers. God’s glory is the supreme treasure in the universe and His nearness is our greatest good. He is the appropriate object of our earthly pursuits and will be the source of our eternal delights.

The prophet Jeremiah tells us what is the true measure of status in the Lord’s eyes: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.’” When Paul explained to the Colossian congregation his prayers for them concerning their spiritual growth he wrote, “so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col. 1:10).

Much of the spiritual malaise that affects the lives of so many Christians corresponds directly to a superficial knowledge of God. Too many of us simply do not have a knowledge of God that is robust enough to keep us buoyant during life’s trials. Sinclair Ferguson writes, “While man has never had so much knowledge about the world as he possesses today, perhaps he has never had so little knowledge of God…If we really knew Him, it would show in the character of our lives” (p. 2).

The contemporary church has been inundated with a host of books, seminars, and sermons that focus on the latest fad or most trendy “urgency”. What has been conspicuously absent has been a white hot focus on the character of God Himself. The resulting lack of knowledge shows itself in producing a people whose faith is frail, whose worship is shallow, and whose prayers are without power.

Our only hope is for God’s grace to awaken in us a fresh passion to know Him. But that does not mean we sit idly by in some fatalistic fashion. God who is sovereign uses means to accomplish His purposes. God’s primary means to deepen our knowledge of Him is His Word. It is in the Scriptures that we find God’s fullest and surest self-disclosure. We do not intuit knowledge of God. Rather, it is something that must be revealed to us. This knowledge does not come by way of ecstatic experience but through the clear revelation of the Scriptures. There is, therefore, an inseparable link between our knowledge of God and time spent in His Word.

How to gain from God’s Word in 2009:
1. Begin using one of the many good plans for reading the Scriptures regularly.
2. Listen to good preaching. Since the Old Covenant God has used the means of preaching to feed His people.
3. “Reclaim your commute.” Listen to one of the many excellent Bible recordings on CD during your morning or evening commute.
4. Get involved in one of the Small Churches at COS.
5. Read great books that serve as faithful guides to the Scriptures. There are some great books listed in the “Resources” section of this booklet.

Prayer and Legalism

"Since prayer is an aspect of our sanctification, our development or growth in godliness, it too must be understood as the fruit of what Christ has done for us. This is often the missing dimension in books and sermons on prayer...Problems emerge when the task of praying is urged without the motive and pattern of the unique saving role of Jesus. It then becomes a legalistic burden that cannot promote godliness...

"If my assessment has been accurate, it follows that many of our problems with prayer stem from a failure to understand the relationship of our praying to the ministry of Jesus, including his praying. A wrong perspective on prayer may well come from thinking of it as playing a part in establishing our acceptance with God. Prayer that is not the grateful response of the justified sinner is likely to degenerate into an attempt to gain acceptance. Then again, if the sole motive to pray is, as I have heard it put in sermons, 'Jesus got up early to pray, so how much more do we need to get up early to pray', it is missing the grace of God in the gospel. 'He did it, therefore we ought to' is not the perspective of the gospel unless it is linked with, 'He did it for us because we are unable to do it as we ought.'

"It comes down to the avoidance of legalism. Legalism is the name we give to the attempt to achieve righteousness, a right standing with God, by our own efforts in fulfilling the requirements of God. At root we understand that legalism is wrong, but we easily succumb to it without appreciating what is going on. The only answer to this is to keep reminding ourselves of what God has done for us as the central focus of the Bible."

from Prayer and the Knowledge of God by Graeme Goldsworthy