Whitefield on spiritual progress

Some thoughts on spiritual progress derived from George Whitefield’s practices to encourage spiritual progress: 

* Engaging in regular Scripture reading

• recognize Scripture as God’s revelation of Jesus Christ
• approach with faith and humility
• apply the Scripture to your heart and life
• pray over the words and seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit

* Consistent private personal prayer

* Frequent meditation on Scripture

* Observation of God’s providence (externally) and recognition of the Spirit’s guidance (internally)

* Making full use of God’s ordinances (and other practices, such as singing, fasting, etc.)

* Fellowshipping with other Christians who are walking with God, both congregationally and personally

We need help to have hope

2 Chronicles 20:1-13.

We need help in order to have hope.

Introduction.

“It came to pass after this also…” Jehoshaphat was a generally good king. He removed the groves and high places, set up judges and adjured them to “judge not for man, but for the LORD.” Negatively Jehoshaphat “joined affinity with Ahab.”1 He even went into battle with him. See 2 Chronicles 18.

• This was a time of desperation for God’s people. (vs. 1-2)

• There was a fear of destruction among God’s people. (v. 3a)

• There was an urgency of yielding by God’s people. (vs. 3b-4)

• On this occasion, Jehoshaphat the king as the nation’s agent, stood before God and the people and prayed. (vs. 5-12)

Jehoshaphat addressed God (vs. 6-12).

• Jehoshaphat reveled in God (v. 6)

o As our God (v. 7), the God of our fathers.

o As the God of the heavens.

o As the God of the nations.

o As the God of all power.

• Jehoshaphat reviewed the past (7-9)

o God drove out the inhabitants of Canaan.

o God came the land to the seed of Abraham.

o God established his sanctuary in the land.

o God delivered them from times of trouble.

• Jehoshaphat revealed the present (10-11)

o People God would not let them destroy want to destroy them.

o These people reward good with evil. Psalm 35:12.

o God, what will you do?

 We have no power.

 We have no plan.

 We have a polestar, a focal point, the person of God himself.

God addressed Jehoshaphat and the nation (v. 14ff).

o Through his prophet

o By the Spirit

o In the midst of the congregation

• Be not afraid or dismayed.

• The battle is not yours, but God’s.

• Stand ye still, and see the salvation of the LORD.

Other verses to note.

• Exodus 14:13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD…

• Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God…

• 1 Samuel 17:47 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’s…

Conclusion. 

The next day Jehoshaphat and the people went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa. The king urged them to believe God and his word through the prophet. Such belief would result in establishment and prosperity. He appointed singers to go out before the army and praise the beauty of holiness, singing “Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.” When the singers began to sing, the Lord himself ambushed the opposing army.2 The Ammonites and Moabites turned on the Edomites, and then they turned on each other! 

Application.

We have come to a time of fear and desperation. We have no power. What we perceived as power (Christian majority) has failed us. We plan no plans. Plans of winning the war by electoral politics have failed us. We must realize that we have no power and no plan. Without power and without a plan, be still and know that we still have God, we can still rely on God. He is our God, He is the god of the heavens, he is the God of all nations. “The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.” (Psalm 103:19)

Psalm 75:7 But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.

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1 These biblical affinities usually included alliance by marriage (cf. 1 Kings 3:1 and Ezra 9:12-14). Possibly here it includes a promise of marriage of son to daughter. Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram married Ahab’s daughter (2 Chronicles 21:6).
2 set ambushments (an ambush; מְאָרְבִים; liers in wait) against the Ammonites, Moabites and Edomites.

Pagan prayer in so-called Christian Church

Anna Sheetz: “This past Thursday, March 31st, was the International Transgender Day of Visibility. In the PCUSA, we welcome all of our transgender and queer siblings into this family and relationship with the Creator God. So today, I wish to pray a prayer that was written for this incredible day. Will you pray with me?”

If you don’t think heart Christianity and nominal Christianity must come to an overt division soon, think again. Notice this prayer to the “God of pronouns…the great they / them who breastfeeds” at a PCUSA gathering. NottheBee.com very accurately and appropriately identifies this mess for what it is, modern day paganism. The entire prayer can be found here, or viewed in the “sermon” context here (the insane prayer starts at 39:10).

“A time is coming when men will go mad, and when they see someone who is not mad, they will attack him, saying, ‘You are mad; you are not like us.’”

Pray On

One lesser known part of the family of Sacred Harp books is The Sacred Harp, Fourth Edition with Supplement, by J. L. White. In the early years of the 20th century, Sacred Harp singers understood they needed a new edition of the book to breath new life in the singings. Unfortunately, they could not agree on just how to proceed. W. M. Cooper in south Alabama went first, in 1902. James Landrum White, son of original author B. F. White, issued revisions of The Sacred Harp in 1909, 1910, and 1911 – his 1911 book being the one that “took.” That same year J. S. James also issued a revision of The Sacred Harp. J. L. White’s book was a much more popular book than many realize. It made inroads in south Alabama where Cooper’s revision was popular. It vied for superiority with the book by James in the many of the same areas – Atlanta, Georgia area, Sand Mountain, Alabama, north central Mississippi. We have found old books that indicate it was once used in Texas. However, the book lost much ground after the deaths of J. L. White and his successor Sam Mann (B. F.’s grandson). The book went out of print and new copies were no longer available. With no new books available, most places that used this book eventually switched to the James (later called Denson) book. A benefactor at the Hardeman Primitive Baptist Church funded a photo-static reprint of the book in 1958. With this boost, the singers at Hardeman were able to maintain their singings to the present.

A committee was formed and a reprint (with all new typesetting) was issued in 2007. Unfortunately, it is once again out of print.

The Wootten family of Sand Mountain, Alabama, recorded some Sacred Harp songs in the early 1980s, which recording includes several songs that are unique to the “White book.” Listen to the Wootten’s singing Pray On, No. 512 in The Sacred Harp, Fourth Edition with Supplement.

The words and music are by A. R. Walton, copyrighted in 1910. Arthur Rivers Walton was a singer, composer, and worked setting musical type. He worked with J. L. White at least on the 1909 revision.

I did not find the words to this song online, so I have typed them out below.

1. When troubles come and life seems dark, pray on (pray on);

Just talk to Jesus heart to heart, pray on (pray on).

2. If Satan would your soul destroy, pray on (pray on);

The love of God will give you joy, pray on (pray on).

3. On thee my ev’ry care I’ll cast, pray on (pray on);

I’m anchored in thy love steadfast, pray on (pray on).

4. In Jesus’ love I stand complete, pray on (pray on);

And never from the foe retreat, pray on (pray on).

Chorus:

He can lighten ev’ry care (toil and care)

And your burdens he will share (surely share)

Now in him your faith declare

Pray on (pray on) ’till the blessing comes.

Prayer for a Blessing

“Prayer for a Blessing,” by John Newton, the first of 13 hymns for singing “Before Annual Sermons to Young People, on New Years’ Evenings” (Olney Hymns, Book ii., No. 7, 1779).

1. Now, gracious Lord, thine arm reveal,
And make thy glory known;
Now let us all thy presence feel,
And soften hearts of stone!

2. Help us to venture near thy throne,
And plead a Savior’s name;
For all that we can call our own,
Is vanity and shame.

3. From all the guilt of former sin
May mercy set us free;
And let the year we now begin,
Begin and end with thee.

4. Send down thy spirit from above,
That saints may love thee more;
And sinners now may learn to love
Who never loved before.

5. And when before thee we appear
In our eternal home;
May growing numbers worship here,
And praise thee in our room.

Atheist prayer?

Last Saturday I commented on Praying in Pennsylvania – which was primarily about a Christian lawmaker’s prayer in the Pennsylvania State House. Atheists want to pray too! Who knew?

The Pennsylvania State Senate, operating under their own rules, which are different from the House, invited Deana Weaver, a member of the Dillsburg Area Free Thinkers,[i] to offer a “prayer” at the opening of the Pennsylvania Senate on March 20, 2019. It included:

“We pray that the one principle that this great experiment of American democracy has taught us is that we are so much better when we work together in a spirit of inclusion. And so we pray. We pray for this democracy of the people, by the people and for the people. We pray for our government to serve all people equally.”

Commenting on the “aggressive” prayer by Christian Stephanie Borowicz, Weaver said, “We live in strange times.” You got that right! What in the world is a “prayer” by an atheist? There is no such a thing! There is no God to pray to, no expectation of answered prayer, merely a hypocritical formality and a desire to be “included.” Prayer is the act of invoking or calling upon a deity, spirit, etc., for aid, protection, inspiration, or the like; supplication. Our society keeps redefining things into oblivion, so that an atheist may invoke a deity “for aid, protection, inspiration, or the like.” Ha! If the Pennsylvania Senate wants to give an atheist a forum to address its opening, so be it. However, let us be honest and not pretend it is prayer.

Weaver delivered her first invocation at the Pennsylvania Senate in April 2015. Mike Argento atrociously announced, “since the world did not come to an end and the Senate wasn’t swarmed by locusts or pelted with a shower of frogs or hurled into a lake of fire, she was able to make a return trip.” By that standard, I’m sure we will see Argento in the forefront of encouraging Borowicz’s return trip to pray at the Pennsylvania House. The way they cried and hollered, you would think they were worried about the world coming to an end because of Borowicz’s prayer. Maybe it was just the case of the “hit dog” instead.

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[i] This DAFT group has a strange way of educating people to the dangers of belief in a supernatural being. Their watchwords are supposed to be reason and science, yet a little fake prayer evidently doesn’t hurt either.

Praying in Pennsylvania

On Monday, March 25, a prayer by a Christian lawmaker in Pennsylvania stirred up a hornet’s nest. Before each session the House rules call for opening in prayer as the first order of business. That Monday, the opening prayer was given by freshman Representative Stephanie Borowicz. If transcribe correctly, here is what she said:

Let’s pray. Jesus, I thank you for this privilege, Lord, of letting me pray, God, that I, Jesus, am your ambassador here today, standing here representing you, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Great I Am, the one who is coming back again, the one who came, died, and rose again on the third day. And I’m so privileged to stand here today, so thank you for this honor, Jesus. God, for those that came before us like George Washington and Valley Forge, and Abraham Lincoln who sought after you in Gettysburg, Jesus, and the founding fathers at Independence Hall, Jesus, that sought after you and fasted and prayed for this nation to be founded on your principles and your word and your truth. God forgive us. Jesus, we’ve lost sight of you. We’ve forgotten you, God, in our country, and we’re asking you to forgive us, Jesus, as your promise in your word says that if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek your face, and turn from their wicked ways, that you will heal our land. Jesus, you are our only hope. God, I pray for our leaders, Speaker Turzai, Leader Cutler, Governor Wolf, President Trump for his [stance] that he stands beside Israel unequivocally, Lord. Thank you, Jesus, that we’re blessed because we stand by Israel, and we ask for the peace of Jerusalem as your word says, God. We ask that we not be overcome by and that we overcome evil with good in this land once again. I claim all these things in the powerful, mighty, name of Jesus, the one who at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess, Jesus, that you are Lord. In Jesus name. Amen.

Her prayer has brought rancor, condemnation, applause for a Muslim prayer, and a Resolution “urging members of the House of Representatives who have the opportunity to offer a prayer in the course of a legislative session to craft a prayer respectful of all religious beliefs.” What irony that the decriers evidently wish to be “respectful of all religious beliefs” except beliefs like those of Representative Borwicz! Democratic Governor Tom Wolf – one of those prayed for – was “horrified” by the prayer and averred, “Pennsylvania was founded by William Penn on the basis of freedom of conscience” – just not freedom of conscience for Stephanie Borowicz or those who believe as she does! Freedom only for those who kowtow to the beliefs of Wolf and those on his side. Very few like Wolf see the contradictions of their own claims.

I would not have prayed as did this representative. Her prayer seems sort of weird, according to my own standards. However, it is never inappropriate for a person to pray according to her sincerely held religious beliefs just because someone is present who holds different beliefs, or someone disagrees. Prayer is an act of communing with and/or making a petition to God. If this legislature really intends to have prayer, then leave each pray-er to pray according to the dictates of his or her own heart with governmental interference. Anything less is either a sham or a formality.

I liked the “old days,” when we stood for free exercise and free speech even for those who differed with us, rather than limiting free exercise and free speech to that which agrees with our own opinions.

• “The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.” – Thomas Jefferson
• “Every man must give an account of himself to God, and therefore every man ought to be at liberty to serve God in that way that he can best reconcile to his conscience.” – John Leland
• “The Religion then of every man must be left to the conviction and conscience of every man: and it is the right of every man to exercise it as these may dictate.” – James Madison
• “Speech may not be banned on the ground that it expresses ideas that offend…The proudest boast of our free speech jurisprudence is that we protect the freedom to express ‘the thought that we hate’.” – Samuel Alito, in Metal v. Tam
• “To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it.” – G. K. Chesterton

The biblical season

“I don’t do ‘Lent.’ I LOVE the emphasis upon worship, prayer, fasting, and reflection. I just wish we’d do more of it on the Lord’s Day—the biblical season for such. Maybe for Lent folks could give up the other stuff we’ve crammed into our Sundays?” – Bart Barber

[Note: Ash Wednesday is always the Wednesday seven weeks prior to Easter Sunday and the day after Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday).]

The well-being of all nations

I believe that the “all people” of 1 Timothy 2:1 is the same group of people as the “all people” of 1 Timothy 2:4. I know that some have said this in order to make a soteriological point (and this is indeed a part of my soteriology), but I see another important point. In a passage that will specifically address political prayer, Paul has identified as our first object of prayer “all people.” We are obligated, I believe, to pray geopolitically for the well-being of the people of all nations, not only our own. We are further obligated to pray for people of other political parties. There are people who I hope will lose at politics, but there should be no one who I hope will suffer. I should oppose people’s ideas because I think even they would benefit from what I advocate. This is one reason why prayer should be the first step in Christian political engagement. If I have to pray for all people first, that fact in and of itself will probably filter some of what I would say or do afterwards in the realm of political engagement.

Bart Barber (pastor First Baptist, Farmersville, TX)

Holy Father

John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.

Last week I heard a preacher on the radio speak of the words “Holy Father.” He noticed that these two words suggest our distance from and proximity to God. Our distance from = He is holy. Our proximity to = He is our Father.

Distance, God is holy.

God is holy. The Hebrew word for holy is “qodesh” and the Greek word for holy is “hagios.” Most likely we immediately think of sacred or pure. The most distinctive thing about the word in relation to God is “apartness” or “otherness.” God is before, above, and apart from all his creation and his creatures. He is the Holy One of Israel (Psalm 89:18). Holy and reverend is his name (Psalm 111:9). On his throne he is thrice-holy before all in his glory and his eternity (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8).

At a distance, man is unholy. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God; all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags (Romans 3:23; Isaiah 64:6). Our iniquities separate us from God, and there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not (Isaiah 59:2; Ecclesiastes 7:20; 2 Timothy 3:2).

Proximity, God our Father.

Those who are born of God have God to their Father (John 1:12-13). He is our Father (Philippians 1:2) and the one who prayed “Holy Father” in his prayer taught us to pray “Our Father” (Matthew 6:9). By the Spirit within us we cry out to our dear Daddy (Romans 8:15) and have dear fellowship is with the Father (1 John 1:3).

Not very far.

God from heaven reaches down to our broken separate distant condition and brings together both “Holy” and “Father” – brings us to him, remaining just as the justifier of sinners (Romans 3:26). We may be holy, for he is holy (1 Peter 1:16); and are holy in the first resurrection that escapes the second death (Revelation 20:6).

Teach Us to Pray

“Some of the psalms of praise are very short, others very long, to teach us that, in our devotions, we should be more observant how our hearts work than how the time passes and neither overstretch ourselves by coveting to be long nor over-stint ourselves by coveting to be short, but either the one or the other as we find in our hearts to pray.” -- Matthew Henry, from his commentary on Psalm 105

Viewed by the eye of faith

"Viewed by the eye of faith, blessings in providence come down from heaven steeped in mercy. And yet how short, oh, how infinitely short do these temporal blessings, which perish in the using, fall of spiritual blessings, which endure for evermore! A striking proof of this is that when we are privileged to draw near to a throne of grace with some measure of faith and feeling, the heart’s desire is wholly towards spiritual blessings; and the eye of the soul is so wholly and solely fixed upon them, that there is scarcely left place either in the heart or lips to ask for any other." -- J. C. Philpot

Six Things about Prayer

1 Timothy 2:1-2 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

1. Prayer is directed (to God); Psalm 5:3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. (Cf. Psalm 69:13)
2. Prayer is effective; James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (Cf. Philemon 1:22)
3. Prayer is cooperative (with others); Romans 15:30 Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me (Cf. Acts 12:5; Revelation 8:3)
4. Prayer is continued; Romans 1:9 For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers (Cf. Ephesians 1:16)
5. Prayer is active; Nehemiah 4:9 Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them. (Cf. Colossians 4:2; Philemon 1:22)
6. Prayer is heard; Psalm 65:2 O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come. (Cf. Psalm 66:19; Isaiah 1:15)

A Godliness which feeds on form,
And lip devotion, barren cheer,
Will satisfy an earthly worm,
Who learns to think and call it prayer;
Contented with the husky part,
A moving lip and silent heart.

O Lord, thy Spirit’s aid impart,
And fill me with devotion’s fire;
Create anew my waiting heart,
And heavenly breathings there inspire;
Bid heart and flesh cry out for thee,
And thou my joyful portion be!

Let incense smoking from my breast,
In praise and prayer ascend thy hill;
And where I rove, or where I rest,
Do thou, O God, surround me still;
My heavenly intercourse increase,
Till as a river flows my peace.

- From A Selection of Hymns for Public Worship, William Gadsby, #901

Two Poems by S. W. Foss

The Calf Path -- Was written by Samuel Walter Foss (1858-1911); I could not find when "The Calf Path" was written, but it had been printed at least by 1897. It may have first appeared in Back Country Poems, 1894, or Whiffs from Wild Meadows, 1895.

One day through the primeval wood,
A calf walked home, as good calves should;
But made a trail all bent askew,
A crooked trail as all calves do.

Since then three hundred years have fled,
And, I infer, the calf is dead.
But still he left behind his trail,
And thereby hangs my moral tale.

The trail was taken up next day,
By a lone dog that passed that way.
And then a wise bell-wether sheep,
Pursued the trail o'er vale and steep;
And drew the flock behind him too,
As good bell-wethers always do.

And from that day, o'er hill and glade.
Through those old woods a path was made.
And many men wound in and out,
And dodged, and turned, and bent about;
And uttered words of righteous wrath,
Because 'twas such a crooked path.
But still they followed - do not laugh -
The first migrations of that calf.
And through this winding wood-way stalked,
Because he wobbled when he walked.

This forest path became a lane,
That bent, and turned, and turned again.
This crooked lane became a road,
Where many a poor horse with his load,
Toiled on beneath the burning sun,
And traveled some three miles in one.

And thus a century and a half,
They trod the footsteps of that calf.
The years passed on in swiftness fleet,
The road became a village street;
And this, before the men were ware,
A city's crowded thoroughfare;
And soon the central street was this,
Of a renowned metropolis;

And men two centuries and a half,
Trod in the footsteps of that calf.
Each day a hundred thousand rout,
Followed the zigzag calf about;
And o'er his crooked journey went,
The traffic of a continent.
A hundred thousand men were led,
By one calf near three centuries dead.
They followed still his crooked way,
And lost one hundred years a day;
For thus such reverence is lent,
To well established precedent.

A moral lesson this might teach,
Were I ordained and called to preach;
For men are prone to go it blind,
Along the calf-paths of the mind;
And work away from sun to sun,
To do what other men have done.
They follow in the beaten track,
And out and in, and forth and back,
And still their devious course pursue,
To keep the path that others do.

They keep the path a sacred grove,
Along which all their lives they move.
But how the wise old wood gods laugh,
Who saw the first primeval calf!
Ah! many things this tale might teach -
But I am not ordained to preach.

--

The Prayer of Cyrus Brown -- Was written by Samuel Walter Foss (1858-1911); I could not find when "The Prayer of Cyrus Brown" was written.

"The proper way for a man to pray"
said Deacon Lemuel Keyes,
"the only proper attitude
is down upon his knees."

"Nay, I should say the way to pray,"
said Reverend Doctor Wise
"is standing straight with outstrecthed arms
and rapt and upturned eyes."

"Oh, no, no, no." said Elder Snow,
"Such posture is too proud;
A man should pray with eyes fast closed
and head contritely bowed."

"It seems to me his hands should be
astutely clasped in front.
With both thumbs a pointing toward the ground."
Said the Reverend Hunt.

"Las' year I fell in Hodgkins well
head first," said Cyrus Brown,
"With both my heels a-stickin' up,
my head a-p'inting down;
I made a prayer right then an' there;
Best prayer I ever said;
The prayingest prayer I ever prayed,
A-standin' on my head."

Prayer Better Than Lawsuits, and other links

A Baptist day of prayer

• A Day Of Fasting And Prayer -- "The (Kehukee) Association, at this time, being oppressed with a sense of coldness and barrenness among the churches, appointed a day of fasting and prayer..."
• A Discourse on Prayer, 1 Corinthians 14:15 -- "Prayer is a part of religious worship, which is due to God only."
• Agreement in Prayer -- "We must be agreed in good motives."
• Christ's Great Prayer -- "What a remarkable proof of the divinity of Christ; to his antecedent deity!"
• Neglect of Fervent Prayer, Complained of -- "That there were none, or but few praying souls among God’s professing people, in the times referred to..."
• On Fasting and Prayer -- "...Christ himself takes it for granted, 'when thou fastest'...
• "Prayer -- "Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw..."
• Prayer Better Than Lawsuits -- "I never intend to pay you until you sue me, and, therefore, you may begin your suit as soon as you please."
• The Most High a Prayer-Hearing God -- "Though he is infinitely above all and stands in no need of creatures, yet he is graciously pleased to take a merciful notice of poor worms of the dust."
• What Is Prayer? -- "But we are now led to believe that the most fervent prayers we have ever offered to God, were indicted by groanings which we could not utter."
• 5 benefits of praying the Psalms -- "...prayers without variety eventually become words without meaning."

For God so loved (a lesson from John 11:1-46)

The Bible plainly declares that God is love (1 John 4:8). How true! But this truth is governed by God and his word rather than our vain imaginations and unbridled expectations. God is love in the way he means rather than the way we think. The sickness and death of Lazarus recorded in John chapter 11 is an apt illustration of God and his love, and how he deigns to operate in that love. 

The Bible plainly declares that Jesus loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus (John 11:5). How true! But the behaviour of that love is deliberate and startling. This behavior should inform our expectations and overhaul our presumptions. Lazarus fell deathly sick. Martha and Mary sent Jesus a message to let him know. Jesus did nothing.* Lazarus died. If Jesus really loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus, why did he not respond to their message and let Lazarus die of the sickness he had?

1. For God so loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus that He stayed where He was and tarried even longer. When Jesus received the message of Lazarus’s sickness “he abode two days still in the same place where he was”(John 11:6), tarrying so that by the time he arrived in Bethany Lazarus was buried and “had lain in the grave four days already” (John 11:17).

Our time is not God’s time. God exists outside of time and is unencumbered by it. Time is man’s master, not God’s.  “…be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” (2 Peter 3:8) Though God exists outside of time he manages it, operates within its events, and interacts with man who is servant of it. “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:11), even “a time to die” with which Lazarus would soon met. Because “therefore will the Lord wait…blessed are all they that wait for him.” (Isaiah 30:18) The day that Jesus received the message from Martha and Mary was not “when the fulness of the time was come” according to God’s calendar to hasten to Bethany.

2. For God so loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus that he didn’t fulfill their desire. The message sent to Jesus was “he whom thou lovest is sick” (John 11:3), and it was a desire of Lazarus’s sisters that he be healed. They could hope for it and believed that “if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died” (John 11: 21,32). Not only did the sisters believe, but others thought this man Jesus could “have caused that even this man should not have died” (John 11:37). Though we are taught to believe we will receive what we ask God for (Mark 11:22-25), God’s will is the decisive factor. Prayer is no blank check to purchase every man’s whim. “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.” (1 John 5:14-15) Lazarus’s sickness was not about sickness and death, but about the glory of God. And, frankly, often our expectations are too low when dealing with “him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us” (Ephesians 3:20).

3. For God so loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus that He raised Lazarus from the dead. Glory! This sickness of Lazarus was “not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby” (John 11:4). Clearly there is something much larger operating than the mere sickness and death of Lazarus – an event designed for the glory of God and “to the intent ye may believe” (John 11:15). But wait! While focusing on the glory of a resurrection from the dead, we might forget to consider some practical ramifications. To raise Lazarus from the dead means he had to return from a better place – a place where he gained relief from all present sickness and absence of any future pain. This raising meant Lazarus became something of a “side show”, with people trekking to Bethany “that they might see Lazarus also, whom he had raised from the dead” (John 12:9). Further this miraculous event put a target on Lazarus’s back so that “the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus also to death” (John 12:10) because he was a visible testimony of the glory of God and power of Jesus Christ and “by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus.” (John 12:11)

“Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days.” (John 11:39).
“he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth” (John 11:43-44).

“For God is love” and “for God so loved” are wonderful words, but words of love interpreted “according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will” (Ephesians 1:11). By man’s reckoning of time, Jesus seemed to be four days late. By God’s schedule he was right on time!

* We cannot mean to say or believe that Jesus actually “did nothing” – but that from the human perception of the initial events, he appeared to be doing nothing to rectify the problem.

A blank check?

When Jesus said that we shall receive all things, whatever we ask in prayer if we believe, did he in effect sign a blank check for Christians to consume on whatever their hearts desire? Is "all" and unlimited adjective? Is "whatsoever" an indefinite pronoun? What direction does the context point us?

Words have a varying range of meaning (semantic range), which meaning is determined by usage. It's not uncommon for someone to assert "all means all and that’s all it means." And that is true -- but in common (and scriptural) usage "all" rarely (if ever) means "all without any restriction or limitation." The context defines the meaning of all.

The Text
Mark 11:22-26 22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. 23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. 24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. 25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

There is a clear and obvious statement in the very context of the passage that one does not have a blank check to cash in any manner the believer might suppose. That one asking for forgiveness, who does not himself forgive, will not have "have whatsoever he saith" but Jesus declares the Father will not "forgive your trespasses." So, thought it might at first seem otherwise, the very word Jesus is speaking defines and details that these are not universal "alls" and "whatsovers". Jesus own contextual statements demand that the promise of verse 24 be limited rather than unlimited.

In the broader context of inspired scripture we also find teaching that corrects those who would presume to get whatsoever they want -- whatever their hearts are set on -- regardless of what God "wants".

Consider, for example, Bible instructions that teach we don't get all our prayers answered in whatever way our little hearts desire.

James 4:3 Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.

1 John 5:14-15 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

Consider, also, Bible examples that show we don't get all our prayers answered in whatever way our little hearts desire.

In John 11 Martha and Mary, two people Jesus dearly loved, did not receive the desire of their hearts. They wanted they brother Lazarus to be healed of his sickness. Jesus did not do it, but in fact waited until Lazarus died before he ever came to their side. In the end they received something beyond their expectations, but they did not receive what they expected.

Other scriptures throughout the word support this teaching. We must not be presumptuous. We must not think that we are calling the shots. We must not believe that we can use Jesus's words to make God do whatever we want. (See also, Psalm 66:18–19; Proverbs 15:29; Isaiah 1:15; Luke 11:2; John 15:7; James 5:16; 1 John 3:22). But we can come boldly before the throne of grace to received help in time of need.

[Preliminary to "For God so loved". Check back in a couple of days.]

Sad, sad

Owner of 'Pay to Pray' Website Ordered to Return $7.8M to Consumers

"You go to his website and it looks very official. There's a seal that looks official."

"The Christian Prayer Center website not only charged consumers $9 to $35 for prayers but also "deliberately" confused some consumers into signing up for recurring monthly payments, according to authorities."

Prayer

Too often, we make prayer showy, shallow and self-centered. It ought to be simple, sincere and spiritual. Here are some things people have said about prayer that you might enjoy and find helpful.

"In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart." -- John Bunyan

"We tend to use prayer as a last resort, but God wants it to be our first line of defense. We pray when there's nothing else we can do, but God wants us to pray before we do anything at all." -- Oswald Chambers

"Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?" -- Corrie ten Boom

"I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer." -- Martin Luther

"God can pick sense out of a confused prayer." -- Richard Sibbes

"When at night you cannot sleep,

Talk to the Shepherd and stop counting sheep." (Author unknown)

"Saying one's prayers isn't exactly the same thing as praying." -- Lucy M. Montgomery (in Anne of Green Gables) 

"Prayer is the soul's sincere desire,

Uttered or unexpressed;

The motion of a hidden fire

That trembles in the breast." (James Montgomery)

Lord, teach us to pray.

No more prayers

The Sunday January 18 Daily Sentinel reports there will be No more prayers at meetings of the Nacogdoches City Council.1 The report seemed almost unreal. Apparently yielding to a secularist's inquiry to offer prayers at the council meeting, the mayor decided there would be no prayers at all. Up until this point it was the tradition of the city council for one of its members to open with prayer.

The Sentinel reports that Mayor Roger Van Horn stated, "I knew that if we ever got challenged, there would be no argument. And we were challenged, finally."

The challenge came from Daniel Ross of nearby Jacksonville, Texas -- who had picked a fight with Cherokee County in 2014 over a nativity scene on the grounds of the county courthouse.2 Since Ross believed all the Nacogdoches city council members are "of the same faith" (i.e. Christian), he feels that it is "important that citizens be exposed to all faiths."

It is not clear why Ross is interested in the prayer traditions of the Nacogdoches City Council, or whether he has challenged the tradition of his own city. Perhaps such incidents help get his name out in the public domain as one who performs secular ceremonies (according to his web site HERE). Perhaps he is a crusader for the way of humanists. Perhaps some Nacogdoches resident requested his help. I'm not sure why he made it his business.

It is not clear why Van Horn and the city council yielded so meekly. Perhaps they didn't want to fight. Perhaps they didn't want the administrative headache. The city attorney, according to the Sentinel, advised the council that they could either offer opportunities to pray to people of other faiths or not have prayer. This is quite strange in light of the very recent Supreme Court ruling in Town of Greece v. Galloway, May 2014. In it, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote, “To hold that invocations must be non-sectarian would force the legislatures sponsoring prayers and the courts deciding these cases to act as supervisors and censors of religious speech.” It does not fall on a legislative body to make sure all types of prayers are represented in their invocations.

Like Daniel Ross, I don't live in the city of Nacogdoches and their decision is not my business -- beyond interest in such incidents and the direction of "church-state" issues in our society. But I did find the decision of the city to quite unusual indeed!

1. You have to have a Daily Sentinel subscription/account to read the full article.
2. As best I could determine his efforts resulted in a protest on the courthouse lawn of about a dozen people, but not in the removal of the nativity scene (it was there as late as the Saturday before Christmas).