09/24/2018
Who do you glorify in your prayers? Is your aim to glorify God, or is it to bring glory upon yourself? This is especially a danger when we are interceding in prayer for others because it is easy for them to attribute the success of a prayer to the intercessor, and thus assign the glory there incorrectly. In the secret privacy of our prayer closets this same issue arises, however it has to do with the motive behind our prayers... who do we glorify, and who do we allow others to glorify as we pray?
“"Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”John 14:12-13 ESV
I am a member of an intercessory prayer team in which another elder member of our church and myself pray weekly and also, on dire occasions, for others, and our church. We have seen remarkable answers to prayer, and we have also suffered through times when we were mistakenly assigned the glory for one of those prayers that God answered for someone we were interceding for. The temptation is to feel responsible for God’s answer, but the reality is that as intercessors we are nothing more than drinking straws.
I say drinking straws because they contribute nothing to the liquid being consumed, but merely transport it between the cup and the mouth of the person who wishes to consume it. Intercessors position themselves between the cup that is Jesus Christ, and the person in need of receiving God’s answer to prayer... nothing more. If that straw should ever develop a hole in it by which air is introduced, and God’s glory is siphoned off, then the flow ceases to be effective and full, and it becomes a labor to draw anything at all. When we claim God’s glory, or allow it to be assigned to us then a hole has been poked in our straw, and our prayers begin to suck air.
“Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!”Psalms 115:1 ESV
In regards to our secret personal prayers we can do a similar thing, but in this case we take an answered prayer that was prayed in secret and given for our personal edification, and reveal it to those around us. Typically we do this out of our misguided desire to glorify God... by revealing His privately directed glory to the world at large.
“Sing to the Lord, all the earth! Tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and he is to be feared above all gods.”1 Chronicles 16:23-25 ESV
But in our private prayers we must guard against a couple of things; the first is in revealing God’s answer to others in order to focus the glory of our relationship with Him on ourselves... “Look at me! I am worthy! Aren’t I great?” The second is much more diabolical... we begin to worship God’s answers to our prayers, and place the answers above God Himself. We can see this behavior manifest in doubt, blame, and withdrawal.
A good example of how this second diabolical breakdown occurs can be seen in some good works done by ourselves, and even the Church. We feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and give shelter to the homeless, and at first this is done through prayer and for the glory of God. The recipients of these things see God in us and in His provision. Then over time these acts begin to change and they become less and less about God, the prayer dwindles away, and they are viewed more as god’s unto themselves. Suddenly we are clothing the naked to draw attention to ourselves, and the recipient begins to feel they are owed this. What once glorified God has become a replacement for Him... a false god has been established in which we worship the work we are doing, and not God for whom that work was originally undertaken. We begin to become disillusioned in the effort, doubt that God is in it, and might even grow weary and quit providing, or leave church altogether. The recipients on the other hand lose sight of the sacrifice, the goodness of God, and the necessity to glorify Him in it, and turn instead to those who do this work and assign either glory or blame to them... once again false god’s are formed.
Good works are done to glorify God; they are a very natural manifestation of our faith. However, when God is no longer in them they cease to become God’s gift, and become gods unto themselves, or the works of faith simply become secular jobs. Faith and works must be inseparably tied together and God’s glorification is paramount.
“You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness"—and he was called a friend of God.”James 2:22-23 ESV
So back to the original question... “Who do you glorify in your prayers?” This is not a difficult question, but has far reaching ramifications. It effects our ability to intercede, and to pray privately; it even effects our corporate prayers if they are not prayed to glorify God. Examine your prayers, and your prayer life... have you placed your desires above God’s glory? Have you constructed false gods?
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for answered prayer, and thank you for revealing your glory through them. Help me Holy Father to pray such things that glorify you further; let all of my prayers serve to raise you up, and draw us closer together in relationship. Let my desire always be to serve your will, and by so doing to demonstrate your magnificence to the world. Gracious Father, give me the humility to resist all temptation to claim even the slightest amount of your glory, and the words necessary to correct the tendency of those who would assign your glory to me as I pray for them. Demonstrate this truth to your Church, that we might pray effectively, and accomplish much for you and your kingdom. Help us Father so that our vanity and pride is overcome and all glory that is rightfully your will be assigned to you. Take away our flamboyance, and the pomp that is designed to glorify ourselves, and replace it with humility and subservience. Guide me Holy Spirit as I pray, and speak for me when my words are failing me... give me the insight I need to pray the will of God. Holy Father you are great and greatly to be praised. You are the sole source of all answered prayer and no man can do the things that are of you. All glory rests on you Father, for Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God of mercy, grace, and answered prayer. Praised be your name now and forever more!
Rich Forbes