01/21/2024
As I read and studied over the account of the prayer which King Solomon offered at the dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem, I was struck by how powerfully God answered him. Fire fell from heaven to consume the offerings there, and God's glory was so strong that not even the priests could enter. God promised to hear the prayers of Israel at this place, but that promise came with a stipulation and a warning. When God entered the Temple and promised to hear prayers there, He did so with a qualification:
“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
2 Chronicles 7:14 KJV
So Israel didn't control or shackle God by building this place... Quite the contrary, He would continue to rule them from it, but only under certain conditions. His will would still be paramount, and if they did not obey and walk within His commandments there would be a penalty to be paid, and He issued a warning to that effect:
“But if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them; Then will I pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight, and will make it to be a proverb and a byword among all nations. And this house, which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passeth by it; so that he shall say, Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and unto this house?”
2 Chronicles 7:19-21 KJV
Today, just like at the temple, God gives us much when we pray, and His demands are relatively few... But they are far reaching and unwavering. Obey His will, believe in His Son Jesus, and love always. On their surface, none of these things appears to be very difficult... Yet these expectations deal with the very essence of our lives and we already know how unfaithful we are to the simple things in our daily living like eating healthy, exercising, and always telling the truth, much less loving God with all our heart and our neighbors as ourselves, or adhering to the will of God in everything we do and pray. Remember the young rich young man who desired eternal life?
“The Rich Young Man
17 And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” 20 And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth.” 21 And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.”
Mark 10:17-22
Do we leave our places of prayer sad and unfulfilled like the young rich man did, or do we leave them with what we came there for? Do we arrive in anticipation; believing, loving, obeying, and calling on the name of Jesus, yet leave without receiving what we had desired because we didn’t realize that the name of Jesus carries with it the will of God? Do we ask as we should, or do we fall short? Like what was said of those who were asked to obey what God commanded them regarding the temple… “Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land, and unto this house?”… Will men now ask “Why hath the Lord not heard their prayers and done this?”. Are we able to humble ourselves, and not only do what God wills, but pray in it as well?
“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.”
1 John 5:14-15 ESV
God doesn’t answer our prayers because He pities us, but out of His love for us, and our love and obedience to Him. So when we pray let us pray to our Father whom we love, and for the things that are consistent with His will; or in other words… in the name of Jesus. If we do this then we can expect to receive those things we pray for. Do you remember the way Jesus taught us to begin our prayers?
“Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Matthew 6:9-10 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for answering our prayers, and teaching us how we should pray them in the name of Jesus. Thank you Lord for opening our eyes to the fact that we should always pray for those things in which our will and yours are joined as one. Help us to humble ourselves before you, and to put loving you, and doing your will ahead of our own selfish desires. Hear us as we give you all the glory for the answered prayers we receive, and for your mercy and grace which flows from our prayer closets. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who was, and, is, and is to come. Great are you who is true to your every promise, and answers our prayers according to your will and love for us. We lift up our arms, our voices, our love, and our alms, as we pray our prayers to you in the name of Jesus, your Son, whom you sent to demonstrate your love for us by redeeming the world through the remission of sin, conquering of death, and making eternity with you possible for us once more. Praised be your name Holy Father, and may all the glory in every answered prayer be yours; now and forevermore.
Rich Forbes