Considering Prayer

The following is from my favorite Bible teacher ... 

The power of prayer is neither automatic nor magical. Conditions are attached to the promises of the Bible regarding prayer. At times, Jesus uses a kind of "shorthand," delivering brief aphorisms about prayer to encourage His people in its practice. We are reminded of statements such as, "Ask, and it will be given you" (Matt. 7:7); "If two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven" (Matt. 18:19); and, "Whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith" (Matt. 21:22).

Shorthand summaries such as these have provoked bizarre theories of prayer. These happen when people isolate these passages from everything else Jesus and the Bible say about prayer. Distortions also abound when we approach these aphorisms simplistically. Consider the statement about any two people agreeing. It would not be difficult to find two Christians who agree that ridding the world of war or cancer would be a good idea. However, their prayer in this matter would not automatically accomplish their desire.

The Word of God indicates that war and disease will be present at the time of Christ's return. To expect their absolute elimination before the appointed time is to grasp the promises of God prematurely. We still must suffer the ravages of sin, disease, and death. We entreat God to comfort us, to deliver us, to heal us-but we cannot demand these things in an absolute way. The idea that God "always wills healing" has been a destructive distortion in the Christian community. The pastoral problems emanating from this are enormous.

I was once approached by a young man stricken with cerebral palsy. His Christian faith was vibrant, his attitude was contagious with pleasant optimism, and his productivity was exceptional. He had graduated from college with a superior record. His question to me was poignant: "Dr. Sproul, do you think I am possessed by demons?" The question was accompanied by tears. The man's life had been hurled into chaos.

Aghast at this question, I replied, "Why would you even ask such a question?" The young man proceeded to relate a series of events triggered by an encounter with some Christian friends who had "claimed" the promise of Scripture and "agreed" that the young man be healed of cerebral palsy. They had laid hands on him, praying "the prayer of faith" and claiming a healing for him. When it was apparent that he had not been healed, they first chastised him for his lack of faith. Next they claimed he was guilty of some heinous secret sin that was blocking the healing. Finally they concluded that he was possessed by demons and left him with a tortured soul. His "friends" never considered that the error might be their own. They had given the impression of being zealous, Spirit-filled Christians. Their actions revealed, at best, immaturity; at worst, arrogance and presumption.

Prayer is not magic. God is not a celestial bellhop ready at our beck and call to satisfy our every whim. In some cases, our prayers must involve travail of the soul and agony of heart such as Jesus Himself experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane. Sometimes the immature Christian suffers bitter disappointment, not because God failed to keep His promises, but because well-meaning Christians made promises "for" God, that God Himself never authorized.

There is more to receiving what we desire from God than the mere asking.  The request must be made in accordance with the revealed will of God, and in accordance with His nature and character.

When we pray, we must remember who God is and who we are before Him. We must remember first and foremost that God's name is to be kept holy. We must remember that He is the Source of our provision and that all good things come from Him. We are to live in such a way that we make visible the kingdom of God in this world. We must regularly confess our sin, for that is one of the surest marks of a Christian. We are to pray that God will protect us from the evil one.

We must always remember that God is God and owes no man anything. As the psalmist says, "He does all that he pleases" (Ps. 115:3). We have been invited to come boldly before God, but never flippantly, arrogantly, or presumptuously. Ecclesiastes 5:2 reminds us that we are not to be "hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven, and you upon the earth."

If we really knew who God is and all that He has given us in Christ, our prayer lives would be far different from what they are.


Content selectively chosen from the book ... "Does Prayer Change Things?"

by ... R.C. Sproul