Prayer and God's Promises
Prayer is a mysterious, complex, and simple activity. It is simple because it is simply speaking with God. Just the writing of those words reminds me how complex and mysterious it is as well. If it were simply simple we wouldn’t need so much instruction and exhortation to do it. Prayer raises difficult philosophical questions too. For example, if God is sovereign and has decreed the future, then why pray?
Daniel chapter nine is an interesting example of someone who prays based on what God has promised he would do. The chapter begins with Daniel reading the writings of the prophet Jeremiah. In reading, he is reminded that God had promised that the Babylonian exile would end after seventy years. That seventy-year period was coming to an end. Therefore, it was time for God to act to end the exile.
Daniel’s response was to pray. Most of the chapter is taken up with Daniel’s wonderful prayer. Daniel is asking God to do what God said He was going to do. This brings us back to our question of why we should pray for things that God said He was going to do.
A contemporary example of what this might look like is when we pray things like, “Come, Lord Jesus.” The Bible explicitly promises that Jesus is going to return, so why pray for something that is going to happen?
This is not meant to be the complete and definitive answer but let me suggest a couple of reasons to follow Daniel’s example and pray for the things God has promised.
First, God has ordained the means as well as the ends. God has not only planned the destination, but He has also planned the route to get there. One of the means God uses to accomplish His purposes is prayer. God invites us to join Him in accomplishing His purposes through prayer. Prayer isn’t the only means God uses, but it is one of the primary means by which God accomplishes His purposes.
What this means is, that when you feel a burden or a prompting to pray about a certain issue or for a certain person, it is very likely that God intends for your prayers to become a part of how He is going to accomplish His plans for that person or in that situation. So, we should pray because it is a tremendous privilege to be called to join God in His work.
A second reason we should pray like Daniel, for the things that God has promised to do, is because of how it changes us. When you read Daniel’s prayer, you see that a great deal of the prayer is taken up in confession and a recounting of how they ended up in the mess they were in, to begin with. When we sincerely pray, “Come, Lord Jesus,” it can’t help but cause us to reflect on our spiritual state and the spiritual condition of others. It makes us reflect on the question, “Are we ready?” It causes us to have a renewed burden for others who we know aren’t prepared for the coming of the Lord.
There are other reasons to pray for the things God has promised, but those are two good ones. Let’s pray.
This message was a enlightening blessing. Thank you.