10/20/2018
Guess I should be praying instead of writing this because the SIMH is the same as yesterday, “Just A Little Talk With Jesus.”
Prayer is a good topic to start with today, don’t you think? When the Bible is going to be used as a “principle source” research facility, we should begin a word search based upon first usage. For the word prayer that would be 2Sa 7:27, and the word pray is first found in Gen 20:7. Pray is used several times before, but in the conversational use, more like “beg” to an individual for something. But, in Gen.20:7, it is God telling Abimelech what to do to keep from dying, and it included that he should pray. In 2Sa 7:27, David is praying in a very thanksgiving and humble way before the Lord after the Lord has told him (through Nathan, the prophet) that he will not build the Lord’s house, rather his son after him shall. (Solomon built the first temple unto the Lord in Israel several hundred years after Moses had brought them out of Egypt.)
So, prayer had a good start. What David wanted to build the Lord said he couldn’t. and David offered a prayer in humble obedience to the Lord. By this time, many of the bible peoples had prayed many times, like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Israel(Jacob in old age), Moses, Joshua, Samson’s parents, Samson, Ruth, and on and on. But perhaps the Lord is showing us a more special way concerning prayer by the type of prayer in this first usage of the word itself. David acknowledged his unworthiness, extolled the Lord’s greatness, and accepted God’s will in the matter at hand. Great way for our prayers to be offered.
I fear most of the time that our prayer is too lightly set upon. We have just enough time allocated to ask for what we want. Notice, it’s 7 or 8 verses of Scripture before David brought up what he wanted to say. With this thought in mind, may I suggest to you the greatest prayers in the bible (in my mind, it’s alright if you like different ones.)
In 1Sam.2:1 thru 10, Hannah’s prayer when she gave Samuel unto the Lord to become the Lord’s last judge in Israel (Samuel is listed as the last judge and the first prophet.)
In Daniel 9:3 thru 19, Daniel’s prayer after realizing Israel had been in captivity for 70yrs, the time Jeremiah had prophecied (it is such a great prayer!)
The Lord’s prayer (probably not the one you are thinking of, that one was a “manner of prayer” and it is incorrect to have it recited as man does today.) His prayer as recorded by John (John 17, the entire chapter)
Our Apostle Paul in Eph.1:17 thru 23, which is picked up again and continued in Eph.3:14 thru 21. This prayer is to, for, and about us in today’s world. We all need to know this prayer, not to repeat, but to see what “the man of God” prayed for when he thought of people like us.
Well, I never sat down to write a sermon this morning, but, hey! maybe it will slow us down a little in our approach to the Lord, Who bought us with His blood.
Thanks for reading, the Elder
the Elder's Blog 