Unanswered prayer - A blessing
EDITOR'S LETTER
Image source: Chris Liu, Unsplash
Recently, I read an article entitled “The Blessing of Unanswered Prayer.” That may seem contradictory, but in some cases unanswered prayer can be a real blessing – far better and more beneficial than if God answered your prayer in the manner in which you asked.
James 3:3 says, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.” You might think, “That cannot be. After all, didn’t Jesus say in Matthew 7:7, “‘Ask, and it will be given to you.’?” Jesus also said in John 16:24, “Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.” Some people immediately confront the matter of unanswered prayer by claiming that a person did not have enough faith, and that is why he didn’t receive what he asked for. After all, Jesus did say in Mark 11:26, “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.”
However, James looks at things from a very different perspective. The reason why this person didn’t receive what he asked for was because he asked wrongly. Firstly, his motives were wrong. Instead of being concerned with God’s glory and his neighbour’s wellbeing, he was only concerned with his own pleasure. Such a prayer is not in accordance with God’s will. In John 14:14, you are instructed to ask things in the name of Jesus with the promise that God will do it. That does not mean adding, “In Jesus’ name,” at the end of your prayer. It means you must pray according to the character and will of God. That is the way to receive answers to prayer.
“... you must pray according to the character and will of God. That is the way to receive answers to prayer.”
Far too often, people pray for things that appear good, but God doesn’t answer in the way they want because He has something better. People pray that God will relieve them of troubles, difficulties and sickness. While that sounds good, God uses these things to build character and to strengthen His people. If life was always a bed of roses, you would not grow and be strengthened in character as much as if you faced trials in life. That is why James said in 1:2 and 3, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.”
God knows what is best for you. He desires that you become more Christ-like. He works all things in your life together for your good (Romans 8:28). Trust God to help you when you experience trials and to use those situations for your benefit and for His glory.
God’s Goodness and Mercy
David mentions in Psalm 23:6 two blessings that every Christian needs – goodness and mercy. Goodness will supply us when we are in need and mercy will forgive us when we fall into sin. Goodness follows us to provide and mercy to pardon. Here again we see the completeness of God’s salvation. Goodness with its ample gifts and ceaseless providing is not enough for an erring creature who is daily contacting sin and guilt. Mercy with its pardon multiplied and its unwavering and longsuffering love is not enough for a creature who cannot nourish and sustain itself. It is goodness and mercy working together that we need and this is what the Lord gives us. Goodness, which is the bounty and benevolence of the Lord, will follow us and supply all our needs. Mercy, which is the compassion and love of the Lord, will also follow us and pardon all our sins.
(From “Following the Shepherd”By Peter Jeffery)
A Special Psalm
“It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.”
Psalm 118 is an interesting psalm in many ways. Let me mention a few. It is the last of the Egyptian Hallel psalms (113-118) that were sung before and after the Passover meal. It fits in between Psalms 117 and 119. “Obvious,” you might be saying to yourself, but there is more to it than that. Psalm 117 is the shortest psalm in the Bible, consisting of only two verses, while Psalm 119 is the longest with 176 verses.
Psalm 118 is a Messianic psalm that speaks about Christ and His work. It is also the most quoted psalm in the New Testament, with portions of the psalm found in the Gospels, Acts and the Letters.
The psalm begins and ends with a very familiar call, “Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” These words are often found in the Psalms and in other books of the Old Testament.
Instead of looking at the whole psalm, I want to focus on verse 8 which says, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.” Someone described this verse by saying, “It’s like finding an age-old oak true in a field of shifting sands. Trusting humans? It’s proven as shaky as building your house on a dune. But leaning on God? That’s sturdy ground – no better rock out there than trusting in Yahweh! This line shakes us awake, urging us not just to read it but live by it every day.”
Here are some questions for you to consider: In whom do you place your confidence? Is it in God or in a person? Who do you rely on when the going gets tough? To whom do you run? To a trusted friend, parent or spouse, or to God?
The psalmist says that it is better to trust in the Lord and to place your confidence fully in Him than to put your confidence in people. Many reasons are given. The Lord is good and has everlasting mercy (verses 1-3, 29). He does not want you to forget that, and drills in the everlasting mercy of the Lord by telling all those who fear the Lord to say, “His mercy endures forever.”
The Lord is proven as the helper of His people. He hears and answers prayer. No wonder it is better to put trust in Him. He is omnipotent (almighty in power), therefore He can do more than any person can do for you. Not only that, but He is omniscient (all knowing), omnipresent (everywhere) and the all-wise God. He knows what is best for you, He loves you more than anyone else can, and is faithful to His promise to work all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).
“His mercy endures forever.”
As the psalmist moves through the psalm, he focuses more and more on the Lord as the God of salvation. This is the ultimate reason why it is better to trust in the Lord. He alone can save you from your sins. You cannot save yourself and no person can save you. You must trust in the Lord Jesus Christ who came to this earth and gave up His life by dying onthe cross. He suffered the punishment of death that you deserve for your sins. If you repent from your sins and trust in Him to forgive you, He will forgive you and give you the gift of eternal life. Can you see why it is much better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man? He alone is the one who can bring lasting change in your life. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
The Way, the Truth and the Life
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Jesus said to those who believed in Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31, 32). This is a wonderful truth that speaks about the change God brings in the lives of all who believe in Jesus. They are set free from sin and no longer continue living according to their sinful ways. Instead, they know the truth of Jesus and continually walk according to His truth.
One of the most well-known of Jesus’ sayings is found in John 14:6, where He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
There is only one way to God and that is by believing in Jesus Christ to save you from your sins by the once for all sacrifice of Himself when He died on the cross. He paid the price of your sins to justify you in the sight of God so you may be seen as righteous and accepted by Him. Paul stated it so clearly, “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time” (1 Timothy 2:5, 6). Peter also said, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
Jesus is also the truth. The Bible is the written word of God’s truth. Jesus came to earth as the manifestation of God in human flesh. John explained it this way in John 1:14, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” This was noticeable in Jesus’ teachings. People were astounded at the great wisdom and authority of His teaching. That is not surprising, because He was revealing the very truth of Himself as God when He spoke. It is impossible for God to lie (Titus 1:2) which is why you must pay careful attention to all the words of God. Psalm119:160 says, “The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgements endures forever.”
Thirdly, Jesus is the life. He alone raises sinners from their deadness in sin and gives them eternal life. This is a wonder of His mercy, grace and love, as Paul explained in Ephesians 2:4, 5, “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses and sins, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).” A dead person cannot rise to life by his own power and begin walking on earth again. You know this is impossible. In the same way, a person who is dead in sin, as all people are before they believe in Jesus Christ, cannot make himself spiritually alive. He depends on the work of Jesus to change him and to give him life. In raising Lazarus from the dead, a man who had been buried four days in the tomb, Jesus illustrated the truth that He gives life to people who are dead in sin. Just as He performed a great miracle on that day, so He continues to perform great miracles by giving life to people who are dead in sin. The wonderful thing about the spiritual life Jesus gives to His people is the truth that it can never be taken from them. It is eternal life. Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John3:16). This is further emphasised in John 10:28, where Jesus said, “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”
Look to Jesus as the way, the truth and the life. You will receive the forgiveness of your sins and the eternal life that God promises.
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses and sins, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).”
Hymn - What a Friend We Have in Jesus
1. What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Ev’rything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Ev’rything to God in prayer.
2. Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged:
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
Can we find a friend so faithful,
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our ev’ry weakness –
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
3. Are we weak and heavy laden,
Cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Saviour, still our Refuge –
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield thee,
Thou wilt find a solace there.
(By Joseph Scriven, 1819-1866)
The Story Behind the Hymn
Joseph Scriven was born in Ireland in 1819. He faced many trials in life. On the day before he was due to marry a young lady, she fell from her horse while crossing a bridge and drowned in the water below. To make matters worse, Joseph saw the whole incident unfold before his eyes.
Joseph Scriven left Ireland to live in Canada. He tutored some of the local children and was well liked by people in the district. He also found a woman he loved and planned to marry her. Tragedy struck again, because she died of pneumonia before she married Joseph. As well as tutoring children, Joseph Scriven helped poor widows and people who were sick.
As time went on, Joseph Scriven’s mother became very ill. She was still living in Ireland and there was no way that Joseph could afford to travel home to visit her. In order to bring some comfort to her soul, he wrote a poem and posted it to her. He did not intend the poem to be seen by anyone else, but one day a friend saw it near Joseph’s bed while he was visiting Joseph.
“There is a strong focus on taking all things to Jesus in prayer because He is a prayer-answering God.”
Joseph Scriven published a collection of his poetic works in a book entitled “Hymns and Other Verses.” He included seventy-one of his hymns with the intention they be sung by the people of God when they meet together. ‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus’ was not included in this book, probably because he wrote it as a poem to bring comfort to a dying mother. This hymn was first published in a local newspaper. Since then, it has become a favourite of many people and has been translated into other languages. As a result, it is sung in many countries around the world.
This hymn is rich in comforting truths. There is a strong focus on taking all things to Jesus in prayer because He is a prayer-answering God.
The first verse establishes the truth that Christians have a true friend in Jesus – a friend who is greater than any other because He can bear our sins and griefs. Christians have the great privilege of being able to take all matters to the Lord in prayer. Despite that, they often do not, with the result being they experience unnecessary pain and do not experience peace in every situation. The other two verses mention various difficult circumstances in life, with the instruction to take each one to God in prayer.
One hymn book has a fourth verse. It has been suggested that it may not be written by Joseph Scriven, but added by the editor. It expresses wonderful truths in a lovely way, so I have included it for your edification.
Blessed Jesus, Thou hast promised
Thou wilt all our burdens bear.
May we ever, Lord, be bringing
All to Thee in earnest prayer!
Soon in glory, bright, unclouded,
There will be no need for prayer;
Rapture, praise, and endless worship
Shall be our sweet portion there.
We hope you enjoyed the excerpts from this month’s volume of The Christian Informer.
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