Affectionate Prayer

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I commend to you John Bunyan’s “A Discourse Touching Prayer” (Works of John Bunyan 1:621-40). It is based on 1 Corinthians 14:15, “I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also.”

According to Bunyan:

Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the Holy Spirit, for such things as God hath promised, or according to the Word, for the good of the church, with submission, in faith, to the will of God.

 Rather than summarizing the work, let me encourage you to read it (it is rather short). To that end, let me give you a taste of what Bunyan means in saying that prayer is “an affectionate pouring out of the soul to God.” He means that the Biblical picture of one who prays is one who longs for more of God. He cites many biblical texts to prove his point. Here are a few:

  •  ”As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God” (Psa 42:1)
  • “I have longed after thy precepts” (Psa 119:40)
  • “I have longed for thy salvation” (Psa 119:174)
  • “My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God” (Psa 84:2)
  • “My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times” (Psa 119:20)

From this he concludes that prayers rightly flow from one who already loves God, yet longs to experience closer communion with Him. When one longs to love God more, it changes the prayers completely: “the whole man is engaged, and that in such sort, that the soul will spend itself to nothing, as it were, rather than it will go without that good desired, even communion and solace with Christ.” By this, Bunyan teaches that a desire for communion with Christ drives a man to tireless prayer that he would obtain the greater communion (even as Jacob insisted on a blessing in Genesis 32).

Bunyan believes the reason so few pray in this way is that few who pray are truly born again. He fears that “scarce one of forty… know what it is to be born again, to have communion with the Father through the Son; to feel the power of grace sanctifying their hearts.” Yet, those who do have saving faith know this communion to be the greatest possible reality that any being can know, thus pursues it to the neglect of lesser pursuits. Such a person “sees an emptiness in all things under heaven,” instead believing “that in God alone there is rest and satisfaction for the soul.”

Here are a few thoughts to consider pursuing in prayer:

  • Pray that God would convince you of the truth that communion with the Triune God is the greatest reality possible and the place of the greatest joy you could possibly experience
  • Pray that God will decrease your longings for all lesser goals than greater communion with God
  • Pray that God will cause you to long for greater communion with Him, so that your prayers for greater communion with Him will flow from “an affectionate pouring out of your soul to God”

Advent 2012

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I am about a week late in posting this (and about five months late in posting anything). Nevertheless, I want to encourage you to read something that God may use to turn your heart toward Him. Desiring God has posted a free ebook for Advent called Good News of Great Joy. Advent began on December 2 this year, but it is not too late to begin reading through this short book. I pray it is a blessing to you and your family.

Considering God’s Greatness and Our Motives

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Jonathan Edwards has some helpful thoughts on God’s greatness and our motives in his sermon “Duty of Self-Examination.”

First, it is right that we ask what God would have us to do. Yet, once we conclude from Scripture that God would have us to do as He commands, we would do well to pursue a godly desire to that end. That is, we should ask God to help us in our weakness to want to do what He commands. Ultimately, a desire to do what God commands comes from new hearts that we receive as part of new birth. Yet, we are also helped in doing God’s commands by considering how worthy God is of our obedience. Edwards explains:

We ought to be diligent to know what those things are which God has commanded, seeing he has commanded them. We ought frequently to consider what are our obligations to our duty, and to meditate on the reasonableness of it: to think what an absolute right God has to our service; how great and excellent a being he is, and what he deserves of us upon that account; to consider that he has made us, and how just it is we should obey him upon that account; to consider what we receive from him, and what is due from us to him on that account…. Especially we ought to consider what God has done for our soul’s welfare, and what is due to him on that account. (italics added, WJE 10:484-485)

Thus, Edwards argues that a consideration of the greatness of God, our dependence upon Him for our existence, our dependence upon Him for all of life, and His provision for our salvation all work together to incline our heart to God, to the end that we would rightly walk in His ways.

This leads to a second point: the need for godly motives. It is not enough that a person outwardly appear to obey God. Since God knows our hearts, we ought also to examine our hearts. Edwards again explains:

Thus, all our actions ought to be strictly examined and tried, and not only barely to consider the outward action as it is in itself: but also from what principle our actions do arise from; what internal principle we act and live [by], for actions are either good or bad according to the principle whence they arise. We must consider whether what we do, we do from a love to God and his commands, or whether from a love to ourselves—that is, to our flesh—love to this world, and love to sin. We ought diligently to consider why it is that we pray and read and hear and sing Psalms, whether out of love of reputation and fear of disgrace; or whether only from custom, education, and fashion; or whether we do it from love to God and godliness. For otherwise, all these things are good for nothing: we are but emptiness and vanity, a sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal. Thus the nature of all our actions ought to be strictly examined and considered by us. (italics added, WJE 10:488)

My prayer is that we might pursue godly motives through praying for God’s help that our obedience to God would flow out of a love for God that is biblically informed by the greatness of God.

 

To Be A Better Father, Love God More

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Sometimes we rightly see a problem, then wrongly work to correct it. This happens in many areas of life. Today I was reminded that it often happens in the area of Fatherhood. Many are able to see that we have a father problem. This problem is in society at large and in our churches. Yet, we often are wrong about how to best solve the problem. I agree with many who argue that a way forward is in father-focused events that train and challenge men to be godly fathers. Yet, I think we err if we go to such efforts and fail to point the men to love God first, then, out of the overflow of that love, to be godly fathers. This last point is well made by Doug Wilson in his new book, Father Hunger: Why God Calls Men to Love and Lead Their Families:

The fact that these other things have not been added to us, the fact that we live in fatherless times, reveals our attitudes toward God the Father. Father hunger is one of the chief symptoms of our idolatry. It is the basis for our political follies, our cultural follies, our technological follies, and so on. But the solution is not to schedule numerous family retreats. The solution is to announce, preach, and declare that the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdom of God, and of His Christ. Another way of saying this is that men must seek to be Christians first. If they love Jesus Christ more than mother or father, or wife, or sons, or daughters, then they will be in fellowship with the source of all love. If they make an idol out of any one of their family members, then they are out of fellowship with the source of all love — meaning that the “idol” is short-changed. A man’s wife receives far more love when she is number two after God than she would if she were number one. A man’s children will be fathered diligently when they are loved in the context of a much greater love. (23–24)

I plan to order this book and read it soon.

Via: Tony Reinke

The Cure is the Majesty of God

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This is an excellent insight from John Piper about our need to apprehend the greatness of God:

“People are starving for the greatness of God,” observes John Piper, “but most of them would not give this diagnosis of their troubled lives. The majesty of God is an unknown cure. There are far more popular prescriptions on the market, but the benefit of any other remedy is brief and shallow. Thus preaching that does not have the aroma of God’s greatness may entertain for a season, but it will not touch the hidden cry of the soul: ‘Show me your glory.’” Our greatest need, as we walk through the wilderness of this present age, is to see what the Apostle John saw on the Isle of Patmos — a glimpse of the glory of God.

The paragraph is from God-Centered Preaching, Bernie van Eyk’s contribution to the April issue of Tabletalk.

(from Nathan Bingham)

Love to God Gives Rise to Zeal for Obedience to God

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Here are a few more thoughts from Jonathan Edwards’ sermon “Zeal an Essential Virtue of a Christian.” Edwards argued that being zealous for good works is an essential virtue of the Christian. It is one of the virtues by which a Christian is distinguished from the unconverted. Edwards defines zeal in this way:

Christian zeal is a fervent disposition, an affection of mind in prosecuting that which is for God’s glory and in opposing those things that are against it…. It might have [been] defined more briefly: a fervent disposition or affection of mind in pursuing the glory of God. (Works JE, vol. 22, 140)

Edwards makes the connection between zeal for good works and love for God. Edwards believed that love for God must come first, and then from such a Godward love will flow a zealous desire for doing what God commands:

That affection that is principal in this virtue is love. Zeal is an inward heat or fervency of spirit, and love is the flame whence that heat comes. This is the fire that fills the soul with that holy fervor that is called zeal. Love to God and Christ, divine love, is the foundation of all those other affections that are exercised in Christian zeal. Divine love is an active principle. It is fire from heaven [and] may be compared to an holy flame kindled in the soul by a beam from thence. No man is truly zealous without it. It is the spirit that animates and actuates the truly zealous man. He that is zealous from any other principle than love, his zeal is no Christian zeal (Works JE, vol. 22, 141)

From love to God arises a desire that he may be glorified. One way in which love is exercised in zeal, is desire that this God that is so beloved may be pleased, that his will may be done, that his commands may be obeyed, that his name may be glorified, that he may be feared, that he may be loved, that men may be holy as he is holy and that his kingdom may be advanced, and that everything that is against these things may be removed (Works JE, vol. 22, 141)

You can read the sermon for free here.

John Calvin on the Priority of Loving God

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Recently my thoughts have been drawn to the idea that one should pursue loving God and from such a love the rest of the Christian life will follow. John Calvin is one who emphasized such a theological truth in Institutes of the Christian Religion. Here are some helpful teachings from Calvin on this subject (bold added for emphasis):

The Law teaches that love for God precedes love to neighbor:

Now the perfection of that holiness comes under the two headings already mentioned: “That we should love the Lord God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength” [Deuteronomy 6:5 p.; cf. ch. 11:13], “and our neighbor as ourselves” [Leviticus 19:18 p.; cf. Matthew 22:37,39]. First, indeed, our soul should be entirely filled with the love of God. From this will flow directly the love of neighbor. (Institutes 2.8.51)

On loving our neighbor:

But I say: we ought to embrace the whole human race without exception in a single feeling of love; here there is no distinction between barbarian and Greek, worthy and unworthy, friend and enemy, since all should be contemplated in God, not in themselves. When we turn aside from such contemplation, it is no wonder we become entangled in many errors. Therefore, if we rightly direct our love, we must first turn our eyes not to man, the sight of whom would more often engender hate than love, but to God, who bids us extend to all men the love we bear to him, that this may be an unchanging principle: whatever the character of the man, we must yet love him because we love God. (Institutes 2.8.55)

Obedience to God only possible by intentionally loving God:

We have been commanded to “love God with all our heart, with all our mind, and with all our soul.” Unless, then, all the powers of the soul are intent on loving God, we have already abandoned obedience to the law. (Institutes 2.8.58)

What was God in Christ actually accomplishing at the cross?

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Here is a Good Friday reminder of what Christ accomplished on the cross from Martyn Lloyd-Jones:

On the cross the Lord was reconciling us unto God. “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them.” Christ had to pay this penalty. The law had to have its way, and He has borne the punishment. And because of that, if we believe in Him we are free from the punishment and free of the condemnation. We are reconciled to God, and the power of God takes over and delivers us from the devil and his cohorts and transfers us into the kingdom of God. That is why the apostle puts it like this in Colossians 1:13: “who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.” That is how it happens. That is what was happening upon the cross. The devil thought he was defeating Christ, but Christ was reconciling us to God, defeating the devil and delivering us out of his clutches. He does it by paying the penalty and putting us right with God. The power of God comes into us, and we are born again, receiving new natures and becoming new people. The Holy Spirit is put within us, and Christ’s presence is ever at hand to help us.

(from Mike Pohlman)

The Majesty of God and Prayer

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I am enjoying my read of Taking Hold of God by Joel Beeke and Brian Najapfour. In Beeke’s chapter on John Calvin, he shares six purposes of prayer from the Institutes, book 3, chapter 20:

  1. To fly to God with every need and gain from Him what is lacking in ourselves to live the Christian life
  2. To learn to desire wholeheartedly only what is right as we place all our petitions before God
  3. To prepare us to receive God’s benefits and responses to our petitions with humble gratitude
  4. To meditate on God’s kindness  to us as we receive what we have asked for
  5. To instill the proper spirit of delight for God’s answers in prayer
  6. To cofirm God’s faithful providence so that we may glorify Him and trust in His present help more readily as we witness His regularly answering our prayers (Taking Hold of God, 31-32)

These ends are desperately needed in our lives and I desire that they may be my pursuit as I commit myself to be a man of prayer.

There is one more gem from this chapter I want to share. Calvin says that:

the only persons who duly and properly gird themselves to pray are those who are so moved my God’s majesty that, freed from earthly cares and affections, they come to it (Taking Hold of God, 34).

Calvin is arguing that our apprehension of the majesty of God will have the effect that we love God more than anything else (thus we are freed from earthly cares and affections) and are thereby driven to pray to the One we most love and desire. May God grant that we grow in our apprehension of God’s majesty to the end that we set ourselves to commune with God in prayer!

Zeal for God

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As a follow-up to yesterday’s post, I saw some similarities between Alleine’s shame that the common worker pursues his employment with greater diligence than Alleine did his duty of pursing the Lord in prayer and Edwards’ application to his sermon “Zeal an Essential Virtue of a Christian.” Edwards explained how the worldly man pursues his goal:

They don’t only show their zeal for the world by their activity and labor in the pursuit of it, but by exercising their wit and invention. How many ways are devised by men to get the world? How many schemes are laid? How are [projects] multiplied? They labor hard in the day time and the night is, much of it, spent in contriving. This is the subject of man’s study alone, and this is what they consult about and enter in plots and combinations about one with another. How do men unite their strength and wit to this end, that they may get much of the world.

Men are not wont to seek the world only by fits and starts, but they are constant and continual in it. They don’t esteem their whole lives too long to be spent in laboring and striving after it.

They don’t do it only during some remarkable seasons, but at all times (Works JE, vol. 22, 154-55).

Edwards’ point was that great concern and striving about the things of religion ought to be normal behavior for Christians. I commend the entire sermon to you. His text was Titus 2:14 and one important point made throughout was that people that are redeemed by Christ are zealous for good works; and that such zeal is that by which they are distinguished from unbelievers. You can read the sermon for free here.