The purpose of prayer

James wrote the following words to the twelve tribes of Israel. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much (James 5:16 NKJV). To avail means to be of use, to result in some benefit. The NASB translates it as “the effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much”. Christians generally do not doubt the utility of prayer. However, it is my belief that the benefits of prayer are not clearly understood. What does prayer accomplish for a Christian? Why should a Christian pray?

James highlighted to his readers that prayer can avail much (James 5:16). He continues on that idea by talking about what Elijah accomplished through his prayers. Elijah told Ahab, the king of Israel at that time, that there will be no dew and rain expect at his words (1Kings 17:1). True enough, it did not rain for over three years. However when he prayed again, the heavens gave rain and the earth produce its fruits (James 5:17-18). It is tempting to think that Elijah persuaded God to withhold and deliver rain through his prayers. However, that is not what happened.

After he had spoken to Ahab, Elijah went eastwards to Brook Cherith and subsequently to Zarephath where God had prepared a widow to provide for him. In their first encounter, Elijah asked her for a morsel of bread, but she explained that she did not have any bread and is left with only a handful of flour in her bin. Elijah replied “For thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth (1Kings 17:14).’” Elijah clearly pointed out that it is God who will send the rain. From his response, he did not give the impression that he was able to influence God’s decision of when the rain should be sent. He merely acknowledges the fact that God will one day send the much needed rain.

God did send rain. God told Elijah to present himself to Ahab and that He would send rain (1Kings 18:1). Elijah did as God had commanded. He presented himself to Ahab, prayed to God and He sent a heavy rain. This was how Elijah prayed, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word (1 Kings 18:36)”. Once again, Elijah did not give the impression that he was able to influence God’s decision. Rather, he acknowledges that he is merely a servant who did what God told him.

So what did Elijah accomplished with his prayer? It did not seem like he persuaded God to send rain with his prayers. In fact, his prayer for rain came after God told him that He would send rain. I am pretty sure that we can say that this is as close as you can get in terms of praying according to the will of God (1John 5:14, 15). Elijah’s accomplishment was that he showed Ahab, and many others, that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel is God in Israel. Perhaps, this is what James was driving at when he said that the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Rather than asking what prayer accomplishes for a Christian, perhaps we should be asking what prayer accomplishes in a Christian.

Our Lord Jesus has personally taught us how we should pray. And perhaps, from His teaching, we could infer, to a certain degree, the purpose of prayer. It is recorded in the Gospel of Luke that one of the Lord’s disciples asked Jesus how we should pray, and His response was what we commonly refer to as the Lord’s Prayer. There are two accounts of the Lord’s Prayer in the Bible. The one that most of us can recite is based on the verses recorded in Matthew.

“This, then, is how you should pray: ’Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’” Matthew 6:9-13

Notice that everything in the Lord’s Prayer has already been promised to us by God and so we know that these are according to the will of God. Like Elijah, when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are praying for things that the Lord has already promised or told us. The Lord has also told us how not to pray.

“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew 6:5-8

Prayer is definitely not for self-glorification or self-justification. After all, our spirituality and uprightness is assessed by God, and not by men. That said, I would think that someone who totally disregards the opinions of brothers and sisters is incredibly arrogant. It is true that our ultimate goal is to gain the approval of God, and not the approval of men. However, the latter can often help us verify if we are on the right track. As fallen finite beings, we cannot be an accurate judge of ourselves. In my opinion, it is not wrong for us to desire the validation of fellow believers. It only becomes a problem when we lose sight of our original goal, which is to please God. Prayer is not a way for us to obtain the validation of others. Rather, when we pray, we become closer to God and our relationship with God should naturally become evident to those around us. And hopefully, the power and existence of God will become more apparent to the non-believers who are watching from the sidelines.

Our Lord has also reminded us that our Father knows what we need before we ask of Him. Will God withhold from us our daily bread if we do not ask Him? I don’t think so. My personal experience tells me that God has, in many occasions, blessed me with things that I had not thought of, much less request from Him. It did not seem like Elijah convinced God that it was time to send rain. The Bible tells us that Abraham did not manage to save Sodom (Genesis 18 and 19) and David could not save his son (2Samuel 12:22). I do not believe that prayer is a means to change God’s intentions. Rather, it is a way for us to understand His plans.

In summary, prayer is not telling God what we need, because He already knows what we need. Prayer is not telling God what to do, because His ways are higher than ours. Rather, prayer is about understanding God’s will, and as James has pointed out, the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. The focus here, in my opinion, is not what prayer accomplishes for a Christian, but what it accomplishes in a Christian and those around.

How to understand God

Bob is a good friend of mine for many years. I know that Bob hates his new job because he shared that with me over lunch today. In fact this is not the first time he is sharing this with me. However, I know that Bob is not going to quit his job (even though he hates it) because he has been complaining about his job for years and he is still there! The most straightforward way to learn about someone is to hear what they say and find out what they did. The Bible contains the words that He has spoken and His deeds and it is definitely a great place to start learning more about God.

Prayer is also highly recommended for the individual who is seeking to know God. Honestly, I do not know why God would promote prayer when He already knows what is inside our hearts, even before we say it. However, my experience tells me that prayer, in some miraculous way, brings us closer to God. Perhaps, during the process of voicing our feelings, we gain a better understanding of ourselves and how we can better relate to our Lord. See also The Purpose of Prayer.

Reading about God’s deeds in the Bible is one thing. Experiencing His blessings and chastening personally is another. Since young, I know that God opposes the proud (James 4:6). However, it is only when the Lord allowed me to experience the consequences of my arrogance and helped me through my period of despair that I could fully appreciate the latter part of the verse which goes on to tells us that He gives grace to the humble.

Fourthly, we should recognize that the church is the Body of Christ and that the Holy Spirit is living within believers. Besides reading the Bible, praying and experiencing God alone, brothers and sisters can also increase in their understanding of God through one another. Very often, we can gain better insights on the Bible through our discussion with fellow believers. In addition, the sharing and testimony of brothers and sisters can help us better appreciate God’s grace and love.

Understanding God

“I don’t understand girls. They are just too complicated”. I hear this from my guy pals all the time. At times, I share in their despair. People often act in ways that bewilder us. However, this should not come as a surprise since we occasionally do not even understand our own actions. Humans are finite being. We have limited knowledge and capabilities. In addition, we are also constrained by time and space. A finite being, who has difficulty in comprehending his own kind, should not even entertain the idea of having a complete understanding of an infinite Being. That said, the Bible tells us that God reveals Himself to man in a variety of ways and hence we have some hope of gaining some understanding of God. This optimism is further justified by the fact that we are created in His image (Genesis 1:27). However, it is important for us to recognize that, as fallen finite beings, our understanding of God is going to be limited and occasionally distorted.Ok, so we know that we can hope to know a bit about God.

The next question that one might ask is “Why should I understand God?” To an atheist, there is no reason to understand God, since he does not believe in His existence. However, this reasoning cannot apply to a Christian. The motivation of understanding God depends on one’s perception of God. If you see God as the impartial Judge that you must meet one day, then you would want to prepare for that day. If you see God as the Father who created you, then the desire to find out more may be motivated by an aspiration to gain a better understanding of one’s origin and purpose. Or perhaps, the desire to understand Him may stem from the fact that you have a personal relationship with Him. Do you have a reason to understand God?