That Your Trust May Be in the LORD, I Have...

As Christians, our greatest desire should be a greater trust in the LORD.

All it takes for me is to read a chapter like Hebrews 11, and I often find myself yearning and pleading and saying, "I want a faith like Abraham's. I wish I could trust in the LORD like Moses. I wish I had the courage of Daniel."

Of course I know that faith is a gift (Eph. 2:8). And yet there are ways to cultivate it. God has given His people means of grace by which His free gift is procured.

So, though it is noble to 'humbly' yearn for a greater faith, there is much more. Yes, God gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). But humility is not to be equated with idleness. In fact, in Proverbs 22, Solomon links the increased trust of a disciple with the disciple's reception and application of his "wise words."

Of course, some will object that this idea seems mechanical, robotic, and perhaps even heart-less. This concern is valid, but it must be remembered that those who belong to the new covenant have not only been given new hearts that are receptive and malleable to God's instructions, the very law of God has been written upon them (Eze. 36:26; Jer. 31:33). Put simply, those who are in Christ Jesus love His commands. John, the disciple whom the Lord Jesus loved, tells us that,

Loving God means keeping His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome. (1 John 5:3, NLT)

If we love God, we will love His commands. And if we love His commands, we will keep His commands. Anyone who reads Psalm 119 can clearly see a man full of God's grace. And yet it seems that the whole psalm is law, law, law. In some Holy Spirit-inspired and mysterious way, God uses His Word, and our obedience to it by faith, to work grace deep into our lives, producing an increased trust, setting in motion a glorious cycle of blessing.

In Proverbs 22:17-19, Solomon tells us,

          Incline your ear, and hear the words of the wise,
              and apply your heart to my knowledge,
          for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you,
              if all of them are ready on your lips.
          That your trust may be in the LORD,
              I have made them know to you today, even to you.

It seems almost too basic. No magical wands. No fluttering feelings in our viscera. No mystical phenomenon. Nope. Solomon simply lays forth words of wisdom and tells his son to hide his words in his heart (cf. Psa. 119:11a).

Paul tells us in Romans 10:17 that "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the message of Christ." Of course, the inevitable objection will be that Paul is talking about missions here. True. But as one reads Paul, it is clear that he doesn't place the gargantuan divide between justification and sanctification that many of us do today. For example, in Romans 1:16, the gospel is the power of God for salvation for all who believe. But this truth is just as true for unbelievers who need to be "saved" (justified) as it is for believers who needs to be "saved" (sanctified). "Salvation" is the umbrella term that includes all 3 aspects of justification, sanctification, and glorification. And "salvation" (including sanctification) comes by hearing the Word with faith (see also Galatians 3:1-6). In this context, increased trust in the LORD comes through letting the Word dwell richly in our hearts (cf. Col. 3:16).

So, let us with the Galatians, and let us with Solomon's son, incline our ears to the words of the wise and apply our hearts to his knowledge. If we do, they will be pleasant as our lips recite them to our wandering hearts. Such glorious truths will become like a solid dock providing deep moorings for our wayward souls.

As we "take up and read" (latin: tolle lege), we with Augustine will find the LORD slowly [but surely] increasing our faith and trust in Him. As the Word permeates and penetrates our hearts, everything will be changed. Our conversation with others will become marked by "psalms and hymns and Spiritual songs" and thankfulness (cf. Eph. 5:18-19). Our lives will characterized by joy. Obedience will become less of a chore and struggle. Those around us will begin to ask us about the hope that is within us.

Though I am not Solomon, my intention of this blog is the same: I have written it because I desire Christ's lambs to have an increased trust in Him. The more we hear our Good Shepherd's voice, the sweeter we will realize it is; the more we hear our Good Shepherd's voice, the uglier the voice of Lady Folly will become as our ears become more 'grace-tuned' (i.e. her belligerent beckonings will sound more and more out of tune with the melody of grace we are increasingly humming all the day long).

Reader, the glorious thing is that these "words of the wise" can be heard and applied everyday. Everyday your trust in the LORD can be increased. Let us then seek early the living Manna of Christ. He promises to bless those who incline their ear to His words and apply their hearts to His knowledge.

Let us then take Him at His word, resolved to draw near to Him (see James 4:8).

      "That your trust may be in the LORD,
           I have made this known to you today, even to you."

In Christ, and for His [increasing] glory in our lives,
Pastor Ryan

A Soft Answer Turns Away Wrath

"A soft answer turns away wrath,
    but a harsh word stirs up anger." (Proverbs 15:1)

This past Sunday we looked at James 3:1-12 in our Sunday School lesson. In this section, James reminds us just how powerful such a small instrument can really be. As a small spark can become an unstoppable and uncontainable blazing inferno; as a little dose of poison can kill; as a small leak in the roof can destroy a house, so also our small tongues have the potential and ability to cause great damage in the lives of others.

And yet, though the tongue can wreck great havoc, it also can bring great healing. The answer therefore is not merely to stop talking altogether, just like gouging our eyes out will not eliminate our propensity to lust after the things of this world.

As we study the Bible, and the book of Proverbs especially, we see the inextricable link between the state of one's heart and the words of one's mouth.

For example, in the same chapter, Solomon reminds us that,

"A gentle [literally: 'healing'] tongue is a tree of life,
    but perverseness in it breaks the spirit." (15:4)

"The lips of the wise spread knowledge;
     not so the hearts of fools." (15:7)

"The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge,
     but the mouth of fools feed on folly." (15:14)

"The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer,
     but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things." (15:28)

This is perfectly congruent with our Lord's own teaching regarding this:

"What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart." (Matt. 15:18)

"Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of the evil treasure brings forth evil." (Matt. 12:33-35)

So before we seek to apply Proverbs 15:1 to our lives, we need to understand that if we are speaking harshly to others instead of speaking gently, the real issue is that our words and motives are wrong, ultimately because our hearts are wrong.

I agree 100% that a soft answer turns away wrath. I have seen this principle fulfilled in a myriad of contexts in a multitude of ways. But before my words are truly soft, my heart must first be softened; and before I can truly speak life-giving words to others, I must first be letting these life-giving words abide richly in my own heart (cf. Col. 3:16).

In Sunday school, I likened our tongues to a tattle-tale. In grade school, it seemed that there was always a tattle taler ratting me out and getting me in trouble. Our tongues likewise tattle on our hearts. Our tongues express and make visible to others the true state of our hearts. Bitter words evidence a bitter heart. Gracious words evidence a heart marinated in grace.

Living in a fallen world, it is inevitable that circumstances will require us to make a split second decision as to whether we will speak softly and harshly. Your boss makes an unfair accusation. A foe purposefully slanders your reputation. A class mate spreads a fallacious rumour that impugns your character. Your husband comes home and accuses you of doing nothing all day. Your kids comment on how lousy supper is. Your wife, not realizing you've just worked an agonizing 10 hour day, asks you to help with supper, or the dishes, or in getting the kids ready for bed, when all you want to do is rest. Your kids are fighting again, or nagging again, or complaining again. The possibilities for speaking harshly are almost infinite.

When these unforeseen situations arise, the state of our hearts will determine our decisions. If we have been immersing ourselves in anything other than the gospel, the battle is already lost, just as a man surfing the internet with his heart on "gospel empty" will inevitably choose porn if and when it is offered. Likewise, in a heated discussion, whatever is filling our hearts at that moment will consequently fill our mouths, and ultimately fill our hearers' ears.

The solution is found in one of the most important verses of all the Bible: "Above all keeping, keep your heart." (Prov. 4:23) Why? "Because out of the heart flow the issues of life", or as the NLT translates it, our hearts "determine the course of our lives." Likewise, the state of our heart "determines the course of [or "coarseness of"] our speech."

And so this day, let us gaze intently upon our glorious God of grace. Paul says this is done by immersing our minds and hearts in the gospel of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 3:18; 4:6). As we contemplate the underserved mercy that we have received from His beneficent, nail-pierced hands, we - including our tongues - will be transformed from one degree of glory to another. As we regularly renew our minds in the Scripture via the Spirit (see Eph. 4:23), we are enabled to both put off the speech of our old man and put on the new man's speech, which is created in the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness (Eph. 4:22,24).

When we truly keep the great commandment (Matt. 22:37), namely loving God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, as well as loving our neighbour as ourself, we will ultimately speak soft words that seek healing and reconciliation. As we are built up in the gospel of truth (Eph. 4:15-16), we will inevitably seek to build others up in that same truth, out of love.

When we are presented with the choice of speaking words that edify or words that vilify, there is hope, if our hearts and hopes are, in the words of Isaiah, "stayed on Thee" (26:3, KJV).

May we all seek to be filled with the Spirit, and consequently speak Spiritual words that bring healing, and not hurt (cf. Eph. 5:18-20; Col. 3:16-18).

In Christ, and for His glory in His people,
Pastor Ryan

Poverty and Riches in Proverbs 10:1-6

Today is October 10th. Therefore, as is my custom, part of my devotional reading for the day is from Proverbs 10. Reading one chapter of the Proverbs every day has been a habit of mine pretty much since my conversion, and I would strongly encourage the reader to give reading a chapter of Proverbs each day a 'test drive.'

In fact, I would be so bold as to say that to do so is even more beneficial than eating an apple a day, which, at best, can only keep the doctor away. As Proverbs 1 makes abundantly clear, those who acquire and appropriate  and apply wisdom will be delivered from a multitude of follies and calamitous circumstances that are common to life "under the sun." My life bears testimony to this.

Not surprisingly, the working out of this principle - namely, being delivered from a wasted, foolish life through the application of wise counsel - is seen in chapter 10. Those who heed Solomon's wise sayings will not only be spared the consequences of folly, but will be richly rewarded for walking in wisdom.

As we read the chapter, we note that there is an intentional structure that Solomon uses, comparing and contrasting the "ways" of the wise/righteous versus the foolish/wicked. Perhaps breaking each of the verses in the immediate context will help us to better understand and interpret what the Holy Spirit, through Solomon, is trying to communicate to us in this section:

10:1 - A wise son makes a glad father
10:2 - Righteousness delivers from death
10:3 - The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry
10:4 - The hand of the diligent makes rich
10:5 - He who gathers in the summer is a prudent son
10:6 - Blessings are on the head of the righteous

It was not until one realizes this structure that a verse like 10:3 is properly understood. It is a maxim (that is, a general rule of thumb) that the LORD does not let the righteous go hungry. But when we see it aright in its original context, we also see the means of how the LORD sovereignly brings this provision of food about: those who are righteous are are also wise, diligent, and prudent. That is, as a general rule, the righteous do not go hungry because they are diligent workers who gather their food with prudence and wisdom. Having sufficient food is, at least in this context, one of the clearest and most obvious "blessings" on the heads of the righteous (v.6).

On the contrary, Solomon says that the LORD will thwart the craving of the wicked. The reasons are seen when we look at the context of the verses in the negative:

10:1 - A foolish son is a sorrow to his mother
10:2 - Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit
10:3 - [The LORD] thwarts the craving of the wicked
10:4 - A slack hand causes poverty
10:5 - He who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame
10:6 - The mouth of the wicked conceals violence

What causes poverty? In a word, folly (v.1). Instead of being wise and doing what is "right" (v.2) - as God commanded Adam in the garden before sin entered the picture - the fool tries to gain his treasures in an ungodly way. Ironically, the insatiable desires of the wicked are never satiated (v.3), since they are contravening the very creation order God instituted in the beginning. Instead of working hard as to the LORD, the fool's hand is "slack" - he is a lazy sluggard (v.4). Instead of making the best use of his time when the fields are white unto harvest, he decides a short siesta is in order (v.5). Rather than eating of the fruit of his labors, his mouth is filled with treachery and violence (v.6).

To put a spiritual spin on this concept of eating versus staving, as even Jesus was wont to do (see John 4, 6, etc.), we may say that the reason many of us languish spiritually is because we are not walking wisely and redeeming the time (cf. Ephesians 5:15-17). Those whom the LORD is letting go hungry have chosen to go hungry: we choose sleep over study, laziness over diligently harvesting the field of God's Word, entertainment over prayer.

We tell others that we truly crave to be nearer to God. But unfortunately, our intentions remain just that (read James 1:22-25). Instead of feeding our souls with the living manna, we fill it with the unsatisfying lies of the world, which in our day and age, is basically entertainment and technology (read: watching way too much T.V., playing way too much video games, spending way too much time on FaceBook, checking our emails way too much, and wasting way too much precious time watching braincell-killing YouTube clips that have absolutely no relevance to our lives).

Reader, are you a wise son or daughter that makes your Father glad by how you use the time He has allotted you on this earth? Are you making "righteous" decisions that deliver you from spiritual death? Is the LORD letting you go hungry? Is your hand diligent in spiritual matters? Are you prudently gathering the bounty of God's Word while it is yet summer time? Is the blessing of the LORD on your head?

May God, in His lovingkindness, draw us back to Himself in cords of love, enabling us (by the Holy Spirit) to look carefully how we live - not as unwise, but as wise. May we, who are the new creation in Christ, live in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been called, and make the best use of the time, for the days are evil.

Let us simply take God at His Word, and make it our goal to return to the LORD afresh, for as the prophet reminds us, "in returning [i.e. repentance] and rest you shall be delivered" (Isa. 30:15). May we not be like foolish Israel, who were unwilling to yield to God's loving reproof, and said "No" (30:16).

Remember, the blessing of the LORD makes rich, and He adds no sorrow with it (10:22). How different from all the 'blessings' the world offer us, which so often become like gravel in our mouth when we foolishly and blindly partake of them!

May the blessing of Christ be lavished upon each one of our heads, to the glory and honor of our loving Father, whom we simply want to make glad in all that we say and do. Amen.

Attending Prayer Meetings - Their Importance

Erroll Hulse writes,

You can tell with a fair degree of accuracy what a church is like by the demeanour or substance of the weekly prayer meeting. Is there genuine evangelistic concern? If so, it will be addressed in the prayers. Is there a heartfelt longing for the conversion of unconverted family members? If so, that is sure to surface. Is there a world vision and a fervent desire for revival and the glory of our Redeemer among the nations of the world? Such a burden cannot be suppressed. 

I would add, that for the most part, you can tell with a fair degree of accuracy what a Christian is like by the importance and weightiness they ascribe to the practice of prayer, including of course the corporate prayer meeting. As Solomon wisely wrote, "As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man"(Proverbs 27:19). Or, as Jesus says, you will know a tree by its fruit. Does a person make every effort to pray? Or do they find every excuse under the sun to avoid praying, whether privately or corporately? The fruit reveals the root.

Edwin Hatfield says that those who conscientiously and habitually participate in the church's prayer meetings usually "experience more sweet and pure delight in their very exercise, grow more rapidly and steadily in grace, become the most devotional, active and useful Christians, and become the life and soul, as it were, of the Church." To which Beeke asks the reader,

What about you? Is that not what you want to be? Do you support your church's prayer meetings with secret prayer and with your presence? Have your grasped their purposes and value? Do you believe that God is sovereignly pleased to tie together revival and prayer? Do you understand that the success of your minister and missionaries is intimately bound up in your prayers?

Do you realize the value of attending the prayer meeting together as a family - the value of teaching your children verbally and by example that just as your own family is bonded together by praying together, so the church family grows and stays together by praying together? Teach your children that besides the actual worship services on Sunday, no church activity is so important as the congregational prayer meeting. Train them to know that true Christians - not politicians or worldly powers - hold the key to the future of the family, the church, and the nation through the instrumentality of private and corporate prayer...If every God-fearing family in every God-honoring church around the world took the congregational prayer meeting seriously, what impact would that have around the world? 

Prayer is the normal means that God uses to shower His heavenly blessings on earth. As Beeke insightfully reminds us, though we are apt to miss our congregational prayer meeting, Jesus never does.

Beeke closes his book with the following:

We customarily record our appointments on our calendar. Will you not mark your church prayer meetings on your calendar as engagements of the highest priority for your entire family? Will you not prepare for them, and try to bring a friend or two with you? Make it a solemn duty, a habit, and a privilege to be there.

Dear friends, let us treasure prayer meetings. Let us engage in them with all our heart, remembering that revivals usually begin with prayer meetings. As one divine put it, "the Holy Spirit loves to answer petitions that are appended with many signatures."

Let us simply take God at His Word. Who can tell what He will do? As Beeke wrote, "If every God-fearing family in every God-honoring church around the world took the congregational prayer meeting seriously, what impact would that have around the world?"

In Christ, and for His glory through His [praying] church,
Pastor Ryan

P.S. I truly believe that the pathetic state of the church is due to the pathetic state of her desire to pray together. I would be surprised if even 10% of the evangelical churches in the city I live in even have a prayer meeting. We are a busy society, and we have every excuse of why we can't pray together. Yet, as Spurgeon once said, one of the most condemning verses in the Bible is, "Be it unto you according to your faith." James says, "You have not, because you ask not." Solomon says that our God hears and accepts the prayers of the upright. Paul, writing to the Corinthian church, says, "You [plural] also must help us by prayer, so than many [plural] will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many [plural]."

With so much testimony in the Word of God, do our excuses really hold up to the omniscient scrutiny of our God who "weighs the heart"? If we spent more time offering to God our prayers instead of our excuses of why we don't pray, imagine what Christ's church would look like.

Oh may God stir up the hearts of His people to humble themselves, repent, and return to Him!

For those who would like to purchase Beeke's book, it is a small, easy-to-read, and affordable book I heartily recommend. It can be purchased from most online Christian book stores, and I am certain your local Christian bookstore would be able to obtain a copy for you.

Attending Prayer Meetings, Part 4 - Their Purpose

In this short chapter, Beeke offers 15 purposes that corporate prayer meetings serve. For the sake of brevity, I am only going to highlight some of the ones that stuck out to me, as many of those listed by Beeke could also be listed as 'benefits' of attending a regular corporate church service on Sunday (e.g. fellowship, accountability, etc.).

1. Intentionally gathering together to pray guarantees that Christians engage is this essential means of grace Christ has given His church. On Sundays, we gather to hear the Word proclaimed together, to sing together, and to enjoy Christian 'fellowship.' However, praying for one another is a rarity on Sundays. This is the beauty of the midweek prayer meeting.

2. Praying together is often the means God uses to initiate or increase revival.

3. Praying together provides an important spiritual oasis in a busy week.

4. Praying together increases unity in the church. As Peter Masters put it:

In the prayer gathering, preoccupation with ourselves as individual believers slips away, and we become a group of people longing for the blessing of others, and for the prosperity of the cause. In the prayer gathering we are refined and honed as a united body of people. It cements unions, and promotes respect. To adopt a well-worn phrase, the church that prays together, stays together.

5. Praying together utilizes the spiritual life of the church for the good of all the church's ministries.

6. Praying together increases the Christ-centeredness of believers. If Christ is the answer to all of our prayers, then as we pray together, we point one another to the King of Glory, in whose Name we pray together.

7. Praying together is the best way to teach Christians how to pray. Masters wisely writes,

Believers grow in the gift of prayer as they hear others pray. They learn to appreciate specificity in prayer, passionate pleading, Christ-centered wrestling, and fresh modes of expression. Iron sharpens iron. Young believers learn from older ones, and older believers are encouraged by the sincere petitions of the younger.

8. Praying together enhances private prayer.

For these reasons and many others may we seek to gather together as churches to pray to our great and glorious prayer-answering God.

In Christ's Name, and for His glory through His [praying] church,
Pastor Ryan

Attending Prayer Meetings, Part 3: Their History

Prayer meetings have been a key part of evangelical Christianity throughout church history. It is especially noteworthy to point out that prayer meetings have been particularly influential in times of persecution and times of revival.

Though Beeke mentions many such examples of how persecution, prayer, and revival were inseparably linked (e.g. in Scotland, England, Holland, etc.), I will mention only two.

1. The great New England Revival in the 18th century

This revival was most likely the result of Jonathan Edwards' book entitled, "An Humble Attempt to promote an explicit agreement and visible union of God's people through the world, in extraordinary prayer, for the revival of religion and the advancement of Christ's kingdom on earth", written in 1747.

The reason Edwards wrote this treatise was that he realized that the revivals of the mid-1730s and the early 1740s would not reoccur until God's people engaged in earnest prayer for revival.

Edwards was inspired to write this in response to the great revivals that were taking place in Scotland, which was, not surprisingly, in answer to the intentional prayers of gathered Christians for God to revive their nation. This call to united prayer in Scotland, originally seen as a 2 year 'experiment', summoned Christian leaders and churches to unite all prayer groups and praying Christians in their nation to a common 'prayer strategy'.

They called for focused revival prayer on every Saturday evening and Sunday morning, as well as on the first Tuesday of each quarter. By 1746 they were so encouraged by the impact of their 'experiment' that they composed a call to prayer to the church worldwide to conduct a new 'experiment' that would last this time for seven years.

Edwards' chief text was Zechariah 8:20-22, where the prophet tells God's people that God's rich promises are meant to encourage His people to expect great success from corporate prayer. In Edwards' own words, "That which God abundantly makes the subject of His promises, God's people should abundantly make the subject of their prayers." He concluded that when believers persevere in united 'concerts' of prayer, God will grant a fresh revival, which "shall be propagated, till the awakening reaches those that are in the highest stations, and till whole nations be awakened."

As history proves, Edwards' treatise become the major manifesto for the Second Great Awakening in America in the late 1790s, as ministers took seriously the power of united times of corporate believing prayer. Even in subsequent generations, revival would break out in pockets of America as this tiny treatise fell into the hands of ministers willing to implement its subject in their churches.

Oh that this would be repeated in our own generation!

2. Prayer meetings conducted by C.H. Spurgeon

Though regarded as the "Prince of Preachers", anyone who has read C.H. Spurgeon knows that he was first and foremost a great man of prayer.

In the 1860s, Spurgeon organized prayer meetings at the Metropolitan Tabernacle at 7 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. every day. On Monday evenings, it is recorded that more than 3000 people would regularly attend. Beeke notes,

One evening a visitor asked Spurgeon what accounted for the success of these meetings. Spurgeon walked his visitor to the sanctuary, opened the door, and let him watch the participants. Nothing more needed to be said.

Though one of the most glorious ministries of the post-Reformation era, we must realize that Spurgeon linked the revival of God's elect not to the preacher's great eloquence, abundant abilities, or winsome character in the pulpit. No. Revival began in the "furnace room", which Spurgeon called the engine of the church. It was here where the seeds of revival sprouted, as the fervent prayers, entreaties, and supplications of God's saints were lifted up to their faithful, covenant keeping God.

It is also interesting to note that prior to Spurgeon's arrival in London, that for many years members in the church were praying for revival. These aromatic prayers were gloriously answered with the coming of Spurgeon, a young, inexperienced country boy, whom God would make His instrument to unleash the power of His preached Word and reap a great harvest of souls.

We could go on and on with examples in church history of how Christians, when gathered together for and united in prayer, saw great movements of God in revival. I hope these two samples will both whet our appetites and encourage us as Christians to make both private and corporate prayer more of a priority in our lives. We can sing and talk about revival all we want. But are we willing to give up our precious time to ask for it in corporate prayer?

As the hymn writer wrote, "Mercy drops round us are falling / But for the showers [of revival] we plead." Revive us O God!

In Christ, and for His glory in His [praying] church,
Pastor Ryan


P.S. Another noteworthy revival that should be read is the great "Business Man Prayer Revival" in 1757-58 in New York City, which would inevitably spread to many other cities in the U.S. Truly, it is amazing what can happen when God's people begin to pray together! For more info, just google it, or, you can read about it in Colin's Hansen's Book, "A God-sized Vision: Revival Stories that Stretch and Stir".

Attending Prayer Meetings, Part 2 - The Biblical Warrant

This chapter is not really a review of Beeke's chapter, since I was really uncomfortable with many of the Scriptures he cited as proof for the necessity of corporate prayer meetings. As I believe the Puritans were often guilty of, there was - in my opinion - a little too much eisogesis (reading into the texts), and not enough exegesis (drawing out of the texts).

However, despite the fact that Beeke and the Puritans read more into many of the Scriptures he cites as proof of corporate prayer meetings (e.g. Genesis 4:26; 21:33; Psalm 66:16; 137:1-2, etc.), it does not mean that the Bible is silent on this issue. In fact, as we read the Bible intelligently, we see that it has much to say about the discipline of corporate prayer, especially in the NT, where it seems to be a normative practice of what fellow Christians naturally did when they gathered together as a community.

The Bible, both the OT and NT, assumes that God's people pray. Immediately, we who are engulfed in the world we live in assume that this refers to individual prayer (which of course it does). However, when one remembers that the people of Israel were a corporate nation that did life together (much like many of the "tribal" areas of the world), prayer was not merely an isolated practice, but often a corporate form of communion and fellowship. Often, then, when people prayed, they prayed together - as families, tribes, and as prescribed by the law, they prayed together as a nation at least 3 times a year.

For example, when Jesus' disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray (see Matthew 6:5-15), it is interesting that Jesus' answer assumes a corporate setting of believers praying together (all the verbs and pronouns are in the plural: for example, we pray "Our Father", not "my Father", etc.). Not surprisingly, the early church assimilated "the Lord's Prayer" into their corporate liturgy in public gatherings and services.

Though Jesus often and consistently prayed alone, the gospel narratives show that Jesus also prayed much with His 12 disciples (e.g. Luke 9:18; John 17, etc.).

However, I think that the clearest biblical warrant for the practice of regular, scheduled, corporate (i.e. church) prayer meetings is found in the book of Acts and Paul's epistles.

After Jesus' ascension back to the Father, Luke tells us in Acts 1 that the apostles were "with one accord devoting themselves to prayer, together with the woman and Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers" (verse 14). The Greek tenses of the verbs used here emphatically tell us that this was an ongoing, habitual practice, and not a one time ordeal. When they needed to make a decision as to who would replace Judas, they did not go their separate ways into their personal prayer closets, but rather prayed together to seek the Lord's will (1:24-26).

In the very next chapter, after the Spirit had fallen on Pentecost and over 3000 people were converted under Peter's preaching, Luke again tells us that corporate prayer was normative for all the believers: "And [the believers] devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." (2:42). As in 1:14, the Greek tenses of the verbs emphasize that these were not one-time events, but became the lifestyle of those converted to Christ.

When Satan afflicted the early church with fierce persecution, the NT church met corporately for prayer until the Lord heard their cries. Luke tells us that "they lifted their voices together to God" (4:24).

When deacons were required, again their selection comes about in the context of believers gathered together to seek the Lord's will (see Acts 6:1-7).

When Peter was unjustly put into prison, the church did not merely send out a prayer chain. No, they gathered together for prayer (Acts 12:12).

When Paul and Barnabas were set apart by the Holy Spirit to take the gospel to the nations, it was done in the context of a church prayer meeting (Acts 13:1-3; note that the Greek is very, very similar to what Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 1:8-11). Merely asking for prayer on Facebook (which is not a bad thing of course) was not enough. They gathered together to seek God's will in united prayer. Any time a major decision was to be made in the church life, the church prayed together.

Acts 16 tells us how the first church in Europe was born in a women's prayer meeting as Lydia's heart was sovereignly opened up to the true gospel of Jesus Christ as preached by Paul (Acts 16:13-15).

Intentional, corporate prayer was normative in the early church. This is the only explanation for why there was such explosive growth in the church. Which should cause us to pause and ask, "Why have we abandoned this essential grace as churches in the 21st century?"

Finally, passages such as Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 very likely (again, plural verbs and pronouns) refer to prayer meetings of gathered churches. Other passages would include 1 Corinthians 16:19; Ephesians 6:18; Philippians 4:6; Colossians 4:2, 5; 1 Thessalonians 5:17; 1 Timothy 2:1-2; Philemon 12; 1 Peter 4:7).

If the Bible, especially the NT, shows that this was an essential feature of Christian life together, why has this foundational means of grace been neglected and forsaken by the modern church? I believe that there will be no real revival in Christ's church until the church's corporate prayer meetings are resuscitated.

Perhaps a good dose of persecution would be the best thing for our churches, as it seems that prayer was not merely a tack on for the super-spiritual older people of the church, but rather a way of life for all those who were baptized into the body of the local church. As John Piper so aptly put it, "We will not know what prayer is for, until we know that life is war."

Dear reader, is corporate prayer a must on your calendar? If not, why?

In Christ, and for the expansion of His kingdom through His [praying] church,
Pastor Ryan



P.S. feel free to read the OT passages such as Daniel 9, Ezra 9, Nehemiah 9, 1 Kings 8, etc. for national gatherings to worship and pray to Yahweh, the God of Israel.