Here is a quote by John Calvin. I thought it would be a good exercise to find Scripture that supports what he is saying. First the quote by itself and then with Scripture inserted:
Believers do not pray with the view of informing God about things unknown to him, or of exciting him to do his duty, or of urging him as though he were reluctant. On the contrary, they pray in order that they may arouse themselves to seek him, that they may exercise their faith in meditating on his promises, that they may relieve themselves from their anxieties by pouring them into his bosom; in a word, that they may declare that from him alone they hope and expect, both for themselves and for others, all good things.
(If you are reading from e-mail or Google Reader it may be easier to come to the web page and go back and forth clicking on the links and then your browser’s Back button, staying in the same window.)
“Believers do not pray with the view of informing God about things unknown to him (Psalm 147:4-5), or of exciting him to do his duty (Proverbs 16:9), or of urging him as though he were reluctant (Isaiah 30:18). On the contrary, they pray in order that they may arouse themselves to seek him (Proverbs 8:17), that they may exercise their faith in meditating (Joshua 1:8) on his promises (2 Corinthians 1:20), that they may relieve themselves from their anxieties (Philippians 4:6-7) by pouring them into his bosom (1 Peter 5:7); in a word, that they may declare that from him alone (Romans 11:36) they hope (Romans 15:13) and expect (Psalm 5:3 NIV), both for themselves and for others (Philippians 2:4), all good things (Psalm 107:9).”
Thank you for a delightful evening. John Calvin’s excerpt was wonderful … however, your scholarship in offering the supporting scripture was inspired. I spent the evening in my Bible, restudying phrases with new eyes. Praise to the Lord!
Another similar section from Martyn Lloyd-Jones really gave a great sermon on prayer. It is titled: Why Does God Allow Suffering? It starts out with our approach to prayer during suffering and how we take such a wrong approach to prayer because we have such a wrong view of Who God really is! It was written during WWII and in response to “why doesn’t God answer my prayer and keep my loved one from being killed?”
He stresses that our walk with God and our attitude toward sin in our own life BEFORE we pray during a crisis is more important than the words we say. If we were NOT walking closely with God and keeping our hearts and minds clean and stayed on Christ BEFORE the crisis, why do we think we can suddenly come to God with sin stained hearts at the time of crisis and demand He grant our petition?
He really gives a great study on that.
God bless,
Deveney
Deveny thank you for the comment. Is this sermon online anywhere?
His commentary (or exposition) on the Sermon on the Mount is one of my favorite books.