Specific Prayer
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THE blind man had been crying out aloud, and that a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me! The cry had reached the ear of the Lord; He knew what he wanted and was ready to grant it to him. But ere He does it, He asks him: What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?' He wants to hear from his own lips, not only the general petition for mercy but the distinct expression of what his desire was. Until he speaks it out, he is not healed.
There is now still many a suppliant to whom the Lord puts the same question, and who cannot, until it has been answered, get the aid he ask.
Our prayers must not be a vague appeal to His mercy, an indefinite cry for blessing, but a distinct expression of definite need. Not that His loving heart does not understand our cry, or is not ready to hear.
But He desires it for our own sakes.
-Such definite prayer teaches us to know our own needs better.
-It demands time, and thought, and self-scrutiny to find out what is our greatest need.
-It searches us and puts us to the test as to whether our desires are honest and real, such as we are ready to persevere in.
-It leads us to judge whether our desires are according to God's Word, and whether we believe we shall receive what we ask.
-It helps us to wait for the special answer, and to mark it when it comes.
And yet, how much of our prayer is vague and pointless? Some cry for mercy, but do not know what mercy must do for them.
Others ask, perhaps, to be delivered from sin, but do not begin by bringing any sin by name from which the deliverance may be claimed. or the ours pray for God's blessing on those around them, for the outpouring of God's Spirit on their land or the world, and yet have no special field where they wait and expect to see the answer. To all the Lord says: And what do you want and expect Me to do now?
Every Christian has limited powers, wisdom, intellect, and as he must have his own special field of labor in which he works, so with his prayers too.
Each believer has his own circle of family, friends, and neighbors. If he were to take one or more of these by name, he would find that this brings him into the training school of faith and leads to personal and pointed dealing with his God. It is when we have in faith claimed and received answers that our more general prayers will be believed and effectual in such distinct matters.
We all know with what surprise the whole civilized world heard of the way in which trained troops were repulsed by the Transvaal Boers at Majuba. And to what did they owe their success? In the armies of Europe, the soldier fires upon the enemy standing in large masses and never thinks of seeking an aim for every bullet. In the hunting game, the Boer had learned a different lesson: his practiced eye knew to send every bullet on its special message to seek and find its man. Such aiming must gain the day in the spiritual world too. As long as in prayer, we just pour out our hearts in many petitions without taking time to see whether every petition is sent with the purpose and expectation of getting an answer, not many will reach the mark. But if we bow before the Lord as in silence of soul, we were to ask such questions as these: What is now really my desire? do I desire it in faith, expecting to receive it? am I now ready to place and leave it in the Father's bosom? is it a settled thing between God and me that I am to have the answer? we should learn so to pray that God would see and we would know what we expect.
For this, among other reasons, the Lord warns us against the vain repetitions of the Gentiles, who think to be heard for their much praying. We often hear prayers of great earnestness and fervor, in which many petitions are poured forth, but to which the Saviour would undoubtedly. But the word of the Master teaches us more. He does not say, What dost thou wish? but, What does thou will? One often wishes for a thing without willing it. I wish to have a certain article, but I find the price too high; I resolve not to take it; I wish, but do not will to have it. The sluggard wishes to be rich but does not will it. Many a one wishes to be saved but perishes because he does not will it. The will rules the whole heart and life; if I really will to have anything that is within my reach, I do not rest till I have it. And so, when Jesus says to us, What wilt thou?' He asks whether it is our purpose to have what we ask at any price, however great the sacrifice is. Dost thou indeed so will to have it that, though He delay it long, thou dost not hold thy peace till He hear thee? Alas, how many prayers are wishes, sent up for a short time and then forgotten, or sent up year after year as a matter of duty, while we rest content with the prayer without the answer?
But, it may be asked, is it not best to make our wishes known to God and then to leave it to Him to decide what is best without seeking to assert our will? By no means. This is the very essence of the prayer of faith, to which Jesus sought to train His disciples, that it does not only make known its desire and then leave the decision to God. That would be the prayer
of submission, for cases in which we cannot know God's will.
But the prayer of faith, finding God's will in some promise of the Word, pleads for it until it comes. In Matthew ix. 28
28 And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.
we read that Jesus said to the blind man, ‘ Believe ye that I can do this?’ In Mark, He says, ‘ What wilt thou that I should do?’ In both cases, He said that faith had saved them.
And so He said to the Syrophenician woman, too: Great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.' Faith is nothing but the purpose of the will resting on God's word, and saying: I must have it. To believe truly is to will firmly.
But is not such a will at variance with our dependence on God and our submission to Him? By no means; it is much rather the true submission that honors God. Only when the child has yielded his own will in surrender to the Father does he receive liberty and power to will what he would have. But, once the believer has accepted the will of God, as revealed through the Word and Spirit, as his will, too, then it is the will of God that His child should use this renewed will in His service.
The will is the highest power in the soul; grace wants above everything to sanctify and restore this will, one of the chief traits of God's image, to full and free exercise. As a son, who only lives for his father's interests, who seeks not his own but his father's will is trusted by the father with his business, so God speaks to His child in all truth, What wilt thou?' It is often spiritual sloth that, under the appearance of humility, professes to have no will, because it fears the trouble of searching out the will of God, or, when found, the struggle of claiming it in faith. True humility is ever in company with strong faith, which only seeks to know what is according to the will of God, and then boldly claims the fulfillment of the promise: Ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you”
Lord Jesus! Teach me to pray with all my heart and strength, that there may be no doubt with Thee or with me as to what I have asked. May I so know what I desire that, even as my petitions are recorded in heaven, I can record them on earth too, and note each answer as it comes. And may my faith in what Thy Word has promised be so clear that the Spirit may work in me the liberty to will that it shall come. Lord! renew, strengthen, sanctify wholly my will for the work of effectual prayer.
Blessed Saviour! I beseech Thee to reveal to me the wonderful condescension Thou showiest us, thus asking us to say what we will that Thou shouldest do and promising to do whatever we will. Son of God! I cannot understand it; I can only believe that Thou hast indeed redeemed us wholly for Thyself and seeks to make the will, as our noblest part, Thy most efficient servant.
Lord! I do most unreservedly yield my will to Thee, as the power through which Thy Spirit is to rule my whole being. Let Him take possession of it, lead it into the truth of Thy promises, and make it so strong in prayer that I may ever hear Thy voice saying: Great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt!
23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life.
A crumb from the table of our Lord can make the heart satisfied and glad. But the suppliant must take the right place and give Him His right place. This poor Gentile mother had no claim on Jesus as the son of David-He was therefore silent. It was impossible for her to come in by the door of the covenant, but His silence led her to knock at another door, and taught her to cry, Lord, help me.
There was yet another lesson for her to learn and the Lord knew that she was capable of learning it. She must realize that for the time His ministry was confined to the Chosen People, so that the Gentile claim could be recognized only incidentally. But when she was willing to take the low place under the table and ask for the children’s crumbs, He put the key of His unsearchable riches into her hand, saying, “Woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.”
21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
Those who yield to God most absolutely are able to decree things! See Job 22:28
28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: And the light shall shine upon thy ways.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.