Genesis 24:12-14 (ESV Strong's)
And he said, “O Lord, God of my master Abraham, please grant me success today and show steadfast love to my master Abraham.
Behold, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.
Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.”
Subject: Prayer
Abraham's servant has been sent out to find a wife for Abraham's son, Isaac. Abraham is following God's promises and Word and doesn't want to take a son from the people of the land they are living in (Cannan). So, he sends his servant back to his home country. When the servant left he had very little faith in Abraham's God. However, the long trip back to the Abraham's home country has changed his view of the trip. Whereas before he didn't know what to do if God didn't bless him, he is now willing to pray a very specific prayer to see god's grace. The servant now is willing to trust in the sovereignty of God vs. where he was earlier (Genesis 24:5). The key here is the specificity of his prayer. What boldness! He prays for not only direction as to the future wife of Isaac, he prays to God for specific signs of God's grace and direction. It is doubtful that we pray this way today. We often hide behind our theology: That God doesn't give us "signs" today!! And, there is no promise that God will give us answers in signs. However, the boldness of prayer should not be limited by our own theology. We ought not to hide and diminish our prayer to God because we worry He might not work that way or answer our prayers that are specific. We ought not to pray for signs as God has indicated He is past the sign age:
Matthew 12:39 (ESV Strong's)
But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
But, we do tend to be too general in our prayers because we fear He either won't answer or lacks the power. Whatever happened in Abraham's servant from the beginning of the trip to the this point in his quest, needs to happen to us. We need to be bold in prayer. We ought to have the boldness the writer of Hebrews speaks about:
Hebrews 10:19-22 (ESV Strong's)
The Full Assurance of Faith
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus,
by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,
and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
No comments:
Post a Comment