S U N D A Y S N I P P E T S (tm) # 4 5 15 Oct 95 Biblical Teachings on Prayer ---------------------------- By prayer and supplication we pour out our desires before God, asking as well those things which tend to promote his glory and display his name, as the benefits which contribute to our advantage. By thanksgiving we duly celebrate his kindnesses toward us, ascribing to his liberality every blessing which enters into our lot. David accordingly includes both in one sentence, "Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me" (Ps. 50:15). Scripture, not without reason, commands us to use both continually. We have already described the greatness of our want, while experience itself proclaims the straits which press us on every side to be so numerous and so great, that all have sufficient ground to send forth sighs and groans to God without intermission, and suppliantly implore him. For even should they be exempt from adversity, still the holiest ought to be stimulated first by their sins, and, secondly, by the innumerable assaults of temptation, to long for a remedy. The sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving can never be interrupted without guilt, since God never ceases to load us with favour upon favour, so as to force us to gratitude, however slow and sluggish we may be. In short, so great and widely diffused are the riches of his liberality towards us, so marvellous and wondrous the miracles which we behold on every side, that we never can want a subject and materials for praise and thanksgiving. To make this somewhat clearer: since all our hopes and resources are placed in God (this has already been fully proved), so that neither our persons nor our interests can prosper without his blessing, we must constantly submit ourselves and our all to him. Then whatever we deliberate, speak, or do, should be deliberated, spoken, and done under his hand and will; in fine, under the hope of his assistance... Thus Isaiah, proclaiming the singular mercies of God, says, "Sing unto the Lord a new song" (Is. 42:10). In the same sense David says in another passage, "O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise" (Ps. 41:15). In like manner, Hezekiah and Jonah declare that they will regard it as the end of their deliverance "to celebrate the goodness of God with songs in his temple" (Is. 38:20; Jonah 2:10)... The reason why Paul enjoins, "Pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks" (1 Thess. 5:17, 18), is, because he would have us with the utmost assiduity, at all times, in every place, in all things, and under all circumstances, direct our prayers to God, to expect all the things which we desire from him, and when obtained ascribe them to him; thus furnishing perpetual grounds for prayer and praise. - from _The Institutes of the Christian Religion_, c. 1536, by John Calvin. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Sunday Snippets" is the trademark of G. MacKenzie Strickland. May be freely redistributed - Please forward to a friend. Sunday Snippets are posted weekly on Newsgroups like Soc.Religion.Christian and others. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Past Sunday Snippets can be viewed on my homepage: http://www.ccn.cs.dal.ca/~ab531/Profile.html -------------------------------------------------------- file: /pub/resources/text/sunday.snippets: snip95-45.txt .