“Does God or Christ Tell us What to Say when We Pray?” by Andrew J. Schatkin
“Does God or Christ Tell us What to Say when We Pray?” by Andrew J. Schatkin
This is another in a series of essays on the topic of prayer and its various aspects.
The subject today I propose to speak on is whether god and/or Christ commands and mandates what we are to say when we pray. In the first outset, Jesus did in the gospels give us a model prayer, so does it follow that that this is the format and typology as to what we are to do when we pray? Prayer is a form of communication and seeks to know and establish a relationship with god. It must, I think, come from the heart, spirit, and mind of the person seeking god in prayer .Thus god cannot exactly command what the person is to say to him or the words of the prayer said by the person seeking him out. Yet I think it is fair to say that the child in speaking to the parent may be guided by this much older and wiser person what to ask for and what he should say in the same way this all powerful and omniscient entity may in fact in this relationship in which the one god has so great a superiority in the relationship prompt or even guide the person praying. And so one must say that the prayer is a voluntary act and must in some sense come from the being of the humanity seeking out god in prayer, but in this process and relationship god works with listens to and is one with the person praying and on some level may guide the discussion even though the person praying may not be exactly aware of what is occurring but one knows he is seeking to know and hear from all-powerful and all-knowing god who is hearing is guiding and who is listening and answering. The prayer is a participant who god is guiding and answering and so one can say that, when one prays, god is praying with that person.
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4 年5Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, 6‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ 7And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ 8But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. 9“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 10For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 11“You fathers—if your children ask for a fish, do you give them a snake instead? 12Or if they ask for an egg, do you give them a scorpion? Of course not! 13So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.”