Priorities from Paul and His Prayers - Part 5

And on we march, continuing with our series from D.A. Carson's marvelous book, A Call for Spiritual Reformation: Priorities from Paul and His Prayers. Carson does a masterful job of engaging difficult aspects of prayer, like exploring the tension of our requirement to pray with God's sovereignty, and expositing Paul's train of thought in his prayers. I have chose to forgo, at least at this moment, his tangential comments on difficult issues in prayer and have instead focused on his exegesis of Paul. Today's Scripture is Philippians 1:9-11.

9And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, 11filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. (NIV)

D.A. Carson briefly notes the following priorities in Paul's prayer:

Philippians 1:9-11 – Overcoming the Hurdles

Paul Prays for What is Excellent (v.10)

Paul’s Prayer is Tied to the Long View (v. 10b-11)
1.) Paul Prays that believers will test and approve what is excellent “in order that you may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ.”

Paul’s Prayer is not Idolatrous, but Praises God
Are we concerned to utilize the gifts and graces God has given us, to utilize them for his glory and for his people’s good? Or are we simply interested in doing our own thing?
This is the ultimate test: it is the test of our motives.

Priorities from Paul and His Prayers - Part 4

I hope this series has been edifying. May these brief summaries of Carson's book cause you to examine the way you pray, and, if needed, may it reshape your priorities. We are thus far halfway through the series. This upcoming post will be on Colossians 1:9-14. It reads:

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you[d] to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 13For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14in whom we have redemption,[e] the forgiveness of sins. (NIV)

Colossians 1:9-14 – The Content of a Challenging Prayer

Lessons from the Setting of the Prayer
1.) Paul prays for Christians he has never met personally (v.9)
2.) Paul prays unceasingly (v.9)
3.) Paul links prayers of thanksgiving to prayers of petition (v.9)

Lessons from the Content of the Prayer
1.) Paul asks God to fill believers with the knowledge of his will (v.9)

2.) The purpose of Paul’s petition is that believers might be utterly pleasing to the Lord Jesus (v.10)
In Paul’s world, to be a Christian, to confess Jesus as Lord, meant to adopt a world view in which you are bound to please him in every way.

3.) Paul sketches, in terms of four characteristics, what a life pleasing to the Lord looks like (1:10b-14)
a.) Christians bear fruit in every good work.
b.) Christians grow in the knowledge of God.
c.) Christians are strengthened so as to display great endurance and patience.
d.) Christians joyfully give thanks to the Father.

A Parenthesis: Discerning One's Call to Ministry

If you would, allow me to make a quick interjection into this mini-series on prayer. You will soon notice this block will not deviate far from our discussion. In fact, not only is the issue of discerning one's call to ministry deeply connected to prayer, but my thoughts about to be written spring from the same book from which this mini-series is based, A Call to Spiritual Reformation. I bring up this interlude here because D.A. Carson focuses upon it in while discussing Paul's prayer in 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13, which is my most recent post. To catch our barrings, I will post the relevant portion of Scripture, write Carson's piercing remarks, and conclude with brief observations.

1 Thessalonians 3:1-5
1So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens. 2We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker[a]in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, 3so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them. 4In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know. 5For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent Timothy to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.

Carson observes the following important points from Paul's message:

2.) Paul's prayer arises out of passionate affection that seeks the good of others--not their praise, gratitude, acceptance, and still less some sense of professional self-fulfillment...

As someone who has taught seminary students for more than fifteen years, I worry about the rising number of seminarians who, when asked where and how they think they might best serve, respond with something like this: "Well, I think I would like to teach somewhere. Every time I have taught, people have told me I have done a pretty good job. I get a tremendous sense of fulfillment out of teaching the Bible. I think I could be satisfied teaching Scripture."

Let me interject quickly. If you are pursuing ministry of some kind, are these thoughts true of you? I know I have fallen prey to them. If you are already in ministry, do you coddle yourself by banking on kind words others have told you about your gifts? Consider this forthcoming rebuke from Carson:

How pathetic. I know pagans who find satisfaction and fulfillment by teaching nuclear physics. In any Christian view of life, self-fulfillment must never be permitted to become the controlling issue. The issue is service, the service of real people. the question is, How can I be most useful?, not, How can I feel most useful? The goal is, How can I best glorify God by serving his people?, not, How can I feel most comfortable and appreciated while engaging in some acceptable form of Christian ministry? (82-83, Emphasis mine)

After I finished reading this chapter a little over a month ago, I wrote in the top-right corner, "Put in blog." This reason being, quite sadly, is that this is a message I must hear daily. I must be struck between the eyes consistently that my calling to ministry is grounded in the Lord's calling to be a servant for others good and for God's glory. The goal is not ultimately my self-fulfillment. I do want joy, yes, but to seek joy in the way described above is sin, for it is a joy that flows from idolatry. While so-called "serving others," the one you most want to serve is yourself and your desires. Your utmost desire is to be coddled and pampered and to be have your gifts be praised.

No. This will not do for a Christian minister or teacher or bible study leader or mentor. Listen again to Paul: "So when we could stand it no longer,...[we] sent Timothy...to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials...For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless" (1 Thess. 3:1-5, NIV).

May our hearts burn for those to whom we are ministering, not our own starving egos.

Priorities from Paul and His Prayers - Part 3

Consider today the priorities from Paul's prayer in this passage. 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 reads as follows:

9How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? 10Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.

11Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. 12May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. 13May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones. (NIV)

Paul’s Prayer: A Product of Passion for People (2:17-3:8)
1.) Paul’s prayer arises out of his intense longing to be with the Thessalonians (2:17)
2.) Paul’s prayer arises out of passionate affection that seeks the good of others—not their praise, gratitude, acceptance, and still less some sense of professional self-fulfillment (3:1-5)
3.) Paul’s prayer springs from unaffected delight at reports of the Thessalonians’ faith, love, perseverance, and strength (1:2-3; 3:6-8)

Paul’s Prayer: A Continuing Passion for People (3:9-13)
1.) Paul prays with rich thankfulness for the people of God (3:9)
Although the thanksgiving is not addressed to the Thessalonians, but rather to God for the Thessalonians, nevertheless it is cast in such a way as to encourage them.
2.) Paul prays that he might be able to strengthen these believers (3:10-11)
3.) Paul prays that there might be an overflow of love among these believers (3:12)
4.) Paul prays that these believers will be so strengthened in heart that they will be blameless and holy when the end comes (3:13)

Priorities from Paul and His Prayers - Part 2

Today we shall examine Paul's train of thought in 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12.

1Paul, Silas[a] and Timothy,
To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

2Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving and Prayer
3We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. 4Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.
5All this is evidence that God's judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power 10on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

11With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. 12We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.[b] (NIV)

2 Thessalonians 1:1-12 – Worthy Petitions

Two Petitions:
I. Paul prays that God might count these Christians worthy of their calling (v. 11a)
II. Paul prays that God by his power might bring to fruition each Christian’s good, faith-prompted purposes (v. 11b)

The Goal of Paul’s Prayer
I. Paul seeks the glorification of the Lord Jesus (v. 12)
“The Christian’s whole desire, at its best and highest, is that Jesus Christ be praised. It is always a wretched bastardization of our goals when we want to win glory for ourselves instead of for him.”
II. Paul seeks the glorification of believers (v.12)
“When we are glorified, in the sense just described, we are being made more like him, we are being strengthened or empowered to exhibit characteristics that we would not otherwise display.”

The Ground for Paul’s Prayer
I. Paul recognizes all good flows from God’s grace (v. 12)

Priorities from Paul and His Prayers - Part 1

Prayer can often be very difficult for me. The trouble is not necessarily in finding the time to pray, but it is knowing the motives and goals of our prayers. What shall I pray for? More pointedly, why should I pray? I deeply desire to pray as God would have me pray, cultivating a heart by his grace that longs after what he longs, that desires what he desires. Nevertheless, most probably from my hard heart, I have spent many mornings on my knees...in heart-wrenching silence. Words dripping out of my mouth slowly, like water from an icicle on a cold, January day.

And I fear I am not alone in these barren times of prayer. Undoubtedly many of you have felt similarly, either not knowing what to pray or simply not having a desire to bow before the Almighty God.

In light of our need, I recently returned to a book written by D.A. Carson, entitled A Call to Spiritual Reformation: Priorities from Paul and his Prayers. It thoroughly examines each of the more substantial prayers from Paul in his epistles, analyzes the main foci of Paul. I was so utterly touched and encouraged by this book, I warmly passed it on to a friend who frequents Old Chicago regularly. After a week or so, she had finished reading it and promptly returned it. That day we shared our reflections on the book. We were both so encouraged. But we both had short memories. It was hard to remember all that we had read, to keep in mind the main priorities Paul had in his prayers. We needed a summary. So, the following posts will be brief summaries I have compiled that will hopefully reveal what things we ought to pray for. May you be encouraged and provoked to prayer.

2 Thessalonians 1:3-12 – The Framework of Prayer
3We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. 4Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.
5All this is evidence that God's judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power 10on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

11With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith. 12We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. (NIV)

I.) Thankfulness for Signs of Grace
1.) Paul gives thanks that his readers’ faith is growing (v.3)
2.) Paul gives thanks that their love is increasing (v.3)
3.) Paul gives thanks that they are persevering under trial (v.4)

II.) Confidence in the Prospect of Vindication\Looking Forward to the Hope that will be Revealed at Christ’s Return
1.) For believers, there will be vindication (vv. 6,10)
“God is just: He will…give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well… on the day he comes to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you”
2.) For others, there will be retribution (v.10)
“God is just:…He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

Rest, Waltke, and my Future Wife

Rest is a wonderful thing. It is most blessed when one rests in such a way that a delight in God is strengthened. Praying, reading good books, studying the Scriptures, having sweet communion with friends and family—these have produced a Spring Break ’08 for which I will always be grateful.

Consider it a blessing or a curse, God has given me a voracious appetite for books. Whenever I have a break from my studies, I consume book after book, satisfied at the abundance potluck of wisdom present in so many theologians today. After purchasing Bruce Waltke’s An Old Testament Theology, this long-awaited book has not been a disappointment. I am over one hundred pages in, and he is essentially still introducing his presuppositions to biblical theology, the approach that is the backbone of his enormous book.

On poetics and intertextuality, Waltke goes to great lengths to parse various types of literary forms present in the Old Testament. Despite its consistent intricate nature, it is a tremendous feast for the soul. Consider the following paragraph from the book:

A contrast can be discerned in the type scenes involving meeting a bride at the well in Haran. In one scene, Abraham’s servant meets Rebekah at the well when he is in prayer, trusting God to lead him to the right bride for Isaac. In a second story, Abraham’s grandson Jacob is at the well in his flight from his murderous brother, Esau. This story relates that there is a huge rock over the well, such that three shepherds cannot move it, but Jacob moves it single-handedly. The “bride at the well” narratives contrast a servant who is strong in prayer with Jacob, who is strong in brute strength; they contrast a happy wedding with an unhappy wedding. The former is rewarded with a beautiful and virtuous bride whose faith in I AM outstrips that of her husband; the latter gains a beautiful bride who clings to her old family idols. The message, though not initially perceptible, becomes clear: Power in prayer is greater than power in human strength in establishing God’s kingdom, but nowhere does the narrator of Genesis command his audience to pray (118, emphasis mine).

What wonderful insights! May God grant me a wife like Rebekah, not like Rachel. May her beauty be primarily an inward beauty (1 Pet 3), of a soft heart and humble spirit that loves God and yearns to do his will. Similarly, may I be a man of prayer, like the faithful servant of Abraham that sought God’s face. May I not be tempted by superficial and temporal beauties, but may God grant an eternal, transcendental view of his beauty and its reflections in his covenant people.

23 going on 13? A Call to Mature Manhood

Note: This is an article I recently penned for the Northwestern College school paper, The Column.

“Oh, come on! Be a man!” Undoubtedly you have heard this phrase. More often than not it is used by a group of rather snobbish delinquents daring a naïve friend to do something quite stupid. Point is, if he does this daring physical feat, he is a man. If he does not, he has come up short in attaining desired masculinity.

I fear that for many young, male Christians, their conception of manhood is similarly blind. The assumption is that true manhood in Christianity is nothing more than being a wildman who embraces adventure but cringes at responsibility. A man who welcomes mystery with open arms but buckles at the thought of leadership. A man who values being a “lone ranger” but sneers at the call to be a spiritual provider for others.

Simply put, the growing pattern for young men is to imitate the passivity that is so commonplace among men in our culture. For some, it is called adultolescence—a phenomenon where men never grow up and simply become 30 and 40-year-old boys.

Men throughout the ages have struggled with passivity, but how did this recent phenomenon come about? Many answers could be given, but the following strikes at the core of the issue: We as a Church have failed to speak courageously and clearly from the Word of God on what the calling of a man is.
Growing up, I never was exhorted to become a man. I frankly did not know what defined a man. As far as I was concerned, I wanted my life to echo the old Toys-R-Us jingle: “I don’t wanna grow up; I’m a Toys-R-Us kid.” If someone were to ask me what the difference should be between a mature man and a mature woman, I would have responded with eerie silence.

As I grew older, I came to appreciate that the call for manhood found in the Bible was unmistakably clear. Being a man is taking responsibility rather than shirking one’s tasks. It is realizing that a man is called to be a spiritual provider in appropriate ways to men and women (1 Tim 3:4-5; Eph 6:4). It is acknowledging that husbands are called to love their wives as Christ loved the Church (Eph 5:22-33). It is also the courage to lead in a likewise manner. It is affirming that fathers are to provide physically for their families, and if they do not, they are worse than an unbeliever (1 Tim 5:8). Above all, it is the calling to grow in godliness and be zealous for God’s glory (1 Tim 4:7).

What is a man? It is certainly not a passive man, one who simply does not “wanna grow up” and spends all of his free time on the internet or Halo. It is not a bullying, tyrannical leader. Much less is it a Christianized wildman, one who loves the thrills of the outdoors and extreme sports but has no capacity to shepherd others. It is a humble, firm leader. It is a providing, protecting, loving, nurturing, God-fearing, mature man.

This is the biblical calling. Men, how shall we respond?