Christian Living
I've been in or around church my whole life, even before I actually had a personal relationship with Christ as my savior, and I've noticed something about people who are having problems - they always go to the pastor for immediate prayer. I don't mean that this is in any way a bad thing, but I think it might be a sign that we don't really understand our relationship with God all the way.
Yes, James tells us that sick people should have the elders of the church pray for them, but beyond that, I don't see anyplace in the Bible where we're commanded to get the pastor involved when something serious happens. If I had to take a position, I'd say that the Bible teaches quite the opposite; Galatians 6 commands us to "bear one another's burdens," not "cast all your burdens directly on the pastor." It's like most churchgoers secretly think that a pastor's prayer counts for more than theirs does; that if something goes seriously wrong, it's time to call in the heavy artillery, so to speak. It's almost as if we've voluntarily made ourselves into Catholics, with the way we seem to assume that God only really hears us if we go through the pastor.
The source of this issue is twofold: first, we fail to understand our direct access to God through Jesus Christ, and second, we've often been fed lies about the way God answers prayer.
On the first point, James 5 observes, "the effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much." Okay, I'm a little intimidated by that, because I can look at my own life and I don't feel very righteous most of the time. That's merely my emotions lying to me, though; according to God, I am righteous. 2 Corinthians 5 says, "God made him who knew no sin," which is Jesus, "to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of Christ." When we enter a relationship with God through Jesus, we are given credit for Jesus' righteous life. All of our sins, past, present, and future, are taken from us and borne by Christ instead. If all our sin is taken away, then we are, in God's eyes, perfect and righteous. When we sin, that sin has already been taken away from us. There is still great value in praying for our forgiveness - this same chapter in James advises it, and 1 John 1 says the same - but we're actually praying for something that has already happened. We've already become the righteousness of Christ. That's our relationship with God.
This means that we have direct access to God at all times because of the way we're wrapped up in Jesus' holiness. It's foolish to think that a pastor has more direct access than anyone else. Every Christian is equally righteous, equally perfect, in the eyes of the God who has forgiven us. "The prayer of a righteous man" refers to the prayer of every Christian, and this prayer is powerful. Why would God hear the pastor and not me? People who believe this usually say, "I'm not as close to God as the pastor is," which is a way of saying that they don't feel they're doing enough in their Christian walk (incorrect, because our relationship with God comes through his grace, not through our actions) or that the pastor is somehow closer to being perfect (flagrantly incorrect; all of us are equally righteous before God). It seems as if our sin or lifestyle should make a difference, but God, in his mercy, is more interested in hearing from us and blessing us as his children. He's not looking for reasons to ignore us.
This brings me to the second point. I've heard many pastors argue that, if we have unconfessed sin in our lives, God won't listen to our prayers. That's just patently false. Each of us practices so much sin, often completely unknown to ourselves, that there's no way we could ever confess it all. Even if we could, it's merely works-based folly to suggest that God demands we confess it before he blesses us. James 5 actually suggests that forgiveness happens as God answers our prayers. "The prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him." In this passage, at least, confessing sin is not a prerequisite for receiving God's blessings.
Furthermore, we offend God if we think that our sins are solely confined to a small variety of behaviors that we shouldn't practice. For example, I think that political partisanship is a sin, because of the way it promotes an "us-versus-them" mentality, connects Christ's name to political issues that he might not have supported (which is using his name in vain), and marginalizes anyone who doesn't support a particular political party. I think that's one of the most flagrant sins that anyone can practice, yet there are pastors who practice it. If I'm right and those things are sins, then there are pastors who are flaunting their sinful lifestyle, arguing that God even wants them to be politically involved. They're not just failing to confess their sin; they're actually living as if their sin is God's preferred way of living. Should I suggest that, because of this, God doesn't hear their prayers?
Each one of us is so sinful - in our basic beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors - that, if God hadn't unilaterally cleansed us of all of it, we could never in our lives confess it all. That's the basic logistical reason that he doesn't make us confess it all before he answers our prayers. There's also the fact that we are already the righteousness of Christ. You have to understand that God doesn't see time the way we do. From where I sit, there are sins in the future that I haven't yet committed. Yet from where God sits, he saw long in advance that I was going to commit those sins, and he determined to send Christ to the cross even before the world existed, having Christ die two thousand years ago for sins that I'm going to commit tomorrow. Time means nothing to God. We have already become the righteousness of Christ. He doesn't hold unconfessed sin against us because he's already forgiven it, even before we ask him for forgiveness.
These are the reasons why a pastor's prayer does not count for more than anyone else's. We're all on equal footing before God, all righteous, all forgiven, and all beloved children of God who he delights in blessing. He didn't make us jump through any hoops before he heard our prayers for salvation, so why should he now - after we're forgiven and completely righteous, after there is no sin tainting our relationship anymore - make us jump through hoops before we ask for our inheritance as his children? It makes no sense in the world to think that God wouldn't listen to each and every one of us.
It's crucial for us all to understand this, because if we think that God is looking for reasons to ignore us, we will not pray as often - and this is the exact opposite of what God wants. He wants prayer, he wants communication with us, he wants a thriving relationship. We need to understand this, because then and only then will we be able to "come boldly to the throne of grace," as Hebrews 4:16 commands us.
PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
Reader Count & Comments
Date
The opinions expressed by authors do not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com. This is especially true with articles that
deal with personal healthcare and prophecy. We encourage the reader to make their own decision in consultation with God, His Word, and others as needed.
This article has been read 1228 times < Previous | Next >
Read more articles by James Barringer or search for other articles by topic below.
This article has been read 1228 times < Previous | Next >
Search for articles on: (e.g. creation; holiness etc.)
Read more by clicking on a link:Free Reprints
Main Site Articles
Most Read Articles
Highly Acclaimed Challenge Articles.
New Release Christian Books for Free for a Simple Review.
NEW - Surprise Me With an Article - Click here for a random URL
God is Not Against You - He Came on an All Out Rescue Mission to Save You
...in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them... 2 Cor 5:19
Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38
LEARN & TRUST JESUS HERE
FaithWriters offers Christian reading material for Christian readers. We offer Christian articles, Christian fiction, Christian non-fiction, Christian Bible studies, Christian poems, Christian articles for sale, free use Christian articles, Christian living articles, New Covenant Christian Bible Studies, Christian magazine articles and new Christian articles. We write for Jesus about God, the Bible, salvation, prayer and the word of God.