The Relational & Transactional Models of Our Interaction with God – Part 2
January 19, 2009
Dear Friends,
Which is the better psalm – Psalm 117 or Psalm 119? All of the psalms are essentially sung prayers, so let’s build a case for each one.
Psalm 117 is only two verses long and as such is a very short prayer. Ecclesiastes 5:2 lends some weight that it may be better than Psalm 119 – the longest prayer in the Bible. It says,
Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.
In a similar vein, Jesus himself said,
But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. (Matt. 6:7,8)
On the other hand, Ps. 119, the longest recorded prayer in the Bible also has a case to be made. For example, Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “Pray without ceasing.” This psalms 176 verses are as good an example as we have in Scripture of ceaseless prayer. Similarly, in Luke 21:36, Jesus says “Watch ye therefore, and pray always.” And again, Jesus says “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?” (Luke 18:7)
The debate could continue about which prayers are best – long or short, but the bottom-line is that the question of which of the two psalms is better is silly. They are equally excellent in their own unique ways.
The question was framed in such a way to get us thinking in a transactional manner about prayer because which is exactly what we so often do. The question gets us thinking which is a better prayer – a long prayer or a short one? It is like asking – which is better a short conversation or a long one? What makes a conversation a good conversation is not whether it is short or long but the quality of the communication that takes place and the relationship that exists between those communicating. I am sure we have all experienced long conversations that we wished would never end. We have also experienced short but intensely fulfilling conversations.
In the life of Jesus, we have example of both short and long prayers. His longest recorded prayer was in John 17. There were many nights he prayed all night such as in Luke 6:12, so this is not his longest prayer. We also have short prayers like some of his short prayers from the cross. When Jesus, hanging from the cross, said “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” was it less meaningful than some of his long prayers? To even think such a thing is absurd. The meaningfulness of the prayers between Jesus and his Father were not based on the length — or the whether Jesus was standing, sitting or kneeling – or whether he spoke in Greek or Aramaic or Hebrew. Jesus’ prayers were pleasing to God because of the relationship that he shared with his Father!
When we think in terms of transaction instead of relationship when it comes to prayer, we start thinking things like the following:
- The prayers of many are better than the prayers of a few.
- The more I pray about something, the more likely I am to get it.
- If I pray in the right way (whatever the “right way” is) and use the right words, God will hear me.
- There are certain times when prayers are mandatory (e.g. before meals, before bed, before the memorials).
It is like we think if we push the right buttons, God will respond in a predictable way. God is not mocked. He is not some robotic deity that has given us some magic cipher that we need to figure out called prayer. He loves us. He wants us to be in His Kingdom. He wants a relationship with us. Therefore, it becomes apparent that there is no magic formula to prayer. Our communication to Him is but one important part of our relationship and the strength of our prayer life is but one indicator of that relationship.
There are “good prayers” and “bad prayers” which will be heard or ignored by God. For example, there are many verses in the Bible in which God tells us that He will not listen to our prayers if our hearts are not right. (Is. 1:15; 59:2; Jer. 7:16; 14:12; Eze. 8:18; Mic. 3:4) On the other hand, James tells us “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16) The New American Standard Bible phrases this verse this way: “The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” There are two keys here: the prayer must be “effective” and the person must be “righteous.” An effective prayer is one that is offered with the right spirit. It is sincere, honest, humble and accepting of God’s will. The prayer is not formulaic. We can’t sit down and work out the perfect “humble” prayer that will push God’s button. The offerer will be a person who is humble, obedient, faithful and walks according to their faith. In other words, the person is someone with whom the God of Heaven has a relationship.
Over the years, I have spoken out against praying “in Jesus’ name” in a transactional sense; thinking it is like the magic words to get our prayers heard by God. It is nonsensical to think that if we push the “in Jesus’ name” button that it makes all our prayers acceptable to God because Jesus will “fix” them. To pray in Jesus’ name is to pray as Jesus prayed. It is to have the mind of Christ and truly be his disciple. To pray in Jesus’ name is to be “in Christ” in every sense including our relationship with our “Abba, Father.” When we pray (recite!) some heartless, mindless “form prayer” and the tack “in Jesus’ name” on the end and think God is pleased with it, we are completely missing the point of the act of prayer.
At the dedication of the temple, Solomon instructed the Israelites to pray toward the temple (see 1 Kings 8). Many Jews still practice this today. The transactional aspects (praying toward the temple) of what Solomon said are still remembered by many today. How many remember the relational aspects that actually make the ritual of facing the temple effective? Here are a few.
- when they turn back to you and confess your name (v. 33)
- confess your name and turn from their sin (v. 35)
- each one aware of the afflictions of his own heart (v. 38)
- all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you (v. 43)
- they have a change of heart in the land..and repent and plead with you (v. 47)
- if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul (v. 48)
The key to God hearing their prayers was not facing the Temple (although it was not to be ignored either), it was the relationship between God and His people. God wants us to be oriented to Him in our relationship far more than he wants us pointed in a specific physical direction.
It is so easy to fall into the transactional mindset in things such as prayer. It is the flesh working in us. A faithful person in a meaningful relationship with God not only does the right things, though, they do the right things for the right reasons.
If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me: But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me. (Ps. 66:18-20)
Have a great week,
