Wednesday: Inspired Prayers
Daily Lesson for Wednesday 3rd of January 2024
Read 2 Samuel 23:1-2 and Romans 8:26-27. What do these texts teach us about prayer?
The Psalms are inspired prayers and praises of Israel, and so, in the Psalms the voice is that of God intermingled with that of His people. The Psalms assume the dynamics of vivid interactions with God.
The psalmists address God personally as “my God,” “O Lord,” and “my King” (Psalms 5:2, Psalms 84:3). The psalmists often implore God to “give ear” (Psalms 5:1), “hear my prayer” (Psalms 39:12), “look” (Psalms 25:18), “answer me” (Psalms 102:2), and “deliver me” (Psalms 6:4, NKJV). These are clearly the expressions of someone praying to God.
The remarkable beauty and appeal of the Psalms as prayers and praises lie in the fact that the Psalms are the Word of God in the form of the pious prayers and praises of believers. The Psalms, thus, provide God’s children with moments of intimacy, such as described in Romans 8:26-27: “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God” (NKJV).
Jesus, too, quoted from the Psalms, such as in Luke 20:42-43, when He quoted directly from Psalms 110:1—“ ‘Now David himself said in the Book of Psalms: “The Lord said to my Lord, / ‘Sit at My right hand, / Till I make Your enemies Your footstool’ ” ’ ” (NKJV).
Although some psalms have sprung from, or refer to, specific historical events and the experiences of the psalmists themselves, as well as the experiences of Israel as a nation, the Psalms’ spiritual depth speaks to a variety of life situations and crosses all cultural, religious, ethnic, and gender boundaries. In other words, as you read the Psalms, you will find them expressing hope, praise, fear, anger, sadness, and sorrow—things that people everywhere, in every age, no matter their circumstances, face. They speak to us all, in the language of our own experiences.
What should Jesus’ use of the Psalms tell us about the importance that they could play in our own faith experience?
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Rom 8:26-27 is a strange promise, in a way. It sounds like God has set up a system where God prays to God? It points us to the relationship and interaction of the Godhead on our behalf. God the Spirit prays to God the Father on the basis of the work of God the Son.
What help does the Holy Spirit mean for us to get? It says He intercedes for us, for the saints. We are perplexed what to pray for so the Holy Spirit helps. God's strength is made perfect in our weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). The Holy Spirit wants to comfort us (Jn. 14:16).
Whose groanings are they? It may be our groanings that the Holy Spirit stirs up within us? The Holy Spirit doesn't need to groan because He knows exactly what to pray for. He doesn't have any weaknesses or ignorance.
Rom. 8:27 - The Father looks into our hearts when He wants to know the mind of the Holy Spirit because the Spirit is producing these groanings according to His will in our hearts. So our hearts are doing the groaning as the Holy Spirit stirs them up in us. This idea is brought out earlier in Rom. 8:23 that we groan inwardly because we have the Holy Spirit's firstfruits.
In Rom. 8:15-16 the Holy Spirit testifies with our Spirit by stirring us up to cry, "Abba, Father". So even though we are doing the crying, it's the Holy Spirit's witness.
And our cries contain real petitions to God that we don't discern, because of our weakness and ignorance, but the Spirit Himself and God the Father discern by looking into our hearts. God doesn't need our words to know the deepest true longings in our hearts (Ps. 139:1 NLT).
What does the Holy Spirit pray for? It is the Spirit that moves us to pray. Rom. 8:28 tells that the Holy Spirit is helping us to pray that everything works together for good as the will of God. He teaches us and speaks through us. The Spirit knows the "deep things of God" (1 Cor. 2:10). The Holy Spirit helped Jesus to pray, "Not my will but Thy will be done" (Matt. 26:39). Only God knows the ending and the beginning and so He leads us to submit completely to His will.
The whole Godhead is helping us and He means for us to take heart. Satan accuses us, but Jesus defends us (1 Jn 2:1-2)... and helps us overcome sin through His blood sacrifice, and through our testimony of Jesus which the Holy Spirit gives us. (Rev. 12:10-11). We see prophecy (the testimony of Jesus - Rev. 19:10) in the psalms because they are prayers inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Thanks for your insightful comments Esther.
Thank you so much for the insight. Usually i just like to read comments and yours is very inspiring that just prompted me to show appreciation in typing. I love the point that you shared where the Holy Spirit moves us to express the hearts desire to God. He groans in us for us to God. Blessing from Fiji...
O Lord my God
Heal my sin
So when I go 🚶♀️ to meet you
I am no more me
But You in me.
Take out my sin
For I want to serve others
As you said my Lord
A righteous man accomplished much.
This little plot of psalms, derived from James 5:16 " A prayer of a righteous man can accomplished much". How beautiful it is to face the Lord with our heart ❤️ are clean, then we asked intervention , to ask God to help people who are in need, to ask God for healing our friends that are in bed of sickness, our brethren that needs comforts. These can be done thru prayer, and can be effective if we are righteous. We ourselves need first the presence of the the Lord Jesus . 🙏 ❤️ So much, our prayer can be inspired.
What should Jesus’ use of the Psalms tell us about the importance that they could play in our own faith experience?
When Jesus was hanging on the cross he prayed saying "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Many of us recognize these words, not as David´s but as Christ´s on the cross, during the crucifixion. In Mark 15:34, as Jesus hung on the cross, He was quoting this scripture from Psalm 22:1. On the cross the Father had not forsaken the Son, but it truly felt like He had.
There are Psalms of Lament like Psalms 77:2-3, 10-12. According to the word of God the practice of lament, the kind that is biblical, every lament is a prayer, a statement of faith. Learning to lament begin on our knees - we must open our heart to God and cry to him, tell him how we feel.
Lament is rooted in what we believe. Lament stands in the gap between pain and promises. When we Lament we are honestly crying to God and presenting to him our hurting hearts and claiming the promises.
Lament is the bridge between dark cloud and deep mercy - it help us to move from dark clouds to deep mercy. Lament stands in the gap between our pain and the promises of God.
Lament help us with the transition between our pain and the promises of God. Lament is the path from heartbreak to hope.
Lament is teaching us that hope does not change due to circumstances rather it comes from what you know despite your circumstances.
David was in grief and in the midst of his pain he reminded himself of the love of God. He pointed the heart to the truth, because hope springs from truth rehearsed.
Our ultimate hope as God's children it is God's ability to keep being God. Time and time again the Biblical lamenters reminded themselves about who God is. Their requests to God are boldly rooted in God’s character.
As parents we welcome the lament of our children, it makes us feel that the kids are crying to us because we are their hope in solving whatever the issue.
The same applies when we lament to God.
Please accept my apologies for my long comments.
I was also someone who recognized the words that Jesus said on the cross as His own. And sometimes I didn't understand why He chose to say those words. But now it makes sense. He was expressing his feelings through the Psalms. Thank you so much for clarifying that it was actually David's and pointing to scripture to show where it was found.
Thank you Paul for this .
We do not mind the length.
Thank the Lord.
Yes, thanks be to God for preserving the Psalms! They reassure us that all these emotions are allowed for God's children. What a relief when we feel something we don't know how to express, or if we feel something that is taboo to express in our culture. We can still be comfortable venting to our Maker, and that also helps us empathize with other people when they feel low. What a beautiful gift!
Psalm 18:3,46 make the lyrics of a nice song that picks up my spirit.
I love that the Spirit intercedes when I don’t have the words. Not having the words happens a lot to me and it comforts me that He fills the gap. I also lack understanding in so many things but because God sees me as how I COULD be, knows what I WOULD pray were I perfected in my walk with Him. He really does fill ALL my needs even tho’ it took me so long to truly start building my relationship with Him. Endless praises are due You Lord. Thank you.
Love how you emphasize ALL. Thank you. Reminds me of Psalm 34…. look at how many times the word “all” is used…. amazing promises. 🙏🏻
Rom. 8:27 – “He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He [the Spirit] makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” The writer states: “.. , in the Psalms the voice is that of God intermingled with that of His people.” I wholeheartedly agree – God within expresses Himself from the born-again heart and mind of man.
Is not our awareness and acceptance of our God Supreme the first gift from Him who now continues to build His relationship with us through faith? Can anything in our relationship with our Creator God be generated by the old man still working from his old, uninspired heart and mind? No!
Again, I agree - “….the Psalms are the Word of God in the form of the pious prayers and praises of believers.” We are told that we are a new creation, “behold, all things have become new!” – 2 Cor. 5:17. Emotions remain the same for the believer, but the gifts of God's love, faith, and hope are now experienced by man through His eyes!
To me, the book of Psalms and Proverbs are the most precious expressions of His caring comfort of man - His Truth, Love, and Justice shared by the voices of those who love God with all their heart and being give evidence that the Father changes faithful believer's heart and mind after His own Image.
I suggest that all read EGW notes for Wednesday and each day. Wednesday's notes are full of scripture texts and advice concerning praying without ceasing, praying with a deep sense of being in God's presence; asking for and pleading specific requests that He loves to answer! How refreshing.
Thank you everyone for your meaningful comments.