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John 15:7 says, “If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.” This verse presents three crucial points. First, we must abide in the Lord. To abide in the Lord is to have fellowship with the Lord. Second, the Lord’s words must abide in us. When we abide in the Lord and are in constant fellowship with Him, He speaks within us. Third, we ask the Lord according to our heart’s desire. Such asking, or praying, comes from the Lord’s speaking within us. If we are in fellowship with the Lord, He will speak within us. When the Lord speaks, we have the words with which to ask Him, that is, to pray to Him.
The Bible says that Abraham was the friend of God. In Genesis 18 the God of heaven came to earth in order to befriend Abraham. Both the Old Testament and the New Testament say that Abraham was a friend of God (2 Chron. 20:7; Isa. 41:8; James 2:23). Our impression of God is that He is too great and that we are so low. Although we cannot describe His greatness in words, we can say that we are low to the uttermost. We were made from dust, became evil and corrupt by the fall, and were dead in our offenses and sins (Eph. 2:1). There is nothing that qualifies us to commune with God. Because of this fact, we have the natural and inaccurate concept that since God is so great and we are so low, it must not be easy to converse with Him, draw near to Him, pray to Him, or even cry out to Him.
Very few people have a thorough and accurate concept regarding prayer. Very few know that we can pray to God just as we speak with other human beings. Since most people have the concept that God is so great and man is so small, that God is high above and man is far below, they think that we must be solemn and reverent when coming to God. They also think that we must implore God for His care and mercy so that our requests may be granted and our desires fulfilled. This is the concept of most people, and I was not an exception.
When I was newly saved, I would always tidy myself up, lower my hands properly, walk slowly to a chair, kneel down sincerely, and respectfully bow my head before solemnly praying to God. Although nothing was wrong with this, it was a natural form of worship; it was prayer out of my natural feeling. Praying in this way is the result of not knowing God, misunderstanding Him, and not having divine revelation. God never intended for us to pray in this way.
New Testament believers are more blessed and more intimate with God than the Old Testament believers. However, even the forefathers in the Old Testament, such as Abraham, did not regard themselves as small human beings who had to prostrate themselves when they prayed and dared not lift up their face to look at the great and high God sitting in the heavens. In Genesis 18 God wanted Abraham to pray to Him, so He came to be Abraham’s friend. God did not lift Abraham up to the heavenly sanctuary of glory; instead, He humbled Himself and went to the lowly tent in which Abraham dwelt. God did not flaunt His prestige, majesty, or power. Abraham served cakes, a calf, curds, and milk, and God ate (vv. 1-8). God came to Abraham as an ordinary visitor. After He ate, the first thing He asked Abraham was, “Where is Sarah your wife?” (v. 9). Sarah did not come out but hid in the back. God said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and then Sarah your wife shall have a son” (v. 10). When Sarah heard this, she laughed within herself, saying, “After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” (v. 12). God, knowing that Sarah laughed, asked Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh?” (v. 13). Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” but God said, “No, but you did laugh” (v. 15). This situation was altogether like that of a person visiting in a friend’s home.
After God finished speaking, He rose up to leave, and Abraham walked with Him to send Him away (v. 16). Suppose a brother visits me in my home, and after our conversation he rises to leave, and I rise in order to walk with him. Although he walks out of the door, I do not want to leave him, so I walk farther with him until we reach the main street. This is how Abraham was with God. God rose to leave Abraham’s tent, but Abraham walked with God in order to send Him off. It was in such a sending off that Abraham “sent” God’s words out. We should not think that God has nothing to do or that He has nothing to say. God has many things to do and to say, but He needs us to walk with Him, to send Him off, so that He can tell us what He wants to do.
Many of us have had such an experience. Suppose Brother A is troubled in his heart concerning a matter and goes to seek help from Brother B. Even though Brother B receives him, Brother A may not be able to speak about what is on his heart, because it is not easy to talk about matters that trouble the heart. After talking for a while, Brother A may rise to leave even though he still has something on his heart. If Brother B bids Brother A farewell, then Brother A will keep the matter that is on his heart. If Brother B is very close to Brother A and sees that Brother A is still troubled about something, he will walk with Brother A, not wanting to leave him. Brother A may say, “Please do not trouble yourself to walk any farther,” but Brother B will say, “I will walk just a few more steps.” It is at this time that Brother A will feel comfortable to bring up what is on his heart. We often cannot immediately disclose the matters on our heart. It is not until we rise to leave and our friend sends us off that we can disclose the things on our heart.
God had two purposes for appearing to Abraham. One purpose was to tell Abraham that he would beget Isaac according to the time of life. This was related to Abraham. The other purpose was to tell Abraham that He would destroy Sodom. This was related to Abraham’s nephew Lot. God told Abraham the matter that was related to him near his tent. God was to give Abraham a son. It was easy for God to tell Abraham this because it was something that God would do for Abraham. However, this was only part of God’s purpose in visiting Abraham. It was not easy for God to tell Abraham the second purpose, for God had to find someone on the earth who would pray for Lot to be saved. This is what God wanted Abraham to do; hence, it was not easy for God to bring up this matter. Before God can do something in a brother, He must first find someone to pray for that brother. This is a major principle of God’s work.
Before God saves, edifies, or works in someone, He must find a person to pray for the things that He is about to do. Without our prayer, God cannot work. God visited Abraham so that Abraham would intercede for Lot to be saved. It is possible to say that God was asking Abraham to do something; hence, it was not easy for God to bring it up. It is easy to tell a person what we will do for him, but it is not easy to ask someone to do something for us. God wanted Abraham to do something, but in order to see if Abraham was willing, He did not bring it up quickly. If I want to ask a brother to help me, I would first talk with him to see how his heart is toward me. Only if he cares for me would I feel comfortable asking him to help me. This was the case when God spoke with Abraham. It was when Abraham walked with God to send God off and lingered in God’s presence that God said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” (v. 17). God spoke with Abraham as if He was speaking with a friend.
Here is an example. A brother’s child was disobedient and often made his parents angry. One day this brother came to my home to fellowship with me. I asked, “Brother, what is it that you want to fellowship about?” He said, “Nothing much,” and sipped his tea. He then talked about other matters and stood up to leave. It seemed that he wished to say something but found it difficult to bring up, so I walked with him to send him off. It was then that he said, “It is not easy to raise children.” I responded, “No, children are not easy to handle.” He then said, “My child has been in a lot of trouble at home for several days now.” I then understood that he wanted me to help his child. When he walked into my home, he did not say, “Brother, please come see my child.” Rather, he told me what was on his heart after he saw that I cared for him like a close friend. I immediately asked, “May I come see him tomorrow afternoon?” He said, “Nothing would be better.” When I touched his heart, he told me what he wanted me to do.
God went to Abraham so that Abraham would pray for Lot. Genesis 19:29 says that when God destroyed Sodom, He remembered Abraham and rescued Lot. God’s purpose was for Abraham to pray for Lot, but instead of being like a master commanding a servant, He was like a person needing a friend’s help. God did not say, “Abraham, I want to destroy Sodom; hence, you must pray for Lot.” That would have been a master commanding his servant, not a conversation between close friends. Instead, God stood in front of Abraham that day as Abraham’s friend. He and Abraham stood and talked as friends about the things on His heart. He said, “The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah, how great it is; and their sin, how very heavy it is! I shall go down and see whether they have done altogether according to its outcry” (18:20-21). Abraham immediately understood that God wanted him to pray for Lot, who dwelt in Sodom. God seemed to be speaking in a riddle; it was as if He had said something yet said nothing. Abraham was very wise and did not say, “God, Lot is still there; will You destroy him also?” Neither God nor Abraham mentioned Lot’s name, but Lot was their goal.
Let us look at how Abraham prayed that day. He asked God, “Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will You indeed destroy...it?” (v. 24). God said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place for their sake” (v. 26). Abraham immediately subtracted five, saying, “Suppose the fifty righteous are lacking five?” and God said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there” (v. 28). Then Abraham knew that there were not even forty-five righteous in the city. He therefore said, “Suppose forty are found there?” and God said, “I will not do it, because of the forty” (v. 29). Abraham was even clearer that there were not forty and subtracted another ten, saying, “Suppose thirty are found there?” and God said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there” (v. 30). Abraham knew again that there were not even thirty and said, “Suppose twenty are found there?” and God said, “I will not destroy it, because of the twenty” (v. 31). Then Abraham knew that there must not have been twenty and immediately said, “Suppose ten are found there?” and God said, “I will not destroy it, because of the ten” (v. 32). Then Abraham knew that the righteous ones whom God would not destroy must have been the family of his nephew Lot. Hence, he spoke no more. This is what makes prayer marvelous. God speaks the things on His heart, and we pray for them as His friends, but neither God nor we explicitly state the object of our concern. Both God and Abraham were concerned about Lot, yet neither mentioned Lot. This was the sweetness of that conversation between intimate friends.
The best prayers are prayers to God as a friend. Such prayers are not uttered by men who are far below a very high God. Such prayers are spoken by men to a God who is on their level. Some may condemn this and say that it is heresy to uplift man to the same level as God. However, in the matter of God communing with man, of His wanting man to pray, God likes to be on the same level as man. Thus, real prayers are made by men who stand on the same level as God and consult with God. This is not man uplifting himself but God humbling Himself. It is not our going to God’s palace but God coming to our tent. Every real prayer is God condescending Himself in order to draw near to us, humbling Himself to come to us, and placing Himself on the same level that we are on so that we may be at ease to speak with Him. This is real prayer.
If we want to learn lessons on prayer, we must first learn to absorb God. We should not regard God as being so high while we are so low. This is not according to God’s revelation. If we know God, we will be able to say, “God, under the blood of Your Son I can come to Your throne of grace to meet You and to behold Your beauty, face to face.” We need to open our spirit and absorb Him. We should not say much, nor should we pour out our miseries. We should offer God some praise. We may say, “You are so glorious, sweet, and humble. You came to be with me. I worship You and thank You from my heart.” To commend, praise, worship, and thank God in such a way is like the first part of Abraham’s fellowship with God. Abraham invited God in, set a meal before God, stood by without saying much, and watched God eat and enjoy the meal. This is the best prayer.
The best prayer is not one in which we tell God many matters. The Lord Jesus said, “Do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, With what shall we be clothed? For all these things the Gentiles are anxiously seeking. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things” (Matt. 6:31-32). Hence, we do not need to tell God our distresses and miseries, for He already knows them; they are not a problem to Him. We also do not need to tell Him our condition. To do so does not require learning and is a natural prayer, not prayer according to revelation.
A prayer of revelation is one in which we do not consider our failures or weaknesses. Rather, in spite of how distressed or burdened we may be, we set our eyes on God and turn our heart to Him. Instead of caring about our condition, we enter into God’s presence to contact God by looking to Him, beholding Him, praising Him, giving thanks to Him, worshipping Him, and absorbing Him. This is a sweet lesson. If we would learn this lesson, we will enjoy God’s riches and taste His sweetness. If we would spend a little time to enter into God’s presence and absorb Him every day, we will receive light and power; we will be peaceful, bright, strong, and empowered.
An electric iron that is not connected to electricity has no way to heat up. But once it is connected, it will get hot. Hence, we should not say that we are weak and unable to rise up or that we cannot overcome and live a holy life. Even if we are cold, weak, defeated, and unable to rise up, if we would come to God, contact Him, draw near to Him, behold Him, praise Him, thank Him, and take time to linger in His presence, He will touch our spirit. Strength, power to rise up, and victory are in God. No method or message can make us overcome. Victory is God, and overcoming power is God. When we contact God daily, we are “electrified” within, become “hot,” and possess His riches. If we need leading, He is our leading. If we need light, He is our light. If we need comfort, He is our comfort. If we need power, He is our power. He is everything that we need. We must learn this precious lesson.
My greatest fear when I stand at the podium is that I would not be connected to God. Sometimes I do not need to spend much time to prepare a message; however, I do need to spend a long time to contact God in His presence, that is, to be connected to the “electricity.” My greatest fear is to be disconnected from God while giving a message. That would be miserable.
As Christians, we are miserable, weak, and unable to rise up when we are disconnected from God. When we are disconnected from God, we are through. God is everything to us, so we should spend some time and effort to contact Him every day. The first lesson on prayer is to contact God and absorb God.
When we learn the first lesson, we will learn the second lesson spontaneously. When we touch and contact God, He will surely speak, that is, express His mind, within us. When Abraham contacted God, walked with God in sending Him off, and lingered in His presence, God said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?” (Gen. 18:17). This was God speaking, expressing Himself. Hence, Abraham was able to pray to God according to God’s speaking, and Abraham’s prayer was God’s expression. Every phrase of his prayer was God’s expression. At the end of Genesis 18 the Holy Spirit did not say that Jehovah left after Abraham finished praying but that “Jehovah went away as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham” (v. 33). This sweet sentence shows that it was Abraham who prayed, but it was Jehovah who spoke. When Jehovah finished speaking, Abraham finished praying. Therefore, Abraham’s prayer was the expression of God’s speaking. Real prayer is God’s expression. If we really contact, touch, and absorb God, He will speak within us. Whenever He speaks, it is time for us to pray. This is how we pray according to His speaking.
It is regrettable that some saints have neither learned to contact God nor to let God speak and express His desire when they pray. There is no need for the elders to pray in tears when the church encounters problems, saying, “Lord, look at this problem. Please remember that we are weak and foolish; we do not have much spiritual weight, nor do we know how to administrate the church. Lord, have mercy on us and solve this problem for us.” Such desperate prayers cannot be maintained. This is the condition of most prayers: they neither contact nor express God. Some sisters cry in prayer before the Lord whenever their husband has problems, their children are sick, or a family member is in an accident. They utter many words, but it is merely their speaking; they do not give the Lord a chance to speak. Even if the Lord were to say a few words, they would misunderstand His words. Most people pray in this way. Many pray, but few touch the Lord, contact Him, wait before Him, let Him speak, or let Him express Himself. Such prayers in which God does not express Himself are abnormal.
In a normal prayer God speaks to us. Prayer should not be to take care of the problems that are on our heart but to contact God. To pray is to go to God, meet Him, draw near to Him, behold Him, commune with Him, and absorb Him. For example, an elder who is bearing a problem of the church on his heart should touch and absorb God. Instead of mentioning the problem of the church, he should let God speak. God may ask the elder concerning his flesh. The elder has the problem of the church on his heart, but God asks concerning his flesh. Then the elder will immediately sense that he is a fleshly person. God may say, “The church has a problem because of your flesh.” Then he can confess, “Yes, Lord. The problem is not with the church but with me. Lord, have mercy on me; save me.” Such a prayer is real. When we touch God and let Him speak, our prayer expresses God.
Here is another example. Suppose that a sister’s husband has a problem and that her child was in an accident, but she does not mention these matters to the Lord. Instead, she touches and absorbs Him. When the Lord touches her, He will speak. He might ask concerning her attitude toward her husband and toward her child. Immediately, she will have a sense and say, “Lord, I have failed my husband and neglected my child because of my disposition and my temper.” The Lord may ask whether she has been broken or whether she has learned the lesson. She can then confess, “Lord, I have not yet been broken, nor have I learned the lesson. My disposition and my temper have not been dealt with by You.” Even though the sister did not pray for her husband or child, God will bless her husband and child. This is according to the Lord’s word that “all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33). This is genuine and normal prayer.
Our problem is that we often go to God in prayer, but we do not let Him speak to us. We must understand that the best prayer is not one in which we speak to God but one in which God speaks to us. The more we touch God in our prayer, the more He will speak to us. What matters is not how much we speak to God, but how much God speaks to us. What matters is how much we let God appear to us, speak to us, touch us, and point out our inner condition. We should drop all our burdens, forget our requests, and pay attention only to what God is touching in us. Then we should pray only according to that point. Whatever God asks for is what we say. Then our prayer will be His speaking, His expression. The most genuine and valuable prayer is one in which God expresses His prayer through man.
To pray by letting God speak and express Himself is to pray according to the Lord’s word in John 15:7. When we abide in the Lord, have fellowship with Him, and let Him speak within us, what we ask will be according to His words. Such prayer is not out of our self, nor is it initiated by us; rather, it is out of the Lord, and He is its source. We are not uttering our own words but the words that the Lord has spoken within us. Such prayer is not the expression of our will but the Lord’s will, and it is not our asking apart from the Lord. Such prayer is our praying to the Lord by abiding in Him and being mingled with Him. Such prayer is the issue of our mingling with the Lord. This is the best prayer!
