HEARING HEAVENWARD HOPES
John 17: 6-19
One function of the office of a Minister of the Word and Sacrament
is prayer. Some ask ministers or priests
for prayers believing or hoping that they offer them with greater efficacy than
“mere” lay people. Of course that isn’t
true; our Lord hears all the prayers
of the faithful. Yet the requests
continue to come in. When a man or woman
is dying, a minister often goes to that person’s side out of a sense of care,
while a Catholic priest comes to offer their Sacrament of Extreme Unction, or
last rites. With compassion both offer final blessings at the time of
death. Couldn’t a nurse or doctor or
elder or family friend pray? Yes. But tradition calls on ministers to do
it. Just this week I got a call from a
couple who moved to
Years ago a friend of mine was talking about how difficult it
was for him to stay in touch with his mother. “Notes to my mother always come
out sounding the same way” he said:
“Dear Mom, How are you doing? I am fine. How’s the weather? Keepin’ busy.
Gotta go.
Love, Charles.” And I have told many of
you about the days when I was growing up and was tardy sending thank you notes
to my grandmother for birthday gifts she had given. One birthday she included
the biggest of hints: a self-addressed stamped postcard with her gift
saying: “Please tell me you got the
gift! Love, Nannie.” I got the message.
But back to our point about where to turn to get one’s prayer
heard: many Roman Catholics have turned to the blessed
Virgin Mary, to the Saints, or to other heroes of the faith. Protestants, with their tongue firmly planted
in their cheek, say they skip the middle men and go straight to the top with
requests: we pray to God, or sometimes to the Lord Jesus, with a prayer before
a meal, a trip, a meal, or for guidance and healing. Our advocate in this life
is our Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit whom Jesus left for his disciples as he departed
the earth. So there is one prayer that trumps all
others: it is the prayer of Jesus.
How does it sound to have Jesus himself praying for you? Our text from John today lets us listen in to
and witness a truly holy time: when Jesus was praying to his Father for his
followers. First, he offered adoration
saying “I have told others about you.” Then he offered information saying “Now they know that everything that thou hast given
me is from thee; for I have given them the words which though gavest me, and they have received them and know in truth
that I came from thee.” And then came the most
important line of the entire prayer: “I am praying for them.” Jesus was praying
for his followers. And as we read this
as God’s Word to us today, dare we believe that Jesus still prays for his followers; cheers for his followers; weeps for
his followers? I am convicted to say
“yes” for myself. I believe that, like a good parent or best friend, Jesus
prays for me, cheers for me, weeps for me; wants to give me a kick when I mope
and give me a lift when I am down. Yes,
I picture Jesus praying for me; do you picture him praying for you? Is that
within the realm of possibility? If ever
there was a place to go and a person to whom to turn when extra prayers were
needed, that is where I would turn;
that is the one who taught the world how to pray like he did; that’s the one who showed us that even
the Messiah, facing mortal death, could pray so hard that sweat and blood could
run down his brow and sting his eyes. That’s
the one who is my advocate and my Savior; that’s the one to whom I plead with words like “Precious Lord take
my hand, lead me on, help me stand, I am tired, I am weak, I am worn! Through the storm, through the night, lead me
on, to the light, take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home!” The great
preacher Phillips Brooks once wisely observed that “Prayer is not conquering
God’s reluctance but taking hold of God’s willingness.” And Abraham Lincoln
described the posture of dependence on God this way: “I have been driven many
times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to
go.” On
your days of overwhelming self confidence, during weeks when you believe you
are a self made man or woman, in those moments when you remember reading words
like “You can if you think you can!” your heart is not ripe enough or heavy enough with need to make
your face fall to the ground and pray. Yet our Lord Jesus, who was named the King of
kings and Lord of lords, did not get there by climbing a ladder of fame, or by
self-promotion, or by putting himself above others, or by putting others down.
No, the Son of Man girding himself with a towel, wiped dirty feet, touched
diseased men and tainted women, picked up children and notice those who were
different or alone. Heavenward hopes first came from the lips of this man. And today I believe he will pray for you if you ask.
So ask me if you wish; ask a healer if you must. But don’t overlook going
directly to your Lord, who may gladly offer prayers specifically for you and
plead your case before the throne of grace. Then wait …and listen … and work … and
trust.
Sometimes that is the hardest part of all.
Thomas A. Dorsey, a leader in the gospel song movement in the
20s and 30s, fell to his knees the night his wife died in 1932. He prayed to
the Lord Jesus to help him cope and, as sometimes happens with songwriters, he put his prayer to a tune written by George
Allen. As we sing along with him,
perhaps this is also your prayer today. We’ll add an ‘amen’ at the end of
“Precious Lord, Take My Hand”.
Jeffrey A. Sumner