Written by Dawn Rutan
Lately I’ve been reading The Necessity of Prayer, by E.M. Bounds. He has some good things to say, but a couple chapters on obedience raised questions for me. He states:
“Prayer is obedience. It is founded on the adamantine rock of obedience to God. Only those who obey have the right to pray. Behind the praying must be the doing; and it is the constant doing of God’s will in daily life which gives prayer its potency” (ch. 10).
He makes other comments that give the impression that complete victory over sin is not only possible in this life but is required for anyone who wants to pray.
“He who would pray, must obey. He who would get anything out of his prayers, must be in perfect harmony with God… [A]n obedient life is a necessity to prayer, to the sort which accomplishes things. The absence of an obedient life makes prayer an empty performance, a mere misnomer… (ch. 9).
I don’t want to discount the importance of obedience and making every effort to overcome sin in our lives—Samuel did say “to obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Samuel 15:22 ESV)—but I think Bounds overstates the case. Even the Apostle Paul said, “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out” (Romans 7:18), and I don’t think that anyone would say Paul was ineffective in prayer.
Certainly, outright rebellion and excusing sin are hindrances to prayer and to any kind of spiritual growth, but for those who endeavoring to pursue obedience grace abounds. A stumble into sin or a sin that has not yet come to our awareness is not reason for despair. If we always had to be “confessed up” before we could pray, we could spend all our time scouring our conscience for any possible offenses and never get around to any other prayers. (And if we did get that far, there would be pride to deal with!)
The author of Hebrews wrote, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (4:15-16). I see nothing there that indicates God is waiting for us to clean ourselves up before we can come into His presence. He knows our weaknesses, sin, and blind spots, and He loves us anyway. He wants to hear from His children at any and all times. His grace and mercy far exceed our ability to obey perfectly.
One might bring up James 5:16, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” It is true that confession will always be a recurring part of our prayer times, but it does not need to be so meticulous and detailed that we have time for nothing else. However, it is also true that the believer is clothed in Jesus’ righteousness and therefore does not need to fear the condemnation due to sinners. “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation; He has covered me with the robe of righteousness…” (Isaiah 61:10). It is because of Christ’s righteousness that we can draw near with confidence, not because of any righteousness we have in ourselves. In Him, “we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in Him” (Ephesians 3:13). I have difficulty singing a certain familiar hymn that downplays faith in God’s redeeming work and stresses obedience as the source of blessing.
Prayer should be something that brings joy and encouragement, not a sense of dread and obligation to do it just right. We should delight in spending time with our Heavenly Father, communing with Him, learning from Him, and receiving correction and strength from Him.
“Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us” (Romans 8:34).
© 2016 Dawn Rutan. The views stated may or may not reflect the beliefs of the pastor or leadership of Dulin’s Grove Church.
