The Requirements of Prayer

The requirements?! Maybe I'm just a little too Lutheran... but when you say requirements in that same breathe as a spiritual discipline, it makes my eye twitch a little. We'll approach this week with a special filter. We know that Christ fulfilled all of the requirements. In Jesus, we have also fulfilled the requirements. Apart from Jesus, we're not even close. So I'll blur the line a bit and focus not on the human ability to fulfill these things, but that in Jesus it is already accomplished.

The Necessity of a Clean Heart

Oct 8, 2007 - A very important first point - sin hinders prayer. For all of us that read it the first time and collectively said "DUH"... hold on just one second. There is something deeper to take away from this lesson then the author really points out. The Sin barrier between man and God was destroyed through Christ's death. Everyone has access to the Father through Jesus. Filter this lesson through John 15:5-8.

While Jesus destroyed Sin, death, and the power of the Devil... we still sin, and we are still sinful. It will be that way until we die. But God is eager to forgive. When I sin, I can expect that as prayerfully repent, God will grant my request for forgiveness. The fact is the Word should be cutting us to the core, exposing our sinfulness so we can cling again to the forgiveness available through Christ Jesus.

I have to say that a big point to ponder from this lesson is how much we lack true contrition... it is pretty obvious when we stop and look at how carelessly we continue in our pet sins.