1.Whole Course Is About This Question

PRAYER

2015

LESSON ONE

I.Introduction

A.What is prayer?

1.Whole course is about this question.

2.What is your "inner/personal" definition?

B.Francis Pieper:

"As soon as a Christian has been justified by faith and thus has become God's child, he begins to commune with God. This personal conversing of the Christian with God is called prayer. It is altogether Scriptural to define prayer as 'the conversation of the heart with God' (Ps. 27:8), whether the heart alone communes with God without clothing the prayer in words of the mouth or whether the mouth utters the prayers of the heart." [Christian Dogmatics, Vol. III, by Francis Pieper, D.D., © Concordia Publishing House, 1953, St. Louis MO, pp. 76,77, fn. omitted]

C.Edw. W. A. Koehler:

"Prayer is inseperable from the spiritual life of a believer; it is the heart-beat of his faith." [A Summary of Christian Doctrine, by Edward W.A. Koehler, D.D., © 1952, Alfred W. Koehler, published by Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO., p. 165]

D.M. Luther:

"Wherever a Christian is, there the Holy Spirit is, who does nothing else but pray constantly. For though a Christian is not constantly moving his lips and speaking words, his heart nevertheless moves and beats (just like the pulse in his body) and always throbs with sighs as these: [petitions of Lord's Prayer]...Therefore you cannot find a Christian without prayer, just as you cannot find a living man without a pulse. The pulse never stands still; it is always throbbing and beating by itself, even though a man is sleeping or doing something else and, therefore, is not aware of it. (W. 45, 451- E 49, 114f- SL 8, 363)" [What Luther Says, complied by Ewald M. Plass, © Concordia Publishing House, 1959, St. Louis, MO, p. 1091, no. 3487]

E.Can be divided into simply thanksgiving and supplication (Pieper, p. 77)

1.Ap. XXIV, 27-29 (Tappert, p. 255)

2.LC VI, 9 (Tappert, p. 458)

3.M. Luther: "With God we cannot deal in more than two ways, namely, thanksgiving and petition.... (St. L. X:2204)" (quoted, Pieper, p. 77, fn. 127)

II.Faith

A.Is the prerequisite.

B.LC, III, 119, 120 (Tappert, p. 436)

C.LC, III, 121-124 (id)

D.What is this "faith"

1.Eph. 2:8,9: a free gift.

2.Php. 1:29.

3.Php. 3:7-9.

4."Faith (fides) is assenting to the entire Word of God as it is given to us, particularly to the free promise of reconciliation given for the sake of Christ the Mediator, and it is trust (fiducia) in the mercy of God promised for this sake of Christ the Mediator." [Loci Communes 1543, by Philip Melanchthon, trans. by J.A.O. Preus, © 1992, CPH, St. Louis, MO, p. 87]

5."Faith is the unique means and instrument through which we lay hold on the righteousness of Christ, receive it, apply it to ourselves...." [Loci Theologici, Vol. II, Martin Chemnitz, trans. by J.A.O. Preus, © 1989, CPH, St. Louis, MO. p. 490]

6."Justifying faith"

1."has its own special object that it seeks in Holy Scripture and that itregards and apprehends, namely Christ our Mediator and the promise of grace, which is given for the sake of Christ." [Ministry, Word and Sacraments, - An Enchiridion, by Martin Chemnitz, ed. trans. and anno. by Luther Poellot, © 1981, CPH, St. Louis, MO. p. 75, no. 152]

a.Not just "historical faith".

b.Applies His promises to "himself individually" [Chemnitz, Enchiridion, p. 75, no. 153]

E.Justified by God

1.The "material principle" of orthodox theology.

2."Paul everywhere describes the article of justification as a judicial process wherein the conscience of the sinner, accused before the tribunal of God by the divine law, convicted and subject to the sentence of eternal damnation, flees to the throne of grace and is restored, absolved, and freed from the sentence of condemnation and received to eternal life for the sake of the obedience and intercession of the Son of God, our Mediator, which is laid hold of and made one's own through faith." [Chemnitz, Loci, p. 480]

3.The very heart of our theology.

4.Key terms

a."Grace": "...the free goodness of God, His favor, His benevolence, and His mercy, by which not according to our works and worthiness but out of sheer mercy, for the sake of Christ, God receives into grace sinners who are repentant and flee in faith to the Mediator, and He accepts them into eternal life with their sins forgiven and the righteousness of Christ imputed to them." [Chemnitz, Loci, p. 523]

(1)Ps. 84:11.

(2)Ro. 9:16.

(3)Ro. 11:6.

b."Freely": "...by the gift and the liberality of God" [Chemnitz, Loci, p. 528]

(1)Ro. 3:21-24.

(2)Ro. 5:15-18.

c."Imputation: 2 kinds

(1)"one of works" (Chemnitz, Loci, p. 530)

(2)"the other of faith" (id)

(3)First: God accepts believer's works, "covering and remitting the stains with which it was tainted" (Chemnitz, Loci, p. 531)

(4)Second: imputation of His righteousness.

(5)Is. 45:24.

(6)Ro. 5:18,19.

(7)Ro. 8:3,4.

(8)1Co. 1:30.

(9)2Co. 5:21.

F.Sanctified

1.Same principle applies.

2.God alone makes us holy.

3.He alone is cause and content of our sanctification.

4.Jn. 17:17.

5.1Co. 1:30.

6.1Pe. 1:2.

III.Conclusion

A.Trusting only in Him.

B.Looking only to His grace, mercy, love, will and purpose.

C.Not a course on how to get "your will" done!

D.Sermon of M. Luther:

"4.These are the two kinds of armor, two weapons of defense, whereby the devil is vanquished and of which he is afraid: First, diligence in hearing, learning and practicing the Word of God, that instruction, comfort and strength may be received; second, sincere petitioning upon the authority of that Word, a crying and calling to God for help when temptations and conflicts arise. One or the other of these weapons of defense must continually be in active exercise, effecting perpetual intercourse between God and man - either God speaking to us while we quietly listen, or God hearing our utterances to Him and our petitions concerning our needs.

Whichever the weapons we wield, it is unendurable to the devil; he cannot abide it. Christians need both equipments, that their hearts may ever turn to God, cleave to His Word, and continually, with ceaseless longing, pray a perpetual Lord's Prayer. Truly, the Christian should learn from the temptations and straits wherewith the devil, the world and the flesh constantly oppress him, to be ever on his guard, watching for the enemy's point of attack; for the enemy sleeps not nor rest a single moment." [Sermons of Martin Luther, Vol. 7, ed. by John Nicholas Lenker, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI., "Sunday After Ascension Day", Text: 1Pe. 4:7-11, pp. 304, 305]