The Church in Prayer
Victory Life Sherman / Online
Sunday, August 16, 2020 — Psalm 93 – “The Lord Reigns”
Faith is not manipulative or transactional
Faith is covenant relationship and cooperative obedience
Prayer is one of the most powerful and important things the church can do
The primary purpose of prayer is relationship,
and in that relationship we are transformed
Prayer must be primarily about being with God,
not primarily about asking something from God
“Enthronement Psalms”
Psalms 93-99 — “YHWH is King.”
Psalm 93:1-5 (ESV)
The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt.
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.
Your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.
The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
mightier than the waves of the sea,
the Lord on high is mighty!
Your decrees are very trustworthy;
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, forevermore.
In prayer, the church lives from a reality that is not shaped by public policy and political pundits, but God’s sovereign reign
Psalm 93:1-2 (ESV)
The Lord reigns;
he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed;
he has put on strength as his belt.
Yes, the world is established;
it shall never be moved.
Your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.
Human kings dress themselves in fine ornamental clothing, God’s robes are His majesty. Human kings wield a scepter in court and a sword into battle, but God’s weapon is His strength.
Just as solid as the earth is beneath our feet, more so is the solidity of God’s throne.
As a result of God’s stable rule and reign, the world is stable.
Psalm 93:3 (ESV)
The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
The earth may be solid and unmoving, but the floods of unruliness easily sweep us off our feet and batter us against the rocks and under the waves.
Psalm 93:4 (ESV)
Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
mightier than the waves of the sea,
the Lord on high is mighty!
Three times the floods lift up their voice; three times the Lord’s might proves sovereign.
Our faith that God is sovereign and actively ruling in time moves the church into appropriate action.
Psalm 93:5 (ESV)
Your decrees are very trustworthy;
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, forevermore.
The waves are subdued by the word
“The means by which God puts His rule into effect is word not muscle, decrees not armies, creative speech not coercive act.” ~ Eugene Peterson
We trust that God’s word is trustworthy and sure, no matter what today’s headlines say or the experts report. We believe God reigns, no matter how we feel or what we see.
In covenant relationship, as in the love song of Song of Songs, there is the collision of the two sovereign wills of the two lovers, without force or acquiescence, unite in loving, passionate, responsive relationship.
In covenantal relationship, God adorns His people with the beauty of His holiness. His beauty gradually and patiently penetrates our desecrated lives, as we live in humble submission and cooperative obedience.
Prayer is not patiently waiting for His rule to come into effect sometime in the future, but patiently participating in His rule in the present.
Three lines of violent waters
Three lines of the Lord’s mightier rule
Three lines of the way His rule comes into effect
Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV) And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Covenant Relationship / Cooperative Obedience