Ecclesiasticus 35,16. Rogate

Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 35,16-22a           3021 

Rogate 040

Job 

Hermas, Romans 16,14

9. Mai 2021

1. O Lord God, Heavenly Father, who through Your Son did promise us that whatsoever we ask in His name You will give us: We beseech You, keep us in Your Word, and grant us Your Holy Spirit, so that He may govern us according to Your will; protect us from the power of the Devil, from false doctrine and worship; also defend our lives against all danger; grant us Your blessing and peace, so that we may in all things perceive Your merciful help, and both now and forever praise and glorify You as our Gracious Father.  Amen. (Veit Dietrich) 

2. »He will not show partiality to the poor; but He will listen to the prayer of one who is wronged. ¹⁷He will not ignore the supplication of the orphan, or the widow when she pours out her complaint. ¹⁸Do not the tears of the widow run down her cheek ¹⁹as she cries out against the one who causes them to fall? ²⁰The one whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted, and his prayer will reach to the clouds. ²¹The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds, and it will not rest until it reaches its goal; it will not desist until the Most High responds ²²and does justice for the righteous, and executes judgment.«  

3. Jesus comforts His apostles on the eve of His betrayal: »In Me you have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but take heart, I have conquered the world« (John 16,33). 

4. The Book of Ecclesiasticus/Sirach is a work of Jewish ethical teachings circa 200 - 175 bc that is profitable to read and contemplate upon. In its 35. chapter, Sirach tells us that God always listens to the prayer of the one wronged and to the petition of those who are downtrodden. In the 18. chapter of John, the apostles would experience tribulation and humility as they watch Jesus betrayed, falsely accused and crucified. Before this happened Jesus promised them that they have peace in Him, and then He prays for them that they remain in the faith as they endure days of extreme trial and fear. 

5. In these days of social media, perhaps you’ve responded, or seen the response, to someone who posts a tragic event, saying: „My thoughts and prayers are with you.“ You likewise probably read someone else’s critique of that expression: „Well, thoughts and prayers don’t amount to much.“ The Bible and our Christian faith, however, claim that our prayers do, in fact, amount to much. Consider, for example, the plight recently in India where hundreds of thousands have tested positive for Covid. We hear that, but we are in no position to offer any tangible and meaningful assistance from half a world away; all we can do is keep them in our thoughts and prayers.   

6. James tells us in his epistle: »If you are suffering, then pray. If you are sick, then pray. The prayer of a righteous person availeth much« (James 5,13-14,16). Jesus taught us to pray the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus prayed for His disciples just hours before He was arrested. Paul exhorts us to pray at all times in the Spirit, with prayer and supplication, for prayer is one piece of the armor of God (Ephesians 6,18). 

7. Prayer is never ineffective because God is involved when we pray. Paul reminds us: »The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know what to pray for as we ought but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. The Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God« (Romans 8,26-27). A simple prayer is effective and amounts to much because the Holy Spirit is with us to make our prayers more than just thoughts and words but action on the part of God Himself.  

8. Sirach puts it more poetically: »The prayer of a humble pierces the clouds, and it will not rest until it reaches its goal. The scoffer looks at prayer and considers it ineffective and a poor response because the scoffer only views prayer one dimensionally, that is, horizontally. The Scriptures tell us that prayer is a four dimensional action that involves space and time. God hears our prayers and acts in height, width and depth; time is no barrier for Him. God acts on a global scale, mustering resources, deploying them and helping people in an instant. 

9. God hears the prayers of His people, and He does justice for the righteous. God’s righteousness is grounded upon Jesus Christ. God desires all people to be saved and to arrive at the knowledge of truth in Jesus, for Christ is the one and only Mediator between God the Father and us (1. Timothy 2,4-5). Jesus gave Himself as a ransom for all (1. Timothy 2,6); He gives us His righteousness. We pass on the blessings of that righteousness to others: we keep them in our thoughts, we pray for them and we believe that the Holy Spirit will work through us and others to meet their physical and spiritual needs.  Amen. 

10. Let us pray. O Blessed God, who rejects not the prayers of His people; pour out upon us and our neighbors Your steadfast love, so that we rejoice in Your grace and mercy amen.  Amen. 

To God alone be the Glory 

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

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All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4. Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 28. Revised Edition © 2012 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart. 

ELKB. Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. www.bayern-evangelisch.de/www/index.php. Copyright © 2019 Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. 

VELKD. Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. www.velkd.de. Copyright © 2020 Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands.