Sep
3
The Futility of Prayer
3 Sep, 2006 | Filed Under Philosophy, Religion
Prayer…. Man’s ultimate act of hoping. It is mostly in times of despair and trouble do people seek prayer. And when all other things fail, one will always “pray”. When our prayers don’t get answered, you’d get to hear someone say, “maybe it is not God’s will” – an easy lame “excuse” when they don’t really have any other answer to give.
First of all, what is the point of praying when everything has been planned and determined?
When Jesus said “Ask and you will receive. Seek and you will find. Knock and it will be opened to you” (Mathew 7:7), he meant to use prayer to seek God, to honour Him, to praise Him and nothing else. He wasn’t describing about asking for things on this earth nor to ask for help.
There is no point in praying for things, help, blessings, etc. because all these things (when, what and how) have already been pre-determined. God already knows your needs even before they came about, He knows what you’re going to pray for even before you even thought of it (Mathew 6:8).
Prayer is an exercise in futility and is used solely and exclusively to worship and honour God.
God is a jealous and insecure god that is why His PRIMARY commandments (the very first 2 in the Ten Commandments) are about Him and for Him:
1. “You shall not have any other gods besides me…. For I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God.” (Exodus 20:3-5)
2. “You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.” (Exodus 3:7)