Prayer of the Day: Almighty and merciful God, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth, stir up in us a spirit of prayer and compassion. Teach us to pray on behalf of all—our neighbors, our rulers, and those who preach Your Word—that Your Gospel may be proclaimed, Your will be done, and Your mercy known throughout the earth; through Jesus Christ, our only Mediator and Redeemer, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

In Christ Jesus, our precious Savior and Lord, dear fellow redeemed:

“How are you doing?” I would imagine that everyone here today has been asked that question more than once. Depending on who asks the question, you might well anticipate additional questions. If a friend you have not seen for some time asks the question, you might expect that friend to go on to ask questions like: “How is your husband or wife,” or “how is your family?” If your doctor asks you that question, you might expect him or her to go on to ask: “Have you been sticking with the low-fat, low-cholesterol diet I recommended,” or “have you been exercising regularly?” If your pastor asks you that question, he might go on to ask: “Have you been reading your Bible regularly,” or “how is your prayer life going?”

It is concerning that last subject that I wish to speak to you today—your prayer life. I would imagine that most if not all of us pray at meals and before going to bed. We no doubt pray during times of crisis and to express our thankfulness to God for blessings received. I would imagine that we pray about our personal needs, our family needs, and perhaps even our congregational and national needs. If, however, there is a weakness in our prayer lives, I would imagine that it would be this—that the scope of our prayers is often much too narrow. Paul addresses that issue in our text today, and based on these words I would encourage you—BRETHREN, LET US PRAY!

I.

LET US PRAY for all mankind! Paul writes: “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men.” Notice how Paul immediately broadens the scope of our prayer life. We can and should pray for ourselves, our families, our friends, and our acquaintances, but let us not limit our prayer to those few categories. Let us instead pray for all people!

You may or may not know this, but Martin Luther had an amazing prayer life. He would pray for hours at a time. He always maintained: “Well-prayed was half-done!” The more things he had to do, the more time he spent in prayer. We are told by those who knew Luther well, that during the Diet of Augsburg in 1530, Luther, who could not be present at the proceedings because he had been banned by the emperor, spent three hours each day in prayer on behalf of the Lutheran representatives at that meeting. I remember that as a student I wanted to emulate Luther. I decided that I too would begin praying more often and for longer periods of time, but I often found myself running out of things to pray for after about ten to fifteen minutes. I wondered how Luther could pray for hours, when I could not even think of enough things to pray about to fill up fifteen minutes. As I have matured, I have added many more people and things to my prayer lists. Studying this text, however, has forced me to once again reexamine my prayer life and broaden the scope of my prayers. I have not been but need to begin praying “for all men.”

Why should we do this? Paul writes: “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.” That, in and of itself, should be enough to lead us to pray for all people. If it is something pleasing to God, it should be pleasing and delightful to us. We are, after all, the bride of Christ. We have been washed clean of our sin. We love Him because He first loved us. We should and do want to please Him. If an engaged couple here in this world didn’t care about what each other wanted, such a relationship is destined for trouble. By the Holy Spirit, we know how much He loves us and we do love Him in return. Even so, we want to fill our lives with those things that please our heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus.

Paul also writes, “God…desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Herein lies the focus of our prayers for all people—their eternal salvation. We can and should pray for the physical welfare of all people—that famines cease, that life is spared amidst natural disasters, that peace reigns between nations. Yet above and beyond those issues, our God has greater concerns and plans for human beings, including you. In His love our heavenly Father sent His Son to save the world by His sacrifice. This includes you. God has forgiven all your sins. God the Father wants you and all people to know of their forgiveness and to share in the blessed results of His Son’s redemptive work.

Consequently, let us expand our prayers with the salvation of souls specifically in mind. God has saved you and me a sinner. Let us pray for the souls of our friends and neighbors. Let us pray for those members of our community whom we do not know, asking that God might give us opportunities to share His Word with them. When we hear about the Russians and the Ukrainians, the Jews, and the Palestinians, let us not simply shake our heads and suggest that those people should just get along. Rather, let us pray that the Spirit of God would open doors for Christians…for us to bring a message of love and reconciliation to those war-torn lands. BRETHREN, LET US PRAY for all people!

II.

BRETHREN, LET US also PRAY for all in authority! Paul writes: “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority.” The news coming out of Washington DC and other centers of political power in our country is usually not encouraging. There is corruption and accusation of corruption. There is greed, constant bickering, and finger pointing. No wonder people complain about government all the time. As individual Christians, I would urge you not to spend your time complaining about our government, but rather in praying for those individuals and those institutions which make up our government!

Paul, who was not dealing with a democratically elected government, urges us to pray for “all who are in authority.” Why? Paul writes: “That we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.” The purpose of government is to protect the lives and property of its citizenry. The government is to punish the evildoer and reward those who do good. Let us not simply complain when things go wrong but rather let us pray that our leaders would conduct themselves with honesty and integrity. Let us pray that our fellow citizens might walk humbly before our Creator-Savior God! Let us thank God for the many blessings He has bestowed upon our country, not the least of which is the religious freedom we enjoy. Let us pray that God grant us the wisdom to conduct ourselves in such a way that we might use our freedoms wisely and in ways which will glorify our heavenly Father and benefit our fellow men. Yes, BRETHREN, LET US PRAY for all in authority!

III.

And BRETHREN, LET US finally PRAY for all appointed to preach! Paul writes: “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.” Paul reminds us here that the message of Christ is something to which we are to testify. All of us, in view of the great commission, are to share the message of the gospel. Let us pray that God would give us a clear understanding and the necessary ability to share with others the truth that there is only one, true God and that there is only one means of eternal salvation—Jesus Christ!

Many years ago, I took a vicar out on a mission call and invited a young rancher to church. Just north and just south of his ranch, two other ranchers lived—both members of our small congregation. After that young man took instruction and joined the church, both members stopped by the parsonage at different times to sheepishly confess that they had never thought to ask their neighbor to come to church. They assumed that he and his mother had their own church and would not be interested. My dear friends, let us never assume anything, but rather pray that God would fill us up with a love for Jesus, “who gave Himself a ransom for all!” Let us keep before our own eyes our personal salvation, for then the joy we know will be a joy we share!

Let us also remember specific individuals and their gospel ministries. One of the high points of our last year’s CLC Convention was the declarations of fellowship confirmed by the convention’s delegates with three different pastors and the people they serve: Pastor Mugeni and the Confessional Church of the Reformation in Uganda; Pastor Lumiangu and the Église Confesssionnelle Luthérenne Sainte Famille au Congo; and Pastor Palangyos and the Lutheran Autonomous Mission in the Philippines. In addition, it was reported that we are now in fellowship with seventeen different church bodies in fourteen different countries with a total membership of over 135,000 people. My dear friends, let us lift our hearts and voices in prayer for these men, women, and children. May the LORD bless them and strengthen them amidst the variety of trials and troubles they face. Let us pray for our three missionaries—Todd Ohlmann, Peter Evensen, and Bruce Naumann. Let us pray for the orphans, the widows, and the seminary students supported by the Kinship program. Let us pray for the success of all members of the Holy Christian Church, so that the gospel is proclaimed effectively throughout this world and the souls of many will be saved!

Concern was expressed at the convention that we presently have only one home mission, the smallest number in the entire sixty-five-year history of our synod. Concern was also frequently voiced regarding our shortage of pastors and teachers and the need to encourage more young people to pursue careers in the pastoral and teaching ministries. Could it be that these situations have arisen, at least in part because the scope of our prayer lives has been too limited. The apostle James once said: “You do not have because you do not ask” (Jam. 4:2). Dear friends, let us open our eyes to the needs all around us and the encouragement the Scriptures give us! Indeed, let us broaden the scope of our prayer lives—BRETHREN, LET US PRAY! Amen.

—Rev. Paul Nolting

Mankato, MN

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