The Tongue - Edition #31: Pray and Petition

May 11th, 2006

The Tongue – Edition #31: Pray and Petition

Goodness, I am tired. Today is the last of the three days of IV steroids. A friend of mine took me this morning, for which I am very grateful. It was good to spend time with friends, just to hang out and chill and whatnot. It’s good to not have to worry about what people think of you, wondering if they are judging you, and all the superficial things that go with that. It is just comforting. Mother’s Day is coming up on the 14th, for those of you who may have slipped from your mind. It keeps slipping from mine.

Petition (noun):

1. A formal message requesting something that is submitted to an authority.


2. Reverent prayer to God.

Pray (verb): (now this is from the Devil’s dictionary, so do be cautious)

1. To ask that the laws of the universe be voided on behalf of a single person to be confessedly unworthy.

1st Chronicles 16:1-36
They brought the ark of God and set it inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and they presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before God. After David had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD. Then he gave a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and a cake of raisins to each Israelite man and woman.

He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel: Asaph was the chief, Zechariah second, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-Edom and Jeiel. They were to play the lyres and harps, Asaph was to sound the cymbals, and Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests were to blow the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God.

That day David first committed to Asaph and his associates this psalm of thanks to the LORD: Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced, O descendants of Israel his servant, O sons of Jacob, his chosen ones. He is the LORD our God; his judgments are in all the earth. He remembers his covenant forever, the word he commanded, for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac. He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant: “To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you will inherit.” When they were but few in number, few indeed, and strangers in it, they wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another. He allowed no man to oppress them; for their sake he rebuked kings: “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm.” Sing to the LORD, all the earth; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy in his dwelling place. Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength, ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name. Bring an offering and come before him; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness. Tremble before him, all the earth! The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved. Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let them say among the nations, “The LORD reigns!” Let the sea resound, and all that is in it; let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them! Then the trees of the forest will sing, they will sing for joy before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Cry out, “Save us, O God our Savior; gather us and deliver us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name, that we may glory in your praise.” Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Then all the people said “Amen” and “Praise the LORD.”

1st Chronicles 16:4 petition:
zâkar
zaw-kar'
A primitive root; properly to mark (so as to be recognized), that is, to remember; by implication to mention; also (as denominative from H2145) to be male: - X burn [incense], X earnestly, be male, (make) mention (of), be mindful, recount, record (-er), remember, make to be remembered, bring (call, come, keep, put) to (in) remembrance, X still, think on, X well.

Now, I’ll be the first to say, I don’t know how that got from here to petition… but somehow they did. And it is Old Testament and trusted, so I don’t know if I am going to be one to necessarily question it, but I think it may be of something deeper.

A different definition (and this is why it is good to research, and then research again.):

Petition (noun):

1. A formal written document requesting a right or benefit from a person or group in authority.

This type of petition was more for the documentation type. It was for the remembrance type, to instill and to keep records. The Levites did the praying, and rightfully so. But David wanted them to also keep records so that the history wouldn’t be quickly forgotten. As we know, as time does pass, history does gloss over things. They banged on double tinklers and played harps. It was the custom of the day. Now, if you want to read a discouraging verse after all this stuff, check this out:

1st Chronicles 16:36 Amen:
'âmên
aw-mane'
Sure; abstractly faithfulness; adverbially truly: - Amen, so be it, truth.

So, let’s pretend you’re up there, you do this huge sermon and pray your heart out, you talk about what all that God’s people have been through to get to the Promised Land, and then they respond, “Sure. Praise the Lord.” I don’t know… I would want an explanation point at the end of that sentence. I guess that’s just me. In fact, “So be it. Praise the Lord.” or “Truth. Praise the Lord.” I don’t know. The period simply throws me off. And maybe that’s why the Israelites struggled so much in the desert. I’m sure there is more than just one reason and it really goes down to the heart of the matter. They get this great stuff, it’s like the great commission, sing to God, proclaim his salvation day end and day out. Declare his glory among the nations, to everyone. I mean, didn’t Christ himself say this in Matthew? And the Israelites go: “Sure. Praise the Lord.”

Luke 17:5
The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”

Luke 17:5 increase:
prostithēmi
pros-tith'-ay-mee
To place additionally, that is, lay beside, annex, repeat: - add, again, give more, increase, lay unto, proceed further, speak to any more.

Luke 17:5 faith:
pistis
pis'-tis
Persuasion, that is, credence; moral conviction (of religious truth, or the truthfulness of God or a religious teacher), especially reliance upon Christ for salvation; abstractly constancy in such profession; by extension the system of religious (Gospel) truth itself: - assurance, belief, believe, faith, fidelity.

Lord, give me more moral conviction, more reliance upon Christ for salvation and truth itself. Increase my faith. Johnny Out.