“ROGATE: PRAY YE—CHRIST PRAYS THE HOLY SPIRIT TO YOU”
Saint John 16: 23-30
Rogate: 22 May Anno Domini 2022
Fr Jay Watson, SSP
Jesus begins: “verily, verily,” i.e., truly, truly, I say unto you. Jesus speaks truth to you because He is Truth enfleshed! Listen to Him. Hear Him. You’ve got ears, don’t you? He’s the One that gave you those ears.
The only reason anyone might have “difficulties” with this morning’s Gospel text is…well, the same reason they would troubles with any text, with any section of Holy Scripture that would go against their nature. It’s why you don’t obey The Commandments. Your old nature is sinful and unclean. Your inborn sinner wants what it wants.
You approach our Lord’s words hearing them like a young spoiled child who only hears its own voice: “I want, I want.”
Jesus said “whatsoever ye shall ask The Father in My Name, He will give it you.” Well, “there you go” you’ll say. “I’ve done that it doesn’t work at all!” God must either be lying or He doesn’t exist.
How’s your prayer discipline going? I could also say “prayer-life” since all of your life should be in communication/communion with God. But also, it is a discipline. If you don’t practice praying—disciplining yourself (forcing yourself) with habits of time, place, duration, format, etc. you won’t pray. If you don’t exercise your body will grow flabby and weak. If you don’t stimulate your mind your brain will dull and seize up. If you don’t pray you will be a weak, baby, Christian. Without The Lord in your mind’s consciousness, DAILY, you will be prone to becoming the devil’s prey—possibly an apostate.
What does The Christ want? He wants His disciples, that’s you, to be “In Him,” and that He be “in you.” This is The Lord’s wish and desire that you would constantly hear His Word preached and taught to you in its truth and purity. BE IN CHURCH EVERY WEEK. It is in The Mass that He gives Himself to you and “for you.” Yes, also read your Bible daily—again, we call it discipline.
What does The Christ want? As Paul writes to Timothy, The Lord “…will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” [1 Ti. 2.4].
Some of you may actually think of yourselves as prayer warriors—daily petitioning The Lord for “good and righteous things,” so you believe. That’s not to be dismissed. You pray for all the things that you think you need and that you “know” your loved ones, and less fortunate ones, “need.” And then, you note that it doesn’t happen, not enough, sometimes seemingly not at all. I’m sorry. The Church is sorry. Luther is sorry. And this is not meant to be flippant or condescending. Paul no doubt prayed that he could go on to Spain and preach Jesus—preach The Gospel so that more would be saved. Paul was not The Savior. Jesus will be preached by those He choses when and where He chooses.
Yes, you should pray always! Paul says that. Yes, you should pray fervently with muscle and intense focus! Christ indicates that in His parables.
Prayer doesn’t change God. Prayer changes you. Prayer gives you God’s Word and The Word works. This is why when you pray you should minimize the personal “I wants, or I needs” and pray the historic collects, The Psalter, the Our Father. The Lord’s Words are truth and purity—so pray them. He knows what you need. He daily and richly provides you with all you need. Re-read the Small Catechism and the explanation to both the 1st Article of The Creed as well as the explanations to the 2nd and 3rd Commandments. You’ve got your Small Catechism handy…don’t you? It’s right next to your Bible and Hymnal (and prayer books/breviaries) at home…right?
What does The Christ want? He wants you to be saved, to have your sins forgiven. He wants you to have life IN HIS NAME now and in eternity. He wants you to eat and drink with Him in Glory—with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He wants you practicing for that by feasting NOW on His Sacred Body and Precious Blood in The Sacrament. He wants you to worship and glorify Him—not so much for His power and majesty but for His love and mercy—His Grace towards you. That Grace was in His innocent suffering and death at Calvary for all of you sins and sin.
He wants The Grace He has freely poured out upon you in His Words, His Holy + Baptism of you, His constant absolution of you in confession & absolution, His proclamation of Peace through Preaching, and His saving Meal of Eucharist, to have you IN HIM by Faith.
What does The Christ want? He wants you to trust Him.
That’s what prayer does. That’s even what selfish prayer (sometimes) or ego-centric “lists of wants” prayer does—when both go unanswered. That’s what Luther mentions in the 3rd Petition of the Lord’s Prayer, to-wit: “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. What does this mean? The good and gracious will of God is done indeed without our prayer; be we pray in this petition that it may be done among us also.” The Reformer goes on “…When God strengthens and preserves us steadfast in His Word and faith unto our end.”
He has your prayer life/discipline resemble His own prayers to The Father—both in Gethsemane and on The Cross. Jesus shapes you into His own cruciform in your prayers, i.e., in His Words and His person.
That’s it. His Name, His Work. “Whatsoever ye shall ask The Father IN MY NAME, He will give it you. His Name if Savior—Saving One—Salvation for all that belong to Him from before creation. He knows His own and His own hear His voice. Hence, every Christian prayer usually ends in the termination “IN Jesus’s Name…”
So simply pray what you pray but know—believe, teach, and confess, WITH CHRIST—Heavenly Father, THY WILL BE DONE. And regardless of your presuppositions, trust that Christ’s will is always done.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of The Holy Ghost
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