PRAYER
AND CHARACTER AND CONDUCT
"General
Charles James Gordon, the hero of Khartum, was a truly
Christian soldier. Shut up in the Sudanese town he gallantly
held out for one year, but, finally, was overcome and slain.
On his memorial in Westminster Abbey are these words, 'He gave
his money to the poor; his sympathy to the sorrowing; his life
to his country and his soul to God.'" -- HOMER W.
HODGE.
PRAYER governs
conduct and conduct makes character. Conduct, is what we do;
character, is what we are. Conduct is the outward life.
Character is the life unseen, hidden within, yet evidenced by
that which is seen. Conduct is external, seen from
without; character is internal -- operating within. In the
economy of grace conduct is the offspring of character.
Character is the state of the heart, conduct its outward
expression. Character is the root of the tree, conduct, the
fruit it bears.
Prayer is
related to all the gifts of grace. To character and conduct its
relation is that of a helper. Prayer helps to establish
character and fashion conduct, and both for their successful
continuance depend on prayer. There may be a certain degree of
moral character and conduct independent of prayer, but there
cannot be anything like distinctive religious character and
Christian conduct without it. Prayer helps, where all other aids
fail. The more we pray, the better we are, the purer and better
our lives.
The very end
and purpose of the atoning work of Christ is to create religious
character and to make Christian conduct.
"Who
gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all
iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous
of good works."
In Christ's
teaching, it is not simply works of charity and deeds of mercy
upon which He insists, but inward spiritual character. This much
is demanded, and nothing short of it, will suffice.
In the study of
Paul's Epistles, there is one thing which stands out, clearly
and unmistakably -- the insistence on holiness of heart, and
righteousness of life. Paul does not seek, so much, to promote
what is termed "personal work," nor is the leading
theme of his letters deeds of charity. It is the condition of
the human heart and the blamelessness of the personal life,
which form the burden of the writings of St. Paul.
Elsewhere in
the Scriptures, too, it is character and conduct which are made
preeminent. The Christian religion deals with men who are devoid
of spiritual character, and unholy in life, and aims so to
change them, that they become holy in heart and righteous in
life. It aims to change bad men into good men; it deals with
inward badness, and works to change it into inward goodness. And
it is just here where prayer enters and demonstrates its
wonderful efficacy and fruit. Prayer drives toward this specific
end. In fact, without prayer, no such supernatural change in
moral character, can ever be effected. For the change from
badness to goodness is not wrought "by works of
righteousness which we have done," but according to God's
mercy, which saves us "by the washing of
regeneration." And this marvellous change is brought to
pass through earnest, persistent, faithful prayer. Any alleged
form of Christianity, which does not effect this change in the
hearts of men, is a delusion and a snare.
The office of
prayer is to change the character and conduct of men, and in
countless instances, has been wrought by prayer. At this point,
prayer, by its credentials, has proved its divinity. And just as
it is the office of prayer to effect this, so it is the prime
work of the Church to take hold of evil men and make them good.
Its mission is to change human nature, to change character,
influence behaviour, to revolutionize conduct. The Church is
presumed to be righteous, and should be engaged in turning men
to righteousness. The Church is God's manufactory on earth, and
its primary duty is to create and foster righteousness of
character. This is its very first business. Primarily, its work
is not to acquire members, nor amass numbers, nor aim at
money-getting, nor engage in deeds of charity and works of
mercy, but to produce righteousness of character, and purity of
the outward life.
A product
reflects and partakes of the character of the manufactory which
makes it. A righteous Church with a righteous purpose makes
righteous men. Prayer produces cleanliness of heart and purity
of life. It can produce nothing else. Unrighteous conduct is
born of prayerlessness; the two go hand-in-hand. Prayer and
sinning cannot keep company with each other. One, or the other,
must, of necessity, stop. Get men to pray, and they will quit
sinning, because prayer creates a distaste for sinning, and so
works upon the heart, that evil-doing becomes repugnant, and the
entire nature lifted to a reverent contemplation of high and
holy things.
Prayer is based
on character. What we are with God gauges our influence with
Him. It was the inner character, not the outward seeming, of
such men as Abraham, Job, David, Moses and all others, who had
such great influence with God in the days of old. And, today, it
is not so much our words, as what we really are, which weighs
with God. Conduct affects character, of course, and counts for
much in our praying. At the same time, character affects conduct
to a far greater extent, and has a superior influence over
prayer. Our inner life not only gives colour to our praying, but
body, as well. Bad living means bad praying and, in the end, no
praying at all. We pray feebly because we live feebly. The
stream of prayer cannot rise higher than the fountain of living.
The force of the inner chamber is made up of the energy which
flows from the confluent streams of living. And the weakness of
living grows out of the shallowness and shoddiness of character.
Feebleness of
living reflects its debility and langour in the praying hours.
We simply cannot talk to God, strongly, intimately, and
confidently unless we are living for Him, faithfully and truly.
The prayer-closet cannot become sanctified unto God, when the
life is alien to His precepts and purpose. We must learn this
lesson well -- that righteous character and Christlike conduct
give us a peculiar and preferential standing in prayer before
God. His holy Word gives special emphasis to the part conduct
has in imparting value to our praying when it declares:
"Then
shalt thou call and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and
He shall say, Here I am; if thou take away from the midst of
thee the yoke, the putting forth the finger, and speaking
vanity."
The wickedness of
Israel and their heinous practices were definitely cited by
Isaiah, as the reason why God would turn His ears away from
their prayers:
"And
when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from
you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your
hands are full of blood."
The
same sad truth was declared by the Lord through the mouth of
Jeremiah:
"Therefore,
pray not thou for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer
for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry
unto Me for their trouble."
Here, it is
plainly stated, that unholy conduct is a bar to successful
praying, just as it is clearly intimated that, in order to have
full access to God in prayer, there must be a total abandonment
of conscious and premeditated sin.
We are enjoined
to pray, "lifting up holy hands, without wrath and
doubting," and must pass the time of our sojourning here,
in a rigorous abstaining from evil if we are to retain our
privilege of calling upon the Father. We cannot, by any process,
divorce praying from conduct.
"Whatsoever
we ask, we receive of Him, because we keep His commandments,
and do those things which are pleasing in His sight."
And James declares
roundly that men ask and receive not, because they ask amiss,
and seek only the gratification of selfish desires.
Our Lord's
injunction, "Watch ye, and pray always," is to cover
and guard all our conduct, so that we may come to our inner
chamber with all its force secured by a vigilant guard kept over
our lives.
"And
take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be
overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of
this life, and so that day come upon you unawares."
Quite often,
Christian experience founders on the rock of conduct. Beautiful
theories are marred by ugly lives. The most difficult thing
about piety, as it is the most impressive, is to be able to live
it. It is the life which counts, and our praying suffers, as do
other phases of our religious experience, from bad living.
In primitive
times preachers were charged to preach by their lives, or not to
preach at all. So, today, Christians, everywhere, ought to be
charged to pray by their lives, or not to pray at all. The most
effective preaching, is not that which is heard from the pulpit,
but that which is proclaimed quietly, humbly and consistently;
which exhibits its excellencies in the home, and in the
community. Example preaches a far more effective sermon than
precept. The best preaching, even in the pulpit, is that which
is fortified by godly living, in the preacher, himself. The most
effective work done by the pew is preceded by, and accompanied
with, holiness of life, separation from the world, severance
from sin. Some of the strongest appeals are made with mute lips
-- by godly fathers and saintly mothers who, around the
fireside, feared God, loved His cause, and daily exhibited to
their children and others about them, the beauties and
excellencies of Christian life and conduct.
The
best-prepared, most eloquent sermon can be marred and rendered
ineffective, by questionable practices in the preacher. The most
active church worker can have the labour of his hands vitiated
by worldliness of spirit and inconsistency of life. Men preach
by their lives, not by their words, and sermons are delivered,
not so much in, and from a pulpit, as in tempers, actions, and
the thousand and one incidents which crowd the pathway of daily
life.
Of course, the
prayer of repentance is acceptable to God. He delights in
hearing the cries of penitent sinners. But repentance involves
not only sorrow for sin, but the turning away from wrong-doing,
and the learning to do well. A repentance which does not produce
a change in character and conduct, is a mere sham, which should
deceive nobody. Old things must pass away, all things must
become new.
Praying, which
does not result in right thinking and right living, is a farce.
We have missed the whole office of prayer if it fail to purge
character and rectify conduct. We have failed entirely to
apprehend the virtue of prayer, if it bring not about the
revolutionizing of the life. In the very nature of things, we
must quit praying, or our bad conduct. Cold, formal praying may
exist side by side, with bad conduct, but such praying, in the
estimation of God, is no praying at all. Our praying advances in
power, just in so far as it rectifies the life. Growing in
purity and devotion to God will be a more prayerful life.
The character
of the inner life is a condition of effectual praying. As is the
life, so will the praying be. An inconsistent life obstructs
praying and neutralizes what little praying we may do. Always,
it is "the prayer of the righteous man which availeth
much." Indeed, one may go further and assert, that it is
only the prayer of the righteous which avails anything at all --
at any time. To have an eye to God's glory; to be possessed by
an earnest desire to please Him in all our ways; to possess
hands busy in His service; to have feet swift to run in the way
of His commandments -- these give weight and influence and power
to prayer, and secure an audience with God. The incubus of our
lives often breaks the force of our praying, and, not
unfrequently, are as doors of brass, in the face of prayer.
Praying must
come out of a cleansed heart and be presented and urged with the
"lifting up of holy hands." It must be fortified by a
life aiming, unceasingly, to obey God, to attain conformity to
the Divine law, and to come into submission to the Divine will.
Let it not be
forgotten, that, while life is a condition of prayer, prayer is
also the condition of righteous living. Prayer promotes
righteous living, and is the one great aid to uprightness of
heart and life. The fruit of real praying is right living.
Praying sets him who prays to the great business of
"working out his salvation with fear and trembling;"
puts him to watching his temper, conversation and conduct;
causes him to "walk circumspectly, redeeming the
time;" enables him to "walk worthy of the vocation
wherewith he is called, with all lowliness and meekness;"
gives him a high incentive to pursue his pilgrimage consistently
by "shunning every evil way, and walking in the good."
