Prayer Gets God's Attention and Action
Prayer gets answered. That much is true when you familiarize yourself with scripture. In fact, God is so committed to answering our prayers sometimes the scripture interrupts us with a short story to inform us just how often prayer gets answered. The story is familiar to many Christians. The name has been in the title of books and sermons. It's the one name that stands out other than David in the first 4 chapters of the genealogical record of 1 Chronicles.
1 Chronicles 4:9–10 (ESV) Jabez was more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” 10 Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm so that it might not bring me pain!” And God granted what he asked.
This text comes alive when you consider its context. The list of names goes on and on. The order and delivery were hugely important for Israel to find themselves on the way back from exile. But out of the midst of that moment is this pause to share with us the story of God's faithful answer to a bold servant.
Jabez had reason to think he wasn't worthy. His name means "pain" because the labor was so intense it stuck in his mother's mind and became his title. We should note that mothers did not name children in ancient Israel. Recall how John the Baptist's name was only confirmed once his father wrote it down. Was Jabez fatherless? That would be even more impactful in the midst of a long list of who fathered who. Jabez pops out of nowhere with no named father or mother.
Yet Jabez did not let what he did not have or what others named him become the legacy of his life. I like that. Because we all get "named" by someone or something. For some, it's where we are from. For others is what we look like, weigh, or how tall we are. For others, it's based on our intellect or history. Perhaps you've been carrying around a name in your life that someone placed on you because to them you were "pain" in their lives even though you were innocent like Jabez would have been as a birthing child.
Here's the deal: Jabez decided he did not need to be the result of the assumptions people made about him based on where he came from. He did something that brought him HONOR. He did something that did not require having a father or great lineage of ancestry. He prayed.
We must not miss that Jabez gained honor among his peers through prayer. He called on God for blessing and God gave it. Think of this one point above all else for a moment. Prayer elevates YOUR LIFE. I know you can be tricked by the devil to think prayer is doing God a favor, or performing a ritualistic service. NO. Prayer is your lifeline to a better day because God delights in answering prayers. Prayer is a small sign of faith. If you didn't believe God could do it, you would not pray it. But prayer says, "I believe God can and God will answer me." Pray and you will see better days.
Finally, we should note that Jabez wanted more than just a good life. He wanted God with him. He prayed, 'That your hand might be WITH ME." So many times we want the blessing but not the blessor. God is all about being "with us." The name Emmanuel means "God with us." To have the blessing without God is like getting a tan without the sun. You can have it and it may look good, but it ultimately leaves you in the dark.
Now we should back up in the text to see something significant. Jabez prayed for an enlarged border. He wanted a plot of land. In Israel, the land was passed down through the fathers to their sons and they were forever linked to the fountainhead of the family or clan. remember Jabez has no father in a long list of who fathered who. But if we go back to the long chapter that lists the descendants of David we find this:
1 Chronicles 2:55 (ESV) The clans also of the scribes who lived at Jabez: the Tirathites, the Shimeathites and the Sucathites. These are the Kenites who came from Hammath, the father of the house of Rechab.
Jabez did not simply get an answer to his prayer. He got a plot of land where those who copied and guarded scripture lived. Those same scribes would have been familiar with Jabez's record in the text. I wonder if they got the message of Jabez's life? You can know the scripture inside and out. But having a heart for God, a hunger for his presence and provision, and a commitment to calling out to Him for your life will make all the difference.
ENJOYING THIS CONTENT?
Comments
Post a Comment