Romans 8:26-27 – Do You Need Help Praying?
An unknown Confederate soldier wrote these words:
I asked God for strength that I might achieve.
I was made weak that I might learn humbly to obey.
I asked God for health that I might do greater things.
I was given infirmity that I might do better things.
I asked for riches that I might be happy.
I was given poverty that I might be wise.
I asked for power that I might have the praise of men.
I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy life.
I was given life that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing that I asked for – but everything I had hoped for…
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.
I am among all men most richly blessed.
You know, prayer is a challenge. If it weren’t hard, people would do it more often. We would have as many people to prayer meeting as we have on Sunday mornings, we wouldn’t have books and books on how to pray, and the apostle Paul would not have written this paragraph… if, prayer came easy. Let’s read Romans 8:26-27.
Norwegian theologian Ole Hallesby gives a very good definition of prayer. He says, “To pray is nothing more involved that to let Jesus into our needs. To pray is to give Jesus permission to employ His powers in the alleviation of our distress.”
Now, that sounds simple enough, but prayer takes time. It takes effort. It takes humbling. And these aren’t so simple. It would be easier to pray if we received instant results from our prayers. Like a loonie in a vending machine, “instant in, instant out”. But God does not punish sin instantly, nor does He answer prayer instantly. I think the reason is that God’s best gift to us is not whatever we prayer for. I think God’s best gift to us is to teach us – about Himself, about ourselves, about His ways. And one thing that God certainly is, is patient. So, He wants to teach us to wait for Him.
In fact, God wants to teach us to pray. And like any other schooling, prayer involves some work. An anonymous author wrote these words: “‘Twas He who taught me thus to pray/ And I know He has answered prayer,/ But it has been in such a way/ As almost drove me to despair.” Again, God is not looking for a quick fix of your situation, but a long-term fix of your character. Which is occasionally painful.
But the plus side is that God is on our side in the process. Our scripture today says that the Holy Spirit is right along there with us in our prayers. And what I find encouraging is one word in today’s passage: groans. It’s the same word that we looked at last week in connection to suffering. V22 says that the whole creation is groaning, as if it’s giving birth to something beautiful. No matter how glorious the new life is, it still hurts to bring it about.
And v23 says that we who are God’s children are also groaning, burning and yearning for the glorious future ahead of us. We are in anguish over the situation of the world, and we are in anguish over the fact that even though we really want to serve God with our whole hearts, everything around us holds us back. And it frustrates us. That’s why we are longing for something better, something more.
And v26 says that the Spirit groans too. He’s longing for something better for us. He sees our weaknesses and failures. He sees our hearts, but He also sees what is making it so difficult for us. He knows we lack the power for prolonged concentration. He knows how hard it is for us to avoid distractions. He sees our mental conditions, and how hard it is to stop all wandering thoughts. He sees our uncontrolled passions, and knows how hard it is to govern our feelings. He knows our bodies, and our inabilities to prevent emotional changes. He understands our limited understanding, to know what lies in the future. And He is fully aware that we have no clue as to what is really best for us, and our growth in any given situation.
These are the issues we deal with, and these are the things that cause sympathy to rise up within the Spirit of God to help us move past them. This verse, as well as the next, says that the Spirit is actually praying for us. The word is “interceding”. It means to confer with. It means to entreat or plead and beg. It means to deal with. The word implies that the Spirit goes to the Father to talk about us. It’s no wonder this passage follows hot on the heels of the previous thought, not so much of suffering, but of hope. This is a wonderful truth. The Spirit is praying for us, and in that we can take hope.
But when Paul wrote this, he assumed that his audience was already praying. He assumed that his audience was not sitting around, waiting for everything to be handed to them. He assumed they already were in the middle of a prayer life. I read once that the average person prays only 10 minutes a day. That’s really not a lot of time. I agree that it’s better than 5 minutes, and a person has to start somewhere. But considering all that Romans 8 has already said about us – that we live by the Spirit, that we have life and peace, that we are not controlled by the sinful nature, that God is currently giving us eternal life in the here and now, that we are His children, and that we have a glorious future – what reasons not to pray could possibly outweigh the reasons we have to pray?
But the good news is, again, we are not alone in our struggles. The fights we fight when it comes to prayer, we do not battle alone. The Holy Spirit is there with us. We don’t know what we ought to pray for. We don’t always have the right words. We don’t see God’s perspective on whether a person should live or die, or who should win the US election, or if we should pray for our situation to go away or for strength in the midst of it. We just don’t know how to pray, or what to pray for.
I think of the story of an auto dealer who facing bankruptcy. He was walking along a beach when he kicked a bottle and out popped a genie.
“Thanks for setting me free,” said the genie. “To show my appreciation, I’ll grant you one wish.”
“Okay,” said the auto dealer, “I want to be the only foreign car dealer in a major metropolitan market.”
“Done!” cried the genie. Immediately, the dealer found himself in a glass-walled office looking out over a major city. “Quick,” he said to his secretary, “tell me who I am.”
“You’re the only Cadillac dealer in downtown Tokyo,” said the secretary.
The man got what he asked for, but not what he had in mind. That’s a good thing to remember. We pray, “Lord, bless me.” Then, when difficulties come up, we figure God didn’t answer our prayers. Oh, no. He answered them. It was Jesus, after all, who said, “You are blessed when you are persecuted.”
Which is why we need someone to help us pray. That’s one of the reasons the Holy Spirit came. To teach us. To make sense of our babblings. To translate our inner turmoils. The Spirit takes those requests to the Father, and because God knows our hearts, He can bring about His will into our situations.
Today’s passage gives us several liberating insights into prayer. I suppose you could boil the paragraph down to this:
1. The Holy Spirit helps us know how to pray and what to pray for - v26.
2. The Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf - v26.
3. God hears our hearts more than the words in prayer - v27.
But there’s also one more, dipping in to next week’s passage too.
4. Prayer is always answered, though not always according to our agenda – v28-29.
Now, I’d like to share one more thing with you. It’s something that has helped me understand God’s will just a little better over the years. It’s a concept Bill Hybels teaches about God’s four basic responses to our prayers. He always answers, but not always with a YES.
God may answer No. Your request is not in God’s will. You may ask something that God just doesn’t think it best in the situation. Please understand: this is not a rejection of you. It’s not that God loves you any less. I don’t give my kids everything they ask for, just because they are my children. Of course not. And just because God loves you does not mean He is obligated to give you whatever you ask. In the OT, God didn’t stop David’s son from dying, even though David had repented. And God didn’t release Jesus from going to the cross. “No” is an answer to prayer.
But sometimes God may answer Slow. Your request is not God’s will at this time. God told Abraham to wait for a child. It would come, but later. Jesus did heal Lazarus, yes, but only in His time. So what you ask for may not be wrong. It may be exactly what God wants. Just not yet. So keep praying, keep asking. Don’t give up.
And then, sometimes God may answer Grow. That is, your motives are wrong. For instance, God promised the Israelites that they would have a land to live in. It would be theirs. But because they complained, God said, “OK, if that’s how you want it, you will have to wait until you grow up and mature a little.” You see, there are things God wants for you, but until you straighten some things out, you must wait for them. James 4:3 says: “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures."
And lastly, God may answer Go. Your request, timing, and spiritual condition are okay…Yes! This is where God gives us what we ask for. And really to get to this point, it takes some time and work. To learn to know God well enough to ask things according to what He wants, not what you want, takes some maturity. But it is not impossible. So press on. Pray. Even though we don’t always know what to pray for, or how to pray, pray anyway!
William Barclay said: “When we pray, remember: 1. The love of God that wants the best for us. 2. The wisdom of God that knows what is best for us. 3. The power of God that can accomplish it.” That’s good advice.
