For God's Sake!

It seems like this is a line from a British drama.

And if a lot of us had said this as children, our mom's would have washed our mouths out with soap.

But, it's actually quite a biblical phrase. One that is used often. Often in the Psalms. Often in prayers. 

It's a phrase that should be in our vocabulary and in our thoughts.

The prophet Daniel read the book of Jeremiah and discovered that the Babylonian captivity would last seventy years. Daniel's response was to break out in a prayer of national confession.

His prayer ended with a request.

It was not, "Lord, we have suffered enough. Please restore us to Jerusalem."

Or, "Lord, we can't take this anymore. Please show us your mercy and relieve the pressure."

Or, "Lord, we have humbled ourselves. Now reward us with prosperity."

Listen to this:

"Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name" (v 17-19).

Daniel's plea was for restoration. But not to make his life better.

His plea was for restoration for God's sake.

The purpose of his prayer was that God's name would be made glorious.

That God's promises would be fulfilled.

That God's city would be rebuilt.

That God's temple would be restored.

That God's people would be returned.

What does your prayer life look like?

Are you praying for your sake?

Or maybe for the sake of someone else?

Or are you praying for God's sake?

Prayer of Repentance

What is repentance?

Is it saying, "I'm sorry?"

Is it walking on your knees to a holy place, reciting a prayer?

Not surprisingly, the Bible is the source book for understanding biblical repentance. And we find an example of repentance in Daniel 91:16, giving us five elements of a prayer of repentance.

The first element is the Word of God. Daniel was reading the book of Jeremiah, a prophet in the years preceding, during and after the Babylonian exile. Daniel was living in Babylon in exile, so he knew what the current situation was. Jeremiah helped him understand why it was that way. This understanding caused Daniel to repent. Without the Word of God, repentance has no foundation (v 1-2).

The second element is Daniel's attitude of humility (v 3). Seeking God, pleas for mercy, fasting, sackcloth and ashes are marks of humility. It was not an attitude of "I've got to do this" or "If I do this, everything will be okay." But Daniel was shaken by the truths of God's Word and the evidences of God's wrath.

The third element is Daniel's recognition of God. Look through the prayer and you'll find these words that describe God: great, awesome, faithful, merciful, righteous, just, forgiving, angry, wrathful, listening. Clearly in God's eyes, God was right.

The fourth element is Daniel's recognition of guilt. "We have sinned against You." "To us belongs shame." "We have rebelled." "We have not obeyed." No blame shifting. No minimizing. No excuses.

The fifth is a request for forgiveness and restoration (v 16-19). Daniel cries out to God to restore His people and His land and His city. Not because of Daniel's prayer. Not because of the goodness of the people. Not because they have gone through rehab and are doing better. Not because they made promises to try harder. But because of God's name. Because of God's glory.

When was the last time you repented like that? Just for the big sins? Does God have a sliding scale giving more weight to more serious sins?

We need to walk in repentance.

Always God's Mercy

Daniel, the prophet in the captivity, read Jeremiah, the prophet who wrote in the final years before the destruction of Jerusalem and the Babylonian captivity. Close to 70 years had passed since Jeremiah penned those words. As Daniel read, he discovered why Jerusalem was in shambles and God's people had been scattered.

It was because they had sinned. Repeatedly. For generations. They had ignored God's prophets. They had rebelled. They chose to do evil. They turned aside from God's law. They had sinned against God. They had done wickedly.

Daniel describes God as great, awesome, keeping His covenant, loving steadfastly, righteous, merciful, forgiving, the great deliverer with a great name.

God is the complete opposite of His people.

Israel had sinned and received what they deserved. Now Daniel is praying that God would look upon them in mercy.

"For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy" (Daniel 9:18b).

It wasn't that Daniel thought they had been punished long enough. It wasn't because he thought they had cleaned up their act. It wasn't because they were trying harder to do a better job.

Daniel's plea was based solely on God's mercy.

No matter how much I confess, repent and change my ways, I will always be dependent on God's mercy.

I will never change enough to be deserving of God's forgiveness, grace, mercy and love.

It's always God's mercy.