We are continuing in our study of prayer as part of the PPOG or the Predestination provided by God for the believer in eternity past for the purpose of determining just how and what we should pray for as we function in his plan for our lives.
Last time we started an examination of Jesus' own prayer that is described in Heb 5:7-10; that is a good model for how believers can pray in the midst of their suffering. Picking up where we left off last time,
Heb 5:7a; Just as TLJC did "in the days of his flesh", believers also pray "in the days of their flesh", they often pray intensely, they look to God and have the same spiritual life that he pioneered.
Believers who gain His audience in their prayers, are also sons who learn obedience from things they suffer, and are in the process of growing and maturing and being completed in God's PPOG for their life.
Jesus is the source of eternal salvation, whereas believers are those who are needing salvation and depending on the TLJC as their source Heb. 2:10;Rom 5:6; 2Cor 5:21;
Heb 5:7; His prayers were offered "in the days of His flesh." Or the days of his unglorified humanity while he was on this earth during the Dispensation of the Beginning of the Hypostataic Union (DBHU) or the Dispensation of the Unglorified Humanity of Christ (DUHC).
As the Theo-anthropos or God-man he still has flesh and bones in his Glorified Human Body. Luke 24:39; but as a man on earth in unglorified humanity before his resurrection, and under the pressure of suffering He prayed just as we need to.
He showed in his prayer and in his PMA of Bible Doctrine through the faith rest drill that he and by extension any human being who lives inside the PPOG for their life can live sufficiently in total dependence on God. Matt. 4:1-11; The tests Jesus faced were all related to getting Jesus away from his total dependence on God and his function inside the PPOG for his life.
Heb 5:7b; While in that state of unglorified humanity, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears.
The two words used for his prayer with God are "deesis" and "iketerias". "deesis means "requests, appeals" as in 1Tim. 2:1; and "iketerias" means "supplications” and is a hapax legomenon which means the word is used only in this verse in the entire Bible.
It is used in the LXX, the Greek translation of the Old Testament in Job 41:3 where the Hebrew word it is translated "supplications" in the NASB.
These prayers Jesus "offered up," or "carried into the presence of" or "presented" "face to face with God." This is expressed in the word "prosphero", that is also used in Heb 5:1,3 for a high priest "offering" or "presenting" the sacrificial offerings to God under the Levitical system.
The point being made is not that the prayers were sacrificial, but they were presented to God just as the offerings were. Jesus’ prayers, as are those of all believers when properly executed, are presented to God as the sweet incense and as the evening sacrifices were as described by David in Psa 141:2; and by John in Rev 5:8;
The intensity of Jesus' prayer is made clear by the description as "loud crying and tears." Jesus was intense, appealing with tears as He was under severe pressure.
The description illustrates his communion with the Father in the ordeal in the garden of Gethsemane as his unique suffering of the cross was imminent.
In describing this, the passage in Mark 14:33-34; says that Jesus was "troubled and deeply distressed," and adds "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful even to death"
The adversity that he was going to face that caused his distress was that he was going to be separated from fellowship with God the Father while he on the cross in forensic spiritual death while he was becoming the substitutionary sin offering for the entire world.
During his prayer in the Garden He asked that, if possible, that the cup of suffering might be taken away, but added "yet, not as I will but as You will” Matt 26:36-45;
Psalms 22 provides preview of the Messiah's prayer during his suffering on the cross. Jesus used the words of Psa 22:1, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?” which are recorded in Matt 27:46;
The psalm describes the agony that is cause of his crying out and his tears.
Later, in Psa 22:24; there is the observation that when David, the writer of the psalm "cried to Him for help, He [God] heard,” is an expression very similar to the prayer in Heb 5:7; where it says "He was heard because of his piety" (or the respect and reverence for God demonstrated through the perfect capacity righteousness of his spiritual life.)
The word translated "piety" is "eulabeia" which means reverence, respect or awe.
Jesus prayed to the One who was able to save Him out of death, but was committed to the Father's plan which required his substitutionary spiritual death followed by his physical death. Luke 24:26;
God did not save him from death or prevent him from dying because that was a necessary part of the Plan, but he ultimately did save Him out of death by his resurrection out from among the dead ones. Acts 26:23;
Heb 5:7;d The word translated "heard " is the Greek word "eisakouo (ice-ak-oo-o)” which means "to listen to," it is used to describe God's hearing of a person who prays Psa 34:17 in the LXX; Matt. 6:7 and of His hearing the prayer Luke 1:13; Acts 10:31;
He was heard "because of" The Greek word "apo" in this verse is translated "because of" as it is in" Luke 19:3; Acts 11:19;
God hears "because of" the "respectful awe or reverence" that is exhibited by Jesus as he functions in the integrity of the prototype spiritual life that he is pioneering.
God heard him, not because of the intensity of his prayers, but because of his function in the priesthood where he represents himself before God which is the core of God's PPOG for his life.
The word translated "piety" in the NASB is "Eulabeia" that is also used in the LXX translation of Prov 28:14; where in the NASB the translates the Hebrew word as "fear"
The proverb describes the one who has a spirit sensitive to and compliant with God's will as compared with or juxtapositioned with the one who has a hard, unreceptive heart that is ready to gravitate to the control of the soul by the OSN.
In Heb 12:28; "eulabeia" refers to the reverence and awe in which believers, in gratitude, offer their priestly service to God as members of the Royal Family of God.
"Eulabeia" is also used in Heb 11:7; Net note 8 to describe Noah's reverent preparation of the ark as God had commanded.
Eulabeia" is used to describe devout worshippers of God as recorded in Luke. 2:25; Acts 2:5; Acts 8:2; Acts 22:12;
In the case of Jesus in Heb 5:7; it refers to his respectful submission to God and his plan and his respect or honor of God's will which is the attitude reflected in his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane where he said, "Thy will be done."
Scripture often relates effective prayer to the believer's function in the spiritual life for example:
Prayer is related to faith in James 1:6-7;
Prayer is related to abiding in Christ and honoring His Word in John 15:7; 1John 5:14-15;
Prayer is related to having a pure heart in 2 Tim.2: 22;e
and Prayer is related to those who from their position in righteousness are functional in capacity righteousness 1Pet 3:12;
Since he was impeccable, Jesus is the perfect example in all of these areas.
In Heb 5:8; the emphasis shifts from TLJC's prayer to his being "perfected" or "matured" in God's pre-determined plan for his life which is connected with his prayer.
The word translated "perfected" is the Greek word "teleioo" which means to perfect, to mature, to complete, to fulfill or to finish.
In the case of TLJC since he was already impeccable as the God-man in hypostatic union so it refers to the maturation of his sinless humanity through his function in the application of Bible Doctrine under the mentorship of God the Holy Spirit inside the prototype PPOG for his life.
His Prayers of submission to the Father's will that are described in Heb 5:7; played a vital role in bringing Jesus' impeccable humanity into spiritual maturity.
The prayers were a force in the midst of his sufferings even to death, and in his faithfulness He learned obedience in his impeccable humanity.
The writer of the book of Hebrews makes the point in chapters 1-2 that "although He was the unique Son of God", as The Theo-anthropos or God-man this did not exempt Him from things that would test the obedience of his humanity regarding his submission to God's plan for his life.
This principle is also described in Phil 2:5-8; as the kenosis prescription.
Only in his life on earth did he suffer for his obedience. Obedience in the face of suffering brought Jesus to perfection, in the sense of coming to maturity or being completed or fulfilled.
Through obedience in the face of intense suffering, Jesus was able to complete or fulfill his mission, namely to become the source or basis of eternal salvation to those who obey him by believing in him.
Since this process of perfection or maturation was necessary for the Author and Perfector of our salvation Heb 12:2; it can certainly be seen as relevant for the lives of believers, " the sons He saves and brings to glory" Heb 2:10;
It makes sense that as God's unique Son, He Himself should be spiritually perfected or matured as he lived in the prototype spiritual life that he would convey to church age believers in order that they would also be spiritually perfected and matured through their function in the same integrity in their own suffering.
Heb 2:17-18; says, "He had to be made like His brethren in all things. This that so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in matters relating to God.
As their impeccable substitute He could present himself as the offering that satisfies God for their sins and those of the entire world.
And having been Himself tempted in His own sufferings, He is able to come to the assistance of those who are likewise tempted.
In His learning of obedience through his application of Bible Doctrine under the mentor ministry of God the Holy Spirit via the Faith Rest Drill and in the perfecting, maturing or completion, it achieved.
Three things that are true for him just as they are for all church age believers:
His position or status as a Son Heb 5:8a; just as believer's are "sons" Gal 3:26;
Suffering was part of God's plan for Him, Heb 5:8b; Heb 2:10; as suffering is part of God's plan for believers Phil 1:29;
The demonstration of God's infinite grace was the result that was obtained Heb 10:10; Rom 5:8; just is it is in believers believers. Phil 1:6; Phil 2:13;
The plan of God that led to His perfecting or maturity meant that He was fully qualified to do what God's will prepared Him to fulfill just believers are prepared by God for his plan when they function in his plan for their lives.
The privilege that this success gave to Him was that of being the "source" of salvation for all mankind, which is another way of saying that He is the "author" of it in Heb 2:10; and Heb 12:2; and he now sits at the right hand of the father as the inheritor of all things. Eph 1:20-23;
He is "the way, the truth, and the life" of John 14:6; and the only name in which anyone can be saved Acts 4:12;
In His perfection or maturity and His position of privilege as the unique Son, He also has God's designation as the great high priest Heb. 5:10; Heb 2:17; that is greater than any other high priest Heb 4:14;
Some Principles for prayer that can be drawn from Christ's example in Heb. 5:7-10;
Believers are to utilize the days in their flesh (the present life) to live in the PPOG for their life and that includes prayer.
Believers can "offer up" prayers which are presented before God as part of their priesthood just as Jesus did.
Prayer can take the form of "requests," which we present subject to the Father's will.
It can be proper while in suffering to pray with strong emotion, even weeping as we discuss our situation with God.
Always keep in mind that God is always able to deliver "even from death"; He also knows the best time and the best way to deliver us.
God hears prayers not because of their intensity but because of the capacity righteousness that comes from the believer's spiritual life.1 Pet. 3:12;
Believer's as "God's sons" have a great position, yet prayers are to be offered in humility.
We can be encouraged in prayer by understands exactly what we are going through in our suffering. Heb 4:15-16;cf. 1 Pet. 5:7).
Prayer is not just a channel for receiving what we want, but for growing closer to God and understanding what He wants.
Just as the prayers of Jesus led to his advance in his ministry, believer's prayers can also result in their greater production. John 15:7-8;