And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the earth.
— Exodus 9:33
Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.
— Psalm 62:12
I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence, And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.
— Isaiah 62:6-7
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
— Jeremiah 23:5
And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God; Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation. And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.
— Daniel 9:20-22
Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
— Romans 1:3
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
— Hebrews 4:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
— James 5:16
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
— Revelation 22:16
Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.
— John 9:31
Praying Boldly, by Martin Luther.
And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
— Luke 18:38
The beggars on the street and in the alleys know very well the art of begging, but people are not fond of it. They become tired of all the whining, and send such beggars off with angry words. But the Lord delights to have such beggars at His door, who keep on knocking in hope, and who will not be sent away.
We see that also with this blind man. When he hears all the noise of the multitude, he asks first what the matter is. He would also love to have healthy eyes, so when he hears of Jesus, he begins to cry out, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me! But those who hear Him forbid Him and command Him to keep silent, He does not let that bother Him, for the more they forbid Him, the more He cries out. Those are the true ones who persevere, the good beggars that our Lord God delights to have.
Therefore, we are to pay attention to the example of this beggar, and in the same way come to Christ and pray without ceasing, O Lord, I am a poor sinner grant that thy kingdom comes to me also. Forgive me my sins, and help me here, and help me there. Whosoever prays as a beggar, and that without ceasing, doeth well. Our Lord God delights to have it so, for He is not like us who soon have had our fill of beggars. It is to His glory that you esteem Him as a gracious and merciful God and do not give up calling upon Him.
You may speak to Him thus, Lord, it is to the honor of Thy name that I call upon Thee, and I also do not want to give it up. Such a constant and bold prayer is pleasing to God, as we can see here with this blind man. As soon as he begins to cry out with all his might, the Lord calls for him to be brought to him. Everyone now must make way for him and let him pass. The blind man shames himself for no one, and allows himself to be led to Jesus.
Immediately the Lord asks him, what wilt thou that I should do unto thee? See how Christ stands before him with open hands, as if he says, ask what thou willed, and it shall be done unto you. The blind man lets no time go lost and says, I pray that I may receive my sight. And then the Lord answered, yes, receive thy sight. This is what I call praying with boldness and being answered graciously.
We need to learn to come out in the open with our prayers. In the time of the papacy, we failed to pray. We neglected our prayers, for we thought, if others and the saints do not pray for us, we will not receive anything anyway. They are not true Christians who would behave in such a manner, but they would fall to their knees in a little room somewhere as soon as trouble and cares came and just say to the Lord, Lord, I come to thee. Wilt thou give me this or that? Look not upon me for what I am, but look upon my need and help me. Lord, let it be to thine honor and according to Thy will. In this way, you are to learn to pray with freedom, not doubting but that He shall give what is beneficial and good. For here is the promise: what we pray for in Jesus’ name, that we shall receive. You are to look to this promise and not become discouraged so as to give up prayer, for He also does not tire of you praying to Him.
When prayer would be but powerful and mighty, He would at the same moment give to you what you asked of Him. Therefore, I hope that the last day of this world will not be deferred too long, but will come soon by reason of the anxious sighs and prayers of the Christians which are sent up to heaven. That this example then, of the blind man would teach us that we are to be bold intercessors and beggars at the throne of grace, who never become tired but say, Lord, it is true. I am a poor and miserable sinner. That I know right well. But despite that I need this and that. Grant it unto me. It does not help to speak about whether or not you are pious, but one thing is important, and that is that you are in need and distress, and that God would be pleased to give what you stand in need of, for body and soul. When you pray like this and persevere, then certainly He will say to you the same as He said to this blind man, what wilt thou that I should do unto thee? Receive thy sight, thy faith has made thee whole.
For to pray and not believe is the same to the Lord God as mocking him. Faith rests only upon this: that God, for Christ’s sake, His Son and our Lord, will be gracious unto us.
Hear us, protect us, rescue us, and desire to grant us His salvation. May our dear Lord and Redeemer, Christ Jesus, give that to us.
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