D I S C U S S I O N S with DR. J, RICHARD CHASE / DR. CHARLES L.
Q. Lodi, Calif .— “Where in the Bible does it say that Jesus prayed when He was talking to the multitudes? Didn’t He always go into a quiet place? When a few of us are togeth er, 1 can thank God, but I can’t say a long prayer in front of the con gregation. Don’t you th in k God knows and hears our silent prayers?” A. There is no place in Scripture where it specifically states that Je sus prayed before the multitudes. In the so-called Sermon on the Mount He does instruct us in the pattern for prayer which can be in private or public. Frequently we do read of our Lord’s going apart by Himself to pray. Certainly God knows and hears our silent prayers. Some of them are far more effective than those which are audibly made for the benefit of others. A great min ister in Boston gave such an out standing eulogy in this manner that the newspaper came out the next day declaring that it was “one of the greatest prayers ever offered to a congregation.” Unfortunately, that sometimes is the case. The Lord doesn’t merely listen to the lips. We need to be careful, however, not to let pride enter into our public pray ing. Let’s be more concerned with what we’re saying to God in com munion than whether we’re going to make some error in grammar and have people laugh at us. Start with a few sentences, and enter in this way if you like. The essential part
is not whether we pray in public, but rather from our heart, in pri vate or in public. Q. Dalles, Ore. — “During the mil lennium we understand that as re deemed believers we’ll not have nat ural bodies, while those here on earth will. Also will all on earth be Jews, or will there also be Gentiles? Would they come through the Great Tribulation, or would they just be the 12,000 that were sealed?” A. There are several questions here. You are correct about your observa tion on our resurrection bodies (I Cor. 15:50-58; I Thess. 4:13-18). Those who are here on earth will, of course, be judged in their natural bodies. During the millennium there will be both Jews and Gentiles on the earth (Matt. 25:31-46). Those who go through the tribulation, and are believers, whether Jews are Gen tiles, will be in the millennium. There are more than the 12,000 you mentioned. There are 12,000 from every tribe or a total of 144,000 Jewish evangelists who are wit nesses for the Lord (Rev. 7). God will marvelously bless their ministry to the salvation of an untold num ber of Gentile converts. Q. Los Angeles, Calif. — “When God told Eve that He would greatly mul tiply the sorrow of women in child birth, could it have been that she 25
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