Why do they refer to one who sits for a long time in a doctor’s waiting room as a patient? What if said person has had enough and makes a scene about three others being called to the back, each of whom had arrived after the said person? Is he still a patient?
Walking this morning, I listened to the entire Book of Galatians – five times. Saturday, in listening to Barclay’s commentary on Roman, which I had undertaken to study, Barclay pointed out that one potential reasons that Paul wrote Romans was to clarify some things he had written in Galatians, his first letter chronically.
Barclay asserts that Paul may have thought that he had placed too much emphasis on faith in the process of salvation and not enough on the work of the Holy Spirit. He wanted to make it clear that a person is saved by the Holy Spirit as an act of God’s grace and not merely by such person’s faith, or as the Reformers would say, “sola fide.”
Vividly, I remember the words of Galatians 5:19-26 wherein the Apostle contrasts the works of human nature – Paul uses “works of the flesh” – with the gift of the spirit. Additionally, note the contrast in the number of the nouns “works” (plural) with “gift” (singular.) The dual contrasts imply that one may manifest one or more of the “works of human nature,” hurtful, shameful, selfish traits such as “ sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.”(NIV.) See vv. 19-21.
In contrast, when the Holy Spirit gifts a person, He gives the gift of Himself together (or “bundled, as the internet providers offer) with love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control . . . vv. 22. (NIV.)
Returning to the house, I was wondering as to what God would have me pray today, but, as I have come to expect, God had “a better idea.” When I came in the get water, I discovered that there was a frustrating problem with an app on Susan’s phone. Usually, I can get upset with electronics that don’t work, but this time, rather than getting upset, patience kicked in. I remained patient through multiple attempts to make the app work and multiple attempts to try to talk with a human being at “customer service.” Even their “hold” music was annoying. Nevertheless, patience persevered.
As I thought about the episode on the way to get a breakfast sandwich, I realized that I was “joyful.” Not happy that the app was annoying, but joyful that patience had kicked in. I’m sure the other manifestations of the gift of the Spirit were hiding playfully there somewhere as well.
The point? Here was a perfect example of a highly cataphatic prayer, that is, a prayer that involves the intellect forming words and pictures. God pictured for me – in me – the gift of the Spirit. That, in and of itself, is a prayer, a prayer initiated by God who doesn’t have to sit by the phone waiting for me to call.
So let it be written, so let it be done.
johnthebaptist15 