Wednesday, 22 November 2017
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 1 Timothy 2:3
“For this is good and acceptable,” ties the verse to what was just stated –
“Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, 2 for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence.”
It is “good and acceptable” to pray as stated, including “for all men.” This included “kings and all who are in authority.” What is apparent from these words of Paul is that God desires that all would be saved, and that our prayers are a part of that process. Otherwise, Paul could not write these things. In fact, he would simply say, “Don’t bother with prayer. God has sovereignly chosen those who will be saved, and has predetermined all that will occur. Your prayers are a waste of time.” This is never hinted at in the Bible. Instead, we are given the high honor of praying for others, and for receiving what God offers. That is great stuff. And the reason why it is great stuff is because it isn’t just good and acceptable in a general sense, but that it is “good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.”
God is well pleased when we pray for others in the ways he described. And it is good and acceptable that these are given “for all men” including “for kings and all who are in authority.” God looks at our prayers in these situations and finds them acceptable because we are not just praying for ourselves and our own needs, but we are praying for others, even some who may not currently be favorably disposed towards us. This is a truly noble thing.
Life application: Let us do our best to follow through with the words of this verse, even if those appointed over us are really crummy people. They too need Jesus, and so we should do our utmost to pray for them in hopes that they will come to God through Christ and be saved.
Lord God, today we lift up those who are appointed over us at all levels of life. We have bosses, mayors, governors, congressmen, and presidents, kings, or prime ministers that we are accountable to. Hear our prayers for them, guide them to right decisions which will honor You, and if they don’t yet know Christ Jesus, we pray for them to come humbly to the throne of grace for salvation. Wouldn’t that be great to have faithful believers making godly decisions in this world. Yes, we pray for our leaders today. Amen.