“Even every one that is called by My name: for I have created him for My glory, I have formed him; yes, I have made him” (Isaiah 43:7)
The plan of God centers around people – men and women who have chosen and are chosen to be part of His finished creation. These select persons go through a special process of development. In the text of Isaiah, they are “called”, then “created… formed… made.” God’s whole plan centers around the developing and perfecting of these select individuals. In Isaiah 43, the prophet (under the inspiration of God) makes a remarkable declaration of God’s ongoing eternal purpose. Whom is God selecting? God replies, “Every one that is called by My name.” God may have been speaking to a nation, but at this point His Divine spotlight focuses on the individual. Here is the first step in bringing the human creation into the Divine plan: being called. Then the next step follows quickly, a special aspect of development: “I have created him.” These select persons do not come about by chance, nor are they left to the blind forces of nature. They are “created”. What is the purpose in this special creation? “I have created him for My glory.” God plans that His finished new creation will glorify Him, that is, enhance or increase His old creation. “I have created… I have formed… I have made.” The Hebrew words behind these three terms show distinct emphasis and significance. First, “I have created.” This term refers to an entirely new beginning. We may apply it to God’s action in making a person with faith in Christ as Savior and Lord into a new creation. We Christians become totally new (in God’s eyes) when Jesus Christ comes to live in our human spirit (Galatians 2:20) – a total change of spirit nature from the independent nature inherited from the Fall of Adam into the Divine nature of God (2 Peter 1:4). It is, as far as each one is concerned, a radical departure from an earthly birth into a totally new birth – being born again. And it applies totally to the human spirit part of us. The second step is that of being “formed”. This word indicates a process. It is a word which is used of the potter working at the wheel. He is using what now exists to make it into something better, something new. The potter takes his basic material, clay, and shapes and molds it into his design. But say a flaw develops in the product as he shapes it. Does he throw away the clay and say that the clay was no good? No, he just collects the clay into a new glob and begins again to reshape. When a Christian becomes “flawed” by sin, does God throw us out as unworkable? No. He just collects us (by correcting us) into a new “glob” and works on us again. This shaping, molding, reshaping, remolding takes place in the human soul, the intellect, emotions and will. The soul is like a mass of clay that has been shaped by the world previous to our new birth and now must be shaped and reshaped into the lifestyle of God. But always remember that the Master Potter does not throw out a “flawed soul” but rather takes steps of correction to the same “clay” in order to shape it the way He wants it. The third word, “made” is a word which indicates the final result. It is accomplished. I have made; I have finished, and it is done. The prophet Isaiah looked into the future when the plan of God for all individuals would be complete. He looked also to the end of the forming he himself was experiencing, to the time when he would be “created… formed… made.” He was looking to the time when he would eventually stand as the finished work of God. Of course, the potter and clay example breaks down in the aspect that regular clay must conform to the shaping of the potter – but we, as clay, can CHOOSE to conform. There is a sense in which we do the forming ourselves. And though we must do all in our power to cooperate with the Master Potter and submit to Him, all the parts of the process – the purpose, the life, and the ongoing success – are God’s. There is something here which should startle and awaken us, something that should catch our attention and change the direction of our lives. It is the realization of the new birth – that Christ works on this clay of ours from the INSIDE OUT. The Master Potter has come INTO the clay, is actually in union with the clay, and will never leave or separate from the clay. This whole process of forming is not a work God does alone, nor can we do it without cooperating with God in Christ. But rest assured, the shaping of the Christian WILL GET DONE by whatever means necessary. Sometimes that clay has to take a real “pounding” – but the finished product is guaranteed to be pleasing to God.
Have you ever wondered why Jesus said some of the things He said?
For example, Mark 11:22-24 suggests that if, in faith, we want to tell a mountain to throw itself into the sea, it can happen. However, why would I want to tell a mountain to throw itself into the sea? What would it accomplish other than making me feel more than a little powerful, creating a blot on the landscape, and upsetting conservationists? Did Jesus really mean that we should use faith whimsically, to accomplish whatever takes our fancy?
Sometimes I think Jesus used ideas for their shock value in order to get the attention of His listeners. Remember when He said that if your right hand offends you, you should cut if off? Or if your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out? If these passages were to be taken literally, there would be a lot of one-eyed, one-handed Christians walking around. Christ was making a point through exaggeration. The point was that we should deal decisively with our sin before it takes over our life.
Jesus compared prayer to a child asking his father for something and believing that the father would respond. So great is our heavenly Father’s desire to give to us that He knows the things we have need of before we ask Him (Matthew 6:8).
So what is Mark 11:22-24 all about? There is a context. There are powerful lessons to do with faith and prayer. The day before, Jesus, by His divine power, had caused a leafy but fruitless fig tree to wither. This was to teach His disciples that it is possible to seem spiritual and yet to not produce the fruit God seeks from us. He had also cleansed the temple of those who exploited the house of prayer for personal profit.
In remembering the fig tree, Jesus tells His followers to "have faith in God." Was He saying to them that they too, if only they really believed, could curse fig trees? I don’t think so. Or was He stressing that the religious life without faith is of no use to God and that it may as well wither up and die?
The context also shows in verses 25 and 26 that prayer made without forgiving those who may have wronged us, just as we want God to forgive us, will not be heard and fulfilled. Therefore this passage explains that we don’t automatically get everything we request in prayer—there are conditions of faith toward God, of bearing the fruit He requires of us, and of mercy shown to others.
It is not wise to let one passage of Scripture dictate the totality of doctrine on a particular subject. Mark 11:22-24 is one of many references to praying in faith. A prayer of faith reaffirms God’s sovereignty, not ours—that His will be done, not our own will (Matthew 6:10).
This touches on one of the problems with the "name it and claim it" prayer styles—the implication that faith gives us the ability to coerce God to give us what we demand. Such thinking implies wrongly that God’s sovereignty is subservient to ours.
Matthew 7:7-11 says that we can ask the Father, and He will give us "good things." Does that mean that God gives us what is good for our long-term development, just as a parent gives a child what the parent thinks is best? If we desire something in prayer that is not for our good, should God honor that request?
James, the brother of Jesus, exhorted Christians to "ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind" (James 1:3). Don’t suppose, he says, that you will receive any answer from prayer if you are double-minded and uncommitted in your own request.
We need to be convinced about the value of prayer. The reference Jesus made to believing we can move mountains affirms this. It is impossible to make an impression on God without faith that God is who He says He is, and also that He rewards those who seek Him diligently (Hebrews 11:6). A major problem that the readers of James’ epistle had was that they let their own selfish desires dominate their prayer life. "You ask and do not receive because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures" (James 4:3).
What did they want God to give them? Various ideas are suggested—success by the world’s standards (4:4); God to be on their side and to win their battles for them (4:1-2); their self-seeking positions to be realized (3:14). Righteousness, argues James, is about faith. Faith is believing that God will do what He says He will do (2:23). A life of faith involves making peace with others (3:18), not causing dissention by pushing our own cause or point of view. The effective prayer of the righteous person, which avails much, is a prayer for others, for those who are sick, for those in distress, not a prayer that is overcome by selfishness (4:16). Faithful prayer does not always play out according to our plans. Prayer is about trusting God and leaving situations in His hands. It is about showing love by petitioning God on behalf of others.
Sometimes, when we pray, we present both the problem and our favorite solution to God, instead of leaving Him to choose an answer for us. Not that it is wrong to think things through and offer ideas in prayer, but do we limit God’s answers in our mind to only what we think should happen? We need to open our minds to the infinite wonder of God—"to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20).
We all need and value the intervention of God. In His sovereignty God can and does choose to supply what is good for us according to the abundance of His grace. He seeks to give us gifts and blessings. However, those blessings are not provided on demand. We share in suffering as we are part of humanity.
Jesus taught that prayer is more about what we can give than about what we can receive. God is not a lucky charm or a winning lottery ticket. From the viewpoint of Jesus, prayer is a special relationship to be cherished, a relationship that brings us comfort and hope that the great God of the universe has taken a special interest in each of us. May He express through us that same interest toward others.
