This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.
Ps 70:5
But I am poor and needy: make haste unto me, O God: thou art my help and my deliverer; O LORD, make no tarrying.
The final word of the Jesus Prayer that I will write about here is the word "me". We do not approach God alone or by ourselves, but we do relate to Him on an individual and personal level. Just as God calls on us to relate to Him as a member of His family, the Church, "likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind", we are also called to relate to Him personally as it is written that "In my Father's house are many mansions" and "every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour". It is in this context of approaching God that we ask Him to "have mercy on me" in the Jesus Prayer. Just as we are called to unite ourselves together in Peter's confession of Jesus as "the Christ, the Son of the Living God", we are to personally follow Him as our own Lord and call on Him as our own Savior and "me" is the sinner in need of God's mercy in Jesus Christ.
Just as scripture records the history of how God has related to mankind through a covenant established with a body of people (Adam's family, Noah's family, Abraham's family, the united Israel, Judah (the tribes of Judah and Benjamin), and finally the Church established by the apostles who received their authority from Christ Himself), scripture also bears witness of God's call to personally respond and relate to Him from within His covenanted community. This is why it is written that "if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation" and Paul writes that Christ "loved me, and gave himself for me".
As we approach God, we are called to do so with humility. The apostle Thomas called Jesus "My LORD and my God" when seeing Him raised from the dead. In parables Jesus taught us to imitate the prodigal son in saying "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son" and to avoid imitating the pharisee who was blinded to his own sinfullness but rather to imitate the publican who "would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner" because "every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted". This is why Paul writes "to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly", "let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall", and James instructs us to "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up."
The Psalms also give us an example of how to approach God in prayer and how to form our own attitudes toward God. We have to ackowledge our need and reliance on God as the source of our life, to pick us up when we fall, and to know that in Him is great mercy for those who call on Him. It is written "But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.", "Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies' sake.", "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.", "O LORD my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me. O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.", "For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.", "O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee.", "Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy.", "For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave. I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength:", "I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place.", "In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and he heard me.", "Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD.", and "In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.".
Jonah also cried to the Lord from the belly of the fish "I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice. For thou hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me. Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple. The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God. When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple."
MAKE HASTE, O GOD, TO DELIVER ME; MAKE HASTE TO HELP ME, O LORD.
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