Into God’s Presence: Prayer in the New Testament

by Richard Longenecker

Publisher:

Eerdmans

, 2002

Overview

The Christian life cannot be fully understood or experienced without first grasping the importance of prayer. Yet prayer, as it is found in the Christian scriptures, has received limited attention as a topic of study. Into God’s Presence explores the nature and use of prayer throughout the entire New Testament. Written by twelve leading biblical scholars with diverse confessional perspectives, this insightful volume first discusses Christian prayer in relation to prayer in the Old Testament, the Greco-Roman world, first-century Judaism, and the Dead Sea Scrolls. The rest of the book takes an instructive look at prayer as it appears from Matthew to Revelation, with special attention given to Jesus as an exemplar and teacher of prayer.

Contents

Top Highlights

“For the Lord’s Prayer is not so much a command as an invitation: an invitation to share in the prayer-life of Jesus himself.” (Page 132)

“What I want to do is to say something about how prayer points to a theological truth about God” (Page 5)

“Prayer, however, is fundamentally about learning that God can be known” (Page 15)

“All this suggests that the really important factor in prayer is the character of God as the One who wants to do good for his people and to accomplish his own purpose, which will also be for their good. Petitionary prayer depends on the character of the one petitioned rather than on the effort of the petitioner to have the right attitude of faith. Prayer is the expression of a relationship with a God whom we are learning to trust because he is faithful and good.” (Pages 122–123)

“Exodus 3 and Exodus 6, which is capable of being paraphrased as: ‘I am the Lord, who will be as I will be in the events that I bring about’” (Page 6)

Contributions to this Volume Include:

• "Prayer in the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible," Christopher R. Seitz
• "Prayer in the Greco-Roman World," David E. Aune
• "Prayer in Jewish Life of the First Century as Background to Early Christianity," Asher Finkel
• "Prayer in the Dead Sea Scrolls," Eileen M. Schuller
• "The Canticles of Luke's Infancy Narrative: The Appropriation of a Biblical Tradition," Stephen Farris
• "Jesus—Example and Teacher of Prayer in the Synoptic Gospels," I. Howard Marshall
• "The Lord's Prayer as a Paradigm of Christian Prayer," N. T. Wright
• "God's Name, Jesus' Name, and Prayer in the Fourth Gospel," Andrew T. Lincoln
• "Persevering Together in Prayer: The Significance of Prayer in the Acts of the Apostles," Joel B. Green
• "Prayer in the Pauline Letters," Richard N. Longenecker
• "Finding Yourself an Intercessor: New Testament Prayer from Hebrews to Jude," J. Ramsey Michaels
• "Prayer in the Book of Revelation," Richard Bauckham

Endorsements

This is a thoroughly researched yet wonderfully accessible account of a regrettably ignored subject. Nicely detailed, yet profound and spiritually enriching, Into God’s Presence is sure to become a significant resource for scholars and pastors alike.

—Max Turner

A splendid collection of essays by a distinguished group of scholars. It is without doubt the best survey of its subject now available.

—Dale C. Allison Jr.

Product Details

• Title: Into God’s Presence: Prayer in the New Testament
• Author: Richard Longenecker
• Series: McMaster New Testament Studies
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Print Publication Date: 2002
• Logos Release Date: 2011
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subject: Bible. N.T. › Prayers--History and criticism
• ISBNs: 9780802848833, 0802848834
• Resource ID: LLS:INTOPRESNCE
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T00:45:05Z

About Richard Longenecker

Richard N. Longenecker is a prominent New Testament scholar and Professor Emeritus of New Testament at Wycliffe College, Toronto. He was formerly Distinguished Professor of New Testament at McMaster Divinity College, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario.