Faithful Steward Ministries and FSM Women's Outreach

We continue our series of excerpts from “Matthew Henry on a Practical Method of Daily Prayer.” These will be without the usual comments and study references. My hope is that people will be like the Bereans, as described in Acts 17:11, and will put Henry’s writing to the test.

Cut & Paste or Type Method of Daily Prayer in the search box to see the previous post in this series.

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Henry then offered page after page of suggested prayers of adoration in scriptural language, arranged by topics. It is a study of the biblical doctrine of God turned into prayer. To appreciate the fullness of Henry’s method, consider his outline of biblical materials to direct our adoration:

         I.      Address the Infinitely Great and Glorious Being

         A.      With Holy Awe and Reverence

         B.      Distinguishing Him from False Gods

        II.      Reverently Adore God as Transcendently Bright and Blessed

         A.      The Self-Existent, Self-Sufficient, Infinite Spirit

         B.      His Existence Indisputable

         C.      His Nature Beyond Our Comprehension

         D.      His Perfection Matchless

         E.      Infinitely Above Us and All Others

         In particular, adore the Lord as:

             1.      Eternal, Immutable

             2.      Present in All Places

             3.      Perfect in His Knowledge of All

             4.      Unsearchable in Wisdom

             5.      Sovereign, Owner, and Lord of All

             6.      Irresistible in Power

             7.      Unspotted in Purity and Righteousness

             8.      Always Just in His Government

             9.      Always True, Inexhaustibly Good

             10.      Infinitely Greater Than Our Best Praises

            III.      Give God the Praise of His Glory in Heaven

            IV.      Give Him Glory as Our Creator, Protector, Benefactor, and Ruler

            V.      Give Honor to the Three Distinct Persons of the Godhead

            VI.      Acknowledge Our Dependence on Him and Obligation to Our Creator

            VII.      Declare God to Be Our Covenant God Who Owns Us

            VIII.      Acknowledge the Inestimable Favor of Being Invited to Draw Near to Him

            IX.      Express Our Unworthiness to Draw Near to God

            X.      Profess Our Desire for Him as Our Happiness

            XI.      Profess Our Hope and Trust in His All-Sufficiency

            XII.      Ask God to Graciously Accept Us and Our Poor Prayers

            XIII.      Pray for the Assistance of the Holy Spirit in Our Prayers

            XIV.      Make the Glory of God as the Highest Goal of Our Prayers

            XV.      Profess Our Reliance on the Lord Jesus Christ Alone.

Each point of the outline includes several prayers drawn from the Scriptures. For example, one prayer under the topic of God’s matchless perfection is, “Who is a God like unto thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?” In the section on professing hope in God’s sufficiency, Henry wrote, “In thee, O God, do we put our trust, let us never be ashamed; yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed. Truly our souls wait upon God, from him cometh our salvation; he only is our rock and our salvation! In him is our glory, our strength, and our refuge, and from him is our expectation.”44

Joel R. Beeke, “Matthew Henry on a Practical Method of Daily Prayer,” in Taking Hold of God: Reformed and Puritan Perspectives on Prayer, ed. Brian G. Najapfour (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage Books, 2011), 154–156.