Prayer Implies a Sovereign God

I have been much infatuated lately with the side of the Civil War you will never hear about in the classroom: the religious ferver and revival in the Confederate Army. Mt. Olive Tape Ministry, found on sermonaudio.com, has many lectures that dig into these great men and the religious renewal that took place during this time of unparalleled death.

Men like Stonewall Jackson, General Lee, and RL Dabney bled devotion to God and would bleed for the good old fashioned Calvinism I so much treasure. Providence served as their guiding principle for life and the declaration of the gospel could not be clearer than in those camps.

But in one lecture RL Dabney is quoted to have said, "Prayer assumes the doctrine of providence. If there were no such doctrine and all was fatalism, prayer would be a waste of breath."

Dabney attacks fatalism, but the same holds true for any other non-sovereign god belief system. It is a fact that an Arminian gives up on his pathetic beliefs when he prays.

But the current tide of religion has been turning towards a radicalized Arminianism, to a belief called "Open Theism." Open Theism (OPT), a belief that seems to be taking the nation by storm, believes that god (I don't think I should capitalize that. If feel I shouldn't) does not know the future and is constantly gaining knowledge. This god is not sovereign, but always reacting to what man does. It has been likened to a chess match. Man moves, then God makes his move to counter ours.

But what role could prayer play with this kind of God? Prayer would not be the offering up of one's cares and desires to God for his mighty working. Calvinists say that God has included prayer in the outworking of his plan. But the OPT's god (I assume) does not have an eternal decree that is being worked out in time. I assume that prayer in this scheme would be nothing more than a regular, everyday conversation--much like one would have with a friend or co-worker. I assume the response of this god would be, "I'll do my best, but you have to help me in it, all right?"

In the end, the open theist is hopeless and helpless. But the God of the Bible continues to hear, answer, and show himself powerful.