there, is quite another (Eph. 2:6; Phil. 3:20 R.V.).  This is the exclusive

privilege of the One Body and it is revealed in all its fulness in the second

chapter of the epistle to the Ephesians.

Every time we pray, we are able to draw near to God in a sense that no

Old Testament saint was able to do, and this fact alone should remind us of

the inestimable privilege that prayer confers upon us.  It should prevent us

from thoughtlessly rushing into the Lord's presence.

In praying we are coming into the audience chamber

of the King of kings, but lest this should daunt us, we remember that this

glorious One is also our Saviour and our Head.

When believers speak of fellowship, they usually mean spiritual

intercourse with one another, and this is a beautiful feature of the

Christian life.  The apostle John, however, reminds us of a far more

important aspect of fellowship: 'Truly our fellowship (koinonia) is with the

Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ' (1 John 1:3).

The Greek koinonia means something that is shared or one has in common

with someone else, so leading to the thought of communion.  Thus, in a

wonderful way, prayer brings us into communion with our Heavenly Father and

we have the joy of talking with Him at any and all times.  God forbid that we

should ever regard prayer as a Christian act to be engaged in only when we

want something, but rather learn, in a practical way, what day by day

fellowship with the Father means, its wonder, privilege and joy.

Just as breathing is the natural expression of physical life, so should

prayer be the normal and continuous expression of our spiritual life.

In the prayer which our Lord taught His disciples, which is a model

prayer for the subjects of the earthly kingdom, the Lord commences with: 'Our

Father which art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.  Thy kingdom come.  Thy

will be done ...'.  Thus we have four references to God before we reach 'Give

us this day our daily bread' (Matt. 6:9 -11).  Likewise the recorded prayers

of the apostle Paul abound with concern for others (see Rom. 1:9 -12; 1 Cor.

1:4 -7; Eph. 1:16 -23; Phil. 1:4 -11; Col. 1:3 -6; 1 Thess. 1:2 -4).  These

references not only make this clear, but also contain the element of

thanksgiving which is most important.  As long as we are conscious of the

Lord's abiding goodness to each one of us, we are not likely to stray from

the path of His revealed will.  It was when Israel of old ceased to be

thankful that they forgot God's loving-kindness and wonder -working on their

behalf, and their heart turned back to Egypt (a type of the world) and its

It was also true of the nations at Babel.  They knew God yet glorified

Him not as God, neither were they thankful (Rom. 1:21), and thus started the

terrible declension that the remainder of this chapter reveals.  A thankful

mind is a great preservative against evil, and we are not ever likely to

weary the Lord by including it continually in our prayers in a heartfelt