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Preliminary to John 6:37 By John Murray

Let us now call upon God's name in prayer.
O thou eternal endeavor blessed God, glorious in holiness, fearful in phrases, doing wonders,
who dwellest in light that is unapproachable and full of glory.
Thou who will bring every work into judgment with every secret thing, whether it be good
or whether it be evil, and before whom each one of us must stand to be judged according
to the things done in the body, we beseech thee, O Lord, that as we come into this house,
which is the house of worship, of praise, of prayer, we beseech thee that we may be
graciously blessed with thy presence.
Thou hast given us exceeding great and precious promises, and we praise and bless thy great
and holy name, that thou dost not deal with us according to our deserts, but according
to the multitude of thy tender mercies.
And although we cannot stand before thee and give an account for one of a thousand,
yet thou, O Lord, art the merciful one, and we plead for Christ's sake, whom thou did
send into this world of sin, of misery, and of death, that he might redeem his people
from all iniquity, and purify them to himself a people for his own possession, that they
might offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable unto thee through Jesus Christ.
Do thou for his name's sake grant that we may be in the inmost recesses of our being,
conscious that we are in the presence of the great King, the King immortal?
Do thou grant that we may receive by thee instruction and the sealing witness of thy
Holy Spirit the certitude of that truth which thou hast deposited for us in thy word?
And may we also know the certainty of that promise that Christ has given to his Church.
Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.
And do thou we beseech of thee grant to each one of us that the word that proceeds from
thy mouth may be to us not as the word of man, but as it is in truth the word of God,
effectually working in the hearts of them that believe?
And do thou grant that thy word may be set forth with that power and junction and blessing
of the Holy Spirit so that it may be registered in our hearts with that conviction that is
the corresponding and necessary reaction in us to the word of the eternal God?
We beseech thee, O Lord, that thou didst remember those who are brokenhearted.
Do thou graciously grant unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joyful morning, and
the garment of praise for the Spirit of Heaven?
Do thou, O Lord, have mercy upon those who have offered resistance to the overtures of the King?
And do thou grant that their hearts might be broken and that they also might be melted
so that Christ might become precious to them in all the excellency of his passion, in all
the perfection of his finished work, in all the glory of his mediatorial ministry, and
in all the security of those promises which he has given and which he has ratified and
sealed by his own blood?
We pray, O Lord, that unto thy people in this congregation may be given much of that understanding
of thy word, that fidelity to the faith, and that earnest seal for the proclamation of
the unsearchable riches of Christ to the very ends of the earth.
And may the ministry of thy word discharged by thy servants in this place from Sabbath
to Sabbath and from week to week be abundantly acknowledged by thee so that many may be translated
from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God, that thy people may be
built up in understanding, in holiness and comfort, and that there may be in this particular
locality that blessed influence emanating from thy word and by the blessing of thy Spirit
that would be to the establishment of thy church, to the advancement of thy kingdom,
and to the great glory of thy name.