Alexander Whyte (1836-1921) was considered by many of his contemporaries to be the  greatest preacher in Scotland of his day. His book, Lord Teach Us To Pray, consists of a number of sermons on prayer from a variety of scripture texts. One of the messages in the book is based on Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer of John 17, where He prays in verse 19: “For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.” Following are some highlights from Whyte’s message, which he applies to those who are interceding for their children and for other loved ones:

“We must first sanctify ourselves, and then pray …”

“… all prayer, from the lowest kind to the highest, is impossible in a life of known and allowed sin … the very plowing of the wicked is sin.”

Speaking of a parent who has long been interceding for a rebellious child, Whyte writes:

“… you pray for yourself and for him with such passionate importunity. All that is well, but even all that is not enough. Have you ever tried sanctification — self-sanctification — upon your son, upon yourself, and upon God? Try still more sanctification of yourself before you despair and give up hope. I say it in His house and in His presence: and He will speak out and will contradict it if it is not true. God cannot resist a parent’s prayer when it is sufficiently backed up with a parent’s sanctification. I say it to you, in His hearing, that though He will not answer your most importunate prayer by itself, yet because of your sanctification added to it, He will say to you: Be it unto you all that you will! Make experiment by still more sanctification. Sanctify, clean out yourself … leave nothing undone, so that all your prayers and all your reproofs may have their full and unbroken force, both upon God and upon your son.”

“You have done everything a father can do, you say. No, you have not sanctified yourself. Try sanctification …”