Prayer, middle knowledge, and divine-human interaction

This study results from my desire to understand the divine-human relationship in petitionary prayer. Christians generally believe that in prayer they are free in their act to petition God. Christians also believe that they pray to a God that is sovereign and omniscient. Explanation as to how one affirms these two truths is dependent upon one's account of divine providence, which determines how motivated the person is to offer petitionary prayer in the divine-human relationship. I will argue that middle knowledge is the preferred theory of providence as it relates to petitionary prayer, because it argues that God's sovereignty includes both his omniscience and libertarian human freedom.;The introduction of this dissertation states the need for the study and provides definitions for key terms. The second chapter surveys middle knowledge in addition to its primary competitors, which include compatibilism, hard determinism, open theism, and middle knowledge. The third chapter defines petitionary prayer and examines its biblical and theological characteristics. Chapters 2 and 3 serve as the foundation upon which this dissertation builds. Chapter 4 examines compatibilism and hard determinism and their attempts to explain the divine-human relationship in petitionary prayer. Chapter 5 examines open theism and its understanding of the divine-human relationship in prayer. Chapter 6 proposes a middle knowledge account of petitionary prayer, which is preferred over that of compatibilism, hard determinism, and open theism with respect to the divine-human relationship in prayer.;God's Word teaches that he is omniscient and has determined all things. It also stresses that human beings are free and will be held accountable for their actions. Each theory of providence affirms both of these truths as it relates to petitionary prayer. However, in the attempt to affirm God's omniscience and human freedom, middle knowledge is the only theory of providence that does not have to limit either God's sovereignty or libertarian human freedom as a result of its understanding of petitionary prayer.