What secret made Jabez—whose very name means “pain”—become “honorable”? Through Pastor David Jang’s sermon (Olivet University), this article shares the deep theological insight and grace found in Jabez’s Prayer in 1 Chronicles 4. It guides readers to widen the territory of life through prayer and to experience the power of the gospel.
Have
you ever sat quietly and contemplated Rembrandt—the painter of light and
darkness—and his late-life masterpiece, The Return of the Prodigal Son?
In the painting, the son appears in a wretched state: his sandals have fallen
off, his clothes are torn, and his hair is nearly gone. He looks as though he
bears the weight of all the world’s pain and failure. Yet on his back rests the
father’s warm, wide hands—gentle, steady, embracing. In that moment, the son’s
foul-smelling rags are no longer shameful; they become the canvas that proves
the father’s love.
Whenever
I meditate on the life of Jabez in 1 Chronicles 4, Rembrandt’s painting comes
to mind. Jabez was born with a name that literally means “pain,” a man whose
tragedy seemed foretold from the moment he entered the world. And yet, in a
corner of a genealogy, he shines like a star—recorded as an “honorable man.”
Pastor David Jang (Olivet University) unfolds with profound theological insight
that the key to this dramatic reversal is found in one place: prayer.
Rising
Above the Sorrow Etched Into a Name
Biblical
genealogies can seem like silent records—names listed one after another without
emotion. But when Jabez appears, Scripture pauses, as if taking a breath, and
invites us to notice his life. His mother named him with a sigh of lament: “I
bore him in pain.” In other words, he was pain personified. Perhaps he was
fatherless, or a child of war and famine—his destiny hovering near despair.
But
Pastor David Jang sharply highlights this turning point in his sermon: it
is not the environment that ultimately defines a person; rather, when a person
kneels before God, the environment itself is redefined.
Instead
of surrendering to his fate, Jabez lifted his eyes to the God of heaven. His
prayer—“Oh, that You would bless me indeed…”—is not merely an expression of
shallow prosperity faith. It is a thorough denial of self: a confession that he
cannot escape the grip of pain by his own strength, and a wholehearted
dependence on God alone for deliverance. Pastor David Jang emphasizes that this
is the act of recovering humanity’s privilege as a spiritual being—standing
upright toward God. Just as the prodigal son pressed into the father’s embrace,
Jabez, through prayer, broke the shell of suffering and entered the realm of
grace.
A
Prayer to Enlarge Territory: Holy Ambition
One
of the most striking lines in Jabez’s prayer is: “Enlarge my territory.”
At first glance, it may sound like a desire to acquire more land. Yet Pastor
David Jang interprets this in connection with Isaiah 54:2—“Enlarge the place of
your tent… stretch your tent curtains wide.” Here, “territory” goes beyond
physical land; it signifies the expanding reach of the gospel’s influence and
the holy domain where God’s reign is realized.
We
often castrate holy ambition under the guise of humility. Yet Scripture
commands us to ask, seek, and knock. Pastor David Jang explains this using the
parable in Luke 11—the friend who comes at midnight. The reason we ask for
bread is not simply to satisfy ourselves, but to serve the friend who arrives
hungry on a journey. In other words, the prayer “enlarge my territory” becomes:
“Lord, expand me so that I may serve more people, so that I may carry Your love
to more places.”
When
this outward, loving motivation stands at the center, prayer becomes a powerful
engine that moves the throne of heaven.
God’s
Hand That Calms the Storm
The
sea of life is often struck by storms without warning. Jabez knew this, and so
he prayed: “Let Your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be
free from pain.” Pastor David Jang points to our spiritual reality here: in a
world where the powers of sin and death still operate, the only way for a
believer to live without crippling anxiety is to rely on the hand of
God.
Walls built by human effort eventually collapse, but walls built through prayer remain firm even before waves of affliction. As emphasized in the sermon, prayer is the channel that brings heaven’s blessings into our lives—blessings we often fail to grasp. To stop praying is like stopping one’s breath; the soul dries up, and life’s territory inevitably shrinks. But for the one who stays awake in prayer, everyday life becomes a field of miracles where God’s help is witnessed again and again. The biblical conclusion—“And God granted what he asked”—is not an ancient legend, but a promise given to those who bow down and pray today.
Pastor
David Jang’s message on the Prayer of Jabez is a holy challenge to modern
Christians who have fallen into helplessness: Will you live wearing the label
of pain, or will you overturn your destiny through prayer and become honorable?
Even now, God is waiting for our lips to open and cry out. Just as the father
in Rembrandt’s painting tenderly touches his son, prayer is the surest way to
bring the touch of God into our lives.
Now,
begin the prayer that enlarges your territory. God is ready to grant what you
ask.
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