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Pray, Teach Us To Luke 11.1-4 Introduction:
We read of prayer throughout the Bible. First time “pray” is in Genesis 20.
This is when Abraham had lied to Abimelech about Sarah being his sister. God
afflicted Abimelech and told him to restore Abraham’s wife for he is a
prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live, Genesis 20.7. Genesis 20.17, “Abraham
prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife, and female servants.” In
the New Testament we read of the disciples praying daily and on various
occasions. Even
in our society we have prayer at various events and occasions. Events such as
ballgames, graduation ceremonies, times of national trials and tragedies; we
have some type of prayer. We want to understand some things about prayer in this
lesson so as to help us to pray. A)
What is prayer? 1.
Prayer is man’s way of petitioning God and praising Him. 2.
The Bible is God’s way of communicating with man and prayer is man’s way of
communicating with God. B)
Does prayer do any good? 1.
Obviously in reading of prayer in the Bible we find some prayers were answered
miraculously and some were answered without any miracles. 2.
Miracles in answering prayer
a. 1 Kings 18.37 -38 Elijah petition God to consume his sacrifice
b. 2 Kings 6.13-18 Elisha in 3.
Prayer answered without miracles
a. James 5.17-18 the drought while long and due to God’s power were
not miraculous in nature. Neither was the rain.
b. God can and does answer prayer through natural means. C)
How to pray? A look at the “Model Prayer” 1.
Jesus teaches us to address God in our prayers, Luke
11.2a.
a. We are to address God with reverence and respect. Psalm
111.9
b. We are not to direct our prayers to man, Jesus, mother earth or father
sun. 2.
We are to recognize the will of God, Luke
11.2b
a. We must recognize the power and authority of God.
b. His kingdom implies his rule and law.
c. While the kingdom has been established it can be expanded when more
are brought into the kingdom.
d. Must pray for that which is consistent with God’s will and not ours,
1 John 5.14. Examples: Can not pray to win the lottery, for me to get
lucky on a hot date, or for God to save someone that has not rendered obedience
to God. 3.
We are to recognize the physical and spiritual blessings that come from God,
Luke 11.b
a. God knows and provides for our physical needs, Matthew
6.25-32.
b. All good gifts come from God, James
1.17. Again this does not mean that God will miraculously provide food for
us but He gives us rain and sunshine. 4.
We are to ask God to forgive us of our sins
a. This implies repentance, confessing our sins, being in the right
relationship with God
b. We are to be willing to forgive others and not harbor grudges. This
does not mean that forgiveness is unconditional but it is total.
c. Prayer is not a substitute for obedience. D)
Why do we pray? 1.
God tells us to, 1 Thess. 5.17 2.
We are either imploring God to help us, to help someone else, or are to praise
God. 3.
In our prayers we recognize the existence of God, His power, and our need for
help. E)
The Mechanics of Prayer (Private and public) 1.
Private prayer
a. We are to address the right one, our heavenly Father
b. Thinks about what we are praying for, Matthew
6.6-7
c. Not to get into vain repetitions. Easy to say the same things and
not think about what you are saying.
d. Understand that God knows what we need and the power of
prayer is not in our eloquence or even our length of prayer, Romans 8.26. 2.
Public prayer
a. Again we need to make sure that everyone knows we are praying to God.
Can do that by using some term or phrase that shows we are addressing God.
b. Speak so as to be heard. For some that is easier than others. But it
is necessary for we are asking the audience to join with us in prayer and to
“amen” our prayer. How can they do that if they can not hear the prayer?
i. Speak loudly, use a mic, come to the front of the building.
ii. Don’t rush through the prayer, take your time and relax. F)
Is there a “right position” to pray? 1.
Yes
a. Ezra was on his knees as he addresses God, in Ezra
9.5
b. Nehemiah and the crowd were standing as they addressed God in Nehemiah
9.1ff.
c. Jonah was in the belly of a fish in Jonah
2. 2.
The right position is one of a humble heart in service to God, Luke 18.9-14
a. One man prayed to praise himself the other prayed recognizing
his need for God
b. One man was justified the other was not. 3.
The right position requires us to do more than say the right words it requires
us to live the right life. Conclusion:
The last time the word prayer is specifically mentioned is 3 John 2. What could be more important and greater than having our
soul to prosper? Jesus died so we can prosper in this life but mostly in the
next life. Will you prosper on the other side of the grave? It depends on how
you are living today. |