Prayer
Characteristics of Effective Prayer (Coming Soon)
Praying As Faithful Stewards #1 (Why Pray?)
1. We are commanded by God to pray.
The Bible is filled with examples of prayer.
• Psalms 105:4 "Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always."
• Isaiah 55:6 "Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near."
• Luke 18:1 "Then Yeshua told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up." (Parable of persistent widow.)
• John 16:24 "Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete."
• Ephesians 6:17-18 "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. {18} And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."
• Colossians 4:2 "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful."
• 1 Thessalonians 5:17 "pray continually;"
2. Prayer is the necessary link to receiving God's blessings, power, and the fulfillment of his promises.
• Luke 11:5-13 "Then he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, {6} because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.' {7} "Then the one inside answers, 'Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.' {8} I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man's boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs. {9} "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. {10} For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. {11} "Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? {12} Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? {13} If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!""
• This parable is contrasting the goodness of God with badness of men.
• Acts 1:14 "They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Yeshua, and with his brothers."
Paul understands the need for prayer for his ministry:
• Romans 15:30-32 "I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Yeshua Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. {31} Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints there, {32} so that by God's will I may come to you with joy and together with you be refreshed."
• Colossians 4:3-4 "And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. {4} Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should."
Praying As Faithful Stewards #1 (Why Pray?) Page 2
• Ephesians 6:18-20 "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. {19} Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, {20} for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."
3. God calls us to intercessory prayer for others to help bring about His plan.
• Ezekiel 22:29-30 "The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery; they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the alien, denying them justice. {30} "I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none."
Yeshua teaches about intercession:
• John 14:12-14 "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. {13} And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. {14} You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."
• John 15:7-8 "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. {8} This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples."
• John 15:16 "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name."
Holy Spirit helps us intercede in prayer:
• Romans 8:26-28 "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. {27} And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. {28} And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."
Praying As Faithful Stewards #2 (How Do I Pray?)
Mark 9:17-29 - "A man in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. {18} Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not." {19} "O unbelieving generation," Yeshua replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me." {20} So they brought him. When the spirit saw Yeshua, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. {21} Yeshua asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" "From childhood," he answered. {22} "It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." {23} "'If you can'?" said Yeshua. "Everything is possible for him who believes." {24} Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" {25} When Yeshua saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again." {26} The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." {27} But Yeshua took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. {28} After Yeshua had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" {29} He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer.""
1. We must pray with sincere and true faith:
• Mark 11:24 - "Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
• Mark 9:23 ""'If you can'?" said Yeshua. "Everything is possible for him who believes.""
• Hebrews 10:22 - "let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."
• James 1:6 - "But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind."
2. Yeshua tells us to pray in Yeshua' name:
• John 14:13-14 - "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. {14} You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it."
• When we ask in Yeshua' name our prayers must be in harmony with the person, character, and will of Yeshua our Lord.
3. Prayer can only be effective when it is made according to God's perfect will:
• 1 John 5:14 - "This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us."
Praying As Faithful Stewards #2 (How Do I Pray?) Page 2
• We know the will of God through:
• Holy Bible.
• Inner witness of the Holy Spirit.
• Circumstances God has placed in our life.
• Yeshua affirms the importance of God's will in our prayers.
• Matthew 6:10 - "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
• Matthew 26:42 - "He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.""
4. We must be in God's will for our prayers to be effective:
• Being in God's will begins with seeking first His kingdom.
• Matthew 6:33 - "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
• 1 John 3:21-22 - "Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God {22} and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him."
• In Psalms we found further biblical proof.
• Psalms 66:18 - "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened;"
• 2 Chronicles 7:14 "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
5. We must be persistent (faithfull in prayer and not give up):
• Luke 18:1-7 - "Then Yeshua told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. {2} He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. {3} And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.' {4} "For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, {5} yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!'" {6} And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. {7} And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?"
• Matthew 7:7-8 - "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. {8} For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened."
• "Keep on asking...keep on seeking...keep on knocking..."
• God answers our prayers in His timing.
Tim Gray
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