In John 17, Jesus prays for His own. This passage is stirring and wonderful. What were Jesus “prayer requests” in this passage? Let us examine three of them.
**Jesus prays for the Believer’s Spiritual Protection
Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.
John 17:11
**Jesus prays for the Believer’s Joy
But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.
John 17:13
**Jesus prays for His People’s Unity
And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.
41And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, 42 saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” 43 Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
Luke 22:41-44
3 Lessons from Jesus’ Prayer Life
**Pray Fervently
**Pray Regularly
Luke 5:16 So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.
**Pray Persistently
Luke 18:1 Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart.
16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
James 5:16
Two commands and one promise comprise James 5:16. The commands are……..
**Confess your sins
**Pray for each other
The Promise?
**The prayer of the righteous will be powerful. Let us go and follow these commands.
13 Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise.
James 5:13
Praise and prayer occupy the Apostle’s teaching in Chapter 5, Verse 13. These two spiritual disciplines are vital for Christian growth. Without them, maturity will come slowly if at all to the Believer.
When trouble comes, pray. Pray also when times are good. No matter the circumstance and no matter the situation, pray. God works through the prayers of His people. The Lord will not answer every prayer as we would hope. He will hear us and do what it is best.
Praise the Lord, Child of God. He has blessed you, protected you, and kept you in Christ Jesus. Praise Him when you feel like it and even when you don’t. Honor the King of kings and Lord of lords through praise each and every day.
What should we do while praying? Consider the following
**Thank God
Pray without ceasing.
1 Thessalonians 5:17
**Praise the Lord
Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.
Hebrews 13:15
**Confess Your Sins
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
**Make Requests
Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
Matthew 7:7
**Intercede for Others
Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men.
1 Timothy 2:1
**Meditate on God’s Word
Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 1:1-2
**Listen to the Holy Spirit
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
Matthew 7:9-11
Two main points emerge from these verses. The first is this—God is our provider. He gives us good things. James expounds on this thought by saying “every good and perfect gift comes from above.” (James 1:17)
When we pray, may we be reminded that God is our provider and sustainer. He is Jehovah Jireh, God our Provider. (Genesis 22:14) We can trust Him to meet our needs.
Also, God knows what we need more fully than we do. God knows us better than we know ourselves and He knows how to give us what we need.
We ought to be thankful for this aspect of God’s provision. Often, we do not know what is best for us. And I’m glad that God withholds what we think we want in order to give us what is best.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
Matthew 7:7
Most Christians truly desire to have a thriving, growing prayer life. We want to pray and we hope to pray well.
If were honest, though, most Christians also admit that while we want to pray well we often do not pray effectively at all. We are not experiencing true growth and power in our prayers. The desire is to pray is real, but, the practical growth is non-existent. What can we do?
Jesus instructs us in prayer in this verse once again. May we heed His words and apply them to our prayer times. Listen to these practical instructions and pray well my friend.
Jesus commands us to pray fervently. When we pray, may we pray with a sense of urgency. Too often our prayers lack urgency and strength. We say our prayers perfunctorily and half-heartedly. No wonder we do not have power in prayer.
As you pray, pray believing that God can. He might not do everything you want, but, continue praying knowing that “with God all things are possible.” (Luke 1:37)
In this manner, therefore, pray:Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Matthew 6:9-13
In this Scripture, Jesus gives us a model for how we are pray. The prayer is called the “Lord’s Prayer” and it is also referred to as the “Model Prayer.” Let’s examine the four aspects of this prayer and how it should be a model for us in our prayer life. Our prayers should contain the following elements.
**Praise
Our prayers should be overflowing with praise and adoration to God. He is our Father and He rules and reigns. He is our King and we genuflect in praise of His greatness, power, and grace. We await the day His Kingdom is fully revealed in power and might upon this earth. Let us praise God in prayer at every opportunity.
**Petition
Praying for the needs of others and our own needs has a rightful place in our prayer life. Praying for needs is one of our greatest privileges as a Believer. Pray for needs knowing that God knows us better than we know ourselves.
**Pardon
This component is two-fold. We are to ask for forgiveness and confess our sins when we pray. (1 John 1:8-10) We continually need the cleansing from sin so that we can continue to grow in the faith.
We are also taught to forgive others in this example. As a matter of fact, God’s forgiveness of us and our forgiveness of others go hand in hand. You can’t have one without the other.
**Purification
Jesus ends His model prayer by praying for our holiness. We should be pursue holiness by seeking to become more like Jesus every day. We are not saved by our works, but, we are saved for good works. (Ephesians 2:8-10)
It is not wrong in any sense to recite the Lord’s Prayer as written in Matthew (Luke). However, the point of Jesus’ teaching seems to be more about form and element as opposed to strict recitation. Our prayer-life should contain elements of praise, petition, pardon, and purity.
Every prayer may not contain every element every single time. But as we incorporate these components into our regular prayer time we will grow in knowledge, grace, love, and hope!
And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
Matthew 6:5-6
Prayer is an important emphasis in the Kingdom of Heaven. Living as Kingdom citizens allows us the privilege of prayer. We can converse and commune with God.
The Lord’s message in v. 5 is “do not be a hypocrite when we pray.” Don’t pray publicly one way when you are a different person in private. God has a real problem with us pretending to be something we are not.
Simply put, we are not to pray for the audience around us. We are to pray to God and to God alone.
Those who pray for the ears of others have their reward. They are well-thought of in the moment, but, that’s it. No reward exists for hypocritical praying.
By contrast, our prayers are to be authentic and the same whether we pray privately or publicly. We are rewarded by the father when we seek Him sincerely each day. The Father is pleased with this type of praying.
Remember, Jesus is not condemning public prayer per se. He is condemning hypocritical public prayers that do not glorify God but glorify the one who prays.
Glorify Jesus in your prayer life, child of God. He is worthy!
mrtonyfrench 