How Must We Pray? Part One Luke 11:1-4; Matthew 6:5-13 One day, after Jesus has finished praying, one of His disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray. I believe this disciple observed how different Jesus life was and yearned to pray as Jesus prayed. Lord, teach us to pray....(Luke 11:1), A simple request indeed. This disciple could have tabled many request. Teach us to preach, teach us to cast out demons, teach us to reign in life, teach us how to influence people, teach us how to draw crowds, teach us to be millionaires/billionaires..... No, teach us to pray..., a simple, yet profound request. It indicates to us how important prayer was in the life of Jesus and the priority it played during His earthly ministry. Despite a tight schedule of going ...throughout all the cities and villages, teaching ... and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom... (Matthew 9:35), Jesus still kept communication with the Father which caught the disciples attention. There is a thought provoking statement we must note in the context of the Lords prayer. ...when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.( Matthew 6:7-8). When you pray, keep it simple and straight to the point. No special diction, no special mannerism and no extravagant language. So following from His own instruction against extravagant language in prayer, Jesus taught His disciple a simple pattern of prayer with great insight and wonderful to follow If Jesus prayed, then we also have to pray. If He taught the twelve to pray this prayer, we might as well follow it as a pattern for prayer. Paul says pray without ceasing. God told Jeremiah call on me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things you know not of David said I will lift up my eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help, my help cometh from the Lord, the creator of the heavens and the earth. Abraham interceded in prayer for Sodom and Gomorrah. Prayer is the means by which we communicate with God--our Father. It is not an emergency helpline as many make us believe. If it is an emergency helpline; we will need it only when we are in an emergency. It is a communication line--the means by which we communicate with our Father. Believers must pray consistently--not only in times of emergency--and not faint, the Master admonished(see Luke 18:1).
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 07:54:11 +0000
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