Making an important call
What is prayer?
Psalm 62:8 – Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.
Psalm 5:1-2 – Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my meditation. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray.
Philippians 4:6 – Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
Remark: The Bible is how God speaks to us (Hebrews 1:1–2). Prayer is how we speak to God.
What can prayer be compared to?
Psalm 145:18 – The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
Jeremiah 33:3 – Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
Remark: Prayer can be compared to a phone call.
How does God react to our prayers?
Matthew 7:9-11 – Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
Remark: Like a father. Read also Luke 11:5-13.
Does God react to every prayer?
James 4:2-3 – Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.
Matthew 26:39 – And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.
1 John 5:14-15 – And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
Remark: As we read above, if we ask God for something we truly need—like bread or fish—He will not give us a stone or a snake. But what if we ask for a snake? Just like a loving father, God will not give us something that is harmful. We may believe that wealth or power is what we truly need, but these things rarely help God prepare us—or others—for eternity. When we pray for something outside of God’s will, we should not be surprised if our prayers remain unanswered—or are answered in a way we did not expect.
The purpose of prayer
Why should we pray if God already knows everything?
Matthew 6:8 – Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
Luke 11:8-10 – And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Remark: See also James 4:2 above and Matthew 7:7-8. Even though God knows what we need, He still wants us to ask Him in prayer—we should ask, seek, and knock! God respects our free will and desires that we choose Him deliberately (see Deuteronomy 30:19 and Joshua 24:15). In a way, we are giving Him permission to act in our lives. While God can read our thoughts, the accuser cannot. To remain fair in the great controversy between good and evil, God often acts only in response to specific, spoken requests. Paradoxically, in asking, seeking, and knocking, we also open the door to the One who is knocking on the other side (Revelation 3:20)!
Is it presumptuous to boldly claim God’s promises in prayer?
Daniel 9:2-3, 19-21 – In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes … / [19] O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name. And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God; Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time of the evening oblation.
Remark: Daniel gives us a clear example of praying with promises—he read God’s Word, believed it, and pleaded for its fulfillment (Daniel 9); God heard and responded. Like Daniel, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon, and many others before us, we can claim God’s promises, confident that He hears us and will respond at the right time with the right answer. And we can thank Him in advance, looking forward to the fulfillment of His promises.
Why is prayer important?
Matthew 26:41 – Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.
James 1:14-15 – But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
What should a prayer include?
Psalm 32:5-6 – I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah. For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee in a time when thou mayest be found: surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto him.
Philippians 4:6 – Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
1 Timothy 2:1-2 – I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
Remark: See also 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 and Ephesians 6:18. Confessing our sins to God, thanking Him for His mercy and His Son, and praying for others are all important parts of prayer.
What is the purpose of praying for each other?
Luke 22:31-32 – And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
James 5:16 – Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
The ins and outs
Is there an example of how we should pray?
Matthew 6:9-13 – After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation {trial}, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
Remark: In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus demonstrated how we should pray. While this prayer can be repeated word for word, it does not have to be—Jesus said “after this manner,” not “exactly like this.” The prayer outlines several core principles: First, we begin with glorifying and praising God—“Hallowed be Thy name.” Second, we align our concerns with God’s will—“Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth.” Third, we bring our daily needs before Him—“Give us this day our daily bread.” Fourth, we ask for forgiveness and freedom from sin—“And forgive us our debts.” Fifth, we seek His help in trials and temptations—“Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” God does not tempt anyone (James 1:13; Matthew 26:41), but He allows trials (1 Corinthians 10:13). Finally, Jesus ends the prayer by glorifying God once more.
Can I just repeat the Lord’s prayer over and over again?
Matthew 6:7-8 – But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.
Should we be worried about the formulations in our prayers?
Romans 8:26-27 – Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
Remark: Jesus, the true and only intercessor between the Father and humanity (Hebrews 7:25; Romans 8:34; 1 Timothy 2:5), works through His Spirit to “translate” our prayers to Himself and the Father.
What does it mean to pray in Jesus’ name?
John 14:13-14 – And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
John 15:16 – Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
Hebrews 4:14-16 – Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
Remark: See also 1 Corinthians 1:2. Jesus is the only connection between the human and the divine (1 Timothy 2:5), which are separated (Isaiah 59:2). Praying in Jesus’ name shows that we come to the Father through Him and not in our own name, and are therefore accepted.
To whom should we pray?
Matthew 6:6, 9 – But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. / [9] After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
Acts 7:59 – And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
Remark: We can pray to both the Father and the Son.
