How Jesus Prayed

SLIDE 1-2 Taking a break from the Psalms, two weeks ago we started a series on prayer. I decided to preach this series not necessarily because I thought you needed to hear, but because I do. I don’t know that there is any secret to having a strong prayer life but if there is one it has to be in understanding our relationship to God as our Father. Jesus taught us to pray to God as a Father.

Before we start praying we need to know who we are praying to. It matters. You talk to people differently because of who they are. Students don’t talk to the teacher the way they talk to their friends. Workers don’t talk to the boss the way they talk to co-workers. There are things you would say to your spouse you wouldn’t say to your children. Knowing who you are talking to is important and so is knowing who you are praying to. Jesus taught us to pray to God as our Father.

Some have described our prayers this way: SLIDE 3

We pray by the Spirit, through the Son, to the Father.

We pray to the Father. SLIDE 4

Luke 11:2 He said to them, “When you pray, say: “ ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.’ ”

SLIDE 5 Even though God is referred to as the Father of his people, it was Jesus who taught us to call God our Father. It was his favorite title for God.

We pray through the Son: SLIDE 6

1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus.

SLIDE 7

Hebrews 7:25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

SLIDE 8 Mark Driscoll tells the story of his daughter when she was eight. In order to teach their children the importance of giving, in addition to their tithe, they set aside money to help those they saw in need. They told the children if they saw a need to let them know because that’s what the money was for. So, his daughter came to him one day and said she needed some of the money for a lawyer. Why does an eight-year-old need a lawyer? It turned out that a girl in her class who had just started coming to the church with her mother needed the lawyer. The mother had gone through a divorce and her ex-husband wasn’t paying child support. When she asked him for it he told he wasn’t going to pay and if she kept asking he would get a lawyer and take their daughter from her. She didn’t know what to do but when Mark’s daughter heard about it she volunteered to pay for a lawyer for the mother. You can imagine what the mother thought when she heard the offer. How can an eight-year-old afford a lawyer? But that’s exactly what happened. Mark says they had the money set aside, they paid for a lawyer.

In that story the mother needed help. She needed an advocate to go before the judge for her and intercede on her behalf. That was the lawyer who not only was able to get the husband to start paying but made up for late payments.

We have Jesus to intercede on our behalf before God. We pray to our Father through Jesus who intercedes for us.

And we pray by the Spirit: SLIDE 9

Galatians 4:6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”

SLIDE 10 We read in the gospels that after Jesus was baptized that he was filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit lived in Jesus and powered his life and enabled his prayers. God gives the same power of the Holy Spirit to Christians. So, the Holy Spirit actually teaches us to pray. Here’s the good news, if you have a desire to pray and to grow in your prayer life, that’s the Holy Spirit working in you the desire for a relationship with God.

The Bible tells us that “God is love.” We’re not just told that God loves us but that he is love. Love is the very nature of his being so it is very natural for him to love us. The Bible speaks about God’s love around eight hundred times. Because of God’s love for us he invites us into a loving relationship with him. Prayer is how we communicate with him.

God loves you, God knows you, and God is not too busy for you. You are important to Him. We pray by the Spirit through the Son to the Father.

Tonight, I want look at how Jesus prayed.

SLIDE 11-12 How did Jesus pray?

First, Jesus prayed scriptural prayers. When Jesus was on the cross dying he prayed. And what did he pray? SLIDE 13

Matthew 27:46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

SLIDE 14 Jesus was quoting scripture. He was reciting Psalm 22:1. There are times that Jesus’ prayer is just quoting Scripture. This is part of why Bible reading is so important. Bible reading is how we listen to God, prayer is how we speak to God. I would encourage you to pray as you read your Bible.

I was talking to one of my aunts last week and she told me what she’s doing for her quiet time right now. She is going through the book of Revelation and as she does she is writing it out. Copying it into a notebook is slower than just reading it. There’s no way she’ll get through the Bible in a year or even five years doing this. However, it forces her to slow down and concentrate on what’s she reading. And as she does she prays. If there is something to praise God for she does. If some sin is brought to light she confesses it. If she is reminded of a reason to give thanks she does. If she remembers the need of someone she knows she intercedes.

You don’t have to copy everything you read, but as you read allow God to lead you into prayer. Stop and talk to God anytime he brings something to mind. It will take longer but it will be worth it. It’s not about how much Scripture you get into, it’s about how much Scripture you get into you. Jesus had enough Scripture in him that when certain moments happened in his life he was able to pray the word of God. Learn how to pray the word of God.

Second Jesus prayed long prayers. I won’t say much about this passage right now, but in Mark 14, Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane with the disciples praying. Well, he was praying. The disciples were sleeping. We read: SLIDE 15

Mark 14:37-38 37 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? SLIDE 16 38 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

SLIDE 17 Evidently, Jesus had been off praying alone for an hour. But that’s not the only time we read about Jesus praying a long amount of time. The night before he selected the twelve men that would become the apostles he prayed. SLIDE 18

Luke 6:12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.

SLIDE 19 Jesus took time to be with his Father.

Third, Jesus prayed warfare prayers. Good communication during battle has always been important. Alexander the Great had relay runners going from the front line to the commanders in the back letting them know how things were going. Then another runner would take the new instructions back to the line. Genghis Khan used homing pigeons to deliver communications. On the sea, ships use flags for communication. I’ve read that the telegraph, Morse code, radio, and internet were all developed to help the military communicate better.

Prayer is our communication with God which is especially needed in the heat of battle. When Jesus faced difficult situations he prayed. Again, while praying in the Garden of Gethsemane before he was arrested, Jesus prayed: SLIDE 20

John 12:27-28 27 “Now my soul is troubled. . . .”

SLIDE 21 We are aware of all that Jesus was facing that night. He would be betrayed by one of his apostles, he would go through six different interrogations, he would be beaten and whipped, and then crucified. For Jesus to say his soul was troubled seems an understatement.

It’s not a problem to feel burdened, frustrated, scared, overwhelmed, or troubled. That’s not a sin. It’s what we do when we feel those things that matters. We need to bring our requests to God. SLIDE 22

John 12:27-28 27 “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour.”

SLIDE 23 What was Jesus saying? He was saying, “I could ask you to get me

out of this.” How many of us ask God to do that all the time? We’re having a difficult time and we pray, asking God to get us out of whatever problem we’re in. We don’t want to go through it. However, we need to know that there are some things God wants us to go through. Remember what David prayed in the twenty-third Psalm. SLIDE 24

Psalm 23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

SLIDE 25 We don’t read about David asking God to deliver him from the dark valley but through it. David confesses that he knows God is with him, comforting him as he went through the valley. Jesus knew the same. SLIDE 26

John 12:27-28 27 “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. SLIDE 27 28 Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

SLIDE 28 Jesus says what was more important was that his Father be glorified. He wanted God to be thought well of. Dark valleys teach us to depend on God but they also give us an opportunity to glorify God and tell of how he comforted us and brought us through.

Fourth, Jesus prayed thankful prayers. In Matthew 11, the disciples of John the Baptist come to Jesus to ask if he was the one they had been waiting for. After Jesus sent them off he prayed. SLIDE 29

Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.”

SLIDE 30 The word the NIV translates as “praise” can also be translated as giving thanks and that’s how most translate it. This is a thankful prayer. We’re pretty good at telling God what we need, but are we as good at thanking God for what he’s already provided. The surest way to gain momentum in your prayer life is pray thankful prayers.

I was convicted about this many years ago. Ever since I’ve tried to start my prayers giving thanks to God.

I heard a preacher talking about some time he had to pray. He said:

I had an hour that I was supposed to do a phone call and it fell through so I had a free hour in my schedule. It was really sunny out and I decided “I’m gonna go for a prayer walk.” And as I started walking, I thought, “Well, I’m gonna start with thankful prayers. And then when I’m done with those I’ve got some requests to make known to God. An hour later, my walk was over and I was still praying thankful prayers. And it just changed my whole day. I was suddenly aware of all that God had been doing in my life very recently and in our family and in our church family. And as I started thinking of all the people and things I was thankful for, I just blew an hour. And you know what? I could have blown a week, and it wouldn’t have been a blown, it would’ve been an investment.

How many people to you know that struggle with a sour attitude? For them, the glass is always half empty. They seem to always be burdened by life. Maybe the key is not to ignore those things, but before bringing those things to God in prayer to start with prayers of thanks. Before you get to the things that are causing you difficulty, start with the things that are causing you joy.

Maybe, when you’re sitting around the dinner table talking, ask your children, ask your family members, what they are thankful for. And then just listen. You may soon realize all that God is doing for them and teaching them. And then, celebrate together what God is doing.

In her book on prayer, Ashley Chase shares a time when she was struggling through one of the hardest seasons of her life. So, she got three-by-five cards, and every day she wrote a thankful prayer. She did that every day for two-and-half years. She tells how focusing on the things she was thankful for instead of the problems she was facing gave her strength. Pray thankful prayers.

Fifth, Jesus prayed in song. After celebrating the Passover meal, Jesus walked with his disciples to the Mount of Olives. Before they left the upper room we read: SLIDE 31

Mark 14:26 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

SLIDE 32 During the Passover feast they would sing and pray Psalm 113 through Psalm 118. That was the Jewish tradition. And what Jesus does here? He sings with the disciples a prayer.

When we sing here at church it’s not supposed to be a concert, it’s supposed to be a prayer. In a concert, the band performs for the crowd, in prayer we engage with the King. When Debbie or Doreen, or Gina come up, they’re not performing for us, they're leading us to pray and worship God. It’s not a performance, it's a prayer. Singing is one of the ways we pray.

I don’t think that the only thing we’ll do in heaven is sing, but I do think that there will be a lot of singing. I didn’t count, but someone did, and counted twenty-seven songs in the book of Revelation. That’s a lot of singing.

Finally, Jesus prayed with his last breath. As he was dying, Jesus prayed. SLIDE 33

Luke 23:46 Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.

SLIDE 34 What someone says or does in their final breath says so much about them. What did Jesus do with his last breath? He prayed. What that means is, it was his highest priority.

We don’t know what our last day will be. Therefore, we should be praying every day so that we’ll be prepared for the last day. The person who prays every day is prepared for the last day. And Jesus prayed. That means that the most important thing that we can do is pray.

How can we pray like Jesus? I’ve given you a start. Jesus prayed scriptural prayers. He prayed long prayers. Jesus prayed warfare prayers and thankful prayers. Jesus even prayed in song. And with his last breath he prayed.

Let’s pray.