Prayer
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
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 Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, 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.
21 Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing. 22 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are, and that he may encourage you.
23 Peace to the brothers and sisters, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.
Who prays enough?
A sermon on prayer shouldn’t be a cause for great guilt but for great encouragement
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
It’s an invitation
Invitations we jump at v. consider
Paul’s book is saturated with prayer
1:15-22
3:14-21
Here
Prayer here connects us back to and refers to putting on the armor
Prayer is how we put on the armor,
It is not the seventh piece of armor it is the foundation of all the pieces of armor
He breaks from the military metaphor
He changes to present tense
The engine isn’t just another tacked on piece of the car; it’s the very heart that makes the car run
It is an act of dependent effort
Spiritual
Spiritual
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 Lord’s people.
Prayer is spiritual rather than natural
Prayer is spiritual rather than natural
Spiritual prayer comes from the Spirit-transformed heart
It’s not mere mechanics
So prayer in the Spirit isn’t contrasted with ecstatic experience, but with dry heartlessness
How does the Spirit give life to our prayers?
The Spirit helps us pray
The Spirit helps us pray
The Spirit gives us God’s Word
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Spiritual prayer is informed by Scripture
Enables us to cry to the Father by assuring us we are his children
15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
A father loves to give good gifts to his children.
The Spirit intercedes on our behalf, when we don’t even know what to ask
26 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 through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
The Spirit provides access to the Father
18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
Godly prayer aligns with the Spirit’s desires
Godly prayer aligns with the Spirit’s desires
3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
The Spirit transforms us in the inner man – changing our desires – so that we pray in line with his desires
19 I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. 20 Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
Broad
Broad
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 Lord’s people.
All occasions
All occasions
Sorrow
Trouble
Joy
Ambition
All kinds of prayers and requests
All kinds of prayers and requests
Petition
Praise
Confession
Thanksgiving
Lament
Always – Alert and always persevering (“keep on”)
Always – Alert and always persevering (“keep on”)
It cannot be constant utterances (verbal or silent)
A heart posture of dependance
Always living life “before God”
Persevering in prayer even when the answers don’t seem to come
“Relentless pursuit”
For all the Lord’s people
For all the Lord’s people
Prayer should not merely be self-focused. It is an act of the body’s care for one another
More than physical needs
Other people’s battle with Satan and sin is my business
Not as judge
As Ally
Specific
Specific
19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, 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.
Paul then expresses prayer for himself with meaningful specificity
Boldness
Not deliverance
It’s a prayer for something he already has – even our strengths require dependence on the armor
It’s like me asking God to help me like cheeseburgers
He prays for his ability to do God’s will rather than that God’s will would match his
Conclusion
Conclusion
We are in a spiritual battle that cannot be won with our own power
God will strengthen us with his power to enable us to fight
The way we experience that strengthening power is through dependent prayer
May we view prayer not as an obligation to feel guilty about but as an invitation to grasp hold of
23 Peace to the brothers and sisters, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.
