2019 Chapel 1, Feb 17th

Tony Graffanino

Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

0 ratings

· 5 views

Notes

Transcript

Sermon Tone Analysis

Emotion

Language

Social

View more →

Prayer

What is Prayer?

Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship, typically a deity, through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity, or a deified ancestor. Wikipedia

According to Timothy Keller, prayer can be defined as a personal, communicative response to the knowledge of God. All human beings have some knowledge of God available to them. At some level, they have an indelible sense that they need something or someone who is on a higher plane and infinitely greater than they are. Prayer is seeking to respond and connect to that being and reality, even if it is no more than calling out for help.

Prayer is continuing a conversation that God has started through His Word and His grace, which eventually becomes a full encounter with Him. The power of our prayers, then, lies not primarily in our effort and striving, or in any technique, but rather in our knowledge of God.

In our understanding of God as revealed to us in His word.

So let’s go to His Word and use a popular acronym for our model in encountering God in prayer.

The acronym is ACTS and the A is for Adoration, C is for Confession, T is for Thanksgiving and finally S is for Supplication.

Adoration—deep love and respect with worship veneration, glorify, praise, revere.

New Living Translation Psalm 95

Psalm 95

1 Come, let us sing to the LORD!

Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.

2 Let us come to him with thanksgiving.

Let us sing psalms of praise to him.

3 For the LORD is a great God,

a great King above all gods.

4 He holds in his hands the depths of the earth

and the mightiest mountains.

5 The sea belongs to him, for he made it.

His hands formed the dry land, too.

6 Come, let us worship and bow down.

Let us kneel before the LORD our maker,

7 for he is our God.

We are the people he watches over,

the flock under his care.

If only you would listen to his voice today!

Confession—a formal statement admitting one is guilty of a crime. A formal admission of one’s sins with repentance and a desire of absolution.

Psalm 51:1–17 ESV

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice. Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Psalm 51:1-

Thanksgiving—A thankfulness, gratitude, for all that God has done and continues to do.

The word eucharist is a Greek word for thanksgiving and gratitude, hear clearly in regard to Christ’s bodily sacrifice on our behalf on the Cross.

The word Charis or Grace as well comes with the idea of Thanksgiving, thanking God for His undeserved favor in not punishing for our sinfulness but rather sending Jesus to die in our place.

The words give thanks, or thankfulness, are all over the Bible, clearly that should be the attitude of our hearts. Despite whatever we may be going through in this life, God has dealt with our biggest problem with the life and death of Jesus Christ, that problem is our sin and separation. Through Jesus we can be saved, rescued, bought back from an impossible situation, and that is the biggest reason to be thankful.

Colossians 3:12–17 ESV

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Supplication—The action of asking or begging for something earnestly or humbly. Making requests for yourself or on behalf of another. Petitions, Requests,

Philippians 4:6–7 ESV

do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

All of our prayers to God and made possible, are heard by God because we can now come to God in and through Jesus Christ referred to in these verses as our High Priest.

Hebrews 4:14–16 ESV

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:14-

Hebrews 4:14–16 ESV

The Bible also talks in about how Jesus intercedes for us, on our behalf, in

Hebrews 7:24–26 ESV

but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.

This is a good model to follow in our prayers. For one it at first takes the focus off of ourselves. Sometimes we have the tendency to approach God because we need something from Him, and not just for who He is.

Secondly, we have the tendency to forget who God is and how great He is, He is worthy of our praise.

We forget that God has taken care of our biggest problem, our sin and separation from Him, by Jesus.

We overlook our sinfulness, and need of daily forgiveness to clear and maintain right relationship with God.

We have a tendency to forget all that God has done in history, and done in our lives, we can have confidence He is good and will do what is best.

Lastly, we do have the freedom, because of Jesus, to approach God and make requests. God is a loving Father and cares for His children, He wants to hear what is on our hearts. We may not always get what we ask for, as a father you may be able to relate to that, but it shouldn’t stop us from going to God and asking.