Power of Prayer: Praying in Circles

Prayer of Dedication

All Prefigured Prayers for Christ

Hallowed be your name:

No God like you, in heaven above or in earth beneath

Covenant God, loving God.

This OT prayer teaches us a lot about NT prayers:

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Introduction: Background

Vss.33-34: Forgiven Corporate Sins after ware

Introduction: Background

Background:

Vss.35-36:

Background:

Prayer of Dedication for the Temple

Big Deal- sort of like the moment the Apostle’s were praying together before the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost, this is a prayer spoken before one of the biggest events in the Bible: God’s Name coming to the Temple

Solomon spent many years a lot of cash building this spectacular building.

Read the Passage

Read the Passage

Movement #1: Overview of Passage

7 Main Prayer Requests Dealing with 7 Realistic Issues that will arise. Solomon’s prayer can be summarized this way:

Major Themes in this Prayer:

“Lord, you’re coming to down to a people who are going to let you down. You will be descending into a building surrounded by people stuck in sin. I’m just gunna say it now: You’re going to be disappointed, and so please don’t only hear this prayer of dedication, but hear the future prayers of repentance!”

Prayer for the Church:

Vss. 31-32: Individual forgiveness

Vss.33-34: Forgiven Corporate Sins after ware

Vss.35-36: Famine

7 Situations People May Experience:

Justice: : Oath= innocence. Heb: “bring his way [of life] on his own head’

Enemies: Overcome by enemies requires repentance and prayer

Enemies: Overcome by enemies requires repentance and prayer

Drought. Purpose= ‘Make humble’ and to educate ‘teach’

Drought. Purpose= ‘Make humble’ and to educate ‘teach’

Famine/Plague

Famine/Plague= Blight, mildew, locusts, grasshoppers,

Mercy for Foreigner: Attracted to the Lord. ‘House of prayer for all nations’

Mercy for Foreigner

Just War: Success in War

War

Loss of War, ie. Exile:

Exile

: “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

“It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

House of Prayer:

Hear and Forgive

Judge, restore, teach, act, do what he asks, uphold their cause

: for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

Teaching #1: Geography Matters

Positional Prayers

Our Position to the Temple

Justice: ‘Confession before the Altar’

Geographically within the Temple:

Justice: ‘Confession before the Altar’

Enemies: ‘in this house’

Drought: ‘pray towards this house’

Famine, pestilence, mildew, locusts, caterpiller, enemy, plague, sickness: ‘lift up hands towards this house’

Foreigner: ‘Lift hands towards this place’

Going to War- outside the border: ‘Turn towards the City’

Exile: ‘Pray towards the land’

God’s Position in Heaven

Hear in Heaven (vss. 32,

Concentric Circles: When you are turning your body, you are turning your hearts!

Christian Blessing!

: Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Christian Geographically Resides in Christ already!

Don’t need a holy place

Don’t need a holy posture

Don’t need a holy position

When you pray, you’re already praying as someone in Christ!

More than just body position. It’s about being grafted into another person!

When you pray, you don’t need

God’s Reputation is Important

Lesson #2: God’s Reputation Matters

Lesson #3: Evangelism Matters

Prayer=Evangelism:

Isaiah 56:4-8

Prayer=Evangelism:

4  For thus says the LORD:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me

and hold fast my covenant,

5  I will give in my house and within my walls

a monument and a name

better than sons and daughters;

I will give them an everlasting name

that shall not be cut off.

6  “And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,

to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD,

and to be his servants,

everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

and holds fast my covenant—

7  these I will bring to my holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

8  The Lord GOD,

who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

“I will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.”

English Standard Version Chapter 56

4  For thus says the LORD:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me

and hold fast my covenant,

5  I will give in my house and within my walls

a monument and a name

better than sons and daughters;

I will give them an everlasting name

that shall not be cut off.

6  “And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD,

to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD,

and to be his servants,

everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it,

and holds fast my covenant—

7  these I will bring to my holy mountain,

and make them joyful in my house of prayer;

their burnt offerings and their sacrifices

will be accepted on my altar;

for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

8  The Lord GOD,

who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares,

“I will gather yet others to him

besides those already gathered.”

Lesson #4: Enemies Matter

Turn towards this building- like Daniel (ch.6)

Turn towards this building- like Daniel (ch.6)

Hear and Forgive

Judge, restore, teach, act, do what he asks, uphold their cause

: for my house shall be called a house of prayer

for all peoples.”

Justice and Judgment

Themes: Sin

If a man sins

Destruction caused by sin: Because they have sinned

War or Natural- both are divine judgments

Dependence

Famine or Pestilence, mildew, locusts, caterpiller, enemy, plague, sickness

Caused by?? Get back to the Covenant regardless.

Don’t let suffering keep you from faith

Evangelism:

Mercy for Foreigner: