Teach Me to Pray (2)

“Come to the Father”

Matthew 6:5-13 “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 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. 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. 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, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the …”

I. Intro

Dr. Robert A. Cook has often said, “All of us have one routine prayer in our system; and once we get rid of it, then we can really start to pray!” I have noticed this, not only in my own praying, but often when I have conducted prayer meetings. With some people, praying is like putting the needle on a phonograph record and then forgetting about it. But God does not answer insincere prayers. If we put God’s concerns first, then we can bring our own needs. God is concerned about our needs and knows them even before we mention them. Matthew 6:8 “Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.” If this is the case, then why pray? Because prayer is the God-appointed way to have these needs met. James 4:1-3 “From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? 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.” Prayer prepares us for the proper use of the answer. If we know our need, and if we voice it to God, trusting Him for His provision, then we will make better use of the answer than if God forced it on us without our asking.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if every single principle of prayer could be condensed into several simple sentences so you could remember them easily? Then no matter where you found yourself, you could recall those principles and use them to commune with your Father in a meaningful and vital way. But can all truths of prayer be summarized in a few short, simple sentences? Yes! They can be and have been. Jesus did it when He gave us the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is just a collection of index sentences covering every element of prayer. When you follow the words of this prayer sentence by sentence, principle by principle, you will find yourself covering every possible aspect of communicating with your Father in Heaven. Every requirement for prayer, every element of worship and praise, every perspective of intercession and petition is covered in the Lord’s Prayer. Today we will begin to looking at this pattern for prayer sentence by sentence. As we look at it one clause at a time, I will take you to other scriptures that amplify, illuminate, illustrate, or substantiate each particular line.

II. Instruction Guide For Praying

Jesus gave us four instructions to guide us in our praying.

We must pray in secret before we pray in public.

1. It is not wrong to pray in public in the assembly as Paul instructs Timothy 1 Timothy 2:1 “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;” , or even when blessing food John 6:11 “And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would.” or seeking God’s help. John 11:41-42 “Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.” But it is wrong to pray in public if we are not in the habit of praying in private. Observers may think that we are practicing prayer when we are not, and this is hypocrisy. The word translated closet means “a private chamber.” It could refer to the store-chamber in a house. Our Lord prayed privately Mark 1:35 “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.” ; so did Elisha 2 Kings 4:32 “And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed.” and Daniel Daniel 6:10 “Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.”

b. We must pray sincerely

The fact that a request is repeated does not make it a “vain repetition”; for both Jesus and Paul repeated their petitions. 2 Corinthians 12:7-8 “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.” A request becomes a “vain repetition” if it is only a babbling of words without a sincere heart desire to seek and do God’s will. The mere reciting of memorized prayers can be vain repetition. The Gentiles had such prayers in their pagan ceremonies. 1 Kings 18:26 “And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.”

c. We must pray in God’s will

This prayer is known familiarly as “The Lord’s Prayer,” but “The Disciples’ Prayer” would be a more accurate title. Jesus did not give this prayer to us to be memorized and recited a given number of times. In fact, He gave this prayer to keep us from using vain repetitions. Jesus did not say, “Pray in these words.” He said, “Pray after this manner”; that is, “Use this prayer as a pattern, not as a substitute.”The purpose of prayer is to glorify God’s name, and to ask for help to accomplish His will on earth. This prayer begins with God’s interests, not ours: God’s name, God’s kingdom, and God’s will. Robert Law has said, “Prayer is a mighty instrument, not for getting man’s will done in heaven, but for getting God’s will done in earth.” We have no right to ask God for anything that will dishonor His name, delay His kingdom, or disturb His will on earth.It is worth noting that there are no singular pronouns in this prayer; they are all plural. It begins with “OUR Father.” When we pray, we must remember that we are part of God’s worldwide family of believers. We have no right to ask for ourselves anything that would harm another member of the family. If we are praying in the will of God, the answer will be a blessing to all of God’s people in one way or another.If we put God’s concerns first, then we can bring our own needs. God is concerned about our needs and knows them even before we mention them. It is right to pray for daily physical needs, for forgiveness, and for guidance and protection from evil. “Lead us not into temptation” does not mean that God tempts His children. In this petition we are asking God to guide us so that we will not get out of His will and get involved in a situation of temptation. 1 John 5:18 “We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”

d. We must pray, having a forgiving spirit towards others

In this “appendix” to the prayer, Jesus expanded the last phrase of Matthew 6:12, “as we forgive our debtors.” He was not teaching that believers earned God’s forgiveness by forgiving others; for this would be contrary to God’s free grace and mercy. However, if we have truly experienced God’s forgiveness, then we will have a readiness to forgive others. Ephesians 4:32 “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Jesus illustrated this principle in the Parable of the Unmerciful Servant. Matthew 18:21-35. We have seen that true praying is a “family affair” (“Our Father”). If the members of the family are not getting along with one another, how can they claim to have a right relationship with the Father? Forgiveness belongs to the matter of fellowship: If I am not in fellowship with God, I cannot pray effectively. But fellowship with my brother helps to determine my fellowship with God; hence, forgiveness is important to prayer. Since prayer involves glorifying God’s name, hastening the coming of God’s kingdom and helping to accomplish God’s will on earth, the one praying must not have sin in his heart. If God answered the prayers of a believer who had an unforgiving spirit, He would dishonor His own name. How could God work through such a person to get His will done on earth? If God gave him his requests, He would be encouraging sin! The important thing about prayer is not simply getting an answer, but being the kind of person whom God can trust with an answer.

III. Conclusion

This is where all true prayer begins. It begins with God the Father, and it ends with God the Father. true prayer is nothing more and nothing less than communion with the Father. Whether you are involved in worship, intercession, petition, or thanksgiving, it is all directed to God the Father. You often hear people pray, “Dear Jesus” or “Jesus.” Yet should we direct our prayers to the Father or to the Son? Jesus Himself tells us to pray “Our Father.” Yes, we come in the name of the Son, for He is the one who gives us access to God through His death, burial, and resurrection; but it is all to bring us ultimately to the Father. Now, then, one final word: When you come to God the Father in prayer, think about why you are coming to Him, what you believe about Him, and what is necessary on your part. Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

If you want to move from a religion to a relationship, then tell God. Tell Him in your own words. Tell Him you believe Jesus is His Son and you want His Son to be your Savior, your Lord, and your Master. Tell God you believe Jesus died for your sins-that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Tell Him that by faith you believe He raised His Son from the dead and that you desire to walk in newness of life. Write out your prayer or simply write out “i believe.” Then write out the date, as your spiritual birthday, the day you were born again.

Now, if you are already saved, take a few moments to talk to God just as a child would talk to their earthly father. Spill it all out. Tell God your feelings, what you think about Him as a Father. Tell Him your hopes, fears, hesitations, and expectations. Tell Him what you long for in a relationship. Then ask God what He longs for. Then carefully listen for His answer. Take note of what comes to mind, giving Him time to speak. Write down those things you want to remember, things He brought to your mind, or things that you cried out for.