Why We Pray

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05 The Emerald Throne

isn’t it interesting how Jesus says in Matthew 6:8 that our Heavenly Father knows what we need before we ask Him, but that we are to ask anyway.

Matt 6:7-8
7 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.
8 “So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.
9 “Pray, then, in this way…

Jesus continues in verse 9 with what the church has entitled, “The Lord’s Prayer.” I learned it in Boy Scouts fifty years ago, and pray it every Sunday during our regular service prayer time after the chaplain’s corporate prayer.  But in itself, this most famous of prayers recorded in the gospels can become the kind of meaningless repetition Jesus warned of in Matt 6:7. The spirit of the prayer quoted in the next paragraph is Jesus’ invitation for the born-again Christian’s (1) praise for God’s holy reality; (2) acknowledgement of His presence in our lives; (3) petition and thanks for His provision in our lives; (4) acknowledgement of our need for God’ s forgiveness and  the Christian lifestyle that forgives others; (5) and acknowledgment and agreement for His intervening protection in our lives.

Matt 6:9-15
9 “Pray, then, in this way:
‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.  (1)
10 ‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven. (2)
11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread. (3)
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. (4)
13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’] (5)
14 “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15 “But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.(4)

EldersMarvenkoEach of these covenant blessings of God’s redemption have scores of Holy Spirit-breathed truths in Scripture that God’s born-again heirs of salvation have been promised for life.  Too many presume our Father’s understanding of what we need in life, and without prayer, presume He will meet our needs. When we let the circumstances of life overcome us despite the promises of God’s word, this isn’t faith. Not everything that happens on any given day is God’s will. Our needs of health, peace, healing, all the basics of born-again Christian life are promised in God’s Word, and prayer for fulfillment of those promises is regarded by God as faith.  “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him” (Heb 11:6).

Jesus invites us to receive God’s promises from Him through asking, seeking, and knocking.

Luke 11:9-11
9 “So I say to you, ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you.
10 “For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened.

The Greek word for “ask” is the verb aiteo (ahee-teh’-o): to ask, beg, call for, crave, desire, require.

“Seek” is the verb zeteo (dzay-teh’-o): to desire, endeavour, enquire, require.

“Knock” is the verb krouo (kroo’-o): to rap. The inference Jesus used here obviously refers to the opening of a knocked upon door. All three invitations to receive are active verbs.

Continuing in Luke 11 Jesus confirmed the specifics of asking for the promises He has already granted us.

11 “Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he?  12 “Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he?  13 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

The Holy Spirit moves today as God’s presence in the earth, and with Him are the blessings of Jesus’ righteousness in God’s Kingdom in the earth.

When you earthly fathers and mothers scripturally train up your children in the way they should go (Prov 22:6) and see your children acting and speaking the way you trained them up to be, isn’t it pleasing to see the maturity and trust in your parenthood that they embrace? This is how our Father in Heaven regards His redeemed children when we grow, speak, and act in accordance with the way He trains us up. Prayer is conversation, not superstitious abrakadabra chant.  Prayer is fellowship with the Father in whose house we are privileged to live in through the blood of Jesus (Heb 3:6). When we acknowledge before God our faith in His Word, thank and believe in prayer what He has promised us in His Word, and live our lives in accordance with the admonitions of His Word, Jesus is pleased with our trust in His Word. This is faith.  And when we live by faith, we please God.

2Cor 1:20
20
For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us.

Yes, Jesus is coming again. Until then there is abundant life to be lived on this earth that God created for us. What are your needs today? Are you believing God daily in prayer and in the study of His Word?  What a privilege we have to know and serve our risen Lord. This is why we pray.

Mark

 

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