Sermon Tone Analysis

! Introduction

We are currently going through a series titled "Read.Pray.Worship.Live," where we are looking at how each of these aspects is integral to the life of the believer and necessary to remain in proper fellowship with the Lord.

In our first study, we began with a look at the Smaller Westminster Catechism, which informed us that the chief end of man is to glorify God.

In our study, /A Heart to Study God's Word/, we found that one of the most important ways for us to glorify God is through a dedicated and systematic studying of the Scriptures, which is the means by which we will come to know who God is and how we are to properly worship Him.

In the next segment of our study, we want to take a look at another means by which we can glorify God and grow in intimacy with Him; the topic for this study is prayer.

In this particular study, we will set out to look at the reasons for prayer and a model of prayer as outlined by Jesus Christ on two separate occasions.

To begin this study, it would first be appropriate for us to define prayer and find out exactly what it is for the Christian.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines prayer as the following: 1) a reverent petition made to God... or 2) an act of communication with God... such as devotion, confession, praise, or thanksgiving.

If we look at the Holman Bible Dictionary, we see that prayer "involves the dialogue between God and people."

If we were to combine these definitions, we would then be able to define prayer as a dialogue with God where we both communicate and make our petitions known to Him.

This is the definition that we will be working with as we examine why and how we are to pray.

!

Why Do We Pray?

For a study on prayer, the first question is a very logical one: why should we pray?

If we look at Scripture with the intent of finding an answer, we will soon discover a myriad of reasons as to why we are to pray.

For the purpose of this particular study, we'll briefly examine eight reasons why we are to pray as outlined in Bill Bright's work How You Can Pray With Confidence, which I have briefly expounded upon.

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We pray because God commands us to pray.

If we look at the New Testament alone, we will find several commands of prayer.

Pray continually (1 Thess.

5:17).

Watch and pray (Luke 21:36).

Pray with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6, Col. 4:2).

Pray in the Spirit (1 Cor.

14:15).

Always pray and not give up (Luke 18:1).

Pray for those in authority (1 Tim.

2:2).

Pray for boldness (Acts 4:29).

And so many more...

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We pray because of Jesus' example.

If we were to closely examine the gospels, we would find that Jesus was very dedicated to prayer and spending time alone with His Father.

We see Him several times in Scripture going off by Himself to pray (Luke 5:16 & Matt.

14:23) as well as praying for others (John 17).

Jesus was dependent on His prayer life, so how much more should we pray and spend time with God!

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We also pray because of the example of the disciples and others in Scripture.

All throughout Scripture we find God's people praying to Him, especially with the disciples and early church.

These are definite examples of how we should be spending our prayer time.

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We pray so that we can have fellowship with God.

He anxiously and patiently waits for us to come to Him in prayer.

Proverbs tells us that "the prayer of the upright is His delight" (Proverbs 15:8), which is something that should be the motivation of every believer; we should desire for our prayers to be a delight to the Lord.

We should desire to spend time with God so that we can please and delight Him.

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We pray so that we can communicate with God.

One thing that we have to realize as Christians is that we have a direct line of communication with God because of our position as His children.

God has made Himself available to us at all times.

It is through prayer that we can talk and make our petitions known to God; He then responds to us through His written Word, the Holy Bible, as we study it.

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We also pray so that we can receive spiritual nurture & nourishment (Psalm 119:50).

Just like eating, we too have to spend time in prayer with the Lord to keep our spirits healthy and alive.

Just like if we don't eat, our bodies will become weak and frail; if we do not pray, our spirit will become weak and we then lose the strength to live as a witness for Christ.

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Another reason we pray is to obtain results.

If we are to use Scripture as our standard and example, we will find that prayer does indeed change things.

Therefore, we can expect for those who pray to have things change around them according to the will of God.

The prayers of faithful Spirit-filled believers have proven this to be true many times, and it still holds true today.

For a small sampling of this, see: Genesis 25:21; Judges 6:39-40; 1 Kings 18:37-38; Acts 12:5, 16; 16:25-31.

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The final reason we are to pray is because it allows for us to become a fruitful witness for Christ.

Scripturally, we are to talk to God about men first, and then talk to men about God.

Witnessing and evangelism should be outward displays of our prayer life.

See Acts 10 for an example of how Peter was in prayer and was instructed towards an evangelism encounter.

Now, this was only a quick summary, but its purpose is to show you just how important the command to pray is.

There is a scriptural command from God for us to pray, and we see that there are many spiritual benefits to prayer.

By no means is this an exhaustive list, but it does lay for us the foundation by which we can prove that we do indeed need to pray, as believers.

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When Should We Pray?

Since we now have an understanding of why we are to pray, the next question should seem rather obvious.

When should we pray?

In some regards, this seems like a silly question; but in all actuality, it is one that is worth asking and answering.

Seriously, most Christians do not really understand when they are to pray, so let's look at the Scripture to find our answer.

The first passage that I want us to look at is Mark 1:35 which reads, "Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed."

If we are to use this as our basis, the first time we are to pray is early in the morning, before we get our day started.

Why should prayer be our primary agenda in the morning?

Well, quite honestly, it shouldn't be any other way.

The reason that prayer should be the first thing we do in the morning is so that we can seek the Lord and be in tune with the Holy Spirit; we want for Him to be able to guide and direct us throughout our entire day.

We also see other examples in the Bible where God's people started their morning in prayer to Him.

A few examples would include: Psalm 5:3; 88:13; 119:147.

Just as it was true for these believers, the same thing needs to be true of us; we need to seek the Lord and fellowship with Him first thing in the morning so that we are in the right frame of mind and walking in the Spirit before tackling the events of the day.

The next time we are instructed to pray is in the evenings.

Our model for this is found in Matthew 14:23 and it reads, "And when He [Jesus] had sent the multitude away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray.

Now when evening came, He was alone there."

Another instance can even be found in Mark 6:46-47.

We first see that Jesus started His day by praying before the sunrise, and now we see Him ending His day with prayer as well.

We can even find times where Jesus was up all night praying, which we can find in Luke 6:12 and while in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46).

There are also numerous instances outside of the life and ministry of Jesus where we see God's people praying at night, including: Psalm 119:148 and Acts 16:25.

Why is that?

The reason Jesus and other believers ended their day in prayer is because they wanted to end it the same way it began: in communication with the Father.

Again, why?

They knew that if they ended the day with prayer, thoughts of the Father would be the last thing on their mind before resting for the evening.

By praying in the evening, it also allows your spirit to continue in communication and worship while you are asleep, so that the Lord is the first thing on your mind in the morning when you wake up, thus starting the process all over again for a new day.

It doesn't just end with morning & evening prayer!

We also find other times of prayer in Scripture.

Let's look at two passages in particular beginning with Luke 5:16.

This passage reads, "So He Himself [Jesus] often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed."

The second passage is 1 Thessalonians 5:17 which reads, "pray without ceasing."

A few more passages would include: Psalm 55:17; Daniel 6:10; Acts 3:1; 10:30.

It should be evident after reading these passages that prayer is something that we should always be doing, whether it be morning, noon, or night.

We see here that Jesus prayed often, as well as others who closely followed the Lord.

Now, Luke 5:16 does not tell us when Jesus prayed, but it does tell us that He got by Himself often so that He could pray without interruption.

Then we see Paul commanding us to pray without ceasing in 1 Thess 5:17.

If combine these two passages together and begin to build a doctrinal understanding of prayer, we see that prayer is something that should be an intricate part of our lives, even throughout the rigors of everyday life.

God desires for us to be so intimate with Him that we should be seeking Him for every decision that we make, which would require for us to communicate with Him throughout the day.

There should be moments throughout our day when we are offering up a quick prayer for others, giving the Lord thanks & praise, and just sharing what is on our minds.

Prayer should be second nature to us.

So, what answer would we give if asked when should we pray?

Our answer should be: 1) intimate prayer and fellowship with the Father early in the morning when we first arise, 2) constant communication with Him throughout the day, and 3) meeting with Him again in the evening for another time of intimate prayer and fellowship.

By doing that, we are insuring that we have a healthy prayer life and spending adequate time with the Lord so that we might come to know Him better and bring glory to His name.

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How Do We Pray?

Now that we know why and when we pray, we now reach the greatest question we will face during this study on the subject.