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A Lesson on Prayer

Sunday, July 24, 2011
Led by Eric Gintert

What is prayer? Who's prayers will God hear? How are you supposed to pray? In this lesson we searched the scriptures to answer these questions.
 Prayer is seeking God.
  •  1 Peter 3:12  -  God hears the prayers of the righteous (not the self-righteous but those who have God's righteousness in them). The world and it's righteousness stinks! The world has enmity with God... see James 4:4. God doesn't want the sacrifices (prayers) of lambs and bullocks anymore. Jesus is that final sacrifice for all of us... See Hebrews 9:11-14. God wants the sacrifices of a broken and contrite heart in prayer... See Psalm 51:16-17.
  • Proverbs 15:29  -  The Lord hears the prayer of the righteous, but He is far from the wicked. You need to get right with God before you come to Him in prayer.
  • Luke 11:1-13 (Also read Matthew 6:5-15)  -  One of Jesus' disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, There was something desirable in how Jesus prayed that they wanted him to teach them how to do it too. Jesus gave a template of how and what to pray.
    • "Our Father..."  =  pray to God (not Mary or Jesus); give God reverence by calling him Father.
    • "Hallowed be thy name..."  =  a declaration of God's holiness... signifies going into the holiest place in the old testament temple (only the high priest was allow passage to the holiest place and all others were killed if they tried to enter... very sacred place). Also, Moses was commanded to removed his shoes at the burning bush because the place where he stood was holy ground... God's presence was there. (See Exodus 3:5)
    • "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done..."  =  pray for the will of God in your life... just as Jesus prayed in the garden before his crucifixion. (See Matthew 26:39)
    • "Give us... our daily bread"  =  this is not physical food... Jesus is our bread (John 6"35)
    • "Forgive us our sins..."  =  we have a continual need of God's forgiveness
    • "Lead us not into temptation; but deliver us..."  =  keep us safe from the powers and principalities. (See Ephesians 6:12 and Jude 24)
  • Luke 18:1-8  -  The attitude, passion, and zeal of prayer. An example of perseverance in prayer. A cry is that of passion... not just a whine or whimper... a sincere desire... a fervent prayer. Even when God doesn't gibe the answer right away will we still be persistent in prayer? When Jesus returns, will he find such faith as this on the earth? Will he find saints who are fervent and persistent in prayer?
  • Matthew 24:15  -  When you see the abomination of desolation, stand in the holy place.
  • Daniel 9:27, 11:23, 12:11  -  the daily sacrifice shall be taken away and the abomination of desolation shall be set up... The abomination of desolation is our hearts... the desire to pray. People are already choosing in their hearts not to pray and this is an abomination to God.
Click Here to read about a man named Jacob DeShazer... a WWII prisoner of war in Japan who was born again while in a Japanese prison cell.


Children's Lesson
Read Exodus 14:21-22

Questions to Answer:
1.  How did God show the Israelites the way to go?
2.  Who came after the Israelites as they were beside the Red Sea?
3.  What did God tell Moses to hold out over the sea?
4.  How did the people get across the Red Sea?
5.  Who protected the Israelites from harm and danger?

Bible Verse:
"He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee." Psalm 91:11

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