Prayer is one of the spiritual disciplines that Christ’s followers must practice daily. It is one of the most important means of communication between the disciple and God. Just as a child needs fellowship with his parents, so we, as children of God, as His newborn creations, need to commune with Him. This connection with God comes both through God’s Word and through prayer. Prayer must be a two-way connection. It must include both speaking to God and listening to God. This means not only that we speak to God like some talkative wife who never lets her husband get a word in, but that we set aside time in prayer to listen to what God is saying to us. The way we hear God “speak to us” is through thoughts that come to us from the Holy Spirit. Sometimes God speaks with a voice that can be heard — with an outward voice. But the “standard” way God speaks to us in the times in which we live is through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has no body. Since He has no body, He has no vocal apparatus with which to produce audible sounds. He is Spirit, and He lives inside us. Of Him Jesus said that He would be with us and “in” us.
17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. (John 14:17)
And since the Holy Spirit is Spirit and lives in us, the “voice” of the Holy Spirit will come from within us. These are thoughts that come in a particular way inside us, and we must learn to discern when our thoughts come from our own mind and we are inventing them, and when thoughts come into us that are from the Holy Spirit. So, in prayer we must wait and expect the voice of God within us. Because if He is going to speak to us, He will speak to us precisely during prayer. Satan also speaks to us. He tempts us. So we must recognize the “voice” of Satan — which also comes to us as thoughts. So there are three voices that speak to us and which we, as mature Christians, must distinguish — our own “voice,” the “voice” of Satan, and the “voice” of the Holy Spirit. And one of the main ways we can check whether something is from the Holy Spirit is by comparing it with the written Word of God — the Bible. If something is from the Holy Spirit, it will always be in agreement with and have the support of the Scriptures. That is why we must know the Bible — so that we can be sure that what God is saying to us is truly from Him.
In this lesson we will look at some examples of personal and corporate prayer. We will consider what prayer is, how we ought to pray, some reasons why we should pray, and what God promises to the one who prays. We must remember that prayer is not us telling God what He must do, as if we were the masters and He were our servant: “Lord, do this… Lord, do that…” No. He is the Master, and we are the servants. So our prayer must be that God would reveal His will to us and carry it out in our lives. We can tell God what is in our hearts and minds, but He alone decides how to answer us. We must let Him decide how to answer our prayer. We tell Him our sorrow, we pour out our heart before Him, but we must know that He may answer us in different ways — He may answer us: “Yes!”; He may answer us: “No!”; He may answer us: “Wait!”
EXAMPLES OF PRAYER
We will begin by looking at two examples of prayer, which are also two kinds of prayer — personal and corporate prayer. We find an example of personal prayer in Mark 1:35. These are words that refer to the Lord Jesus Christ.
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. (Mark 1:35)
Personal prayer is that in which we confess our sins before God. Through it we have our personal connection with God.
Now let us also read the example of corporate prayer in Acts 12:5 and compare the two cases.
5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. (Acts 12:5)
What is the difference between these two examples? Who is praying in the one case, and who is praying in the other? In the one case Jesus is praying, and in the other — the church. These are two kinds of prayer. The one kind is personal prayer, and the other kind is “corporate prayer.” Personal prayer is when we, like Jesus Christ, are in our “secret room,” as the Lord said, or have gone off somewhere else, as Mark says, “to a solitary place.” There He was alone, with no other people together with Him, and there He prayed. This is personal, private prayer with which we pray before God — alone. This prayer is the prayer for the personal confessions and personal struggles that we have.
But in the other case it says that “the church” was offering earnest prayer to God for the Apostle Peter. So here we no longer have one person praying, but the whole church. This is called “corporate prayer.” So you must know — there is “personal prayer,” and there is also “corporate prayer” — when we pray together. And these two kinds of prayer have a different character and purpose. When you are in personal prayer before God you can pour out your heart before God, thank Him, worship Him, and seek His guidance. But when there is corporate prayer, a person should not pray aloud in the same way as in his personal prayer. When we have corporate prayer, our verse says that “the church” offered the prayer, but in fact in such a prayer there is always someone who “leads” the prayer.
There are some rules we must know and keep when leading corporate prayer. I say this especially for those who are newer in the faith.
The first rule is that when we pray on behalf of the whole church, we must not pray for our personal needs as if we were alone. We must not burden people with our personal problems, or with our temptations. These are things to keep for our personal prayer.
The second rule is to use personal pronouns in the plural — not “I” and “me,” but “we” and “us.” When you lead the prayer, you step into the role of a representative of the whole church, and you must pray not in your own name, but in the name of the church.
The third rule is that corporate prayer must be directed not to people, but to God. We must not use corporate prayer for preaching. Some people use prayer to say to the other people in the church what they want to tell them, even announcements. But if you want to preach — stand up and preach. There is no need to use prayer for that. Corporate prayer must be what the church has to say to God, not a retelling of biblical episodes and stories. For example, you have read some parable or something else in the Bible, and when you begin to pray you start retelling it so that others will hear it too. The goal of corporate prayer is not for others to hear you, but for God to hear the others through you. This of course does not mean that we cannot quote the Word in prayer. On the contrary, it is right to quote God’s promises back to Him and to remind Him of His words. But this must be done in a balanced way and in the right manner.
It is also important that the rest, who are listening to the one leading the prayer, agree with him and support him by expressing their agreement with what he says. This is done by saying “Yes!” and “Amen!” to the words of the one leading the prayer in our heart. Let not everyone pray for his own need and fail to listen to the one who is leading. This is wrong. But if we support others when they pray, then when we pray — they will support us.
What do we learn from these examples?
WHAT IS PRAYER?
In the first place prayer could be a cry to God, and also a seeking of the face of the Lord, and a conversation with God (Psalm 27:7-8).
7 Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. 8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek. (Psalm 27:7-8)
In the second place, prayer could be not only a cry or a request from God, but an answer from God — a revelation from God (Jeremiah 33:3).
3 ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’ (Jeremiah 33:3)
When we cry out to God, God begins to speak to us, and He reveals to us “secrets” — revelations about Himself, about His work, about what must be done… and so we have a connection with Him through the Holy Spirit.
Other verses that teach us what prayer is are 1 Timothy 2:1-2. In them various kinds of prayer are spoken of — “petitions, prayers, intercession, thanksgiving…”
1 I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. (1 Timothy 2:1-2)
Here we have all sorts of kinds of prayer. We speak of prayer in general terms, but prayer can be many different things.
First, prayer could be a petition. A petition is when you ask God for something specific — for example, for healing or for success. For instance, if you are a student and must sit an exam, you can say: “Lord, help me pass this exam!” This is a prayer for blessing for a specific need.
Second, prayer could be thanksgiving. After God has answered your need, you must not be ungrateful, but immediately thank Him, saying: “Lord, thank You for Your wonderful intervention in my life!”
Third, prayer could be intercession. Our verse says: “for all people.” When we pray for ourselves, that is prayer for us, but when we pray for others, what is that called? When we pray for others, that is “intercessory prayer.” Just as, if you have connections with some official and you go to him to plead for one of your people to be given a job — you are interceding for him. But the greatest official is God. And when we pray before God not for ourselves, but for someone else, we intercede for him, we plead on his behalf. Our verse tells us to offer prayers for all people, and especially for those who are “in authority” — those who are in a position of power and government.
Another kind of prayer is praise. The prayer of praise is when we praise God. It is when you glorify God and say: “Lord, glory to You! My soul magnifies You!”
HOW OUGHT WE TO PRAY?
In Matthew 6:5-8 we read Christ’s instructions concerning prayer:
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matthew 6:5-6)
Notice, here in the first place He draws our attention to our motives in prayer. When we pray, we must not pray so that others can hear how wonderfully we pray. We must pray with faith and with the aim that God would hear us. Moreover, we must not use complicated words, but pray simply — in the way we would speak to a friend.
Besides this, Christ’s words remind us that it is important to have both corporate and personal prayer. If you pray only in church, but do not pray in private, then you are a Pharisee — something is not right.
It is also important, when we pray, not to use empty words. Very often some people pray as if God is hard of hearing and we must repeat the same thing to Him a hundred times over. “Answer me, Lord! Answer me, Lord! Answer me, Lord! Answer me, Lord!…” Why should you repeat the same thing to Him a thousand times? Can He not hear you the first time? There is no need to repeat the same thing a hundred times, because God hears you the first time! God will not hear us because we say many words. We can say few words, but let them be with faith, with reverence, and from the heart.
7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (Matthew 6:7-8)
As I told you, it is very important to speak to God as to a friend. Some think that when they pray they must change their voice so that it sounds a little elevated and “spiritual,” while the prayer of others sounds like a quarrel. Of course, our prayer must be earnest, but that does not mean repeating only the same thing. To pray “earnestly” means to be focused when you pray. If you are praying for one thing and thinking about another, that is not earnest prayer. Earnest prayer is when you put yourself into what you are saying.
The passage Matthew 6:9-13 is called “the Lord’s Prayer,” because this is how He taught us to pray.
9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’ (Matthew 6:9-13)
This prayer can be used in two ways — the first is as a word-for-word text that we learn by heart and say as a prayer to God.
The second way is to use this prayer as a plan for prayer, containing the main points around which we compose our prayer. Using a short prayer, we can pray for an hour. How? By dividing this prayer into clauses, into points, or into themes, we can pray for an unlimited length of time.
A simple plan would look like this. First, the prayer begins with praise: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name!” This sentence reminds us to praise God. Here we can say: “Glory to You, Lord! You are wonderful, You are marvelous, You are glorious, You are good…”
Second, “Your kingdom come…” Here we pray for the advance of God’s work. “Lord, fill the church with people! Save our sons, our daughters, our relatives… Open the hearts of unbelievers to the gospel…” And of course, in all this it is especially important not to pray in general terms, but to pray for people personally — by name.
Third, “your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Here we pray that God would reveal to us His specific will for our life, so that we can carry it out — that He would give us the “guidance” of the Holy Spirit.
Fourth, “Give us today our daily bread!” — this is a prayer to God for our personal needs. We are often tempted to begin our prayer with them, but see how far back they are in the order of the Lord’s Prayer.
Fifth, immediately after the prayer for our personal needs comes the turn of prayer for our right relationships. “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors…” — these words remind us how important it is to have love and forgiveness in our hearts. Because if we have unforgiveness in our heart, and hold a grudge against someone, if we harbor bitterness against someone in our hearts, then God will not forgive us either. Notice the word “as” — it reminds us that if we do not forgive our debtors, we should not hope at all that God will forgive our sins or “debts” to Him. And if God does not answer our prayer for the forgiveness of our sins, then He is hardly likely to answer our other requests.
In the sixth place comes the turn of the struggle against the dark forces: “and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” This includes both the struggle with temptations, the struggle with sin and vices, and the struggle with Satan and the forces of darkness.
Finally, in the seventh place the Lord’s Prayer ends again with praise: “for the kingdom is yours, and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.”
Other verses that teach us how to pray are Matthew 7:7-8:
7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. (Matthew 7:7-8)
If sometime we pray and God does not answer us, then what should we do? Should we stop? No! No stopping — we keep on praying. Elijah prayed once, God did not answer him, but what did Elijah do? He prayed again (1 Kings 18:41-45).
41 And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain.” 42 So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees. 43 “Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked. “There is nothing there,” he said. Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.” 44 The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’” 45 Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain started falling and Ahab rode off to Jezreel. (1 Kings 18:41-45)
Even Jesus once prayed for a man who was blind, but His prayer was not answered the first time (Mark 8:22-25).
22 They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. 23 He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man’s eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, “Do you see anything?” 24 He looked up and said, “I see people; they look like trees walking around.” 25 Once more Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. (Mark 8:22-25)
Another example is the widow from the parable of the unjust judge. She did not go to the busy judge once or twice. She did not give up, but “kept bothering” him until she “wore him out with her endless coming.”
1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ 4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’” 6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:1-8)
In God’s Word it is emphasized to us many times that we must ask and keep on asking — that we must persevere in our prayer.
Another important thing we must know about prayer is that it must not be used as a means of ordering God what to do for us: “Lord, do this…, do that…” Instead, we must ask God what His will is and pray for its fulfillment. In Mark 14:35-36 we read how Jesus prayed that, if it were possible, God would bring it about that Jesus not undergo the sufferings that lay ahead of Him, but that if His answer were “No,” then He would give Him strength to endure the scorn, the tortures, the cross, and death.
35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Mark 14:35-36)
In this example we see the inner struggle that we can often experience in prayer. Often our selfishness may wish to protect itself from the suffering that accompanies service, but through the Holy Spirit we must overcome ourselves and surrender completely to the Lord. Did Jesus know what God’s will was even before He prayed this prayer? He knew, didn’t He? He knew, because several times He told His disciples: “I am going to Jerusalem, and there the Son of Man will be handed over to the Gentiles, will be killed, and on the third day will be raised.” We too can know God’s will and yet, in a moment of weakness, wish that, if it were possible, God would accomplish His plans without our having to suffer. But nevertheless, the newborn spirit in us always desires that God’s will be done.
I would also like us to note, as we said earlier, that such an inner struggle must always be kept for personal prayer, and not be displayed before the church in corporate prayer. When Jesus prayed this prayer He was in private — alone before God.
Ephesians 6:18-19 is our “prayer motto.”
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, (Ephesians 6:18-19)
Our prayer motto reminds us:
- always to pray;
- to pray “in the Spirit” — that is, with the help, guidance, and participation of the Holy Spirit;
- “on all occasions” — that is, without ceasing;
- “with all kinds of prayers” — as I told you, there are various kinds of prayer with which to pray before God;
- “be alert in this” — prayer helps us to watch and to be alert in the Spirit;
- “always keep on praying” — this means not to grow weary of praying;
- “praying for all the Lord’s people” — this is intercessory prayer;
- “pray also for me” — these words remind us to pray both for ourselves and, above all, for our pastor and the other preachers of the gospel;
- “that words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel” — these words remind us to pray both for the preacher and for his message and the way he presents it before people — simply and clearly, with divine power and holy boldness.
Another verse that exhorts us not to stop praying is 1 Thessalonians 5:17:
17 pray continually, (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
“Continually” means every day.
Hebrews 4:16:
16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)
James 5:16:
16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. (James 5:16)
What attitudes and methods are important in prayer?
SOME GROUNDS FOR PRAYER
Psalm 55:1-3:
1 Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; 2 hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught 3 because of what my enemy is saying, because of the threats of the wicked; for they bring down suffering on me and assail me in their anger. (Psalm 55:1-3)
Matthew 26:41:
41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41)
Ephesians 6:12:
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)
1 Peter 5:7:
7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7)
Could you point out some more good reasons for prayer?
GOD’S PROMISES TO THE ONE WHO PRAYS
Psalm 145:18-19:
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. 19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. (Psalm 145:18-19)
Matthew 18:19:
19 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. (Matthew 18:19)
Matthew 21:22:
22 If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” (Matthew 21:22)
John 14:12-14:
12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. (John 14:12-14)
John 15:7:
7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15:7)
2 Corinthians 12:7-10:
7 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
Philippians 4:6-7:
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)
1 John 5:14-15:
14 This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him. (1 John 5:14-15)
What are some of the answers that God gives to our prayers?