(Excerpt from Adventure in Biblical Thinking Study Series, Volume 1, 2021)
Welcome to the Biblical adventure of thinking about prayer. Join in thinking about the meaning and value of prayer. You will discover that there are many Biblical references to prayer. Ponder them.
What does the Holy Scriptures say about prayer?
Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).
Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man (Luke 21:36).
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).
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).
Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you(I Peter 5: 7).
The Word of God says that we should pray for ourselves.
as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many (II Corinthians 1:11).
Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. 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. Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops (James 5:13-18).
We always thank God for all of you and continually mention you in our prayers(I Thessalonians 1:2).
Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured (Colossians 4:12).
With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ (II Thessalonians 1:11-12).
As for other matters, brothers and sisters, pray for us that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you (II Thessalonians 3:1).
I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time (I Timothy 2:1-6).
I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers (II Timothy 1:3).
I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers (Philemon 1:4).
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 (Ephesians 6:18).
The Word of God says that we should pray for others (intercession).
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should (Colossians 4:2-4).
Brothers and sisters, pray for us (I Thessalonians 5:25).
Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing(I Timothy 2:8). (Paul speaking)
I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me (Romans 15:30).
The Word of God says that we should make request for prayer.
pray continually (I Thessalonians 5:17).
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 (Ephesians 6:18).
We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you(Colossians 1:3).
Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up (Luke 18:1).
The Word of God tells us when to pray.
This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one(Matthew 6:9-13).
The Word of God gives us the model prayer known as The Lord’s Prayer to know how to pray.
But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ (II Thessalonians 2:13-14).
I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers (Ephesians 1:16).
The Word of God says we should pray with thanksgiving.
“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:9-13).
So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him (Acts 12:5).
When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!” (Acts 12:12-14).
The Word of God tells of answered prayer.
What others are saying:
In Spirit of the Disciplines Dallas Willard observes:
Indeed, the indirect effects of prayer upon the conduct of our lives is so obvious and striking that they have mistakenly treated at times as the only point of prayer. Even when we are praying for or about things in other than our own spiritual needs and growth, the effect of conversing with God cannot fail to have a pervasive and spiritually strengthening effect on all aspects of our personality. That conversation, when it is truly a conversation, makes an indelible impression on our minds, and our consciousness of him remains vivid as we go our way.(page 184).
Prayer involves asking. Dallas Willard in The Divine Conspiracy observes:
Asking is indeed the great law of the spiritual world through which things are accomplished in cooperation with God, and yet in harmony with the freedom and worth of every individual (page 232).
In My Utmost for His Highest Oswald Chambers has a lot to say about prayer:
There is nothing to be valued more highly than to have people praying for us; God links up His power in answer to their prayers (page 244).
Prayer is not logical, it is a mysterious moral working of the Holy Spirit (page 246).
Prayer is the vital breath of the Christian; not the thing that makes him alive, but the evidence that he is alive.(page 247).
Prayer is not only about the big things, but talking to God about everything— “Let your requests be known (page 248).
Allow me to conclude with another quote from Dallas Willard from The Divine Conspiracy:
Accordingly, I believe the most adequate description of prayer is simply, “Talking to God about what we are doing together.” That immediately focuses the activity where we are but at the same time drives the egotism out of it. Requests will naturally be made in the course of this conversational walk. Prayer is a matter of explicitly sharing with God my concerns about what he too is concerned about in my life. And of course, he is concerned about my concerns and, in particular, that my concerns should coincide with his. This is our walk together. Out of it I pray (page 243).
Either each decision, activity and thought are bathed in prayer or they are not bathed in prayer.
Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit (Galatians 5:25).
If we are willing to listen and to hear, the Lord is telling us to be prayerful in our lives because He want us to know how much He loves us.
More adventures in Biblical thinking about prayer.
These exercises can be used for reflection on the content of this adventure in Biblical thinking or they could be used as discussion starters for a small group Bible study.
- Had you ever thought of the categories of prayer? Prayer for yourself, prayers of intercession for others, requesting prayer, when to pray, how to pray, prayers of thanksgiving, answered prayer.
- When you pray, which category is predominate?
- When you pray, which category is first?
- Can you identify specific answered prayer?
- Why do you think prayer is so emphasized in Scripture?
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. http://www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Adventures in Biblical Thinking 