WORSHIP - PRAYER
-Introduction
-Quick review: Continuing series -
God’s pattern for N.T. worship
-Prayer - a topic I just cannot do
justice to
-On one hand it is a simplistic
topic: Our Father in heaven listens to the prayers of
His children and answers them
according to His will.
-On the other hand, this topic is
complex: How does God answer our prayers? How does
He account for the prayers of
“little ole me” within the complexities and grand scale
of the workings of this world and
His will?
-What are the things we
should pray for? Are there certain things that we shouldn’t
pray for?
-Jas 4:3 (motives), 1 John
5:16
-Even if we don’t understand how
God answers our prayers, we should not doubt the
fact that He does.
-I’ve encountered some who
did not think God answers our prayers. They had a hard
time understanding some
things so they began to doubt.
-example of creation - not
presented in a detailed format - but no reason for doubt
-example of the telephone
- I don’t understand how it works, but I don’t doubt that it does.
-Life is fragile - handle with
prayer. We need to believe in it and utilize it.
-God answers our prayers.
What a wonderful blessing!
-Prayer and Worship
-Acts 2:42 - Prayer is listed here in
the context of worship.
-Through the avenue of prayer, we have
the opportunity and privilege to speak to God.
-We can thank Him, praise
Him, glorify Him, honor Him. We can make requests of
Him on our behalf and
the behalf of others. We can cast our concerns and burdens
upon Him.
-Oh, what a wonderful blessing - the
avenue of prayer!
-Practical statements regarding prayer
in worship:
-Even though one person
leads the prayer, we should all be praying together.
-Therefore, we need to
focus on what’s taking place. We need to listen to the
prayer being offered. We need to pray with focus of mind and
sincerity of heart.
-lack of focus = wandering mind
-Those leading the prayer
should try to speak clearly and loud enough for others to hear,
remembering that others
are praying with him.
-Continued Prayer
-very important: Prayer should extend
beyond worship.
-When we look at the faithful
Christians in the early church, you can’t separate them from
prayer.
-Acts 12:5
-Example of the apostle Paul:
-his prayerfulness for his
fellow Christians
-Rom 1:8-10;
Eph 1:15-16; Phil 1:3-5
-his instructions to pray
-1 Tim 2:1; 1
Thess 5:17; Phil 4:6
-his requests for the
prayers of others
-Rom 15:30;
Eph 6:18-19; 1 Thess 5:25
-Example and Teaching of Jesus
-Luke 6:12 - prior to selecting the 12
apostles
-Matt 14:23 - private prayer
-Set aside some time to
privately pray to God. Let Him know what’s on your mind.
Openly and personally
talk to Him.
-special note: In the above passages,
we see Jesus spending considerable amounts of time
in prayer. Oh,
how little time we spend in prayer.
-John 17
-Garden of Gethsemane
-Sermon on the mount:
-Matt 6 - Prayer was
included in its wonderful themes.
-Matt 5:44; 7:7-11
-Summary and Invitation
-Think about this: Prayer is a
necessity for our salvation. Therefore, if God does not answer
prayer, we are without hope.
-Initial obedience: Believe (John
3:16, 8:24), Confess (Matt 10:32), Repent (Luke 13:3,5;
Acts 17:30), Be Baptized (Mark
16:16, Acts 2:38).
-Following our initial obedience to
the Gospel, we then have the responsibility to live
faithfully. But, we cannot live
perfectly.
-1 John 1:7-9
-This involves prayer:
James 5:16, Acts 8:22-24
-God answers our prayers! Oh, what a
wonderful blessing.
-Remember: Life is
fragile - handle with prayer. Believe in it. Utilize it.
-Perhaps you are in need of prayers
this morning.
Other sermons and lessons about Worship:
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