Part 7 Of 8 - Prayer And Church Series

Church 101: A Beginners Guide to Church

Part 7 – Prayer and Church

James 5:13-16

13 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

At it’s core, prayer is a recognition of who God is

How we pray is a good litmus test of who we really believe God is and how he interacts with us

Prayer assumes God’s transcendence

Transcendent - Being above and independent of the material universe… Lying beyond the ordinary range of perception

Acts 17:24 – “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.”

Power over the physical world (15a – “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up”)

Power over the spiritual world (15b – “If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.”)

Prayer assumes God’s immanence

Immanence - the state of being within or not going beyond a given domain

John 3:16-17

16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

Revelation 3:20 – “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”

John 1:14 – “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”

God’s transcendence makes his immanence possible

God’s immanence is that which allows us to say that he is always with us

That he sees us

That he knows everything about us

Including what we say and do

He is in all places, at all times

And he is personal

He cares about each of us personally

Our dreams and aspirations

Our past present and future

He holds it all