TEXT: Luke 11:1
TITLE: “Teach us to Pray -- Part 1”
TOPIC: PRAYER
OCCASION: Burnside Christian Church, January 6th 2008
PROP.: LORD TEACH US TO PRAY. Each of these 4 key words holds immeasurable meaning! May we be encouraged by each of these words.
INTRODCUTION: It is good to be back with you today!
HAND OUT ‘PRIZE’ FOR SOMEONE WEARING SOCKS THEY RECEIVED
FOR CHRISTMAS. (if no one comes up, then…) If you are wearing a Christmas
tie? Christmas Shirt? Christmas shoes? SOME ITEM OF CLOTHING YOU RECEIVED FOR CHRISTMAS?
I have to show you something that I received for Christmas: (show picture of motorcycle vest) If you see me wearing this while riding my motorcycle, it’s best to just get out of my way… J
I trust that you and your family had a great Christmas! We enjoyed our time away, but it is good to come home. I listened to Brig’s sermon on CD this past week and he did a PHENOMINAL job! If you missed it, you need to ask the church office for a sermon on CD. On a side note, did you know that all sermons are recorded on CD? And if you would like a copy of any sermon, just leave a message with the church office and we’ll get you a copy. There is no cost to you and we’re happy to minister in this way.
Today we begin a series of sermons that will be focusing on becoming the church that Jesus desires! There are a series of verses that will be the foundation for the next 6 months of sermons! These verses are found in
Acts 2:42-47
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
And so for the entire month of January, I want us to focus on becoming the praying church! I want us to rededicate ourselves to become a praying church! And so it’s fitting that we start this series with prayer. Prayer needs to be the foundation of everything that happens here at Burnside.
IMAGINE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF GOD’S CHURCH PRAYED? I just want to challenge you to consider the possibilities!
IF YOU GET NOTHING ELSE OUT OF THIS MORNING’S MESSAGE, GET THIS:
I WANT YOU TO GET PASSIONATE ABOUT THE POWER OF PRAYER!
So let’s be clear about what prayer is not:
Prayer is so much more than the ‘bat-signal’. You know what I mean, right? The city of Gotham is protected by the dark knight known as batman. Whenever batman’s services are needed, the people of gotham turn on the bat signal indicating their need for rescue! Prayer is SOOOOO much more than a signal for rescue. It is our DAILY communication with the creator of the universe! It seems that the only time most people pray (and certainly our country turns to prayer) is in time of crisis. A non-Christian will request prayers when he is sick. Prayer is a privilege that should be utilized at more times than just when you are in trouble!
Prayer is more than a grocery list or wish list that we spew out of things we want. God is so much more than Santa-Clause figure on whose lap we sit only interested in telling him what we want, expecting Him to pay up.
Prayer is more than a good luck charm that we rub or kiss for good luck.
There are so many verses on prayer, but perhaps the best place for us to start is found in Luke 11:1
Let’s read our text:
Luke 11:1
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
The disciples had been with Christ and seen Him pray. They had learned to understand something of the connection between his wondrous life in public and His secret life of prayer. They had come to believe in Him as Master in the art of prayer - none could pray like him. And so they came to him with the request, “Lord, teach us to pray.” And so this is our request today: “Lord, teach us to pray!”
T.S.: To better understand the magnitude of what the disciples were asking, let’s look at each word in the phrase:
I. “Lord, teach us to pray!”
A. Learning from the Expert
1. Jesus as teacher
--The disciples were asking the right guy the right request!
--None can teach like Jesus, none but Jesus; therefore, the disciples, AND US, call on Him to teach us!
--A student needs a teacher who in patience and love will descend to the pupil’s needs! Thank you God! Jesus is all this and so much more!!!
--Jesus was the teacher of the disciples. 16 times Jesus is referred to as Rabbi. The disciples were actually students! So it seems right that they would come to Him for instruction!
--Jesus is the ultimate good teacher! His students were learning a lot from their master, and here they wanted to learn to pray. And not just pray…but pray with power, sincerity and significance!
--Jesus prayed in public and in private!
--Jesus is an expert on talking with His father! And so, if you want to learn, you want to learn from the best.
Jesus was no stranger to prayer…on several occasions, we find Jesus communicating to His Father!
B. Example of Jesus’ prayers
--He prayed before breaking bread
--He prayed in the garden of Gethsemane before facing his greatest
challenge of being crucified for the sins of the world.
--He even prayed for Himself, the 12 disciples, and for you and for me! All of this is recorded in John 17. The part I want to focus on is His prayer for you and for me! I don’t know about you, but I’m amazed, that Jesus with his foreknowledge, prayed for ME!
John 17:20-26
20"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25"Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."
--Jesus prayed for what concerned Him the most. How meaningful that we have here recorded, His prayer for his church. Jesus’ ultimate desire is for us to get along. For us to be one! To experience fellowship as close as is experienced by God the father and God the son!
ILLUSTRATION: Who would you want to learn basketball from? Michael Jordan Who would you want to learn how to play golf from? Tiger Woods! He’s the best! I’d learn what he’s eating. How he’s practicing. I’d do everything these two guys are doing to get better! If I could have guitar lessons from anyone in the world, you know who it would be? Shane and Shane! If you haven’t heard of these guys, phenomenal guitar players!
The Lesson? LEARN FROM THE BEST!
Study the prayers of Jesus and you’ll soon discover how to have a better prayer life. When Jesus talked with His heavenly father, he was honest, open and sincere!
Jesus is the master of prayer! And so the disciples were asking the right guy, the right question: “Lord, teach us to pray!”
The disciples not only went to the right guy, but they also asked for the right thing: So they then asked:
II. “Lord, teach us to pray!”
Few of us like to learn. Learning is difficult. Learning requires focus, concentration and practice!
A. The Need to be taught:
--By asking Jesus to teach, the disciples were admitting the need to be
taught!
--How many of you are where you want to be in regards to your prayer
life?
--If you’re not where you want to be, take heart:
ILLUSTRATION: Think about all of the things in this life you have learned. Things you had to be taught how to do. Some things you picked up on very quickly…(like eating!)…other things took a little longer to learn. When you are taught something, it’s very rare that you immediately become an expert. And so it is with prayer. Don’t be frustrated in your prayer life if you aren’t the prayer warrior you’d like to be. As the old saying goes: practice makes perfect!
B. Imagine the results!
--If we could but master the art of praying, just think of what would be
achieved?
Ephesians 3:20,21
20Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
--What ever you dream would be possible with us being united in prayer,
God is going to immeasurably MORE than you could imagine!
III. “Lord, teach us to pray!”
A. “Us” means everyone in this room!
--This is specifically my prayer. God, allow everyone here to be committed to prayer…as individuals, as families, as a church…as your people! Allow us to become dependent and addicted to prayer!
B. “Us” means age makes no difference!
--Prayer is something so profound that Bible experts find it difficult to pray, and yet it’s simple enough children learn how to pray at a young
age!
--How many of you have taken the time to teach your own kids how to pray. Whether it is helping them to say their bedtime prayers or saying a prayer before you eat as a family, you’ve tried to make daily prayer a part of their life.
IV. “Lord, teach us to pray!”
A. The mystery of prayer = GOD WANTS TO LISTEN!
Few things are as mind blowing as prayer.
1. God wants to hear you! Why on earth does God want to hear me? I have no idea! But what a privilege it is! One that I have recently started to take advantage of!
LISTEN TO JOHN’S WORDS IN
1st John 5:14,15
14This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 15And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
--God desires to hear us and WILL hear us!
2. There are several other mysteries to prayer that we will address at another time: like Does prayer really work? Why do some people still die even when I pray for them? Why does God answer some prayers but not others? These are all questions that you may have and will be addressed later this month.
B. The reality of prayer = WE DON’T WANT TO TALK
1. Have you ever felt discouraged by your prayer life? Either the guilt of not doing it enough or the burden of having to pray too much? Do you ever feel that you’re not good enough to pray? That God doesn’t want to hear from you or won’t answer your prayers? Do you often wonder what good your prayers will do? Do find it hard to find time to pray?
2. We desire to have you and your family become focused on prayer! So today, we want to offer you and your family your very own prayer journal!
How these work:
1. Select a time of day that works for you and your family
2. Write the date up in the upper right hand corner
3. Write “Prayer Requests” in the upper portion of the page
4. Write “Prayer Praises” on the center portion of the page
5. Ask everyone in your family to list whatever prayer requests or praises you
may have.
6. Once there are no more things to be prayed for, select at least one person to
pray!
(Each person in the family will take a different night to pray! )
Do not under estimate the power of a praying family!
CONCLUSION: Today I hope you realize, that prayer is the foundation on which this church needs to built on! We need to be a people who prays to their God! Won’t you join us as we become united together as a PRAYING CHURCH! Together, let’s become warriors of prayer! With prayer, the task ahead of you is never as great as the power behind you!
