1. Christlike in Prayer
Luke 11:1-13
Objective:
1. Show people that even Jesus prayed.
2. Show why Jesus prayed
3. Challenge the people to start praying like Jesus.
Let us turn to Luke 11:1-13 to hear what God, through, this Gospel written by the only Gentile writer of the NT, has to say about following Jesus. I am quite excited to share what I have already heard – and seen – and committed to do myself: GROW INTO CHRISTLIKENESS BY LEARNING HOW TO PRAY LIKE JESUS. Do you like that? Do you want to pray like Jesus? Do you want to grow more like the Lord as we see him pray? capture the motivation, the essence Today, I want to continue this preaching series that I have been dreaming of for many years. For many years, I carried in my heart a certain pain, about being unable to help God’s people more – grow into Christlikeness. I want to see us all grow into maturity – to become more like the One whom we follow. My prayer has always been Lord please teach me how to better equip your people to glorify you with their lives.
I have three messages on prayer: 4,11,18 then I will take a break on the 25th. Next Sunday, I am going to preach on PRAYING FOR LOVED ONES (THOSE CLOSE TO YOU). How do you pray for family members? How do you pray for a spouse to come to the Lord? How do you pray for your friends, workmates, office mates.
I have heard a lot of complaints about working with other people in one home. They say its hard, but if you are follower of Christ, you should be saying, this is good. I am reminded of the story of two friends who went hunting for wolves. One night they woke up surrounded by wolves. The other fellow got so scared and said, let’s ran for our lives, we are in great danger. The other said, “We’ll have a great catch today!”
On the 18th, I plan to pray about PRAYING IN CRISIS. How do you pray when you are in crisis – you see a trouble, a big problem coming, you find yourself in the middle of a huge problem, how do you pray like Jesus). I have been looking at a Scripture in Luke and I believe there are principles from this passage that will empower us to pray for loved ones more effectively – just like Jesus.
Now to our message: My plan today is three-fold: First, I want to connect our subject with the Word on The cost of following Jesus (Marks of a True Disciple). Luke connects prayer and discipleship. For Luke there is no discipleship without prayer. No disciple lives without prayer. No disciples succeeds without prayer. We can live without prayer right, we can’t live as we should, following Jesus, enjoying our spiritual blessings, without prayer. Your prayer determines your life. Your life depends on God, just as your new life is a gift from God through Christ, so in your new life, you can’t live without prayer.
Luke tells Theophilos and he tells us now “disciples pray.” Why? I will answer this in a little while. Second, I want to look more closely into the revelation that Jesus prayed. Finally I will conclude with Jesus’ teaching on prayer – intended to teach the disciples to pray just like he prayed – to become Christlike in our prayer.
1. Prayer and Discipleship
First, I want you to see, what God, using Luke’s creative mind, wishes to show in our passage. Luke 11:1-13 answers the question: What happens to a person who responds to the call of discipleship? What happens to those who embrace God’s plan for their lives? What happens to those who give up their whole lives – plans, dreams, future, security, family, work, finances, safety – in exchange for the call of God in their lives? What happens to those who receive God’s life in them? What happens to those who are willing to follow Jesus – in Jerusalem, to the cross, to their death?
Others have a horrible picture of someone who is doing all she can to follow Jesus, only to stumble and fall. Some think of the cost and resigned disappointed that they will never be able to achieve what God expect from them? Is this how you feel when you hear Jesus’ call to discipleship? If you think following Jesus will just be easy – then you have not heard Jesus, you must hear him closely. He talks about denying yourself in exchange for the new life that he gives; he talks about seeing yourself as dead to yourself; you have given up everything to the LORD; he talks about following him – to the first disciples, that meant following Jesus into Jerusalem – to a hostile crowd, the seat of the opposition; it meant following Jesus to the cross; it meant following Jesus wherever he leads.
Is following Jesus merely an ideal?
A Sisyphean task (Sisyphus)
In Greek mythology, Sisyphus was a brilliant rascal who sometimes played tricks on the gods to get what he wanted. He even used trickery to avoid death. Finally the gods had enough and condemned Sisyphus to eternal hard labor -- his punishment: rolling a boulder up a hill, only to have it roll back down to the bottom each time he finally gets it to the top. It was intended to be not only difficult labor, but frustratingly futile, unrewarding, repetitive labor. The toil of Sisyphus is a metaphor for all difficult and repetitive labor that is frustrating and unrewarding.
Others are looking for a bargain. Is there a middle ground? Can I follow Jesus, but still be able to ran my own life? Do my own thing?
Can’t we be a church, where the standard is not too much?
Can’t we not preach too much on the “higher life” or “deeper life”?”
I wish Jesus did not make following Him an “all or nothing issue”; If he is not Lord of all, he is not Lord at all; If he is not trusted completely, he is not trusted at all; if he is not valued as all, he is not valued at all”; if he is not loved with all, he is not loved at all!
Israel insisted on enjoying both worlds. They said, they will follow God, but also enjoy their neighbors religion. They argued that they fear God, they love him, and they will not turn their back from him. But they did. Once they started to following two gods, the started not following God. WE ONLY HAVE ONE ROOM for an all-out commitment.
So, what happens when we resolve to turn completely away from our old selves to follow Jesus? What happens when we deny ourselves, to embrace the new life that God has given; what will happen to us when we give up our own lives for His will?; or to take our cross, when we begin to look at ourselves as dead; and now we are committed to follow Christ everywhere he goes – to Jerusalem, to the cross, to the unknown, the uncertainties, the dark valleys - wherever?
The answer is – you are left with nothing of yourself; you become poor; helpless, dependent; Nothing? Bankrupt! We have nothing as we have given everything up to the Lord.
God says, you have nothing on your own. In this new kingdom that you have received and entered, there is nothing of the old self that helps; there is nothing of the old self that counts; you can’t trust in your own self, and understanding, and strength; In this new life that you have something (someone): YOU HAVE THE HEAVENLY FATHER, AND YOU HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT!
True disciples have a Father – a loving Father; an ever-present Father; an all-powerful Father; the Greater Father of all;
And you have the Holy Spirit. That same Spirit who indwelt Jesus; who empowered Jesus; to guided Jesus. That same Spirit whom raised Jesus from dead; That same Holy Spirit whom Jesus promised to His disciples whom He will ask the Father to send in His name when He goes back to His Father, ascended, enthroned, in full glory and splendor. That same Spirit whom empowered the early church that turned them into an awesome witness to the world. They will have the Spirit!
And how will this happen? Where and when do you enjoy this Father? Where do you expect to experience His power and provisions? Luke says, through prayer. Prayer is a communion with God; it is at the same time a coming to God, and God coming to us. It is a conversation with God; a meeting with God. In true prayer our hearts are turned to him. He satisfies us; he fills us up with himself. In prayer, God empowers us to become who he wants us to be.
His call to follow Him all the way does not mean following him with religious zeal undertaken in our own strength. It is not doing all we can for Him, but an attitude of bringing all that we are UNDER HIM.
When we seek thus single-mindedly to yield ourselves to him, what happens? We find that this great Lord is also our Heavenly Father, who meets our seeking with our giving.
T.S. Next, let me point out our Lord Jesus, whom Luke describes as a one who prays.
2. THE PRAYING JESUS
The first thing we see from this passage is the disciples’ request to be taught how to pray came from their observation of Jesus’ praying. They saw Jesus pray. They also wanted to learn to pray like Jesus. They must have seen something in the way Jesus prayed, that they wanted to learn how to pray like Him. Jesus shows us the importance of prayer in his own life and in his disciples’ lives.
Luke 3:21 - As we turn to the Gospel of Luke, we find him pointing to Jesus as someone who prays. He uses the term prayer and its other forms (33X). Although the other Gospels show Jesus praying, Luke records 7X more of Jesus praying. One of those is the baptism of Jesus. Only Luke shows Jesus was praying when the Holy Spirit came upon Him – and then that awesome voice. (Luke 3:21)
Luke 5:16 - also shows that Jesus would not allow the crowd to control Him. He did not come for the crowd; he knew they were fickle minded; they were following him with a wrong motive; “Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” After some heavy ministry – healing, preaching, teaching, being mobbed by people who wanted him to touch them, clamoring for his attention, sipping the energy, the life out of him, sucking him out, he often left the crowd, and went to the mountain to be alone with his Father, to pray. (Tired and weary: solution, spend more time with God).
Prayer energized Jesus. Being with his Father refreshed him. Talking to his Father, listening to him, depending on him. Jesus preferred being with His Father more than the adulation – the importance given to him by the crowd.
Luke 6:12 – Jesus stayed all night in prayer to ask guidance from the Father. Every major decision in Jesus’ life was preceded by an all-night vigil in prayer. It was a major decision, as the people he will chose will carry on his mission. The disciples will become his fully authorized representatives for His mission.
Luke 9:18: Jesus was praying when he asked the apostles who they think He is. In Matthew, Jesus told Peter, that it was not human who revealed such truth to him. His Father, and implies that this came as a result of His praying.
Luke 9:28-29 – Jesus was praying when his face was transfigures – his faced changed, and his clothes turned so bright that he shone as bright as a flash of lightning.
See also 10:21,22; 22:41-45; 23:46
So why did Jesus pray?
1. To be with His Father – to commune with His Father. They had a love relationship that the world does not know. He prayed to be with His Father.
2. Prayer expressed Jesus full dependence on His Father. Why did Jesus pray? The simple answer is because he was fully human. Though he was also God and had a unique relationship with His Father, he lived on our level. He showed us that a life of prayer was a necessity, not a luxury. JESUS LIVED IN COMPLETE DEPENDENCE ON THE HEAVENLY FATHER. He claims to have received His message. The miracles which he did, he attributes them to His Father.
3. OUR NEED FOR PRAYER
We have a Father, whom we need, and who is near, and who hears us; and who gives only good gifts,who unlike the friend, who acts funny, having gone to sleep, being awakened by his friend. He struggles to get up, he tries to ignore him; but he is persistent. And besides what will the community think of him, if they learn that he did not share what he had to his needy friend, who had some guest.
Anaideia – boldness or shamelessness (God’s honor is at stake)
God will give only good gifts, not evil ones.
We meet God in prayer
We work with God in prayer to accomplish His purpose. So we pray, Hallowed be your name; your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
We pray to present a request – Power of a request.
We pray to be protected from the evil one.
We pray to be in right relationship with God and others.
11:1-2a - The importance of prayer: Jesus affirms the importance of prayer through his own example and by teaching his disciples to pray
11:2b-4 – The substance of prayer:
Relationship and communion - coming to God who is our Father;
Honoring God; prayer honors God; Our first agenda in prayer is the glory of God. We pray as children of God that our Father’s name and will might be known in the world. This involves interceding for people to come to Christ.
11:5-10 – The practice of prayer – Praying is a coming to God; to present our request. We all know the power of a request; We don’t like demands, but we respond to requests.
11:11-13 – The assurance of prayer: We are received by a wonderful Father; and we received only the best.
Conclusion: So we have a great future ahead of us – learning to experience the presence of God in prayer; working with him through our prayers, receiving what we need to do what he has called us to do through prayer; making more effective in life and ministry through prayer.
Where are you? Do you need to finally embrace the call of Christ to follow Him; Or do you need resources God has made available to us as His followers.
