The PRECEDENCE Of PRAYER—1Timothy 2:1-7
Attention:
Janet’s four-year-old likes to say the blessing at mealtimes, usually repeating the same short prayer: "Thank you, God, for this gracious food. Amen."
One evening, however, he thanked the Lord for the birds, the trees, each of his friends, & asked God to watch over his family & help them to be good. Janet was thrilled that he was finally praying from the heart.
But after the "Amen," he took a spoonful of stew, gasped, then dropped his spoon into the bowl. "I should have said a longer prayer," he said. "My food is still too hot."
Sometimes Prayer does not hold the Precedence that it should!
Need:
Paul exhorted Timothy regarding the place of prayer in the Church.
Prayer must take precedence in the Church.
When does prayer hold authority in the church?
7 priorities for prayer in the Church.
1—Prayer takes precedence when...
COMPREHENSIVE(:1)
Explanation:(:1) Multifaceted/Diversified/Manifestation
:1—“Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, & giving of thanks be made for all men,”
Paul has previously charged Timothy to maintain the true doctrine of the Gospel of Christ(1:3). There are some ‘teachers’ present at Ephesus who are dishonoring the truth by teaching ‘another’ false gospel(1:3). Timothy is charged to personally confront these false teachers(1:3).
Preferably Timothy has learned from the very real danger of the failings of others—notably Hymenaus & Alexander(1:19-20).
It may seem strange & interesting that Paul “exhorts” Timothy, first & foremost, to prayer regarding this charge. Prayer is to be Timothy’s priority(“first of all”) in approaching his situation. We tend to employ our flesh immediately in a trying situations...A first-response for the finite. But for those living infinitely by Christ, we must commune with our God.
However “Prayer” is the means by which the “good warfare”(1:18) is effectively waged. Communication with God is our primary weapon of offense & defense in any situation even in overwhelming & daunting ones. Prayer is where the believer finds knowledge, comfort, solace, strength, power, intelligence, & generally the wherewithal to engage any task assigned by the Lord.
Prayer is a single entity that has many facets...
“Supplications”—The believing supplicator knows what is needed & lacking & seeks God to supply it for His sake.
“Prayers”—Uniquely carries a sense of reverence & worship directed only toward God by the believer.
“Intercessions”—Imparts the sense of closeness & communion of the believer with God. Reveals the confidence with which God is approached by the believer.
“Giving of Thanks”—Discloses the attitude with which God is approached.
“Exhort”—parakalew—To call to one’s side, call for, summon; 2) To address, speak to, (call to, call upon), which may be done in the way of exhortation, entreaty, comfort, instruction, etc.
“First of all”—prwton—First in time or place; First in rank; First, at the first.
*“Supplications/Entreaties/Requests”—dehsiv—Need, indigence, want, privation, penury; 2) Seeking, asking, entreating, entreaty to God or to man. Gives prominence to the expression of personal need. Refers chiefly to prayer for particular benefits. May also be used of a request addressed to man.
John MacArthur—”the root meaning of which is “to lack,” “to be deprived,” or “to be without something.”
*“Prayers”—proseuch—Prayer addressed to God; A place set apart or suited for the offering of prayer. Is a word of sacred character, being limited to prayer to God. Highlights the element of devotion. The more general term for ‘prayer.’
*“Intercessions/Petitions”—enteuxiv—A falling in with, meeting with. Expresses confiding access to. Gives prominence to that of childlike confidence, by representing prayer as the heart’s conversion with God. The prominent thought is that of boldness & freedom in approach to God. Used 2X—Here & 4:5.
John MacArthur—“It comes from a root word meaning to fall in with someone,” or “get involved with them.”
*“Giving of Thanks/Thanksgivings”—eucaristia—Thankfulness; The giving of thanks. The grateful acknowledgment of God’s mercies, chiefly in prayer.
Argumentation:
Lk. 21:32-36—““Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. Heaven & earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, & cares of this life, & that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, & pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, & to stand before the Son of Man.””
Mat. 26:41—““Watch & pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.””
Eph. 6:13-18—“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, & having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, & having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, & the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer & supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance & supplication for all the saints--”
Acts 12:5-11—“Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; & the guards before the door were keeping the prison. Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, & a light shone in the prison; & he struck Peter on the side & raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands. Then the angel said to him, “Gird yourself & tie on your sandals”; & so he did. And he said to him, “Put on your garment & follow me.” So he went out & followed him, & did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they were past the first & the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; & they went out & went down one street, & immediately the angel departed from him. And when Peter had come to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, & has delivered me from the hand of Herod & from all the expectation of the Jewish people.””
1Thess. 5:16-19—“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit.”
Js. 5:16—“Confess your trespasses to one another, & pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
1Pet. 4:7—“But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious & watchful in your prayers.”
Eph. 5:14-16—“Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.” See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”
Illustration:
The reason I take my car to a mechanic when it needs fixing/There is much that is effected by a single problem/I must take a comprehensive approach thru someone who knows the workings/COMPREHENSIVE
Fixing an unbalanced tire/Do not fix just one tire as all others are negatively effected!/Need to get at least two tires!/COMPREHENSIVE
Application:
?Prayer take Precedence thru its COMPREHENSIVENESS?
?Prayer take Precedence in the Church(local & beyond)?
2—Prayer takes precedence when...
INCLUSIVE(:1b)
Explanation: (:1b)Unlimited/Unhindered
:1—“Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, & giving of thanks be made for all men,”
The attitude of prayer is such that a major aspect of it is in directing/wielding it “for all men.” That is, our work in all facets of prayer must always include our urging God’s working for the sake of “all” others, unqualified. Our prayers are to exclude no one.
Prayer is not an exercise undertaken for selfish gain but rather for the good of others.
“All”—pav—1) Individually) each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone, all things, everything 2) Collectively) some of all types.
“Men”—anyrwpov—1) A human being, whether male or female; 2) indefinitely--Someone, a man, one; 3) in the plural, People. English—‘Anthropology’=Study of mankind.
Argumentation:
Jn. 1:29—“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, & said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
Acts 17:30-31—[Paul addressing the Athenian philosophers]““Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.””
1Thess. 3:11-13—“Now may our God & Father Himself, & our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you. And may the Lord make you increase & abound in love to one another & to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God & Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.”
1Tim 3:7—“Moreover he[bishop/pastor] must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach & the snare of the devil.”
Titus 2:11-14—“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness & worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, & godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope & glorious appearing of our great God & Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed & purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.”
How did we get to be privileged as the elect? Because the Gospel of Christ is for all men!
Rev. 5:6-9—“And I looked, & behold, in the midst of the throne & of the four living creatures, & in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns & seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth. Then He came & took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures & the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, & golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe & tongue & people & nation,”
Php. 2:5-11—“Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, & coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself & became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him & given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, & of those on earth, & of those under the earth, & that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Mat. 28:18-20—“And Jesus came & spoke to them[]His disciples, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven & on earth. Go therefore & make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; & lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”
There is no part of the Gospel that is prohibited from being shared with all of humanity.
Titus 3:1-7—“Remind them[the Church] to be subject to rulers & authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts & pleasures, living in malice & envy, hateful & hating one another. But when the kindness & the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration & renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
Illustration:
Something exclusive offered to everyone/Take it or leave it!/INCLUSIVE
Our Neighborhood Association in Florida/We could not buy a house in that neighborhood without membership/We could politely refuse it/But home ownership there was available to everyone!/INCLUSIVE
Have you ever said, ‘I’m not going to pray for that person?’
Such an attitude spells obedience to sin!
Application:
?Prayer take Precedence thru its INCLUSIVENESS?
?Prayer take Precedence in the Church(local & beyond)?
3—Prayer takes precedence when...
RECOGNIZANT(:2)
Explanation: (:2)Recognizing
:2—“for kings & all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet & peaceable life in all godliness & reverence.”
Our prayers are to exclude no one, but they are to be directed specifically toward those to whom we are directly answerable on earth.
Those who are earthly “kings” having sovereignty over us on earth are to be prayed for. Any “in authority” of any era are to be prayed for.
Our prayers for those “in authority” involve our personally being able to lead a “quiet & peaceable life.” That is, our prayers are to bring about God’s hand in the matter of our being left undisturbed & thus enabling our right worship of God...the rights of which should & can be protected by governing authorities.
Nothing but the power of God can effectively bring about proper(godly) change to those “in authority.” Only when this is accomplished can the person of faith in Christ live life focused upon living it “in all godliness & reverence.”
*The fulfillment of this truth is the background behind & by which the pilgrims first sailed for the New World. They did this in order to escape the blasphemic trappings of a politicized state church.
Conversely, if authority dismantles the possibility of living one’s life to himself undisturbed, then it will necessarily have a constituency in which it is made difficult to live rightly by God. Ironically such authority operates opposing the very God Who has granted authority to them in the first place.
It is supposed that Nero—an avowed enemy & persecutor of Christianity—was in power as Emperor of Rome(AD. 54-68) when Paul wrote these things to Timothy. Nero was noted for poisoning his mother & stepmother. He was privy to—if not directly involved with— the poisoning(with mushrooms) of his predecessor, Claudius. He is also known for supplying a source of light for his garden at night by burning captured Christians.
*“Persecuted Christians could easily omit prayers for their persecuting rulers.”—NAC, Lea & Griffin, Jr.
This is NOT prayer that those in authority would have all they want, but RATHER that they will govern in a fair & just manner.
Rulers should & can be wise & just in their dealings with those under them.
“Kings”—basileuv—Leader of the people, prince, commander, lord of the land, king.
“Authority”[See :12—auyentew]— uperoch—Elevation, pre-eminence, superiority; Excellence. Strong—Prominence, i.e. figuratively--Superiority (in rank or character).
“Lead”—diagw—To lead through, lead across, send across; To pass, to live.
“Quiet/Tranquil”—hremov—Quiet, tranquil. Possibly from—erhmov—of uncertain affinity; Lonesome, i.e. by implication--Waste (usually as a noun, being implied).
“Peaceable/Quiet”—hsuciov—Quiet, tranquil. Properly, keeping one’s seat (sedentary), i.e. (by implication) still (undisturbed, undisturbing):-- peaceable, quiet.
“Life”—biov—Life—a)Life extensively—The period or course of life. b)That by which life is sustained, resources, wealth, goods.
“Godliness”—eusebeia—Reverence, respect; Piety towards God, godliness.
“Reverence/Dignity/Holiness/Gravity”—semnothv—The characteristic of a thing or person which entitles to reverence & respect, dignity, majesty, sanctity; 2) Honor, purity. Strong—Venerableness, i.e. Probity. Used 3X.
Argumentation:
Ezra 6:3-10—“In the first year of King Cyrus, King Cyrus issued a decree concerning the house of God at Jerusalem: “Let the house be rebuilt, the place where they offered sacrifices; & let the foundations of it be firmly laid, its height sixty cubits & its width sixty cubits, with three rows of heavy stones & one row of new timber. Let the expenses be paid from the king’s treasury. Also let the gold & silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple which is in Jerusalem & brought to Babylon, be restored & taken back to the temple which is in Jerusalem, each to its place; & deposit them in the house of God”-- Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the region beyond the River, & Shethar-Boznai, & your companions the Persians who are beyond the River, keep yourselves far from there. Let the work of this house of God alone; let the governor of the Jews & the elders of the Jews build this house of God on its site. Moreover I issue a decree as to what you shall do for the elders of these Jews, for the building of this house of God: Let the cost be paid at the king’s expense from taxes on the region beyond the River; this is to be given immediately to these men, so that they are not hindered. And whatever they need--young bulls, rams, & lambs for the burnt offerings of the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, & oil, according to the request of the priests who are in Jerusalem--let it be given them day by day without fail, that they may offer sacrifices of sweet aroma to the God of heaven, & pray for the life of the king & his sons.”
Rom. 13:1-5—“Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, & the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, & those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, & you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake.”
1Pet. 2:13-17—“Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers & for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men-- as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.”
Eccl. 3:10-13—“I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, & to do good in their lives, & also that every man should eat & drink & enjoy the good of all his labor--it is the gift of God.”
Eccl. 8:1-5—“Who is like a wise man? And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, And the sternness of his face is changed. I say, “Keep the king’s commandment for the sake of your oath to God. “Do not be hasty to go from his presence. Do not take your stand for an evil thing, for he does whatever pleases him.” Where the word of a king is, there is power; And who may say to him, “What are you doing?” He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful; And a wise man’s heart discerns both time & judgment,”
1Thess. 4:9-12—“But concerning brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves are taught by God to love one another; & indeed you do so toward all the brethren who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brethren, that you increase more & more; that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, & to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, that you may walk properly toward those who are outside, & that you may lack nothing.”
Heb. 12:12-15—“Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, & the feeble knees, & make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. Pursue peace with all people, & holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, & by this many become defiled;”
Acts 24:15-16—““I have hope in God, which they themselves also accept, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just & the unjust. “This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God & men.”
Illustration:
Thieves, robbers, murderers, prostitutes, drug abusers...these are all those who will not recognize authority/Minimally their lives would change behaviorally if they became RECOGNIZANT
We talk, talk, talk about reforming our political landscape but the reality of it is that we must pray recognizing our God-ordained need for government!/RECOGNIZANT
Application:
?Prayer take Precedence in its RECOGNIZANCE?
?Prayer take Precedence in the Church(local & beyond)?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
Prayer takes precedence when...
1. COMPREHENSIVE(:1)
2. UNLIMITED(:1b)
3. RECOGNIZANT(:2)
Presented 04/15/2012pm to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
