Learning to Pray
Pt. 1 Abraham’s Intersession
Intro:
I think it is awesome how God has made us all different. He has given us all some things that we are good at… In my home, all four of us have things that we are good at: Amy is good at organizing and managing our home, without her the girls and I wouldn’t be able to function! Rachel is great picking up talents, she can play over 7 different instruments, she gardens, she sews, and she knits, and most of these she just picked up on her own! Anna is the driven achiever, she is the lead percussionist in her band, she is one of the top players in Michigan bible bowl, she pushes for perfection in all she does, and often achieves it. And me, I am good at killing bugs and changing light bulbs and taking out the trash…
We all have our strengths, but we also have our weaknesses… Things we are not good at… As I said Amy is great at organizing, well I am not! She balances me out, just like I balance her out, she is too short to change a light bulb…
As Christians we have our strengths and weaknesses as well, some are great at understanding the bible, others have great faith, some are good at sharing their faith, and some are great at serving. But let me ask this, how many here think they are great at prayer? How many actually struggle with prayer? Regardless of who you are, prayer can be a difficult thing, because we often times don’t know how to go about it.
There are different types of people who pray:
The “as I lay me down to sleep” prayer…
The “I want to impress God with my prayers” prayer…
The “I don’t want to think to hard” prayer…
The Lister…
The “Pharisee prayer”…
If you find yourself in one or more of these categories, you are not alone, it is said that the average Christian in America struggles with prayer, when to, how to, what to, and how much. And as a result prayer is a confusing and frustrating subject. So today we are starting a new series on prayer, learning the hows, the whats, whens, and whys, by looking at some of the great prayers in the bible. So if you have your bible turn to Genesis 18:16…
16Then the men set out from there, and they looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. 17The LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? 19For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him." 20Then the LORD said, "Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, 21I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know."
So God let’s Abraham know what he is doing by inviting him into the conversation about Sodom… It is kind of cool that God invites Abraham to discuss what he is doing…
Do you ever think that God has invited us into what he is doing? That he wants our input? Do ever think that God wants to hear your thoughts? I realize that most folks never think like that, that God wants to hear what they think, because why would he care about what we think… obviously our ways are not his way, nor our thoughts his, so why would he care to hear from us? Let me ask this, have you ever asked someone their thoughts on something, even though you know what you are going to do? My grandfather would tell me that we were going to do something and would ask me how I would go about it, even though he knew what we would do… I do this to my kids today…
22So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD. 23Then Abraham drew near and said, "Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? 25Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?" 26And the LORD said, "If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake."
God never said that he was going to destroy Sodom, but Abraham deduced what God was going to do, because he knew what kind of town Sodom was… However, when he begins to share his thoughts about what God is going to do, he challenges it. Do think Abraham is just stupid, brash, or just bold? It could be that he is worried about his nephew’s family, but perhaps it is something more… maybe he is worried about the people in this town and doesn’t want them all destroyed, so he appeals to God’s justice and begins to intercede for the town of Sodom, and God agrees with him.
27Abraham answered and said, "Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes.28Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?" And he said, "I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there." 29Again he spoke to him and said, "Suppose forty are found there." He answered, "For the sake of forty I will not do it."30Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there." He answered, "I will not do it, if I find thirty there." 31He said, "Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there." He answered, "For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it." 32Then he said, "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there." He answered, "For the sake of ten I will not destroy it." 33And the LORD went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.
Have you ever felt like you just wasted your breath? You spent time talking with someone sharing your thoughts, your ideas, your opinion, of which they asked for, and to have them turn around and do what they were going to do anyway… it can be a bit frustrating! I would love to tell you that because of Abraham’s intercession for Sodom, the town was saved, but it wasn’t, it was destroyed along with Gomorrah, however Lot and his two unmarried daughters were saved… the rest were destroyed in what could have only been a nightmare. So what was the point of this story, and what does it teach us about prayer?
1. It teaches us that God wants to hear your thoughts! Because what it does is help us to think the way God thinks. Abraham knows God is, and as a result of this exchange, he knows him even better. When we pray we share ourselves with him, and when we do that we not only understand ourselves better, we understand and get to know God better!
2. Abraham teaches us that we can feel free to be bold with our prayers! Remember, God wants to hear from you! He wants to know what you are thinking. Feel free to remind God of his character, who he is, and what he is about. Abraham was never disrespectful, he just pointed out that God is the Judge of all the earth, and should then be just. He reminded God of his character!
3. Abraham was also humble in his conversation with God, and so should we. I think that if there was one thing that God hates more than anything, it is arrogance and pride. And the last thing that we should do is talk to God in an arrogant or haughty manner. Instead, let us remember that we are talking to the king of the universe, creator of all things, and the giver of life! Be humble before the Lord.
4. That persistence is okay. When my kids were little I hated it when they would ask me the same thing over and over and over and over and over… however, this is not the same thing as what Abraham did. Abraham persisted in praying for the salvation of an entire town, and as a result was able to have Lot and his daughters saved.
5. That our prayers are not big enough. How much of our prayer life is consumed by praying for the lost? For those who are in need of salvation? It is interesting that the overwhelming majority of prayer requests are for people who are sick or in the hospital or for people traveling. Once in a great while it might be for a lost person, usually a relative. Most rare of all the prayer requests are prayers confessing particular sins and seeking to grow in particular areas of the Christian walk. There is no earnest pleading for the lost, no genuine confession and repentance, no seeking the Lord’s face. Our prayer time is weak, and frankly not big enough.
6. I think the biggest thing that we can learn from this is that prayer isn’t always about getting what you want or think you want, but about growing in your understanding of who God is, and growing in your relationship with him. Because, believe it or not, he wants to know you. You are his and you are special. Just as an earthly father wants to know his children, your heavenly fathers longs to know you!
Abraham shows us that prayer is about engaging God in conversation, and that God wants that from you! He wants to hear from you! But often times we don’t pray because we find prayer frustrating, confusing, or just plain boring!
This week, try praying, but not the way you always thought, or the way you always have… this week try engaging God in conversation by telling him what you think about a situation, or what you think about anything! Be bold, be humble, be persistent, pray big prayers, and above all try getting to know God. Allow him to speak to your heart, allow him to grow you. Keep it simple, like you are talking to your father, your friend.
We have this awesome privilege, to be able to talk to the creator of the universe, it is time that we take advantage of that! Begin this week to talk to Him!
