What’s one of the first things you learned how to do as a baby? Besides the things that come naturally like eating, burping, and crying one of the first things you learned to do was roll over on your side. Once you perfected that technique you learned to lift yourself up on your hands and feet, then crawl, and then walk. Now that you’re a master at walking it has probably been some time since you rolled around on the floor as you did when you were a baby.
What’s one of the first things you learned how to do as a Christian? Wasn’t it to learn how to pray? Sure it is and rightly so since God wants this communication with us right from the start. Although praying is one of the first things we learned how to do, it remains an important part of the Christian life no matter how old we become. Jesus himself demonstrated prayer’s importance by the time and effort he took to withdraw from the crowds so he could be alone to pray. Would you say that you demonstrate prayer’s importance in your life as Jesus did? Do you make prayer a priority, or is it often an afterthought or a crutch for tough times? Through our text this morning the Holy Spirit will not only encourage us to pray but remind us how to pray. We’ll use this thought as our theme: Pray, Christian, Pray! 1) Humbly; 2) Unselfishly; 3) Boldly.
Our sermon text is a continuation of the text from last week. Last Sunday we heard how the LORD came down with two of his angels disguised as travelers and dropped in on Abraham and Sarah. God stopped by to strengthen Sarah’s faith in the promise that she would have a son in her old age. Once the visit was finished God and his two angels got up and started making their way to the towns of Sodom and Gomorrah. You see this was the other purpose for which God had come down to earth. God said to Abraham, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know”(Genesis 18:20, 21).
Of course God didn’t actually need to go down to these cities to check out what was going on. Since God is everywhere and knows all things he was well aware of what the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were up to. But by telling Abraham that he had come to investigate God reminds us that he does not act without first having gathered all the information.
Just what exactly was going on in Sodom and Gomorrah that prompted God to investigate? The answer is sin. The people of these two cities were acting in a way that was not in line with God’s word. What were they doing that so disturbed God? While we could easily point out some specific sins the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were guilty of we should stress that it wasn’t so much the kind of sins that was so disturbing as it was their attitude towards sin. The citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah didn’t care that what they did was wrong. Such an attitude is called impenitence and can often be found in our lives as well. You see it doesn’t matter whether you kill ten people, or sass your parents both are detestable in God’s eyes and if we don’t repent of either sin we would deserve to meet the same end that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah did.
Isn’t it interesting that God shared his plans with Abraham? That reminds us that we Christians are not inferior. We have an in with God as he shares his plans with us. From the Bible we Christians know that what is going to happen to the world in the end and what we can expect after death. These are topics that those who don’t read the Bible can only guess at.
Having found out that God was planning on destroying Sodom and Gomorrah Abraham began to intercede on behalf of the inhabitants of those cities. Abraham of course knew that his nephew, Lot, lived in Sodom and he did not want him or his family wiped away with the wicked. Let’s see what we can learn about prayer from Abraham’s petitions to God.
The first thing we learn is that although God had just let Abraham in on a secret Abraham didn’t get cocky and think that he could tell God his business. Instead he approached God in humility. Abraham said, “I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes”(Genesis 18:27). Abraham based his requests on mercy, not merit. He knew that the same sinful heart that beat in people of Sodom and Gomorrah beat in his own chest. He recognized that it was only by God’s grace and patience that he had not been destroyed for the many times that he had failed to obey God and trust his promises.
Perhaps we need to be reminded that prayer is a privilege, an audience with the King that we don’t deserve. If we saw prayer this way we too would be humble in approaching God as Abraham was. That in turn would keep us from taking the blessings of prayer for granted thinking that it’s something that God owes us. The only thing that we deserve is the same kind of punishment that Sodom and Gomorrah experienced.
Abraham’s prayer is not just exemplary because it was humble; it was also unselfish. I suppose Abraham could have said, “Yeah Lord, that’s a good idea to go down there and destroy those cities. They’re bad news. But when you destroy them could you be careful not to scorch the land around it because it’s great for grazing and I’d love to bring my flocks down there.”
Instead of thinking of how he could benefit from the situation Abraham was concerned for his nephew and his family, and any other believers that might be in those cities. Therefore he prayed for God to spare both cities if he should 50 believers in them. Abraham wanted the people of those cities to experience the same grace he had experienced from God throughout his life.
In the same way our prayers too should be unselfish. The Apostle Paul said, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness” (1 Timothy 2:1, 2). “Pray for everyone!” Paul says. Start with your family, the people here in church, your co-workers, friends, and yes, pray for your enemies too. Pray for your governing officials instead of complaining about them. Paul says that by praying for others you will benefit. For example when we pray that God give wisdom to our leaders won’t they be better prepared to make wise decisions that profit us?
Although Abraham approached God in humility and unselfishness he wasn’t timid. Even though God had said that he was planning on destroying Sodom and Gomorrah Abraham boldly asked God to reconsider. Abraham knew he could be bold because he realized that while God is just and must punish sin he is also loving and patient with sinners. He therefore appealed to God’s mercy and patience so that the righteous could be spared.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about this account is that God listened to Abraham’s prayer and agreed not to destroy the cities if he could find 50 believers in them. That teaches us something important about prayer. It teaches us that God doesn’t command us to pray just because it inflates his ego to have millions of people crying out to him. He invites us to pray because he promises to hear and listen to our prayers. He let’s himself be overcome by the prayers of his people and takes what we have to say into consideration in the way that he rules the world! Remember that next time you hesitate to pray thinking there’s no point since God is going to do whatever he wants anyway.
Abraham was not only bold in what he asked for; he was bold in how many times he came to God with his petition. 6 times, starting with 50 righteous people going all the way down to 10, Abraham pleaded with God not to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. In our gospel lesson Jesus also encouraged his disciples to persistent in their prayers. This of course doesn’t mean that God will always do what we want him to do just because we are persistent. We still need to recognize that we don’t always know what is best while God does.
Did God answer Abraham’s prayer? He did end up destroying Sodom and Gomorrah because he couldn’t even find ten believers in either city but he did answer Abraham’s prayer by rescuing the believers, Lot and his daughters. You could even say that God gave Abraham more than he asked for. He not only allowed Lot and his daughters to escape with their life, he allowed them to escape with their faith. Had Lot and his family continued to live in Sodom they too could have easily adopted the sinful life-style of the people around them losing their love for God. To a certain degree those sinful attitudes had already rubbed off on Lot’s family. As they were fleeing, Lot’s wife turned back to look at what she had left behind even though the angels had warned Lot’s family not to do that. Because of her disobedience, and perhaps because she showed her love for the things of this world God turned her into a pillar of salt. Would Lot have also lost his faith had he remained in Sodom? It certainly wasn’t going to grow stronger so God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah so that Lot would not fall under their influence any longer. Therefore God not only gave Abraham more than he asked for, he showed that he knew what was best for the believers involved.
Pray, Christian, pray! Not just because that’s what God has commanded you to do but because of the wonderful blessings connected with prayer. Bring your requests to God in humility knowing that’s it’s only by his grace that you can come before him, but be bold knowing that God has promised to listen and to answer your prayers. Be quick to pray unselfishly for others knowing that God will answer our prayers in the way that it best for others and us. What a wonderful privilege we possess. Don’t take prayer for granted just because it’s one of the first things you learned how to do as a Christian. Demonstrate its continued importance as you pray, Christian, pray! Amen.
