By Gary Ray Branscome
For a Christian, prayer is not a work! We are not doing God
a favor by praying to Him. On the contrary, He is doing us a favor by allowing
us to approach Him in prayer. And, any answer that we receive is not a reward
for praying, but a gift of His grace.
Because those who are
lost do not have any assurance of God’s grace, they tend to be afraid of God.
In contrast, we who know the love of Christ have His own assurance that our
prayers will be heard. The words, “They [Adam and Eve] heard the voice of
the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his
wife hid themselves,” reveal the natural inclination of those who have done
wrong to hide from God (Genesis 3:8). In contrast, the words, “Whatever you
ask the Father in my name, He will give to you. Up to now you have not
asked anything in my name: ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full…
For the Father Himself loves you,” assure all who trust in Christ that
because their sins have been washed away, God will hear their prayers (John
The words, “Since the children have flesh and blood, He
[Christ] in the same way took on flesh and blood; so that through His death He
might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is, the devil; And free
those, who throughout their lives were enslaved by fear of death,” tell us
that those without the assurance of forgiveness in Christ live in fear of death
(Hebrews 2:14-15). While the words, “You have not received the spirit of
bondage again to fear; but you have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we
cry, Abba, Father,” tell us that while those who are under the law
[bondage] are motivated by fear, we can approach God without fear, as a child
approaches a loving Father (Romans 8:15). For that reason, Christian prayer
presupposes a relationship between God and man that only those who have been
born again have. And, the words, “Whoever believes that Jesus is the
promised Savior is born of God,” tell us that we are “born of God” [born
again] through faith in Christ (1John 5:1).
Therefore, Christian prayer involves more than just
dependence on God. Why even the heathen can be dependent on their gods.
However, as Christians we have no need to fear God [unless we do evil] or
appease His wrath [Christ has already taken care of that]. We come to God as to
a friend, a loving Father, who cares for us. And, if you do not know what to
say, just talk to Him about it. Thank Him for forgiveness, thank Him for His
blessings, ask for His help in dealing with life’s difficulties, ask for wisdom
and greater faith, pray for those in authority, think of Him as a constant companion,
and no matter what happens keep in mind the words, “All things work together
for good for those who love God” (Romans 8:28).
The words, “Whatever
you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive,” give us a promise on
condition of faith (Matthew
The words, “Seek the welfare of the city to which I have
caused you to be taken… and pray to the LORD for it: for when it fares
well it will be well with you,” tell us that it is God’s will for us to
pray for our land (Jeremiah 29:7). The words, “I urge that requests,
prayers, intercession, and giving of thanks, be made on behalf of all men; For kings, and for all who are in authority; so that we may
lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good
and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,” tell us that it is God’s
will for us to make those requests necessary for us to “lead a quiet and
peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1Timothy 2:1-3). And, the words,
“Pray without ceasing.” // “Praying always with all prayer and
supplication in the Spirit,” are not telling us to pray twenty four hours a
day, but are telling us not to give up on prayer, or stop praying and seeking
God’s help (1Thessalonians 5:17, Ephesians 6:18).
The words, “Pray to the Lord of the harvest, asking Him
to send forth workers into His harvest,” tell us that the Lord expects our
prayers to play a part in world evangelism (Matthew
The words, “Whatever you ask in my name, I will do, so
that the Father may be glorified in the Son,” tell us that God is glorified
by answered prayer (John
It should be obvious that God will not hear prayers
addressed to false gods, as the words, “They are all estranged from me
through their idols,” indicate (Ezekiel 14:5). However, the words, “If I
make excuses for sin in my heart, the Lord will not hear me,” tell us that
God will also not hear the prayers of those who are unrepentant (Psalm 66:18).
Of course that can change if a person repents, as the words, “If we confess
our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness,” tell us (1John 1:9).
The Bible also says, “When you pray, do not use empty
repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they will be heard
because of their many words” (Matthew 6:7). This verse is not talking
about regular use of the Lord’s Prayer. What this verse is talking about, is
repeating a prayer over and over again. Because those who worship idols have no
assurance that their prayer will be answered – to use modern terminology – they
keep repeating their prayer in the hope that they will hit on a time when the
line isn’t busy.
Although the Bible speaks of people praying in different
positions the Bible does not require us to be in a specific position. The
words, “He arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his
knees with his hands spread up to heaven,” speak of kneeling in prayer with
hands uplifted (1Kings
Finally, Christians have no business praying to saints. The
words, “Surely you are our father, even though Abraham does not know us,
and
Our Father in heaven,
May your name be exalted.
May
your kingdom come.
And your will be done on
earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our
daily bread.
And forgive us our wrongs,
as we forgive those who wrong us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil:
For the kingdom, the
power, and the glory is yours forever,
Amen.