What Is Prayer?

In this study we explore prayer as a weapon, what is means to pray in the Spirit, what it means to come face to face with God, and how old testament Jews prayed.

Video of this Study

Series: Seeking God

Review

This is the 6th lesson in the series: “Seeking God”

In our first lesson on prayer we covered:

• What Is Prayer?
• Why Do We Pray?
• How Should We Pray?

We had a lessons on “Why Do We Pray”, and then “How Should We Pray”.   So now we will revisit the question: “What is Prayer?”

Previously we discussed that prayer is:

• Talking To God
• Listening to God - sitting in silence and listening for a response
• Getting into the presence of God / seek His face

We talked about the 3 levels of prayer:

1. Mail / Email

• send your request
• not sure if it even got read
• you might get an answer
• if you don’t get a letter back you wonder if your letter was received
• similar to sending your Christmas list to Santa Claus
• don't know what His voice sounds like

2. Phone call

• two way conversation - you speak He responds regularly
• know His voice

3. In Person

• in His presence
• spiritual encounter with God
• face to face

In This Lesson We Cover

• Prayer as a weapon
• Praying in the Spirit
• The Hebrew meaning of prayer
• What it means to come face to face with God
• How we become more like God

A Weapon Against Evil

Ephesians 6:10-20

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

• What are the offensive weapons?
• Which is more important offensive weapons or defensive?
• Who does it say to pray for?
• Paul - your spiritual leaders
• When does it say to pray in the spirit?
• always

Praying In The Spirit

1 Cor 14:13-17

13 For this reason the one who speaks in a tongue should pray that they may interpret what they say. 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 15 So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding. 16 Otherwise when you are praising God in the Spirit, how can someone else, who is now put in the position of an inquirer,[d] say “Amen” to your thanksgiving, since they do not know what you are saying? 17 You are giving thanks well enough, but no one else is edified.

• Paul makes a distinction between praying in the Spirit and what?
• praying with your mind (your own understanding)
• “praying in the Spirit” is praying the things the Holy Spirit brings to your mind
• What does Paul say about giving thanks?
• other people can be edified by listening to your prayer
• edified = to build up
• prayer is a way to thank God

Romans 8:26-27

26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

• the Spirit aids us in knowing what we should pray for

Praying in the Spirit Means:

• The Greek word translated “pray in” can mean
• “by means of,”
• “with the help of,”
• “in the sphere of,”
• “in connection to.”

• Praying in the Spirit does not refer to the content of the words we are saying.
• It is praying according to the Spirit’s leading.
• It is praying for things the Spirit leads us to pray for.
• the Spirit intercedes for us

Tefilah (Hebrew word for prayer)

In Hebrew, the word for prayer is tefilah. There are two translations that are literal and accurate.

Meaning 1

Tefilah comes from the word pellel which means "to judge." Tefilah is a time of self-evaluation, self-judgment, introspection, when a person takes the time to focus on himself and goes within himself to see what it is that he needs, what it is that he is all about, what are his faults, what are his qualities, what is it that he needs from G-d, and why should G-d give it to him.

• remember how Hezekiah, and David and Job all discuss their character and actions while praying

David’s Example

Psalms 139:21-24

21Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,

and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?

22I have nothing but hatred for them;

I count them my enemies.

23Search me, God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

24See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

• David asks for what he wants
• David asks God to search if he is deservant to have his desires granted

Hezekiah’s Example

2 Kings 20: 1-3

1 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”

2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3“Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

• Hezekiah searches and judges himself
• Hezekiah asks God to judge him
• He asks for what he wants and explains why God should give it to him
• We can recite scripture which promises things if certain conditions are met
• example: God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him

Meaning 2

On another level, in another translation, tefilah means "attachment." When we pray, we create a bond between ourselves and our Creator. Prayer is a process of putting things together. When we pray there are only two things in the universe, G-d and ourselves. The problem is that there are two entities when they should be united as one. Tefilah remedies the problem and turns them into one.

• coming face to face with God

Moses

Numbers 12:1-9

1Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite. 2“Has the Lord spoken only through Moses?” they asked. “Hasn’t he also spoken through us?” And the Lord heard this.

3(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.)

4At once the Lord said to Moses, Aaron and Miriam, “Come out to the tent of meeting, all three of you.” So the three of them went out. 5Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud; he stood at the entrance to the tent and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them stepped forward, 6he said, “Listen to my words:

“When there is a prophet among you,

I, the Lord, reveal myself to them in visions,

I speak to them in dreams.

7But this is not true of my servant Moses;

he is faithful in all my house.

8With him I speak face to face,

clearly and not in riddles;

he sees the form of the Lord.

Why then were you not afraid

to speak against my servant Moses?”

• what does God explain face to face means?
• when He speaks clearly and not in riddles

So how would you expect Moses to pray?

Numbers 11:10-17

10Moses heard the people of every family wailing at the entrance to their tents. The Lord became exceedingly angry, and Moses was troubled. 11He asked the Lord, “Why have you brought this trouble on your servant? What have I done to displease you that you put the burden of all these people on me? 12Did I conceive all these people? Did I give them birth? Why do you tell me to carry them in my arms, as a nurse carries an infant, to the land you promised on oath to their ancestors? 13Where can I get meat for all these people? They keep wailing to me, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ 14I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me. 15If this is how you are going to treat me, please go ahead and kill me—if I have found favor in your eyes—and do not let me face my own ruin.”

16The Lord said to Moses: “Bring me seventy of Israel’s elders who are known to you as leaders and officials among the people. Have them come to the tent of meeting, that they may stand there with you. 17I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the power of the Spirit that is on you and put it on them. They will share the burden of the people with you so that you will not have to carry it alone.

Tefilah

So tefilah is the process by which we begin looking at ourselves, focusing on ourselves, and proceed to focus on G-d and bring ourselves close to Him, raising ourselves above the whole succession of life that prevails during the rest of the day.

Becoming Like God

• when you spend enough time with someone you pick up their ways, language, and may even be swayed to their opinions
• the more time we spend with God the more we pick up his attributes

Summary - Prayer is:

• talking to God
• listening to God
• a weapon against evil
• a way to thank God
• a means to ensure God’s will is done in our lives
• is a means of getting closer to God
• a time for introspection and evaluating ourselves
• a means of allowing the Holy Spirit to make requests on our behalf

 (c) Michael Leadon

How Should We Pray?

In this study we explore how we should pray by looking at biblical examples of prayer, and discuss what position we should be in while praying.

Video of the Bible Study

Series: Seeking God

Review

We are in the series: “Seeking God”

This is the 3rd session on Prayer

Last week we covered “Why We Pray”:

Reasons to pray:

• prayer shouldn’t be a mindless routine or tradition
• Prayer is not to get God to do our will on earth, but rather a means of us helping get God's will done on earth.
• Prayer is meant to develop a relationship in which we are dependent on God
• to calm our anxiety
• to develop trust
• keeps you out of temptation
• follow Jesus’ example

Not reasons to pray:

• To impress other people who are listening
• To impress God

How Should We Pray?

This Lesson Will Cover:

• What Jesus taught about prayer
• Corporate Prayer
• Prayer Positions
• Examples of prayer from:
• Daniel
• David
• Hezekiah
• Jesus

Jesus’ Teaching on Prayer

Luke 18:2-8

18 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”

6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

• be persistent when praying for justice

Matthew 6:5-8

5“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

• don’t pray to impress others
• pray in private
• don’t keep babbling

Babbling Monks

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

• some Christian monks took it literally that they should pray continually or pray without ceasing
• they would repeat: “Lord Jesus son of God have mercy upon me a sinner”

Corporate Prayer

Acts 12:5

5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

Acts 20:36

36 When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed.

Daniel and Prayer

Daniel 6:10

Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.

• Daniel prayed on his hands and knees
• Daniel prayed 3 times a day
• He prayed facing Jerusalem which is common to many Jews

What is the proper prayer position?

• on our hands and knees
• lifting hands
• face to the floor with hands out
• look up to Heaven
• on our knees
• heads bowed
• folding hands
• facing Jerusalem

Folding Hands

• no examples of folding hands to pray in the bible
• later Christians began folding hands to pray
• Some say it was to resemble hands bound by chains to show you were a servant

David and Prayer

Psalm 5:3

3 In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;

   in the morning I lay my requests before you

   and wait expectantly.

• David prayed in the morning

Psalm 55:17

17 Evening, morning and noon

   I cry out in distress,

   and he hears my voice.

• David prayed in the evening and noon as well

A Prayer from David

Psalm 86:1-7

1 Hear me, Lord, and answer me,

   for I am poor and needy.

2 Guard my life, for I am faithful to you;

   save your servant who trusts in you.

You are my God; 3 have mercy on me, Lord,

   for I call to you all day long.

4 Bring joy to your servant, Lord,

   for I put my trust in you.

5 You, Lord, are forgiving and good,

   abounding in love to all who call to you.

6 Hear my prayer, Lord;

   listen to my cry for mercy.

7 When I am in distress, I call to you,

   because you answer me.

• he prays daily
• he asked for joy - ask for fruits of the Spirit

Psalms 88:1-4

Lord, you are the God who saves me;

   day and night I cry out to you.

2 May my prayer come before you;

   turn your ear to my cry.

3 I am overwhelmed with troubles

   and my life draws near to death.

4 I am counted among those who go down to the pit;

   I am like one without strength.

• David prays day and night
• Share your issues and insecurities with God

Added Note:
Abraham was the first to pray the morning prayer, Isaac, the afternoon prayer, and Jacob, the evening prayer.

Hezekiah and Prayer

Hezekiah’s Healing Example (Facing the Wall)

2 Kings 20: 1-11

1In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”

2Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3“Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4Before Isaiah had left the middle court, the word of the Lord came to him: 5“Go back and tell Hezekiah, the ruler of my people, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you. On the third day from now you will go up to the temple of the Lord. 6I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.’ ”

7Then Isaiah said, “Prepare a poultice of figs.” They did so and applied it to the boil, and he recovered.

8Hezekiah had asked Isaiah, “What will be the sign that the Lord will heal me and that I will go up to the temple of the Lord on the third day from now?”

9Isaiah answered, “This is the Lord’s sign to you that the Lord will do what he has promised: Shall the shadow go forward ten steps, or shall it go back ten steps?”

10“It is a simple matter for the shadow to go forward ten steps,” said Hezekiah. “Rather, have it go back ten steps.”

11Then the prophet Isaiah called on the Lord, and the Lord made the shadow go back the ten steps it had gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.

• You can ask for confirmation.
• Remind God
• Hezekiah prayed facing the wall

What We Can Learn

• When we are in a bad situation we should turn to God

He Who Has An Ear

• Hezekiah prayed facing the wall
• In Israel they face the Wailing/Western Wall
• The wall separates them from the inside of the temple
• It's the closest point to the Holy of Holies
• God's presence was in the Holy of Holies
• The wall is as closest they can get to God
• Hezekiah facing the wall symbolized that he was close to God
• Hezekiah did what was good in God’s eyes
• So he could ask to have his destiny changed
• God is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him
• Jesus walked through the wall - He was God and man

Jesus and Prayer

Matthew 14:23

22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.

• Jesus prayed alone by himself
• Luke 5:16 16 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

Matthew 26:36-39

36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

• Prayed for God’s will to be done
• face to the ground on His knees
• Mark 14:32-36 and Luke 22:39-46

Hebrews 5:7

7 During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.

• emotional

John 6:11

And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them 2 to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted.

• prayed before he ate
• Jesus gave thanks

Luke 6:12

12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.

• He prayed all night to God

Mark 1:35

35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”

• Jesus prayed in the morning
• Jesus made prayer a priority

The Priority of Prayer - devotional

Have you ever forgone your daily prayer time, thinking, I am just too busy to pray today? Whenever we surrender quiet time for something else, we are making a statement about our priorities. It is a not-so-subtle way of saying, “Jesus, my calendar is more important to me than You are today. I’ll have to catch up with You later.”

We all do this on occasion, don’t we? Skipping prayer now and then is all too easy because, since we know the Lord is always there, we figure we can make up the time later. It’s as though we have taken God’s eternal, indwelling presence for granted with the thought, The Lord will still be here tomorrow, but I've got to get this done today!

What we fail to realize is that our quiet time with God is what empowers us to face the challenges of the day. Therefore, the busier our day, the more time we should spend in prayer preparing for it!

The Bible clearly shows that Jesus Himself protected His private time with the Father. I cannot imagine any person having more on his mind, having more things to do, or being in greater demand than Jesus. And yet the times when He was busiest are the times we see Him pulling away from the crowds in order to pray.

Is prayer the first thing you cut from your daily agenda when the schedule fills up? Protect that time every day at all costs. Remember, Jesus is God; if He considered prayer necessary to prepare for His busiest days, then it is an absolute essential for the rest of us!

Summary

• There is no specific time to pray
• You need to pray alone (although praying corporately is also fine)
• We need to pray that God’s will is done
• Share your emotions, issues and concerns with God
• Ask for joy, peace or other fruits
• We should give thanks
• We need to prioritize prayer over other things that keep us busy
• God should be the first one we turn to when trouble comes into our lives