the doctrine of prayer

Sat, 28 Mar 2009 11:34:02 -0400

Prayer is the form of communication used by Born-Again Christians to interact with our Father in heaven. It is a privilege to have the ability to speak directly with our Creator. However, the role of prayer in the life of the Christian is often misunderstood, mistreated, and misconstrued. And so, we dedicate the month of March for learning about, focusing on, and participating in prayer. We do this in order to nurture an accurate understanding of a crucial part of our Christianity.
In the Bible, we observe various types of prayer, but to employ them purposefully we must first understand their purpose. During our march forward in prayer, we hope that you will do this very thing with the end result being a productive prayer life. So, please take advantage of this opportunity and begin your journey to becoming a prayer warrior standing shoulder to shoulder with the heroes of the faith who have travelled this road before us.
As we embark on this journey together we will analyze the different kinds of prayer, discovering why and when we should use them. Prayer, broken down into it’s most elementary form can be defined as communication with a deity. All the religions of the world employ the practice of prayer in one form or another. The difference between Christians and the rest of the world is that our prayers go beyond the ceiling, because we have a living God who is listening. So, we know that our prayer is more than just talking to an unseen entity. It is an interactive and ongoing communication between our Father and His children. It is a lifelong conversation that we can have with our Heavenly Father. And it accomplishes so much more than putting a voice to our needs. It is a source of strength for all Christians and brings the presence of God’s power into our life. For prayer ushers us into the throne room of the ruler of the universe (Heb. 4:16).
In the Epistle to the Hebrews we learn that through Christ we can boldly come into God’s presence. One must first understands the strict regulations of the behavior within the temple to realize the impact that this statement would have upon it’s Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Hebrews 4:14-16original audience. Only the High Priest was allowed entrance into the Holy of Holies (God’s dwelling place). And he could only enter after cleansing himself from his sin. This wasn’t just a ritual for Israel because of the result of disrespecting God’s rules of holiness was death (i.e. 2 Samuel 6:7). God’s holiness demands a complete removal of the presence of sin. So, the fact that they could now enter God’s presence without the fear of death was a revolutionary concept. It signifies that what Christ accomplished on the cross was more pivotal and ground-breaking than anything that had ever been done before. And what was completed on the cross changed our status in the eyes of the Father, once and for all. There was no longer a need for a regular sacrifice that would temporarily cover one’s sins, because Christ has now completely cleansed us from our unrighteousness. And this accomplishment allows us the opportunity to have a different kind of relationship with God that was not possible under the Law. There is no substitute for prayer in the life of the Christian, so we must daily commit ourselves to unceasing prayer (1 Thess. 5:17), taking advantage of this privilege that was given us by the tremendous sacrifice of our Savior.
In order to assist us on our journey we will use the acronym A-C-T-S to illustrate the four different types of prayer.
Adoration
acknowledging God’s greatness
Adoration is the appreciative recognition of the attributes of God. As we learn more about the character of our heavenly Father through His revelation of himself one cannot help but to stand in awe. In the Psalms we see this type of prayer represented through the various songwritersOne thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.
Psalm 27:4 musical expression. When one stands in the presence of greatness their response should be to show our appreciation. If we are not doing this then we are not acknowledging God’s work in our life. Adoration can be expressed in a variety of ways whether it is through song, poetry, writings, spoken word, etc... The list could go on because there is no single way to express our adoration. Our adoration of our Lord is expressed in the context of our personal relationship with God and through congregational worship. These times of worship and adoration are crucial to a healthy relationship with God, so don’t underestimate there importance. When we spend time acknowledging our awesome God it is vital that we pursue truth in our worship. A real relationship cannot be based on lies and misunderstandings. In order to become close to somebody it is required that we know who they really are. It is the same way with God. We must pursue an accurate knowledge of His character through His Word in order to have an in-depth relationship with Him. We must not assume what we have heard about Him but make sure anything we have heard is accurate from the Scriptures. If we are admiring qualities that are not truly God’s then we are misleading ourselves and not really worshipping Him. So we must pursue truth in our worship and adoration.
Confession
acknowledging our sin
Confession is the time when we humbly realize our true nature as we stand bare before our righteous Father. The idea of being seen for what we truly are before a perfect and holy God is not welcome, but we can rest If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9assured that our sins have been forgiven in the blood of Christ. Our High Priest stands as our advocate before our Judge. So we come before Him offering ourselves up to His mercy and requesting for His gracious forgiveness. Confession reminds us of our weaknesses and enlightens our understanding of God’s grace. He has lifted us up from the muck and the mire of our sin. He has placed us on the rock of Jesus Christ. And even though we may stumble, our status of righteousness does not change. His forgiveness is eternally available to all. So we acknowledge our wrongdoing. We repent and commit ourselves to learning from our failures so we don’t fall into the same snare again.
Thanksgiving
acknowledging His goodness
We truly have an awesome God. We have an undeniably gracious Father. And it is an integral part of our relationship with Him to show our gratitude for His lovingkindness. The Biblical writers will often break out in thanksgiving to God for all that He has done and we should follow their example. Recognizing all that God has done for us and vocalizing that gratitude will draw us closer to our Father. It is appropriate for us, as the recipients of His kind deeds to show our gratitude and appreciation for those acts. This isn’t something that God needs to hear, this is something that God should hear. Thanksgiving reminds us that we are indebted to God for His mercy. Our appreciation should flow out of our personal relationship with God as we Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.
Romans 11:33-36experience His kindness in our life. But just like any relationship, we must make a point to express our thankfulness for all that He has done. We must reflect on His kind deeds and express our gratitude for His care for us.

Supplication
acknowledging His lovingkindness
As with any parent/child relationship, the children will look to their parent to provide for their needs. In our case we look to our heavenly Father to meet our most essential needs. Supplication is the most popular form of prayer but also is the most misunderstood. God is not Santa Clause and He is not here at our beck and call. We have to understand that when we ask God to meet a need, the onus is upon us to align ourselves to His will. We cannot expect the Ruler of the Universe to align Himself to our will. In other words God has promised to provide for His children. And He has promised to meet our needs. Jesus taught the disciples that whatever they ask in His name will be done for them (John 14:13-14). To ask something in the name of someone was to ask with their authority and for their purpose. If a messenger came and spoke to another country in his King’s name, he did so on the behalf of the King. He could not to make requests for his own personal benefit from that country because, it would no longer be in the King’s name. So asking in the name of Jesus is to ask according to His will and for His purpose.
God has not promised to satisfy His children’s every whim, He has promised to meet our needs. Our Father knows what is best for us and He will answer our requests accordingly. So, as we come before God our goal should be aligning ourselves to His will and seeking out his purpose. When we are doing this then He will meet our every need.

a need for truth

the doctrine of prayer