Why Pray? It is a question I ponder often. It is a good question for each us. Why do we pray? There are multiple reasons. Some have valid Biblical support. Some may not. In the simplest of reasons, we pray because God commands us to pray. There are other reasons. We want God to do something in our lives or situations; we need help beyond ourselves; and we ask Him to intervene in the lives of those we care about for things like salvation and healing. Yet, a true understanding of prayer goes beyond those reasons.
Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ
Pleasing God, Making Disciples of Jesus Christ
New Testament
Today’s scripture is profound truth taught by Jesus in regards to prayer. The first truth is the constancy of prayer in the lives of His people. He said, “They (His people) ought always to pray and not lose heart.” The next truth about prayer in today’s scripture is in the final words of our Lord – “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” With the word “nevertheless”, Jesus is bringing a conclusion to the parable. May He not only teach us to pray, but show us the importance and intimacy of prayer.
Ever been far away from home for an extended period? Remember those feelings of homesickness deep inside? And those feelings of never feeling totally comfortable knowing it wasn’t home and only temporary? Such feelings and experiences are natural in the Christian and spiritual realm too. Why? This is not our home. In today’s scripture, we have two applications to help us live life in this world as foreigners, aliens, and pilgrims.
If I were to sit down with you and ask, “Why did God save us?” I am sure we would dialogue along answers such as; to display His grace and glory, to make us like His Son, to show the world God’s love, to free us from His wrath, to forgive us our sins, and to take us to heaven to enjoy His presence forever. Those are legitimate Biblical answers to why God displayed His amazing and saving grace in His plan of salvation. However, I think there is a reason above all of these. Yes, I know the chief end of all things is the glory of God, but what I am about to share accomplishes this end and does so more than anything else we may do in the Christian life.
As we read Paul’s penetrating statement in today’s scripture, two things are present. First is the affirmation – “You were running well.” The Apostle Paul does something else. He asks a soul-searching question of spiritual accountability – “Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” Today’s Nugget explores this passage and our willingness to do two things in our relationships with other Christians: love them without conditions and invest in their spiritual lives.
In this sermon, Pastor Jim moves on to the second of the petitions focused on us, the believer; the petition for the forgiveness of sins. He notes how it is connected to the previous petition through the only use of ‘and’ in the petitions. He then goes on to explore the conditional linkage between our forgiveness and our forgiveness of others, the two primary concepts of our forgiveness, and the attributes of God’s forgiveness that should be present in how we forgive others.