(Clip) Lord, Teach Us to Pray
The sermon emphasizes the importance of prayer and the need for a deeper relationship with God.
This sermon emphasizes the eternal significance of prayer, highlighting how the disciples prioritized learning to pray from Jesus above all else. It delves into the depth and power of prayer, urging believers to cultivate a strong prayer life as a reflection of their spiritual condition and relationship with God. The message underscores the importance of desperate, heartfelt prayer that seeks God's intervention and aligns with His will, rather than relying on earthly solutions. Ultimately, the call to pray without ceasing and to seek God's presence above all else is presented as the key to spiritual growth and transformation.
Full Transcript
All earthly things with earth will fade away, but prayer grasps eternity. But prayer grasps eternity. It always startles me that the disciples never said to Jesus, Lord, teach us to preach.
They never said, Lord, teach us to do miracles. They did say, Lord, teach us to pray. Prayer, Montgomery said, is the simplest form of speech that infant lips can try, and prayer is the sublimest strains that reach the majesty unhappy.
Prayer will exhaust your vocabulary. I do not believe that any man or woman is greater than their prayer life. You judge your spiritual temper.
I'll tell you how to judge your temperature spiritually. How much do you love to pray? Prayer is not a position, it's a disposition. That's why the apostle Paul says that it is possible to get to that place where you pray without ceasing, where every moment of your life, you're in an attitude of relationship to him, not for something you want, but that somehow God might come again and breathe.
You see, the answer to America tonight is not in the White House, forget it. The answer to America is in God's house. But I'm convinced of this, God does not hear prayer.
He hears desperate prayer. All we have to do is live with eternity's values in view. All we have to do is to know what God, the Holy Ghost, says by his spirit in our hearts.
You can impress other people, you can't impress God. You needn't impress yourself, you're somebody. You remember John Knox prays one day when he gets to the end of the line, he says, listen, I don't want to live.
If God doesn't breathe on my nation, I don't want to live. Give me Scotland or I die. If there's any prayer that needs to be prayed in the Church of God today, as far as I'm concerned, it is, Lord, teach us to pray.
Prayer is almost, not quite, but almost the greatest human privilege that we have. You don't change overnight. We approximate to it, we get our muscles stronger and stronger in the place of prayer.
You get to the place where you'd rather sweat, you'd rather weep in his presence than laugh in anybody else's presence. You'd rather God whisper a secret into your heart that breaks you than somebody give you the prizes that all the world covets. I don't think I ever go to a prayer meeting where I pray one simple prayer amongst others.
And that is, Lord, teach us to pray.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Importance of Prayer
- A. Prayer grasps eternity and is not limited by earthly things
- B. Prayer is a disposition, not just a position
- II. The Disciples' Priorities
- A. They asked Jesus to teach them to pray, not to preach or do miracles
- III. The Power of Prayer
- A. Prayer will exhaust your vocabulary and is a privilege
- B. Prayer is a means of getting to know God's heart and values
- IV. The Call to Prayer
- A. We need to pray with desperation and a sense of urgency
- B. We need to pray with a focus on eternity, not just temporal things
Key Quotes
“Prayer will exhaust your vocabulary.” — Leonard Ravenhill
“You don't change overnight. We approximate to it, we get our muscles stronger and stronger in the place of prayer.” — Leonard Ravenhill
“You get to the place where you'd rather sweat, you'd rather weep in his presence than laugh in anybody else's presence.” — Leonard Ravenhill
Application Points
- We need to prioritize prayer in our lives and make it a regular part of our daily routine.
- We need to pray with desperation and a focus on eternity, not just temporal things.
- We need to approximate to a deeper relationship with God through prayer and living with eternity's values in view.