Opening the Door ~ PURPOSE

For us, Palm Sunday is a kind of celebration.  We remember the day Jesus entered into Jerusalem to the cheers and support of the people.  We picture it as a parade with people laying palm branches and coats down in front of Jesus who rode into town on a donkey.  We remember the statement Jesus made by riding that donkey.  He was coming to be The Messiah but he was going to be a leader with a humble servant’s heart not a conquering generals hand.  It was a joyous day for the people, but it was also a day of deep emotion for Jesus because he knew that this was the beginning of the end.  This was his final week and it all started on the Mt. of Olives which literally overlooked everything.

Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives

 This is what Jesus saw as he entered Jerusalem.  Well, not exactly this because this wasn’t how Jerusalem looked in those days, but he would have seen the Temple and the city of Jerusalem.  He would have seen the people coming and going and getting ready for the Passover.  He would have seen lots of lots of lambs as it was the day people selected their lambs for the Passover.  Jesus would have seen the Garden of Gethsemane, in fact, he might have actually walked through it, and he might have even seen Golgotha or Calvary because it wasn’t that far out of the city.  In fact, I wonder if there might have already been a cross set up, or the beginnings of a cross, because the Roman’s knew that executions were coming.

Jesus not only saw all of this and what was waiting for him, but he could see what was coming for the disciples.  Jesus could see the challenges they would face on the day of his arrest and trial and crucifixion, and he could see the challenges they would face far into the future.  This was his final week with the disciples and Jesus is concerned for them and so he takes time to pray for them and it is from this pray of Jesus that we not only see Jesus concern for his followers but his plan for them to survive and succeed in this world.

In John 17 we have Jesus’ final prayer and because it was recorded it must have been audible.  Jesus prayed out loud with his disciples as a way to encourage them but to also teach them.  The prayer is broken into 3 sections and begins with a prayer Jesus prays for himself in  John 17:1-5.

To understand what Jesus is saying here we need to think about where Jesus is praying.

 At the end of John 14 Jesus and his disciples leave the upper room and in John 18 they arrive in the Garden of Gethsemane and so the teaching and prayers found in John 15, 16 and 17 would have taken place along the way and what was in between the upper room and the garden was the Temple and its courtyards.  So Jesus is asking God to glorify him and complete his mission while standing close to the place where sacrifices where offered to God.  Jesus is praying for God to glorify him in a place where lambs had just been offered for the Passover.  When Jesus prays for himself it is for strength to follow through with the mission God has for him which is to be the perfect lamb of God whose sacrificial death would take away the sin of the world.   Jesus prays for the strength and power to accomplish his purpose and die on the cross which will both glorify God and redeem the world.

Can we pray such a prayer?  Can we pray for God’s purpose to be fulfilled in our lives even if it means knowing that we will suffer?  Jesus understood his purpose was to glorify God and that the glory would come through the cross and an empty tomb and so Jesus prays for the strength and power to be glorified.  Can we make this our prayer?  

Jesus then prays for his disciples, this is from John 17:6-19.  This part of the prayer shows us three main concerns Jesus has for his disciples and the first is that they would be protected.  While he was with them, Jesus could protect his followers from the evil one and keep them moving forward in faith.  Jesus could teach them, encourage them, correct them and love them in ways that would keep them safe and growing, but once he was gone they would be vulnerable to all kinds of attacks, so Jesus asks God to protect his followers, look at 17:12 and 17:15.

It’s important to see that Jesus doesn’t ask God to spare his disciples from evil, he doesn’t want them taken out of this world where no evil could harm them, he just wants them protected in some way when the evil comes.  Jesus knows the evil will come.  He knows persecution and suffering is going to come and he doesn’t ask God to remove it but to protect the disciples and their faith through it.

This prayer teaches us that we won’t be spared evil in this world and as Christians we might have to face great hostility and persecution.  In fact, we might need to expect some trials and hardships because the evil one in this world works against God and his people.  We won’t always be spared, but we can trust God to protect us so that we can survive and even thrive.  God can actually strengthen our faith and grow the church through times of suffering so while we can’t avoid all suffering, we can ask God to protect us through it.

The second thing Jesus prays is for his disciples to hold on to God’s word and the teaching he has given them:  John 17:14.  Remember the purpose of Jesus in this world was to share the word of God because he believe that it would be God’s word that would bring power.  Jesus wants the disciples to hold on to this word.  He wants them to embrace it, know it, study it and most of all live it out so they can experience God’s power.  This final prayer of Jesus reminds us once again just how important God’s word is for our lives and our faith and for the church and its future.  We need to embrace it, study it and most of all live it out.

The third thing Jesus prays is for the disciples to be sanctified or made holy and this happens by the word Jesus has given them and by his life and death:  John 17:17-19.  So the word of God helps make the disciples holy as they live it out, but it is also Jesus who helps make them holy by his own willingness to be fully obedient to God.  Again, remember where Jesus is when praying.  He might be in the courtyard of the temple, the very place sacrifices were offered to God to make people holy.  When Jesus says he wants to sanctify himself so that we can be sanctified he is saying that it is his death that will make his followers holy, and it is.
While we need to strive to be faithful and obedient to the word of God, what makes us holy is not our own actions and obedience but the grace and power of God.  It is Jesus’ death on the cross that paid the price for our sin and God accepts this sacrifice as an offering for us so we can be forgiven.  It was the blood of a sacrifice offered to God that made people holy and it is Jesus blood that makes us holy.  When we trust in what God has done for us through Jesus, we are forgiven and made clean.  Jesus’ prayer is that we would accept this way of holiness by accepting what he was about to do on the cross.

This is the foundation of our faith.  We are made holy and acceptable to God when we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior which means trusting that what Jesus did on the cross he did for us.  When we accept that Jesus died our death and that God forgives us through that death, it brings us new life.  If we are willing to accept this through prayer, Jesus is our Savior and the door is opened for us to have a dynamic and eternal relationship with the living God.  This is the prayer that opens the door; accepting Jesus as our Savior and placing our full trust in the grace that is ours through the cross.

So Jesus’ prayer was that the disciples would be
• protected from the evil one
• embrace the word of God 
• sanctified by the death of Jesus on the cross
 But the prayer doesn’t end there.  Jesus not only prayed for himself and his disciples, but he prayed for us as well.  Jesus looked out over Jerusalem and he could also see us and the church in the future and so his prayer was for us as well.  Look at John 17:20-26.

Here we see two main concerns Jesus has for his church.  The first is that we would be unified.  Unity was important to Jesus because he believed that it would be our unity that would reveal God’s presence, power and love to the world.  When the church is unified it proclaims peace and power because it takes power and a willingness to work for peace that keeps the church together.  Our unity also reveals the reality of God’s love because it takes a lot of love, divine love, to keep the church together.

The one thing that holds any group of people together over the long haul is love.  While laws, values, morals and even physical force can hold people and nations together from the outside, it is love that holds people and communities together from the inside.  When we love God more we will automatically love others more and when we love others more we are united.  It’s like the spokes of a wheel.

God is in the center and as we love God more and move closer to Him we grow closer together.  We are unified and grow stronger.

Unity and connection were important to Jesus because he experienced the power of that connection in his relationship with God.  Jesus and the Father were one and the unity of that relationship gave Jesus strength, peace, and purpose.  Being one with God gave Jesus everything and made his life complete and Jesus wants this kind of unity and connection for us.  Over and over Jesus taught about we needed to love God and love others and that it would be this life of love that would bring in God’s kingdom.  So his final prayer was that we would become one by loving God more.

I have to say that I believe it is this kind of love that has helped Faith Church grow and bring glory to God.  There is a spirit of love and unity in this place that in my experience is unique in churches.  When many churches want to fight over the little things, this church works together for the big things.  While we aren’t perfect and have to constantly work on loving God more so that we can love each other more, there is an amazing spirit of Jesus here and his prayer for us would be to keep working on that love and unity and preserve it in any and every way we can.

The last prayer of Jesus found in John’s gospel is this, John 20:24.  Jesus wants us to be with Him forever.  Jesus wants us to see the glory of God and experience the eternal life and love that God has to offer.  Knowing that the time was coming when Jesus would leave this world and go to the Father, he wanted his disciples and the world to be with him and the Father as well.  It is this passion and the desire for all the world to know God’s love and glory that drives Jesus through the next few hours of his life.

Again, Jesus knew it would be through his death that we would be able to see God’s glory and enter into God’s kingdom.  Jesus knew it would be through his obedience to God on the cross that we would be forgiven and reconciled to God and have the opportunity to enter into an eternal relationship with God, so he prays for this to happen.  Jesus prays for the strength to fulfill his purpose so that the church can fulfill its purpose which is to be united in love so that people could see God’s glory and enter into God’s kingdom.    

We need to make this final prayer of Jesus part of our prayer life.  We need to ask God to use us in ways that will help the world see Jesus and experience the love of God, even if it means our own suffering and sacrifice.  That is the purpose of the church, that we would live a faithful life that would not only help us others see God’s glory but that would draw more people to God.  Jesus’ final prayer teaches us that we can fulfill our purpose by embracing God’s word, accepting the work of Jesus on the cross for ourselves and maintaining unity by loving God and one another.  May this final prayer of Jesus guide the living of our lives not just this holy week, but every week.

 
Next Steps
Opening the Door ~ PURPOSE

1.  This week, read and reflect on the final prayer of Jesus found in John 17.

2. If this was your final week, what would be included in the prayer for your family and friends?  Can you share these concerns, hopes and desires with them this week?

3.  Jesus said, for them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.  (John 17:19)   How does the faithful obedience of Jesus on the cross help make us holy?

4. Loving God helps us love one another.  Name one thing you can do this week to deepen your love for God.

5.  Jesus is eager for us to be with him in heaven and to see the fullness of God’s glory.  (John 17:24)  Is this your heart’s desire?  Are you sure of your salvation?  If not, you can be sure by opening yourself to the love and grace of God and accepting the work of Jesus on the cross as forgiveness for your sins.  In Jesus name, ask God to forgive your sins and help you make Jesus Christ your Savior and Lord.

6.  The world sees Jesus in us as we love and serve others.  Consider signing up this week to love and serve others by Serving our Seniors on April 25 or going on the Mission Trip which begins April 26.

7. Continue to open the door to a deeper relationship with God through special times of worship this week:

Easter Cantata tonight at 7:00 PM;
Maundy Thursday and Good Friday Worship at 7:00 PM; Easter Sunrise Worship with Holy Communion at 6:30 AM.

Opening the Door ~ FAITH

We’ve all been there.  We pray for something to happen, and it doesn’t.  We pray for the new job we need to provide for our family and then we are passed over.  We pray for a relationship to be healed and strengthened only to watch the other person walk away.  We pray for the strength to overcome addiction and sin and then find ourselves falling into old habits and behaviors.  We pray for someone to be healed and sincerely believe it is God’s will but then spend the next few months watching them die.  We’ve all been there and it raises a lot of questions.  Does God not care about us?  Did God not hear us?  Was God not strong enough to help?  Was our faith not strong enough?  We’ve all been there and these are some of the most difficult questions we face when it comes to prayer.

Through this series we have heard Jesus say God is able to do all things and that God does loves us as a father or mother loves their children so that God is motivated to help us and provide for us.  We’ve also heard Jesus say that we can pray at all times and in all places and for all things and expect God to do something.  Today we are going to look at some other bold claims Jesus made about God answering our prayers and on the surface these claims might not line up with our reality, so we need to dig deeper into what Jesus means when he talks about praying with faith and in His name.

The first scripture we are going to look at is from John 14:12-14.  This isn’t the only time and place Jesus made this claim, we can find similar teachings in Luke 17:6, Matthew 17:20 and Matthew 21:21-22.  The common theme in all of these teachings is that God will answer our prayers and do what we need God to do when we are praying with faith and in Jesus name.    But what exactly does it mean to pray with faith and in Jesus name?

To pray in Jesus name does not mean that we just add those words to the end of our prayers with the expectation that God will answer accordingly.  It’s not a special phrase or magic spell that makes our prayers become reality.  What it does mean is that we are praying in line with God’s will.  We see this by looking at the larger context of Jesus teaching in John 14.  Look at John 14:10-11.
Jesus and God are one.  The words of Jesus are the words of God.  The love of Jesus is the love of God.  The actions of Jesus are the actions of God.  The power of Jesus is the power of God and the will of Jesus is the will of God.  All that Jesus does and desires reflects God and gives glory to God.  So everything Jesus did he did in the name of God the Father and it was all in line with God’s will.  When Jesus healed people it was God’s will.  When he provided for people it was God’s will.  When Jesus rebuked people, it was God’s will.   Everything Jesus did he did in the name of God’s and with faith in God because Jesus and God were one.

So when we pray in Jesus name it doesn’t mean that we are calling on God’s power to do what we want, it means we are praying in line with what God wants.  Praying in Jesus name means that Jesus’ heart and mind and spirit are in us and that we are in him.  Praying in Jesus name means that our will has become the will of Jesus which is the will of God.  It means that our motives have been shaped by God, our desires are guided by God and our prayers are in line with God’s will and if all of this is true, then God will do what we ask because what we are asking for is what God wants.  That this kind of relationship is what Jesus is talking about becomes clear to us when we read on- John 15:5-8.

Jesus is saying that if we are going to do anything it will be because we are one with Him and through Jesus we are one with God.   On our own we can’t do anything, but when we abide in Christ and allow Jesus to abide in us, then we can do all things because the power of God is there to accomplish the will of God.  So praying in Jesus name means abiding in Christ and allowing Christ to abide in us and Jesus tells us how this happens in John 15:9-10.

So abiding in Jesus and allowing Jesus to live in us means that we love Jesus enough to obey all his commandments.  When we love Christ so much that we willing follow all that He has taught us then our prayers align with the will of God and what we ask for we will receive.  This is what it means to pray in Jesus name.

So to pray with this kind of power and certainty we need to deepen our love and grow in our obedience to Jesus and this comes by spending time getting to know Christ more and working to embrace the character of Jesus in all that we think and say and do.  Sometimes this starts by just taking the time to understand who Jesus is and what his character is all about.  While I grew up in the church and thought I knew a lot about Jesus, I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know until I started to attend a Bible study on the gospel of Mark.  As I read the gospel and confronted the reality of Jesus, I realized how little I understood and how much more of Jesus I wanted to know.  If we want to pray with more power we need to know more about the one who gives us that power.

Now if we are honest, there are times we just might not feel like learning more about God and if that is where you are today, then the prayer to pray is for God to give us the desire to learn more and deepen our faith.  I’m not sure there is any prayer God would love to hear more than that.  God sent Jesus to live in this world because God wants us to know him and he knows that knowing Jesus will help us know Him.  God wants us to know him and He can give us the desire to know Him more because it is His will.  That is a prayer God will answer because it is a prayer in line with God’s will.

While we ask God to deepen our faith and desire to know him, growing in our faith will also take some effort on our part.  We need to be willing to commit ourselves to a life where we put ourselves in places to learn more about Jesus.  We need to put ourselves in places of prayer, study, worship and service.  We need to step out and put ourselves in places that might be uncomfortable for us and will stretch us  because we know those will be the places where we will learn more.  We need to do some things we never thought we’d do to see what God might do in us and through us in those situations.  Growth isn’t easy and it calls for us to take some intentional steps forward and as we do we learn more about God, we abide more in Christ and will find our prayers becoming more centered and powerful and answered.

If praying with faith and in Jesus name means praying in line with God’s will then how specifically will our prayers change?  How might they need to change?  Let me suggest one change we can all make today.  When we begin our prayers we should use the phrase, in Jesus name, because it will remind us that we need to be asking for things that we know are in line with God’s will.  Instead of using it at the ending as a way asking God to make our prayers – God prayers, using it at the beginning might help us make God’s prayers – our prayers and there is a difference.  I’ve been trying to do that this week and every time I begin a prayer with those words I find myself thinking, what is God’s will for me or, for the situation I’m praying for and I’ve even had to ask myself if I am even praying for the right situations.

Putting, in Jesus name, at the beginning of our prayer will help us reflect on what we are praying for and maybe set different priorities in our prayers.  For many of us, our prayers are for those we love and care about.  They are for ourselves, our families and friends, and while there is nothing at all wrong with that, maybe we need to expand out our prayers because God’s heart and will includes so much more than us.  One specific change we can make would be stop before we pray and ask ourselves, what is the mission of Jesus in the world today?  If our prayers need to be in line with the will of God then we need to ask ourselves what is God’s will for the world today?  What is God’s #1 priority today and is that even part of our prayers?

A few weeks ago we heard that the first order of business for Jesus was to preach and teach about the love and grace and power of God.  When Jesus had the choice of being a healer or a preacher, Jesus chose preaching because he knew that the word of God he shared would last forever and that message would be the force that would bring healing and hope to future generations.  It would be God’s word that would bring in God’s kingdom.  So if we want to pray in Jesus name we need to ask ourselves if we are including in our prayers the mission of Jesus.
Are we praying for disciples of Jesus to be made?  Are we praying for the work of the church and missionaries and missions around the world?  Are we asking God how we can be part of this work?  These concerns might need to move up on our priority list in prayer.

So praying in faith isn’t asking God for whatever we want or need believing that somehow God is out there listening and will give it to us because we have asked in his name, it means working to align our will with God’s will by abiding in Christ and allowing Jesus to live within us so that we are asking for those things that God wants.  This alignment with the will of God comes by working to grow in our relationship with God where our love turns into faithful obedience.  When we move closer to this kind of heart, mind, spirit and life our prayers will change, but does this mean that all our prayers will be answered the way we want them answered.  Believe it or not, the answer is still, no, and again it is Jesus one who shows us this.

Even Jesus praying with faith in the will of God did not get everything he asked for.  Before Jesus was arrested he prayed for God to take away the cup he was going to have to drink, which meant he wanted God to take away his coming arrest, trial and crucifixion, but none of that happened.  Jesus didn’t want to suffer and die and so he prayed in faith that God would change the plan, but God didn’t.  The cup didn’t pass from him and Jesus suffered the arrest, trial, beatings and cross.

In the days before his death Jesus also prayed that his disciples would all be one so that the world would know they were his disciples because of their love and unity, but that didn’t happen.  Not long after Jesus died there were divisions among the disciples and today we see the church divided into many different traditions and denominations.  We struggle to have any kind of semblance of unity.  Jesus had faith and he was praying in line with God’s will for the church, but he didn’t get what he prayed for and it’s not because God wasn’t able to do it or that Jesus didn’t have faith.  So let’s look at why we don’t always get what we pray for.
While there are many different ideas on why we might not get what we ask for in prayer, I want to consider just two.  The first one is that we live in a broken and sinful world and while God has chosen to be involved in our world in very real and specific ways, God has not stepped in to simply wipe away all brokenness, sin and pain.  That day will come, but it hasn’t come yet.  We live in a world where accidents happen and people suffer and die.  Sometimes there is no explanation for it and sometimes things don’t make any sense.  Sometimes people get sick for no reason at all.  Cancer can strike at any age, at any time and for no reason we can find, it just happens because we live in a broken and imperfect world.  We also live in a world where people make bad choices that have consequences in their lives and the lives of others and sometimes these consequences bring suffering and pain.

There is a lot of brokenness in our world and God has not yet stepped into set it all right, and so until that day comes we may not always get what we ask for.  For whatever reason, God has chosen to limit what he does in this world and so even when Jesus prayed for his followers to be one, they weren’t.  The brokenness of the world often leads to not getting what we pray for no matter how in line with God’s will it is.  

The second reason we may not get what we ask for is because we are human and no matter how strong and faithful we are, our human desire may conflict with God’s will.  As much as we might desire to be in the will of God, our human nature might still reveal itself in prayer.  This is what happened with Jesus.  Jesus did not want to suffer and die and so his humanity asked God to take that pain away and sometimes our human side leads us to ask for things that aren’t always in line with God’s will.  We can be praying with great faith and sincerity and in Jesus name as much as possible, but at times our human limitations get in the way.  Our ways are not always God’s ways.  Our vision is not always God’s vision.  Our will is not always God’s will and so we may not always get what we ask for which means at the end of our prayers we should include this prayer of Jesus, not MY will but THY will be done.

When we pray with genuine faith and sincerity and in line with God’s will as much as we possibly can and are willing to say, not my will but thy will be done, and still do not get what we ask for, there is one final thing we need to remember.  No matter the outcome of our prayers, God is always there to bring something good out of the situations.  Think about this, while the cross was not something Jesus wanted to experience, God used that horrible experience to redeem the world.  God took something tragic and turned it into something good.  That’s what God does.

God may not step into every situation in the world and make it turn out ok, but he does work to redeem every situation.  God can bring something good out of tragedy and evil if we will have faith and are willing to work for good in Jesus name.  Look at Romans 8:28.  God works for the good in all things.  God works to redeem all situations and this is part of what it means for us to pray with faith.  When we pray with faith, no matter what happens, God will be present to bring glory to Himself and grace to his people.

So the bold claim Jesus makes is that if we pray with faith and if we pray in his name, which means praying in line with God’s will, then God will provide.  And in those situations where we still may not see God provide the way we want him to or think he should, we can be assured that God will redeem that situation and work for good and for His glory.  Our role in all of this is to abide in Christ and allow the will and heart of God to shape our prayers and our lives.  


Next Steps
Opening the Door ~ FAITH

1.  Read and reflect on the promises Jesus makes with us about prayer:
• John 14:9-14
• Luke 17:6
• Matthew 17:14-21
• Matthew 21:21-22

2.  What does it mean to pray:
• In Jesus name
• With faith

3.  When has God not answered our prayers the way you wanted Him to?  How did this make you feel?

4.  Several times in His teaching on prayer Jesus said we need to pray in line with God’s will.  What steps can you take this week to walk more faithfully in the will of God?  What role can the following play in your walk of faith:
• Worship
• Scripture
• Service (Serving our Seniors is April 25!)
• Giving

5.  What work of God in the world or ministry of Faith Church can you add to your prayers this week?

6.  We often close our prayer with the phrase, in Jesus name.  This week start your prayers with that phrase and end them with this prayer of Jesus, not my will but THY will be done.

Opening the Door ~ BOLDNESS

We are in a series on prayer and last week we talked about the model for prayer that Jesus gave his disciples that we call the Lord’s Prayer.  From the Lord’s Prayer we learned that prayer is to be personal and that we need to look to God’s will and ask for God’s kingdom to come first and then lift up our own needs to God.  In Luke’s gospel, right after Jesus taught the disciples this prayer, he went on and taught them more about the God to whom they prayed and the attitude they needed to have in prayer, and to do all this Jesus told them a story.  This is from Luke 11:5-8.

None of us would ever think of knocking on a neighbor’s door in the middle of the night if we needed food – we would run down to the 24 hour Weis store and buy some, but that option wasn’t available in Jesus’ day.  For us to really understand what Jesus is teaching here we need to understand what life was like in the small villages where Jesus lived.  I want to share with you a short video from the Deeper Connection series narrated by Jarrett Stevens which is part of our small group material for this series.  He takes us to a recreated village in Nazareth and shows us what life would have been like in the time of Jesus and helps set the larger setting for this story.  Video

So the man in Jesus story went to this particular friend because he knew that he was the one in the village who had bead to spare because the stoves were outside of his home and it was his day to make bread.  He went to this man for help because he knew he had the resources to help him, but he also his friend would be motivated to help.  The motivation was the basic law of hospitality that governed much of the culture in Jesus day.

The law of hospitality said that if you could help someone in need – you did, no matter the cost.  If you helped – you would be honored and blessed by God and if didn’t you would be shamed.  While it may not be true in our society, honor and shame were strong motivators in Jesus’ day.  Those values ran deep into people’s understanding of right and wrong and what it meant to be faithful to God and no one wanted to be known as someone who didn’t do the right thing and help someone in need.
So the man asked his friend for help because he knew he had both the ability and motivation to help and Jesus tells this story to teach us that we can pray and ask for help because God has both the ability and the motivation to help us, but the motivation isn’t shame, or even honor, it’s love, look at what Jesus says in Luke 11:11-13.

So if we who are evil know how to do the right thing, how much more will God, who is good and loving do the right thing.  God is motivated out of his love for us and when it says God gives us the Holy Spirit it means God is giving us everything he has, not just what we ask for.  God is motivated to do the right thing out of his sense of righteousness and honor.  Because God is good we can ask Him for help and know we won’t find someone who will tell us to go away because it’s late, but a God who is always willing to listen and get involved.  So when we pray, we are praying to a God who has both the ability and the desire to help.  

But the story doesn’t just teach us about the God to whom we pray, it also teaches us something about how and when we can pray.  The first thing it tells us is that we can pray for anything at anytime and in any place.  This man asked his friend for bread in the middle of the night after his friend had already gotten into bed and didn’t want to be disturbed.  In many ways it is a bold request, but the man reaches out to his friend because he is in need and doesn’t want to be shamed by not provide for his guests.  Jesus is telling us that is ok for us to ask God for what we need anytime and anywhere.  Now for us, that may not seem very new because we have grown up with this idea that we can pray anytime and anywhere, but this wasn’t true in Jesus day.

A few weeks ago we learned that prayer in Jesus day was really confined to certain times of the day.  You prayed at dawn, 9:00 AM, Noon and 3 PM and then at sunset.  There were set times for prayer and that was when people prayed, but here Jesus is saying, if you need something in the middle of the night, it is ok to pray.  If you are in trouble and need God’s help in this instant, it is ok to pray.  If you are nowhere near a church or any congregation but need help, it is ok to pray - God will be there.  We can pray for anything we need, anytime of the day or night and in any location we find ourselves in.  In fact, God wants us to reach out to him when we are in need.

One of the common themes we have seen through this series is that prayer is personal.  Jesus teaches us that we can call God our father, or Dad, and that it is ok to run to him when we need to.  Just as we run to family and friends when we are in need, we can also run to God.  We don’t need to wait, we don’t need to get help or find someone to go with us; we can run to God and ask for help.  What a gift God has given to us.  The door is always open and we can come to God anytime and anywhere.

Not only can we ask at all times and in all places but we can also ask with boldness or confidence because God is able and wants to help.  The man who went to his friend asked with boldness because he was confident his friend would answer and that he could and would give him bread.  He was bold in his asking because he expected a positive response, he knew his friend would come through.  When we pray we need to be bold in our asking and in our expectation of a response.  So let’s talk about our expectations in prayer.

Do we pray expecting God to respond or just hoping that God might hear us?  There’s a difference.  I heard about a community a few years ago that was going through a drought and the people gathered together to ask God to send rain.  While dozens of people gathered and many people prayed, there was only one little girl who came with an umbrella.  She was the only one who expected God to actually do something.  When we pray do we expect God to actually do something?  This expectation can’t be filled with arrogance or pride, we aren’t demanding something from God, but we can ask with humble assurance that God is able to help us and like the good father – He wants to help us.  God may not always answer the way we think God should and we will talk a little bit about this next week, but boldness in prayer means praying with the expectation that God can and will do something.

That’s the main point of this story.  The man went to this friend because he had the means to provide bread and he knew his friend would help.  The man went expecting to get bread when he asked and we need to ask with the expectation that God will provide.  Praying with boldness means praying with the expectation that God will move.  When we pray for our own personal needs, when we pray for our families, schools and communities we need to pray expecting that God will do something.  When we pray for the situations of injustice and violence that we see in the world we need to pray with the conviction and assurance that God can and will do something.  We also need to be prepared to act because God just might be planning to do something through us.

Not only does Jesus teach us that we can be bold in prayer but he gives us direction on how we can grow in boldness.  Look at Luke 11:9-10.  Jesus is encouraging us to first look to God for help in any and all situations.  We need to seek God’s kingdom first which means looking for God’s will and power to work in our lives and in the situations we are lifting up.  We learned in the Lord’s Prayer that we have to seek God’s will and kingdom before we move on and pray for what we need.  Our lives need to be in line with God’s life before we start asking for things and if they are in line then our prayers will be more confident and bold.  

So to become bold in prayer means seeking God’s will and then asking God for help.   The man in need in Jesus story didn’t just look around to see who might have bread, he actually asked for bread, he had to be willing to humble himself and ask for help.  We can’t be afraid to ask God for help.  We can’t be afraid to simply lay our requests before God, even when we aren’t exactly sure what we need or even want.   But we don’t just ask, we can actually knock on the door with the expectation that God will open it for us and supply what we need.  The word for knock here doesn’t imply a polite tapping on the door as if you don’t want to disturb the person inside, it means almost beating down the door to get what we need.

Now to be clear, Jesus isn’t saying we should be rude and demanding when we ask, but he is saying that it is ok to ask with courage and conviction because we know God will not just hear us but help us.  The man in Jesus story didn’t just look around his community to see who might be the family with extra bread that night, he went and asked for it.  And when the friend didn’t seem to want to help, the man didn’t go away, he stayed and maybe knocked again, or pounded again and again until the man got up and gave him the bread.  He was bold.  He sought out what he needed.  He asked for it and with the courage of his conviction he continued to ask for it.  Being bold means having faith and trusting God can and will help and it’s asking for what we need with courage and persistence.

Now the good news is we don’t have to beat down God’s door in order for him to help because like a loving father, God is good and God says He will open the door for us.  When we seek God’s will and kingdom, we will find it, when we ask God will provide and when we knock the door will be opened, that’s the promise Jesus makes with us and it is this promise that allows to be bold in prayer.  

Seeking God’s will for our lives, asking God for help at all times and in all places and persisting in prayer is also the road to a deeper relationship with God.  When God opens the door to us he doesn’t just shove out what we need and then slam the door shut, God actually invites us in or steps out to joins us in our lives so that together we can move forward.  Prayer opens the door to a deeper relationship with the living God, but only if we will bold and pray.



Next Steps
Opening the Door ~ BOLDNESS

1. What outrageously bold request has a friend seriously asked of you?  How did their request for help make you feel?

2. We can be bold in prayer because God is able and motivated to help us.  Which is more difficult for you to believe and why?
• God is able to help me.
• God is motivated to help me.

3. Through Jesus we see God’s power to help and God’s desire to help.  How can these stories help you trust that…
• God is able to help me
o Luke 7:11-17
o Luke 8:26-39
o Luke 9:10-17
• God is motivated to help me
o Luke 5:12-26
o Luke 13:10-17
o Luke 18:35-43

4. When it comes to prayer, Jesus gives us a model of how to grow in boldness:  Seek ~ Ask ~ Knock
• What need / desire are you looking for God to provide?
• How can you ask God for this help?
• What would it look like for you to knock on God’s door?

5.  What outrageously bold request can YOU pray this week:
• For your life and family
• For Faith Church and God’s church around the world
• For the world

6. Pray the Lord’s Prayer and consider its BOLDNESS.

Opening the Door ~ TOGETHER

Today our series on prayer turns to the only prayer Jesus taught his followers and while it was given to the disciples we know it as the Lord’s Prayer.  A new insight on the prayer came from my trip to Israel.  In Matthew, the prayer is taught as part of Jesus Sermon on the Mount which was given here, on the hills outside of Capernaum looking over the Sea of Galilee.

The Sea of Galilee from the hills or Capernaum.

Not only was this a place where the majesty and glory of God could be seen in natural beauty, but this was Jesus home.  Jesus didn’t teach his followers to pray in the Temple of Jerusalem, he taught them on the hills of Galilee and that makes a difference.

Walking through Jerusalem and standing near the Wailing Wall, which would have been part of the Temple walls,  inspired a kind of awe and reverence that shaped my prayers while I was there.

The Wailing Wall in Jerusalem

Praying at the Wailing Wall.

When I prayed at the Wailing Wall the prayers were more formal and detached, maybe religious is the right word, but walking alone in Galilee, my prayers were personal.  I felt a more intimate connection to God here and that’s what the Lord’s Prayer was to be for the disciples, personal and relational.  We see that from the very beginning of the prayer when Jesus told them to call God Abba, which doesn’t refer to God as an impersonal Heavenly Father but a very real, personal and loving Dad.

So Jesus teaches us that prayer is not be detached and filled with religious words and phrases but with personal love and honor which shows a connection to God.  Leading up to the prayer, Jesus teaches the same thing when he says that we shouldn’t pray to be seen by others and prayer is not to be a show for God.  Matthew 6:5-8.  Prayer is to be a personal conversation with God where we go into our rooms, close the door and pray in secret – which didn’t mean going inside necessarily, but maybe just going off alone, or shutting out distractions so we can connect with God.

Matthew 6:8 also reminds us that we are praying to a God who personally knows us.  God knows what we need before we ask.  God knows what we need, what we want, what we struggle with, what our sins are and where we are going – God is personal and knows all of that but He still wants us to pray because God wants the relationship with us. God wants the personal connection and that requires us to pray and intentionally reach out to God.

So the location where Jesus teaches this prayer is important because it reminds us that prayer is personal and helps connects us to a God who desires to be personal with us.  When we look at the prayer itself we see that it is an introduction, followed by 6 petitions and then a closing.

Introduction:  Our Father, which art in heaven
1:  Hallowed by thy name
2:  Thy kingdom come
3:  Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven
4:  Give us this day our daily bread
5:  Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us
6:  Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil
Ending:  For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  AMEN

Much of this prayer would have sounded familiar to Jesus’ followers because several of the sections find their roots in the prayer life of the Jewish people.  One of the prayers that was said by the rabbis and the people in Jesus’ day was the Kaddish.  It says:

May God’s great name grow exalted and sanctified in the world that He created as He willed.
May He give reign to His kingship in your lifetimes and in your days, and in the lifetimes of the entire Family of Israel, swiftly and soon.
May His great Name be blessed forever and ever.
Blessed, praised, glorified, exalted, extolled, mighty, upraised, and lauded be the Name of the Holy One, Blessed is He beyond any blessing and song, praise and consolation that are uttered in the world.
May there be abundant peace from Heaven, and life upon us and upon all Israel.  He who makes peace in His heights, may He make peace, upon us and upon all Israel.
Amen.

Did you hear the similarities?  The themes of the Kaddish are very similar to some of the themes Jesus outlines in his prayer.  There is a focus on God’s name being great and holy, God’s kingdom needing to be established in this world and how God’s will needs to be lived out in our lives.  So the prayer Jesus gave the people had roots in the prayers that would have already been known and said in worship.  This would have made the prayer more familiar and personal and easier for them to remember.

Now let’s look at the prayer itself.  The introduction may have been the most surprising part of the prayer because Jesus used a very personal word for Father – Abba.  When we look at the Kaddish, the name of God was to be keep holy and powerful and completely beyond anything in this world.  May God’s great name be blessed forever and ever.  Blessed, praised, glorified, exalted, extolled, mighty, upraised, and lauded be the Name of the Holy One, Blessed is He beyond any blessing and song, praise and consolation that are uttered in the world.  While Jesus does say that God’s name is holy, he makes God much more approachable.  God is that father who loves us and knows us and is right here to listen and care for us.

Following the introduction are the first three petitions which all focus on God.  We honor God’s name, we look for God’s kingdom to come into this world and we want God’s will to be done in our lives.  The focus is on God and our desire to see the fullness of God enter our lives and community and world.  These three petitions help get us in line with God’s will.  It is hard for us to ask for what we want when our focus is on God, so these petitions not only honor God but they direct our thoughts and hearts which is needed as we move on to the next 3 petitions which focus more on us and our need for God.
Give us this day our daily bread.  This isn’t just a request for food, this is an acknowledgement that we need God for everything in life.  We need God to sustain all that we have and provide for all that we need.  This petition is a simple request for God to meet our needs.

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.  This petition reminds us that we not only need God to meet our physical needs, but we need God to meet our spiritual needs.  Our sin has separated us from God and only God can heal or mend that divide.  Other traditions say forgive us our debts and our actions have created a debt that we owe to God but cannot repay – ever.  We can’t repay God, we need the debt wiped out or forgiven and that is what God does.  God forgives and in this petition we ask God to forgive us with the understanding that we also need to forgive those who have sinned against us.  While forgiving others is hard, this prayer helps put it in the proper perspective.  When we think of all God has forgiven us it gives us the strength to forgive others.

The last petition says, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.  Now let’s be clear and say that God is never the one who lead us into temptation and evil, he doesn’t need to because we do a pretty good job of that all on our own.  What we need is God to lead us in the other direction, away from the temptation we desire and the evil we so often turn to.  This petition reminds us that all that is healthy for us in life, physically, morally, spiritually and in all of our relationships comes from God and if we will follow his lead our lives will be significantly better.

When we look at these three petitions:
Give us this day our daily bread.  
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.  
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil
What we see is that we need God to help meet all of our human need.  We have physical, emotional, spiritual and relational needs that God can meet and so we need to ask God to meet them for us and then we need to work with God to make it happen.
The closing of the Lord’s Prayer, For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. AMEN, isn’t found in Matthew or Luke and so many people ask why we include it in the prayer and one reason is because it is found in the earliest teachings of this prayer in the life of the church.  From the very beginning of the Christian church, this ending was connected to the prayer Jesus taught and it can be seen reflected in the Kaddish from which Jesus drew others parts of the prayer, but it also can be traced to an Old Testament prayer found in 1 Chronicles 29:11-13.  This ending again reminds us that the prayer Jesus taught wasn’t something new that he made up in his head, it was a prayer based on the prayers that the people had been taught as children and knew by heart.

So when asked about prayer, Jesus gave his followers a model to follow.  Prayer to God needs to be personal, it needs to focus on the will and kingdom of God and it needs to acknowledge our needs and that God meets those needs.  When prayer does these things - it is the Lord’s Prayer and it not only connects us to Jesus but identifies us as his disciples in this world.

While the Lord’s Prayer is personal, it is also one of the few prayers that we say together and when we pray it together it reminds us that we are connected to one another.  In some ways the prayer was given to be prayed together because all the terms found in it are plural.  It’s OUR father, give US, forgive US, lead US, deliver US.  This prayer of Jesus draws us together as one and sets our hearts and minds on God’s kingdom and God’s will for our lives and how God sustains everything in this world.  This prayer reminds us that we are not alone in this world but that our faith in Christ Jesus draws us together.

While our faith is personal and our relationship with God our father is personal and unique – we are also part of a larger body of believers working to bring God’s kingdom into this world.  We can’t remain faithful disciples of Jesus alone.  We can’t live out God’s will for our lives alone.  We can’t bring God’s kingdom into this world alone and while we can lift up and honor God’s name alone – it is so much more powerful when we do it together.  Praying this prayer draws us together and it shows the world who God is and what God’s love and grace and kingdom is all about.   When we pray and live this prayer together, God is glorified and in some small way God’s kingdom does appear on earth just as it is in heaven.


Next Steps
Opening the Door ~ TOGETHER


1.  There are six petitions of the Lord’s Prayer.  Spend one day each week focusing your prayers on that petition.

• Hallowed by thy name
• Thy kingdom come
• They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven
• Give us this day our daily bread
• Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us
• Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil


2.  How does this prayer need to shape your life and actions?
• Who do you need to forgive?
• From whom do you need to seek forgiveness?
• How can you provide daily bread to those around you?
• How can God’s spirit and power lead you away from those things that tempt you?
• How can you help lead others away from temptation and evil?


3.  Much of the Lord’s Prayer was based on the prayers of God’s people known as The Kaddish.
• What prayers did you learn as a child?
• Do any of those prayers reflect themes found in the Lord’s Prayer?
• Share these prayers with others on the Faith Church facebook page.

Opening the Door - PERSIST

Last week we started series on prayer where we looked at some prayer habits of Jesus and we learned that we need to consistently and intentionally create times to watch – or to be spiritually awake and alert in prayer.  It is the daily routine of prayer that helps us find strength and power to make it through the difficult times we face in life so developing habits like Jesus when it comes to prayer is important.  Today we are going to turn and consider a teaching of Jesus on prayer that lifts up two important lessons.  The first is to understand the character and nature of God to whom we pray and the second is to understand the importance of persistence when it comes to prayer.  So let’s turn to Luke 18 where Jesus shares story of a persistent widow and an unjust judge.  Luke 18:1-8.

Last year when I was in Israel, one of the most impressive places we visited was a place called the teaching steps.

Teaching Steps outside walls of Jerusalem

It would have been on these steps outside the walls of Jerusalem that religious leaders would gather to teach and tell stories like Jesus did here, but it would also have been here that people would have entered into the city of Jerusalem to go before a judge.  One of the most impressive sights at the teaching steps was the sheer size of the stones that made up the walls of the city.

They were taller than I was and simply massive.

I can only imagine how awesome this place must have been in the days of Jesus when it was complete.  I also imagine it was pretty intimidating.

The Temple and city walls were actually built to be intimidating because they were to reflect the power and holiness of God.  The steps leading up to the city were all different sizes so you had to go slow and watch your step.

You couldn’t enter the city quickly and with your head held high – you had to bow your head to watch the steps.  You had to take your time and this all added to the sense of power and authority of the God who dwelled there.  In many ways we do the same thing today with our own courts and civil authority.

While the steps of our county courthouse aren’t different sizes, they are large and you have to go slow. Once you get into the building you have to climb steps to get to the main courtroom where you find a judge seated high on a platform.

Inside Centre County Courthouse

Many courthouses are built to reflect the power of the courts and judges are set up high to symbolize the moral and legal authority that they have.  It’s impressive and for many people it is intimidating.  Whether you a lawyer, plaintiff, defendant or witness; entering into a courtroom can be intimidating.

I’ll be honest, I have never had to go to court and plead my case before a judge and I pray that I never have to, but I have been to our local courtroom a few times when I was asked to give the invocation at the swearing in ceremonies of our elected officials.  I had to sit in the front and wait for the judges to enter and I don’t mind saying, I was a bit nervous.  The environment is impressive and somewhat intimidating and it is meant to be so that everyone takes the authority of the courts seriously.

While our courts are intimidating, think what it must have been like for this widow going before a judge who is known for being unjust and unkind.  Widows were some of the most vulnerable members of society in Jesus day.  They were completely dependent upon a man in their family to take care of them, it might be a son or a nephew or grandson, but there had to a man somewhere that would take them into their home and provide for them.  That this widow goes to the judge alone tells us that she has no one to care for her, protect her or speak for her.  She is completely vulnerable and at the mercy of her community to care for her and the odds are all against her as she goes to see this judge.

The judge is completely corrupt.  It says that he does not fear God and he does not care about people.  All he cares about is his position and power and money.  Many judges in Jesus day were corrupt and could easily be bribed in order to give a favorable ruling.  This judge might be one of the most powerful men in the community and this widow one of the most powerless.  He was corrupt and she was seeking justice.  He had compassion for no one and she was seeking compassion.  He only wanted to increase his influence; she was looking for someone who would use their influence to help her.
We don’t know what kind of case this widow brought before the judge, but it really doesn’t matter because what she wants is what any of us want when we speak to those in authority.  She wanted justice and compassion.  This widow wanted the judge to do what was right and to do it with mercy and understanding.  In many ways this is what we all want.  If you are a student, you want your teachers to have compassion on you and you want them to judge everyone’s work fairly.  As parents, you want your children to be treated fairly and with compassion or at least with common sense and rules that are applied evenly.  At work we want our employers to do what is right and to understanding our situations and evaluate us with compassion.  From our government what we struggle with today is wanting justice to be fair and our leaders to be compassionate.  That’s all this widow wanted - justice and compassion.  She got neither.

She pled her case and the judge didn’t rule with either justice or mercy.  So the widow went back again, and again, and again, and again, and again… well you get the idea.  She persisted.  She didn’t give up and she didn’t give in, she kept going to the judge until he said – Luke 18:5.  Now here is where some of the humor of Jesus is lost on us, the words “wear me out” might be better interpreted as “she has beaten me up and given me a black eye”.  The picture here is of a persistent widow who has no power, influence or authority who literally has beaten up and beaten down a corrupt judge.

So that’s the story, now what does it teach us about prayer?  Well, the first lesson Jesus offers is a reminder of just who we are praying to.  We are NOT praying to a God who is corrupt or unkind.  We ARE praying to one who is Holy and just but also treats us with compassion.  While this judge finally did the right thing because he was beaten into it, we don’t have to do that with God.  We don’t have to beat God up or beat God down or pester God endlessly for him to do the right thing.  God always does the right thing and works to bring justice into this world.  We might not always see it or understand God’s ways, but Jesus assures us that God is righteous and holy and works to redeem the injustice of our world.  Jesus tells this story to say God is NOT like this judge or really any judge of this world.  He also tells us this story as a way of saying that if even a judge like this who is corrupt and unkind can eventually do the right thing, then our God who is just and compassionate will always do the right thing so we can approach God and pray with confidence and assurance.

God is not only just but God is also compassionate and merciful.  Throughout scriptures God is seen as holy and righteous but also merciful and kind.  It is God’s mercy that allows us to enter into his presence without fear and trembling but with confidence and assurance.  God is always there to help us, defend us and support us when we need it which allows us to be bold in our prayers.  So the first lesson on prayer from this parable is that God is not like this judge, but One who offers us justice and compassion.

The second lesson Jesus teaches us about prayer has to do with our character and behavior.  Luke 18:1 says that Jesus told this parable so that we would always pray and not give up.  So let’s talk about persistence in prayer.  Just this week someone asked me if we should pray for things over and over again.  I laughed and said, come to worship on Sunday and find out.  Actually, I did answer the question and said, I don’t know for sure, but I do.  I pray for people over and over again.  I pray for the same situations with different groups of people and in different settings.  I might lift up someone in prayer when I remember that they are having a test done, coming out of surgery or facing some challenge and I’ll pray for them with a small group or their family or in worship.  I pray for people over and over again and so, yes, I think it’s ok – even good to pray for things often, but I don’t do it because I think God has to be reminded.

God knows everything and God remembers everything so I don’t need to remind God of what needs to be done.  It’s not like my prayers suddenly remind God of something that slipped his mind.  God never says, “wow Andy, thanks for reminding me about that I completely forgot.”  We don’t need to remind God, badger God or nag God about any situation.  We persist because it helps us.  While we pray because we want God to move, God wants us to pray because God wants us to move.  One of the amazing things about prayer is that simply by praying to God we are growing in our faith.  Prayer shapes our hearts and purifies our attitudes and can even help focus our actions on doing God’s will.

For example, right now there has been a lot of focus on our brothers and sisters who are being persecuted and killed for their faith across Africa and the Middle East.  We watch and pray with them because we are told to but as we persist in prayer we start thinking about their situation and maybe that moves us to research it and learn who these people are and what the church is facing in these places.  We then learn of people and organizations that are working in these areas to support Christians and then we find ourselves giving in some way to their work or joining their ministry.

Prayer changes us and it moves us to work for justice and it leads us to reach out to others with compassion.  When we pray for people who are sick it often moves us to send a card or note, or stop in for a visit.  When we pray for those who are experiencing loss we often find ways to help.  When we pray for those who might be lonely it moves us to reach out to them.  When we pray for those in our community with needs it moves us to help meet those needs.

Prayer moves us and it helps get our hearts and minds and lives in line with the will of God but that doesn’t happen in one prayer that only happens when we persist in prayer.  Prayer is the most vital way that we can connect with God and it is that connection and communion with God which in time helps us become like God.  When we pray we understand more of who God is and what God does and how God moves and we hear more of God’s voice and see God’s will for our lives.  Persistence in prayer helps us get in line with God’s will and it is what nourishes our relationship with God and helps us see things God’s way.  God calls us to be persistent not because God needs the reminder but because we need the reordering of our hearts and lives.

So persistence is important because it shapes our hearts and lives.  God doesn’t need us to badger him or remind him or tell him what’s right because God is righteous.  God always does the right thing and God can never forget us or the situations that are important to us or to our world.  Let me leave you with one last image the Bible gives us about the character and nature of God.  Isaiah 49:15-16

Even if a mother was to forget her child, God can never forget us, we are engraved on the palm of his hands and the walls of our lives, all those things that are important to us, are always before him.  God doesn’t need us to remind him of anything, we persist in prayer because it reminds us of the justice and compassion and never ending love of God and it helps us become more just, compassionate and loving.


 
Next Steps
Opening the Door – PERSIST

1. Jesus parable in Luke 18:1-8 helps us understand the true nature of the God to whom we pray.  God is just and compassionate.  What other characteristics of God give you confidence when it comes to prayer?

2. If you began a prayer time last week of 5 minutes a day, continue to pray and add a few more minutes to your time each day.

3. What personal situation have you been praying about for months or years?  Have your prayers changed your life in any way?  If so, how?  If not, how can they as you keep praying?

4. Identify one injustice in the world that you can pray for each day this week.  As you pray, be open to how God might be shaping your heart and life to be part of His answer.

5. The widow in Jesus’ story had to persist in her pursuit of justice alone, but God gives us others.  Who can you invite to watch and pray with you for the injustice that you named above?

6. In Luke 17:20-37 (right before this parable) Jesus talks about the end of time and the coming of God’s kingdom.  Are there some things that we might need to pray for “until the end of time”?  What might they be?