Part 4
PRAYER
1. "Pray always"
Luke 21:36
2. "Pray that ye enter not into temptation"
Luke 22:40, 46
3. "Pray the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth labourers [laborers], "
Luke 10:2
4. "Pray for them which despitefully use you"
Luke 6:28
5. "Pray to the Father in my name" Matt.6:6; John16:24,26
6. “And I will do whatever you ask [pray] in my name so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.
John 14:13-14
7. “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that remains, so that whatever you ask [pray] the Father in my name he will give you.
John 16:16
8. "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father, which art in heaven …" Matt. 6:9-13
9. "When ye pray, use not vain repetitions" Matt. 6:7-8
10. "Ask with importunity"
John 16:24; Luke11:5-13
The first instruction is an interesting one. What does it mean to ‘pray always’? How do you accomplish that requirement?
Now, we know God is not a [the] tempter of mankind into sin – so why prayer that we be not enter into temptation?
Why pray for others to be labourers [laborers], what about ourselves? We also know that it is not the will of God for any to be lost – so what gives with this instruction?
Now items 5-7 should give us some pause for reflection. What do these different instructions mean and how are they related? It may not be as simple of a task as it might first seem.
Are these the actual words that we are to use – or are they an outline of subject matter to be included in our prayers? Are all prayers to include these words or thoughts or outline?
Item number nine: None of us are guilty of that, are we?
To ask with ‘importunity’, what does that actually entail?
A little more sermon material, don’t ya all think?
FAITH
1. "Have faith in God"
Mark 11:22
2. "Be not faithless"
John 20:27
3. "Neither be ye of doubtful mind"
Luke 12:29
4. "Take no thought for your life" Matt. 6:25-34
5. "Let not your heart be troubled"
John 14:1,27
6. "Be of good cheer" Matt. 14:27
7. "Be not afraid"
Mark 5:36:
Luke 12:4-7
Now here is a great subject! Faith, just what does it mean when Jesus says it? Even being ‘faithful’, I have heart it preached from everything from paying tithes, taking on a another building program to dedicated loyalty to the local pastor. Even so, I have heard precious little on what God expects from the faithful. Or, how to live and act in/or on faith. We often quote
Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is ….”, and what we get are some reasonable explanations, which is okay, but what does one ‘do’ with that information? Any thoughts?