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Luke 11:1-4 And it came to pass, that, as {Jesus} was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. 2 And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. 3 Give us day by day our daily bread. 4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

When you are actually HUNGRY for the Presence of God … then you will learn how to pray!

The disciples came to Jesus seeking instruction on how to pray. Our Lord gave His children a pattern of prayer. Last time we discussed prayer we said that effective prayer:

• Occurs only when we are in fellowship with one another. “Our Father”.
• Occurs only when we are saved by faith in Christ. “Father”.
• Is addressed to the “Father” in the name of the Son, and in the power of the Spirit.
• Always glorifies God. “Hallowed be Thy Name”.
• Exalts God’s will. “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy will be done”.
• Comes from a forgiving, kind heart. “Forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us”.

Jesus often prayed so that others could see and hear Him. But there are five other truths that we discover in how our Lord prayed.

Jesus Prayed Alone

Luke 5:15-16 15 But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him: and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities. 16 And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed.

Our Jesus is Eternal God made perfect Man. He is the Word Who was with God, and was God (John 1:1-3). But Jesus is also Man. Though many came to Him for help as He walked this earth, Jesus was ever mindful that as Human He had limitations. Our Jesus often withdrew to pray – to seek the Father’s Will and the Spirit’s empowerment. The Bible says:

Matthew 14:22-23 And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. 23 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.

Jesus did not rush His alone time with the Father. As you can see He prayed from afternoon until evening. There were other times that Jesus prayed all night long, forsaking sleep in order to dwell in the Father’s Presence. When He was attacked by the Pharisees for healing a cripple man on the Sabbath the Bible says:

Luke 6:11-12 And {the Pharisees} were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus. 12 And it came to pass in those days, that {Jesus} went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

Oh that we would ALL follow the example of Christ when attacked by our enemies.

Too often when attacked we perch like emotional vultures on the branch of the tree called “vengeance”, watching until we can pounce on them like they pounced on us.

Jesus exemplified “turn the other cheek” (Matthew 5:38-40). Rather than respond in human anger Jesus purposely sought the silence of the prayer closet. I am sure He prayed for His enemies, just as He asked us to do. “Pray for them that despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44).

Mark 1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, {Jesus} went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.

Jesus prayed at various time, but always started His day with prayer.

Jesus Prayed Publicly

Many of Jesus’ prayers are recorded in the Gospel, which tells us that our Lord prayed publicly as well as privately. Jesus always prayed before a meal. When Jesus rose from the grave He appeared to a couple of disciples walking on the Emmaus Road. As Jesus walked with them they did not know Who He was. The Bible says that He told these grieving disciples:

Luke 24:25-27 O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: 26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? 27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

Once they reached Emmaus these disciples invited Jesus to dine with them. The Bible says:

Luke 24:30-31 And it came to pass, as {Jesus} sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.

These disciples were well acquainted with Jesus’ “blessings” on the table before He ate. The Bible commands us to pray for our food. Why? Because when we thank God for our food we are acknowledging that God is our Provider. We are giving glory to our Savior and Lord (Romans 11:36) for His provision. We are told in:

1 Timothy 4:4-5 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: 5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

God told His Israel before they went into Canaan:

Deuteronomy 8:7-11 For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills; 8 A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey; 9 A land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. 10 When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. 11 Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God ..

Some bless their food before eating – others afterward. Just be sure you don’t forget to bless the food by recognizing the Gracious God Who gave it.

Jesus Prayed For Others

Before Jesus was arrested and tried by the Pharisees our Lord prayed for His Church. He said:

John 17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.

The Bible tells us in Romans 8:34:

“It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.”

Jesus prayed for others on the earth while He was on earth. Now that He is in glory Jesus makes intercession for us. He prays for us. He prays for His children. We are never far from His thoughts and prayers. Would that we could do the same for our loving Lord!

Let us make a commitment to one another and to our God that we will make prayer a priority. Billy Graham said:

“God loves us, and He wants us to bring every concern we have to Him in prayer. You can’t offend Him by saying something wrong; He loves you, and He welcomes your simplest prayer! One reason Jesus Christ died for us is so we could be cleansed of our sins and approach God in prayer (Hebrews 4:16).”