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Always Pray
Presented by Daniel Keeran, MSW
Scripture Reading:
Luke 18 : 1-14 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always
pray and not give up. He said: In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God
nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him
with the plea, Grant me justice against my adversary. For some time he refused. But finally
he said to himself, Even though I dont fear God or care what people think, yet because this
widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she wont eventually come
and attack me! And the Lord said, Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God
bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep
putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the
Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else,
Jesus told this parable: Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other
a tax collector. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: God, I thank you that I am not like
other peoplerobbers, evildoers, adulterersor even like this tax collector. I fast twice a
week and give a tenth of all I get. But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not
even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, God, have mercy on me, a sinner. I tell
you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who
exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
Always Pray
The purpose of the message today is to encourage you to pray. If there is anything you
question or if you think differently about anything I say, I invite you to talk with me after the
service. I am not inspired as the apostles were, and I think its healthy to discuss the things of
God as a way of deepening our faith and understanding of Gods will for our lives.
In the reading about the parable of the persistent widow, Jesus teaches us to pray persistently
and not give up... in this case, it is for justice and for fairness in a court situation.
Acts 16:13 On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to
find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered
there.
Intercessory Prayer
Intercessory prayer is when we pray for each other. When someone is on your heart and you
are worried about them, maybe a son or daughter or a friend or family member who may be ill
or in some kind of trouble or lost in their poor choices, you pray constantly, often throughout
the day, every day for weeks and maybe months and even years. This is called intercessory
prayer and its in the Bible.
Romans 1:9-10 God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness
how constantly I remember you in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by
Gods will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
Colossians 4:12 Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He
is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature
and fully assured.
Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lords people.
As we think about intercessory prayer, here is Pauls intercessory prayer for the Ephesian
Christians:
Ephesians 3:14-21 For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in
heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen
you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts
through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power,
together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of
Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure
of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or
imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in
Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
This is Pauls intercessory prayer for the Colossian Christians:
Colossians 1:9-12 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped
praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual
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wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the
Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the
knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that
you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who
has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.
Acts 16:25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the
other prisoners were listening to them.
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword,
it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and
attitudes of the heart.
God says: I love you. I fogive you. I hear your prayers. I care for you in your suffering. I am
always here for you.
being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the
land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth
produced its crops.
John 14:23 Jesus replied, Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love
them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.
Psalm 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry.
James 4:2-3 You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive,
because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
So when you make any request to God, pray that it will be given only if it glorifies God and
serves His purpose.
Francis of Assisi in the 1200s, wrote this prayer that wasnt actually published until 1912. The
prayer reflects his desire to be used by God for his purpose:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where
there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there
is darkness, light. Where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive. It is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that
we are born to Eternal Life.
God had given wisdom to human beings to point others to himself:
Reinhold Niebuhr wrote these well-known words in 1943:
God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, Courage to
change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the
other. Living one day at a time, Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a
pathway to peace, Taking, as Jesus did, This sinful world as it is, Not as I would have it, Trusting
that You will make all things right, If I surrender to Your will, So that I may be reasonably happy
in this life, And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
And finally I want to close with the intercessory prayer of our Lord.
John 17: 22-23 When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he looked up to heaven and
said, "Father...I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in
me because of their testimony. My prayer for all of them is that they will be one, just as you
and I are one, Father--that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the
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world will believe you sent me. I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be
one, as we are -- I in them and you in me, all being perfected into one. Then the world will
know that you sent me and will understand that you love them as much as you love me
(v.22-23).
Lets join our prayer with Jesus prayer:
Lord we are amazed that you who created the universe and hold it together, would hear our
feeble prayers. We pray for the unity of all who sincerely try to follow Jesus, so that the
world will see the love and unity among us and turn to you for salvation. Lord we pray that the
words spoken today will remain in the hearts of all who heard so that we will gain strength
from drawing near to you in constant prayer. Thank you for your constant presence and
unfailing love. In Jesus name we pray, amen.