<\/p>\nI. Being creatures of habit, we often fall into a pattern of doing certain things in certain\nways.\n
A. There is nothing wrong with a habit, so long as it is a good habit.<\/p>\n
B. In fact, we ought to cultivate good habits to carry us over our weak moments<\/p>\n C. But sometimes we begin to think that the way we currently do something is the\nonly way it can be done.\n D. Jesus was asked by his disciples to teach them to pray, like John taught his\ndisciples – Luke 11:1\n
1. Have you stop to think that these are Jewish men? <\/p>\n
a. Shouldn’t a Jew know how to pray to God?<\/p>\n
b. Consider how many prayers are mentioned in the Old Testament<\/p>\n
c. Pray wasn’t something new to a Jew<\/p>\n 2. Rather, I think that they, like most of us, tend to feel that our prayers are\nnot adequate.\n 3. Seeing the power of Jesus’s prayer, the disciples wanted to be able to do\nthe same.\nII. When we teach a child to pray, we often assume a particular position and we encourage\nour child to do the same.\n A. Interestingly, when Jesus instructed His disciples, he never mentioned a physical\nposition.\n B. When we look at prayers recorded in the Bible, we find those praying in many\npositions\n
1. Standing – Mark 11:25; Luke 18:10-14<\/p>\n
2. Sitting – I Kings 19:1-5; Nehemiah 1:4<\/p>\n
3. Lying down – II Kings 20:1-3<\/p>\n
4. Kneeling – Luke 22:1-42; Acts 9:40<\/p>\n
a. Kneeling with hands spread toward heaven – I Kings 8:54; Ezra 9:5<\/p>\n
b. Kneeling and bowing down – Psalm 95:6; Ezra 10:1<\/p>\n
5. Bowing down – Psalm 35:13-14<\/p>\n
6. Falling on their face – Matthew 26:39; Numbers 16:20-22<\/p>\n
7. Face toward God – Dan 9:3; Psalm 5:3<\/p>\n
8. Uplifted hands – Psalm 28:2<\/p>\n
a. Lifting up holy hands – I Timothy 2:8<\/p>\n
(1) Not necessarily literal because of the use of “holy”<\/p>\n (2) The idea is to come before God with hands free from the\nguilt of sin, such as Proverbs 6:17\n (3) Zophar had the wrong idea about Job, but he did understand\nthe need to approach God properly – Job 11:13-15\n
(4) Job’s hands were innocent of sin – Job 31:7<\/p>\n
(5) James 4:8 – James is not speaking of a literal washing<\/p>\n
b. Position of hands<\/p>\n
(1) Hebrews 12:12 – Hanging down, ashamed, weak<\/p>\n
(2) Lamentations 3:41 – Lifting heart and hands<\/p>\n
C. There is no one required position.<\/p>\n 1. The various positions take signified the petitioner’s attitude at the moment\nof prayer\n
2. Or it was just the position they were in when they needed to pray<\/p>\n
III. More important that physical position is the position of our hearts toward God<\/p>\n
A. Sincere<\/p>\n 1. Matthew 6:5 – Some make a show of their religion. Such is not needed for\nGod, who sees everything.\n
2. What we say must be consistent with what we think – Matthew 15:8<\/p>\n
B. Humble – Luke 18:10-14<\/p>\n
C. Acceptance and confession of our faults – I John 1:8-9<\/p>\n
1. Many ask God for things without a willingness to change<\/p>\n 2. Many ask God for the forgiveness they are not willing to extend to others –\nMatthew 6:12, 14-15; Mark 11:25-26\n
D. Fervent <\/p>\n
1. Elijah – James 5:17<\/p>\n
2. Epaphrus – Colossians 4:12<\/p>\n
3. Jesus – Luke 22:44<\/p>\n 4. These are not casual, lukewarm prayers. Being worth bringing up to the\nAlmighty God should mean it is something you strongly desire.\n
E. Persistent<\/p>\n 1. If something is worth having, it shows in our consistency in bring the\nmatter before God – Luke 18:1-8\n 2. Pray without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:17) means praying without giving\nup – Romans 12:12\n
F. Watchful – I Peter 4:7<\/p>\n
1. Pray expecting an answer – Ephesians 6:18<\/p>\n
2. Watch for opportunities<\/p>\n 3. But it also means that because we brought a matter up before God, we do\nnot then let down our guard against Satan – Mark 14:38\n
G. With understanding – I Corinthians 14:15<\/p>\n
1. The words of our prayers ought to contain the meaning of our hearts<\/p>\n
2. This why we should not recite rote prayers as many do<\/p>\n 3. Nor do we need to inflate the length of our prayers as if that will make\nthem more significant – Matthew 6:7-8\n
4. Some of Jesus’ prayers were quite short – Matthew 26:39, 42, 44<\/p>\n a. This wasn’t vain repetition, but a fervent desire and a persistence in\ncommunicating that desire.\n
H. With faith – Hebrews 11:6<\/p>\n
1. Why pray if you don’t believe in God and His ability? – Ephesians 3:20<\/p>\n
2. James 1:5-8 – Without doubt<\/p>\n
3. We will receive as we believe – Matthew 21:21-22<\/p>\n
I. Thankfully <\/p>\n
1. Always giving thanks – Ephesians 5:20; Colossians 4:2<\/p>\n
2. Thankfulness is a sign of respect – Luke 17:11-19<\/p>\n
3. Jonah recognized this – Jonah 2:9<\/p>\n
J. With praise<\/p>\n
1. Give God the glory for who He is – Revelation 19:1<\/p>\n
2. Give God the glory for His answers <\/p>\n
3. Paul’s example – I Timothy 1:16-17<\/p>\n
IV. How do you pray? How ought you pray?<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPrior Lesson\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFundamentals of Christianity\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNext Lesson\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Praying p>Text: Luke 11:1-13 I. Being creatures of habit, we often fall into a pattern of doing certain things in certain ways. A. There is nothing wrong with a habit, so long as it is a good habit. B. In fact, we ought to cultivate good habits to carry us over our weak moments C. But sometimes we…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":26590,"menu_order":13,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-65239","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":34214,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/fundamentals-of-christianity\/how-we-ought-to-pray\/","url_meta":{"origin":65239,"position":0},"title":"How We Ought to Pray (Fundamentals)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"How We Ought to Pray Text: Luke 11:1-13 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Being creatures of habit, we often fall into a pattern of doing certain things in certain ways. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0There is nothing wrong with a habit, so long as it is a good habit. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In fact, we ought to cultivate good habits to\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":42910,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/jesus-and-the-pharisees\/the-pharisees-and-prayer\/","url_meta":{"origin":65239,"position":1},"title":"The Pharisees and Prayer","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 4, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The Pharisees and Prayer The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6:1-8) The Sermon on the Mount has been a comparison and contrast between true righteousness and the inferior level of righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5:20). It is not about new law versus the Law of Moses. It\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7595,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/mens-training-class\/public-prayer\/","url_meta":{"origin":65239,"position":2},"title":"Public Prayer","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Public Prayer Introduction Congregational prayer is authorized in I Corinthians 14:1-16, among other passages. One man leads a prayer while the whole assembled body prays along with him. Since the man is leading the congregation, he should pray for things that pertain to the whole congregation. He is giving voice\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":66120,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/the-gospel-accounts-a-chronological-harmony\/teach-us-to-pray\/","url_meta":{"origin":65239,"position":3},"title":"Teach Us to Pray","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 23, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Teach Us to Pray Reading Assignment: Luke 11:1-13 \u00a0 Did you understand what you read? What had Jesus been doing that led a disciple to ask him to teach the disciples how to pray? Where else did Jesus give a sample prayer similar to this one? How are the prayers\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":65106,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/a-study-of-john\/the-betrayal\/","url_meta":{"origin":65239,"position":4},"title":"The Betrayal","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 28, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The Betrayal Text: John 18:1-11 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jesus and his disciples leave the upper room for the Garden of Gethsemane. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It was a place Jesus and his disciples frequently visited. One known by Judas. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Even though Judas had departed earlier (John 13:26-30) he could reasonably guess where Jesus\u2019 next stop would be.\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":65036,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/bible-studies\/a-study-of-john\/the-washing-of-the-disciples-feet\/","url_meta":{"origin":65239,"position":5},"title":"The Washing of the Disciples\u2019 Feet","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 25, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The Washing of the Disciples' Feet Text: John 13:1-20 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The night of Jesus\u2019 betrayal found the disciples gathered to partake of a supper \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Luke gives more details of preparations - Luke 22:7-13 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Notice that this takes place on the day the Passover lamb was to be killed. A representation\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/65239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65239"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/65239\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/26590"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}