TEACH US TO PRAY (2): ITS HARD, BUT ITS NOT COMPLICATED

(Luke 11:1-4)
Intro A family had some guests for dinner one night and Dad asked his 6year-old daughter if she would pray. She replied, But Daddy, I dont know
what to say. He replied, Just say what you hear Mommy say. So the girl
bowed her head and prayed, Lord, why on earth did I invite all these
people to dinner? Im guessing Dad wished shed copied Jesus rather than
Mommy! Jesus has been asked: Lord, teach us to pray. But before we look
at the detail, we are gleaning a lot about prayer from some general
observations we started last week.
Prayer is entre to God, not Self Prayer takes us into the very presence
of God. Look around. We dont belong there, could never deserve to be
there, but in Christ, we are invited and wanted!
Prayer is essential, not optional Then we saw that prayer was at the
heart of Jesus ministry indicating to us that it is not optional in living a
Christian life, but essential. If He needed it, how much more do we need it?
III.

Prayer is Hard, Not Easy

Praying isnt so hard, but taking time to pray is. Those hard-boiled fishermen
and activist businessmen were not prone to stop long to pray to a God they
could not see, touch or feel. R. C. Sproul wisely says, Prayer is not
something that comes naturally. No-one is born a good prayer, for there is
nothing more repugnant to fallen man, to natural man, than to spend time
alone with God. If you find it hard to take time to pray, join the club. Right
up until the moment of His crucifixion, the disciples found it very difficult.
Remember what Peter, James and John were doing on the Mount of
Transfiguration? Sleeping! Almost missed one of historys great moments by
sleeping through it. Lu 5:15 tells us, But he would withdraw to desolate
places and pray. Jesus is constantly praying, but we dont see the disciples
there. Interesting. And when they are invited at Gethsemane you know the
story. Sleeping again. All 3 times Jesus sought them. Prayer is hard for
everyone including guys whose names are written into the foundation
stones of heaven! Because they finally learned to do the hard work.

Some years ago a young man applied for a job with a logging crew. After
successfully cutting down a tree he was told: Start Monday. So he started
on Monday and worked hard through Thursday. But that afternoon the boss
approached him and said, Pick up your paycheck on your way out today.
Startled, the man said, I thought you paid on Friday. The foreman replied,
We do, but were letting you go today. Youve fallen behind. You dropped
from first on Monday to last on Wednesday and today hasnt been any
better. The young man replied, But Im a hard worker. I arrive first, leave
last and work through breaks. Sensing his integrity the boss thought for a
minute and then asked, Have you been sharpening your axe? The reply:
Ive been working too hard to take the time. Taking time to pray is hard,
Beloved, but it must be done. Remember Bunyans wisdom: "You can do
more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray
until you have prayed." That needs to become our life motto.
IV.

Prayer is simple, not complicated

This should encourage us. While prayer is hard; it is not complicated. This
is kind of amazing really. The disciple says, Lord, teach us to pray, and
Jesus responds with 3 simple verses containing 5 simple requests. Matthews
extended version has 2 additional ones. Now Im not suggesting that Jesus
means us to say these 5 things over and over. Thats not the point. But His
answer does indicate that prayer is not complicated. It doesnt have to be
involved; it doesnt have to be long; it doesnt have to be per some formula.
Prayer is mostly opening our heart to God. Anyone can do it.
Some people say, Pray Scripture. Is it good to pray Scripture. To repeat
Gods thoughts back to Him in form of a request? Great idea. Do you have to
do that? Absolutely not. Some people begin with a lot of theological jargon.
Its almost like buttering God up or something. Is it good to address God with
all His character traits? Sure. Is it necessary? Absolutely not. Is it good to go
through ACTS Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication? Yes. Is
it necessary? No. Dont overcomplicate it to the point that you dont do it,
Beloved. Prayer at its core is my heart connecting with Gods heart.
Dick Foth, a pastor at Timberline, presented at the CBMC prayer breakfast
last year. He is past president of Bethany College in Santa Cruz and spent
several years in DC establishing prayer breakfasts and counseling for
government officials. He told of one foul-mouthed, womanizing lobbyist
who always had a story about his latest conquest. But he began attending the
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breakfasts (for contacts), pulled Dick aside one day and said, Dick, I may
be in trouble. Im seeing this woman who is a follower of Christ and I
dont think shell go on seeing me unless I give up these other women.
Dick said, Whod have guessed!? The guy asked for prayer to know what
to do. But he said, I dont hold hands with guys and I dont shut my eyes.
Dick said, No problem, and prayed eyes open, no hand-holding. A few
weeks later the guy was back. He had really fallen for this girl, but she was
indeed insisting that there not be other women involved with him. What
should he do? He asked for prayer: You know that open-eye prayer? Do
you think maybe I could do that? Dick said, Sure. And so the guy
began, Lord, I know youre trying like hell to get me! And went on to ask
for help with his decision. Of course, it was too late. God was hot on his tail.
He ended up committing his life to Christ, marrying the girl and cleaning his
life up. But, Dick said, he did continue to like open-eyed prayers. I love
that story. Shows prayer isnt complicated. Just one heart connecting with
Gods.
V.

Prayer is heartfelt, not Ritual

Many of us grew up on the Lords Prayer, right? We used to say it in church a

lot. Said it in school, too. But did Jesus mean for us to repeat this prayer
verbatim? After all, He says in v. 2, When you pray, say. It could be taken
to mean that He expects the prayer to be repeated. But, that is not the intent.
The disciple is asking the question because hes noticed when Jesus prays,
things happen. Specific answers to specific requests. Furthermore, Jesus here
gives a shortened version of the prayer He had given early in the Sermon on
the Mount in Mt 5. He did not repeat it verbatim, nor did He mean to. Jesus
is giving a model for prayer, not a fixed formula. It is the themes we must
see the patterns, not the exact wording. Its a skeleton outline for prayer.
Does this mean that we should never repeat the Lords Prayer together? No.
The question is whether we really mean it and are not just going thru the
motions because it takes us back to our childhood and makes us feel good.
Do you see? Generally, it was not meant for liturgical use. Did Jesus ever
repeat this prayer with His disciples? I can tell you He never did. Why?
Because there is a clause that Jesus never could have prayed: forgive us our
sins. Its a pattern, Beloved, not a liturgy.
Prayer is useless if it does not come from the heart. Form prayers may be
helpful, especially those in the Bible that express the cry of a wounded heart
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at some particular event. Sometimes they give us words we cannot come up

with on our own, and that is when they are invaluable. But any prayer,
whether already written down, or free form, is useless if it does not express
our heart reaching out to God. Pray is not and cannot be a ritual. It begins
with the heart. And it must be specific. Thus Jesus model prayer gives us a
skeleton outline of the subject matter that is appropriate to make specific
requests against. The real thing wells up from within.
This was exactly the problem with the Pharisees. They prayed long,
impressive, theological prayers. Jesus says of them in Mt 6:5, For they love
to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may
be seen by others. But their prayer is not getting above their own heads.
Dick Lucas is pastor emeritus of an Anglican Church in England. He
commented on a church he pastored at one time where a lot of respectable
people came, but not many of them had a personal faith in Christ. He noted
that during Communion they would recite the confession: By thoughts,
words, and deed, we have sinned most grievously against thy Divine
Majesty provoking most justly thy wrath and condemnation against us.
Then he said you would mention the wrath of God against sin to them in
private conversation afterward and they would reply, Oh, I dont believe in
the wrath of God. You cant believe in that nowadays. God loves
everybody. And yet 5 minutes before they were saying we justly deserved
Gods wrath and condemnation. So much for formal prayers. God is listening
when we get serious, not when we are going through the motions.
VI.

Prayer is an act, not a frame of mind

Paul says, Pray without ceasing (I Thess 5:17). Some have suggested this
means we should have this kind of mindset of prayer. But I dont think that is
what Paul is saying. I think he is saying, Keep on praying all the time.
Dont let days go by without talking to the Father. Daniels a great
example prayer 3 times a day in good times and bad. Never missed.Can life
be a running conversation with God? Yes, I think it can and should. But
what Paul is urging is the same hard work of commitment to prayer that
Jesus is urging. Prayer is an act, not a frame of mind. Jesus says, When
you pray, say. Say infers an act. Note v. 1: Now Jesus was praying in a
certain place, and when he finished. Jesus was praying in a certain place,
and the disciple could see when He began and when He finished. Prayer is
an act, not a kind of ethereal, vague mindset. The prayers in the Bible always
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have a beginning, and end and content in between. There is no way around
this. A commitment to prayer is a commitment of time. Prayer is an act that
requires time.
D. L. Moody said: We ought to see the face of God every morning before
we see the face of man. And, If you have so much business to attend to
that you have no time to pray, depend upon it, you have more business on
hand than God ever intended you should have. The disciples were starting
to get this message. Eventually it changed their lives. It will change ours too
when we get serious about regular times to invite God in. You will see many
delays, but you will also see amazing answers as you begin to take seriously
this breathtaking opportunity that our Creator gives to us.
VII.

Prayer is personal more than public

Now I am not suggesting that public prayer is not necessary. We encourage

each other greatly through praying together. We find public prayers often.
Solomon prayer a wonderful prayer at the dedication of the temple in II
Chron 6. We find the disciples gather for prayer together in almost every
chapter in Acts. Public prayer fueled the growth of the early church. These
guys learned the value of public prayer. In the primary description of the
early church in Acts 2:42 we find: And they devoted themselves to the
apostles teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the
prayers. There is nothing more encouraging than to hear someone praying
for a need youve expressed or to join hearts together over a common
challenge. Public prayer was at the heart of the success and power of the
early church. And it must be for us as well.
But even more important is private prayer. Jesus comments in Luke 11
clearly encourage private prayer. Often the gospel writers mention Jesus
going off alone to pray. I find it interesting that seldom does He invite His
disciples. The power of His ministry came from time alone with God. Lu
5:16: But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray. That was His
example private prayer first, then public. Sometimes in public prayer we
are praying more to the audience than to the Lord. That wont be an issue
when we are alone with Him in private. That was Jesus example.
It was also His instruction. Mt 6:5, And when you pray, you must not be like
the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the
street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have
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received their reward. 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the
door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in
secret will reward you. Jesus didnt say that to discourage public prayer in
general. He did say it to discourage hypocritical prayers. But He clearly put a
premium on being alone with God in a quiet, private place your room or
closet, He suggests. God will see you there.
VIII. Prayer is Petition as Much as Praise
Different prayers for different occasions will have differing content. Praise,
thanksgiving, worship can all be part of prayer. Davids psalms are great
examples. But Jesus answer here indicates that petition is at the heart of
prayer. There is praise here; and there is confession, but it is all in the form of
petition. When Jesus is asked, Teach us to pray His instruction consists of
5 petitions. That tells us prayer is about asking God for something. We must
ask humbly; and we must ask in keeping with His will; but we are
squandering our audience if we do not ask. James 4:2 says, You do not
have, because you do not ask.
Praise should always accompany our asking to remind us who we are with.
But I think its John Piper who said that in our affluence we have turned
prayer into a kind of a nice telephone conversation. When we ought to be
using it like a military walky-talky calling for help, for resources, for
reinforcement. It is our failure to recognize the spiritual battle that we are in
that make us fail to utilize prayer as Jesus envisioned it, calling for daily
needs and reinforcements.
Conc -- We dont have because we dont ask. In October, 1932, a group of 29
farmers and businessmen met to pray for revival in a field outside of
Charlotte, NC. During that time one man became burdened to pray for a man
to preach the gospel around the world. The next year, two more such days of
prayer were held, one on a particular farmers property. That farmers son
came home about 3:00 from school that day and began pitching hay. A friend
asked, Who are those men over there in the woods? Oh, I guess they
are some fanatics who talked Dad into letting them use his place for a
prayer meeting. That skeptic was also Gods answer to the prayer. He was
Billy Graham who had no idea that those men over there in the woods were
praying him right into one of the great preaching ministries of all time.
Never sell God short. Lets quit talking about prayer and begin doing it. You
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can do more than pray after you pray; but you cant do more than pray
until you pray. Lets pray.