Prayer III

Read: 1 Timothy 2:1 - 8

The value of prayer can be seen by understanding the Lord’s use of prayer. Prayer was part of His everyday life. He taught His disciples to pray by exhortation, “. . . that men ought always to pray and not faint” (Luke 18:1)and by example, “. . . He went up into a mountain apart to pray (Matt. 14:23). He prayed when facing major decisions, before performing miracles, before His hour of trial in the garden of Gethsemane and then, during His hours of agony upon the cross. In all circumstances of life, Jesus prayed. Prayer was a way of life to the Lord Jesus, and to a very real extent, it was life itself.

The scriptures tell us that we are to pray without ceasing (I Thessalonians 5:17). All through the day we are to be in an attitude of prayer. We should pray before we choose our friends and then pray for them all through life. The night the Lord Jesus was betrayed His concern was for His disciples. Even in His hour of need, His concern was for the needs of His friends. The prayer life of the Lord Jesus was not centered in His own personal needs, but the needs of others.

What is your main concern when you pray? The needs of others or of self? Intercession — praying for others — should be a major part of our prayer life. The present ministry of the Lord Jesus is one of intercession. He is our advocate, (I John 2:1) and our High Priest, (Hebrews 4:14). Paul, writing to young Timothy, reminds him, “That first of all, supplication, prayer, intercession, and giving of thanks be made of all men.”

Prayer is something we should value. It is something we should participate in regularly.