SERMON SERIES | DISCIPLINES FOR SABBATH-REST (4)

PRAYER

06 Jun 2021 | PRAYER & PRAISE SERVICES

Rev Benjamin Lau

Scripture Passage: Matthew 6:5-15 (NIV)

WATCH | SERMON (VIDEO)

READ | SERMON NOTES

Summary | The Lord’s Prayer provides us with a framework to pray. Prayer involves three key disciplines: giving adoration, submission, and bringing our petition to our King.

How to Pray – In Matthew 6:5-6, Jesus tells us we should not pray for public recognition, nor pray with mindless repetition (v.7). In the Lord’s prayer, it is also noteworthy that Jesus didn’t use any singular pronouns but used “our” and “us” as there is power in corporate prayer. With this context in mind, these are the disciplines of prayer and what it involves:

1. Giving Our Adoration to Our King (v.9) Jesus starts the Lord’s prayer by saying, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name”. “Hallowed” means to sanctify, make Holy, honour and venerate. That is how we should start our prayers, by acknowledging who God is. Mother Theresa said, “Prayer enlarges the heart until it is capable of containing God’s gift of Himself.”
2. Coming in Submission to Our King (v.10) God wants us to partner Him in His kingdom work and this starts with full submission to the Lordship of Christ. 1 John 5:14-15 tells us when we pray according to God’s will, He hears us and will answer us. But to know His will, we need to know His heart, and that’s where we need to read and be familiar with God’s Word.
3. Bringing Our Petition to Our King (v.11-15) We can petition God for daily sustenance (v.11), forgiveness (v.12, 14-15), and protection (v.13), even though He already knows what we want even before we ask. Matthew 7:7-8 tells us to ask, seek, and knock on the door to petition God. But prayer is not a way to get God to work for us, it is God’s way of involving us in what He intends to do. The act of prayer is therefore God’s appointed way to have His and our needs met.

Creating the Rhythm – Having a healthy prayer life is not easy. God may not answer our prayers immediately all the time, but the act of praying brings us into submission and dependency on God and this is what transforms us. The more we pray, the more we enjoy spending time with Him. If we don’t intentionally create rhythms in our lives to pray, we will find it challenging. And if we don’t know where to start, we can use the Lord’s prayer as a framework: giving adoration, coming in submission, and bringing our petitions to Him.

(Sermon Notes by Desley Khew)

PONDER | REFLECTION QUESTIONS

1. What is your key take away from today's message?

2. How and when do you involve prayer as part of your rhythm of life?

3. Recall a time where God answered your prayer. What was that experience like?

4. How can you practically cultivate the discipline of prayer in your life daily? Are there people in your life you can be accountable to?