(# 266) Romans 8 - Paul’s Prayers Show Us What to Pray For

Welcome To

BARAH MINISTRIES

a Christian Church

Rory Clark

Pastor-Teacher

 

Good Morning!

 

Welcome to Barah Ministries…a Christian Church based in Mesa, AZ…my name is Pastor Rory Clark.  Barah Ministries has a worldwide reach and an intimate impact on lives, through the gracious provision of our omnipotent God, the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Thank you Lord for the internet…a place where anyone with access can be reached with Your Word.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Paul’s Prayers Show Us What to Pray For

We continue our study of the fourth passage in Romans, Chapter 8, which extends from Verses 26 to 30.  Our focus is on Verses 26 and 27… and the subject is PRAYER…here’s the whole passage…

 

ROM 8:26

In the same way we groan within ourselves (Romans, Chapter 8, Verse 23), waiting eagerly for our adoption as adult sons…waiting eagerly for the redemption of our bodies…and waiting eagerly for the freedom of the glory of the children of God…just the way we groan, God the Holy the Spirit, who is called the “first fruits” of our salvation, groans to help our weakness; for example, we do not know how to pray as we should…but God the Holy Spirit Himself personally intercedes for us in prayer with groanings too deep for words…

 

ROM 8:27

…and God the Father, who keeps on searching the hearts of all those who pray, knows what the mind of God the Holy Spirit is (through His groanings which cannot be uttered in words), because God the Holy Spirit intercedes for the saints (all believers in Christ) according to the will of God the Father.

 

ROM 8:28

And we know that God the Father causes all things to work together for good to those who love God the Father, to those who are called according to the Father’s purpose.

 

Romans 8:29

For those whom God the Father foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son (the Lord Jesus Christ), so that the Lord  would be the firstborn among many brethren…

 

ROM 8:30

…and these whom God the Father predestined, He also called; and these whom God the Father called, He also justified; and these whom God the Father justified, He also glorified.

 

Prayer is one of the most important things Christians do.  To quote a dear friend…

 

ON PRAYER
We must almost be in constant prayer…in constant communication with the Lord Jesus Christ in all things…big and small

 

Can I get an Amen?!  But what should be our attitude in prayer?  How do we pray?  What do we pray for?  Frankly, we overthink prayer.  We would not be in such a dilemma if we considered prayer to be a talk with our best friend.  What should my attitude be when I am talking to my best friend?  How do I talk to my best friend?  What do I ask my best friend for?  Those are never things I would say about a talk with my best friend, and they certainly aren’t things we should be thinking about prayer. 

 

By looking at the Lord’s Prayer in John, Chapter 17 last week, we got some insights on prayer by listening to how the Lord Jesus Christ prayed to His Father.  By looking at a couple of the apostle Paul’s prayers we also get insights on prayer…namely, some of the things to pray for.  Let’s start at Ephesians, Chapter 1, Verse 3…

 

EPH 1:3

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us believers in Christ with every spiritual blessing…blessings set aside in the heavenly places in Christ…

 

Our Father, with whom we have eternal relationship, assures us that everything we need in this life, our spiritual needs and our other needs as well, have been set aside through our union with Christ.  There is no need for us to ask Him for these things…there is only a need for us to accept them through faith and to use them in everything, always.  What are the spiritual blessings we have been blessed with in the past that are being revealed to us by God, both now and in the future?

 

Election…predestination…adoption as adult sons…grace…redemption… forgiveness…reconciliation…wisdom…understanding…knowledge of the mystery of His will…the sealing of God the Holy Spirit…an inheritance…as heirs of God… as children of God…as priests of God…as ambassadors of God…as children of God…as saints…as those who are holy and blameless…justification…and the freedom of the glory of the children of God, are among the many blessings.  Paul continues praying in Ephesians, Chapter 1, Verses 15 to 21…

 

EPH 1:15

For this reason (because we have EVERY spiritual blessing) I (Paul) too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you Ephesian believers and having heard of your unconditional love for all the saints…

 

Ephesians 1:16

…do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers…

 

A proper relationship with God through faith results in a proper relationship with people, unconditional love.  And as Paul shows us here, the expression of gratitude is an important part of prayer.

 

Ephesians 1:17

…that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ (and our God), the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and a spirit of revelation in the knowledge of Him.

 

What phenomenal things to pray for…praying for wisdom (which is insight)…and praying for revelation (that we may see, with the eyes of our heart, the unveiling of God’s blessings to us)…

 

Ephesians 1:18

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of God the Father’s calling, and so that you will know what are the glorious riches of His inheritance in the saints…

 

Paul is praying that you know the Father through a deep, intimate and personal relationship…the same relationship you have with the Lord Jesus Christ and with God the Holy Spirit.  What are we to know about God the Father?  When we know Him, we know His character and His will.

 

Ephesians 1:19

…and so that you will know what is the surpassing (and incomparable) greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might (a power that overcomes anything)…

 

This makes us call to mind a question, the real answer of which needs to be brought constantly to our minds…“if God is for us, and He is…who can be against us?”  Do you think about the fact that God is for you when you are in a dilemma?  Or do you think He’s disappointed with you for sinning?  Do you KNOW that God the Father is orchestrating your escape in times of trouble?  What are some examples you can recall of God the Father manifesting His power in a dilemma for you?

 

Ephesians 1:20

…a strength which God the Father manifested in Christ, when the Father raised Jesus Christ from the dead and when the Father seated Jesus Christ at His right hand in the heavenly places…

 

Ephesians 1:21

…and when God the Father placed Jesus Christ far above all rule and all authority and all power and all dominion, and far above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come.

 

Welcome to a place where you can get wisdom and revelation and enlightenment and knowledge of the One true God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and where you can build a deep, intimate and personal relationship with the entire Godhead through the study of the Word of God.

 

MUSIC AND REFLECTION

Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ

Enjoy the Singing of His Praises

 

JESUS LOVES ME

Chris Tomlin

 

As we prepare our souls for worship, let’s enjoy the music of Chris Tomlin as he sings JESUS LOVES ME.

 

OPENING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…

 

Father, you know everything about us…and whether we know it or not, You are our best friend…You cared for us before we even existed…You have always had us, by name, in Your mind…You know us personally and You love us unconditionally and You provided for every need we have ever had in the past, with the result that all You provided in the past will keep on being revealed to us.  Thanks, especially, for sending Your Son to shed His blood on our behalf so that we can all be saved…and thanks for raising Him from the dead three days after His death to show what makes Him special, as the uniquely born one of the universe…

 

Help us to count on You for everything…and help us to know, in the depth of our souls, that You are always there for us, whether we know it or not…whether we acknowledge it or not…help us to continually access and cherish Your divine power…

     

We ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s name... Amen.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Paul’s Prayers Show Us What to Pray For

There are many beautiful, recorded prayers…here is a prayer of Francis of Assisi…

 

FRANCIS PRAYER

 

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace

Where there is hatred, let me sow love

Where there is injury, let me pardon

 

FRANCIS PRAYER

 

Where there is doubt, let me demonstrate faith

Where there is despair, let me offer hope

Where there is darkness, let me bring Your light

And where there is sadness, let me bring joy.

 

FRANCIS PRAYER

 

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much

Seek to be consoled as to console

That I may not so much seek to be understood as to understand

That I may not so much seek to be loved, as to love.

 

FRANCIS PRAYER

 

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.

 

In today’s lesson we continue learning about PRAYER.  But first, a few announcements…

 

BARAH MINISTRIES ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

Next Deacon’s Meeting

March 26

7:30A-9:00A

 

Read the assigned book…

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

VISIT THE VETS

April 3

1:45P-3:00P

 

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The Next Lord’s Supper Celebration

April 10, 2016

 

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Coeur d’Alene Conference

Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

August 5-6, 2016

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

New York - Pennsylvania Conference

Traditions at the Glen

Johnson City, New York

September 16-17, 2016

 

TAKE THE WORD OF GOD WITH YOU WHEREVER YOU GO

 

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PRAYERS

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Join me in prayer directed at all the intercessions and all the petitions of the

people visiting the Barah Ministries Prayer Request Group.

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Paul’s Prayers Show Us What to Pray For

Let’s look at one of Paul’s prayers in his letter to the Ephesians, and notice what Paul is praying for.  Ephesians, Chapter 3, Verses 1 to 21…

 

Ephesians 3:1

For this reason (because the Lord Jesus Christ broke down the barrier of the dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles) I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—

 

Ephesians 3:2

…if indeed you have heard of the ministry to the dispensation of God’s grace (the Church Age) which was given to me for your benefit…

 

Ephesians 3:3

…that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery (of the Church Age…Christ indwelling you), as I wrote before in brief (in Ephesians Chapter 2, Verses 11 to 22).

 

Paul is in prison in Rome as he writes, and he ties his imprisonment to his relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ…he describes a joyful imprisonment.  Paul, a Jew, was selected by God as the apostle to the Gentiles…and Paul suffered for it because his Jewish brethren hated the Gentiles and hated Paul’s “betrayal” to serve them.  These Jewish attacks landed Paul is prison.  The late Richard Pryor, a comedienne, would have warned Paul saying, “I told you about messing around with them Jews without no money, boy.”

 

Let’s take a quick music break and we’ll continue our study of Paul’s prayer in Ephesians, Chapter 3.

 

MUSIC BREAK

FORGIVENESS

Mathew West

 

TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON

Paul’s Prayers Show Us What to Pray For
Back to Paul’s prayer to the believers at Ephesus (in modern day Turkey)…

 

Ephesians 3:1

For this reason (because the Lord Jesus Christ broke down the barrier of the dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles) I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—

 

Ephesians 3:2

…if indeed you have heard of the ministry to the dispensation of God’s grace (the Church Age) which was given to me for your benefit…

 

Ephesians 3:3

…that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery (of the Church Age…Christ indwelling you), as I wrote before in brief (in Ephesians Chapter 2, Verses 11 to 22).

 

Ephesians 3:4

By referring to this (passage… Ephesians Chapter 2, Verses 11 to 22), when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ (indwelling you)…

 

Ephesians 3:5

…which in other generations (like the Old Testament…the Age of Israel) was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed (in an unveiling) to His holy apostles and to the prophets by the agency of God the Holy Spirit…

 

Ephesians 3:6

…to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs with Christ and are fellow members of the body of Christ, and are fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel…

 

Ephesians 3: 7

…of which gospel I was made a minister (diakonos…a servant), according to the gift of God the Father’s grace which was given to me (as a gift from God) according to the working of His divine power.

 

Ephesians 3:8

To me (Paul), the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ…

 

Ephesians 3:9

…and to bring to light what is the dispensation of the mystery (the Church Age) which for ages has been hidden in THE God (the Lord Jesus Christ) who created (the) all things…

 

Ephesians 3:10

…so that the manifold wisdom (which unfolds like a tapestry)…the wisdom of God the Father…might now be made known through the church (the body of Christ) to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places (in the Supreme Court of Heaven).

 

Ephesians 3:11

This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which God the Father carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord…

 

Ephesians 3:12

…in whom we have boldness of speech and confident access directly to God the Father in relationship, through our faith in Christ.

 

Ephesians 3:13

Therefore I ask you not to lose heart at my tribulations on your behalf, for they are for your glory.

 

All of us walk suffering gauntlets in this life…Paul, walking them on our behalf, was no exception.  He doesn’t want us to feel sorry for him.

 

Ephesians 3:14

For this reason (because the Lord Jesus Christ broke down the barrier of the dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles) I bow my knees before God the Father...

 

Kneeling is one possible posture for prayer…

 

Ephesians 3:15

…the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name…

 

Ephesians 3:16

…that God the Father would grant you believers in Christ, according to the standard of the Father’s glorious riches, to be strengthened with power through the Father’s Spirit in the inner man (the new self)…

 

Ephesians 3:17

…so that Christ may dwell (be at home) in your hearts through faith; and that you, being (deeply) rooted and (deeply) grounded in unconditional love…

 

Ephesians 3:18

…may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth (how wide) and length (how long) and height (how high) and depth (how deep…God’s unconditional love for you is)…

 

Ephesians 3:19

…and that you may be able to know (through experience) the unconditional love of Christ which surpasses (mere) knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

 

When we are filled up to all the fullness of God…we experience Christ as the sole cause in our lives.  Paul ends this prayer by praising God…which is commonly called a doxology in theological circles…

 

Ephesians 3:20

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us…

 

Ephesians 3:21

…to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

 

What is Paul praying for?

 

Wisdom…revelation…strength…a firm foundation…comprehension…the knowledge that we are loved unconditionally… being happy…the experience of unconditional love…being filled up to all fullness.

 

How often do you pray for these simple, yet wonderful things?

When the Lord Jesus Christ

Promises Salvation, It’s a Guarantee!

 

Acts 16:31

“Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”

 

Acts 4:12

“And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given to mankind by which we must be saved (except the name of the Lord Jesus Christ).”

 

Luke 19:10

“For the Son of Man (the Lord Jesus Christ) has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

 

First Timothy 2:9

…the Lord has saved us and called us to a holy life, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and through the grace which was granted to us in union with Christ Jesus from all eternity…

 

CLOSING SONG

HIS STRENGTH IS PERFECT

June Murphy

 

CLOSING PRAYER

Let us pray...

 

Almighty Father…

 

We come to you in prayer with a sense of absolute weakness…with unlimited needs…with an ignorance about what to pray for…with an inability to articulate ourselves.  Thank you for giving us God the Holy Spirit to help us in our weakness…to direct us in our lives…to conform us to the image of Your Son…what a mighty Helper He is…

 

Father keep on searching our hearts…fulfill our needs…protect us from danger…give us the desires of our heart as long as they are consistent with Your will…

 

Keep us safe as we go out into the world, Father…and keep us on the narrow way…make us constantly aware of our complete dependence on You and Your Guiding, Mentoring Spirit…we ask this in Christ’s name, Amen.

 

Thanks for coming!

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for listening!

 

www.barahministries.com