Prayer

Prayer is both the Christian’s privilege as well as his responsibility. Prayer is the means by which the Christian can express his praise and thanksgiving to God. Prayer is the means by which the Christian is enabled to present his needs and desires to his heavenly Father. Prayer is also the means by which the Christian can participate in the accomplishment of God’s plans and purposes. By way of example, God has revealed His determination to bring His heavenly kingdom to the earth; and because this is His divine and immutable purpose, He commands us to pray, “Our Father, thy kingdom come.”

One may inquire, “If it is God’s immutable plan to accomplish His ultimate purpose for the creation by causing His heavenly kingdom to encompass the earth, why need we bother to pray for that which shall inevitably come to pass?” The answer: We are to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom because our heavenly Father has graciously ordained that the prayers of His people should be part of the means by which His immutable plan shall be fulfilled. The certainty of God’s will should become the incentive for our prayers, not a reason for the Christian to become negligent in prayer.

For the Christian, prayer is all that has been previously mentioned and more: the Christian’s prayer is a delight to the Lord. As Proverbs 15:8b testifies, “the prayer of the upright is his delight.”

For more on this topic, check out the Bible study courses on Prayer.

PRAYER

This Bible study course, based on Hezekiah’s insistence on praying that his own will be done, cautions us to pray for God’s will to do be done and to relinquish our own will if the Lord so requires.

This Bible study course, based on the teaching of Proverbs, instructs how we are to fulfill the biblical injunction that we pray for the civil authorities.

This Bible study course, based on Isaiah 62:1-12, urges us to pray for the coming of God’s kingdom and supplies us with incentives to do so.

This Bible study course, examining Daniel’s prayer, instructs us as to what is necessary for us to have an effective prayer life.

This Bible study course, based on Jesus’ encounter with the Syro-Phonecian woman, instructs the Christian how to approach the Lord in prayer, especially when his prayers seem to be ignored by God.

This Bible study course, based on Jesus’ teaching on the subject of prayer, supplies some guidelines the Christian must follow if he is to have an effective prayer life.

This Bible study course, based on Jesus’ own example in the garden of Gethsemane, reminds the Christian of the necessity of resorting to prayer as an essential means of successfully combating temptation or enduring trial.

This Bible study course, considering the apostle Paul’s prayer on behalf of the Ephesians, presents two worthy requests the Christian should ask of God in prayer.

This Bible study course, considering the apostle Paul’s prayer on behalf of the Philippian church, exhorts us to imitate his example and make greater love for Christ a priority petition in our prayers.