39 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” 41 He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. 45 When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. 46 “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” (Luke 22:39 – 46)
Theme: The Local Church
Context
Thanks again for your impactful comments yesterday!
So far, we have considered lessons the local church can learn from Jesus’ passion for people, God’s mission, and servant leadership. Today we will consider Jesus’ passion for prayer.
Prayer was a vital part of Jesus’ life and it is clear that he wanted his disciples to emulate this practice. In his early interactions with the disciples, they learned that he would steal away early in the morning to pray (Mark 1). As he approached the end of his earthly mission, he passionately pleads with the disciples to pray.
Bible Passage
Our passage today is from Luke 22:39 – 46 (presented above). Jesus knew that he would die soon and that he wouldn’t have many more occasions to interact with his disciples before his death. As we discussed earlier in this 40-days journey, prayer is of vital importance to the local church. The interactions between Jesus and his disciples as his death approached really adds emphasis to this point.
Consider the following. There would have been no better person to pray for the disciples than Jesus, and we know that he did (see John 17). Further we know from Luke 22:32 that Jesus had already told Peter that he (Jesus) had prayed for him. You might think with the assurance that Jesus was praying for them the disciples could focus on other things. No, not in Jesus’ view. He implored his disciples to pray and specifically to pray that they would not fall into temptation.
The implication for the local church is clear – pray, pray, and then pray some more!
Please prayerfully read the passage above and answer the question below.
Question
Recognizing the passion Jesus had for prayer, what can you do to amplify the importance of prayer in your local church?
April 14, 2022 at 4:55 am
No matter the situation, pray. Pray without ceasing.
Remind each other when situations arise that seem like there’s no answer, no hope, no remedy, praying and leaving the situation in God’s hands is the best thing to do.
We need to make praying a way of life, and we need to encourage each other to pray. It is so important to communicate with God throughout our days. It’s the perfect way to start each day.
April 14, 2022 at 6:04 am
Prayer is so important but often under utilized and/or taken for granted. We feel we can sort out a situation, and only seek God if we are overwhelmed. We must pray consistently. For my local church, I pray that we pray more. Consistent participation in the weekly prayer meeting, and encouraging others, are important ways to amplify the importance of prayer.
April 14, 2022 at 7:03 am
To amplify prayer in my local church, it starts from sharing your prayer concerns to church prayer groups or bible study groups. Church alway has prayer groups like ladies group, men’s breakfast prayer group, youth group, and in my new church in Japan there’s also this prayer group before the worship service begins. Of course if the prayer request you have is too personal or confidential, you can always just share it to your pastor or to your very close friends or specific prayer group at church. It is important to share prayer request to church because to be prayed upon by church is encouraging. It’s a spiritual and emotional support as well. Praying together at church gives strong bonding. To belong in a church where everyone prays together consistently through groups and of course individually is a way of life. Prayer is the pillars and foundation of church. The more members pray with church the more it is amplified. Being a part of prayer ministries of church is one best way to amplify prayer in local church. It is also important for these prayer ministries to follow up and update the body of Christ of the progress or results of prayers for certain individual or groups so that members would be uplifted. It will also help them understand how God answers prayer in His perfect timing, and that sometimes God’s answer can be different from the one the church is expecting to get. Prayer at church is amplified not only by sharing prayer requests but also by experiencing how the Holy Spirit works in the church with prayer as the channel of communication between God and his people.
April 14, 2022 at 11:02 pm
To amplify prayer perhaps consider testimonies, where there has been answered prayer or prayer which seems not answered, or not as we would like or anticipated.