Title: Jesus and Prayer
Theme: Encouraging people to sacrifice a little for prayer
Text: Luke 6.12-16
Time: March 6, 2011
[Title Slide]
[S] “One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles: Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.” (Luke 6.12-16, NIV) [S]
Jesus had a decision to make, one that would have big consequences for his mission, ministry and movement. This decision would not only impact his immediate disciples in Galilee but potentially millions and billions of people around the world.
Jesus was going to select his Vice Presidents and direct reports. Jesus needed lead disciples that would ensure that the proclamation of the good news that God has freed people from their sins through Jesus. He also needed to choose and develop leaders that had what it took to make more disciples who would make more disciples.
[S] Jesus could have made the decision himself. He could have set some criteria and created a list of names of disciples who met that criteria and invited them to become lead disciples or what Luke refers to as Apostles. And no one would have questioned him. But he didn’t do that. Instead, he prayed to God.
I think it’s worth noting that when Jesus prayed to God about this that it wasn’t a short prayer. He didn’t just lift up the concern, say amen, and then go on with his day. Jesus spent all night conversing with the Creator about his lead team. Jesus spent extended time praying to God. And as a result, when the sun came up, he knew who he would call forth and pour himself into.
Think about some of those names and what they put into motion. Andrew, James, John, Matthew, Peter and yes, even Judas Iscariot. Maybe Judas wasn’t even on Jesus’ short list prior to praying. But because of the role he would play in bringing about the worlds salvation, he was on God’s short list.
Look, there is a direct correlation between extended time given to praying to God and Jesus choosing the lead disciples that changed the world, including yours.
When I look at the example of Jesus, Jesus valued praying to God so much so that he spent extended time doing so. Not only did he pray over night, but we know he spent 40 days praying and fasting in the desert wilderness as well as practiced rising early in the morning to go to hillsides for extended praying.
[S] This would probably be as good a time as any to remind followers of Christ that the goal of a disciple is to be just like Jesus. And since Jesus was prayer centered and prayer driven as evidenced by his extended time praying, that means we should be as well.
The Methodist Church from its inception has been such a church. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement [S] believed in praying so much that he actually built a room onto his house just for purpose of praying. It was a small room. All it had was a kneeling stand, a small narrow table and a bible placed on top of it. He often rose at 4AM for prayer and in his later years he was known to spend 8 hours a day praying. I’ve seen a picture of that room. And it doesn’t seem very special. And yet, this is where the Wesleyan revival and Wesley’s ministry was fueled.
Wesley believed that praying was the grandest means of grace. That more than anything else God used prayer to regenerate the heart and renew the mind of the pray-er. And he’s right. I spent a few days in extended prayer not too long ago. And it changed me. I could tell after a few days of praying and reading scripture and other devotional classics that my heart and mind were different. I can’t explain it in much detail, other than to say that God had done a work in my life. A work that I’ve experienced before, but never outside of spending extended time praying to God.
And even though I know this and have experienced this, I don’t know how many times I’ve started each day thinking I don’t have time to pray today there is just too much to do. I’ll just have to handle it and hope that God intervenes when needed. That’s not the right attitude is it? Wesley had it right when he said, “I have so much to do that I spend several hours in prayer before I am able to do it.” —John Wesley
You know, if God is all knowing, all seeing, all powerful why wouldn’t a person want to consult with God before going out or making decisions? Why are we so quick to make decisions based on our infallible minds and sinful nature when God just might have something to say to us about it? Why would we not be better at making time for extended praying to God knowing that it is during these times that God melts and molds and forms hearts and renews minds?
[S] I believe that for some people, the only thing that is keeping them from hearing from God or making the right decision or experiencing some transformation or for the church to experience spiritual victory is because they haven’t spent extended time praying to God about it. And that’s what makes the 40 Days of Prayer March 13-April 24 so valuable to us.
The prayer initiative task force is preparing to disciple you and I so that we can taste what extended praying is like. And one way for us to be most successful at it is for all of us to engage it together. I want to encourage everyone to try praying to God for an extended period of time. For those who do not have a prayer life, start with the Upper Room devotional which you can pick up (where) or view online through a link on our web site. For those of you who have some sort of prayer life, I want to encourage you to stretch yourself by extending one of your prayer times to include praying to God for an hour a day or, every other day or once a week. And don’t worry, you don’t have to try and figure out how you’ll fill an hour. The prayer team has prepared a prayer guide that will provide you with everything you need to fill your hour. If you’ve prayed for an hour before, may you need to take the next step and experiment with praying for a couple of hours at one time or an entire evening like Jesus or John Wesley. And get this, there is an overnight bible study retreat March 11-12 at Fern Cliff where you will learn about prayer through the study of scripture. And it only costs you ten bucks! Please sign up for either of these opportunities so that we can pray more like Jesus. You can sign up for your prayer time using the laptop at the Welcome Center, or by clicking on the link on our homepage, or by contacting Nathan through the office. And if someone else has already signed up for the time you want, and that is what you need, double up. You can then pray at home, or in the chapel while the church is open, or the trailernacle located in the church parking lot. The trailernacle will be set up with prayer stations to give you multiple ways to pray and fill your hour with God.
Disciples of Christ, how badly do you want to be like Jesus? How much do you long for the love of Christ to be shed abroad in your heart? How badly do you want to see God’s will done in your life? How much do you want to see God breakthrough in your life? How much do you want to see God’s will done through each member of Asbury? How badly do you want to become a prayer centered and prayer driven Christ follower? How badly do you want to see God use Asbury to connect more new people with Jesus? Then, you know what to do next.
