AN EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW

 

October 22, 2024

 

"For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus"

1 Timothy 2:5

 

Prayer holds a significant place in Christianity. The scriptures recount the Jewish people's prayers to God for protection, blessings, and forgiveness. In the Gospels prayer was central to Jesus' ministry on earth. He not only prayed to God but also instructed his disciples in prayer. Jesus' own practice of prayer provides an example for our own. 

The New Testament presents Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies, the world's savior, and the sole path to God, serving as the mediator between God and humanity. Prayer allows us to communicate with God through Jesus Christ. His earthly mission was to restore our connection to God, with prayer being an essential element of that bond.

In John 5, we see Jesus facing intense opposition, with his opponents even seeking his life. Despite this, Jesus confidently affirms his unity with the Father. He makes a profound declaration in John 5:30, stating, "By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me."

Jesus himself is God, yet he recognizes that he and every human being is dependent on God. If Jesus the son understood this, it is equally important for you and me to grasp this too. We need God in our lives, and we are to look to him for every good and perfect gift. Our knowledge and experience of God results in our learning that all we need in life is given to us through our good God, and the access point to this help, hope, and blessing is through prayer. Prayer provides a means to communicate with God and receive guidance in how we ought to live as God's loved people. 

You will recall that Jesus was asked by his disciples  how they should pray.  Matthew 6:9-13, the Lord's Prayer, is the answer to this question.  What Jesus taught his followers in and through this prayer was not just a model to follow, but an important lesson regarding what things we should be praying about, the rule of God and our dependency on him for all things.

It is grasping this truth that enables the writer to the Hebrews to say

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. 

Hebrews 4:16