Synopsis "Whenever You Pray: Following Jesus' Teachings on Prayer"
How should we pray? In Christ's famous Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5-7), where he teaches about the citizens of his kingdom and their character, he spends considerable time on prayer. The clear implication is that Christ expects his followers to be devoted to prayer. They won't pray like hypocrites-with vain, heartless petitions that seek to manipulate God and impress others (Matt 6:5). They will pray because they are consumed with God: his name, kingdom, will, and people (Matt 6:9-13). Unfortunately, many followers of Christ struggle with prayer. For example, after being taught about prayer in the Sermon on the Mount, the disciples later approached Christ, asking him to teach them how to pray again (Lk 11:1-4). This means they still struggled with praying and being disciplined in it. This is often true for us. In Whenever You Pray, we revisit Christ's instructions on prayer in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 6:5-18), so we can learn how to pray properly, overcome our struggles with it, and build God's earthly kingdom through it. Lord, teach and empower us to pray. In your name, we pray. Amen.
