12. “Teach Us to Pray,” Entry Level
12
“Teach Us to Pray,” Entry Level
One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” (Luke 11:1)
If you had the privilege of asking the Lord for one special skill, for what would you ask? Would you ask for skill in making friends, making money, witnessing for Christ, or succeeding greatly in your chosen vocation?
Our answer to this question reveals what is really important in our lives.
One of our Lord’s disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. They wanted to enroll in the school of prayer, and so should we, because when you know how to pray, the Lord can help you meet every need.
No matter what skills we may already possess, we will never rise any higher than our prayer life. The most important part of our lives is the part that only God sees, and the most important words we speak are those that God hears in the place of prayer. “In whatever man does without God,” wrote George MacDonald, “he must either fail miserably or succeed more miserably.” Failure is better than miserable success, but if we learn and practice the basic lessons in the school of prayer, we don’t have to worry about either one.
There are four levels in the school of prayer, and each level has an important lesson for us to learn. We’ll discuss these levels in the next few chapters.
Grade School Level: “We Must Pray” (Luke 11:1)
A satisfying prayer life isn’t a luxury enjoyed by the elite; it’s a necessity for all who have trusted Jesus Christ. We must pray.
John the Baptist was a miracle baby who, like Isaac, was given to a couple who were too old to have a family. He was filled with the Spirit from his mother’s womb. He fulfilled Old Testament prophecy, and Jesus called him the greatest of all the prophets. John had the privilege of presenting Jesus to the nation of Israel and preparing the people of Israel to receive Him (Luke 1:5–25; 7:18–28). What a privileged person John was, and yet John the Baptist had to pray! And he taught his disciples to pray!
Our Lord’s disciples were privileged to be called by Him, to live with and learn from Him, and even to receive from Him the power to perform miracles. Yet they wanted to know how to pray effectively!
Our Lord Himself was God in sinless human flesh. He could heal the sick and even raise the dead, and He had the Holy Spirit without limit (John 3:34). There were no situations that He didn’t understand and that He couldn’t handle, and there were no needs that He couldn’t meet, and yet He had to pray! The four Gospels make it clear that Jesus not only taught about prayer, but was, Himself, a man of prayer. If the perfect Son of God had to pray as He lived and ministered here on earth, where does that leave us? We must pray!
We can’t escape the grade-school lesson of prayer: we must pray.