When Paul was writing to the Thessalonians he said to, “Pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” When he was writing to the Philippians he said to, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;”
Prayer is a practical thing to do as a Christian. And Christianity must be practical.
Two children were afraid they would be late for school one day. And one said, “Let’s kneel down and pray to God that He may help us not to be late.” The other child offered a more practical solution: He said, “No, let’s run and pray at the same time.”
You know, you can pray for the lost, you can pray that God would touch a person’s life, but if you are not willing to share your faith with them than you are not really a part of the answer to the prayer. Too often we pray that God would send labors into the land, when we should pray that God would make us a labor to invade our cities, our counties, and states with the gospel of Jesus Christ. So often we pray that God would send revival to our land while forgetting to pray that God would revive us and allow ourselves to be that revival.
I. Jesus prayed hard
In fact, Jesus prayed hard before we even thought of the name. We are told that before Jesus went to the cross that, “He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."
And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done." Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow. Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."
1. The disciples were given instructions
They were told to pray. Couldn’t they do just one thing for the savior? Jesus found them sleeping when they should have been praying. There are many Christians who are asleep today. Many of our churches are filled on Sunday morning with people who are on auto pilot. We need to wake up, and rise up. There is no more time to waste. Jesus is coming soon. We need to get this message out.
Rom 13:11 says, “And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.” Now,
1. The suffering savior was in agony
It was hard for Him to pray because the cross was no easy task. He prayed hard, so hard that great drops of blood fell from his face. He hadn’t even gone to the cross and yet the suffering had already taken place. Not only was He in agony but,
2. The suffering savior felt isolation
He prayed to the Father, “If there is any other way let this cup pass from me.” There was absolute silence from heaven, because there was no other way. This was the only way. This was the only plan. This was the only solution to man’s dilemma.
