SERMON: THE SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES -- FELLOWSHIP -- DOING LIFE TOGETHER

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

 

      -- turn in Bibles to Acts 2:42-47

 

Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

 

– hold your place there, and follow along as I read Hebrews 10:19-25

 

Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

 

      -- as we open this morning, I want to share with you the story of Pachomius, as recorded by Marshall Shelley in an article in Leadership Journal:

      -- Pachomius was an Egyptian in the early 4^th century – he became a Christian because of the kindness and love he received from the Christians who lived around Thebes – but as a Roman soldier, he was afraid to make public his newfound faith in Christ – so, in 315 AD, after he was released from his military service, Pachomius was baptized and began to embrace his faith with all his heart

      -- seeking to follow the ways of Christ without interference from the world, Pachomius retreated to the desert and became a religious hermit – living a solitary life of self-denial, solitude, silence, and severity – but after a while, he began to question whether this was truly the path to growing in grace and maturity in Christ – as he studied Scripture, it seemed as if Christ and the apostolic fathers were portraying a way of life entirely different than the one he was living

      -- so, in the solitude of his hermitage and the solitude of his heart, Pachomius began asking piercing questions of the way he was approaching his faith:

 

      -- “How can you learn to love if no one else is around?

 

      -- How can you learn humility living alone?

 

      -- How can you experience or show kindness or gentleness or goodness in isolation?

 

      -- How can you learn patience unless someone puts yours to the test?”

 

      -- Pachomius came to the conclusion that developing spiritual maturity requires being around other people -- ordinary, ornery people -- "To save souls," he said, "you must bring them together."

      -- “So Pachomius began an ascetic fellowship, where holiness was developed not in isolation but in community -- Instead of each person seeking God in his own way, with the dangers of idleness and eccentricity, Pachomius established a common life based on worship, work, and discipline.”

      -- “Pachomius, while largely forgotten in church history, points out to us that as attractive as solitary sanctification may seem, it is in life amid people, busyness, and interruptions that [we] develop many of the qualities God requires.”¹

 

      -- this morning, we are continuing in our sermon series on the spiritual disciplines and the spiritual gifts – those foundational elements that we need in order to become mature Christians who live out the commands of Christ in our lives daily

      -- so far in this study, we have looked at the disciplines of reading the Bible and prayer -- this week, we’re going to be looking at the next spiritual discipline -- fellowship -- specifically looking at how the early church modeled the concept of fellowship in a vibrant and living Christian community

 

 

II.  The Loss of Community

      -- fellowship is a word that we all know, but that we frequently misuse -- when you hear the word, “fellowship,” in most church settings, you’ll find it is attached to a gathering of people -- usually to a meal, such as a covered dish dinner after church

      -- sometimes, you’ll hear “fellowship” used to talk about people sharing conversation with each other in informal settings – like when we say that we are having fellowship before our Bible study

      -- and, while these can be forms of fellowship, they fall far short of what the word truly means and how Christ intended us to experience fellowship in His church

 

      -- when you see the terms “fellowship” or “communion” in your New Testament, it is usually a translation of the Greek word Koinonia – the translators decide whether to use “fellowship” or “communion” based on the context of the passage, but both fellowship and communion come from the same word and the same root meaning

      -- the definition of Koinonia is a group of people who are joined together to form community or family – in the context of the Bible, Koinonia is used to describe the spiritual and physical union of believers through the blood of Christ and the Holy Spirit into a holy community – the church of Christ

      -- through Jesus, we experience Koinonia – we become the church – the community of faith – the very family of God – His people, who are indwelled by His very presence, joining together to do life together as one body on earth today

 

      -- when we look at the early church in the Book of Acts, this is what we see -- we see Koinonia lived out as God intended – both here in Acts 2 and over in Acts 4:32, where we read that "all the believers were one in heart and mind" – they were united – they were in fellowship or communion with one another

      -- this is the heart of Koinonia – this is what Jesus wanted for us – that He prayed for on the night that He was betrayed – Koinonia – fellowship – communion – community -- these should be our goal as His holy church on earth today – for, as Pachomius discovered, it is only in Koinonia that we experience true relationships with others and Christ within us

 

      -- when we look at this picture of the early Christian church described for us here in the Book of Acts, it seems very foreign to us -- almost unrecognizable -- because this description of fellowship lived out in a local church community is so different from what we find today

      -- look back at Acts 2:42

 

Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

 

      -- where the early church focused on living and doing life together, our modern churches only gather and come together once or twice a week for established services -- we then separate and go our own way -- making it through the rest of the week on our own -- until we come back together on the next Sunday

      -- this practice has caused us to see church as an event, rather than a community -- as something we do -- someplace we go -- rather than who we are

      -- this lack of identity and community in our churches today -- this lack of centering our lives on Christ and on His people – and focusing more of our time and attention on the world – on seeking community through social media and political identities – has resulted in unprecedented isolation and loneliness and division within the very body of Christ

      -- and this all accelerated during Covid and the heightened political divisions over the last decade – resulting in Christians lost and alone without any real sense of community in the world today

 

      -- both major mainline denominations and the non-denominational churches have been losing members over the past two or three decades – we live here in the Bible Belt – and if you go to almost any church in town – you’ll see lots and lots of empty pews and empty seats – at best, some new churches grow simply by taking members from other established congregations – we’re just rustling sheep and moving members rather than bringing new people into the fold

      -- additionally, we are seeing more and more people who have turned away from traditional denominations – who identify themselves as "unchurched" Christians or as simply “spiritual,” without any church affiliation – and who do not join with other Christians for worship on a regular basis

      -- the writers of Hebrews warned against this in the passage we looked at – in Hebrews 10:25, we read, “let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encourage one another – and all the more – as you see the Day approaching”

 

            -- in a survey by the Barna Research Group, they found that 10 million self-proclaimed, born-again Christians in America have not been to a worship service in a church building in the last six months, apart from Christmas or Easter.

-- just as a note, Barna defines "born-again" as those who say they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is still important today, and believe they will "go to heaven because they have confessed their sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior." -- a definition that probably most of us agree with

-- now, what this means is that for these people, spiritual life has nothing to do with joining together with other believers in fellowship – in joining together with other believers in worshiping God together -- they are seeking relationship with Jesus apart from a church setting

-- I have a coworker that moved here last year – and despite her affirmation that she is a Christian, she has no interest in finding a church home in the local community – she spends her Sunday mornings watching an online service, where you get the entertainment of a service without the true fellowship and communion that is intended

-- for thousands of years, the church has been the center of religious and spiritual life -- but now many people are living out an individualized spirituality outside traditional churches -- trying to find success in a virtual monasticism similar to that tried and found wanting by Pachomius -- even though they are surrounded by the world, they are trying to live out their Christian lives in virtual isolation, with no support from other believers

 

-- why has this happened? -- I think it’s because we’ve lost our way as churches -- we’ve forgotten our reason for being -- our purpose here on earth -- we’ve lost the sense of Koinonia -- the need to do life together that caused the early church to thrive and grow

-- and because we’ve lost it – because we have let politics and social issues divide us and separate us from each other -- we haven’t been able to demonstrate fellowship and communion or give it to others -- we haven’t been helping others see how we need each other to truly grow and mature in our faith – to survive and thrive in the world today

 

III.  Fellowship

      -- so, what’s the answer? – what is our goal when we proclaim that fellowship and communion are vital spiritual disciplines needed in the church today?

 

      -- fellowship or communion, as the New Testament defines it, is not coming together for social activities -- it is not coming together to have a covered dish dinner -- it is not the church getting together to take a trip to amusement parks or other such trips

      -- no, fellowship is much more than that -- fellowship is community -- it is a group of believers -- a group of people who have accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior -- who come together on a regular basis to do life together

      -- this means they worship together -- pray together -- learn together -- support and encourage each other in the work of Christ – they help each other through their days – not just on Sundays

      -- they are there for each other in the good times and the bad -- they know each other in an intimate way because they are one in Christ and one with each other

 

            -- this act of coming together as a corporate body of believers defines fellowship – it is the heart of communion -- as James Packer points out, the Greek word Koinonia comes from a root meaning, “common or shared” – So, the spiritual discipline of fellowship means the intentional participation in life with someone else -- either by giving what you have to the other person or receiving what he or she has -- Giving and receiving becomes the essence and foundation of fellowship

            -- in true biblical fellowship, we gather together to give praise to God -- to offer prayers to God -- to give ourselves to the building up of the church -- and we receive from others knowledge, comfort, support, and encouragement

 

            -- I heard a message from Dr. James Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family, one time that I think speaks to the heart of fellowship -- one day his two young children were arguing and fighting with each other as children do -- Dr. Dobson said he had had enough of their fighting so he called them over to him -- he led them to the window and told them to look outside -- he said, "outside of this window is a hard world -- it is a world that will tear you apart if you let it -- the only way you can survive in this world is if you have someone you can trust who will always be there to support you

            -- as brother and sister, you are called to be there to support each other so that when you go out into the world, you won't be destroyed -- you are not called to destroy each other before you get out there"

            -- this story reminds us that there’s a reason we call our church buildings, “sanctuaries” -- they are sanctuaries from the world where believers can come together in love and trust – where we can support and encourage each other in our Christian walks – this is fellowship – this is communion – this is Koinonia

 

            -- the spiritual discipline of fellowship is not the church reaching out to the world, but the church supporting each other and lifting each other up so that together, we might grow in grace and the knowledge of the Lord Christ

      -- in Rom 1:11-12, Paul wrote, "I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong-- that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith." -- and in 2 Thes 5:11 he wrote, "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing" -- Paul understood the value and the need for fellowship in the church

            -- as Tim Stafford pointed out in an article in Christianity Today -- "People need people -- God's people need God's people in order to know God -- Life in Christ is a corporate affair -- All God's promises were made to God's people—plural -- All the New Testament epistles address Christians in churches -- The Bible simply does not know of the existence of an individual, isolated Christian"

 

      -- I recognized one of the best examples of true Biblical fellowship when I watched the movie, “Forrest Gump” -- when Forrest was in Vietnam and was out on patrol with his buddy Bubba, they were trying to sleep in the jungle in the middle of a thunderstorm – they didn’t have a tent – they didn’t have a dry place to lay down and sleep – they were just sitting in mud and if they tried to lay down, all they could do was lay down in the mud

      -- Bubba slid over to Forrest and said, "Forrest, put your back up against my back and you lean on me and I'll lean on you and we won't have to sleep in the mud"

      -- this is the picture of fellowship – of Koinonia – that we need to remember -- fellowship keeps a Christian out of the mud as they lean on each other for support

 

IV.  Communion

      -- more than anything, Christ knew that we needed each other if we were to be the people He called us to be – if we were to live out our lives as He intended

      -- on the very last night He was with His disciples – as He faced the daunting reality of the cross and what was ahead – Jesus prayed for His disciples and for us – for those who would come to put their faith and trust in Him through their witness and testimony

      -- He prayed that the church would be one – that all of us would be united in Him and through Him – that we would be one with each other and one with Him in love and faith and community

 

      -- I believe it was with this thought in mind that Christ gave us the sacrament of Holy Communion during the last supper – for this sacrament is a sacred moment whereby we affirm our union with Christ and our union with each other

      -- the words that we proclaim and the act of sharing together the breaking of one loaf and the drinking of one cup unite us in true fellowship and Koinonia – more than anything else, it is in this act that we become the church and are reminded of who we are and what we should be doing

 

      -- as we’re considering the necessity of Koinonia in the church today, let me share with you a couple of thoughts about the importance of the sacrament of holy communion

 

      -- I read one time about this couple who were running late to church -- and when they walked in through the back door, they looked up and saw that the altar was set for communion -- they turned to each other and said, "Great, we rushed here for another communion service"

 

      -- out of all that we do in the church, there is little that is as sacred and as moving as holy communion -- in this act, we enter into a sacred moment with the Lord God Almighty and with each other

      -- during this sacrament, the grace of God is poured out on us as we remember again the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior on our behalf -- how Jesus died on the cross and gave His very own body and blood to save us from hell

      -- during this sacrament, we are bound together as one -- when we share in the Lord's Supper -- when we share our common experience of salvation through Christ -- we are joined together again as one body without division

      -- we experience Koinonia as we become the church -- and all the things that might separate us in the eyes of the world -- race, nationality, gender, social status, class, political tribe -- these all cease to exist when God's grace comes to us through this sacrament

      -- and during this sacrament, we are making a bold statement of faith -- by participating in holy communion, we are proclaiming to a watching world who we are and what we believe

      -- we are telling the world that we believe in Christ Jesus -- that we trust in Him and Him alone for our salvation -- and we witness to His continuing presence in our lives

      -- through holy communion, we become the church at its best -- for that reason, we should never regard the sharing of the Lord's Supper as "just another communion service"

 

      -- as the United Methodist Church states: "Communion is supposed to be a sacred meal in which the community of faith, in the simple act of eating bread and drinking wine, proclaims and participates in all that God has done, is doing, and will continue to do for us in Christ"

      -- we celebrate the Lord's Supper to remember the grace that God gave us in our baptism and to be filled with spiritual food -- with grace -- that will sustain us and help us to live in Christ as we join together as one body and one people to do and to be who Christ called us to be

 

      -- this sacrament of communion has several purposes that reinforce the need for fellowship and Koinonia in our lives today:

 

      -- first, it is to remind us of Christ and His work on the cross

            -- we remember Christ's death and resurrection

            -- we remember Christ's sacrifice for us

            -- we remember the importance of uniting our own lives with Christ

 

      -- second, the sacrament of communion unites us with Christ and with His body, the holy catholic church -- the universal church made up of believers across this entire world and all believers who came before and who will come after us -- the great cloud of witnesses that the writer of the Book of Hebrews says surrounds us

            -- in some great mysterious way that we can never fully understand, we are united with Christ and with each other when we break the bread and drink from the cup that represent the body and blood of Jesus

 

      -- third, this sacrament nourishes us with the transforming grace of God -- just like in baptism, communion is a means of grace, and when you participate, God's grace is poured out upon you through the simple act of eating the bread and drinking the wine in remembrance of Christ

            -- holy communion is an outward expression of something greater and deeper than what we see on the surface -- it is something that we do -- we reach out and accept the gift of bread that is offered -- we immerse it in the cup -- we take it into our body

            -- and at the same time we are doing this, God is touching us and filling us inwardly with His grace -- with the power to continue in Christ's name -- with the grace to go forth and do what Jesus would do

 

      -- fourth, communion prepares us for the future glory of God's heavenly banquet for this sacrament is a means by which the church proclaims the Lord's death until He comes

            -- as Christians, we are supposed to keep one eye on heaven and one eye on earth -- we should be looking forward to the day when Christ will come – when we participate in the sacrament of communion, we are remembering Jesus' promise of the resurrection and our eventual home in Heaven

 

      -- communion is a proclamation of what we believe as individuals and as the church -- it is the sum of our Christian life – it is a spiritual picture of Koinonia – of the fellowship we should be seeking in our lives today

      -- this is why the sacrament of communion should always be taken in a worthy manner -- not as a ritual in a Sunday morning service – not as just something you do because you’re here -- but as an active confession by which you call to mind the memory of all that Jesus has done for you and continues to do for you – as you seek to become one with Him and one with the rest of the community of faith – His church in the world today

 

V.  Closing

      -- “Author Bunmi Laditan wrote a powerful essay a few years back called "I Miss the Village." -- In it she says that she goes through her everyday tasks in her "four-walled house while the world buzzes around me busy and fast." -- She talks of raising her child in her home, but missing something she calls "the village I never had."

      -- she wrote what it would feel like to live in a village -- to be in community and fellowship with others:

 

      -- “You'd know me and I'd know you -- I'd know your children, and you'd know mine -- Not just on a surface level -- favorite foods, games and such -- but real, true knowledge of the soul that flickers behind their eyes -- I'd trust them in your arms just as much as I'd trust them in mine -- They'd respect you and heed your "no."

      -- "I miss that village of mothers that I've never had -- The one we traded for homes that...feel miles apart from each other -- The one we traded for locked front doors, blinking devices and afternoons alone on the floor playing one-on-one with our little ones.

      -- “What gives me hope is that as I look at you from across the park with your own child in tow playing in her own corner of the sandbox, I can tell from your curious glance and shy smile that you miss it, too.”

 

      -- reflecting on this essay, Dustin Willis and Brandon Clements commented that even though Bunmi Laditan wrote this essay with mothers in mind, “she makes a poignant point about the disconnectedness that many people feel deep down

      -- Throughout history our ways of living have adapted and changed -- and there seems to be a growing realization that maybe some of those changes aren't for the best -- that maybe in our overvalue of isolation and entertainment -- we've actually missed out on something essential and worthwhile -- deep relationships with others.”²

 

      -- that’s what Koinonia – fellowship – communion -- is all about -- living out deep relationships with others in Christian community

      -- the Bible makes it clear -- we need each other -- Christianity only works in community -- it can only be realized in relationship -- and true faith is only experienced through intentional fellowship with other believers

 

      -- living and doing life together is the heart of what it means to be in fellowship with others -- it is what we see in the early church -- it is the example Jesus gave us with the relationship He had with His disciples -- it is something we desperately need today

      -- that’s why it’s so important for us to emphasize true Christian fellowship in our church communities -- that’s why it’s so important for us to bring new believers into a church community and not just add them to the church rolls but make them part of our family

      -- there’s a reason why the Great Commission begins with evangelism and has as its next step fellowship -- baptizing new believers – because we are called to do life together – and this means bringing new believers into a vibrant church community where they can learn how to do this Christian life with the encouragement and support of those around them

      -- this is the heart of what fellowship means – this is what we are seeking in this spiritual discipline

 

      -- you have so much to offer this world -- this church has what others have been looking for -- now, it’s time for us to go and tell others about it -- it’s time for us to share the good news of Christ -- to lead others into a relationship with Jesus -- and to bring them into fellowship with us here in this place

      -- it’s time for us to experience Koinonia at Naylor Community Christian Church – that is our goal – that is our purpose – so, let’s go and do that this week

 

      -- and to get you ready to experience true fellowship and communion with each other, we are going to end this service by sharing together the sacrament of Holy Communion – so, after we have our last song, we’ll end the service by coming together as God’s people to partake of this act in a final sacred moment this morning

      -- let’s pray

     

 

-------------------------

1 Marshall Shelley, "Developing spiritual fruit requires being around people: ordinary, ornery people," Leadership journal (Spring 1993)

2 Dustin Willis and Brandon Clements, The Simplest Way to Change the World, Moody Publishers (February, 2017), pages 55-56

 

THE SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINES – PRAYER

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Psalm 25:1-22

 

Psalm 25

Of David.

1 In you, Lord my God,

    I put my trust.

 

2 I trust in you;

    do not let me be put to shame,

    nor let my enemies triumph over me.

3 No one who hopes in you

    will ever be put to shame,

but shame will come on those

    who are treacherous without cause.

 

4 Show me your ways, Lord,

    teach me your paths.

5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,

    for you are God my Savior,

    and my hope is in you all day long.

6 Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love,

    for they are from of old.

7 Do not remember the sins of my youth

    and my rebellious ways;

according to your love remember me,

    for you, Lord, are good.

 

8 Good and upright is the Lord;

    therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.

9 He guides the humble in what is right

    and teaches them his way.

10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful

    toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.

11 For the sake of your name, Lord,

    forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

 

12 Who, then, are those who fear the Lord?

    He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.

13 They will spend their days in prosperity,

    and their descendants will inherit the land.

14 The Lord confides in those who fear him;

    he makes his covenant known to them.

15 My eyes are ever on the Lord,

    for only he will release my feet from the snare.

 

16 Turn to me and be gracious to me,

    for I am lonely and afflicted.

17 Relieve the troubles of my heart

    and free me from my anguish.

18 Look on my affliction and my distress

    and take away all my sins.

19 See how numerous are my enemies

    and how fiercely they hate me!

 

20 Guard my life and rescue me;

    do not let me be put to shame,

    for I take refuge in you.

21 May integrity and uprightness protect me,

    because my hope, Lord, is in you.

 

22 Deliver Israel, O God,

    from all their troubles!

 

            -- several years ago, the East Indian evangelist K.P. Yohannan came to the United States for a visit -- he wanted to meet some of the spiritual leaders of our nation, especially one man who was known in India for his powerful sermons and uncompromising commitment to the truth

            -- On the Sunday that Yohannan visited his church, there were over 3000 people there for the worship service -- the choirs were outstanding and the preaching was everything he hoped it would be -- then the pastor made an announcement about a special emphasis at the midweek prayer meeting -- he said that there were some things laying heavy on his heart and he asked the people to come and pray -- the pastor said the service would be held at a certain chapel on the church campus at 7:30 that evening -- excited, Yohannan determined that he would attend this special service

            -- when he showed up at the chapel later that week, he brought with him some definite assumptions about prayer meetings -- Yohannan knew that prayer meetings were essential -- they were of primary importance in the life of a church

-- Where he came from in India, and in many other parts of the world where Christians are persecuted and harassed for their faith, the prayer meeting is the centerpiece of the church's life -- Everyone comes, the meetings often last long into the night, and it is not unusual for believers to arise daily before sunup to pray together for the work of the church.

-- fearing a huge crowd, Yohannan came early to get a seat -- But when he arrived at the chapel, it was empty -- and not only was it empty, but it wouldn't hold any more than 500 people -- Yohannan thought he must have misheard the pastor and showed up at the wrong place -- He was worried, so he went outside to double-check the name of the chapel, but he was in the right place

-- at about 7:30, a few people came into the room,  but there was no leader, no songs or worship -- just chitchat about news, weather, and sports -- Forty-five minutes later an elderly man, the leader, but not the pastor, walked into the chapel to offer a few devotional thoughts from the Bible and give a brief prayer.

-- [and with that] the meeting was over -- and as the seven attendees filed out of the chapel, K. P. Yohannan sat in stunned silence, his mind filled with questions: Was this it? -- Weren't they going to stay and wait upon God? -- Where was the worship? -- The tears? -- The cries for guidance and direction? -- Where was the list of the sick, and the poor, and those in need? -- What about that burden that the pastor said was heavy on his heart? -- Weren't we going to intercede for a miracle? -- And where was the pastor?

-- That meeting became a paradigm for his experience of prayer meetings in the American church -- In all his travels here, he saw the same pattern repeated over and over again in hundreds of midweek prayer meetings -- Almost anything happens but prayer

-- There are announcements, singing, homilies, and a few prayers offered, but usually only by the leader-and that's in the churches that actually have prayer meetings in their schedules -- Many more make no pretense even to have a church prayer meeting

-- There seems to be time for everything else-to study, to fellowship, to preach, but not to pray. Church leaders who think nothing of spending two or three days to plan programs or of spending thousands of dollars to hire consultants to help them do it, blanch at the thought of spending even one night to wait on the Lord to show them what to do. -- How can this be?

-- Ephesians 6:12 says that "our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" -- if this is true, then the first thing any church should do is pray, isn't it?  -- Can there be any other way to reach a lost world?  -- Do we really think our plans and programs can bring down dark strongholds of spiritual evil in the heavenly realms?

 

-- this morning, we are continuing in our sermon series on the spiritual disciplines and spiritual gifts – last week, we talked about the necessity of reading and listening to the Bible – of spending time with God in His word – in whatever way best works for us – because it is through His word that God primarily speaks to us today

-- today, we are going to be looking at prayer as our next spiritual discipline – prayer is our primary response back to God – prayer is the natural avenue by which we commune with our Creator and respond to His word and His direction from the Scriptures – in a very real sense, prayer is how we relate to God today, just as the Bible is how God relates to us

-- going back to 2 Peter 1:4, prayer is a way we participate in the divine nature of Christ and build upon our relationship with God

 

II.  Why is it so Hard to Pray?

-- everyone in here knows that we should pray – Scripture commands us to pray – the Spirit within us compels us to pray – as Christians, we feel this desire to pray – to cry out to God – to speak to Him and call upon His name

-- as Peter Miller puts it in his book, The Praying Life, this natural desire to pray – to commune with God – to communicate with Him in words and with our hearts –was put in us at the Creation

-- so, if that’s the case, then why is prayer so difficult? – if that’s the case, then why don’t people pray more? – if that’s the case, then why don’t we spend more of our lives devoted to calling upon God in prayer?

-- did you know that most Christians pray for less than five minutes a day? – that is remarkable – the hymn that we sang this morning, “Sweet Hour of Prayer," is a very common hymn in our churches –- we sing it quite often, but very, very few of us pray with the fervency that this song proclaims

-- even knowing that through prayer we can call on God Himself, very few of us do so – why?

 

-- our inability to pray is a direct result of the Fall – when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, mankind was separated from God because of sin and the sin nature we inherited from them – as a result, the close relationship we had with our Father was destroyed

-- the Bible tells us that in the early days of creation – before the Fall – God would come to the Garden in the cool of the day and walk with Adam and Eve – He would speak with them and they would speak with Him – they would tell Him all about their day and what they had done – and they would praise God for His goodness and kindness and providence – they would speak to Him as a child speaks to their Father

-- but the Fall changed all of that – sin separated them from God – and they were cast out of Eden and into this world – and while the desire to speak for God remained, their ability to do so was damaged – and this continues today

-- and so, while our hearts long for communion and prayer and communication with Him – our sin nature and our flesh lead us way from the very practice that can grow our relationship with the Father and lead us to walk with Him in grace and righteousness daily

-- this is why prayer is one of the most difficult things we face in our Christian lives – I’ve been pastoring a long time now – over 25 years – and during that time, the question that has been asked of me more than anything else – more than how to be saved – more than how to read the Bible – was how to pray

-- prayer is difficult – there are obstacles to prayer in our lives today that rise up to keep us from praying – some come from us as our flesh and our sin nature rise up in opposition to communicating with God – some obstacles come from the world or from Satan as both the world and Satan try to distract us and cause us to get lost in the cacophony of noise and busy-ness in the world today

-- but even though prayer is difficult, the good news is that through Christ and through His Holy Spirit who indwells us, all of us have the ability to come directly into the presence of our God in prayer – we can pray – we can speak to God just as we speak to another and know that He hears us and will respond to us – we just need to do it – we just need to put the obstacles aside and be intentional about praying – and we have to be diligent about it and make it part of our daily lives

 

-- one common theme I hear from people about why they don’t pray is that they don’t know how to pray or they don’t understand prayer -- I can relate to this -- I have struggled with this in my own life -- Even the disciples struggled with this. 

-- the disciples lived intimately with Jesus for three years -- they spent three years with the Creator of the universe and could have asked Him anything -- but the one thing that weighed on their hearts more than anything else – the one thing they asked Him to do for them was to teach them how to pray

-- they had seen Jesus go off and pray in isolation for hours on end – they had seen how He walked in relationship with the Father – how His daily life exuded prayer and communication with the Father – and they realized they didn’t have that – they didn’t know how to do that

-- so, Jesus shared with them the model prayer that we often refer to as the Lord's Prayer – a guide for us in praying to the Father – a starting place, if you will

-- but He didn’t give them step-by-step instructions on how to pray – He didn’t tell them they needed to go off by themselves in order to pray – He didn’t tell them what position their body needed to be in when they prayed – He didn’t tell them whether to pray out loud or silently – He didn’t tell them when they should pray – and He didn’t explain how prayer worked – He just gave them the Lord’s Prayer and said, “When you pray, this is how it should look”

 

-- there’s a reason for that – prayer is personal – and the way we speak to God and cry out to Him with our hearts will be different for each one of us – there is no right way to pray – no specific words – no specific body position – no specific location – no specific time

-- the Lord’s prayer is just a model – a guide – that Jesus gave us to get us started – He didn’t intend for this prayer to be something that we just recite back to God word-for-word every day – prayer doesn’t work like that

-- God doesn’t hear simply because we recite it word-by-word – He doesn’t hear us and respond simply because we have memorized this prayer and pray it to start every day because it’s not about the words

-- He hears us when we pray from our hearts – when we pray based on who we are – when we pray based on who He made us to be and when we speak to Him as only we can -- and that is different for all of us – remember the love languages that we talked about last week?

-- the Lord’s prayer can guide us into communication with God, but it should not replace heart-felt and heart-driven prayers

 

-- the important thing is not the how and why of prayer – the important thing is that we do it – that we make prayer part of our lives -- because prayer is how we speak to our God and how we communicate with Him our love and our praise and our needs – through prayer, we build and grow upon our relationship with Him – that is why prayer is a means of grace and a spiritual discipline we need to be practicing

-- don’t worry about the mechanics of it – don’t get bogged down with questions such as: How can God hear me?  How can God hear all of us around the world when we pray at the same time?  Why won't God work without prayer?  Why doesn't God answer in the way or in the time I think He should? 

-- prayer is a mystery, because it is relational – prayer works, not because we say the right words and God responds like a heavenly vending machine or a magic genie – prayer works, because prayer is simply a person speaking to their heavenly Father from their heart, as a child speaks to their parents – letting Him know what is on our minds – what is on our hearts – what we are struggling with – what is worrying us – and what we need

 

III.  Scripture Lesson (Psalm 25:1-22)

            -- I could speak for a long time about prayer, but this morning, my goal is to help you take the first steps into a life of prayer – and I say life of prayer intentionally

-- Dallas Willard suggested that we shouldn’t seek to make prayer a part of our lives – that we shouldn’t have a prayer life, as many talk about – but that instead, we should seek to develop a praying life

-- as he explained it, with a prayer life, prayer is just something else that we try to squeeze into our already busy schedules – it’s something else that we do – that we feel like we should do – and when we don’t have time for it – when we don’t pray as long as we feel we should – when we don’t pray as eloquently as we feel we should -- when we don’t spend more time in prayer – we feel guilty and defeated – and it’s at that point that many of us give up and just quit praying all together

-- for that reason, Willard suggested we seek to develop a praying life – a life that imitates Jesus – a life that is saturated with prayerfulness – with a recognition of God’s presence with us at all times as we go about our day rather than just tacking prayer into our lives as something else we have to do

-- through a praying life, we integrate every moment of every day into a time of communion with God – we pray – not necessarily with words – but with our hearts as we live our lives for God – always cognizant of His presence with us

 

-- Skye Jethani gives a good example of what this looks like as he shares an account from the life of Billy Graham – I think most of us know who Billy Graham was – without a doubt, Billy Graham was our country’s most well-known evangelist who held crusades throughout the country to share the gospel of Christ for decades

-- in 1982, Dr. Graham was invited for a live television interview on NBC’s Today Show – he arrived at the NBC studio in New York for his appointment, and one of the producers told Dr. Graham’s assistant that a private space had been arranged for him,  so that he could pray before the broadcast.

-- Dr. Graham’s assistant responded that this was a kind and thoughtful gesture, but that the prayer space would not be needed -- The NBC producer was surprised, and you could tell that he was thinking that perhaps Billy Graham wasn’t the spiritual giant the country thought he was

-- he asked Dr. Graham’s assistant, “Isn’t prayer important before a live national interview?” -- Graham’s assistant responded, “Dr. Graham started praying when he got up this morning, he prayed while eating breakfast, he prayed on the way over here in the car they sent for us, and he’ll probably be praying all through the interview.”

-- this is what a praying life looks like versus a prayer life – we experience a praying life when we walk in constant communion with God, whether we use words or not – this is the type of life that the Bible encourages when we read that we are to pray without ceasing – this is the kind of life that we see Jesus model for us in the gospels

-- so, don’t seek to develop a prayer life – seek to develop a praying life

 

            -- look with me now at Psalm 25, and let’s take a look at one of David’s prayers and see what we can learn from him about living a praying life

 

            -- verse 1-3

 

Psalm 25

Of David.

1 In you, Lord my God,

    I put my trust.

 

2 I trust in you;

    do not let me be put to shame,

    nor let my enemies triumph over me.

3 No one who hopes in you

    will ever be put to shame,

but shame will come on those

    who are treacherous without cause.

 

 

            -- David’s prayer begins where all prayers begin – with God

            -- as we have talked about this morning, prayer is an aspect of our relationship with God – prayer happens when we speak to God through our hearts and our lives – our actions and our words – it all begins with God, because prayer is part of our relationship with Him

            -- God certainly hears the prayers of sinners and unbelievers – He responds to them as their Creator and reaches out to them through His prevenient grace to call them to the cross and to salvation and the forgiveness of sins through Christ

            -- but He hears the prayers of His people differently, for He hears our prayers based on our relationship with Him – He hears us and responds to us because He is our Father and we are His children – He hears our voice when we cry out to Him and He responds to us because He loves us and knows us and is in a relationship with us

            -- our relationship with God begins with trust and faith and belief in the Lord Jesus Christ – and when we put our trust in Him, the Bible says that we become His children – as John 1:1-13 says, “Yet to all who did receive Him – to those who believed in His name – He gave the right to become the children of God – children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will – but born of God”

            -- God is our Father – our Abba – our Daddy – and when we pray, He hears us because we are His – as a parent hears the cry of their child, even in a crowded room

            -- that is what David is affirming here in these verses – I know you, God – I trust you, God – I put my faith and trust in You and You alone – for you have saved me and will not let me be put to shame – my sins are behind me – and I stand in your presence, calling on your name, as my God and my Father, whom I trust

 

            -- verse 4-5

 

Psalm 25:4 Show me your ways, Lord,

    teach me your paths.

5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,

    for you are God my Savior,

    and my hope is in you all day long.

 

            -- here we see the difference between a prayer life and a praying life – David is described in the Bible as a man after God’s own heart – he lived a life in relationship and communion with God – and, as he went about his day, he was ever mindful of God’s presence with him

            -- so, David prays here in these verses three specific requests – show me – teach me – guide me

            -- this is what happens when we pray – this is what happens when we live lives in communion and relationship with God

            -- first, He shows us His will and His way – He opens our eyes to see the world as He sees it – to see people as He sees them – to love them as He loves them

            -- He shows us how to walk with Him in daily communion – how to live for Him in this world – how to love like Him in this world

            -- and once He has shown us His will and His ways, He teaches us how to live like that and guides us into righteousness and goodness in His name

            -- through the Holy Spirit indwelling us and empowering us, God teaches us what to do and guides us the right way and gives us the power and strength to do it

            -- notice that David’s prayer is not about getting, but about giving – it’s about living in God’s righteousness and becoming who God wants Him to be

            -- this is a relational prayer – and these requests of David to show us – to teach us – and to guide us – are how we seek a praying life today

 

-- I like what John Maxwell says, "When God shows me, He has my heart.  When God teaches me, He has my mind.  When God guides me, He has my hand."  -- We need to recognize that prayer puts us into a close relationship with God.  It results in us turning ourselves over to God -- body, mind, and soul. 

-- Prayer not only causes God to work, but it also results in changing us, changing our hearts, and conforming our will to that of God.  – that is the definition of a praying life

 

-- verse 6-11

 

Psalm 25:6 Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love,

    for they are from of old.

7 Do not remember the sins of my youth

    and my rebellious ways;

according to your love remember me,

    for you, Lord, are good.

 

8 Good and upright is the Lord;

    therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.

9 He guides the humble in what is right

    and teaches them his way.

10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful

    toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.

11 For the sake of your name, Lord,

    forgive my iniquity, though it is great.

 

 

-- once again, we see David calling out to God – not because of anything he had done – not because of his great accomplishments or works on behalf of God – but calling out to God based on his relationship with Him

-- “Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love – according to your love, remember me, for you, Lord, are good”

-- this is a prayer for God to be with David during his day and throughout his life – to love David – to instruct David in the way he should go – to guide him and teach him and forgive him when he sinned

-- this is a reminder to us that our prayers are based on our relationship with God – and He hears us because of His great love for us

 

-- verse 12-22

 

Psalm 25:12 Who, then, are those who fear the Lord?

    He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.

13 They will spend their days in prosperity,

    and their descendants will inherit the land.

14 The Lord confides in those who fear him;

    he makes his covenant known to them.

15 My eyes are ever on the Lord,

    for only he will release my feet from the snare.

 

16 Turn to me and be gracious to me,

    for I am lonely and afflicted.

17 Relieve the troubles of my heart

    and free me from my anguish.

18 Look on my affliction and my distress

    and take away all my sins.

19 See how numerous are my enemies

    and how fiercely they hate me!

 

20 Guard my life and rescue me;

    do not let me be put to shame,

    for I take refuge in you.

21 May integrity and uprightness protect me,

    because my hope, Lord, is in you.

 

22 Deliver Israel, O God,

    from all their troubles!

 

-- in the rest of this Psalm, David is building upon his relationship with God – because you love me, David says – because you are good – because of the trust I have in you – I pray that you will confide in me and protect me

-- turn to me and be gracious to me – relieve me of all the troubles of my heart – free me from my anguish – look on my affliction and distress – take away all my sins

-- turn away my enemies, for I seek you – I seek refuge in you – for it is your integrity and uprightness that protect me

-- I live my life for you – I put my hope in you – because I am yours

 

-- in this prayer, David doesn’t go into the specifics of what was troubling him on that day –  he doesn’t list the troubles of his heart – he doesn’t list the anxious thoughts within him – he doesn’t name the enemies surrounding him

-- I’m sure he did in other prayers – at other times – and we should do the same

-- the point of this Psalm – of this prayer recorded for us here in Psalm 25 – is to show us what a praying life looks like – and how living life in communion and trust in God will lead God to show us His will and His ways – and will lead God to teach us and guide us down His paths of righteousness – and will move God’s heart against all that troubles us – whether that is emotional – spiritual – or the things of this world

 

-- the important thing to take from this Psalm is that this is a model prayer, just like the Lord’s Prayer – it is a prayer that shows you what a praying life looks like without giving you specific words or mechanics to follow

-- this is our goal – this is what we are seeking to do as we try to seek to deepen our relationship with God through prayer

-- remember, it’s not about how we pray or what words we use or the position of our body or the time of day or our location – it’s about our relationship with God – it’s about doing life with Him – and that’s what we see modeled for us so perfectly in this Psalm

 

-- for prayer to truly be a spiritual discipline in our lives, we must learn to pray with the expectation that God will hear us – not because of what we do or how we say it – but simply because we are His

-- and we have to know that in all that we do, God is seeking our best – even if the answer to some of our prayers is not yes, but no, or wait

IV.  Closing

            -- in the time remaining, I wanted to share with you a few suggestions on how to begin seeking a praying life with God, using Psalm 25 and the Lord’s Prayer as recommendations on how to approach God in prayer

 

            -- first, begin with God – as David does here and as Jesus told us to do in the Lord’s Prayer – we begin by recognizing who God is and lifting Him up in praise and worship – “Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy Name” – “Lord my God, in You I put my trust”

            -- in both cases – Psalm 25 and the Lord’s Prayer – we are shown to begin with God – since the purpose of prayer is to grow in our relationship with God, we have to begin by recognizing who He is and giving Him the honor and glory and praise due His name

 

-- next, we ask God to show us His will and His ways – as David said here, Show Me – Teach Me – Guide Me – the Lord’s Prayer says the same thing – “Thy Kingdom come – Thy will be done – on earth, as it is in heaven”

-- show us your will – teach us and guide us – let our petitions and requests and needs line up with your word and what you would have us do – as we pray for things, let them be things we need that will help us grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ – and not things that will lead us away from God – give us today our daily bread – give us today what it is we need to live for you and serve you in the world and with our lives

-- as we pray for people or situations in our world today, let our prayers and our requests reflect God’s will and His purpose – and don’t let us make our requests selfish and self-centered

 

-- third, we need to confess our sins when we have not lived our lives in accordance with God’s standard – we need to ask for reconciliation – we need to seek to restore our relationship with God that was damaged when we disobeyed Him and turned from His ways – and we need to ask that He would help us and guide us and turn us away from temptation and sin and evil in the future

-- forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us – and lead us not into temptation – but deliver us from evil – for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory

-- it is about You, O God – it is about making your Kingdom manifest on earth today – it is about growing us in grace so that we might not sin and disobey you – but that we would be protected from evil and empowered to turn from sin and temptation

-- for it is only in your power and your grace that we live

 

-- this is the basic model of prayer that we see in Psalm 25 and in the Lord’s Prayer from Matthew 6 and in the gospel of Luke

-- when we pray and take time to lift up our praises and prayer requests to God, we need to remember this model – and to pray in light of our relationship with God – as we seek to develop a praying life and not just a prayer life

 

            -- when it comes to prayer, just remember it is all about relationship – remember that God is your Father – and don’t get bogged down in trying to do it right, for there is no one right way – there are no right words – prayer must come from the heart

– so, just talk to Him – share with Him your heart – share with Him your life – share with Him your needs

            -- and know that He wants to hear from you – He loves you and He is interested in you -- He wants to walk with you in the cool of the day, like He did with Adam and Eve – and He wants to hear you tell Him about what is going on in your life and to tell Him about what you are struggling with and what you need

 

            -- don’t make prayer complicated – just make it part of who you are – and remember that you can talk to God at any time and any place – you can pray with words – you can pray without words – you can pray in your heart – you can pray through song – you can pray through your actions – you can pray without ceasing

            -- the key to prayer is simply to seek the presence of God in your life at all times – to come to Him and remember Him and acknowledge Him as your God and Creator and Father – tell Him what is going on in your life –ask Him to help you and show you what to do – to teach you and guide you in His ways – to help grow your relationship with Him as you seek to live life for Him today

            -- that is what prayer is all about

            -- so, with that, let us join together in prayer now as we close our message today