Question: Biblically, why pray? What are some biblical reasons to pray? Here’s a sampling… • To know the hope of the gospel, Eph. 1:18 • To see God’s inheritance in the saints, Eph. 1:19 • To see God’s power in salvation, Eph. 1:19-20 • To deeply know the love of Christ, Eph. 3:17-18 • To grow to full maturity in Christ, Eph. 3:17-18 • To walk worthy of the Lord, Col. 1:9-12 • To bear fruit in good works, Col. 1:9-12 • To grow in the knowledge of God, Col. 1:9-12 • To persevere with patience & joy, Col. 1:9-12

Question: Biblically, why pray? What are some biblical reasons to pray? • To boldly proclaim the gospel, Eph. 6:18-20 • For open doors for the gospel, Col. 4:2-4 • For the saints to be blameless, 1 Th. 3:12-13 • For ongoing sanctification, 1 Th. 5:23-24 • For the glory of the name of Christ, 2 Th. 1:11-12 • To comfort suffering saints, 2 Th. 2:16-17 • For God-glorifying church unity, Rom. 15:5-6 • To have a strong hope in God, Rom. 15:13 • For wise, God-glorifying discernment, Phil. 1:9-11

What the 2nd half of the book of Ephesians tells us… • That all of the immeasurable blessings of

salvation that Paul has written of in chs. 1-3 are not all that Christianity is.

• That the gospel must be lived out “in this present darkness” in growing maturity, unity, purity, imitation of God, love, gospel-reflecting relationships, & resistance of the devil’s schemes.

• That we ought to give careful thought to how the gospel impacts our lives—the gospel must be the defining point of our lives, not this world.

If the gospel is going to be the defining point of my life, what will that look like… • As I interact with other believers? Eph. 4:1-7 • In my walk with Christ? Eph. 4:11-14 • In the values that guide my decisions? Eph.

4:17-32 • In the area of sexual purity? Eph. 5:1-14 • In how I use my time? Eph. 5:15-21 • In healthy relationships? Eph. 5:22-6:9 • As I think about how to handle temptation?

Eph. 6:10-17 • In how I pray? Eph. 6:18-20

What is the main point of Eph. 6:18-20? (and don’t forget to take the context into account!)

The main point: The glorious gospel of Jesus Christ and the sobering reality of the evil schemes of the devil infuse prayer with a strong sense of urgency. Question: Why do you suppose Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, presents prayer as his final imperative (command) in his letter? An interesting quote from John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress on prayer and the armor of God… (part 1, p. 55)

Make some observations…what do you notice in these three verses in the larger context of v. 10-20? A few observations… • Notice that prayer is not listed as an element of

your spiritual armor. • Notice that there are only two things presented

in a non-defensive manner: Scripture (presented as an offensive weapon) and prayer.

• Notice that all of the elements of the armor of God are presented by a symbol (i.e., belt, breastplate, shoes, shield, helmet, sword). Prayer is not.

Make some observations…what do you notice in these three verses in the larger context of v. 10-20? The impression you get from reading this passage is that prayer is the place where the armor of God is most effectively used; or to put it another way, that prayer is the arena in which the Christian uses the armor the Lord has provided. • It’s not the only arena of use, but it is the only one

Paul mentions here. • Remember—Paul’s mention of prayer here is in

the context of dealing with the destructive schemes of an enemy we cannot see who is stronger and smarter than us.

Make some observations…what do you notice in these three verses in the larger context of v. 10-20? Persevering prayer is the means by which we fight most effectively against the schemes the devil is attempting to deceive people with. • Notice Mark 14:38 and Col. 4:2. • And notice the pattern in the early church…Luke

18:1; Acts 1:14; 2 Cor. 1:11; Col. 1:9; 1 Thess. 5:17.

A little more on the context of Eph. 6:18-20…three important aspects of the bigger picture— 1. Eph. 4:1—Staying on the alert in prayer enables

you—and others—to walk in a manner worthy of your calling. Walk praying.

2. Eph. 6:10—Staying on the alert in prayer enables you—and others—to remain strong in the Lord. Be strong praying.

3. Eph. 6:14—Staying on the alert in prayer enables you—and others—to stand firm in the evil day. Stand praying.

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Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 We’ll make 3 observations on this passage and the importance of staying on the alert in prayer. But remember: we can’t separate v. 18-20 from 6:10-17— • We can be confident as we stay on the alert in

prayer because of the all-sufficient provision of our all-sufficient Savior, v. 10-13.

• We have the resources we need for staying on the alert in prayer in the whole armor of God, v. 14-17.

• We have a critical need for staying on the alert in prayer because of the constant schemes of our unseen enemy, v. 11-12.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 1. Pray in the Spirit—v. 18a Paul’s 1st imperative: pray in the Spirit, modified with “at all times,” & “with all prayer & supplication.” So: prayer is to be a prominent part of my life. When, were, & how do you see prayer in the Bible? • “prayer”—general requests; “supplication”—more

specific requests…i.e., all kinds of prayer. • Acts 2:42; Col. 4:2; 2 Tim. 1:3; Ps. 55:17-17.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 1. Pray in the Spirit—v. 18a What does it mean to “pray in the Spirit?” • First, see Jude 20-21. The main clause (v. 21) is

achieved by firm doctrinal convictions and prayer in the Holy Spirit (v. 20). The goal: to persevere in faithfulness to Christ. You keep yourselves in the love of God, and v. 1-2 & 24-25 say that God is ultimately the one who keeps you. The goal of this prayer in the Holy Spirit is simply ongoing faithful perseverance in Christ; the prayer is this: to be aligned with God’s will.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 1. Pray in the Spirit—v. 18a What does it mean to “pray in the Spirit?” • Second, see Rom. 8:26. What is the weakness

the Spirit helps us in? What can we not achieve? v. 29—conformity to Christ. When the Spirit intercedes for us, it is not talking about speaking in tongues; we groan longingly for the completion of our redemption (v. 18-25), and Holy Spirit intercedes for us “according to the will of God” (v. 27). The Spirit prays the will of God for us that we might be fully conformed to Christ.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 1. Pray in the Spirit—v. 18a What does it mean to “pray in the Spirit?” • Third, see Gal. 5:16-18. Paul uses two phrases

here, “walk by the Spirit” & “led by the Spirit.” Which means what? The Holy Spirit in you will always prompt you to godliness (v. 22-24) and not to the flesh (v. 19-21). The Spirit’s concern for all believers is that we grow in conformity with Christ: doing His will, imitating Him (v. 25).

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 1. Pray in the Spirit—v. 18a What does it mean to “pray in the Spirit?” So…to “pray in the Spirit” means what? • To pray consistent with what the Spirit desires

in and for you—conformity with Christ. • To pray what you know to be the will of God (in

other words, Scripture). • To, in a sense, join my requests with His; to align

my mind & will with His. • The one “filled with the Spirit” (5:18) will “pray in

the Spirit,” yielded in submission to Him.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 2. Pray for all the saints—v. 18b Paul’s 2nd imperative: think about somebody else in prayer. They are facing the same enemy as you. • If you are doing Eph. 5:1-2 & 21, it will be your

joy to do 6:18b. And, this is doing Gal. 6:2. • Make specific requests as you “keep alert;” other

uses of the same Gk term— Mark 13:32-37—Jesus illustrates keep alert. Luke 21:34-36—Notice the contrast here. Heb. 13:17—the responsibility of leadership. Stay alert in prayer for the perseverance of others.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 3. Pray for me—v. 19-20 Paul’s 3rd imperative: his prayer request for himself. In his letters there are only 3 recorded instances of Paul requesting prayer for himself: here, Col. 4:3-4, and 2 Thess. 3:1-2 (indirectly). Common factor? • The fact that the advance of the gospel is the

only recorded personal prayer request of Paul’s suggests what about his priorities in prayer?

• Note that two of those letters (Eph., Col.) were written from prison. He doesn’t ask to get out of prison, he asks for the advance of the gospel.

Staying on the alert in prayer—Eph. 6:18-20 3. Pray for me—v. 19-20 Paul’s 3rd imperative: his prayer request for himself. • 2 Tim. 4:14-17—the answer to Paul’s prayer? • Paul knew that he was facing the devil’s schemes,

and knew he did not have the strength within himself to win (see also 1 Cor. 16:9).

• Paul’s personal prayer request was selfless, for the “praise of His glorious grace” (Eph. 1:6)

A few quotes from Charles Spurgeon on prayer to close with…

“Prayer girds human weakness with divine strength, turns human folly into heavenly wisdom, & gives to troubled mortals the peace of God. We know not what prayer can do.”

“There is a general kind of praying which fails for lack of precision. It is as if a regiment of soldiers should all fire off their guns anywhere. Possibly somebody would be killed, but the majority of the enemy would be missed.”

“We should pray when we are in a praying mood, for it would be sinful to neglect so fair an opportunity. We should pray when we are not in a proper mood, for it would be dangerous to remain in so unhealthy a condition.”