True disciples wait on God in prayer!

Waiting on God in prayer is the second mark for true discipleship. The first mark is true disciples follow Jesus Christ. We discussed it in one of my previous posts. Both post describe the five marks of true discipleship. 

Waiting on God in prayer is a mark for true discipleship, described in Acts 1. In this book, Jesus gives the disciples the promise (verse 8) that the Holy Spirit will come upon them and they will be His witnesses. 

Based on Acts 1:14, we find out that the disciples wait on God to fulfill the promise in prayer. The reason they did so is because that is what they saw Jesus do. And here is what Jesus did, which the disciples would embody later as the best way for waiting on God. 

1. Jesus prayed daily

Jesus prayed early in the morning (see Mark 1: 35). He also prayed in the evening at a variety of occasions (Matthew 14: 23). Not only did He pray in the evening, but he sometimes prayed the entire night (Luke 6:12). 

2. Jesus prayed for others

A. Jesus prayed for others to be protected. An example of Jesus praying for someone’s protection is that of Peter. In Luke 22: 32, Jesus told Peter that He had prayed for him.

There is a similar instance with Jesus asking God to protect others. But, this time, Jesus prayed for all the disciples then as well for the ones to come (John 17). In this passage with focus on verse 15, Jesus asks the Father to keep (protect) His disciples (then and in all time) from the evil one.

B. Jesus also prayed for others to be forgiven (Luke 23: 34).

C. Jesus prayed for others to believe in God. You read about this in John 11. Taken to the place where his best friend, Lazarus, was buried, Jesus prays asking God to raise his friend for the people’s sake. His prayer is that they come to believe in the One who has sent Him (God Father). Read John 11: 41-42.     

3. Jesus prayed even when life was tough

Jesus prayed even when things did not go well. He prayed for 3 primary things to take place during tough times in His brief life here on earth. 

1. Jesus prayed for God’s purpose to be fulfilled in His life.  The pressure of giving up was there. But, He did not and what helped Him was prayer.  During his time of trials, Jesus always prayed that God’s purpose rules over everything in His life. See John 12: 27.

2. Jesus prayed to seek God’s perfect will. (Luke 22: 42)

3. Jesus prayed to receive strength from heaven. (Luke 22: 43) 

True disciples of Jesus Christ pray as Jesus prayed

So, if we claim to be disciples of Jesus Christ, we ought to pray as Jesus did it.

First, we have to pray daily. Make your life a living sacrifice (Romans 12: 1-2). What this means is you seize every opportunity throughout the day to say a prayer. A while ago, I wrote prayer life made easier. In this post, I laid out 4 tips to help make prayer life a little easier in such a busy society. Check it out here. 

Second, we have to pray for others. Pray for others asking God to help them with:

• protection from the evil one God’s,
• forgiveness, and
• faith and continued spiritual growth through Jesus Christ.

Third, we have to pray for ourselves even when things aren’t as we want them to be. Here are some of the things we could ask for:

• endurance and God’s purpose to be fulfilled in our lives,
• God’s perfect will, and
• strength and power to face anything or anyone unafraid. 

Click here to listen to the full audio message.

Please, don’t keep this to yourself. Share it with a friend or a family member who may need words of encouragement. Thank you so much for doing so!