Trinity Baptist Church

Praying with Paul

Wanted: Bold Believers!

Colossians 4:2-4

 

According to pollster George Barna, almost 90% of Americans say they pray. Over 60% of unchurched Americans say they pray. Of those unchurched Americans, one in three believes that prayer makes a difference in their lives. Among “born again” respondents, nearly 70% say that God personally answers their prayers.

 

But exactly how do Americans pray? Barna offers these insights:

 

95% express gratitude to God.

 

76% ask God to forgive particular sins.

 

61% make specific requests of God.

 

12% pray in tongues.

 

So how is your prayer life? I imagine that your answer would be, “It depends. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s not so good.” Prayer can be easy or difficult depending on many factors. There are days when we seem to touch heaven with our prayers, and other days when our words seem to bounce off the ceiling.

 

But regardless of how we feel, if we want to know God better, nothing matters more than our prayers. Did you know that nearly 1,400 verses in the Bible speak about prayer?

If you want to grow spiritually, you must learn to pray effectively. There is no shortcut to spiritual growth. Prayer is essential.

 

Prayer makes a difference … we don’t know how … we just know it does.  Prayer brings wisdom.

Prayer provides strength for difficult times.

Prayer convicts us of areas in our life that need changing. Prayer brings us assurance of our position in the Father.

 

We know these things by heart. We know by experience that “prayer changes things.” We know that prayer changes us and it changes the world around us. We know that God gave prayer to us as a wonderful gift. If that is true (and it is), then why don’t we pray more than we do?

 

There are lots of excuses we could offer for not praying, but when it all boils down, we fail to pray because we don’t want to pray. If we wanted to pray more, we would. All the excuses in the world can’t erase that truth.

 

I realize that whenever someone preaches on prayer, especially if you’ve gone to church for many years, it’s tempting to say, “Hey, I already know this. Tell me something I don’t know.” I smile when I hear that because one of my jobs as a pastor is to tell you what you already know—and then to tell you over and over and over again. Some things are so important that we need to be constantly reminded of them. Nowhere is that more true than in the area of prayer. The question is not, “Do you already know this?” but rather “What are you doing about it?” Knowledge that is not put into action is worse than useless.

And I need to remind us that if we know to do right and don’t do it, we are committing sin. 

 

Now, in this sermon series we’re looking at the various prayers of the Apostle Paul in the letters he wrote to different churches. So far we’ve looked at several prayers Paul has prayed for his readers.

 

Today we’re going to look at something different. Colossians 4:2-4 is not a prayer by Paul for others; it’s a prayer request Paul made of his readers.

 

In verse 2, Paul answers the question, “How should we pray?” Then in verses 3-4, he answers the question, “What should we say when we pray?” So this sermon comes from a prayer request Paul made for himself, and from it we learn how to pray and what to say when we pray.

 

First we find

 

 

First he says,

 

 

Colossians 4:2a

 

The phrase “continue earnestly” carries with it the idea of devotion.  Some translations say, “Devote  yourselves to prayer”. 

 

The word “devote” means to grab hold of something and not let go. It’s what happens when you have a tug of war.  One team grabs one end of the rope and another team grabs the other end. You put the small people up front and the beef near the end. Someone yells “Go!” and the pulling begins. People shout, “Don’t give up. Don’t let go.”

You hang on for dear life, and if you lose, you end up getting dragged across the line. To “continue earnestly in prayer” means to hang on no matter what happens. You never give up on prayer even when it seems useless.

 

Always be ready to pray. Pray when you feel like it, pray when you don’t feel like it. Pray when you believe in it, pray when you doubt it. Pray when your heart is filled with faith, pray when you do it by habit. Do you ever feel like giving up? Paul says, “Keep at it!”

 

Scripture repeats that truth over and over. 

 

Luke 18 begins by saying that Jesus “told them a parable, to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart”

 

“Pray without ceasing” (I Thessalonians 5:17 NIV).

 

These verses don’t mean that every word we say has to be a prayer. But they teach us that we should always be ready to pray at a moment’s notice. Keep the lines open so that you can breathe a prayer in an instant. There are times we all feel our prayers are bouncing off the ceiling and hitting us in the head. And in those times when we want to give up, we must keep on praying in spite of how we feel.

 

 

Colossians 4:2

 

“Being vigilant in it” means to “stay awake.” That’s good advice for prayer and also for sermon-listening on Sunday morning! This is a call for earnest prayer. It is the opposite of sleepiness or laziness or coldness or indifference. Have you ever noticed how easy it is to be distracted when you pray? Just as you bow your head, the phone rings, or something distracts you, or you suddenly remember that you have to check the roast in the oven.

 

A thousand things come crowding into your mind. Sometimes it seems as if the devil’s best work comes when we decide to pray. He unloads his full armory of distractions against us. Or perhaps you decide to spend an hour in prayer. So you get on your knees and begin to pray. You pray for yourself, the members of your family, all your friends, the leaders of your church, the missionaries you know, then all the missionaries in the world, then every country in the world. Finally you pray by name for every person in every country of the world (or so it seems). Then you look up and discover you’ve only been praying for five minutes!

 

James 5:16 speaks of the “effective fervent prayers” of the righteous person. They “avail much” with God. They matter to God. He pays attention to “effective fervent prayers.” The Greek word for “fervent” means “boiling.” Boiling prayers get God’s attention.

 

Do you know what a “boiling” prayer is? You’ll discover what that means when the doctor says, “We’re taking your child away for surgery. It will probably last two hours.” When they wheel your child away, you’ll learn what “boiling prayer” means. Nothing can distract you then.

Praying like this speaks of total concentration. Better a short prayer from the heart than a long prayer that puts you to sleep.

 

Did you ever notice how often we say, “Box your head and close your eyes” when we pray?  If God is up in heaven, why do we have to close our eyes and bow our heads when we pray? The truth is we don’t.  We just have a tough time concentrating if we don’t bow our heads and close your eyes and intentionally try to keep out the distractions. 

 

In the Old Testament men would often pray standing up, with outstretched arms, looking up to heaven, eyes wide open. I find that I do my best praying when I’m mowing the grass!  The noise drowns out everything else.  I’m sure not going to go to sleep and I can concentrate on God.  Whatever helps you stay alert is the right way for you to pray.

 

Consider a Marine sentry guarding a base in Kuwait, not far from the Iraqi border. Now compare that soldier with a security guard at the hospital in Ardmore. 

 

Who will be more alert? It better be the Marine sentry in Kuwait. The one who believes he is on the front lines is going to be more alert. That’s not to say things don’t happen at the hospital, but the chances are much greater in the Middle East. 

 

Our problem with prayer is that we think we’re a security guard at Mercy when in reality we’re like the Marine sentry in Kuwait. He has to stay alert because his buddies are depending on him. It’s life or death to them.

We mess around in prayer because we think it doesn’t matter, when in reality we are sentries standing guard at the front lines of spiritual combat.

 

Here’s the third thing:

 

 

Verse 2 adds, “with thanksgiving”. 

 

Gratitude is the doorway to every spiritual blessing. Why would God give you more if you are not thankful for what has already been given? If we don’t know what else to do when we pray, we can always find reasons to be thankful. Someone has said that there are only two basic prayers, and each is only one word: “Help!” and “Thanks!” If we said “Thank you” to the Lord more often, we might get the help we need more often.

 

As I thought about how to improve our daily “attitude of gratitude,” four suggestions came to mind:

 

First, when you wake up in the morning, take 30 seconds to give thanks to the Lord for the day that stretches before you. Thank him in advance for all that will happen that day. Do it before your feet hit the floor.

 

Second, when you are frustrated with someone or tempted to lose your temper during the day, instead of counting to ten, take a few seconds to think of ten blessings you have received. You may find that your anger has melted away.

 

Third, when you are interrupted (as we all are every day), instead of being exasperated, remember that God rules over the “interruptions” of life, and what seems an “interruption” to us is really his rearrangement of our plans. So take time to thank him for the interruptions as they come to you.

Fourth, when you climb into your bed at night, take 30 seconds to review the day and give God thanks for the blessings you have experienced and for God’s protection every step of the way.

 

So there you have it. When you pray …

 

Be devoted to prayer.

 

Be watchful in prayer.

 

Be thankful in prayer.

 

This is not just good advice. These attitudes make prayer life-changing.

 

Then having told us how to pray, Paul now tells us what to pray and his focus is on praying evangelistically. Prayer is essential for spreading the gospel. As we pray, God grants us (and others for whom we pray) the boldness we normally lack. As we will see, earnest prayer is a vital link in the evangelistic chain.

 

In verses 3 and 4 we find

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colossians 4:3a   “praying. . . for us”

 

This phrase contains a little Greek word that means “together” or “at the same time.” The implied meaning is, “O Colossians, when you come together to worship, take time to pray together for us.” United prayer honors God because the faith of one believer strengthens another and causes a great outpouring of prayer to our Heavenly Father.

 

Christians have a special duty to pray for their spiritual leaders. Those who labor in the Lord’s work cannot do what they need to do in their own strength It’s easy to be discouraged and overwhelmed as you consider what is required versus what you have to offer. Prayer is always needed for those who lead God’s people and for their families.  Lisa and I have three close friends in the ministry whose families have been and are under attack. 

 

Pray for our pastors, all our leaders, and for all our missionaries everywhere and especially for those you know personally.

 

 

Colossians 4:3b – “that God would open to us a door for the Word”

 

 

 

 

 

That is a literal translation, “door for the Word.” The concept of “open doors” in the New Testament almost always has to do with new opportunities for spreading the gospel. It might refer to someone you want to reach for Christ. It could refer to a brother or a sister, your parents or your children, or some other relative.

 

It might be an open door to preach Christ in a new town or a new country. It could refer to an open door to reach an unreached people group. The idea is that Christ himself opens and shuts the doors of opportunity (Revelation 3:7). Therefore, we should pray to the Lord that in his sovereign grace, He will open wide the doors of opportunity so that we can make Christ known to others.

 

This is a powerful and arresting thought. We all have the opportunity to open doors for others through our prayers. You can open doors for me and I can open doors for you as we pray for each other. You may be thousands of miles from where I am, but your prayers can change my ministry and my prayers can change your ministry wherever you happen to be.

 

Geography is no barrier when the Lord is involved. By prayer we can change the world without ever leaving our living room.  That’s why we pray for our mission teams and missionaries wherever they happen to be.  You may be in your bedroom in Ardmore praying, but will open doors in Africa or Utah or Mexico or Idaho or wherever there is someone willing to share the gospel. 

 

 

 

 

There are doors waiting to be opened everywhere. Some of them appear to closed, but they can be opened by the power of God iin response to faithful prayer. Would you join me in praying for God to open doors for the Word to go forth in conquering power?

 

 

Colossians 4:3c

 

When Paul wrote these words, he was in prison in Rome, chained to guards 24 hours a day. He does not ask his readers to pray that he might be set free. Instead, he asks for boldness in his current unpleasant circumstances.

 

He knows he is in prison for the gospel. He got there by obeying the Lord. Therefore, God must want him there. God can use him there. He will not ask to be set free. He is not ashamed of his present situation.  He makes no attempt to hide it. HE doesn’t whine about what he’s going through. 

 

He simply requests prayer for boldness to preach even while he is in chains. And his message is all about Christ—the “mystery” that the Gentiles do not understand. The story is not about Paul—it’s about Jesus! That’s the focus of his whole life.

 

 

Colossians 4:4

 

The final request is for clarity in his gospel presentation. He wants to make sure that what he says is easily understood by others.

Anyone can make the simple complicated; it takes great wisdom to make the complicated simple. We have the responsibility of being clear in our gospel presentation. I find this request noteworthy because Paul knew better than anyone how to speak for Christ. He certainly knew the gospel better than these young Colossian believers.

 

Yet he asks them to pray that he would do what he already knew how to do. The greatest Christians, the best speakers, the most powerful evangelists, the most knowledgeable teachers all need the prayers of others that they might do effectively what they are called by God to do.

 

We need to pray that our speech is clear and plain, with no confusing phrases, nothing left unclear, nothing hidden from our hearers. The Good News is not good news if those who hear us don’t understand what we are saying.

 

Think about it this way:  What good is an open door if no one has the courage to go through it or wastes it by speaking unclearly when they do?  And what good does it do to be willing and able to share the gospel if there is no open door to do so? 

 

See why every part of the request is important? That’s why Paul is asking them to pray for him in this way.  He know he will not have open doors and will not be able to communicate clearly unless they were praying for him. 

 

By the way, that is still needed.  If you don’t pray for me and I preach a confusing sermon, it’s really your fault! I can’t take all the blame for a sermon that makes no sense!

As a pastor, I can’t think of anything more encouraging than knowing that you are praying for me.

 

By prayer we may change the world.  From our knees we can impact distant lands.  We may never preach but our prayers may make the preaching of others successful.  We may never be foreign missionaries but our prayers may open doors for missionaries around the world.

 

By prayer we partner with God’s people everywhere. And we do that even though we never leave our home.  By prayer I can minister in Bangladesh even though I have never set foot there.  By prayer I can become a world traveler even though I may be homebound.  By prayer I can traverse the oceans, enter closed nations, visit the courts of distant monarchs, and travel the dusty trails of far-off lands.

 

By prayer I can visit Singapore, Seoul, Beijing, Tokyo, Manila, Johannesburg, Nairobi, Kiev, Buenos Madrid, Berlin, Caracas, Moscow, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Baghdad, Tel Aviv, Paris, Helsinki, and a thousand other cities in countries I may never personally visit.

 

By prayer I can become a world traveler. And no terrorist threat can ground my plane, no terror alert can alter my plans, no fears of war can stop me, no visa problems can keep me from my appointed visits. By prayer I can go anytime, anywhere to support the work of God.  God has so much more to do through us if only we will unite together to seek his face. O Lord, make us a praying people.

 

Let’s pray.