Title: Luke 18:1-8 Pray always
Contents Luke 18:1-8
There are many examples of prayer in the Bible. Jacob who wrestled with God, David who called on God with all his heart, Elijah praying on Mount Carmel, Paul and Silas who prayed and praised even while in prison. Prayer is the breath of the soul. No matter how busy and tired you are, just as you have to breathe to live, prayer is what you must do without ceasing until you enter the kingdom of heaven. A soul that does not pray is a dead soul. So, why can we always pray?
First, because we believe in the existence of God. God lives and is with us. God sees our thoughts and hearts from afar. David said in the psalms. “You know when I sit down and when I rise up, and you know my thoughts from afar” (Psalm 139:2) David believed that God is alive and always had fellowship with Him through prayer. If you believe that God is alive, you will pray.
Second, because we believe in the sovereignty of God. If we believe that God is in control of all things in nature and that nothing happens without God's permission, we will pray. As the saying goes, “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? But not one of them will fall to the ground unless your Father permits it” (Matthew 10:29). We have no choice but to ask God, who is sovereign, in every situation, such as when we are faced with a crisis.
However, not all prayers are answered by God. The prayer that God answers to is first, sincere prayer. God does not listen to prayers with all kinds of rhetoric, but unless you have a heart to fear God. He heard the heartfelt prayer of Hezekiah, who was sick and died, saying, 'Because he was sick and dying, turn his face to the wall, and remember that I have walked in your presence with truth and all my heart, and did what was good in your sight' (Isaiah 38:2~3). Just as God is sincere and answers the prayers of those who do righteousness.
Second, it is the prayer of the humble. God did not hear the prayers of the proud Pharisees. He heard ‘the tax collector’s prayer that he could not look up to heaven, but beat his breast and ask for mercy’ (Luke 18:13-14). In this way, God answers the prayers of those who can confess that it is only by the grace of Christ that I am who I am, who can humble themselves and bow down before God.
Third, it is an earnest prayer of faith. The Canaanite woman who was looking for Jesus to heal her daughter who was possessed by an evil spirit heard the saying, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs” (Matthew 15:26), but she did not give up. The woman pleaded with Jesus, saying, “O Lord, even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table” (Matthew 15:27). At this time, Jesus saw the woman's faith and healed her daughter. God hears the earnest prayer of faith.
A praying soul has the life of Christ in it. A living soul seeks God and asks Him. Therefore, we who confess Jesus as our Savior should always watch and pray.