Praying Like Jesus: Watch and Learn

How do we learn to pray?

There is no shortage of people who will tell us the “right way.” At the click of a button Google can provide us with thousands if not millions of self-proclaimed spiritual advisers and religious gurus. So, who do we listen to? For Christians, the best place to begin in answering these questions is, with Jesus.

The gospel writers provide us with an unparalleled glimpse into how Jesus personally communed with God the Father. In watching and listening to Jesus pray, we learn to pray.  In Matthew 26 we are invited into a scene that is especially instructive. Jesus knows the terror of the cross stands before Him, and so He retreats to a garden to pray with those closest to Him. In this moment what will He say? How will He pray? And in watching Him, what will we learn? What makes for effective prayer? “And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, ‘My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.’” Matthew 26:39, ESV

Jesus is modeling the importance of committing ourselves to the habit of pulling away to pursue time with God

Place

The first thing that you notice as you observe this scene is the loneliness of this prayer (“And going a little farther…”). Jesus is in the thick of the most intense trial that He will face, and it necessitates getting alone with the Father. In this moment Jesus is modeling the importance of committing ourselves to the habit of pulling away to pursue time with God, especially as we we walk through trials. We all need to regularly gather with the church to pray together, but pulling away for regularly personal communion with God has the ability to sustain our strength and nourish our souls in a way that is unique and irreplaceable.

Posture

Matthew not only tells us that Jesus spent time alone in prayer, but he also highlights the posture of Jesus’ prayer (“he fell on his face”). This detail is significant, because Jesus’ physical posture speaks volumes about the posture of his heart. The question is not, “do you fall on your face?” though at times, that posture in prayer would certainly be appropriate; the question this posture provokes is: “how do you approach God in prayer?” There is something about humility in prayer that causes God to put His grace on display in the lives of people. James writing to the early Christians said, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6). Charles Haddon Spurgeon, called the Prince of Preachers, said, “Humility gives us [a] good foot hold in prayer.” Sometimes the answers to questions like: “Why can’t I hear from God?” or “Why don’t my prayers seem to have any traction?” have more to do with the posture of our hearts then God’s unwillingness to answer.

Perseverance

Notice that in verse 43 of the chapter, Matthew tells us that Jesus goes back to this place of prayer three times. He is modeling what he had taught. He is practicing persevering prayer. Too often we are content to simply pray once about something, but again and again, God beckons us to bring our needs to Him repeatedly. There are many reasons God calls us to persistence in prayer, but one of the most central reasons is that He knows that our deepest need is a dependence on Him cultivated through persistent prayer.

Bring your need to him personally, humbly, continually, and confidently

Personal

“My Father…” It is a prayer of personal desire and confident submission. Jesus boldly expresses what he would like to happen, but also submits and subordinates his personal plan to the Father’s sovereign purpose. Ultimately the desire that trumps any other desire that he may have is that the Father’s will is done.This isn’t a prayer of passive fatalistic determinism (i.e.- God already knows what He is going to do, so why even ask…). No, what Jesus models here is confidence in the Father’s goodness and wisdom that frees him up to absolute submission to the Father’s sovereign plan. No matter what your trial. No matter how desperate your situation. Bring your need to him personally, humbly, continually, and confidently, knowing that He knows when to give, how to give, and what to give.