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Emphasis Mine In Bible Verses
What Is Praying In The Spirit?
Pray Without Ceasing
Persistent Praying Vs. Much Speaking
What Is Praying In The Spirit?"
Praying in the Spirit is mentioned three times in Scripture.
First Corinthians 14:15 says, “So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind.”
Ephesians 6:18 says, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
Jude 20 says, “But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.”
So, what does it mean to pray in the Spirit?
The phrase" praying in the Spirit" is often understood as strictly referring to speaking in tongues. This is not possible simply because in Ephesians 6:18 Paul instructs us to “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” and to always keep on praying for all the saints”. We cannot possibly do either if we ourselves don’t have a clue as what what we are saying. To request something in prayer or to pray for another person we have to use coherent thought.
Therefore, praying in the Spirit refers to how we are praying i.e what is guiding our prayer. Praying in the Spirit means according to the Spirit’s leading, with the help of the Spirit, and according to His will. It is praying for things the Spirit leads us to pray for.
As Romans 8:26 tells us, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”
Pray Without Ceasing
Paul's instruction to "pray without ceasing" in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 can be more than a little confusing and has been interpreted in very unbiblical ways.
For example in his book The Purpose Driven Life Rick Warren suggests that "one way is to use "breath prayers" throughout the day as many Christians have done for centuries".
This idea based on "Practicing The Presence of God" written by a "Brother Lawrence" (real name Nicholas Herman) who lived from-1691 and worked in the kitchens of the monastery. He was a mystic who advocated a "higher" form of prayer. https://www.inplainsite.org/html/pd7l_inappropriate_quotes.html
When Paul spoke about praying without ceasing, he did not mean nonstop talking, but rather an attitude of God-consciousness and God-surrender that we carry with us all the time. Every waking moment is to be lived in an awareness that God is with us and that He is actively involved and engaged in our thoughts and actions. He certainly did not mean short, endlessly repeated phrases.
The words "without ceasing" were translated from the Greek adialeiptos used three other times in the New Testament
1.) God, whom I serve with my spirit in preaching the gospel of His Son, is my witness how constantly (Gk, adialeiptos) I remember you (Romans 1:9 BSB)
2.) and continually (Gk, adialeiptos) recalling before our God and Father your work of faith, your labor of love, and your enduring hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thessalonians 1:3 BSB)
3.) And we continually (Gk, adialeiptos) thank God because, when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as the true word of God — the word which is now at work in you who believe. (1 Thessalonians 2:13 BSB)
In none of the other three occurrences of adialeiptos above can it possibly be imagined that
1.) Paul never stopped thinking about the Roman Church,
2.) that he spent every waking moment reminding the Father of the Thessalonian's good points or
3.) he never stopped thanking God for their faith.
That our prayers "should be frequent and persistent makes a whole lot more sense all four times adialeiptos was used. prayer should be akin to breathing - something we do continuously and persistently in constant dependence on and communion with the Father.
Persistent Praying Vs. Much Speaking
Persistent Praying
In order to teach us the value of not giving up, not lose heart, motivation, enthusiasm or get discouraged when we pray. Jesus told two parables. Although both situations are different (the Persistent Friend's persevering prayer is for necessities - the Persistent Widow's is for justice) both teach the necessity of persistent and persevering prayer.
The Parable of the Persistent Widow
Beginning in Luke 18:1 Jesus told His disciples a parable of a persistent widow that went like this
A widow once came to a judge and asked him to give her justice against her adversary. The judge, described as “unrighteous” and who self admittedly did not fear god nor respect people, was reluctant to grant her her wish. However, he eventually gave in only because the woman wouldn't stop bothering him and he was afraid that if he didn't do what she asked she would wear him out.
Some may have understood this parable to mean that we have to persist in prayer in order to overcome God's reluctance to answer us.
This is not the case.
If this unrighteous and seemingly rather arrogant judge was induced to do justice by persevering prayer how much more will a compassionate God do for those who persistently cry out to Him. Jesus asked the rhetorical question,
Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He continue to defer their help?
And answered it Himself,
I tell you, He will promptly (Gk. tachei ) carry out justice on their behalf. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:7-8 BSB)
Tachei means quickly or speedily. (https://biblehub.com/interlinear/luke/18-8.htm)
The Parable of the Persistent Friend
In Luke 11:5-13 immediately after teaching the disciples The Lord’s Prayer Jesus told the story of a man who woke a friend up in the middle of the night because another friend had returned from a journey and he had nothing to serve him.
Thus he needed some bread.
The sleeping friend was initially reluctant to get out of bed and as Jesus said
even if he will not get up and give him anything just because he is his friend, yet because of his shamelessness he will get up and give him as much as he needs. (V.8)
In other words the now roused man would not have done anything except for the friends persistence.
Much Speaking
On the other hand there are passages in the New Testament that speak against repetitious prayer or “many words”. For example, in Matthew 6 Jesus told His disciples … (Note: Matthew places this instruction just before the Lord taught them the Lords Prayer)
But as for you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. “And when you are praying, do not use thoughtless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. “So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. (Matthew 6:6-8 NASB)
Ecclesiastes 5 says pretty much the same thing
Do not be quick with your mouth or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few. For the dream comes through much effort, and the voice of a fool through many words. (Ecclesiastes 5:2-3 NASB)
So how do we reconcile the both sets of instructions.. we should not use "many words" in prayer and that we should be persistent in prayer?
The key is to understand that there is no magic in repetition or in the words themselves. The following is excerpted from The Payoff of Persistent Prayer by Philip Yancey
The Lord’s Prayer, often reduced to a mumbled ritual, an incantation, takes on new light in this story abutting it. We should pray like a salesman with his foot wedged in the door opening, like a wrestler who has his opponent in a headlock and won’t let go.
The God “who watches over you will not slumber,” promises a psalm of comfort. Even so, sometimes when we pray it feels as if God has indeed nodded off. Raise your voice, Jesus’ story implies. Strive on, like the shameless neighbor in the middle of the night. Keep pounding the door.
Author Jerry Sittser sees persistence through the eyes of a parent. “My kids have asked me for many things over the years - a CD player, bicycle, boat, car, house, exotic vacations ... You name it, they have asked it. I ignore them most of the time. I am as hard hearted as they come, a parent made of granite. My ears perk up, however, when they persist, because persistence usually means they are serious about something.”
Unlike a human parent, God knows my true motive, whether pure or impure, noble or selfish, from the moment of the original request. As I ponder Jesus’ stories, I cannot help wondering why God places such a premium on persistence. If I find it tedious to repeat the same requests over and over, surely God tires of hearing them. Why must I pound on the door or elbow my way into the courtroom? Why won’t a single sincere request suffice?
In search of clues, I turn first to the account of Jesus’ life, and in several scenes I can see the value of persistence. After Lazarus died, his two sisters, the industrious Martha and meditative Mary, both accused Jesus: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” They vented their accumulated grief and frustration, so much so that Jesus, too, sank into sorrow - before granting their deepest wish in one of his greatest miracles.
In another scene, a Canaanite woman pestered Jesus about her afflicted daughter. “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us,” urged the disciples, reminiscent of the hard-hearted villains in Jesus’ parables. Even Jesus brushed her off, first ignoring her request and then challenging her right to make it. The foreign woman persisted and Jesus, impressed, granted her wish and then held her up as a model of faith.
Beside a well in Samaria, Jesus parried with a woman about her lifestyle and her religious beliefs. On the way to Jerusalem, he engaged a rich young man in a discussion on the dangers of wealth. The woman persisted and found her life transformed; the rich man gave up and turned away sad.
From these scenes I learn about God’s interest in the process I go through. Always respectful of human freedom, God does not twist arms. God views my persistence as a sign of genuine desire for change, the one prerequisite for spiritual growth. When I really want something, I strive and persist. Whether it’s climbing Colorado’s mountains, chasing the woodpeckers away from my roof, or getting a high-speed Internet connection for my home, I’ll do whatever it takes. Do I show the same spirit in prayer?
God wants us to bring our requests boldly and without reservation. By failing to do so I will likely miss out on some delightful surprises. What if the ten with leprosy by the side of the road had not shouted out to Jesus for healing or if the Canaanite woman had shyly abandoned the request for her daughter?
Persistent prayer keeps bringing God and me together, with several important benefits. As I pour out my soul to God, I get it off my chest, so to speak, unloading some of my burden to One who can handle it better. Little by little, as I get to know God I learn that God has nothing in common with an unjust judge or a stingy neighbor, though at times it may seem so. What I learn from spending time with God then better equips me to discern what God wants to do on earth, as well as my role in that plan.
Cicero gave a blunt assessment of the purpose of pagan prayer: “We do not pray to Jupiter to make us good, but to give us material benefits.” For the Christian, something like the reverse applies. We may approach God with some material benefit in mind, and sometimes, blessedly, we receive it. But in the very act of praying we also open up a channel that God can use in transforming us, in making us good. Persistent prayer changes me by helping me see the world, and my life, through God’s eyes. As the relationship progresses I realize that God has a clearer picture of what I need than I do.
When I persistently pursue another person, I am usually trying to persuade that person to adopt my point of view. I want the car salesman to match my price, the neighbor to vote for my candidate. I may, especially in the early stages of prayer, approach God the same way, but inevitably I find that God is the wise and senior partner in the relationship. I find, in fact, that God has been asking, seeking, knocking too, in the subtle ways I so easily ignore.
“A God that should fail to hear, receive, attend to one single prayer, the feeblest or worst, I cannot believe in; but a God that would grant every request of every man or every company of men, would be an evil God - that is no God, but a demon,”
said George MacDonald. Prayer is not a monologue but a true dialogue in which both parties accommodate to the other.
Although I bring my honest concerns to God, over time I may come away with an entirely different set of concerns. When Peter went on a roof to pray (Acts 10), he was mainly thinking about food. Little did he know that he would descend from the roof convicted of racism and legalism. In persistent prayer, my own desires and plans gradually harmonize with God’s...
In prayer we present requests, sometimes repeatedly, and then put ourselves in a state to receive the result. We pray for what God wants to give us, which may turn out to be good gifts or it may be the Holy Spirit. (From God’s viewpoint there is no better response to persistent prayer than the gift of the Holy Spirit, God’s own self.) Like Peter, we may pray for food and get a lesson in racism; like Paul we may pray for healing and get humility. We may ask for relief from trials and instead get patience to bear them. We may pray for release from prison and instead get strength to redeem the time while there. Asking, seeking, and knocking does have an effect on God, as Jesus insists, but it also has a lasting effect on the asker-seeker-knocker.
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