Prayer – the Transforming Friendship: Psalm 13, John 15: 9-17

Psalm 13 and John 15:9-17

• Psalm 13: David expresses the angst of unanswered prayer, yet concludes that the Lord has been good to him

• John 15: love, joy, friendship with Jesus: “whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.”

Created in the image of God

• Genesis 1:26-27 “Let us make human beings in our image, in our likeness.”

• Genesis 3: God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, but Adam and Eve hid from him

• Genesis 4:15 God marked Cain for protection• Genesis 4:25 At that time people began to call on

the name of the Lord

Made for relationship with God

• “Father in heaven, you have made us for yourself; our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you”

• Augustine of Hippo, (Algeria) 354-430 AD

Keeping company with God

• Prayer as “keeping company with God”

• Clement of Alexandria (Egypt) 150-215 AD

• “There is no mode of life in the world more pleasing and more full of delight than continual conversation with God”

• Brother Lawrence (France) 1614-1691

What keeps us from prayer?

1. We have never had a close relationship with God2. We love ourselves before all others3. We distrust God4. We hurt inside5. We may fear our inner darknessPrayer is spiritual warfare against all these – we are all sinners

God is always seeking relationship

• God asked Adam and Eve, “where are you?”• God initiated relationships with Noah, Abraham,

Moses• People of Israel left slavery in Egypt to become the

children of God• “Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us,

and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” Psalm 100:3

Friendship with God transforms us

• “Where are you?” followed by “what is this you have done?”

• Confession is necessary. We need to be honest with God

• Over generations, Israelites were transformed• Psalms provide the focus of prayer (Psalm 116: 1-2,

7)• Proverbs provide guidance for daily living (Proverbs

3:5-8)

Relationship with God available to all

• “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16)

• Jesus’ answer to Thomas: “I am the way and the truth and the life.” (John 14:6)

• “The Holy Spirit will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” John 14:25-26

Totality of our relationship with God

• We are relating to a Father in heaven who loves us in his Son, Jesus, and has given us the Holy Spirit to guide and comfort us

• Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

Jesus as way, truth and life of prayer

1. He submitted to his Father: “I do nothing on my own but speak what the Father has taught me – I always do what pleases him.” (John 8:28-29)

2. He prayed in private: “When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.” (Matthew 6:6)

Unanswered Prayer

• Jesus said, “You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” (John 14:14)

• Yet not all prayers in Bible were answered• Jesus said, “yet not my will but yours be done.”

(Luke 22:42)• We may need to delight in our weakness (2

Corinthians 12:10), we may know only in part (1 Corinthians 13:12), the heroes of faith did not receive what was promised (Hebrews 11:39)

Our attitude in prayer

• We ask God in faith, believing our requests to be consistent with his character

• We submit to our heavenly Father

• We acknowledge God is good and loves us

Prayer in community

• “with all God’s people” (Ephesians 3:17-19)• “We all … are being transformed into his image”

(2 Corinthians 3:18)• Mother Theresa of Calcutta: “My secret is a

very simple one: I pray. Prayer is simply talking to God. He speaks to us; we listen. We speak to him; he listens.”

Prayer in the Trinity

• “But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.” (Jude 20-21)

• Relationship with friends and in the Trinity – the transforming friendship with God