“Pray without ceasing”  (1 Thessalonians 5)

“God forbid, that I should sin againt the LORD in ceasing to pray for you.” (1 Samurl 12)

 

“You may read the passages about and think to yourself, “WHAT?…how do others pray without stopping….AND! it’s a sin to cease!!!”  Reader, it is a principle that if “it is written” in Scripture it is true and should be taken serious…”it is “worthy of all acceptation.” The question is how does one pray without ceasing and why is it a sin not to pray?

We’ll take the latter before the former because it is the easiest.  Why is it a sin to cease from prayer?  The reason it is a sin not to pray is because the “Bible tells me so.”  The answer is as simple as the lyrics in “Jesus love me.”

Really that answer is the answer to many of the “whys” we ask regarding Scripture.  Q.”Why should I love my enemy?  A. The Bible tells you so.  Q. Why should I put others ahead of myself? A. The Bible tells me so. Q, Why?  A. The Bible tells me so.  I understand that answer may not be sufficient for unbelievers who, “ask a reason” but it is sufficient for the believer. Once we have been quickened by the Scriptures and have been converted to a new life in Christ, the answers to all our questions is the Bible tells me so.

Don’t get me wrong, thinking Reader, “Thus saith the LORD” is reason enough to believe all that the Scriptures tells us, God does not leave us there; God always gives us a reason…if He chooses to and if He chooses not, “thus saith the LORD” or “it is written” is plenty sufficient. Once you have entrusted the Lord with our eternal and everlasting soul, all can be entrusted to Him for we “know [W]hom I have believed.”  Notice it does not say what I have believed or what I have believed in, but “Whom I have believed.”

In this passage we have been discussing RE: why it is a sin not to pray, it specifies “for you.” Reader when someone needs us to pray for them, it is a sin.  Reader would you not take it as an offense if you were sitting on the side of the road with car trouble and your someone you know drives past while waving and smiling at you?  Would you not be shocked if you were walking downa sidewalk with someone you consider a friend keeps on walking after you stumble and fall down?  If you were telling someone of a real trial you are experiencing and this person, tilts their head and simply says, “Aw” and keeps talking about how great their life is, would it not cause you to wonder of their friendship?

Reader, What if you were walking with two (2) friends and one (1) is bewailing a real grief in their life and the other simple ignore the other and starts up a differnt subject of conversation, would you not feel bad for the one (1) ignored and feel a bit of anger toward the one (1) who ignored the other? I think you would and if not you are equally uncaring.  These examples should be sufficient to the question of why it is a sin not to pray for another.

Another reason your prayerlessness is a sin against God is you are passing up an opportunity to enter HIs divine and royal Presence.  We have never lived under a king’s sovereign rule before submitting to Christ as our Lord and King, therefore we do not know or understand how one should act under a Sovereigns rule. Therefore, one may not see why it is sinful not to pray. If we did live under an earthly king, we would know how offensive it would be to a king, if we ignored an opportunity to enter his royal presence.

What happens if you are called to jury trial and you ignor that call?  You could have a bench warrant put out for your arrest.  What would happen if you ignored a Subpoena to submit to a trial in a court of law?  Would not an arrest warrant be put out for your arrest?

What if you have a court mandated appearance before a judge for a broken law and you choose to nsimple ignore the summons?  You are right, you would have a warrant produced for your lawful apprehension.  Reader, If God opens up His throne room and invites you to enter His presence with all your cares, concerns, petitions, confession, supplications, etc. and you cast that invitation to the gorund and trample over it, you have caused an affront to the court of God.

What if a person, who belives you to be one who cares for them, learns that you have never thought it important to pray for them? Would you not expect them to be terribly hurt? What if the shoe was on the other foot, or if they failed to do unto you as they would have you do unto them? Would you not be hurt?  The answers to the above questions demonstrate your trust in God’s Word concernng prayer.

If you care not to pray for others and if others fail to pray for you and it bothers you not, Reader, you believe not in the power or necessity of prayer. and you manifest an unbelief regarding God’s desire, not only to hear prayer but His power, to hearken. Let me be painfully and possibly and offensively clear…if you do not pray and if you fail to pray for others, you believe not in God’s power, love, and readiness to demonstrate both.  Reader, we would ask you if you really and truly believe in God.

Reader, when I was a young and more immature believer, I would hear of others praying for hours and the “sweet hour of prayer” I thought to myself how others did that and if it wasn’t simple a boast.  It seemed it impossible to me.  I would also hear of pastor spending upto thirteen (13)  hours in their office, each day, I thought and wondered what they could possibly be doing for all that time.

Reader, I can, after years of walking with Christ, tell you what the men of old times did for thirteen (13) hours in their office.  The godly men of old would:
*Pray in and with the Spirit.
*Read daily reports in news papers,  in and with the Spirit of prayer.
*Read and answer correspondense in and with the Spirit of prayer.
*Read the Scriptures in and with the Spirit of prayer.
* Study the Scriptures in and with the Spirit of prayer.
*Counsel others, from Scripture, in and with the Spirit.
*Pray  in and with the Spirit.
*Eat and pray in and the Spirit.
*Meditate in the and with the Spirit.
*Think about and prepare messages that will be (DV) be presented to God’s people in and with the Spirit.
*Writing in and with the Spirit.

You may see a common denominator in the above bullet points.  That commonality is, “in a with the Spirit.”  Reader, this is praying without ceasing.  When one (1) does everything in and with the Spirit one is remaining in God’s Presence perpetually and is “praying  without ceasing.” Now, I now wonder how a pastor does not spend most of his day in his offense and pray without ceasing and how he sins not by failing to pray.

Reader, have you ever wondered what one could pray about or for for such a long time? even sweet hours of prayer. I hope the above dispelled the thought or the picture of a man “struggling” in prayer for so many hours.  The man of God does not kneel at his bedside, “leaving indentions in the floor.”

Cast that defeating picture from your mind. To cease not in prayer is to do all things in and with the Spirit.  One (1) can drive in and with the Spirit. One (1) can wash dishes and change diapers in and with the Spirit.   One(1) can work on a care engine in and with the Spirit, Reader!!! one (1) can watch TV in and with the Spirit!!! Do not think me crude, but a Christ-ian couple can spend their most intimate times in and with the Spirit. One can sleep their nights in and with the Spirit. One can even sin in and with the Spirit, thus did David say, “Against Thee and against Thee only did I sin.”  If one (1) lives and walks in the Spirit, one (1) is fulfilling Paul’s “law of prayer.”  One (1) is praying without ceasing when one (1) brings their imagination under the obedience of Christ.  To do all things, “to the glory of God” is praying without ceasing.  Thinking about God and acknowleding God in all things is praying without ceasing.

“Luther said, “Let thy words be few” when praying and the LORD say, “You weary [M]e with your much speaking.”  The above explains that paradox.  After writing all of the above let me give you things to pray about or for in a day of ceasless prayer:
*THe past night of rest or night of sleeplessness in His Presense.
*The new days events and adventures.
*Grace to live this new day for God’s glory.
*To be a blessing for others.
*To put a guard upon your lips and to let all things be spoken bt grace.
*To leave all persons and places better than you found them.
*THank God for the days events thus far and for the rest of the day to be spent for His glory, and as a blessing to others.
*Read the Word in and with the Spirit. Pray before reading, during reading and after reading.  Ask for opportunities to apply spiritual lessons to your day and other’s day.
*Thank God for the days events thus far and that His blessing follow you for the rest of the day.
*Thank Him for the food you will enjoy…pray before eating, during eating and after eating.
*When someone does something that may bother you, pray for grace and act in that grace and then thank God for  that grace.
*THank God for the events thus far and for grace to continue.
*Pray and thank God for those that are in your life…even the ones that cause trouble.
*Ask God to help you be sensitive to His leading(s).
*Thank God for traffic lights, even the red ones.
*Ask God what you should learn from something that did not go well.”
*Thank God….just Thank Him and ask Him to forgive you for not being able to remember all the times you forgot to thank Hi.
*Acknowkedge God in all your ways.
*Thank God for all the time He reminded you not to lean upon you own faulty wisdom.
*Ask God to led you in a time of meditaion upon His Word(s), Ways, and Works.
*Ask Him to help ypu become more Christ-like.
*Ask Him to help others to grow in their knowledge of God and His Word.
*THank God for the knowledge, understanding, and Wisdom He grants you.
*Thank Christ for His imputed righteousness.
*Thank God for sending His Only Begotten Son to die in your place.
*Praise Christ for His strength and for allowing His righteousness to impute His righteousness to your account and for bearing your sins against Him.
*Thank the Spirit for enlightening your understanding in concern with the Gospel of Christ.
*Ask God for His blessings upon your evening.
*Thank Him for the days events and opportunities to bring Him glory and to forgive you your many…very many trespasses.
*Ask God for a peaceful night of rest.

Reader, need I give you more things to pray for? Are not the above suffient cause and reasons and example to keep your prayer life active? I could give you many more, but I trust the above is sifficient. The above should be sufficient reason and example for you to confess the sin of failing to pray, to pray for others, and for yourself as well as ignoring God’s invitation to approach Him in His Throne of grace…His throne of grace is there for you and to deny that invitations to deny His throne and His grace.

Let me give a few metaphors for what I am speaking to concerning ” in and with the Spirit”:
* Driving silently in a car with another without awkward silence.  You both are aware of the other and have acknowledged each other’ presence.
*Spending quality time watching TV without speaking….I’m serious. The person who says time in front of a television is not quality time is wrong.  We should not spend ALL our time infron of the television, but mush bonding has been established and can be established…It gives a family a subject to discuss.  I spend most of my time with the Lord, so I obviously spend time speaking to my family about things of God, God, and their relationship to God and while I can spend days with other pastors speaking about God and His greatness, this is not a topic that is what everyone else in my life wants to discuss or needs to discuss and that is not a sleight against them.

Television gives a family something to discuss on an even or equal ground.  When my children were younger I certainly spoke to them about God and the DEEP things of God….kids get it…trust me. However, as kids are kids and adults are adults, attention spans are short so we needed other things…unimportant things (in relation to the things of God) must be talked about.  Hannah, when she was young, she and I would spend hours on a Friday night watching, Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and would discuss that togethers. We would discuss how that show demonstrated soooo much Christ-ianity and sound spiritual sugjects.  Reader, if you are offended by the last senstence, save your remarks…you know not what you are speaking to or about.

I got off of my topic, but I’m sure that rabbit trail will be helpful to someone.

Reader, another metaphor of spening time in and with the Spirit is the marriage bed.  It is important for a husband and wife spent their nights with each other in the marriage bed.  Before I leave the last two (2) sentences, let me say something. There are reasons and times for a happily married couple to sleep apart.
*If one (1) or both are in a period of prayer of fasting and prayer, but they should not spent too much apart, lest the devil enter into mind or marriage bed.
*Full disclosure, there are times my wife and I MUST sleep apart. This writer is a violent sleeper. I scream and shout in my sleep. I also go days, many day without sleep. I do not say that as a complaint for I spend those nights in and with the Spirit.
*A reason a married couple could and should sleep apart is if their is abuse in the marriage.
*A couple should never sleep apart due to a disagreement as the devil may gain a foothold in a night of sleepless anger or angry dreamng.
Therefore, a married couple sleeping together is a good metaphor for praying ceaseless ness and for doing all things in and with the Spirit.

As this article has been lengthy it is worthy of you time and thought.

Godspeed.