prayer

September 2, 2025 –  The Followers of Jesus Respond to the Threat — Acts #11

David Chupp Acts , , , , ,

September 2, 2025 –  The Followers of Jesus Respond to the Threat — Acts #11
Acts 4:23-31

We have been discussing this one story about Peter, John, and the lame man for the past month. The story unfolds over 24 hours, but spans almost two chapters of Acts.  It began one afternoon at 3 pm when Peter and John were going to the Temple.  There, they encountered a man who was paralyzed from birth, and he was healed.  He followed them into the Temple, and everyone there recognized him as the lame beggar whom they had passed for years.  Peter and John preach for about 2.5 hours and then are placed in custody overnight by the Temple police.  The next day, they are questioned by the court of high priests, who threaten them not to continue to speak about Jesus.

We noted that this is just the beginning of the persecution that will intensify over the following four chapters of Acts, culminating in the first martyr for the faith.  But at this point, the priests don’t yet feel they can do more than threaten them.  So they warn Peter and John not to speak any more about Jesus.

This is Israel in the first century.  They have no First Amendment that guarantees free speech. This is a genuine threat that they must take seriously.  The last person Peter and John saw this group deal with ended up on a cross.  Today, we examine how these followers respond to these threats and consider how we should react when we face similar threats.

Perhaps you feel that this doesn’t apply to you.  In the US, we are not currently under any significant form of persecution. You may not have ever been physically threatened by a person who meant you harm.  But have you ever felt your life was threatened by an accident or illness?  Has your health been threatened?  We all know friends who have been threatened by cancer and other physical threats this past year.  We know people who physical disasters, flooding, fires, and storms have threatened. And while persecution is not a big problem for many of us now, in many countries it is a big problem. The Bible tells us that a time of persecution will come everywhere.  And just as the followers in Acts 4 are seeing the first hints of persecution, we are seeing the first hints of persecution here in the US.  None of us here may live to see more than these stirrings of persecution, but it will come, and we must be ready. We must discuss how we should respond when it does come.   So how do you respond when you are threatened? 

Acts 4:23-31  When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who, through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, ‘Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed’—
For truly, in this city, there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness

How do you respond when you are threatened or get bad news?  They have been warned by the highest court not to speak about Jesus anymore.  However, they feel compelled to share this great news about Jesus with everyone.  

When they got the bad news, here is what they did not do:  They did not panic, fret, wring their hands, cry, moan, or groan.  They did not get angry, sad, depressed, or anxious.  They did not do any of these things.  They prayed.   If your initial response to getting any bad news is not prayer, then you are doing it wrong. 

So these followers in Acts 4 responded to bad news with prayer. But let’s look a little deeper and see how they prayed and what they prayed for.

Acts 4:24  And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord…

They addressed God as “Sovereign Lord.”  What does this title mean?  “Sovereign Lord” is translated from a single Greek word, ‘despotes’, from which we get our word despot.  The modern definition of despot is: “a ruler or other person who holds absolute power, typically one who exercises it in a cruel or oppressive way.”1 Today, this word has a very negative connotation.  But the original Greek term was neutral, referring to the head of a household. (The female equivalent was despoina, or “lady of the house”.)  Later, in the Byzantine Empire, it was a term of high honor.  However, it now carries a very negative connotation, similar to the words ‘tyrant’ or ‘dictator’, which were initially neutral terms until the late 1700s. 

Why did these terms develop such a negative connotation?  Due to the rise of oppressive rulers, people began to realize over time the potential problems that occur when one person holds all the power.   Specifically, it was during the time of the French Revolution and the reign of Louis XIV that the term ‘despot’ became so negative. It was Lord Acton in 1887 who wrote: 

“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence2 and not authority; still more when you superadd the tendency or the certainty of corruption by authority.“3

Power in the hands of men is a temptation few can stand. God alone is the supreme power that is incorruptible.  He is sovereign in that he is all-powerful.  He controls the sun, the moon, and the stars.  He controls the wind, the clouds, and the storms.  And He has the power to control every detail of our lives.  But God, in His wisdom, withholds His control over you unless you allow it.  He asks us to submit our wills to His voluntarily.  Now, there are times when God will override man’s free will.  We see this especially in how God deals with evil kings, such as Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, and Cyrus, as seen in this verse in Proverbs:

Proverbs 21:1  The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of Yehovah; he turns it wherever he will.

God directs the will of kings in circumstances when He must protect or discipline his people.  But this is the exception, not the rule.  Except on these rare occasions, God will only be sovereign in our lives if we allow him to be.  His kingdom is one you choose to enter or exit.  By definition, you are only a part of the kingdom if you follow the rules of the king.  Adam and Eve chose not to follow the king’s law and left the garden.  If we want to be in God’s kingdom, we must follow him as king and obey his precepts.  That is what it means when we call Him ‘Lord.’  He directs, and we follow.  You can only call him ‘Sovereign Lord” if you follow him and obey his laws.

So they pray, addressing God as their ancestors addressed God in the scriptures:

Acts 4:24  Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them…

You see this same manner of addressing God throughout the Bible, especially in the psalms and Isaiah, and here in Nehemiah:

Nehemiah 9:6  You are Yehovah, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.

And then, in their prayer in Acts 4, they quote the first two verses of Psalms 2.  Again, the prayer begins:

Acts 4:24-26   Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit,
“Why did the Gentiles rage, and the peoples plot in vain?
 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers were gathered together, against the Lord and against his Anointed.”

Psalm 2 describes the rebellion of kings and nations against God and His Messiah (His Anointed).  In quoting this psalm, they recognized that the threat was not against them, but against God Himself.  It is God’s plans the high priests want to thwart.  And if you know Psalms 2 as these followers know Psalms 2, you know how this ends.  If you don’t know the psalm, then of course you should stop reading Acts and look it up.

How does the psalm say that God responds to the nations plotting against him?

Psalm 2:4   The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.

He laughs at them.  He tells them he has installed His King in Zion, the one he calls his son.  And he will break the other nations with a “rod of iron”.  He will “dash them to pieces like pottery” (verse 9).  They should recognize his Son as the true king and “celebrate his rule with trembling (verse 11), for “Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.” (verse 12). The first-century disciples, quoting this psalm in their prayer, acknowledge:
1. That God is their personal sovereign.
2. That He is the all-powerful creator who is sovereign over the world.
3. That He has appointed a King to rule, that is His messiah.
4. That His Messiah will defeat all enemies and rule forever.

They continue their prayer, identifying this attack by these priests as the same response these priests had to Jesus.  

Acts 4:27-28  For truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place…

It was inevitable that the powers of religion and government would both rise up against Jesus.  And God would intervene and resurrect Jesus, thus claiming the victory over them, over sin, and over death.  

And now they come to the part of the prayer where they make a request to God regarding the situation in which they have been threatened.  What did they ask for?

If you were being threatened, what would you ask God for?   Obviously, you would ask him to remove the threat.  If someone wants to hurt you, what would you ask for? You would pray, “Please don’t let them hurt me.  Stop them.  Get in their way.”  If your health is threatened, what would you ask for?  “Please heal me.  Please take away this cancer, please heal my heart.”  If you are threatened by temptation, what would you pray for?  “Please remove this temptation.”  All of these sound like reasonable responses, but they are not the complete response that the Bible teaches. 

For example, regarding temptation: On the night Jesus was arrested, Jesus told Peter that the Satan would tempt him.  Jesus tells him that He is praying for him.  What does Jesus pray for Peter?    

Luke 22:31-32  Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.

He does not pray to take away the temptation; he prays for Peter not to fall.  He prays that Peter might endure the temptation.  Trials and temptations are essential parts of our walk with God.  Through them, our faith is tested and grows. If we were to pray away all of our trials, then we could not grow.  This is how the book of James begins:

James 1:2-4  Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

We need trials of various kinds, so that our faith will grow.  These troubles produce a faith that endures.  Now it is okay to ask God to remove them if possible.  Remember, Jesus prayed in this manner in the Garden.  

Luke 22:42  Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.

God does not want us to suffer, but sometimes suffering is necessary to learn to depend on Him, to learn obedience, or to accomplish the mission He has for us.  Discipline can be painful.  What parent has not said, “This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.”  (Though I wonder if any children ever believed that.)  Some lessons are unfortunately learned the hard way.  

This is the same way we should pray if someone is trying to harm us or kill us.  That is precisely the situation Jesus was in when he prayed this prayer.  He was about to be handed over to men who would torture him to death. Yet Jesus prays, ‘If this is the best thing for the kingdom of God, then let’s do it the hard way.’   Be honest with God and tell him you really would like to avoid that bad situation, but then be a good servant of God and submit to his will if it is best for the kingdom.  God is our sovereign, our king, so we bow our will to the will of the king.  

When the highest court in the land threatened these first-century followers, they didn’t respond with worry, with anxiety, with defeat, or with dismay.  They turned to pray.  They prayed to God, who was sovereign in their lives, and they were willing to follow the path He directed.  They recognized the battle is not so much against them, but against God Himself.  And they knew from scripture that God would be victorious, just as he was victorious over these same priests when they threatened Jesus.   But remember that victory for Jesus was marked by a cross, a grave, and ultimately a resurrection.  So too, victory for most of these followers will end in violent deaths before their resurrection.

When they were threatened, they didn’t ask God to remove the threat. What did they ask? 

Acts 4:29-30  And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.

Look upon these threats and give us the boldness to continue speaking your word, despite the threats from these priests.  They saw themselves in a battle.  And they have entered a battlefield where it looks like they are outnumbered and outgunned.  But they don’t call to be airlifted out to escape the battle; they call for back-up.  They call for reinforcement.  They call to the one who has all power and is sovereign.  

Is your burden heavy?   Don’t pray for lighter burdens, pray for stronger backs.
Is your path hard?  Don’t pray for an easier path, but ask God to walk with you and strengthen you on the path you’re on.
Do you feel trapped?  Don’t pray for an escape route, pray for wisdom and endurance. 
Pray for boldness in the face of trials, temptations, and persecutions.

Look how far these followers of Jesus have come in a few short months.   They have come a long way from the disciples they were when Jesus was arrested.  Then they were afraid to be associated with Jesus.  Peter denied that he knew him, and was scared not by a man with a sword, but by a servant girl standing around a fire.  After the crucifixion, they were hiding in a locked room, afraid that the Jewish leaders would take them next.  Then they were ruled by fear.  

But now they are ruled by faith.  Just a few months later, they are recognized for their boldness. They have passed from fear to courage.  They are speaking publicly, affirming their relationship with Jesus.  Then they find themselves face to face with this same group that condemned Jesus, and they threatened them to stop speaking Jesus’ name.  And how do they respond now?  Peter, who denied Jesus in that very man’s courtyard a few months ago, now tells them, “Well, you are the religious experts, so tell me, who is more important to obey, man or God?  I can’t stop speaking the truth about Jesus that I have seen with my own eyes.”  Peter is a totally different person.  

What changed in Peter?  He spent time with Jesus after his resurrection.   And Peter’s fear melted away in the light of his faith.  Why was he afraid before?   He was worried for his future, he was scared he would be shamed, and he was afraid he would die.  His fear is all about what might happen to himself.  His thoughts were centered on Peter.  It is all about me.  The most important person in Peter’s life was still Peter.

Then the resurrected Jesus meets him by the lake.  Jesus asks Peter, “Do you love me?”  Peter says yes, and then 3 times Jesus replies, ‘Feed and tend to my sheep.’ Stop prioritizing Peter and reach out to others.  Jesus knows that the secret to removing Peter’s fears is to liberate Peter from himself.  Quit worrying about what might happen to Peter! 

Jesus stands as a testimony that anything man may do to you is not permanent.  There is something about walking around with a formerly dead guy to help remove your own fear of death.  Jesus pushes Peter to true humility.  Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.  The cure to the fear of death is dying to self.  Boldness begins when self ends.  When you are certain in your faith that God loves you, that he wants only the best outcome for you, then you can trust God and not worry about anything that might come.  

When you have died to self, when you have given your life away to Jesus, then your life becomes less important to you. But your life has become even more important to Jesus, who will care for you and work everything out to the best, so much better than you could have ever done.  If we put our love for God and others ahead of the love of our own life, then we have little to fear.   John the Baptist said it this way in John 3:30, “He must increase, I must decrease.”  This happens as the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within us, just as He did with these disciples.  And that is the big difference in these followers now.  God’s Holy Spirit has come to them.  There is a close connection in the Book of Acts with the word ‘boldness’ and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

In their prayer, they recognize this.  The attack is not against them; it is against God.  So we do not need to fear, for God can handle it.  We can then continue in the boldness of the gospel.  They responded to the priest’s threats with prayer to ask God to make them bolder in the face of the danger.  And God honored this request and showed His approval in a way only He can:

Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

God rains down His Holy Spirit on them anew.  And the whole building shook with the power and glory of God.  Oh, that our buildings would shake with the power of God’s approval on us!

1.  Oxford Language Dictionary, 2024.
2.  Lord Acton’s comment on the corruption of those who exercise influence without authority rings loudly in our culture today, particularly in the context of social media influencers.  They have no legal authority over people, yet they maintain power over millions through various social media outlets, which is evident in their sometimes multimillion-dollar income.  We are just beginning to recognize the dangers of this influencer culture, which include misinformation, endorsement of hazardous products, unrealistic beauty standards, the promotion of a culture of comparison, deceptive marketing, and privacy risks.  We must be similarly wary of the rising trend of Christian Influencers.  Please check out the article in Christianity Today, which states, “Christian influence comes with a cross. Its purpose is far more about self-sacrifice than self-indulgence.” (Giboney, Justin.  “How to be a Christian Influencer Worthy of the Name.” Christianity Today, May 21, 2024.)
3.  Letters of John Emerich Edward Dahlberg, Lord Acton.  1887.

December 29, 27 A.D.  –  Teach Us To Pray Again—   The Year of the Lord’s Favor #65

David Chupp The 70 Weeks with Jesus Blog , ,

Week 46 ——— Teach Us To Pray Again
Luke 11:1-13  John 10:40-42 

John 10:40-42  He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained.  And many came to him. And they said, “John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.”  And many believed in him there.

For Jesus, in 27 AD, Hanukkah has ended, and winter has begun.  So Jesus leaves Jerusalem and his friends’ home in Bethany.  He will return to Mary and Martha’s house in a few months when he hears of Lazarus’ death.  He heads east along the Jericho road past the town of Jericho and across the Jordan to where John the Baptist did most of his ministry.  This is where John baptized Jesus and began Jesus’ ministry back in February.  John had many followers in the area who now came to Jesus. John had told them he was not the Messiah and didn’t perform miracles. Instead, he pointed to Jesus. Herod killed John only four months ago, so Jesus attracted a crowd of many followers and stayed there for the winter.

I won’t forget the day my wife and I made this journey from Jerusalem to the area east of the Jordan River in 1981.  It was snowing that morning in Jerusalem, and two hours later, we passed through this place where, just a few miles south, people were sunbathing at the Dead Sea.  Good choice, Jesus.  This is a much better place to winter than in Jerusalem or Galilee.  

Jesus will preach some of the same messages he taught in Galilee. Today’s passage is very similar to passages in the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus gave five and a half months before. He was found praying, and when he finished, the people asked him to teach them how to pray. Jesus gives them a prayer to pray (“The Lord’s Prayer”), and then he teaches them more about prayer. 

 Luke 11:1-4   Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say:/
“Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
 Give us each day our daily bread,
 and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation.”

There was something about the way Jesus prayed.  Remember, these people were all Jewish.  A practicing Jewish person in Jesus’ day prayed a lot.  They prayed specific prayers, the Amidah and the Shema, several times daily.  However, there was something about how Jesus prayed that was very different.   I think we get a glimpse of it in the garden.  He knows what lies ahead for him, the pain and the suffering, and asks God if there is any other way.  This is not a reverent prayer carefully crafted to impress a listener.  He isn’t praying formally in the King James language.  He prays with intense emotion.  He sweats drops of blood.  He is pouring his heart out to his father.  He prays, “Father, I know your plan and don’t like it.  If there is any other way, then let this cup of suffering pass from me.”

But this kind of praying is not new. It is similar to the emotional prayers in the Psalms. Let’s examine a few passages in the book of Psalms and pay attention to the emotion in the prayers.

Psalm 13  How long, Yehovah?  How long will you forget about me while I drown in sadness.  You have forgotten me…..

Psalm 22:1-2   My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?   Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?   O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.

Psalm 88:13-18  (Message)    I’m standing my ground, GOD, shouting for help, at my prayers every morning, on my knees each daybreak.  Why, GOD, do you turn a deaf ear?  Why do you make yourself scarce?  For as long as I remember I’ve been hurting;  I’ve taken the worst you can hand out, and I’ve had it.  Your wildfire anger has blazed through my life; I’m bleeding, black and blue.  You’ve attacked me fiercely from every side, raining down blows till I’m nearly dead.  You made lover and neighbor alike dump me; the only friend I have left is Darkness.

Psalm 6 (The Passion Translation)  Please deal gently with me; show me mercy, for I’m sick and frail. I’m fading away with weakness. Heal me, for I’m falling apart. How long until you take away this pain in my body and in my soul? Lord, I’m trembling in fear! Turn to me and deliver my life because I know you love and desire to have me as your very own. I’m exhausted and worn-out with my weeping. I endure weary, sleepless nights filled with moaning, soaking my pillow with my tears. My eyes of faith won’t focus anymore, for sorrow fills my heart. There are so many enemies who come against me! Go away! Leave me, all you workers of wickedness! For the Lord has turned to listen to my thunderous cry. Yes! The Lord my healer has heard all my pleading and has taken hold of my prayers and answered them all.

Do you pray to God from your honest emotions as the psalmists did?  I think Jesus prayed the same way.  These disciples in Luke 11 heard Jesus’ praying and saw his connection to God, and they wanted that same relationship.  Perhaps their prayer life had devolved into rote repetition of prescribed prayers. Possibly, they had lost their passion for God, their love for life.  Maybe they had forgotten how to be honest with God.  They see something in Jesus they want in their life, something in the way he prays, revealing a closeness to the Father they desire.  

My wife and I attended an Amy Grant / Vince Gill Christmas Concert a few weeks ago. Let me tell you, I wore out an Amy Grant Christmas Cassette Tape back in the day, so to me, her music stirs a lot of memories.  I have never been a country music fan, so most of what I knew of Vince Gill was him being on tour with the Eagles.  But I heard a song at that concert that I had never heard before.  You’ve probably heard it because it won a Grammy award 3 years ago.  Vince Gill wrote that song about his wife, Amy, expressing this same feeling of watching someone pray.

All my life I’ve known of Jesus
But that connection never came
And when my world was torn to pieces
I still couldn’t call his name
But when my Amy prays
When my Amy prays
That’s when I see his face

In an interview, Vince Gill said this was the most honest song he had ever written. He talked freely about leaving the church for years after his brother died. He saw that his relationship with God was nothing like his wife’s. He feels closest to God, not in church, not hearing beautiful praise music, not seeing a fantastic sunset, but when he hears Amy pray.  

That is what these people experienced in Luke 11 when they heard Jesus pray.  So they say, “We want what you have; please teach us how to pray like that.”  Who is that person for you?  Is there someone that when you hear them pray, you feel close to God, and you want that same thing?   Do people look at your life or listen to your prayers and see the closeness of your relation to God?”

So Jesus teaches them the same prayer he taught his disciples in Galilee earlier, and then he gives them further instructions about prayer in a short parable.  

Luke 11:5-13   And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’;  and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’?  

Jesus’ short parable begins, “Which of you?”  —  It could be translated as, “Can you imagine this situation?”  So, put yourself in the story:  

A visitor has shown up at your house very late, near midnight.  The visitor has had an unexpectedly prolonged trip.  No one plans to travel after dark in this land.  This is not the desert where people travel at night to avoid the heat.  This is winter in Israel.  There were no streetlights or headlights on the donkeys or flashlights.  They carried oil lamps hung by strings and carried out in front of them, hanging down near their feet.  But not much light would be put out by these lamps, only enough to see one foot in front of you.   There is only enough light to see the next step.  (That reminds me of a verse: Psalm 119:105  Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.  This is how God’s word leads us,  one step at a time.  You can’t see far ahead.  But that’s a message for another time.) 

So, no one traveled after dark on purpose.  This must have been an arduous journey, perhaps with some unexpected problems that caused delays.  The traveler arrives very late, exhausted and hungry.  He comes to your small Middle Eastern village, where hospitality is a form of righteousness. By arriving at your home, he has become the guest of the whole community.  It would shame the entire village if a visitor were not cared for in the best manner.  It is hard for us to understand that sense of community responsibility like they had in these tiny villages where the houses are all adjoining.1

You have a few scraps of bread left over, but it would be an insult to a guest to offer him scraps, anything less than an unbroken loaf.   But your village, like most small villages in the first century, has one central oven where everyone worked together to bake their bread, typically in large batches.  So everyone knew who had just baked a supply of bread and would have enough for guests.

Those of you who have traveled in the Middle East have experienced this kind of meal.  They typically have round, flat loaves of bread the size of a dinner plate or larger.  The bread is not your meal but is the fork or spoon for your meal.  Bread is never served alone but always dipped in something.  With the bread, you will have dishes of various dips, vegetables, oils, and olives, and you will use the bread as your utensil to eat.  

Let me show you. This picture shows a baker at a restaurant near Jerash in Jordan. He is outside baking bread the way it has been done for thousands of years—in a clay oven. He forms the dough into a round disc, much like in a pizza kitchen. He then places the dough on a dome-shaped animal skin and presses it into the sides of the clay oven, where it sticks until it is baked.  

So your guest arrives hungry from his long journey, and you know who has bread you can serve him. You knock on his door and keep knocking until he awakens. The whole family typically slept in the same room.   And Jesus, in his parable, asks you, “Can you imagine that a friend in this situation would say, “‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything.   Of course, the answer is “No.” No one could ever imagine a friend unwilling to help.  The door being shut and the children asleep are ridiculous excuses that no one would ever use.   It is unthinkable that anyone in Jesus’ day would refuse to share what they have with a neighbor, especially for a visitor.  It would bring shame not only to the neighbor but also to the whole community. 

So Jesus continues:

Luke 11:8   I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence, he will rise and give him whatever he needs.  

I don’t like the ESV’s choice of the word ‘impudence.’  It’s not much better than the KJV’s choice of “because of his importunity.”  I don’t know about you, but I have never heard anyone use either of those words.  I want you not just to read the words of the Bible but to study the message of the Bible.  So you can’t just skip over words that aren’t clear or things you don’t understand.  So, how can you best understand what Jesus is saying here?  I can point you to a reference with a 22-page discussion of this Greek word, but you won’t read that.  So what do you do?  You could look up the word in the dictionary, and that may help some, but there is another helpful way.

Take out your internet browser and search for “Luke 11:8 Bible Hub”. The search will suggest biblehub.com as one of the top results.  

 Click on the link to biblehub.com, and you will get that verse in about 25 translations.  And you will see that some say  “because of his persistence,” or “boldness,” or “shameless persistence,” and my favorite, “shameless audacity” (thanks, NIV).  If you don’t know the original languages, you must learn to do this as you study the Bible.  Looking at these multiple translations gives you a better idea of the flavor and scope of that Greek word.   It is more than just persistence, but ‘shameless persistence.’  Do you see what Jesus is saying?  This is not some half-hearted request.  This is someone not afraid to bang on the door at midnight until he gets an answer.  This is someone who won’t stop knocking.   And because he won’t stop, he gets an answer.   You see this same idea in Jesus’ story of the persistent widow.  This is how you pray.

Jesus continues his teaching on prayer:

Luke 11:9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

He continues the idea of persistence, but unfortunately, many translations don’t make that clear.  So go back to biblehub.com and look at verse 9 in some different translations.

Luke 11:9    (New Living Translation)  And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

Luke 11:9    (Amplified Bible)  So I say to you, ask and keep on asking, and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking, and you will find; knock and keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

Luke 11:9    (Holman Christian Standard Bible)  So I say to you, keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

These three are much more faithful to the Greek form of the verb.  This verb is not about a one-time action but a continuing action.  Is this how we pray?  Are we persistent?  Do we keep asking?  Do we keep seeking?  A friend told me, “Well, I prayed about it twice, and God didn’t answer.”  Really.  The Bible is full of examples of persistent prayer.  Daniel prayed 3 times daily for 21 days before he got an answer.  Hannah prayed for years to have a son, as did Zechariah and his wife.

Our prayers are weak and anemic compared to this standard. We must pray persistently and boldly.  

The writer of Hebrews says it this way: 

Hebrews 4.16   Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Come to God’s throne with shameless audacity  — Jesus says to bang on God’s door at midnight.

Luke 11:10-12    For everyone who keeps on asking receives, and the one who keeps on seeking finds, and to the one who keeps on knocking it will be opened.   What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?

No earthly father will give his son something that will cause him harm.  How much more so that your heavenly father will only give gifts that will benefit us?    So pray boldly and persistently for what you need.  

Now, what if the son asks the father for a snake?  (I’m not sure about your kids, but I had one that asked for a snake. She didn’t get it, by the way.)  The assumption is that the serpent would not be a good gift – the son is not asking for a pet but for food, and being Jewish can’t eat a snake.  Sometimes, we pray for things that might not be good for us.  I believe the great theologian Garth Brooks said something about that in the song “Unanswered Prayers,” with the lyrics, “Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers. Remember when you’re talkin’ to the man upstairs.  And just because He doesn’t answer, doesn’t mean He don’t care. ‘Cause some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.  God loves us, and our heavenly Father will not give us something that will harm us.  Now, he may give us gifts we don’t want.  There will be times of trial and testing, but this is for our good, not for our harm.

When Jesus teaches the Lord’s prayer in the sermon on the mount, he precedes it with this:

Matthew 6:7   And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.  

What are those “empty phrases?”  The prayers prayed by the non-Jewish religions often involved strict formal invocations and magical incantations where the correct repetition of words mattered more than the heart of the one who prayed.  Roman prayers to their gods had to have exactly the right words with the proper pronunciation, rhythm, and inflection, or they didn’t count.   Sometimes, our prayers are just empty phrases.  Do you say the Lord’s Prayer, or do you pray the Lord’s Prayer?  Those phrases are all important.  Each time you repeat them, they should be a cry from your heart.  You won’t fool God.  Don’t speak it to him if you don’t mean it.

But if God knows what we need before we ask, then why do we ask? Let me tell you a story.  You know the story of blind Bartimaeus.  (Of course, ‘Bartimaeus’ is not his name.  ‘Bar’ in Hebrew means “son of,” so Bar-Timeaus  is the “son of Timaeus.”)

Mark 10:46-52   And they came to Jericho. As he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”   And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”   And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.”   And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.   And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.”  And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

This is how prayer works.  Jesus knew this man was blind.  It was no secret.  Everyone there knew him. They didn’t know his name, for he was just a beggar, but everyone knew he was the ‘son of Timaeus;’ everyone knew he was blind.  Jesus heard him the first time, but he waited to respond.  Why does Jesus wait?  Because he wanted to teach a lesson about faith.  Because he wanted to give him more than his sight.  Jesus knew what he wanted, but he also knew what he needed.  The man wanted to be able to see.  Jesus knew he needed more than that.  He needed a faith lesson, as did the crowd around him. So he lets him ask; he lets him shout it out over the protests of the others;  he lets him be bold and persistent.

Sometimes, we are like the lame beggar at the temple gate in Acts 3, begging for a few coins.  Why is he begging for coins?   Can’t you see?   He needs them to buy food.  And he can’t work because he can’t even stand up or walk.  He thinks he needs coins because he can’t even imagine God can do so much more – completely heal him.  And Peter tells this lame beggar (in his best King James English), “Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee.”  Or, in today’s English: ‘I don’t have any money, but I’ve got something better.   In the name of Jesus, get up and walk!’  Sometimes, our prayers to God are too small.

This son of Timaeus comes boldly with his requests.  He is persistent – he won’t quit even when the crowd rebukes him.  And Jesus gives him more than he asks for — he becomes a follower of Jesus.

But don’t think you can pray for whatever you want, and God will deliver it to you.  That is never promised in the Bible.  Some people read the Bible and understand that it promises to give us whatever we desire.  Isn’t that what is said in Psalms?

Psalm 37:4  Delight yourself in Yehovah and he will give you the desires of your heart. 

This does not mean God will give you whatever you desire.    If your joy comes from God, you will desire what God desires.  This is a prayer asking God to change your desires.  “God, please place in my heart the desires you want me to have.  Help me to desire the things you desire.”

People have forever read the Bible and made it say what they wanted it to say.  They remember John 15:7 as saying, “Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”  This makes it sound like God is some genie in a lamp.  But there is more in that verse; there is a caveat.  “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, then you can ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”  If you are living in Christ and by the Word of God, then you will ask for things that are in keeping with the character of Christ.

John 14:14  If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.   That doesn’t mean adding the phrase “in Jesus’ name I pray.”  It is not a magic incantation like the Romans used, where you say the proper words and force God to do what you want.   Praying in Jesus’ name means praying in his character, praying for what Jesus would pray for.  

James sums it up this way:

James 4:2-3  You do not have, because you do not ask.  You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly to spend it on your passions.

So ask, and keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking. But desire what God desires; form your wants to be God’s wants for you. Your loving heavenly Father desires to give you good gifts. Many verses say God will provide us with what we need—yes, what we need, not what we want. Jesus tells us what we need at the end of this passage in Luke 11, which is not what they expected.

Luke 11:11-13   What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?   If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

There are many things we may think we need.  What Jesus says we need is the Holy Spirit within us.   The Spirit enables us to know the truth, avoid sin, pray as we should, and love others.  We need to pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  We need to pray for God to help us listen to His Spirit, not our thoughts.  Jesus tells us, this is how we pray; this is what we pray for

So, do what the people in Luke 11 did.  Study Jesus’ prayers and pray as Jesus did.   Again, look back at Jesus’ prayer in the garden.  Pray boldly, pray with shameless audacity, but pray with Jesus, “Nevertheless, not my will, God, but your will be done.”

June 15-16, 27 A.D.  Jesus Up Before the Dawn #37

David Chupp The 70 Weeks with Jesus Blog ,

Week 18 ———  Jesus is Up Before the Dawn
Mark 1:32-39

Last week, we talked about Jesus’ encounter with the four fishermen.  The next day was the Sabbath in Capernaum. Then, on Sunday morning, he left on a three-week journey to the towns of Galilee. I’d love to tell you some stories from that 3-week trip, but I can’t.  I can’t because the Bible has no details about that trip.  So, while Jesus travels around Galilee until July 7, I have time to back up and talk about what happened a week ago,  June 15-16, 27 AD.

Mark 1:32-34       That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door.  And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak because they knew him. 

That Sabbath in Capernaum was a busy day for Jesus.  After he heals a demon-possessed man in the synagogue, he leaves the service and heals Peter’s mother-in-law. After sundown, everyone in the town who had acquaintances who needed healing brought them to Jesus, and Mark tells us, “The whole city was gathered together at the door.”  It was probably a very long night.  Then Mark picks up the following day:

Mark 1:35-39       And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”  And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

Have you ever had one of those days that seemed never to end?  There have been a few days in my medical practice where I felt like the whole city had been at the door.  They may all have the same number of hours, but some days are longer than others.  Just a few days ago, Friday, June 21, was the “longest day” of 2024, the summer solstice, when we have more hours of daylight than any other day this year.  But we have all had days that seemed to last forever and some we never wanted to end.  What do you want to do after a long, hard day?  If at all possible, you want to sleep late, right?

So what does Jesus do after healing that lasted long into the night?   Mark says, “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.”   What woke Jesus up so early?  Jesus got up before the sun so the daylight didn’t wake him.  He didn’t set an alarm clock.  Why did he wake up so early after a long day?  I am guessing God woke him up.  Does God ever wake you up early?

Back in March, we discussed what Jesus did during the 40 days in the wilderness, and we talked a little about the prayer life of a first-century Jew.   (See “https://swallownocamels.com/2024/03/09/february-16-march-27-27-a-d-jesus-in-the-wilderness-the-year-of-the-lords-favor-16/“)  There were set times for prayer, at least at “evening, morning and noon” as David mentions in Psalm 55:17.  We know Daniel had a habit of praying three times a day, despite the threat of the lions’ den (Daniel 6:10).  And there were at least two set prayers, the Shema and the Amidah. (The text of these prayers is included in the link above.)   We know the early Christian Church prayed the Lord’s Prayer three times a day.  Traditions today vary widely. The Eastern Orthodox Christian Church has adopted breviaries (liturgical prayer books), and church bells ring seven times daily to announce their prayer times. Then you have the Protestant churches in the US, many of which have no set times of prayer.

Many other religions have set prayer times. Most of us who have traveled have heard the call to prayer coming from the minaret of a mosque. Five times a day, it rings out (dawn, early afternoon, late afternoon, after sunset, and nighttime), and the prayers are recited worldwide, facing toward the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia.  

Should we have a set time to pray?   I grew up in the church, but no one ever told me I needed to set specific times aside for prayer and that I needed to pray specific prayers.  Is there a command in scripture to stop praying three times a day?  (I can’t find it.)   I once had a Sunday School teacher speak on why we shouldn’t regularly say the same prayer over again.  (He had gotten upset because someone read a printed prayer during the worship service.)  He used Matthew 6:7 as his verse to teach that.  From the KJV:  “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye, therefore, like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.”  He interpreted that as saying we shouldn’t use pre-written prayers like those heathen do.  Those are just “vain repetitions.”  The KJV is not wrong here, but this teacher misunderstood.   To repeat something in vain is to say something without meaning.   The “vain repetition” (or, as the ESV calls them, “empty phrases”) Jesus is talking about is the common practice of the pagans of saying the exact phrases over and over because they thought that if you said this particular phrase so many times, you would force the reluctant god to fulfill your request, almost like saying magic words.  Jesus certainly does not speak against saying prescribed prayers, for the next thing he says is to “pray like this” and gives us a prescribed prayer we call the Lord’s Prayer.  It is crucial to guard against the concept of ‘vain repetitions.’ Every time we recite the words of the Lord’s prayer (or any prayer) without heartfelt meaning, we risk repeating them in vain. Our prayers don’t need fancy wording, but they must be honest, from the heart.

Should we pray like Jesus 3 regular times a day?  There is something to be said for having a regular rhythm of prayer in your day.  Perhaps we, as apprentices of Jesus, also need to imitate him in this.  Maybe it is time to live every day in a rhythm of prayer.  In the morning, sometime in the mid-day, and in the evening, set aside a few minutes to pray every day.  Why don’t we do this?   We feel like we are so busy.  There is so much to do each day.  But look at Jesus.  Jesus only has ten months left to do what he was sent here to do before his crucifixion.  He doesn’t have time to waste. That is all the time he has to choose disciples, teach them, show them how to live life and correct their misunderstandings.  He has to train them before he sends them out to change the world with the Gospel.  He spent the first 40 days after his baptism in the wilderness. That is nearly a tenth of the time of his entire ministry.  We think of the time in the wilderness as ‘when he was tested by the satan.’  But the time in the wilderness was his time with the Father and the Holy Spirit with no interruptions.  A time of preparation so that he would be able to do his ministry.  And then, throughout his brief time here, he goes off many times by himself.  Pay attention as you read the Gospels. Jesus is constantly going off by himself to pray.  Because he knew he needed to.

Jesus only had ten months to do what he had been sent here to do before his crucifixion.  He doesn’t have time to waste. He only has 438 days from his baptism to his crucifixion.  That is all the time he has to choose disciples, teach them, show them how to live life and correct their misunderstandings.  He has to train them before he sends them out to change the world with the Gospel.  He spent the first 40 days after his baptisms in the wilderness. That is nearly a tenth of the time of his entire ministry.  We think of the time in the wilderness as ‘when he was tested by the satan.’  But the time in the wilderness was his time with the Father and the Holy Spirit with no interruptions so that he would be able to do his ministry.  And then, throughout his brief time here, he goes off many times by himself because he needed to.  

Once Jesus’ ministry gets going and people find out he is healing, casting out demons, and performing miracles, he is constantly being sought by the crowds. He could have set up a full calendar of speaking engagements at any synagogue in Galilee.  And the healing.  You realize that there were almost no cures for anything in the first century.  The field of medicine was pitiful at best.   So, if you had a disease, you had little hope for healing unless you found a miracle.   If you heard about a healer, you would travel far just for a chance to be healed. That’s why the whole town was at his door.

Yet, with all these crowds pressing in, Jesus made time to pray alone.  The busier Jesus got, the more he went off alone and prayed.  In our passage today, Jesus is tired and exhausted, but he needs to be connected to the Father.  Look back at the passage.  Jesus gets up before dawn to spend time alone with the Father.  Simon is busy searching for Jesus because the town is full of people who are looking for him.  There are more that want his touch.  Simon tells Jesus that there is a great ministry opportunity here.  But Jesus tells Simon that he needs to go to other towns in Galilee, and he invites Simon to go with him.  “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I have come.”   Again, the reason we don’t have any stories from these three weeks of Jesus’ ministry is that his disciples didn’t go with him.  They weren’t ready for a full-time commitment yet.  They stay home and fish while Jesus goes on this quick tour of Galilee.  So all we know about this trip is this one sentence: ” And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

The people in Capernaum are all pro-Jesus here.  (This is a significant change from his reception in Nazareth.)  Jesus has gone viral in Capernaum.  It would have been easy for Jesus to stay there.   But Jesus was fine saying ‘no’ to Simon, saying ‘no’ to the crowd in Capernaum if it meant saying ‘yes’ to the Father.  There are so many good things we can do in God’s world.  There are so many ministries we could help out.  We could try to help all of them and end up just pulling ourselves in so many directions, getting nothing done.  We could do many good things but miss the great things God wanted us to do.  John D. Rockefeller is quoted as saying, “Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.”  If you say ‘yes’ to doing one thing, you say ‘no’ to many others.  To choose the best thing, the great thing, you must say no to some good things.

Jesus could have done many good things if he stayed in Capernaum.  But they weren’t the things God had for him to do. We have to discern what the great thing God wants us to do is.  Jesus was doing that before dawn in Mark 1— praying to determine God’s best.  And that is the root of prayer. 

In Jesus’ Bible, in Hebrew the most common word for prayer is ‘tefillah’ coming from the root word ‘palal’ as seen in I Kings 8:28:  “Yet have regard to the ‘tefillah’ (prayer) of your servant and to his plea, O LORD my God, listening to the cry and to the “tefillah” (prayer) that your servant ‘palal’ (prays) before you this day,  

The root meaning behind palal is “fall down to the ground in the presence of one in authority to plead a cause or seek a judgment or discernment.”   It is the picture of someone falling on their knees before a king or judge, begging for something.  That is not a familiar picture to those who live in the US, but I have a very clear picture of ‘palal’ in my mind.  

I was working in the mission hospital in Ghana during a malaria epidemic.  Our 36-bed pediatric ward was overflowing with 54 patients, many of whom were near death.  I came to the bedside of a very ill 6-year-old little girl who was hanging on to life by a thread.  The malaria parasite had infected her brain.  Her father fell on his knees before me and begged for us to do anything to save his daughter’s life.  I was shocked and overwhelmed by his actions.  I did the only thing I knew to do.  I went down on my knees with him to appeal to the authority who could actually heal his little girl.  I told him through the translator that we were doing all we could with medicine to treat his girl but that I would join him in praying to God, who could do what we couldn’t do.  So we knelt there on that wood floor beside her bed.  Her father, me, the translator, and all the nurses in the room joined together to fall down before the creator of the universe, the great physician and pled for the life of this little girl.  The next day, she began to improve, and a few days later, this father carried his daughter back to their village, leaving with not only a daughter who was whole but a knowledge of a God who can do what man cannot.   I wish I could tell you that all of the children got better.  But many did not.  Many fathers carried their children back to their village to bury them there.

But this man on his knees, seeking one with the power to fill his request— that is palal.  That is the root of prayer.  Again, it is to “fall down to the ground in the presence of one in authority to plead a cause or seek a judgment or discernment.”  Jesus is up before dawn in our passage today to seek from the authority of the universe a discernment.  Should he stay in Capernaum or go elsewhere?  He can do good wherever he goes, but Jesus has limited time.  He wants to do not what is just good but what is God’s best.  We need to pray more prayers of discernment.  We come to Yehovah for His discernment over our lives. 

Proverbs 3:5-6    Trust in Yehovah with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.

We know it is not smart to “lean on our own understanding,” but often, we try to decide what is best without seeking the one who knows.  Jewish scholars say prayer is “the soul’s yearning to define what truly matters and to ignore the trivialities that often masquerade as essential.”   That is a haunting phrase, “trivialities that often masquerade as essential.”  Jesus’ time was limited; he had little time for trivialities.  How about us?  Sometimes, we live each day like we have all the time in the world, but our time in this life is also limited.  How good are you at ignoring the trivialities to do what matters?

Trivialities —  I will mention just a couple of examples.  Your trivialities may vary.  
According to a survey conducted in February 2021, 48% of the respondents stated that, on average, they spent five to six hours on their phones daily (not including work-related smartphone use). 22% said they spent three to four hours on their phones daily. Only five percent of users surveyed said they spent less than an hour on their smartphones daily. Have you heard the term ‘doomscrolling’? It refers to spending excessive amounts of time reading large quantities of news online or viewing multiple videos or posts without knowing how much time has passed.   A similar study showed that most Americans watched 3-4 hours of television daily.  And sometimes we say to ourselves, “I wish I had more time to visit with our neighbors, read a book, study the Bible, pray, etc.”  The time is there.  We must be better at discerning how to use it for great things.

God created life with a rhythm.  He established it at the beginning of Genesis.  The years are broken up by appointed times when you stop what you do daily and dedicate time to God.  The weeks are broken up by the Sabbath, a day set aside to stop what you are doing, rest, and seek God.  The days are broken up by times of prayer.  God set up this rhythm to our years, weeks, and days for all the saints in the Bible, Old, and New Testament.  The creator of the universe set it up this way because He knew we needed it.    We were not designed to be continuously busy.  It is not healthy physically or spiritually.  But we live in a busy world.

You understand busy if you have ever walked on New York City streets.  There are things I like about NYC, but the crowds, traffic, and street chaos are not on my list.  The best pictures of NYC are from far above, where you can’t see the people or the cars, just the buildings.  In the mid-1800s, New York City’s population grew exponentially due to a large influx of immigrants, and living conditions became more crowded and unhealthy.   The City’s politicians and planners felt that more open space was needed for the health of the residents.  In 1853, state officials approved funds to purchase the land from 59th to 106th Streets, between Fifth and Eighth Avenues.  So they created Central Park—over 800 acres with artificial lakes, waterfalls, meadows, and wooded areas. It is a respite from the hurry, a place to get away from the craziness of the city. Many New Yorkers say a walk in Central Park maintains their sanity.  Even the New York politicians recognized that amid this craziness, we need space away from the crowds.

As we walk in the footsteps of Jesus, as we apprentice under him, we are called to imitate his actions. One of these actions is taking time for solitude. Just as Jesus sought time alone with his Father, we too should seek moments of quiet reflection and connection with God.   Jesus calls us to slow down, simplify our lives, and be apprentices. We have to be with him, observe what he does, and then do what he does. The trouble is that most of us are too busy to find the time to be with Jesus. Dallas Willard called hurry the great enemy of the spiritual life. He said we must “ruthlessly eliminate hurry from our lives.”  We must learn to live in the spiritual rhythm God designed us for.  We need to take the time to be with Jesus.  Maybe for you, it is in the morning before the dawn.  Perhaps some other time works for you.  But it must be some time. We must learn to say no to things that do not benefit us.  We must also learn to say no to some good things and yes to God’s great things.

Have you settled into a rhythm of prayer?  Would you consider, just as a trial this next week, imitating Jesus with a brief prayer time several times a day?   Come before him with the idea of the Hebrew root of prayer, palal, on your knees before the authority seeking discernment and favor.