Matthew 6:9-13

“This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Luke 11:1-13

One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.”

He said to them, “When you pray, say: “ ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’ ”

Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for f a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

There is a lot to be said about prayer and it is easy enough to find it. What I want to focus on here is group prayer and what has been missing for so long in most churches: prayer to accompany our actions.

James 2:15-16 Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that?

When you pray as an assembly of two or more:
Remember God’s Holiness.
Submit your will to the advancement of God’s Kingdom here on earth.
Ask for your basic needs to be met.
Remember that you are a sinner, and immediately forgive those brothers or sisters in the Assembly that you have not yet forgiven.
Pray that God protects you from temptation because when you fail, it will bring suffering and shame.

When you pray for the advancement of God’s Kingdom, don’t treat your King worse than you treat yourself or those around you. Remember what James said about praying “stay warm and well fed” without taking action.

Do you pray for a job without looking for one? Do you pray for a spouse without looking for one? Do you pray for your health and not see a doctor? How can you pray for God’s Kingdom come on earth and think you have nothing to do with it?

2 Kings 13:15-19

Elisha said, “Get a bow and some arrows,” and he did so. “Take the bow in your hands,” he said to the king of Israel. When he had taken it, Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands.

“Open the east window,” he said, and he opened it. “Shoot!” Elisha said, and he shot. “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Aram!” Elisha declared. “You will completely destroy the Arameans at Aphek.”

Then he said, “Take the arrows,” and the king took them. Elisha told him, “Strike the ground.” He struck it three times and stopped. The man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times.”

God has the power to change the world, but He has assigned to us to do our part in faith so that He can bless it.

In the book The Divine Conspiracy By: Dallas Willard, he points out in chapter one that when we pray, we are praying that God’s will be will be done on earth in every part of society, law, media, education etc etc. This is what we pray at the instruction and command of King Jesus and is what we must support by our actions as well.

Is it God’s will that children are being sexualized at school? Is it God’s will that the sexual perversions that He hates are now a protected class of people? Is it God’s will that we murder millions of unborn babies? Is it God’s will that our courts do not provide justice? Is it God’s will that evil people are sitting in the seats of power in our cities, states, and nation? What are we going to do about it?

Ephesians 6:12
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

So, if your assembly has “leaders” who are directing you away from this, or discouraging you from obeying God in these matters: rebuke them for it. If they say these things in public, rebuke them in public.

1. Christ is the head of The Assembly
2. The teaching of the apostles
3. Fellowship – Breaking of Bread
4. Prayer
5. Civics in The Kingdom
6. How do I find an assembly?