Jesus is the Answer to ‘Why Pray?’

Years ago, a Christian man asked me, “Why should Christians pray to God?” This is a valid question. This guy had a fatalism background and the Bible does teach that God is in ultimate control so why ask God for help? Why talk to a spiritual being you can’t see? Why speak to someone who rarely seems to talk back?

From my studies in the Holy Bible, I believe the intent of prayer in our lives is to worship God for His glory, to cultivate one’s dependence on God and one’s spiritual intimacy/communion/fellowship with God, to confess sins to God, to praise/thank God for who He is and what He does, to ask God for help (petition/supplication) in one’s life and to ask God for help in other people’s lives (intercessory prayer).

There are several biblically based responses to this question, ‘Why pray?’, but I only want to point out three, in this blog, which are all clearly centered in Jesus Christ Himself. I believe Jesus is the answer to this question. Jesus is the One we must depend on and cry out to for help and He is also the One we look to for instruction and guidance and He is the One we should long to fellowship with. Here are three Christ-centered answers to the question, “Why pray?”

1) Jesus prayed

Prayer was a very prominent activity in the earthly incarnated life of Jesus Christ.

Mark 1:35 ESV 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.

The preceding day had been a very busy and exciting for Christ. He was doing a lot of teaching and healing many people who came to Him, but Jesus shortened the hours of needed sleep that night so He might arise early and give Himself to more needed prayer. After a draining day, do we turn to prayer soon after or do we wait awhile or until things get hard again or there is a crisis? While pastoring a church, I recall one night I felt spiritually and emotionally drained after a church business meeting. When I went home, my wife and I talked about the meeting, we both prayed out loud and I called a spiritual mentor of mine and asked for prayer. I also got out of bed around 3am to talk to God and study His Word directly related to what was discussed in that business meeting. And I continued to pray related to our spiritual health and issues related to that particular meeting.

Luke 5:15-16 ESV But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. ¹⁶ But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.

Jesus often withdrew to pray. How about us, can we use the words ‘often’ and ‘pray’ in the same sentence about our prayer habits?

Luke 6:12-13 ESV In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. ¹³ And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles:

Christ found it necessary on one recorded occasion to take a whole night for prayer. Wow! That’s quite a duration of prayer. The next day, He made a very important decision. He chose and called twelve disciples unto Himself, naming them Apostles. When we have a really important decision to make, how much quality prayer goes into it? During one season of pastoring a church, I was wrestling with whether to stay or leave and I engaged in a prayer/worship journey for eight hours one day and then a few weeks later I also did something similar overnight.

Other examples of Jesus praying: After the miraculous feeding of 5000+, Luke 9:18a; just before Jesus walked on water out to His disciples and had a great teachable moment with them, Matt. 14:22-23; Jesus prayed after He was baptized, Luke 3:21; Jesus prayed with some disciples during His transfiguration moment, Luke 9; Jesus prayed for Peter about Peter’s denial in advance of his denial and Jesus prayed in the garden just before He was arrested, Luke 22; Jesus prayed over little children, Matt. 19; John 17 contains a recorded prayer of Christ to God the Father. He prayed blessed thanks over eating occasions, e.g. Mt. 14:19; and prayed to the Father when He raised Lazarus (for the benefit of those nearby who could hear Him, John 11:42).

The words ‘pray’ and ‘prayer’ are used some 25 times or more in connection with Jesus Christ in the brief account of Himself found in the four Gospels in God’s Word. And His praying is mentioned where the words are not used. It is evident that prayer was an important part of His life and ministry. If we say we are Christ-followers, is prayer an important part of our lives? My life?

Prayer is a great spiritual fellowship moment with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God the Son, Jesus Christ, desired to spend quality spiritual time with God the Father and we should to in the name of Jesus Christ with the help of the Holy Spirit. The born again Christ-follower has been spiritually adopted by the Creator Redeemer God. God becomes the saved person’s Heavenly eternal Father. As a human father myself with four young children, I very much want regularly ongoing relationship fellowship moments with my children. I want them to talk to me, reach out to me for help, and enjoy time with me. I would be hurt if they rarely spoke to me or came to me for help and counsel. I want to connect with them relationally on a regularly basis. When you love someone you want to spend time with that person. You want to share your thoughts with that person and enjoy their presence. How is your relationship and fellowship with God? Spend quality genuine time with God through prayer.

Jesus prayed (which is a great example to us) and

2) Jesus exhorted all people to pray.

Luke 18:1 ESV And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.

Note that the use of the word “they” (or “men” in the NKJV) here in the English translation doesn’t pertain to just one gender or the small few Jesus was probably speaking to at this moment. In the original language and context, this word can and does refer to all people kind of like ‘mankind.’

The English word ‘ought’ doesn’t do this exhortation justice since it can mean ‘obligation’, ‘advisement,’ or ‘natural expectation.’ This word in the original Greek of the New Testament is translated ‘must’ 58 times. The primary meaning of this Greek word is ‘it is necessary, there is need of, it behooves, is right and proper.’ It also means ‘a command and a necessity established by the counsel and decree of God.’

In Luke 17, Jesus taught about the End Times and their difficulties. We are to pray always and not lose heart or grow faint even during the tough times now or when things are really tough in the End Times.

Jesus taught of our need to pray and to never give up praying. This is not always easy. We naturally drift toward laziness and faint heartedness in this matter. We may not be in the right mood. We may be busy. Genuine earnest praying is draining. How seldom we really pray things through until the end. The enemies of God don’t want us to engage in God-honoring prayer. The enemies of God and weakness of our flesh nature try to weary us and distract us when it comes to praying, but regardless of how challenging quality prayer can be, prayer is an impelling spiritual activity which Jesus taught His followers to engage in.

Jesus also taught us here to pray ‘always.’ Paul wrote something similar later on. 1 Thess. 5:17 ESV pray without ceasing, This is not about literally praying 24/7. This is about talking to God often and regularly throughout your day and night including carved out times and spontaneous moments anywhere, anytime. It’s about a lifestyle of prayer that is a regular consistent part of our lives. I don’t know about you, but this is something that I periodically have to fight to uphold in my life.

Jesus prayed (which is a great example to us) and Jesus told us to pray always without losing heart and

3) Jesus continues to pray for His people.

During His incarnated earthly ministry Jesus prayed for His followers (including future followers); Luke 22:31, John 17. And praise God, His intercession ministry did not cease with His death and resurrection. After His appearances and ascension He ascended to the right hand of God where He continues to this day praying for His followers.

Hebrews 7:23-28 ESV The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, ²⁴ but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. ²⁵ Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. ²⁶ For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. ²⁷ He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself. ²⁸ For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever.

Jesus Christ is the only perfect High Priest, the one we all truly need. He has made atonement for our sins. And those of us who trust in Him as Savior and Lord, He is able to completely save from our sins and He continues to pray the complete salvation of His people. Born again Christ-followers, Jesus Christ carries our salvation on to completeness, through His perfect intercessory prayer. This word “uttermost” in the Greek means all complete, perfect. The verse also tells us that His current intercession for His followers is a key part of His ministry now.

The same thought is found in Romans 8:34 ESV Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

And long beforehand Isaiah wrote down some prophecy about the suffering Servant (the future Messiah) who makes intercession for sinners (Isa. 53:12) and this is what Jesus Christ fulfilled and is fulfilling now.

What does Christ’s current intercessory ministry for Christ-followers mean for His followers today? Check out what R.A. Torrey wrote. “If we then are to have fellowship with Christ in His present work, we must spend much time in prayer, we must give ourselves to earnest, constant, persistent, sleepless, overcoming prayer.

I know of nothing that has so impressed me with a sense of importance of praying at all seasons, being much and constantly in prayer, as the thought that this is the principle occupation at present of my risen Lord. I want to have fellowship with Him, and to that end I have asked the Father whatever else He may make me, to make me at all events an intercessor, to make me a man who knows how to pray, and who spends much time in prayer. This ministry of intercession is a glorious and a mighty ministry, and we can all have part in it. The man or the woman who is shut away from the public meeting by sickness can have part in it. The busy mother, the woman who has to take in washing for a living can have part, she can mingle prayers for the saints, and for her pastor, and for the unsaved, and for foreign missionaries, with the soap and water as she bends over the washtub, and not do the washing any more poorly on that account. The hard driven man of business can have part in it, praying as he hurries from duty to duty. But of course we must, if we would maintain this spirit of constant prayer, take time and take plenty of it, when we shall shut ourselves up in the secret place alone with God for nothing but prayer.” (How To Pray; R.A. Torrey; Moody Press; pg13-14)

Praise God, Jesus Christ prays for people who trust Him for salvation and for those who have yet to trust Him for salvation.

Why pray? Well, Jesus Christ is the best answer to this question. Jesus prayed. Jesus told us to pray. Jesus prays for His people. Jesus Christ is our example and our exhortation when it comes to prayer.

There is much to learn in the Holy Bible about prayer but we don’t have to become experts in knowledge about prayer before engaging in God-honoring prayer. When it comes to praying to God, just do it, get started and learn and grow in prayer over time. Let’s be humble students of prayer, learning from God’s Word about prayer and most importantly, praying, and praying often, anytime, anywhere, praying alone and praying with others and praying according to a daily schedule, if you don’t already. Get right with God through prayer. Worship God through prayer. Fellowship with God through prayer. Pray to God for others. Pray to God for yourself. Pray to God!

What are your thoughts about what I’ve included here about Jesus being the answer to the question, ‘Why pray?’

Mike