The Model Life: Adoration, Part 3

Take your Bible if you would please and turn to the 17th verse of the 5th chapter of the first book of Thessalonians. We are literally going verse by verse as we conclude our study of this great epistle, this great letter to the church of Thessalonica. We spent two weeks on verse number 16 which says rejoice always.

We'll spend two weeks on this verse, pray without ceasing. And then we'll probably spend at least two weeks on in everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. And why are we doing that? It's mainly because it's all about the model life of one of adoration.

The Lord is seeking true worshipers, those who adore him, those whose affection is completely his, who want to truly worship him in spirit and in truth. And it requires that number one we be joyful, number two we be prayerful, and number three we be thankful. And for the most part we have joy.

We pray and we give thanks. The problem is that we're asked to do it always, that is rejoicing, and pray without ceasing, and to give thanks in everything. That's the problem.

How do we actually do that? So we spent a couple of weeks looking at what it means to rejoice always and how you can actually rejoice in every situation and circumstance because this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. This trilogy of being joyful, being prayerful, and being thankful is a trilogy that is the will of God for your life. This is God's desire for you.

The life of adoration to the King, living for the glory and honor of his name, learning to rejoice always, to pray without ceasing. What on earth does that even mean? How do you do that? Do you live a life of uninterrupted prayer, walking around with your eyes closed wherever you go? What does it mean to pray without ceasing? It deals more with the attitude than the act. The attitude that is conscious of God's presence at all times.

It's an attitude that signifies I never give up when it comes to prayer. That I pray always without ceasing, never giving up simply because I'm conscious of the presence of God in my life, in my family, in my work, everywhere. And so my attitude is always directed upward toward God.

Prayer is a foreign land to a lot of us. One author said it this way, he says, prayer is like a foreign land. When we go there, we go as tourists.

Like most tourists, we feel uncomfortable and out of place. Like most tourists, we therefore move on before too long and go somewhere else. That signifies most of our prayers.

It's a foreign land to us. To sit and to pray and to commune with the living God sometimes is so foreign to us that we act as tourists, we can't wait to get out of there and move on to someplace else or something else. And that's unfortunate.

The great theologian Leon Morris said, we are to live in the spirit of prayer, realizing our dependence on God for all we have and all that we are. Being conscious of his presence with us wherever we may be, yielding ourselves continually to him to do his will. Those who pray without ceasing live in constant communion with God.

Notice this about our Lord. Take your Bible and turn with me to the Gospel of Luke, the third chapter. You need to note that prayer is what commenced the other worldly ministry of Jesus.

We call it the other worldly ministry because he came down from above. He came down from a perfect world to a sinful world. And so prayer would commence his other worldly ministry.

Luke 3, verse 21. Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized and while he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove and a voice came out of heaven. You are my beloved son and you I am well pleased.

You will note that that prayer commenced the other worldly ministry of Christ. You will also know that prayer is that which characterized the daily ministry of Christ. Just turn over, if you would, your Bible to the fifth chapter of Luke.

It says in verse number 16, but Jesus himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray. What a statement. Not only did prayer commence the other worldly ministry of Christ, but prayer was that which characterized the daily ministry of Christ.

Just read through the Gospel of Luke, which emphasizes the humanity of deity and to recognize how often Christ was slipping away to be by himself to pray. You will also note that prayer is that one thing that consummated his earthly ministry. If it commenced his other worldly ministry and characterized his daily ministry, then it consummated his earthly ministry.

All you have to do is read John 17, which is truly the Lord's prayer on the eve of his crucifixion. All you have to do is examine his prayer in the garden of Gethsemane before he was crucified. All you have to do is listen to his words on the cross.

Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Father, into your hands I commend my spirit. Prayer was what consummated his earthly ministry.

And then in Luke 24 at the end, before his ascension, he lifted up his hands and began to bless and pray for his disciples. But not only did prayer commence his other worldly ministry and characterize his daily ministry and consummate his earthly ministry, you need to know that prayer constitutes his heavenly ministry. Hebrews chapter 7, verse number 28, I'm sorry, Hebrews 7, verse number 25.

Therefore he is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. Prayer is that which constitutes his heavenly ministry. He is our advocate.

He intercedes on our behalf. It's no wonder that when the disciples came to the Lord in Luke 11, they asked the Lord to teach them how to pray. You know, they never asked the Lord to teach them how to lead.

We need a seminar in leadership. Lord, teach us how to lead. They never asked that question.

Lord, teach us how to be apostles, how to be representatives of your kingdom. Never ask them that question. Lord, help us to teach us how to be better fathers.

Never asked that question either. Lord, teach us how to be men of God. Never asked that question either.

Never asked that question. But the one question they did ask was, Lord, teach us how to pray. Because you see, every time they saw him, he was praying.

And so when you come to the 11th chapter of Luke, it says these words. It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, chapter 11, verse number 1, after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples. Lord, teach us how to pray.

Now you can imagine seeing Jesus is often praying. So Jesus is praying and they're waiting for him to stop, to be done. They're sitting around thinking, is he done yet? No, not done yet.

How about now? Nope, still not done. Is he ever going to stop praying? When can we ever talk to him? And there he was praying. Finally he's done.

Lord, teach us how to pray. Teach us how to commune with our Father in heaven. Because you see, this is what Jesus did.

Deity communicating with deity in the most intimate times throughout his life. It must have been fascinating to be with Jesus when he prayed. We had that long prayer in John 17 that speaks of his communication with his Father in glory in the Garden of Gethsemane and how he communicated with his Father in glory.

But to the disciples, they wanted to know how to pray. And so the Lord teaches them what is commonly called the disciples prayer. It's not the Lord's prayer, it's the Lord's disciples prayer.

And he gives them a pattern on how to do it. Because prayer is centered around a divine pattern. God in his glory, man in his needs.

That's why he says, when you pray, pray this way. He didn't say, if you pray, pray this way. He says, when you pray, pray this way.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name. May your name be made holy in our lives. Thy kingdom come, praying for the return of the Christ in his kingdom.

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. It's all about God's glory. Lord, our prayer is that your will be done in us.

That your will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. Well, one of the ways you have the answer to that prayer is that you are to be joyful, prayerful, and thankful because this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. So, when you pray for the will of God to be accomplished, you're asking the Lord, Lord, I want to be joyful, prayerful, and thankful.

And then he goes on to talk about man in his needs. But what our Lord does next is very important. Because he knows how hard it is to pray without ceasing.

How to never give up on prayer. Never give up on asking, beseeching the throne of grace. So he moves from the disciples' prayer to a parable.

And so in Luke 11, he says these words. So, suppose one of you has a friend and goes to him at midnight and says to him, friend, lend me three loaves. For a friend of mine has come to me from a journey and I have nothing to set before him.

And from inside he answers and says, do not bother me. The door has already been shut. And my children and I are in bed.

I cannot get up and give you anything. I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence, he will get up and give him as much as he needs. It's a parable that describes God's generosity and willingness to answer your prayers.

And even though the reluctant friend doesn't want to get out of bed, he does so anyway. Begrudgingly, the Lord is not that way. In fact, he gives a similar parable in Luke chapter 18.

When he says this in verse number 1, now he was willing to tell them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart. Same thing, pray without ceasing. At all times you ought to pray and not lose heart.

So there are two avenues by which you can go. You can lose heart or you can pray. If you're praying, you're not going to lose heart.

If you're losing heart, it's because you're not praying. In other words, when you pray, your heart does not shrivel up. When you pray, you're able to remain steadfast and immovable.

But the reason we can't stand strong and steadfast is because we don't pray. So the Lord says very easily, listen, I tell you this so that you will pray and you will not lose heart. So what does he say? In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man.

There was a widow in that city and she kept coming to him saying, give me legal protection from my opponent. For a while he was unwilling, but afterward he said to himself, even though I do not fear nor respect man, do not fear God or respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection. Otherwise, by continually coming, she will wear me out.

Again, the parables are one of contrast. Our Lord is not like the reluctant friend, nor is he like the unjust judge. Because you can't wear out the Lord.

He neither wearies nor tires. He's always bending his ear to hear the cries of his own. And so he goes on to say in Luke 18, these words, he says, and the Lord said, hear what the unrighteous judge said.

Now will not God bring about justice for his elect who cry to him day and night and will delay long over them? I tell you that he will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth? In other words, when the Son of Man returns, will he find this kind of faith? What kind of faith? The faith that believes that God is not like the unjust judge, but that he spills out generously upon his own. So if they come to him and seek, ask and knock, the question is, will you as disciples, will you as believers be so committed to your God that you believe exactly what he says, that you will pray without ceasing? You will live a consciousness of communion with God that you never give up on your prayers.

I have several points I want to cover with you this week and next. And the first one is this, that prayer will always challenge your spirituality. There's nothing that challenges your spirituality more than prayer.

It's the greatest challenge to your spiritual growth. God doesn't, excuse me, Satan doesn't care that I prepare a sermon. But he does care that I prepare my soul to preach the sermon.

Same is true for you. Satan is not concerned that you get married. He's concerned that your heart is not right when you get married.

Doesn't want your heart being right. Doesn't want your life being right. It's all about the inner man and the growth of the inner man.

And we need to always be persistent unto prayer. Prayer is everything. I know that we have electives that you can engage in and learn from.

I know that we have classes that you can go to and involve yourself with different groups of people. I understand that, but that's the real. Know what the ideal is? The ideal is that when we're done here, every one of you would gather together over there in another room and all of you would be in prayer for everybody in the second service.

Every one of you. And that everybody who's coming to the second service would not engage in some elective or some class, but they would be in prayer for you as you are in here. That would be the ideal.

That everybody would pray for everybody else and then while those are worshiping, after they're done worshiping, they would go and pray for everyone else. Why? Because the power of life resides in our prayers. That's the impetus.

That's the motive. That's the power behind everything. It's spending time on your knees in prayer asking God to do a great and mighty work.

It's learning to pray God consciously all throughout the day. Lifting your request before the Lord constantly because you are heavenly minded. And you're asking God to do a great and mighty work.

Listen. Prayer is the ministry. Prayer is the ministry.

If you don't have a ministry of prayer, you don't have a ministry. Prayer is the ministry. And so praying without ceasing is a command that Paul gives along with rejoice always, along with in everything give thanks because this is God's will for your life.

But prayer is that which challenges our spirituality unlike anything else. We have to wrestle with our ego when it comes to prayer. We have to wrestle with all the effort put behind it when it comes to prayer.

But the thing we wrestle with the most in prayer is the expectancy. Let me illustrate it for you. Turn with me in your Bible to Acts chapter 12.

Acts chapter 12. Verse number 1. Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword.

When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of unleavened bread when he had seized him, he put him in prison delivering him to four squads of soldiers to guard him intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. So Peter was kept in prison but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God.

That is just a marvelous statement. Here's Peter in prison. The expectation is that Peter is going to die because James the brother of John has already died.

Peter now has been arrested. The expectation is that he too will die. So the church gathers together and begins to pray, rightly so.

That's what they should do. And they began to pray fervently. Notice that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availed much, James 5:16 tells us.

So they gathered together to pray and they were fervent in their prayers. Read on, verse 6. On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers bound with two chains and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. Notice that Peter's sleeping.

He's not anxious about his own death, his impending death. He is fast asleep. It says, And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell.

And he struck Peter's side and woke him up saying, Get up quickly. And the chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, Gird yourself and put on your sandals.

And he did so. He said to him, Wrap your cloak around you and follow me. And he went out and continued to follow and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real but thought he was seeing a vision.

They had passed the first and second guard. They came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself. And they went out and went along one street and immediately the angel departed from him.

When Peter came to himself, he said, Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting. What were they expecting? His death. Verse 12.

When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. When he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. When she recognized Peter's voice because of her joy, she did not open the gate but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate.

Now you have to understand the scene. They are praying for Peter and Peter shows up and Rhoda goes to open the gate, recognizes it's his voice but doesn't let him in. What does she do? She goes back to where everybody is praying because she has to make the announcement that prayers have been answered.

So the Bible says this. It says, She ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate and they said to her, Hallelujah! God has answered. That's not what they say.

What do they say? You are out of your mind, Rhoda. You're a crazy woman. You snapped a twig.

You don't know what's going on. They kept saying, It's his angel. It's his angel.

What do you mean it's his angel? But Peter continued knocking and when he had opened the door, they saw him and were, what? Amazed! Listen, how do you know when you pray, you pray with wrong expectations? When God answers, you're amazed. We should never be amazed when God answers. We should just be praising God and thanking Him.

But they were amazed, why? Because they didn't expect their prayers to work anyway. They had gathered together to pray for Peter and pray for his release but when they were praying for his release, they really weren't expecting him to be released. I mean, after all, James is dead, Peter's in prison, he's going to die, but let's pray for his release anyway.

And then when he's finally released, they're absolutely astonished because God works in conjunction with man's prayers. And that's why prayer challenges your spirituality more than anything else. Because you live in a life of, in the realm of not expecting God to do what we ask Him to do.

And yet we're told to keep seeking, keep asking, keep knocking, continuously. In other words, pray without ceasing. Go back to Luke 11.

In Luke 11, Christ knows that persistence in prayer is going to be lacking in the life of the disciples. He knows that. Like He knows it's lacking in your life and mine.

So He gives this parable because the Lord is not like the reluctant friend. In Luke 18, He's not like the unjust judge. He is generous, He is kind.

Then He says this, verse 9, So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks, receives, and he who knocks, finds. And to him who, excuse me, he who seeks, finds. And to him who knocks, it will be opened.

Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish. He will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? Or if he asks for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? If then you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? This is speaking of the generosity of God. You have an earthly father, when you ask for a piece of bread, he doesn't give you a snake.

When you ask for a fish, he doesn't give you a scorpion. No, because your father loves you. He's kind, he's generous.

Well, how much more will your heavenly Father give you the Holy Spirit to them who asks? In the parallel account in Matthew 6, it doesn't say Holy Spirit, it just says, give to you that which is good. Interesting. Give that which is good to those who keep asking, seeking, and knocking.

We know that only God is good. The Holy Spirit is God. Therefore, the Holy Spirit is good.

Very interesting. Matthew 6 also tells us that the Lord knows what you're going to ask before it's ever on your lips. So He already knows what you're going to ask Him.

He already knows that. Because He knows everything in advance. God never finds out anything.

He just simply knows everything. So He knows what you're going to ask before you even speak it. Because He knows your heart.

He knows everything about you. And so He makes this statement that's absolutely profound for the disciples. Why? Because they lived in expectation of the coming of the Spirit of God.

How do we know that? Ezekiel chapter 36. Ezekiel 36 says it this way. Verse 25, I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean.

I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. That's the New Covenant promise. They know New Covenant promise that the greatest gift that God will give them is the Spirit that indwells them.

So because the Lord knows what you ask before you even ask it, He says, look, the Lord is so gracious, so kind, so generous, He will give you the Spirit of God. Everything that you've longed for, you're going to get. That's so important.

Why? Because everything you are asking God for is already embodied in the Spirit of God. Think about it. You ask God for courage, for power.

And the Lord said in Acts chapter 1 that you will receive the Holy Spirit and when you do, His power will overshadow you. You receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. We ask God for power, we ask God for courage, and we have the Spirit of God who is all-powerful already within us.

We need comfort. Comfort during times of sorrow. Comfort during times of trouble.

And Christ says in John 14, I'm going to give you another helper or another comforter. Not one of a different kind, but one of the same kind as Me. So when you need comfort, you'll have the Spirit of comfort already within you.

When you want to receive guidance, the Spirit of God will give you the guidance that's necessary because He will guide you into all truth. So everything you're looking to receive, you already have in the Spirit of the living God. You're indwelt by the Spirit, you're sealed by the Spirit, you're saved by the Spirit, right? You're convicted by the Spirit, and the Spirit makes His home, His abode with you.

God gives you everything that you need in the arrival of the Spirit of God. You ask for the supply of something, and God gives you the source of everything. Interesting.

You ask for God to give you joy, and the fruit of the Spirit is what? Joy. And I've heard this many times, I just don't love my husband or my wife anymore. What do you mean you don't love them anymore? I just don't love them anymore.

No, you're saying you can't or you don't want to love them anymore because you have the Spirit of God in you, and the Spirit of God produces love. So you can love your enemies, you can love your wife, you can love your husband, you can love your children. Why? Because the Spirit of God gives you love.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, and peace. See, I'm so anxious. Well, why are you anxious? You should be at peace.

You have the Spirit of God within you to give you peace. How can you not have peace when the Spirit of God reigns within your heart? How about long suffering? The fruit of the Spirit is patience, long suffering, gentleness, meekness, kindness. Oh, by the way, the fruit of the Spirit is self-control.

You say, I just can't control my anger. Yes, you can. I can't control my sexual tendencies.

Yes, you can. If the Spirit of God is within you because He is a Spirit that produces self-control. You might be unwilling to yield to the power, unyield to the Spirit, unyield to the call of God in your life, but the source of everything is there.

You ask the Lord for money, and He gives you the bank. Would you rather have a portion of money, or would you rather have the bank? I'd rather have the bank. Why? Because with the bank comes all the money you could possibly ever want or need.

So God says, I'm going to give you the Spirit because in all your search for truth, He's a Spirit of truth. In all your search for direction, He guides you. In all the desire for comfort, He's the one who comforts you.

In your desire to be controlled in life with your emotions and your thoughts, He is a Spirit that produces self-control. In your desire to love others, love your enemies, He gives you the love to do so. It's all within the Spirit of the living God.

That's why we say that prayer will challenge your spirituality more than anything else. We need to understand prayer and why the command is given, pray without ceasing. Be conscious of God's presence as you walk through every situation in life.

No matter how difficult it is, how painful it may be, no matter how depressing the circumstances might be around you, God is walking with you through those times that as you learn to lean upon Him, you trust Him and you rely upon Him. That's why not only does prayer, number one, challenge my spirituality, but prayer, number two, certifies my dependency. Prayer certifies my dependency.

In other words, it helps establish the fact that I am not an autonomous being. I can't function independently. Christ said, without me ye can do nothing, John 15:5. But see, we don't believe that.

We think that we can go through life and rely on my intellect, rely on my ingenuity, rely on my money, rely on my expertise, rely on my giftedness, rely on the things that I already have. And so we go through life independently from God, trying to establish our life without Him simply because we think we're good enough and excellent enough, but you are not. Remember Luke 5? Probably not.

So let me read it to you. Luke 5 says, Now it happened that while the crowd was pressing around Him and listening to the Word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, or the Sea of Galilee, and He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake. But the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets.

In other words, they were done fishing. They were now cleaning their nets. And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little while from the land.

And he sat down and began teaching the people from the boat. So the disciples have come in from early morning fishing, and they are washing their nets, and Christ decides to teach. So He occupies Simon's boat, and He says, Push down a little ways, and I'll teach from the boat, because the crowds were pressing against Him, and He was backing up against the water.

And so He says, I'll just go in the boat, begin to preach and teach, and people will be able to hear Me from there. And so He says, When He finished speaking, He said to Simon, Put out into the deep water, and let down your nets for catch. In other words, in the modern day vernacular, Peter, I'm done preaching.

Let's go fishing. Let's go fishing. And Simon answered and said, Master, we worked hard all night, and caught nothing.

He says, Master, Lord, Jesus, You're a teacher. You're a preacher. But me, I'm a fisherman.

I don't tell you how to teach. You don't tell me how to fish. This is what I do.

My whole family fishes. I was raised this way. This is how I live my life.

I'm an expert fisherman. I'm not an expert preacher or teacher, but I am an expert at fishing. And so Peter says, But I will do as you say, and let down the nets.

In other words, nevertheless, if that's what you want, Lord, then that's what we will do. Just to prove to you that you're not a fisherman and just a teacher and a preacher. That I am the true fisherman and you are not, because I'm an expert at it.

So, needless to say, we'll push out into the deep, and I will show you, Jesus, that I am right, and you, Jesus, are wrong. And so they, says when they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish. So you don't fish during the day.

Why? Because during the day, the fish go further down into the water. Why? It's cooler down there. In the early morning, in the evening, they rise to the top.

But during the day, the heat of the day, they go down to the bottom. Peter knows that. But they cast the nets over the side of the boat, and they caught a great quantity of fish.

So and so their nets began to break. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats so that they began to sink.

But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus' feet, saying, Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man. For amazement had seized him, and all his companions, because of the catch of fish which they had taken. And so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, and were partners with Simon.

And Jesus said to Simon, Do not fear. From now on, you will be catching men. And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

Here is Peter. Depart from me. I'm a sinful man.

Depart from the fact that even though I think I know more than you, I don't. I thought I did. I thought I could act independently, God, of you.

But I can't. In the arena in which I am the most skilled, in the arena in which I am the most intelligent, in the arena in which I am the most experienced, in the arena in which I am the best at, I still need God. That's the point.

But see, we go through life thinking, Well, I don't need God in my job. I can do that. I mean, come on.

Who needs God for that? I don't need God to help me raise my family. I know how to raise my family. I know how to get them to church and read the Bible with them.

I don't need God to help me with this or help me with that. Why? Because I'm smart. But in the arena in which you think you don't need God is where you need Him the most.

Because you see, it certifies your dependency upon Him. And that's why the story in Mark 9 is so important. When the disciples, you remember, when Peter, James, and John and Jesus came down from the mount of transfiguration and they couldn't cast out the boy who had a demon in him and Christ was frustrated with His own men.

Oh, unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? Bring the boy to me. He cast out the demon. And they wonder why they couldn't do that.

Because He had learned to live independently of God in the arena which He had called them to live for Him. He says, these things only come out by prayer. Your dependence upon Me for everything.

That's why prayer will challenge your spirituality more than any other aspect of the spiritual disciplines. It will certify your dependency that I need God in every situation, in every circumstance. No matter where I'm at, no matter what I'm doing, I am not gifted enough, nor talented enough, nor experienced enough to do it without my God.

For without Me, ye can do nothing. You need Me. Prayer will challenge my spirituality.

Prayer will certify my dependency. And thirdly, prayer will confirm my loyalty. And to understand that, you'll have to come back next week.

Let's pray. Father, we thank You for today. It is a challenge to every one of us to understand we are to pray without ceasing.

We are to never give up. We are to never quit on prayer. We are never to throw in the towel on prayer.

There might be someone in the room today who has said, I prayed for a year. Well, You say keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. We need to learn persistence.

We need to learn steadfastness in prayer. We can never afford to give up praying for Your will to be done. Why? Because Your will is that we pray unceasingly.

That we pray at all times for all men. That we be the kind of people that continue to commune with the true and living God as we go through each part of each day. As You have taught us, Lord, to rejoice always.

Teach us now to pray unceasingly. Why? Simply because You've told us in John's Gospel, the 14th chapter, the 13th verse, that the reason you answer prayer is not to get our needs met, but that the Father would be glorified in the Son. That's what we're asking for.

That You would receive all the glory. So, Lord, whatever we're asking for today, whatever we're beseeching the throne of grace for today, may we do it for one reason and one reason only. The glory of the true and living God.

We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.