Praying In Real Life

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Anthony Gentle

Tanilba Bay Baptist Church

Praying with Paul • Sermon • Submitted a month ago • Presented a month ago • 26:17

Romans 15:23–33

Prayer

Perseverance

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IRL

Who here that is over 50 know what the three letters IRL stands for?

In Real Life

Now, I should perhaps mention I’m the type of person that writes all my words out in full, even in text messages, but my understanding is that when young people use IRL, it’s essentially an admission that the online persona is more or less a made up fiction.

You see, social media has allowed people to basically curate a picture of their life that quite often looks pretty good. I do recognise that people use social media in a variety of ways, but so often when you look at what people post, it can be easy to think that everyone out there has a perfect life. They go on lots of fun holidays. They constantly eat out at fancy restaurants. There children always look so cute, and presumably they’re perfectly behaved, with the optimum balance of cheekiness and being polite.

But the fact people use, IRL - In Real Life - is a recognition that the curated image is not all there is.

Now, the reality is, this image of the curated image is actually not new for people in the church. Church is perhaps the place where people have been perfecting the curated image for a long time.

We sometimes use the phrase - the Sunday Christian. That is, the person who you talk to after church, and they appear the picture of a godly man or woman. Meet them during the week, and it can be a very different picture.

Idealized prayer

Now, I want to recognise that throughout this relatively short series of sermons that I’ve done over the last month looking at the prayers that Paul prayed, it would be easy to see what I’ve said like some sort of highly idealized world where our prayers fit in these nice neat ways.

In the first week, we looked at how Paul has eternity in view when he prays. He knows what is really important and he allows this to shape his prayers.

In the second week, we looked at Paul’s love for the people that he prayed for. Rather than a shopping list style prayer where requests are made with little feeling, there was a deep love and care for them.

Last week, we looked at the way Paul’s prayers interact with a sovereign God and how that can shape the prayers we might make.

All this is well and good but it can leave us thinking that there is this ideal way in which we should be praying.

Prayer can of course be a way that we can perfect our public image of ourselves as good godly Christians.

So just start using some of the words that Paul uses in his prayers, like praying “that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened”, and that you may live lives worthy of the gospel, or that “the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else”.

But prayer should never be about perfecting our public image. That’s not to say we shouldn’t give careful thought about how we pray in public, particularly for those who are leaders, but rather that it is not for self praise.

So this morning, as I conclude this short series, I want to think about what prayer looks like IRL - in real life.

You see, prayer is not this ethereal process - it’s actually something that connects us with the real world in all it’s ugly and at times horrific ways. Prayer is where we get down into the dirty and messy ways of this world.

While at times it might feel glamorous, more often, prayer is where things get real.

And so as I conclude this series on praying with Paul, I want to explore what it looks like when things start to get very real for Paul.

This is not to say it wasn’t real for Paul in the other times we considered his prayers. In those times he was able to see beyond the immediate issue and so was able to pray big prayers. But this morning we’re going to have a glimpse of the struggles that come with prayer.

Paul’s plans

The passage that was read earlier is the context that we need. It came from Paul’s letter to the Romans.

He’s just written them this really powerful letter, but as he starts to wrap things up, he lets them know his plans.

You see, he wants to visit them, a place he has never been, but Rome is not his final destination, because he wants to keep going to Spain, we’re he can establish new communities of worship.

He’s got the plans all sorted, because he knows the task that God has set for him - the task of pioneering new work among the Gentiles. So why wouldn’t God want him to go to Spain, after all, there is little for him to do in Rome as the church has already been established by someone else there.

Paul also outlines more of the future plans he has, in particularly his plan to go to Jerusalem before he goes to Spain, because he wants to bring a contribution for the poor among Jerusalem - Paul never lost his love for the Jewish people.

So we read verses 23 through to 29 and we think - well isn’t that great that Paul has such a good well thought out plan!

Just leave that thought, because I’ll come back to that soon.

Request for prayer

It’s then in verse 30 that Paul request prayer.

In fact, he does just ask, he actually urges.

You see, as much as Paul has just painted for them this beautiful picture, he’s not some deluded person living in a dream world. He knows the world he lives in.

He knows of the forces that are out there trying to put a stop to God’s work being done.

He’s not just thinking it would be a nice thing if some others would join in with him, rather there is an urgency to this. He’s relying on this prayer.

You see, following the path of God is actually not the easier path - but it is the better path.

Following the path of God, will not give you instant success. It will not make you the most popular. It will not make you lots of money or gain lots of possessions.

What it does do, is connect you with the kingdom of God - a kingdom that Jesus established, and has gone from a small mustard seed, to a massive spreading tree.

But while we’re on this side of the return of Christ, this puts us on a collision course with the spiritual forces that oppose God’s kingdom.

The Spiritual Battle

If we were to turn to the sixth chapter of Ephesians, we see this battle language to describe what happens when this collision happens.

When Paul writes to the Ephesians, he tells them to take their stand against the devil’s schemes. Reminding them that 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 realm (Eph 6:11). He goes on to describe the various protections that God gives us using an analogy of armour - and I would encourage you to read Ephesians 6 if this is something you’re not familiar with.

Here in Romans, he doesn’t use quite the same language - what he does do, is remind them that this path is a struggle and tat he is desperate for them to join him in this same struggle.

You see, here’s the thing… even if you’re not physically going through all of the ups and downs off someone in the midst of a big spiritual battle, you can actually join the fray in prayer.

But just know, this is not mere sentiment. This is not just a matter of saying a few choice words and then you’ve done your bit.

Rather, in the language of Ephesians 6, you put on your armour, which is actually going to then attract attention from those spiritual forces.

Joining forces

You see, there is something quite mysterious about what happens when we start praying for other Christians pushing through the Spiritual battle that they face - and that is, that we join with them.

When Paul urges them to “join me in my struggle by praying to God for me”, there is a sense in which the joining occurs on a level far greater than we would likely recognise.

The same spirit that is with them is with us.

Have you ever had that sense when you are praying for someone and you feel this sense that you just need to pray about a particular aspect of what they are going through?

For instance, you might be praying for someone, let’s say, because you know they are going through some health problems, but you get a sudden urge to let’s say, pray for their finances, or pray for their relationship, or pray for their mental well being.

This could be the out working of the spiritual joining.

But if you’re not getting this prompting, that doesn’t therefore mean you’re not joining in.

In fact, what is an indication of joining with someone in this way, is actually what we specifically looked at two weeks ago - that is, the love you feel for that person.

We love them, and we feel the hits they take, and we celebrate in the victories that they make.

This is praying in the real world. The world where it is messy. Where opposition in many different form present themselves.

Prayer for ministry

But let’s look at what specifically Paul is asking prayer for.

Now I was just saying before about how many of the prayers we’ve looked at before this point are those big overarching prayers… praying that others can know God better… to know his love… to be conformed to his will...

Well, here, we see that there are very specific things that need praying for.

First of all, safety.

He knows that there is danger.

While he might have just stated his plans in the earlier verses, but he’s an experienced traveler.

He knows in particular that the Jews who haven’t accepted Jesus feel particularly threatened by Paul. Just read through the book of Acts, from chapter 13 which is the start of Paul’s journey’s, and just see the number of times Paul gets chased out of town by Jews feeling threatened by this new teaching.

So he’s asking for safety from the Jews.

Second he asking that the contribution for the poor in Jerusalem is favourably received.

And finally, that he might be able to come with joy to Rome and enjoy the company of these Roman Christians that he is writing to.

It’s good to pray for the specifics.

Know what you’re up against, and pray into the issues that you will be facing.

Not our way

But, there is something that we need to recognise when we consider this request for prayer.

That is, that things did not go the way Paul wanted them to. He asked for prayer, but things turned out differently.

Let’s look at what actually happened...

Remember, the first part of his request for prayer was that he might be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea.

Well, the account of what happens when Paul goes to Jerusalem can be found in Acts 21-26 and it is well worth the read if you’re not familiar with it.

But let me just give you the highlights now.

So when he arrives, he is initially able to meet with his Christian brothers and sisters, and so in this regard, the second part of his prayer is answered in a positive sense.

But it doesn’t take long before Paul gets arrested.

Actually, it was a little more spectacular than just a simple arrest. The Jews managed to stir up the whole town to the point that Paul is in danger of his life. Getting arrested was actually what saved him.

Well, the Romans centurions who had arrested him, were then going to flog him, and he was only spared of this when they found out that Paul himself had Roman citizenship - something which was quite difficult to get in that part of the world.

But it didn’t end there. Because the centurion wanted to know what was going on, so he gathered the Jews together, and, well, that almost ended in disaster for Paul, except with a very clever comment, he managed to get one group of Jews to turn on the other. Although, Paul was still in the middle of it, and needed to be again taken by the Roman troops, who were able to take him to safety.

The Jews still tried to plot against Paul, but his nephew overheard a plan and he narrowly averted an ambush.

Then he spent years in prison awaiting a trial, because the Roman official was waiting on a bribe. Eventually, after appealing to Caesar, he was shipped off with other prisoners, which is how he eventually got to Rome.

Now, here’s the interesting thing about this whole encounter… It was not the way Paul intended it to go. It was not how he would have been praying, and it would have been really hard and at times, very scary.

But in another way, God most certainly did answer his prayer. Remember, he was asking that he be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea. It might not have felt safe at all times, but God did always protect him.

And then you look at the third part of his request for prayer, that is that he may come to these Christians in Rome and be refreshed - well, that hardly worked out the way he might have liked, yet, it did actually happen.

I already mentioned that he had appealed to Caesar, and therefore got shipped off with other prisoners. He then got ship wrecked, followed by a stint in Malta, where as it happened, he got bitten by a snake. The locals all waited for him to die, and when he didn’t, they then concluded he must be a god.

Anyway, he did eventually get to Rome, but effectively was put under house arrest.

Was this what he wanted? Well, no, I’m pretty confident it wasn’t what he was expecting when he prayer - yet when you look back in hindsight, you can actually see God sovereign hand in all of this.

You see, when we pray, we don’t always get our way. This actually doesn’t mean we shouldn’t ask for things a certain way. This gets back to the message I gave last week - we’re praying to a sovereign God who holds all things together.

So what does this mean? Well, I’m going to suggest pray - but then let God do his thing. When things don’t work out, see that God can still work through it for his benefit.

It’s this perspective that we need when we think about the spiritual battle as well.

You see, there is something I didn’t really make clear before.

The spiritual battle is actually not an even one. That is, God has the upper hand in that his sovereignty even extends over the evil one.

God allows the evil one to remain, because his purposes are much bigger than what we realise. He’s allowing us to make a choice. He wants us to have faith to know that we can stand against the evil one, and not in our strength, but in the strength of the almighty be bold.

Things won’t always go the way we want, but God is always there, and we can always trust that God will work all things for the good of those who love him.

Conclusion

Praying in the real world is hard.

It’s unpredictable. It’s hard to explain. It gets messy, particularly so as our own sinful desires get in the way.

But prayer is the thing we’re given where we join the fight. Joining with the heavenly angels, but also joining with one another in the struggles we face.

Paul’s prayers might sometimes seem all high and lofty, but actually, he was all too familiar with praying in the middle of absolute chaos.

And he wanted others to join with him in prayer too.

It is so important for all of us to pray.

Many of you will have noticed that we’ve started to see some real good movement here in this church. We’re seeing people draw close to God - some for the first time, some coming back to him after time away.

It’s the type of activity that will draw attention from the evil one.

We need to join with one another in prayer.

We need to be putting on the spiritual armor and see God move in powerful ways.

Just remember, things won’t always go the way we expect, yet we can be sure that through our prayers, we will see some amazing things happen.