Sermon Tone Analysis

*/1 Timothy 2:1/**/ – 7 1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.

3 This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

5 For there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, 6 who gave himself a ransom for all --this was attested at the right time.

7 For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

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*Introduction:* It is sad to see how prayer has lost importance in many churches.

“If I announce a banquet,” a pastor said, “people will come out of the woodwork to attend.

But if I announce a prayer meeting, I’m lucky if the ushers show up!”

Not only have the special meetings for prayer lost stature in most local churches, */but even prayer in the services is greatly minimized.

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When “The Body of Christ” faces a serious problem, this presents the leaders and the members with a number of opportunities.

For one thing, */problems give us the opportunity to examine our ministry and discover what changes must be made./*

In times of success, it is easy for us to maintain the /status quo,/ but this is dangerous.

Henry Ward Beecher called success “a last-year’s nest from which the birds have flown.”

*/Any ministry or organization that thinks its success will go on automatically is heading for failure.

We must regularly examine our lives and our ministries lest we start taking things for granted./*

*/Acts 6:1-4/**/ /**/- Now during those days, when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. 2 And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, "It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.

3 Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, 4 while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word."

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*/The Apostles studied the situation and concluded that they were to blame:/* */they were so busy serving tables that they were neglecting prayer and the ministry of the Word of God./*

They had created their own problem because they were trying to do too much.

Even today, */some /*pastors are so busy with secondary tasks that they fail to spend adequate time in study and in prayer.

*/This creates a “spiritual deficiency” in the church that makes it easy for problems to develop./*

*/The two main ministries of the pastor are the Word of God and prayer (Acts 6:4 while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word.")./*

It is sad to see churches robbing their pastors of these important ministries by keeping them “busy” promoting a program, pleasing people, */and practicing church politics./*

*/If the churches would simplify their organization and purify their motives, the pastors would be able to do a spiritual work for the glory of the Lord./*

It is important that the church have a balanced ministry of the Word of God and prayer.

*/The Word instructs the church; prayer inspires the church to obey the Word.

The church that has an abundance of Bible teaching but little prayer will have “much light, but no heat.”

It will be orthodox but frozen!

The other extreme is the church that has much prayer and religious enthusiasm, but little teaching from the Word; this may produce a group of people with zeal, noise. . .

but no knowledge./*

From his concerns about the circumstances giving rise to false teachers Paul turned to matters relating to the conduct of the church broadly .

Paul began with what he considered most important: */prayer.

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*/What too often comes last in a church’s priorities should actually come first./*

The church members also need to be prepared to pray.

Our hearts must be right with God and with each other.

*/We must really want to pray, and not pray simply to please people (as did the Pharisees, Matt.

6:5), or to fulfill a religious duty.

When a local church ceases to depend on prayer, God ceases to bless its ministry./*

*Point 1:* There are at least seven different Greek nouns for “prayer,” and in our focus verses for this morning, three of them are used here.

*/a)Supplications/* carries the idea of “offering a request for a felt need.”

This refers to the prayers that focus upon special needs—*/deep and intense needs.

When you see special needs in the lives of people—all people—you are to supplicate for them./*

That is, you are to be carrying the need before God with a great sense of urgency: you are to plead and beg for the person or persons.

*/The idea is that of intense and deep brokenness before God in behalf of others, that God would help and save the person./*

Just think what a different world this would be, what a different community we would have, if we really took the names and needs of people before God and pleaded for them in an intense brokenness and tears.

Just think …

·         how many more loved ones would be saved and helped.

·         how many more within our community, villages, country, and world would be saved and helped.

·         how fewer problems would exist within society.

*/b)Intercessions/* is best translated “petitions.”

There are "intercessions" (enteuxeis).

*/This refers to bold praying; to standing before God in behalf of another person./*

Christ is your Intercessor, the One who stands between God and you in your behalf.

But you are also to intercede for men, to carry their names and lives before God.

*/You are to boldly approach God and pray for them, expecting God to hear and answer—all in the name of Christ./*

You are to intercede for all men—to stand in the gap between them and God—*/boldly praying and asking God to be merciful and gracious in salvation and in deliverance./*

Many OT characters noted for their faith are also noted for their intercessory prayer.

Abraham asked God not to destroy Sodom in order to save his nephew Lot.

He called on the righteous character of God, asking if God would “kill the righteous with the wicked” (Gen.

18:25).

In so doing, Abraham acknowledged that he was not worthy to lay such claims before the holy God (v.

27).

Abraham also interceded for Abimelech, fulfilling a prophetic function and bringing healing (Gen.

20:7,17).

Moses intervened between God and Pharaoh as he tried to get permission for the people to leave Egypt (for example, Exod.

8:8).

At Sinai the people asked Moses to represent them before God since they feared to approach the awesome God (Exod.

20:19).

After the people built the golden calf, */Moses prayed for God’s mercy, calling on God to remember His reputation among the nations and His promises to the patriarchs.

As a result, God relented (Exod.

32:11-14)./*

Through intercessory prayer Moses sought to make an atonement for sin, identifying himself so completely with the people that he asked to be blotted out of God’s book if God would not forgive the people’s sin (Exod.

32:30-34; cp.

Deut.

9:25).

The priests had intercession as part of their job description (Joel 2:17; cp. 1 Sam.

2:25).

The high priest’s task was to make atonement for the people (Lev.

16).

*/In face of the people’s idolatry, Samuel asked God to forgive them (1 Sam.

7:5).

Even when he did not agree with the people, Samuel took their plea for a king to God (1 Sam.

8; cp.

chap.

12)./*

*/When God rejected Saul, Samuel did not glorify in or gossip about another man’s downfall, he prayed in grief (1 Sam.

15:11)./*

David interceded all night on behalf of his newborn baby, even knowing God had decreed the child’s death because of David’s sin (2 Sam.

12:14-18).

After taking a census without God’s direction, David asked God to punish him and not the innocent people (2 Sam.

24:17).

*/In dedicating the temple, Solomon asked God to hear the prayers of the sinful people and forgive them (1 Kings 8; cp.

3:3-14)./*

Elijah accused God of bringing “tragedy upon the widow with whom I am staying by killing her son” (1 Kings 17:20) and prayed successfully that the child would live again (cp. 2 Kings 4:32-34).

Hezekiah took Sennacherib’s letter to the temple and opened it before God, praying for deliverance from the Assyrians (Isa.

37:14-20).

*/Intercession formed an important part of the prophet’s task./*

Amos prayed that God’s Word would not come to pass (Amos 7:5-6).

Jeremiah responded to God’s Word of judgment on the nation with a plea for God not to be a stranger among those who could not save themselves (Jer.

14:7-9).

Lamentations is filled with prayers for the nation.

*/The Prophet Isaiah looked to a day when people from all nations could come to the temple and make intercession (Isa.

56:7).

The prophetic hope centered in the Suffering Servant who would bear the sin of all people, making intercession for transgressors (Isa.

53:6,12)./*

*In the final analysis, even the most righteous of people need an intercessor with God (Job 9:32-35; 19:25; 23:1-17).*

*/c) Giving of thanks/* is definitely a part of worship and prayer.

*/We not only give thanks for answers to prayer, but for who God is and what He does for us in His grace./*

We should not simply add our thanksgiving to the end of a selfish prayer!

Thanksgiving should be an important ingredient in all of our prayers.

*/In fact, sometimes we need to imitate David and present to God only thanksgiving with no petitions at all!/* (see *Psalm 103 1** Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all his benefits-- 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good as long as you live so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. . .

.) *

*Point 2:* “Prayer and supplication [petition] with thanksgiving” are a part of Paul’s formula for God’s peace in our hearts (*Phil.

4:6* *Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. *).

*/It is worth noting that Daniel, the great prayer-warrior, practiced this kind of praying (Dan.

6:10–11 Although Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he continued to go to his house, which had windows in its upper room open toward Jerusalem, and to get down on his knees three times a day to pray to his God and praise him, just as he had done previously.

11 The conspirators came and found Daniel praying and seeking mercy before his God.)./ *

*Point 3:/ Our focus verses for this morning, /**/1 Timothy 2:1/**/ – 7 speak on The objects of prayer ./*

*“All men”* makes it clear that no person on earth is outside the influence of believing prayer.

(We have no examples of exhortations that say we should pray for the dead.

If we should pray for the dead, Paul certainly had a good opportunity to tell us in this section of his letter.)