Teach Us to Pray

A common malady among Christians is a feeling of inadequacy in prayer. Am I doing it right? After all, if you want an audience with the God of heaven and earth, you want to do it properly. And it’s not like we are the first to ask how to pray. In the sixteenth century, a barber, Peter, asked Martin Luther for tips on how to pray correctly. Going back to the first century, we find twelve men asking Jesus about the proper way to pray (Lu 11:1) from which we receive the ultimate prayer from our Lord Jesus (Matt 6:9-13; Lu 11:2-4). Without this instruction, how did saints through the centuries know to pray? Actually, the Lord taught His people how to pray through King David’s pen in Psalm 17.

Listen, O Lord of my righteousness;
Attend to my supplication;
Give ear to my prayer that is not with deceitful lips.

The first thing that we learn is to pray righteously and without deceit. This might seem obvious, but Jesus warned us about those who prayed to show off (Matt 6:5). Their reward was immediate but fleeting because it came from men, not God. And later, we learn not to ask selfishly (Jam 4:3): it only leads to conflict and dissension.

Therefore we learn to pray from the Lord’s perspective.

From Your face let my judgment come;
Let my eyes behold uprightness.

When we fix our gaze on the Lord, His precepts and judgments, His holy and righteous nature, we come before the throne understanding that our character and that of our requests are in accord with His character: what is true, just, pure, etc. And how do we fix our gaze on Him? By giving attention to where He reveals Himself.

You tested my heart when You visited me in the night;
You tried me in the fire and found nothing unjust in me.
That my mouth might not speak of the works of men,
I held to hard ways because of the words of Your lips.
Restore my steps in Your paths,
That my footsteps may not slip.

The description here is one who has learned the Scriptures and let them take root to walk circumspectly. An examination showed no indication to glorify himself or others, yet even in this, we see necessary realignment to give the saint a sure footing in life. And from such close attention to the Lord, there is assurance.

I cried out, because You listened to me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my words.
Magnify Your mercies, O You who save those who hope in You
From those who rise up against Your right hand.

The saint sees the past faithfulness of the Lord to uphold His promises, which fuels obedience and enables boldness to seek Him once again with full assurance and hope in the face of adversity that God will deal with our enemies.

Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
In the shelter of Your wings, You will shelter me
From the face of the ungodly who trouble me.
My enemies surrounded my soul;
Their fat enclosed them;
Their mouth spoke arrogantly.
Casting me out, they now surround me;
They set their eyes to bend down to the earth.
They seized me like a lion ready to tear its prey,
Like a young lion lurking in secret places.
Arise, O Lord, outrun them and trip up their heels;
Rescue my soul from the ungodly,
And Your sword from the enemies of Your hand.
O Lord, destroy them from the earth;
Scatter them in their life.
Their belly is filled with Your hidden things;
They are satisfied with their sons,
And they leave their possessions to their children.

Whether our enemies are flesh and blood or devils set to ruin us from the spiritual realm, we are sheltered. This is not to say that our enemies cannot do some measure of harm, but they cannot destroy us. We are satisfied solely in fixing our eyes on the Author and Finisher of faith (Heb 12:2).

As for me, in righteousness I shall behold Your face;
I shall be satisfied when Your glory is revealed.

Until the final day, we are to keep our eyes focused on the Lord Jesus who will reveal His glory on the last day, and we can add our voices to St. John’s words, “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev 22:20)