Pray For Everyone
BIBLE PASSAGE:
I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and
thanksgiving be made for all people— for kings and all those in
authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness
and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Savior.
(1 Timothy 2:1-3)
MEDITATION:
– Paul wrote letters to churches,
but he also wrote letters to two individuals (Timothy & Titus).
– Timothy was given charge of the church at Ephesus.
– Titus was to oversee the churches in Crete.
Note:
The churches needed trustworthy leaders who were beyond reproach.
– False teachers were showing up everywhere
and they needed to be weeded out.
– Paul’s letters to these two leaders had instructions
about the issues of pastoring and caring for churches.
Paul wanted to:
– Arm them for the spiritual battle of leadership
– Give them the authority and tools
for teaching and protecting those they were leading.
1 TIMOTHY 2
VERSE 1:
Paul wanted Timothy to understand
the importance of prayer in public worship.
Note:
– It is an essential part of public worship.
– It is not to be neglected, or hurried through
in order to get to other parts of the service.
Paul urged Timothy to make prayer
a priority when the believers came together.
Note:
Today, fewer churches have regularly scheduled prayer meetings.
(those that do, are seeing less people attending). The time for prayer
on Sunday morning is shrinking in a lot of churches.
Paul used several words for prayer:
Requests
– God wants us to bring our needs to Him;
to tell Him what we believe is important in our lives.
Prayers
– Words spoken to God in a reverent manner.
Intercession
– Praying for the needs of others;
praying for God’s blessings on others; unselfish praying.
– (John 17:6-26) – Jesus was the model of intercessory prayer.
– (Romans 8:34)
Even as He prepared to make the ultimate intercession in His death.
– (Romans 8:26) – The Holy Spirit intercedes for us.
– (2 Thessalonians 3:1) – Paul asked others to intercede for him.
Thanksgiving
– Expressing gratitude to God for answered prayer, for blessings,
for loving us, for sending His Son, for saving us, for healing;
for protection, for encouragement, etc.
– James 1:17
Paul tells us to pray for – everybody
(family, relatives, friends, people at work, leaders, the lost).
Note:
We should name them in our prayers.
Note:
Praying for others does make a difference
(if not, God would not have commanded us to do it).
VERSE 2:
Paul wanted to be sure that rulers were included in our prayers.
“kings” – Referred to the Roman emperor, and the lesser rulers.
Note:
We may find it difficult to pray for local and national politicians.
We may disagree with their agenda, and distrust them, but
according to Paul, we should pray for them anyway.
Early Christians may have had a harder time praying for leaders:
– The Roman emperor at that time was Nero.
– He became a leader in the persecution of believers.
– He would eventually order the execution of Paul
(the very one who encouraged others to pray for Nero).
Paul’s rationale for praying for rulers:
– Their decisions affect our daily lives and the privilege of free worship.
– Their decisions affect the peace and safety of society as a whole.
“godliness”
– Occurs 8 times in 1 Timothy, once in 2 Timothy,
once in Titus, and nowhere else in Paul’s writings.
– It refers to our attitude and conduct
as measured by God’s standards (and not by man’s).
– It depicts a way of life that shows reverence for God,
and respect for other people.
Note:
Paul believed that prayer had a significant impact on
governmental matters, and gave us opportunities to
spread the gospel.
(Romans 13:1) – Civil government is ordained by God.
VERSE 3:
Question:
Why should we pray?
– It is a good thing, and it pleases God.
Note:
God likes it when we talk to Him,
and especially when we pray for others.
We should pray for an environment where we can live as godly
people (and not that the government should give us what we
consider to be our entitlements) (Romans 13:1-4, 1 Peter 2:13-17)
“holiness”
– Translated as respect in 1 Timothy 3:4.
– Translated as seriousness in Titus 2:7.
– Refers to our dealing with others.
– Godliness and holiness are inseparable;
one cannot exist without the other (2 Peter 3:8-12).
VERSE 4:
Paul points out something that’s important for all of us to know:
– God wants everyone to be saved.
– It is our choice
and it will affect our eternal destiny (Matthew 7:13-14).
– Anyone can be saved (Romans 10:13, 2 Peter 3:9).
– As Christians, we each play a part
in God’s desire for all to be saved (Matthew 28:19-20).
Note:
– Paul is aware of this (Romans 10:14-17).
– God wants everyone to come to a knowledge of the truth
(which is a deep understanding that
occurs at salvation and should continue to grow).
VERSE 5:
More of Paul’s points:
– There is only one God.
Confirmed in the Old and New Testaments
(Examples: Malachi 2:10, 1 Corinthians 8:6).
– The pagan world worships things created instead of the Creator
(Romans 1:23, 25).
Note:
If there were many gods, then we would not be responsible
to any one. All of humanity must give an account of their
lives to this true and only God. This is the God we pray to;
without Him we have no hope of salvation.
– There is one mediator between God and humanity.
– Jesus is the mediator
and this is a truth that is vital to salvation (Acts 4:12).
– He is qualified because of
what He did for us on the cross (1 John 1:7 – 2:12)
“mediator”
– One who stands between two hostile parties in
in order to reconcile their differences, and bring
peace to the relationship.
Note:
– A mediator needs to be able to speak to both parties;
since Jesus is man and God, He is qualified to speak to God.
– Without His mediating,
we would have no hope of establishing peace with God.
“men”
– Not the Greek word for male, but a word that represents all
of humanity. (This qualifies Christ as a mediator to mankind)
Note:
If people reject Christ,
there is no other way for them to receive eternal life, so:
– It is essential for us to pray for our lost friends.
– It is essential for us to pray for missionaries
who carry the Good News to the lost.
VERSE 6:
Christ’s primary act as a mediator was, “giving Himself a ransom”.
“ransom”
– The payment to free a slave.
Note:
Jesus paid the debt of our sins by dying on the cross;
– His death frees us from the slavery of sin.
– He cancelled the effect of Adam’s sin
that has been passed down to all (Romans 5:12-21).
– Being our mediator required that Jesus give
Himself to be a ransom (Mark 10:45, Hebrews 9:15).
Jesus was obedient in testifying the Gospel to man; now,
man must be obedient in testifying the Gospel to other
men (we have established a ‘partnership’ with Him).
VERSE 7:
Paul’s appointment as a “herald and apostle” was in keeping
with the necessity of spreading the Gospel to a lost world.
“heralds”
– Carried the official messages of a king (or someone in authority).
– Had the responsibility to publicly proclaim the message
without including their own opinions.
Note:
Paul’s responsibility was to repeat the message
revealed to him, and not to teach his own ideas.
“telling the truth”
– Apparently Paul said this because
there were some in Ephesus who challenged:
– His authority as an apostle.
– His calling as a teacher to the Gentiles.
Paul’s actions are consistent with the commission the Lord gave him.
– Acts 9:10-15
– Acts 22:12-15 (shared his testimony in public)
– Acts 26:12-18
(Paul was brought before King Agrippa – shares his testimony)
He affirms his special call to go to the Gentiles
– Acts 13:44-48 (Paul & Barnabus speaking in the synagogue)
– Romans 11:13-14
– Galatians 1:15-16 (Paul speaking to the Galatians)
Paul trusted the Holy Spirit of God to do His work
through the Word that he faithfully preached
(Romans 1:14-15, 15:20, 1 Corinthians 1:17, Ephesians 3:8).
Note:
We should share our faith with the same confidence.
We should be available and let God do the work.
VERSE 8:
“men everywhere”
– Paul wanted everyone to pray; it wasn’t limited to church leaders.
“lift up holy hands”
– The focus is not on body posture, but on inner holiness.
– Some kneel to pray (Luke 22:41, Acts 20:36, 21:5).
– Some stand to pray (Luke 18:13).
– Some prayed in a prostrate posture (Deuteronomy 9:18, Mark 14:35).
– Some raised their hands when addressing God
(Exodus 9:29, 1 Kings 8:22, 54, Psalm 141:2, Lamentations 3:41).
– What is stressed here is that the hands are holy.
– Hands should be expressions of sincere faith and pure motives;
without anger or disputing.
– Our mindset and motives are important when we pray.
“anger”
– Deals with personal attitudes of resentment toward others.
“disputing”
– Outward arguments and confrontations.
Note:
– Paul wants us to be at peace with God and others
before praying (especially in public prayer).
– Those who are angry and abusive, and neglect their
walk with the Lord, should not be leading others in prayer.
– God wants us to love Him,
and to show His love to family, friends, and others.
ACTION:
We should pray for others in all situations.
We should turn to God in prayer for things going on in our own lives
(not just a major crisis, but even the minor difficulties that we face daily)
We should be open and honest in our prayers.
Note:
– This is probably different than when we talk to others
(because we tend to hold back certain information when
talking with others).
Note:
– The closer our friendship, the more we open up,
but we still hold back some information.
We should:
– Humbly ask for God’s guidance
– Be sensitive to His response
– Do what He says (what He tells us specifically to do).
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, forgive me if I have not been praying
for others as I should. Remind me of the importance of
praying intercessory prayers for others. Impress on me
the power of prayer from a righteous person. Encourage
me to pray for others in faith, because Your word tells
me that this type of prayer can make a sick person well,
and You will raise them up. Your word also tells me that
when I offer prayers in faith, if someone has sinned, they
will be forgiven. Thank You for those who pray for me and
I am especially thankful for the prayers Jesus prays for me.”
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