Introduction

The Bible presents God as a person who has communicated with us and who invites us to
communicate with Him. Of all worship acts whether public or private prayer is the most
important. Richard Rice poses that “it is universal to human experience.” 1 On the same vein
Ellen G White stressing the importance of prayer in the life of a human being poses that “no man
is safe for a day or an hour without prayer.”2 Therefore we must discover what it is by
investigating the prayers and allusions to prayer in the Bible if we want a biblical definition.
Essentially prayer is talking to God. It involves both speaking and listening, and is both a private
as well as a community activity. Common elements of prayer include petition, intercession,
adoration, thanksgiving, confession and silence, as we listen for God’s voice. The primary aims
in prayer are knowing and honoring God. It must be noted that the theological foundation takes
place within a set of theological beliefs.

Prayer was a regular part of Jesus life and ministry.

The news about Him spread even more, and large crowds would come together to hear Him and
to be healed of their sicknesses. Yet He often withdrew to deserted places and prayed. Luke
5:15-16

Prayer is an activity of the Holy Spirit.

In the same way the Spirit also joins to help in our weakness, because we do not know what to
pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with unspoken groaning. Romans
8:26

Prayer is a means to experiencing God’s healing.

If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and
turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal
their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14

1
Richard Rice, Reign of God, 2rd Edition.(Berrien Springs, Michigan: Andrews University Press,
1997), 373.
2
Ellen. G .White, The Great Controversy (Ontario, Canada: Pacific Press, 2009), 510.
Prayer is to be offered in Jesus; name and for his glory.

Whatever you ask in my name, I will do it so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you
ask me anything in my name, I will do it. John 14:13-14

Prayer was taught by Jesus to his disciples.

He was praying in a certain place, and when He finished, one of His disciples said to Him,
“Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1

Prayer is God’s will for us and to be a continual part of life.

Rejoice always! Pray constantly. Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in
Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Prayer is a means for enlightenment among God’s people.

I pray that the perception of your mind may be enlightened so you may know what the hope of
His calling is, what are the glorious riches of His inheritance among the saints, and what is the
immeasurable greatness of His power to us who believe, according to the working of His vast
strength. Ephesians 1:18-19

Prayer is a means for our strengthening.

That according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through
his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you,
being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is
the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that
surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19.
 BACK GROUND OF PRAYER

Prayer in the Old Testament

Prayer in Early Human History

This Era covers the time period from creation and ends with establishment of Israel as a nation.
The major sources of our information on this era are the Books of Genesis and the book of Job.
Prayer is first mentioned in the bible in Genesis 4:26 “and to Seth to him also there was born a
son and he called his Enos. Then began man to call up on the name of the LORD” As people
increased in number the effects sin became more apparent and the descendants of Seth realized
that they needed God hence they began to seek God and his help in an earnest way. In Genesis
5:21-26 we find the account of Enoch who walked with God until he translated to heaven. A
close reading of the bible reveals that Enoch walks with God through prayer and meditation.
During the early years of human history people prayed knowing that God hears their and answers
prayers if they are in agreement with His will. In Genesis 16:11 there is an account of Hagar .In
her distress she cried out God and God answered to her need with an assurance that one day she
shall bear a son. The experience of Hagar reveals that God sees our needs and afflictions and
responds to them accordingly. (Gen. 16:13).

The importance of persistence in prayer appears in Genesis 32:26-29 where Jacob wrestled with
an angel. “… and he said, let me go for it is now day break and said l will not let you go unless
you bless me.” This account reveals two other important aspects of prayer.

The first is that those who are fervent are those who feel their great need (Gen. 32:9-12).
Secondly that the key to an answered is persistence in prayer. We can only be fervent in laying
hold of God, as Jacob did when we acknowledge that we are finite and that God is infinite and
omnipotent.

The Book of Job is central to our understanding of prayer and the character of God. One
challenge which Job struggled with during stormy times in his life was the silence of God. His
prayers seemed not be answered (Job 7:11-21; 12:4). Lastly God opened up and explained that
Job’s understanding of the character of was flawed that’s why he did not see things as they were
(Job 38). Job had thought that God will answer his prayers instantly but God showed him
greatness, and Job saw his place as a finite creature in relation to his infinite God more plainly
(Job 42:2-6).

Prayer in the Exilic and Postexilic Period

The books during the exilic period where prayer plays a prominent role are the book of Jeremiah,
Ezekiel and Daniel. Prayer and fasting were interrelated in the Old Testament. Fasting means
depriving oneself food. The main aim of fasting was to devote more the time and energy in
communion with God and seeking his help. Evidences from the bible reveal that God answered
such prayers if they were genuine a practical example is the case Daniel “While l was still in
prayer Gabriel, the man l had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time
of the evening sacrifice.” (Daniel 9:20-21).

During crisis periods the people of God offered special prayers known as prayers for deliverance.
These prayers arose from “great human needs or distress and it will be a cry for help”3

The Old Testament records many prayers for deliverance. One example of a prayer of
deliverance is the prayer of King Jehoshaphat when Judah under siege in 2 Chronicles 20:7-9.

God heard the cry of Jehoshaphat and delivered Judah from her enemies in a miraculous way.
Prayer in the Old Testament was not only about asking and receiving things from God but was
also associated with thanks giving for answered prayers. Rice asserts that “the fundamental
purpose of prayer is to praise God.” An example of prayer of thanks giving is 1Samuel 1:20 “So
in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying,
"Because I asked the Lord for him." Psalms 150 is also a falls under prayer of praise. “Let
everything that has breathe in it praise the LORD” (Psalms 150:6). Therefore prayer at its best is
God centered not self-centered. He deserves all our worship. “Worship him who made the
heavens, the earth the sea and the springs of water.” (Revelation 14:6). We must praise God for
who is he is? And for what he has done for us. Therefore prayer at its best is God centered, not
self-centered. Prayers in the Old Testament also contained the element of intercession.
Intercessory prayers are “petitions that involve other people and the bible encourage such
prayers.”4 It must be noted that interceding for others can alter our attitudes and make us more
liable to regard them with affection and sympathy. A typical example of intercessory prayers of

3
H Schonweiss, 2: 855.
4
Ibid, 376.
Old Testament is the prayer of Daniel “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his
covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands, 5 we have sinned and done
wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and
laws. In this intercessory prayer Daniel confesses his and the sins of Israel although he had not
partaken in those national sins. It is interesting to note that the Old Testament distinguished
between true and false prayers. True prayer mean that a person comes before God with his whole
being that is the heart and soul in an attitude of submission to God. God promises to answer
those who come to him in humility, “then you will call on me and come and pray to me and l will
answer you will find me if you seek me with all your heart. False prayers were those prayers
which were offered when the relationship was not right between the suppliant and God and with
no self-surrender to God on the side of the suppliant. This is the attitude God condemned in
Isaiah 29:12 “these people come to me with their mouths and honor with their lips but their
hearts are far from me.”

Prayer in the Gospels

Prayer as people practiced in the New Testament especial in the gospels basically a continuation
of Old Testament practices. In simply terms it was reflection of what existed during the Old
Testament times. However it is modeled upon the prayer life of Jesus and his teachings on
prayer. Jesus devoted much time in prayer and also in teaching his disciples to pray. It must be
noted that our understanding of theology of prayer is based on Jesus’ teaching on prayer and his
own prayer life. All four of the gospels give times and space to the theme of prayer and they
describe Jesus as a man who spent quality time in prayer.

During his earthly ministry Jesus was not an extremist, he did not withdraw from society but
lived a very vigorous and busy life just like another Israelite of his day. Despite his busy life
prayer occupied a very in important place in his life. The gospels describe Jesus as a man who
spent quality in time in prayer. The gospel of Mark records an instance where Jesus begun his
day by devoting time to prayer “very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up,
left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”(Mark 1:35).The gospel
according to Luke also narrates an incidence where Jesus was praying alone in a solitary place
and being challenged by his prayer life the disciples ask him to teach them how to pray. “One
day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."
Jesus responded to the disciples’ request by giving them what we can term today as the Lord’s
Prayer. Jesus in the Lord’s Prayer addresses God as Father, this address has a profound
theological implication. It implied that God is a personal father and that we should come to him
in prayer know that he loves us and is interested in our well-being. The Lord’s Prayer also
reveals that in the gospels prayer can be about anything, from the smallest matter to the greatest,
from the affairs of today to eternity. The phrase our ‘daily bread’ denotes our temporal needs
whereas the phrase “thy kingdom comes’’ denotes our spiritual and eternal needs.

The gospels like the Old Testament warn of deterrents in the lives of the suppliants which may
make prayer unsuccessful. These may include harboring an unforgiving spirit “and when you
stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them so that your father in heaven
forgives you your sins.”(Mark 11:25) Another hindrance to an answered prayer may be the lack
of faith “ have faith in God, Jesus answered .Truly l tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘
Go, throw yourself into the sea and does not doubt in their hearts …it will be done for them.

Prayer in the Spirit of Prophecy

When Ellen White wrote extensively about prayer its power and its necessity in the life of a
Christian. Emphasizing the importance and necessity of prayer she poses that “prayer is the
breath of the soul. It is the secret of spiritual life… prayer brings the heart into immediate contact
with the Well spring of life and strengthens the sinew and muscle of the religious experience.” 5

On the same vein of the importance of prayer she wrote “pray more than you sing. Do you not
stand in greater need of prayer than of singing” 6 She also puts strong emphasis on the importance
of private or secret prayer since many Christians seems to rely mostly on public prayer. “We
should pray in the family circle, and above all we must not neglect secret prayer, for this is the
life of the soul. It is impossible for the soul to flourish while prayer is neglected. Family or
public prayer alone is not sufficient.” 7 It is interesting to note that Ellen .G White encourages
young people of the marriageable who are seeking life partners to intensify their prayers. “If men

5
Ellen G .White, Messages to Young People(Nashville: Southern Publishing, 1930), 249.
6
Testimonies for the Church Volume One (Nashville: Southern Publishing, 1930), 513.
7
The Privilege Of Prayer, Complete Published Ellen White Writings [ CD ROM] (Silver Spring, MD:
Ellen White Estate,1999)
and women are in the habit of praying twice a day before they contemplate marriage, they should
pray four times a day when such a step is anticipated.”8

Ellen White strongly believes that to every sincere prayer there is an answer “To every sincere,
earnest prayer an answer will come. The answer to your prayer may not come just as you desire,
or at the time you look for it; but it will come, and in the way and at the time that will be for your
best good.”9

Jesus, the Man of Prayer

Jesus began His ministry through prayer (Luke 3:21-23)

In this passage, after Jesus was baptized, he was praying as the heavens opened and the Holy
Spirit descended. “When all the people were being baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven
was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form of a dove.”

This is indication that Luke sees the coming of the Holy Spirit as coinciding with the prayer of
Jesus, not the baptism which had already happened.

Jesus’s Mundane Prayer Life (Luke 5:16)

Unlike the other gospel writers, that is Matthew, Mark and John, Luke notes the regularity of
Jesus’ prayer life. “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayer. Mark only says very
early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary
place, where he prayed.” It is explicit that to Jesus to pray was an important ingredient in life of a
follower of God, hence this why he was able to with stand all the obstacles he encountered
during his earthly ministry. In the same manner those who make prayer a priority will come forth
victorious amid the life challenges.

8
White, Messages to Young People, 460.
9
Ellen White, Gospel Workers (Hagerstown: Review and Herald, 1980), 254-258.
Jesus Praying before the Choosing of the Twelve (Luke 6:12)

It is interesting to note that Jesus is prays at significant junctures in his ministry. Prior to calling
his twelve disciples, Luke states that Jesus prayed all night “one of those days Jesus went out to a
mountain side to pray and spent the night praying to God. When the morning came, he called his
disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated as apostle. The lesson we
derive from this passage is the church of God should spend much time in prayer before choosing
leaders so that the spirit of God will had pick men and women appointed by God to assume the
leadership of the church.

Jesus Pray and then He was Transfigured. (Luke 9:28-29)

In this account Jesus takes Peter, James sand John to the mountain to pray. As he is praying,
Luke chronicles that his appearance was transformed and he was joined by Moses and Elijah.
“About eight days after Jesus said this; he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto
a mountain to pray. 29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes
became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31 appeared in glorious
splendors, talking with Jesus. The stories of the transfiguration convey the message that by
spending quality in prayer and communion with God a transformation of character in life of a
suppliant will be effected.’

Jesus’s Teachings about Prayer

Besides practicing prayer in his own life, Jesus taught his disciples and other people both about
prayer and how to pray. Luke took cognisance of this and devotes much of his work to Jesus’
prayer teachings. In Luke 11 the disciples being challenged by the prayer life of Jesus asks him
to teach how to pray. Jesus responds by giving them what is known today as the Lord’s Prayer. It
must be noted that this prayer was to serve as an outline for all who will be the followers of
Jesus. In Luke 11:5-13 and Luke 18:1-8 Jesus gave two parables, the parable of a midnight friend
and unjust judge and all the two parables teach us of the importance of persistence in prayer.
 Conclusion

Of all the gospel writers Luke stresses the importance of prayer and makes it a recurring theme
in his gospel. According to Luke Jesus demonstrated the importance of prayer by practicing it
himself. It is interesting to note that before many of the major events in the life of Jesus (calling
of the twelve, the transfiguration, his arrest and trial, the crucifixion, etc.) he started by spending
quality time in prayer. Furthermore Jesus taught about prayer so that his followers will know
how to pray as he prayed.
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