Read: 1 Timothy 2:1-8
After opening his letter with a few urgent reminders to Timothy, in chapter 2 the apostle Paul begins giving direct instructions to Timothy for restoring health and life to the church at Ephesus. He begins these instructions by saying, “First of all”. Since there is no “second of all” in the letter, it’s clear what Paul means. He means first in priority or importance (not in sequence). Paul is assigning primary importance to prayer for spiritual health in the life of a person or a church. This probably comes as no surprise to us. We expect prayer to be high on the list of things that bring spiritual health. But, as we’ll see, what Paul is prescribing is not just prayer – he is prescribing corporate (with others), intercessory (on behalf of others), missional (for nonbelievers) prayer. This might seem like something reserved for only “advanced” Christians but Paul places it on the top of the list for all Christians. Why? A closer look at these instructions in context will show us how this kind of prayer fosters spiritual health.
1) Who We Pray With
Since this section begins an entire set of instructions on corporate worship, it’s clear Paul is describing corporate prayer and not private/personal prayer. The church Timothy pastored was weakened by conflict and was losing sight of their mission. They were dealing false teachers, dissention and disagreement. Paul prescribes praying together as a way to foster healing in relationships and to restore vision/unity as a church. In verse 2:8, Paul tells men in conflict to put down their anger and arguments and to take up praying together. How does this work? Praying with another person provides a window into their soul that you can’t get any other way. It shows us parts of a person we don’t see when we are at odds. Praying with others can also put our disagreements back into proper perspective as God and his mission are restored back to proper perspective.
2) Who We Pray For
Not only was this church dealing with arguments and division within, it was also developing an elitist-insider attitude toward those outside of the church. Paul is correcting that attitude in this passage as he uses the word “all/everyone” four different times. Praying for “all” (ie, “everyone without exception” or “all kinds of people”) turns us outward to the needs of our neighbors and those outside of the church. Just as this kind of prayer can heal relationships and restore unity, it can also keep a person and a church from become insular and ingrown.
3) What We Pray For
Paul instructs Christians to pray at “two levels” in this passage. We could call the first level that of “subordinate needs”. We pray for a tranquil and peaceful life for everyone. This means we pray for the “mundane” and practical needs of our neighbors such as health, order and prosperity (see Jeremiah 29:7). But there’s more going on than just praying for everyone to have a comfortable and easy life. There’s a second level at work. We pray for our leaders and authorities to reign with justice and wisdom in order that the ideal environment is established for Christians to live in all “godliness” and “dignity”. Godliness in 1 Timothy means an authentic and observable Christian life. Dignity means a life of respect or “gravitas”. In times of relative peace and order, Christians can devote themselves to displaying the gospel to their neighbors so that they might be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth. This is the second level of prayer - “ultimate needs”. Everyone’s greatest need is to come to the truth of God’s saving work in Christ. Praying for both the subordinate and ultimate needs of others is an expression of love for the whole person and keeps us from over spiritualizing or under spiritualizing our relationships with those in our life who do not believe.
4) Why We Pray
Paul’s instructions here also help address questions every person or church encounters sooner or later. Why pray? Does anything really happen?
Prayer moves God to action. God asks us to pray, petition and intercede for others because he hears these prayers and responds. There is mystery here, but the Bible is clear – God acts when his people ask (see John 14:14)
Prayer moves us to mission. Paul grounds prayer like this in what God “wants” (v4). We can know all about God’s mission; we can have all kinds of plans to accomplish it; but only in prayer does our heart grow in wanting what God wants for us and others. Only when our heart is moved do we move outward in mission in any genuine and sustainable way
Prayer makes it possible for us to rest in God’s sovereign will. Paul’s teaching here introduces a tension. If God wants all to be saved, then how come all aren’t saved? It’s a tension we aren’t meant to resolve but to rest in. On the one hand, God has made his will clear – he calls all to come to him for salvation (we can call this his “revealed will”). On the other hand, God hasn’t revealed his sovereign will. Our prayers need not get stuck in this tension. We can pray boldly and ask freely for anything God has revealed as his will for us and others AND we can rest fully knowing God that God’s plan will unfold according to his timing and character
5) Who We Pray To
Having looked at these 4 aspects of “corporate intercessory missional prayer” we might be able to see all the “health benefits” it offers Christians, churches and the world. But without this final aspect, our efforts to pray like this will fizzle out. This kind of prayer is animated and empowered by knowing who we pray to. In verses 5-6, Paul gives the reason for this kind of prayer. The reason we pray like this is not what we get from this prayer - it’s the God we encounter in this kind of prayer.
Look at how Paul describes this God: He is the one and only God – creator and ruler over all. He is the God who has made a way back to Him when there was no way - through a mediator. This mediator is the “man Christ Jesus” – someone who knows us from the inside. As a human being, he knows our needs from the inside. As God, he knows how to meet these needs better than we do. This mediator gave himself as our ransom. He took our sin, death and evil. He gave us his holiness, life and goodness! The Gospel is the reason for prayer because in the Gospel we see God answer a prayer that no one would dare ask. But it is the most important prayer of all; the prayer that unlocks all other prayer. Who would dare ask the Almighty God to come as our “go-between” by taking our sin, our judgment and giving us his holiness and righteousness? What sane person would ask the one true God over all things – “Give me your best and take my worst!”? Yet that is what God has done for us in Christ. When we believe the Gospel is true, we realize God has not held back his best. Having seen how he answered the most important prayer that we’d never pray, we can trust him to answer all the prayers we do pray for ourselves and others.
DIAGNOSE - What’s your honest reaction to the idea that corporate intercessory missional prayer is essential for spiritual life and health? Does it seem too uncomfortable? Too unreachable? Too unrealistic? OR is it currently an important part of your life? If so, how do you see God working through it to bring health to other parts of your life?
DISCUSS
What about the sermon impacted you most? What left you with questions? Is it hard for you to pray with others? How can praying with someone strengthen your relationship with them? How can praying with other people put life (and disagreements) back into proper perspective?
Why do you think churches become insular and ingrown? Based on the passage and the summary describe how praying for others can turn a church outward.
Do you sometimes struggle with wondering what you are “allowed” to pray for or not? Or whether some prayers are more “spiritual” than others? How might the concept of the two levels of prayer help?
Of the 3 reasons given for why we pray, which do you feel like you currently most need to remember to encourage you in your prayers? Why?
How is the Gospel “the reason” for prayer? How does the Gospel show us the God who we pray to and how does this get to the root of so much of the doubts and unbelief we carry with us in prayer?
Organize a time to pray with others, for others. Begin this time of prayer by rehearsing and remembering the Gospel as the reason for prayer. Pray the Gospel into your hearts and then pray it out into the lives of others.