In John chapter 17, Jesus, our role model, prays for us to His Father. I hear many people ask why should they pray when God already knows the need. Jesus, who is God, certainly knew the needs of His people and yet He prayed for us. Why? Because pray is a huge part of our relationship with God. This is how we grow in Him. Your best friend may know your problems already but you will still talk to them about those problems. Why do this if they already know? Because you have a relationship with them and as you share your concerns with your friend this relationship deepens. So to with God.
The Petitions of Jesus
In the Lord's prayer, Jesus taught us to pray. In this prayer there are three petitions, three requests that He makes. He asks to give us our daily bread, to forgive our trespasses (our sin) and to "lead us not into temptation", which means to guide our paths in ways that will keep us from being tempted. Prayers of petitions are simply requests we make to God.
Pray for Others
One of the most important things that Jesus teaches us is to pray for others, just as He prayed for us. In I Timothy 2: 1-3, Paul writes this,
"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,"
The word exhort in this instance means to encourage. So Paul encourages us to pray for all men (everyone). He mentions supplications which means that you plead or beg for something with humility. He speaks of intercessions which means that we intervene on behalf of someone to prevent or change a course of events. He also tells us to give thanks for everyone. Why do we do this? So our lives will be peaceful and quiet, lived with godliness. This peace is in your soul. No matter what goes on around us we can have peace in Christ. This is the blessing we receive from praying for others.
Intercessory Prayer
The Old Testament gives us many examples of intercessory prayer. In Job 42:10, Job prays for his friends and it is then that his fortunes are restored. In Genesis 18: 23-33, Abraham intercedes with God concerning the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. In I Samuel 12: 23, Samuel says that it would be a sin if he did not continue to pray, to intercede, for the people.
In Romans 8:34, I John 2:1, and Hebrews 7: 25, we learn that Jesus is constantly interceding on our behalf to the Father. Just as He intercedes for us, we should intercede for others. James 5: 16(b) lets us know that,
"The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."
James says these prayers are effective and powerful.
Prayers of Supplication
In Ephesians 6: 19, Paul seeks prayers of supplication from the Ephesians so that when he preaches the gospel he will preach with boldness. Paul again requests prayer in Colossians 4: 2-4. This time he asks the Colossians to pray that doors would open for the word he is speaking that he would make the word manifest (obvious or clear) to the people. In Daniel 9:23, Daniel prays supplications for the holy mountain of God (the temple mount in Jerusalem) and is answered by the angel Gabriel. In Psalm 28:2, David's prayer of supplication is that God will not be silent and that God will hear David. In James 5:16, we are told to pray for one another's healing.
Prayers of Thanksgiving
Our thankfulness should be a part of every prayer we make to God, whether for ourselves or others. I Thessalonians 5: 18 says that the will of God is to give thanks in everything. If you find it difficult to give thanks perhaps reading Psalm 100, only five verses long, would help. We give thanks because we are His people!
God Saves Our Prayers
Finally, what does God do with our prayers? He saves them. Each and every one of the prayers of His faithful people are treasured and stored up. We know this because of Revelation 8: 3-4 and Revelation 5: 8. Our prayers are not required to be elegant, or long, or done only in a certain way but they are required to be prayed with humility and thankfulness. Our prayers are always to seek the will of God, those prayers will always be answered.
God Blesses Those Who Pray for Others
The Bible study/prayer group that I attend is so blessed to have people of strong faith. These people will intercede for me, they will be thankful for me, they will pray prayers of supplication for me and most importantly they will seek the will of God for me. Pray for others and God will bless you. As Paul tells us in I Timothy 2: 3,
"For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior."
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