What Does the Bible Say About Prayer?
Prayer is the divinely ordained means of communion between God and His people. It encompasses adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication.
Key Verse: Philippians 4:6-7
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Old Testament Perspective
Old Testament prayer ranges from Abraham's bold intercession for Sodom to David's penitential psalms to Solomon's dedication of the Temple.
New Testament Perspective
Jesus revolutionized prayer by teaching His followers to address God as 'Father.' The Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) provides the pattern.
15 Key Bible Verses About Prayer
- Philippians 4:6-7: "In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus."
- 1 Thessalonians 5:17: "Pray without ceasing."
- Matthew 6:9-13: "Pray like this: ‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.’"
- James 5:16: "Confess your offenses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The insistent prayer of a righteous person is powerfully effective."
- Mark 11:24: "Therefore I tell you, all things whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received them, and you shall have them."
- Jeremiah 33:3: "‘Call to me, and I will answer you, and will show you great and difficult things, which you don’t know.’"
- Psalm 145:18: "Yahweh is near to all those who call on him, to all who call on him in truth."
- Romans 8:26: "In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered."
- 1 John 5:14: "This is the boldness which we have toward him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he listens to us."
- 2 Chronicles 7:14: "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
- Psalm 55:17: "Evening, morning, and at noon, I will cry out in distress. He will hear my voice."
- Matthew 7:7-8: "“Ask, and it will be given you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives. He who seeks finds. To him who knocks it will be opened."
- Luke 18:1: "He also spoke a parable to them that they must always pray, and not give up,"
- Ephesians 6:18: "with all prayer and requests, praying at all times in the Spirit, and being watchful to this end in all perseverance and requests for all the saints:"
- Colossians 4:2: "Continue steadfastly in prayer, watching therein with thanksgiving;"