Teaching Prayer: Luke 11:1-4

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My sermon today is entitled Teaching Prayer, and my focus is Luke 11:1-4.

Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are standing within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

If you have ever tried to teach a child how to pray, you know how tedious and joyful a task it is. Whether the child is your son or daughter, grandchild or a boy or girl in your Sunday school or Vacation Bible School class, teaching The Lord’s Prayer, Luther’s Morning Prayer or meal prayers can take some time, but after the child has learned the prayer by heart, you know that it will never be forgotten.

Case in point. When I visit people bound to hospital, nursing home or personal beds, when all senses have left them, I am always surprised that frail bodies and minds can still recite by heart prayers learned decades earlier. The Lord’s Prayer never leaves them. That said, let me say that the three points of today’s sermon are (1) a story of a bishop teaching three fishermen to pray; (2) Jesus teaching his disciples to pray; and (3) what other have taught me about prayer.

First, a story of a bishop teaching three fishermen to pray. Anthony de Mello in The Song of the Bird tells the story of a bishop whose ship anchored at a remote island. Since he only had one day there, the bishop was determined to use the time profitably.

He strolled along the seashore and came across three fishermen, mending their nets. In broken English, they explained to him that missionaries converted their village to Christianity. “We Christians!” they proudly proclaimed. The bishop was impressed. In talking some more, he discovered that they had never heard of the Lord’s Prayer. The bishop was shocked. “What, then, do you SAY when you pray?”

“We lift eyes to heaven and say, ‘We are three, you are three, have mercy on us.’”

The bishop was appalled. This would never do. In fact, it sounded almost heretical. So, the bishop spent the whole day teaching them the Lord’s Prayer. Even though the fishermen were slow learners, they were finally able to struggle through it before the bishop sailed away the next day.

Months later, the bishop’s ship happened to pass by that same island. The bishop paced the deck, recalling with pleasure the three men who were now able to pray, thanks to his patient efforts. While he was lost in his thoughts, he happened to look up, and notice a spot of light to the east. The light kept approaching the ship and, as the bishop gazed in wonder, he saw three figures walking on the water. The captain, too, was amazed and he stopped the boat so everyone could see. When they got within speaking distance, the bishop recognized the three fishermen.

They exclaimed, “Bishop! We see your boat go by the island, so we come to see you.”  Awestruck, the bishop asked, “What do you want?” “Bishop, we are very sorry. We forget lovely prayer.  We say, ‘Our Father, in heaven, holy be your name….’ Then we forget.  Please tell us prayer again.”

With a quiet voice, the bishop answered, “Go back to your homes, my friends. And each time you pray, say, ‘We are three, you are three, have mercy on us.”

Teaching anything to anyone may have unexpected results. One being, that teaching someone to pray – or anything else for that matter – may humble the teacher. Imagine being Henry Mancini’s piano teacher, Einstein’s physics professor or Dolly Parton’s voice coach. If your most successful student’s accomplishments do not humble you, take a lesson from Jesus. My guess is that in his humanity, Jesus must have felt humble that his followers were asking him to teach them how to pray. And so, we segue from my first point to my second, Jesus teaching his disciples to pray.

In Luke-Acts, prayer is intimately associated with the word, common life, table fellowship and hospitality.[1] Last week, we read the Gospel passage on Martha and Mary. In Acts 2:42, we read that the first believers “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” Later, in chapter 6, we are reminded that when the Church chose the first deacons to wait on tables, the Twelve said, “’We will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.’ And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen” and six others and “set them before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.”[2] So we see that the passage on prayer is related to Christian sharing and common nourishment.

Earlier in chapter 3, Luke distinguished Jesus from John the Baptist and showed how he received the Holy Spirit while he was praying. Here again, in chapter 11, we find Jesus at prayer in the company of his disciples. Once he finishes, they ask him to teach them how to pray as John taught his disciples. Jesus’ followers needed a prayer suitable to their identity as the Lord’s disciples, and so, fittingly, they make this request by addressing him as Lord, as did Martha in last week’s passage.[3]

According to the prayer, they are to address God as Father for they share in the Lord’s divine life or sonship. Like Jesus, they too will receive the Holy Spirit, if they pray for it. In short, this passage distinguishes Jesus’ disciples from John’s, just as the baptism account in chapter three distinguished Jesus himself from John. Here, Jesus also reveals how those whom he has chosen are related to the Father, and what this relationship demands of them and what they can expect from it. In other words, this passage is not only about memorizing a prayer, it is about the life of Christians journeying to and living in the Kingdom.

The Lord’s prayer is for those who accept to follow Jesus on his journey to God. Recall at the end of chapter 9, how Jesus set his face toward Jerusalem and how several had more important duties and chose not to follow him.[4] These disciples recognized that it was necessary that Jesus be with the Father and that they too press on in the Christian mission toward the Father. The Lord’s prayer is the prayer of those who received the promise of the Holy Spirit, verse 13 of today’s Gospel. As such, it is truly the Lord’s prayer and not merely the prayer of Jesus.

To understand that, we know that before his death, Jesus had only begun to act and teach, as the opening verse of Acts reveals. After his resurrection, when God made him Lord – as Peter stated in Acts 2, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified” – he continued to act and teach.[5] And the Lord’s prayer is the prayer of those who have been taught by the experience of the Risen Lord and know that they are God’s sons and daughters. That, folks, is Gospel.

Finally, my third point, what others taught me about prayer. Learning how to pray has always been an interest of mine. As long as I can remember, I wanted to learn how to pray in order to have a deeper, fuller, richer relationship with God. Some points about prayer I have learned from my parents and pastors, others from professors and printed books, and still others from workshops, retreats and friends.

So, what is prayer? Prayer is the necessary foundation of our work as church and individuals. It is communal and personal. We pray in our sanctuaries and rooms. To paraphrase one holy person, prayer is God looking at me, and me looking at God. It is from the heart, but it is also vocal. We speak the Lord’s Prayer as Jesus spoke it. Prayer involves reading Scripture as Jesus read it. Daily, my wife and I read aloud the Psalms and other Biblical passages. Like you, we make time for prayer.

However, my friends, we all take time away from prayer. This summer, many of us take time away from work and home. We vacate our businesses and residences. We go on vacation. For some, vacation also means time away from Word, Sacrament, public worship and private prayer. While on vacation, we may become physically and spiritually lazy. Oswald Chambers once wrote, “We are all capable of being spiritually lazy saints.” Let me repeat that. We are all capable of being spiritually lazy saints. That is why I am giving you this free prescription to combat spiritual laziness.

When I pray the Scriptures, I use the Five Ps of Prayer: Passage, Place, Posture, Presence and Passage. The Five Ps of Prayer is an easy method for anyone. Let me outline it for you.

First, Passage. Depending on the circumstances, choose a Scripture passage. Read it slowly several times until a word or phrase rises to the surface.

Place. Choose a place where you will not be disturbed. It may be in your home or a quiet church.

Posture. Find a sturdy comfortable chair that will allow you to sit upright. Posture is important. Do not slouch or lie down.

Presence. Set a timer for 10 minutes. Start there and gradually increase your prayer time to 25 minutes. Close your eyes so you are not distracted. Be present to God as He is present to you. Thoughts, feelings, physical discomforts and audible distractions will occur. Stand firm in the stream and let these distractions flow by as flotsam and jetsam go downstream.

Passage. When you get distracted, return to the passage and refocus. When your minutes have passed, close your meditation by reciting aloud The Lord’s Prayer.

Because you and I have the capacity to become spiritually lazy saints, but truly wish to imitate Jesus, try the Five Ps of Prayer for 25 minutes a day for the next 30-some years – the lifespan of Jesus. I guarantee you a deeper, richer, fuller, more intimate relationship with our Triune God. And this method has a money-back guarantee. I guarantee you that if you are not fully satisfied; you can return it … for your old relationship with God. …

Friends, as you begin your prescription of Five P’s or Prayer and take your faith from these walls into the world, I pray that you place yourself at the feet of the Lord, and ask Him not only to teach you how to pray, but also to free you from whatever prevents you from giving yourself totally to Him and the abundant love, grace and life he freely offers you. And when you do that, I pray that the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keeps your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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[1] Eugene LaVerdiere, Luke. Wilmington DE: Michael Glazier, 1990, pp 154ff.

[2] Acts 6:1-7.

[3] Luke 10:40.

[4] Luke 9:51ff.

[5] Acts 2:36.