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Chapel Notes
In Colossians 4:2, the Apostle Paul continues the rich
theological tradition of persistent petition. He begins
our text by saying, “Continue steadfastly in prayer.”
And there’s no end. Keep praying, keep asking, keep
seeking, keep knocking. There is power when God’s
people persistently petition their God.
But we’ve got to be theologically careful. We can
reduce God to our cosmic concierge, who exists
so I can pull off my best life now. God is not our
administrative assistant. He is the CEO of our lives.
The older I get, the more I realize that the real power
in prayer is not getting my wish list checked off, but
encountering my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Paul says, “Continue steadfastly in prayer.” Keep
asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. Watch what
he says next. “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being
watchful in it.”
That word “watchful” is primarily used in the
New Testament eschatologically. That is, it is used to
speak about the end times. Jesus used it in the Olivet
Discourse when He talked about the return of the Son
of Man. What keeps you praying is having one eye on
this life and another eye on the life to come.
My great-great-grandfather Peter was a slave
who, according to family tradition, was a praying
man. My great-great-grandfather — branded by his
owners, shackled in chains — was a praying man.
Question: What keeps a slave praying? My great-
great-grandfather was convinced this life was not all
there is. What keeps slaves praying — in the midst of
shackles and chains— is the eschatological reality that
this life cannot be all there is.
Paul says, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being
watchful in it with thanksgiving.” There are two sides
to thanksgiving. One is expectation. Bryan, when you
get on your knees to pray, you aren’t talking to your
next-door neighbor or to some government official.
You are talking to the Creator God; He can take care
of any situation in your life. Therefore, when you
come to Him, come with expectancy.
T h e o t h e r i d e a o f
thanksgiving is soteriological.
Even if God does not grant
my request, He’s done enough
on Calvary, so I’m thankful.
When you pr ay, pr ay
remembering that on a hill
called Calvary, Jesus Christ
died in your place and for
your sins.
Finally, Paul says, “At
the same time, pray also
for us.” Paul is in prison,
writing the Colossians,
so I’m thinking, “At the
same time, pray also for
us, that God would get us
out of here.”That’s not what he says. He
says, “At the same time, pray also for us, that Godmay
open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery
of Christ, on account of which I am in prison — that
I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.”
And here Paul gives us a window intomature praying.
Question: If God were to answer all of your
prayers from the last 12 months — every last one of
them—would the world change? Or just your world?
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in
it with thanksgiving. And pray also for us, that the
Word may go forth. Let’s pray.
Bryan Loritts
is Lead Pastor of Abundant Life Christian
Fellowship in Mountain View, California.
The Life-Changing Power of Persistent Prayer
The following is an excerpt froma December 7, 2016, chapel presentation by Bryan Loritts. Listen to his full remarks at
cedarville.edu/chapel.
If God were to answer all your prayers from the
last 12 months, would the world change? Or just
your world?
Mar. 29
Sam Allberry
Speaker for Ravi Zacharias International
Ministries, editor for The Gospel Coalition,
and author
Berkshire, United Kingdom
Apr. 12
Al Mohler
President of The Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary
Louisville, Kentucky
Apr. 20
HeartSong Chapel
Cedarville Magazine
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