“Teach Us to Pray”
Selected Scriptures in Luke
January 11, 2026
After quoting Luke 18:1, J. C. Ryle writes —
I have a question to offer you. It is contained in three words, DO YOU PRAY?
The question is one that none but you can answer. Whether you attend public worship or not, your minister knows. Whether you have family prayers in your house or not, your relations know. But whether you pray in private or not, is a matter between yourself and God.
“Do you pray?” It’s an important and humbling question. And I suspect that most of you would answer something like, “Yes…but not the way I ought,” or “Yes…but not satisfactorily or deeply.”
One of the greatest preachers of the last century, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, wrote: “I have never presumed to produce a book on prayer, or even a booklet.” The Scottish preacher Alexander Whyte said, “If you want to humble a man, ask him about his prayer life.”
This question is important because it may be the best indicator of our spiritual condition. Robert Murray M’Cheyne was right: “What a man is alone on his knees before God, that he is, and no more.” What is my life of prayer like? Whatever my answer, that is my spiritual condition.
Our goal this year is to help you grow in your spiritual condition — our goal is to help you pray. The Twelve disciples of Christ saw Jesus pray and heard Him pray and recognized they needed help, so they asked him, “Teach us to pray…” (Lk. 11:1). That’s our goal for this year. We want to learn to pray. We want to learn and we want to pray, sending up hundreds and thousands of prayers for ourselves and one another. So, for the good of our spiritual lives in 2026…
Learn to pray.
What do we learn about prayer from Luke? Observe five lessons about prayer from Luke’s gospel:
- Prayer is a Priority
- Prayer Was Important for the Son of Man
- Prayer Needs to be Learned (11:1)
- Prayer is a Stimulant of Joy
- Prayer Affirms the Accessibility of God
Download the rest of this sermon on prayer in Luke.
The audio will be posted on the GBC website by Tuesday.
“Open Bible with pen Antique Grayscale” by Ryk Neethling is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
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