When Jesus taught his followers how to pray, he didn't instruct them to offer vague pleas like "bless us" or "help us." Instead, he gave them a concrete example.
Matthew 6:11 NIV] Give us today our daily bread.
Why bread? Because for his first followers, bread was essential. It was the very foundation of life. Jesus' instruction to "pray for bread" highlights the power of specificity in prayer.
Specificity Unlocks Clarity
Consider the story of blind Bartimaeus. He cried out for mercy, a noble request. But Jesus didn't simply offer a general act of kindness. He asked, "What do you want me to do for you?" Bartimaeus responded, "Lord, I want to see!"
Mark 10:46-52 NLT [46] Then they reached Jericho, and as Jesus and his disciples left town, a large crowd followed him. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road. [47] When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” [48] “Be quiet!” many of the people yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” [49] When Jesus heard him, he stopped and said, “Tell him to come here.” So they called the blind man. “Cheer up,” they said. “Come on, he’s calling you!” [50] Bartimaeus threw aside his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus. [51] “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked. “My Rabbi,” the blind man said, “I want to see!” [52] And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road.
This exchange illustrates a crucial point: specificity cuts through the clutter. When we articulate our desires precisely, we clarify our needs and open ourselves to receiving specific answers. Specific requests lead to specific answers and more meaningful praise reports.
Jesus' Specific Prayers are a Model for Us
Let's examine Jesus' own prayer life, particularly his high priestly prayer in John 17. Before his arrest, trial, and crucifixion, Jesus offered a detailed prayer, a powerful example of specific intercession.
First, he prayed for himself asking the Father to glorify him so that he could glorify the Father. He sought the restoration of the glory he shared with the Father before the world began, a specific request for a specific purpose: to complete his divine mission.
John 17:1-5 NIV[1] After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. [2] For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. [3] Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. [4] I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. [5] And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
Then, he prayed for his disciples, asking for their protection and unity. He didn't ask for them to be removed from the world but to be kept safe from the evil one. He prayed that they would be sanctified by truth and united as he and the Father were united.
John 17:6-19 NIV [6] “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. [7] Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. [8] For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. [9] I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. [10] All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. [11] I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. [12] While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled. [13] “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. [14] I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. [15] My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. [16] They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. [17] Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. [18] As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. [19] For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
Finally, he prayed for all believers, including us. He prayed for our unity, that we would experience the perfect unity of the Godhead and reflect that unity to the world, demonstrating God's love.
John 17:20-26 NIV [20] “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, [21] that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. [22] I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— [23] I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. [24] “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. [25] “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. [26] I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”
This prayer, like the priestly blessing in Numbers, reveals God's desire to bless his people with his presence and peace.
Numbers 6:22-27 NIV [22] The Lord said to Moses, [23] “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: [24] “ ‘ “The Lord bless you and keep you; [25] the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; [26] the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” ’ [27] “So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.”
Jesus’ prayer is a powerful reminder that our prayers, like His, can be specific and impactful.
Persistence in Prayer
Beyond specificity, Jesus also taught the importance of persistence.
Matthew 7:7 HCSB “Keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you.
He demonstrated this principle in the Garden of Gethsemane, praying three times with the same request.
Matthew 26:36-44 NIV [36] Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” [37] He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. [38] Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” [39] Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” [40] Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. [41] “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” [42] He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.” [43] When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. [44] So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.
He also shared the parable of the persistent widow, emphasizing that even an unjust judge responds to persistent pleas. So much more will our loving Father respond to our persistent prayers?
Luke 18:1-8 NIV [1] Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. [2] He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. [3] And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ [4] “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, [5] yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ ” [6] And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. [7] And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? [8] I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Specific and Persistent Doesn’t Mean Demands
While we are encouraged to be specific and persistent, it's crucial to remember that our prayers are requests, not demands. God is sovereign, and we approach him with humility and reverence. Prayer is communication between friends, but it's not communication between equals.
Heavenly Father, thank you for blessing me. Help me to be specific in my requests and persistent in my prayers, always remembering your sovereignty. Amen.
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