Overview
Robin Magnelli presents prayer as an open highway of communication and communion with God. Beginning with Acts 2:42, the teaching considers personal prayer, group prayer, requests, thanksgiving, persistence, honesty, listening, and the many forms prayer takes when believers approach God through grace.
Transcript
Prayer as Access to God
They Will God Bless You. We are going to take some moments right now to consider prayer. Our familiar verse, Acts 242, they continued steadfastly in prayers.
It's listed plural. Now prayer is a means by which man can communicate with God. It's a highway.
It's an access point to be able to commune with God. And there's so many scriptures in the Word that deal with prayer. In 1 Peter 3.12, it says, For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayers.
It says in Philippians 4.6, Be careful or be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplications, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God. So in Acts, the section that we're reviewing, it says that they continued steadfastly in prayers. But we don't know exactly what they were praying for because it's not listed.
Which, kind of is good sometimes, because, I don't know, some people kind of memorize the prayers. Either out of tradition, now I lay me down to sleep. Or maybe it's in the scriptures, Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
But God's heart is for our hearts to commune with Him. To be honest with Him. To be open with Him.
And I can't really stand here and say, this is how you should pray. Because there's so much variety in it. From the scriptures, from what you see.
You see people who are praying individually. And then you see people that are praying as a group. There's a group of people at Oikias who have dedicated themselves to be a prayer team.
So prayer requests that come through on the website. They get those prayer requests and they are right away offering and adding their prayers and are thankful to be part of that team to help to see God's purposes come together in a person's life. They have a prayer room here, I don't know if you've seen it, it's on the corner, it's called the secret place.
And it's called the secret place because, keen off of the aspect that when you pray, you can go in the closet. And it's intimate and it's just between you and your Heavenly Father alone. Which I was asking them about the name, I was curious because, you know, an exit has an exit sign, the bathroom has a bathroom sign.
That doesn't have prayer room sign, it's the secret place. Isn't that sweet? And then when you pray, sometimes it's praise, it's thanksgiving for what God has already done for His character, His nature, acknowledging Him in all our ways. And other times it's specific petitions, things that we have on our heart that we're desiring, His help, His aid, His wisdom.
They can be short prayers, they can be long prayers. When I was in Bible college, I had a prayer partner and we'd get up early in the morning before the day started and we would find a secret spot and we would pray. And I noticed that after I was praying for about three minutes, I would hear a sound and the sound wasn't amen or praise God, it was.
But that didn't stop me, I went on for another 20 minutes. Corinthians tells us that we can pray with the spirit or pray with our understanding. So we can pray with speaking in tongues, which is perfect prayer.
Or we can pray with our words to articulate it. We can do it in our minds, we can do it with our lips right out loud. But really, it's the attitude towards God.
And I'd like to start with how did they get to that place that they were continuing steadfastly in prayer? And we know the apostles' teaching was pivotal in that. In Acts chapter 1, in verse 10, these are the last words that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, spoke before He ascended up into Heaven. The last words that are recorded.
Acts chapter 1, verse 8, is where we want to be. Verse 8, it says, this is Jesus Christ talking, He's in His resurrected body, He's about to ascend into Heaven, and He says, But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem, in all Judea, and in Samaria, and into the uttermost parts of the earth. So what He's telling them is when you get that Holy Spirit, when you get born again, saved, converted, whatever you want to call it, you receive it.
And that word receive means to take ownership and utilize it. You take ownership and utilize it. And that word indicates a self-prompting.
It's a self-prompting because you want to. You want to be activated in your complete package of body, soul, and spirit. To take ownership of it.
And you shall receive power. And that's what they would teach. That it's the heart, the intent, that you are self-prompting in your prayer life.
Now what we also, what we do know is that their basic needs were met. They had food. They had shelter.
Honest Communication, Not Empty Repetition
We just heard a teaching on this that they had companionship. They weren't alone. Because we do need each other.
Look at Ephesians, if you have a Bible, I'd like to go to Ephesians chapter 2. When we pray, we can pray to God. We don't have to go through saints. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, which gives us that access.
But we go directly to God. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 16, it says that we might reconcile both unto God. In one body, by the cross, having slain the enmity, the hatred thereby.
Verse 17, and came and preached peace to you which were afar off to them that were nigh. For through him, we both, talking about the Jews and the Gentiles. We both have access by one spirit unto the Father.
Now access, have you ever noticed that it might be part of human nature that when you get familiar with something, even if it's important and precious, it can lose its significance and appreciation for it? Like consider a sunset. You see a sunset, and if I gave you a test, you'd say, oh yeah, they're beautiful. But when you're out there, and you're experiencing that sunset, it is so awesomely beautiful.
It's indescribable. You might do that with people sometimes. You know, you get really familiar, and you're like, yeah, he's a great guy.
But we ought not be that way with God. In this Acts chapter 2 section, they were so amazed and in awe that they had access to God. They could talk to him directly and never take it for granted.
They were so excited that they continued with that steadfastly. Not just the prayers, but being a custodian of their own heart where they would keep their heart pure. That's where their commitment came in.
When I was in college, I got born again when I was a child. My grandmother half-raised me. She taught me about God, his nature, his character.
She taught me about Jesus Christ. Every summer I spent with her, I remember it clearly. We'd go to church on Sundays, and we'd wear a dress.
Every summer she would buy white sandals for me that matched hers. When I got home, I don't know what happened to them every year. I was glad I grew.
But then, I'm in college, and I've been exposed to so many philosophies and trials of life by then at that age. I had a college buddy who taught me about not only the new birth, but that I had it and that I could be resolute on that and never change. I never question it now.
If somebody tells me I'm going to go to another place, I don't even consider it. I know I'm going to heaven. I know I have access to my Father.
I had a journal at that time. When I discovered not only that I was born again, because that happened when I was a child, but that I knew it, that I had the confidence that I would never wonder one day further in my life of where I was going, I wrote in my journal, if I never learn another truth about God, I should be so thankful every day I draw breath. Access to the one true God, you know what that's called? Grace! It's called grace.
Every time you get to talk to God, that's grace. When we talk to God, we ought not be too fast to not give Him a shot to talk back, right? To listen to Him. It's a communication system.
Look at Romans chapter 12, please. Just a couple books back, Romans chapter 12. I feel like those men and women in the book of Acts.
So thankful to have access, to have communication, to be able to pray to the one true God. Here in Romans chapter 12, Romans chapter 12, we'll read verse 11. It says, not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, fervent in spirit.
You know, red hot, hot spiritually. I'm not just a body, soul person. I'm body, soul, and spirit.
I'm a daughter of the living God, baby. See? Fervent in spirit, serving the Lord, serving the Lord. And that's, that's an interesting concept, to serve the Lord in light of our prayer life.
Individual and Shared Prayer
I remember seeing a marquee on a church, and it said, many people want to serve God, but only in an advisory capacity. Right? Because sometimes in life, it, prayers, I know this has happened to me, where all I'm doing is directing God in how to do His job. This is what I want.
It's as if people treat God as if He's like an errand boy, or He works for Instacart. I'd like this, this, this, this, this, delivered to my doorstep and check with me tomorrow because I'll have another list. Instead of turning it around and serving the Lord, I have food, I have shelter, I have companionship.
So now, Father, can I partner with You? Can I partner with You? I want to be a part of Your work, serving You. The next verse, 12, it says, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation. You know, there are trials that come up in life.
There's people here who have lost their job, lost their house, who have challenges medically, and yet the Word tells us to be patient in tribulation. Instant in prayer. Instant in prayer.
What does that mean? Instant in prayer means that you ask God. You talk to Him about it. You pray about it.
You don't go through Siri or Alexa first. You go straight to God. Now let's, I'd like to go to Colossians chapter 4. Colossians is to the right in your Bible, still in the epistles, Colossians chapter 4. Our attitude towards God, we should remember who we're talking to.
And we can address Him boldly, or we can approach Him boldly, but address Him humbly. We address Him humbly, remembering who He is. Colossians chapter 4, we'll read verse 2. It says, continue in prayer.
This continue in prayer, coincidentally, is the same word, continue, steadfastly, in Acts 2.42. Continue in prayer, watch in the same, be alert with thanksgiving. And that thanksgiving is an attitude. It's an attitude of thankfulness.
Continue in prayer. Be unwearied in your prayer life. Sometimes when people pray for something and they don't get it right away, they're like, oh, I'll throw up my hands.
But keep praying. It's not the repetition. It's a heart issue.
Father, this is still bugging me. I need, I want this specific petition, whatever it is. Parking spot.
I need the parking spot. But then, the flip side of that is if I don't have it today, I don't need it today. Because He's going to supply it for me at the perfect moment that I need it.
You know why? Because He's my Heavenly Father and He said He hears my prayers. We keep partnering with Him. Verse 3, it says, He's saying that I can make it clear, that I can boldly proclaim as I ought to speak.
To walk in wisdom toward them that are without, those that don't have Christ. Redeeming the time. Redeeming the time.
You know, time is something very interesting. It's non-renewable. And more and more, I am motivated to take things off of my, I'll do that sometime.
But to take advantage of the moment and the time that I have and to value it. Verse 6 says, Grace is initiated by God. It's not initiated by man.
It's God's favor. It comes from Him. And we are to continue steadfastly committed to Him.
Let's turn back to Acts. Back to the book of Acts. In Psalm 116 verse 2 it says, Beautiful.
Thessalonians says, So here we are in the book of Acts. We know what happened. Jesus Christ ascended.
He said, take ownership of that Holy Spirit when you get it. And utilize it. And it's up to you.
Requests With Thanksgiving
It's self-prompting. It's your own initiative. The day of Pentecost, a few weeks later.
The day of Pentecost comes. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit. They start speaking in tongues.
And Peter's preaching to them. 3,000 more get added to the church. And then Peter and John are walking to the temple.
And here in Acts chapter 3 it says, In verse 6, They come up to this guy. And he's been lame since his mother's womb. So he's got a birth defect.
He's crippled. He's about 40 years old. You can read that later in the scriptures.
So for him to walk is like impossible. Except for the possible God. And so Peter and John walk by this guy.
And here in verse 6 it says, Silver and gold have I none. Like I can relate to that. Like if I walked up to somebody, I'd be like, no, like, do you take Apple Pay? Do you have Zelle? I have no cash.
They said, silver and gold have I none. But such as I have, give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.
The guy gets healed. He gets up and he's leaping. I mean, he is on fire.
He's on fire because he has just seen a miracle. Everybody in the place is like, whoa, the lame guy. Well, what are we going to call him now? Because he's not lame.
They're telling everybody about the message of Jesus Christ. Then, enters in the priests. And we'll pick it up here in Acts 4 verse 1. And it says, They weren't grieved because the guy got healed.
They were grieved at the message. They didn't want that name spoken. They didn't want it to fill the whole city.
So then they take Peter and John and have them spend the night. They had a time out. And then the next day, they have to be before all these religious leaders.
And I don't know about you, but I've had job interviews where there's a panel. I find that terribly intimidating. Like one-on-one, I'm good.
But here, it's those two guys and then all these other people saying, stop it. Now. And they threaten them.
They threaten them. And I kind of also can relate to that. I know there's people who have a work environment where they cannot speak of their faith, although contemporary doctrines that are antagonistic to God, that disregard God, that are rebellious to God, can be spoken of and on display in the workplace.
But to mention the name of Jesus Christ, I know people who have lost their job. I know people that have been threatened. And yet these people, they had the same thing.
They were facing what we call the cancel culture. And they continued steadfastly. So they threatened them.
Verse 19, and here's their response. And Peter and John answered and said unto them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.
Continuing Steadfastly
And that was their situation. That was the decision that they made, that they were inspired to take a stand in this regard. I want to be like them.
I want to take a stand for the one true God, to never have my loyalty diluted to something else. So then they couldn't find anything where they could hold them, they let them go. So they go back to their home group, and they want to tell them everything that happened.
You know, I can imagine. And then, and then, everybody's looking. And then we said this, we're going to stand for God.
And it said in verse 24, and when they heard that, they lifted up their voices, their voice to God. When they heard their report, isn't it inspiring when you hear somebody take a stand? You're like, I want to do that too. And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God.
Their first thought was, ye God for protecting them. Ye God for their boldness. With one accord, they were, everybody thought the same thing and said, Lord, thou art God, which has made heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them.
This particular prayer starts with a recognition of the sovereignty of God. That God who's the creator of the heavens and the earth, who made the sunrise, the sunset, who gave us air to breathe, food to eat, who thought this whole thing through, the master biologist, chemist, physicist, accountant, astronomer, the greatest heart surgeon, the greatest compassion, who provided us peace. They're acknowledging God's nature, his character.
Whenever you look back on your life, make sure you look up and see God's hand in it. What he's provided for you, what he's saved for you. He's the God of restoration, what he has done for you, his providential care in all this regard.
They lifted up their voices to God and with one accord and said, Lord, thou art God who has made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. And then they quote the word by who by the mouth of thy servant David has said, Why did the heathens rage and the people imagine vain things? And the kings of the earth stood up and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against his Christ. Why would they ever think they could defeat God and his mission? Why did they ever think that when they crucified Christ that they had won? Verse 28, for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.
And now, Lord, behold their threatenings. Look at it. Lord, look at their threatenings.
Look at what they're trying to do to squelch that name of Jesus Christ and grant unto thy servants that with all boldness they may speak thy word. With all boldness. And this is this particular prayer, because sometimes, you know, you can pray and you pray for a circumstance to change.
And sometimes it does. And sometimes it doesn't. And when it doesn't, God will still provide the stamina, the encouragement, the endurance to continue to see him because God is on the move.
He moves in dark situations. He's always moving and he's the God of restoration and he will provide for us as we stay faithful. But here they are.
These guys had seen the crucifixion of Christ. I think that would be a little bit intimidating to be in front of those people and to be threatened by them because the same thing could have happened to them. But they didn't.
They said, give us more boldness. Look at what they're trying to do and help us. Give us the boldness, the courage, the intestinal fortitude to speak.
The boldness to be without fear to speak publicly or privately. Verse 30, By stretching forth thine hand to heal, that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken together.
God is confident in his ability. We ought to be confident in his ability too. He shows us to it, shows it to us every day.
And when they had prayed and the place was shaken together, the place was shaken together, but their faith in who they are as sons and daughters of God was unshakable. Actually, they were going to shake up the world. And when they prayed, the place was shaken where they were and assembled together and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and they spake the word of God with boldness.
That good news of Jesus Christ is going to shake the world. It'll shake the world wherever you speak it forth. So when we look at these people in the book of Acts, we know they continued steadfastly.
They were resolute in their prayer. They were resolute in their partnership with God. And there's so much variety in prayer.
No one could stand before you and tell you this is the only right way to pray. But it's about being a custodian of our heart. We start at the same place they did to receive that Holy Spirit, to embrace it, to take ownership of that Holy Spirit, our own free will decision, and then to launch out in our partnership of serving the Lord, to have open and honest communication with the one true God.
Grace in the Life of Prayer
Every time you see God's involvement, you see God's grace. God bless you. I love you.
Key Takeaways
- Prayer is a means of communicating and communing with God, not merely repeating memorized language.
- Scripture shows both individual and shared prayer, with great variety in subject, setting, and expression.
- Believers can bring requests to God honestly while including thanksgiving and confidence in His care.
- Continuing steadfastly in prayer is a lifestyle rather than an isolated religious exercise.
- Shared prayer allows believers to participate together in seeing God’s purposes come to pass.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the teaching define prayer?
Prayer is an access point for communicating and communing with God honestly and personally.
Does prayer have to follow one fixed form?
No. The teaching points to many biblical forms of prayer, including individual and group prayer, requests, thanksgiving, intercession, praise, and honest conversation.
What does it mean to continue steadfastly in prayer?
It means making prayer a consistent part of life, returning to God with trust, persistence, thanksgiving, and care for the needs of others.
Scripture References
Acts 2:42; 1 Peter 3:12; Philippians 4:6–7; Acts 242; 1 Peter 3; Philippians 4; Acts 2; Psalm 116; Acts 4
Verification Note
Prepared from a recovered machine transcript. Verify names, quotations, verse references, punctuation, and unclear phrases against the original video and a Bible before publication.
