July 16, 2006
by Pastor Harry Leid

Introduction: Last Sunday we covered three types of prayer: Confession, Praise, and Petition. This Sunday we will cover three more kinds of prayer. It is the desire of the Leadership of Agape ICA that we become more involved in being a praying congregation.

Some of the materials for this message come from The Student Bible Dictionary by Karen Dockrey, Johnnie Godwin, and Phyllis Godwin.

4. The Prayer of Thanksgiving
   Thanksgiving Is Expressing Gratitude To God For What He Has Done.
   1. David in Psalms 105:1-7 reveals a masterpiece of Thanksgiving Prayer.
   1. O give thanks unto the LORD; call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people.
   2. Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: tell of all his wondrous works.
   3. Glory in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.
   4. Look to the LORD, and his strength: seek his face always.
   5. Remember his marvelous works that he hath done; his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced;
   6. O descendants of Abraham his servant, O sons of Jacob his chosen ones.
   7. He is the LORD our God: his judgments are in all the earth.
   2. The Apostle Paul give some really upbeat advice on praying with Thanksgiving.
      I Thessalonians 5:16-18, "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

   3. Jesus taught: Luke 17:11-19 And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go show yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
      And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.
5. The Prayer Of Forgiveness
   The Prayer of Forgiveness Is Seeking Mercy For Personal Sin Or The Sin Of Others.
   1. Daniel 9:4-19
      ⁴And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;
      ⁵We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:
      ⁶Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.
      ⁹To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;
      ¹⁰Neither have we obeyed the voice of the LORD our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets.
      ¹³As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon us: yet made we not our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.
      ¹⁴Therefore hath the LORD watched upon the evil, and brought it upon us: for the LORD our God is righteous in all his works which he doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.
      ¹⁵And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown, as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
      ¹⁶O LORD, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us.
      ¹⁷Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake.
      ¹⁸O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.
      ¹⁹O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name.
   2. Stephen's prayer of forgiveness Acts 7:60
      
      Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep."
6. The Prayer Of Intercession
   
   The Prayer Of Intercession Is Making A Request Of God On Behalf of Another.
   
   1. Moses was an Intercessor
      
      Exodus 32:11-13
      
      ¹¹And Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God, and said, "LORD, why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and a mighty hand?
      
      ¹²Wherefore should the Egyptians speak, and say, 'It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth'? Turn from your fierce wrath; and repent of this evil against thy people.
      
      ¹³Remember Abraham, Isaac and Israel, thy servants, to whom you swore by your own self and said unto them, 'I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it forever.' "
      
      Exodus 32:31-32
      
      ³¹And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, "Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold.
      
      ³²Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of the book which thou hast written."
   2. Paul's advice to the Philippians 1:9-11
      
      And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God.
   3. Jesus gave us good examples of how to Intercede
      
      John 17:9, 20-21
      
      ⁹I pray for them, I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours.
      
      ²⁰Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
      
      ²¹That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.