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Scripture teaches us to persist in prayer, but should we be repetitive? If God hears our prayers the first time, why should we keep coming back to the throne of grace with the same petition?
Jesus calls us to be persistently repetitive in our prayers.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus commands that we should ask, seek, and knock in our prayers:
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matt. 7:7)
In other words, he is calling us to be persistent in our prayers to our Father in heaven. Using three words (“ask,” “seek,” and “knock”), Jesus calls us to be persistently repetitive, to continue in prayer bringing to our heavenly Father our needs, our desires, and our gratitude according to his will. Sometimes though, others may think being repetitive is unnecessary—doesn’t God hear the first time? Yes, of course, he does!
Pastor and author Terry L. Johnson makes the important observation that persistent repetition is a sign of sincerity in the heart of a Christian:
We demonstrate sincerity by going to God in prayer and persisting there. The depth and integrity of our desire is proven by returning to Him again and again, persistently asking and requesting that He might hear and respond. (When Grace Comes Alive, p. 206)
When our prayers are sincere, the Holy Spirit leads us to persistence, even to a sense of urgency—a crying out to the Lord with all our needs and godly desires.
We are to be genuinely persistent in our prayers.
In Luke 11:5-8, the parallel passage to Matthew 7:7, consider the parable Jesus tells just before he commands us to ask, seek, and knockf in order to illustrate his command to pray persistently:
And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs.”
Johnson explains, “The point of the parable is that ‘because of his persistence [impudence]’ the man shall get what he needs from his friend” (p. 208). We are to be genuinely persistent in our prayers, and not simply “heap up empty phrases” in order to be wordy (Matt. 6:7). Ask, seek, and knock with heartfelt honesty.
Unanswered prayers shouldn’t cause God’s children to lose heart.
It is not uncommon to wonder if God doesn’t hear us when it seems our prayers go unanswered. At these times it is good to remember Jesus’ teaching on prayer—his command to be persistent, to repeat our requests by asking, seeking, knocking. God hears your prayers. Do not lose heart; instead, sincerely and persistently pray to your Father in heaven by faith in your Savior, Christ Jesus.
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