Introduction
In the earlier lessons on prayer and
the person who prays, we learned several key things from the Bible. We learned
prayer is communing with God – speaking and listening. We learned how to
approach God with our heart, mind, and soul by recognizing:
·
God is to be revered
·
God’s mercy
·
God exists
·
God’s power
·
God’s faithfulness
·
God’s righteousness
·
God is eternal and omnipotent so keep focused on
Him.
·
Our prayers should give testimony to God.
The Bible teaches us how to pray –
petitioning for self, others, and enemies, adoring and thanking God, and
confession/repentance. Besides this, we learned about some of the attributes,
attitudes, and actions of an effective person of prayer. The first three are:
·
Righteousness, which comes from God,
·
Belief God has the power to do what is necessary
to change things and answer prayers,
·
Meeting God in solitude so the person who prays
is not distracted and so that person does not seek the acclaim for being pious
by other people who see him or her praying. God hears in secret and rewards in
secret. The person who seeks to be seen in prayer, Jesus said, has already
received his or her reward and God will not hear or answer him or her.
Through this
week’s lesson, we learn the person of prayer must be watchful and alert. The
disciples recorded Jesus teaching this to His followers in three of the four
Gospels. Paul, Peter, and John teach it in their writings, too. Alertness comes
from a close relationship with God that develops Christlikeness and a faith in
God that leads to obedience and strength to stand in the face of trials and
tribulations. Besides the five verses that relate prayer to alertness or
watchfulness, there are other verses that help us understand what alertness and
watchfulness is and why we should be alert and watchful. Let us look now at
what the Bible says regarding watchfulness and alertness and as it regards the
person of prayer.
Watchfulness and Alertness
In the five verses that teach a
person of prayer (a pray-er) should be alert or watchful, the writers of those
verses used two Greek words watchfulness and alertness – gregoreuo and agrupneo.
Both these words mean to stay awake to avoid the snares and deceptions of
Satan. Besides these five verses, the New Testament writers used these two
Greek words ten other times to teach Christians.
Agrupneo
Agrupneo is an alertness in a believer’s
character that keeps laziness and forgetfulness from becoming part of at person,
which would allow temptations to overtake him or her. It derives from the word
used to speak of a shepherd abstaining from sleep to watch for the safety of
the sheep. Agrupneo speaks of an
active watchfulness and alertness. It describes being spiritually awake and
alert as opposed to being spiritually indifferent. The writer uses “alert” as a
command/imperative. Agrupneo is an
action a believer does or should do based on his or her character. A Christian
shows this characteristic because of growing more like Christ. If a person is truly
a believer, then he or she will be alert for the tricks and snares of the
devil. By being faithful to God, reading His Word, and obeying Him, a person
becomes a growing Christian whose character is changed and who knows
automatically when something is not of God. The character is of being a
Christian, which should impel an active watchfulness. He or she will be aware
Satan tries to trick and deceive people. This awareness should make him or her
alert. Luke and Paul used agrupneo
for the English word “alert” in Luke 21:36 and Ephesians 6:18. They link it to
prayer in these verses.
In Luke 21:36
(and in Mark 13:33), Luke spoke of Jesus’ teaching of the end times and what
will occur. Jesus told of when He will return to earth. He said the seas will roar
and men will faint from fear and expectation of the things coming. Jesus
continued by saying the powers of the heavens will be shaken, and then everyone
will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and glory. When the
believers see these things happening, they are to stand tall and strong because
their redemption is drawing near. Before this happens though, life will occur –
people will live and die, and drink and eat. Jesus commanded His hearers in
verse thirty-six, “But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may
have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place and to
stand before the Son of Man.” This “alert” is the Greek word agrupneo explained above. Keep awake and
watchful. Be attentive and ready. Be prepared within yourself, Jesus said. Hard
times - calamities - are coming. Be so grounded in Christ that you are not
caught off-guard, but are a growing Christian who is strong in the Lord and who
remains unshaken by the troublesome and difficult things that occur. Be considered
worthy to escape these things that shall happen at Christ’s return. Watch
and pray, Jesus said. Prayer must go with watchfulness in character.
Without prayer - communion with God and growth into Christlikeness - a believer
will not be strong enough to withstand hard times and keep his or her faith. Without
prayer and growing more Christlike, a believer will not know how to handle the
trials and calamities of life and may be shaken by them. Some of these calamities
will come before Christi’s return and the non-growing Christian will not know
they are tied to His return. He or she will be fearful like non-believers. Watchfulness
and prayer go hand in hand. Prayer and being a Christian go hand in hand.
Paul wrote of a
believer’s alertness (agrupneo) in
Ephesians 6:18. He used this word in context of putting on the whole armor of
God. In verse 18, he said, “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in
the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and
petition for all the saints.” Just as Jesus did in Luke 21:36, Paul taught
alertness and prayer go together. He told Christians to pray at all times in
the Spirit and be alert continually even though you may experience persecution.
Persist despite difficulties and always be alert. Remember, agrupneo is alertness in a believer’s
character that keeps laziness and forgetfulness from becoming part of the
person, which would allow temptations to overtake him or her. As a soldier of
the Lord, alertness and prayer will prepare the Christian to stand strong
during trials. The soldier’s faith is strong due to an intimate relationship
with God and a growing Christlikeness. Prayers and alertness develop the
character of the believer so he or she is dressed with the armor of God at all
times and prepared/alert for the trials and troubles coming. The believer knows
in he or she will face difficulties from the world and Satan, and knows to be
ever alert. This Christlikeness and alertness, because of the depth of the
person’s faith, is a part of the believer’s character. His or her standing
strong and alert comes from preparation through intimacy with God via prayer
and Bible study.
The writer of
Hebrews spoke of this alertness, too, in Hebrews 13:15-19. He said the leaders
of God’s people are to keep watch over the souls of their people. God will require
an accounting for the care of His people. Even the leaders of God’s people have
to be alert, not just for themselves, but for their sheep. Agrupneo is alertness and watchfulness that comes from training and
the building of the character of a believer due to his or her relationship with
God through Jesus Christ. This alertness is not caught off-guard, but is
prepared. Agrupneo is a spiritual awareness and alertness. It
requires spiritual preparation, which requires a deep relationship with God.
Gregoreuo
The second word used for alert and watchful, gregoreuo, has its emphasis on the action of being watchful, not the character of the person. Gregoreuo means actively watching, giving strict attention to, and being cautious so laziness to ensure calamity does not overtake a person or people. In its original usage it referred to being careful as one stepped on moss-covered stones and this carried over to being careful as a follower of God. Gregoreuo as an action and agrupneo – spiritual preparation - should be part of the character of a believer. Over time, the usage of both came to mean the same thing – being watchful and alert. Gregoreuo is used in Matthew 24:42, 43; 25:13; 26:38, 40, 41; Mark 13:34, 35, 37; 14:34, 37, 38; Luke 12:37; Acts 20:31; 1 Corinthians 16:13; Colossians 4:2; 1Thessalonians 5:6, 10; 1 Peter 5:8; Revelation 3:2, 3; 16:15.
Jesus taught in Matthew 24:42-43 and Mark 13:34-37 about being alert because a person does not know when Christ will return, but always expect Him. Stay alert and watchful for His return. Matthew 25:13 speaks of being watchful for Christ’s return with the parable of the ten virgins and their oil lamps waiting for the bridegroom at the wedding. Matthew 26:38-41 and Mark 14:34-38 tell the story of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane praying while His three disciples slept instead of watched and prayed. When the disciples fell asleep, Jesus told them they must keep awake and watch and pray so they would not come into temptation. Watching and praying are again tied together as that which grows a person’s alertness and character towards Christlikeness. Luke 12:37 is a similar retelling of being watchful because you do not know when the master will return.
This attitude and action of watchfulness continues through the other passages. Paul told pastors and elders to be watchful over their congregations so wolves would not snatch some of the sheep away (Acts 20:31). He told the Corinthians to be alert and stand firm in their faith (1 Corinthians 16:13). Paul told the Colossian believers to devote themselves to prayer and keep alert with an attitude of thanksgiving (Colossians 4:2). Once again, alertness is tied with prayer, which leads to growth in Christlikeness and in one’s relationship with God. In 1 Thessalonians 5:6, Paul told the Thessalonians since they were the sons of Light, not to sleep, but to stay alert and sober, and put on the armor of God because they received the hope of salvation in Jesus Christ to live eternally with God. Because they were Christians, they must be alert and aware, not lazy. Paul tied alertness to preparation and wearing God’s armor, which represented closeness and faith in God. Peter told believers to stay alert because Satan prowls around to see whom he can destroy. Those who are not alert and prepared with the strength of God and in a close relationship with Him are most easily tempted to fall into one of Satan’s snares. Finally, in John’s book of Revelation, in chapter 3, the angel of God told the church of Sardis to keep awake and strengthen themselves – grow their faith – because he had found nothing they had done that met the requirements of God. The angel urged them to remember the lessons they heard, take them to heart, and obey them. Keep awake and alert/watch lest Jesus come like a thief and find they are found not to be Christians.
As noted, most passages using gregoreuo speak of being faithful and ready for Christ’s return by putting into action what the believers learned against the snares and temptations of Satan and the world. They speak of growing in faith - having a continual close relationship with God - and becoming more Christlike each day.
Prayer and Watchfulness
The important
thing to remember regarding these passages is the call to be actively watchful/alert
and pray. The quality of watchfulness in a believer comes through prayer. Five
Bible passages speak specifically about being watchful and praying. They are
Matthew 26:38-41, Mark 14:34-38, Luke 21:36, Ephesians 6:18, and Colossians
4:2. A person is prepared and most watchful and alert for the trials and
tribulations of life and for the tricks and temptations of Satan when he or she
is a growing Christian. A Christian grows when he or she communes with – speaks
and listens to – God. Listening to God comes in several forms such as Bible
reading and study, listening to sermons and Bible studies, hearing from God
through other people, and led by the
Spirit based on His powerful speaking in your heart and mind. As the person obeys God, he or she grows in
his or her relationship with God. That person gains new understanding and
wisdom. Understanding and wisdom makes him or her more alert and watchful for
the snares of Satan in this world. The person is empowered and strengthened for
living in the world by the power of the Holy Spirit given by Jesus.
Prayer is important in many ways for
a believer.
·
An effective person of prayer will be watchful
and alert. Satan will not trick him or her to follow his deceptions and skewed truth.
·
If a person is only alert and watchful, but not
a growing Christian with an active prayer life, he or she will more easily
succumb to the tricks of Satan because he or she has not received God’s wisdom
and understanding or His strength to stand strong and not fall to deceit.
·
Being an effective person of prayer means growing
in a dynamic relationship with God that causes the person to gain in
understanding and wisdom, and in strength and power to face what comes each
day, for which the person is always actively alert and watchful.
·
When a person is not a follower of Jesus Christ
or walks away from God after seeking Him as Lord and Savior, the person is not
righteous. His or her prayers are unanswered by God, and he or she does not
have the wisdom, understanding, or strength to know when to be alert to Satan’s
deceptions.
·
When a person genuinely seeks God, He promises
He will hear and answer them. Sometimes those answers are for help to overcome
temptation or for wisdom to know what to do in situations. Prayer and
watchfulness/alertness affect each other.
An effective person of prayer is alert. An watchful/alert person of God
is usually an effective person of prayer.
Conclusion
We each must
take time now to assess our faith. Are you truly a believer in Jesus Christ?
Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior? Do you walk with Him each day by
prayer and obedience to God’s word? Do you walk in His strength – the strength
of the Holy Spirit in you – and put on the armor of God to withstand the fiery
arrows of Satan? The armor of God allows a believer to stand up for God and go
to battle against Satan’s evil forces. Are you watchful and alert waiting eagerly
for Jesus’ return and being vigilant against the snares of Satan and the
prowling of his wolves?
Now is the time for us to remember
Jesus calls us to be alert/watchful and pray. Where are you today regarding this
command? Are you a believer? Are you prepared each morning through prayer and
with God’s Word to go out into the world to stand strong in your faith and not
succumb to trials, temptations, and troubles? Go into all the world, Jesus
said. He gave you a helper, His Holy Spirit. You can go into all the world in
His strength with alertness/watchfulness and prayer. These show and lead to a
growing relationship with God.
