Pray Like Jesus

"Preaching a pagan-style gospel teaches that as long as we
have enough faith in Jesus, then we don't have to be like Jesus."
...a paraphrase from Mark Driscoll,
~ Pray Like Jesus:The Gethsemane Prayer ~

Tired of hearing the pagan practice of the prosperity gospel?...the prosperity gospel is when we use Prayer, Scripture, and experience to try and align God to our will. The Gospel of Jesus Christ, on the other hand, is when God utilizes Prayer, Scripture, and experience to align us to His Will.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is perfect,
the prosperity gospel is pagan...

...Mark Driscoll, in his sermon called, Pray Like Jesus: The Gethsemane Prayer, explains (and I paraphrase) that "so much of what we hear today is a brand of theology that will not be strong enough for us when we need it the most."

Christianity is a belief in a person (Jesus Christ)...it is not a coping mechanism or some magic trick for material wealth and prosperous gain...it is a relationship based on a theology that will be everything for us when we need it the most...Driscoll goes on to say, "being a follower of Jesus Christ may not get us around the obstacles of life, but it will get us through the obstacles of life."

At the end of the sermon, Driscoll outlines and speaks briefly on eleven questions about prayer... questions that challenge us to see if our prayer life is in line with God's plan...Below, I have included the eleven questions...but along with those questions, I highly encourage you to either watch Driscoll's sermon or listen to it on the Mars Hill App or via podcast.

01. Do you pray to get from God or to get God?
02. Do you pray to move God or for God to move you?
03. Do you pray to get around pain or through pain?
04. Do you courageously punctuate your prayers with "Your - Will - Be - Done...?"
• We do present our requests to God, but we should always end with, "Your Will Be Done..."
05. Do you pray out of Holy or unholy depression?
• Holy despair/depression = due to sin and its effects
• unholy despair/depression = not getting our way
06. Do you pray in faith knowing that God is not the author of sin, but is the author over sin?
07. Do you ask your friends to pray for you even if you know they will fail to do so?
08. Do you pray to both hear and accept God's will for your life?
09. Do you accept that God will answer your prayers with a "yes, no, or later?"
10. Do you know that knowing God's Will is far easier than walking in it? (Hebrews 5.7-8)
11. Do you know a godly wife who lived like Jesus Prayed? (1 Corinthians 11.3)
• You have to listen to his explanation to understand this question...

"God’s main purpose for you is not what you do. It's who you become."
~ John Ortberg ~