This is a chapter from J.C. Ryle's classic book Practical Religion.
PRAYER
"Men ought always to pray." Luke 18:1
"I desire that men pray everywhere." 1 Timothy 2:8
Prayer is the most important subject in practical religion. All other subjects are second to it. I now present 7 plain reasons why I use such strong language about prayer.
1. Prayer is absolutely needful for a person's salvation. I am not now speaking of infants and the like. A person cannot have salvation without asking for it. Nobody will be saved by his prayers, but without prayer nobody will be saved. By contrast, it is not absolutely needful to salvation that a man should read the Bible or hear the Gospel preached. He may live where the Gospel is not preached, be bedridden, blind, or deaf, yet believe the saving Gospel truth he has been exposed to. The same thing cannot be said about prayer.
No one can eat, drink, or sleep by proxy. No one can get the alphabet learned for him by another. All these are things everyone must do for him or herself or they will not be done at all. Just as it is with the mind and body, so it is with the soul. There are certain things absolutely needful to the soul's health and well being. Each one must attend to these things for himself. Each must repent for himself. Each must apply to Christ for himself. And for himself each one must speak to God and pray.
How can we expect to be saved by an unknown God? (Acts 17:22-24). If we wish to be with Him in heaven, we must be His friends on earth. If we wish to be His friends on earth, we must regularly talk to Him through prayer. There will be many at Christ's side in the Last Day. Saints gathered from north, south, east, and west will form "a great multitude that no one can number" (Revelation 7:9). The song of victory that will burst from their lips when their redemption is finally complete will be a glorious song indeed. It will be far above the sound of mighty waters and rolling thunder. They will sing with one heart and voice since their experience will be one and the same: all will have believed in Christ's atoning work for them, all will have been born again, all will have prayed. We must go through the school of prayer on earth to be fit for this holiday of praise. To be prayerless is to be without God and Christ and heaven. It is to be on the road to hell.
2. A habit of prayer is one of the surest marks of a true Christian. All the children of God on earth are alike in this respect. From the moment there is any life and reality about their religion, they pray. Just like the first sign of life in an infant when born into the world is breathing, so the first act of men and women when they are born again is praying. Jesus describes those who have been called to salvation, God's elect, as those who "cry out day and night to Him" (Luke 18:1-7). When we are adopted into God's family by the Holy Spirit, "we cry out, 'Abba, Father!'" (Romans 8:15). It is as much a part of our new nature as genuine Christians to pray as it is of young children to cry. Like them, we feel our hunger and weakness. We cannot do otherwise; we must pray.
Look carefully over the lives of God's people from Genesis through Revelation in the Bible and you will see their devotion to God in prayer. In contrast, a major characteristic of the wicked is that they do not call upon the Lord (Psalm 14:4; 79:6; Jeremiah 10:25, Hosea 7:7; Isaiah 64:7). Read about the lives of eminent Christians from Bible times to the present day and you will find varieties in their levels of education, wealth, social status, and denominational backgrounds, but one thing they all have in common: they have all been men and women of prayer. People who have been converted to Christ from around the world are different from one another in many respects, but converted people always pray.
I do not deny that a person may pray without heart and sincerity. The mere fact of praying proves nothing about his or her soul. As in every part of religion, there is plenty of deception and hypocrisy. But this I do say: not praying is clear proof that a man is not yet a true Christian. He cannot really feel his sins, love God, sense himself a debtor to Christ, long after holiness, truly desire heaven, or be born again. He has yet to be made a new creature if he does not pray. A man may write books, preach, make fine speeches, and seem diligent in good works, yet be a Judas Iscariot.
A man does not shut his door and pour out his soul before God in secret unless he is in earnest. When the Lord Jesus sent Ananias to Saul in Damascus, He gave him no other evidence of Saul's change of heart than this: "Behold, he is praying" (Acts 9:11). Much may go on in a man's mind before he is brought to pray. He may have many convictions, desires, feelings, intentions, resolutions, hopes, and fears. But all those things are to be found in ungodly people, and often come to nothing. In many cases their "faithfulness is like a morning cloud, and like the early dew it goes away" (Hosea 6:4). A real, hearty prayer flowing from a broken and contrite spirit is worth all those things put together.
The first act of faith will be to speak to God. Faith is to the soul what life is to the body. Prayer is to faith what breath is to life. Your views of doctrine may be correct, but still may be nothing more than head knowledge and party spirit. The great point is whether you can speak to God as well as speak about God.
3. There is no duty in religion so neglected as private prayer. I say this as a minister with experience. Many utter mere form prayers, but words said without heart are useless to the soul. Saul surely said many long prayers before the Lord met him on the way to Damascus, but it was not until his heart was broken that the Lord said he was really praying. Consider the slipshod lives many professing Christians live. Praying and sinning will never live together in the same heart. Prayer will consume sin, or sin will choke prayer. Consider the deaths many die. I remember hearing of a lady who was anxious to have a minister pray with her in her last illness. He asked her what he should pray for. She did not know and could not tell. All she seemed to want was the form of a minister's prayers. Deathbeds are great revealers of secrets. I cannot forget what I have seen of sick and dying people. That also leads me to believe that few really pray.
4. Prayer is that act in religion in which there is the greatest encouragement. God has done everything on His part to make prayer easy if men and women will only attempt it. "All things are now ready" on His side (Luke 14:17). Every objection is anticipated. Every difficulty is provided for. The crooked places are made straight, and the rough places made smooth (Isaiah 40). There is no excuse left for prayerless people.
A. There is a way by which any man and woman, however sinful and unworthy, may draw near to God the Father. Jesus Christ has opened that way by His atoning sacrifice on the cross. The holiness and justice of God need not frighten sinners and keep them back. Only let them cry to God in the name of Jesus, and they shall find Him on a throne of grace, ready to hear. In that name they may draw near to God with boldness and pray with confidence (Hebrews 4:13-16). Is not this great encouragement?
B. There is an advocate and intercessor always waiting to present the prayers of those who will employ Him, Jesus Christ the righteous (1 John 2:1). He is now at the right hand of God, "able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him since He always lives to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). Poor as our prayers are in themselves, they are powerful in the hands of our High Priest and Elder Brother. There was an officer in the city of Rome who was appointed to have his doors always open to receive any Roman citizen who came to him for help. Just so the ear of the Lord Jesus is always open to the cry of those who seek His mercy and grace. It is His job to help them. Their prayer is His delight. Think how encouraging this is!
C. There is the Holy Spirit always ready to help our infirmities in prayer. We do not always know what to pray for, but "the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us" (Romans 8:26). We do not need to be distressed by fear from not knowing what to say to God. The Spirit will give us words if we seek His aid. Surely the Lord's people may well hope to be heard; it is not merely they who pray. Think about this. Are you not encouraged?
D. There are many great and precious promises to those who pray. Jesus says, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened" (Matthew 7:7-8). He also promises, "Whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive" (Matthew 21:22) and "whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it" (John 14:13-14). Think about Jesus's parables of the friend begging for bread next door at midnight (Luke 11:5-13) and the widow relentlessly pursuing justice from an unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8). Can you think of any better encouragements to pray?
E. There are wonderful examples in Scripture of the power of prayer. Nothing seems to be too great, hard, or difficult for prayer to do. It has obtained things that seemed impossible and out of reach. It has won victories over fire, air, earth, and water. Prayer opened the Red Sea, brought water from a rock, and bread from heaven. Prayer made the sun stand still, brought fire from the sky on Elijah's sacrifice, turned the shrewd but ruthless counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness, and overthrew the army of Sennacherib. It is understandable that Mary, Queen of Scots said, "I fear John Knox's prayers more than an army of 10,000 men." Prayer has healed the sick, raised the dead, and brought about the conversion of souls. Think of all this. Are you not encouraged?
5. Diligence in prayer is the secret of holiness. There is a vast difference among true Christians. They are all fighting the same good fight, but how much more valiantly some fight than others! They are all running the same race, but how much faster some get on than others! They all love the same Lord and Savior, but how much more some love Him than others!
There are some of the Lord's people who seem never able to get on from the time of their conversion. They are born again, but remain babies. They are learners in Christ's school, but never seem to get beyond the milk of God's Word, feeling reluctant to taste strong doctrine, "which is for the mature, those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil" (Hebrews 5:11-14). Year after year you see them in the same old besetting sins, the same feebleness, narrowness of heart, and lack of interest in anything beyond their own little circle. I say this with sorrow, but I ask any real Christian, is it not true?
There are others of the Lord's people who seem to be always getting on. They grow like grass after rain, always adding grace to grace, faith to faith, and strength to strength. Every time you see them their hearts seem larger and their spiritual stature bigger, taller, and stronger. Every year they appear to see more, know more, believe more, and feel more in their religion. They not only have good works to prove the reality of their faith, but are zealous about them. They not only do well, but continue faithfully (Titus 2:14; Galatians 6:9). They attempt great things and do great things. When they fail, they soon try again. These are those who make religion beautiful in the eyes of all with discernment. It does one good to see, be with, and hear them.
What accounts for the difference? I believe those who are spiritually weak pray little, and those who are strong pray much. People have different levels of giftedness, but spiritual as well as natural greatness depends far more on the use of means within everyone's reach rather than on anything else. When a person is converted to God, whether he will be strikingly bold or not depends chiefly on his own diligence in the use of God's appointed means. The principal means by which most believers have become great in the church of Christ is the habit of diligent private prayer. Prayer obtains fresh and continued outpourings of the Spirit. Prayer is the surest remedy against the devil and all besetting sins. We must plead our case before the Great Physician for Him to give us daily relief. Do we wish to grow in grace and be holy? Then let us never forget the value of prayer.
6. Neglect of prayer is one great cause of backsliding. Men may run well for a season but turn aside after false teachers, like the Galatians. Men may lose their first love, as the Ephesians did. Men may profess Christ loudly while their feelings are warm, but in the hour of trial deny their Lord. Like Peter, they first disregard the Lord's warning to "watch and pray," and then their strength is gone. Reader, do you want to move forward, not backwards? Watch and pray.
7. Prayer is one of the best means for happiness and contentment. We live in a world where sorrow abounds. This has always been its state since sin entered in. Sicknesses, deaths, losses, disappointments, partings, separations, ingratitude, slander—all these are common things. How shall we get through them with the least pain? I know no better way than the habit of taking everything to God in prayer. That is the plain advice the Bible gives in both the Old and New Testaments.
What do the psalmists write? That God Himself says, "Call upon Me in the day of trouble: I will deliver you, and you will glorify Me" (Psalm 50:15). "Cast your burden upon the Lord and He shall sustain you. He shall never permit the righteous to be moved" (Psalm 55:22). What does Paul say? "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7). How about James? "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray" (James 5:13).
That was the practice of all the saints whose history we have recorded in the Scriptures. It is what Jacob did when he feared his brother, Esau. It is what Moses did when the people were ready to stone him in the wilderness. It is what Joshua did when Israel suffered the humiliating defeat at Ai. It is what David did when he was in danger at Keilah. It is what King Hezekiah did when receiving an intimidating letter from the Assyrian Empire. It is what the church did when Peter was put in prison, and what Paul and Silas did when abused in the Philippian jail.
The only way to be really happy in a world such as this is casting our cares on God. It is trying to carry all their own burdens that so often makes believers sad. If they will only tell their troubles to God, He will enable them to bear them as Samson did the gates of Gaza. There is a friend waiting to help us who pitied the poor, sick, and sorrowful when He was upon the earth: a friend who knows the heart of man for He lived 33 years as a man among us. He is able to help us, for there never was an earthly pain He could not cure. That friend is Jesus Christ. The way to be happy is to be always opening our hearts to Him.
I now bring application to 3 groups of readers:
(1) A parting word to those who do not pray. It is useless to say you do not know how to pray. Prayer is the simplest act in all religion. It is simply speaking to God. It is useless to say you have no convenient place to pray in. Any person can find a place private enough if he or she is inclined. It is useless to say you have no time. When time is really wanted, it can be found. It is useless to say you cannot pray until you have faith and a new heart. That is to add sin to sin. It is bad enough to be unconverted and headed toward hell. It is even worse to say, "I know it, but I will not cry for mercy." What do the Scriptures say? "Call upon the Lord while He may be found ... while He is near" (Isaiah 55:6). "Take words with you and return to the Lord" (Hosea 14:2). Do not lose heaven for lack of asking.
(2) A parting word to those who have a real desire for salvation, but do not know where to begin. In every journey there must be a first step. In every building the first stone must be laid and the first blow struck. When does the building of the Spirit begin to appear in the human heart? It begins, so far as we can judge, when a person first pours out his or her heart to God in prayer. Go now to the Lord Jesus Christ in the first private place you can find and ask Him earnestly to save your soul. Tell Him you have heard that He receives sinners and has said, "The one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out" (John 6:37). "I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance" (Luke 5:32). Tell Him in your own way and in your own words. When you are sick and go to a doctor, you tell him or her where you feel pain. If your soul really feels its disease, you can surely find something to tell Christ. Pray to Him honestly and heartily, and you will be saved.
(3) A parting word to those who do pray. To all such I offer words of brotherly counsel and exhortation. The incense offered in the tabernacle was ordered to be made in a particular way. Not any kind of incense would do. Let us remember that and be careful about the matter and manner of our prayers. I am sure you want to do that as a sincere lover of Christ.
A. The importance of reverence and humility in prayer. Let us never forget who we are and what a solemn thing it is to speak with God. If I do not mean what I say, I am trifling with Him. "If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened" (Psalm 66:18-20). Let us keep in mind the words of Solomon: "Do not be rash with your mouth, and let not your heart utter anything hastily before God" (Ecclesiastes 5:2). When Abraham spoke to God, he said, "I am nothing but dust and ashes" (Genesis 18:27). Humility guards against careless prayers.
B. The importance of praying spiritually. By this I mean we should labor always to have the direct help of the Spirit in our prayers and be wary of formality. I desire to touch this point with caution and delicacy. There are things we need daily, and there is nothing wrong with asking for them in more or less the same words. Of necessity we must go over old ground. If the skeleton and outline of our prayers are by habit almost a form, let us strive that the clothing and filling up of them come from a sincere mind and heart guided by the Spirit. Praying out of a book is much, I think, like a crutch: helpful when one is first recovering from a broken limb, but I would like to see him or her strong enough not to need a crutch anymore. If we can tell a doctor the state of our body without a book, we ought to be able to tell the state of our soul to God.
C. The importance of making prayer a regular business of life. There is value in regular times for prayer. God is a God of order. The hours for morning and evening sacrifice in the Jewish temple were not fixed as they were without meaning. Disorder is one of the fruits of sin, but I would not bring any under bondage. Just as you allot time for eating, sleeping, and working, do the same with prayer. Choose your own hours and seasons. At the very least, speak with God in the morning before you speak with the world, and speak with God at night, after you have done with the world. But settle it in your mind that prayer is one of the most important things you have to do each day.
D. The importance of perseverance in prayer. Once having begun the habit, never give it up. Your body will sometimes say, "You are unwell, or sleepy, or weary. You don't need to pray today." Your mind will sometimes say, "You have important business to attend to today; cut short your prayers." View all such suggestions as coming directly from the devil. They are all as good as saying, "Neglect your soul." Prayers should not always be the same length, but let no excuse tempt you to neglect praying. It is not for nothing that Paul said, "Continue in prayer" and "pray without ceasing" (Colossians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). He did not mean we should always be on our knees, but our prayers should be like spring, summer, fall, and winter in dependable regularity. Even in company, in business, or on the road you can be sending up swift messages to God, as Nehemiah did before answering King Artaxerxes (Nehemiah 2:4-5). Never is time wasted that is given to God. A Christian never finds he is a loser by persevering in prayer.
E. The importance of earnestness in prayer. It is not necessary for a man to shout, scream, or be very loud to prove he means what he says. But in prayer it is desirable that we should be hearty, fervent, and sincerely interested in what we are doing and asking for. It is "the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man" or woman that "avails much" (James 5:16), not the cold, sleepy, lazy, listless one. Think of the action words used to describe godly prayer in Scripture: crying, knocking, wrestling, laboring, and striving. Hear how Daniel pleaded with God, "O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my God! (Daniel 9:19). Of our Lord Jesus Christ we are told, "In the days of His flesh He offered up prayers and supplication with strong cries and tears" (Hebrews 5:7). Show God you are sincere in what you are asking Him for by the godly way you ask and the godly way you live.
F. The importance of praying with faith. Believe your prayers are always heard and that if you ask according to God's will, you will always be answered. This is the plain command of our Lord Jesus: "Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours" (Mark 11:24), governed by the prayer Jesus taught us: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your Kingdome come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:9-10). The apostle John worded it like this: "This is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him" (1 John 5:14-15). God likes it when we take Him at His Word. Psalm 119 is full of things asked "according to Your Word." Let's get in the habit of pleading His promises in our prayers and patiently expecting His answers.
G. The importance of boldness in prayer. I am not speaking of presumption or overfamiliarity, but a holy boldness like Moses showed when he pleaded with God not to destroy Israel: "Why should the Egyptians say You brought out Israel from Egypt only to do them harm? Please turn from Your fierce anger!" (Exodus 32:12). Joshua prayed with similar boldness, genuinely concerned for God's reputation (Joshua 7:9). Martin Luther was was known for that kind of boldness. One who heard him praying said, "What a spirit, what confidence was in his very expressions! With such reverence he pleaded, as one begging of God, yet with the hope and assurance of speaking with a loving father or friend!" Let's take advantage of the believer's privileges, daring to pray often, "Lord, are we not Your own people? Is it not for Your glory that we should increase in holiness? Is it not for Your honor that the Gospel should increase throughout the world?"
H. The importance of fullness in prayer. While we must never forget our Lord spoke against vain repetition in prayer and the long, insincere prayers of the Pharisees, we do well to keep in mind our Lord's own example of how often and how long He prayed—sometimes all night. None of us are likely to err on the side of praying too much. Think: do we really want little from God? We are not limited in Christ, but in ourselves! The Lord says, "Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it" (Psalm 81:10).
I. The importance of being specific in prayer. We ought not to be content with great general petitions, but specify our wants before the throne of grace. It should not be enough to confess we are sinners. We should name the sins our conscience tells us we are most guilty of. It should not be enough to ask for holiness. We should name the virtues we think we most lack. It should not be enough to tell our Lord we are in trouble or in need. We should describe our troubles and needs in detail, like Jacob did when he feared his brother, Esau (Genesis 32:11), like Abraham's servant did when seeking a wife for Isaac (Genesis 24:12-27), like Paul did when suffering a thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). Nothing is too small to be named before God. What should we think of the patient who told his doctor he was ill but never went into particulars? What about the wife who tells her husband she is unhappy, but does not specify the cause? Christ is the true bridegroom of the soul, the true physician of the heart, and the real father of His people. Let us show we feel this by being unreserved in our communications with Him.
J. The importance of intercession in our prayers. We are all selfish by nature, and unless we are careful, our selfishness is apt to stick to us even when we are converted. Let's take care to name other names beside our own before the throne of grace. We should try to bear in our hearts the whole world: skeptics, religious people who are influenced by teachings contrary to the Bible, the church to which we belong, our family, friends, and country. This will enlarge our sympathies and expand our hearts. Praying for others is one of the most loving things we can do for them. The wheels of all machinery for extending the Gospel are oiled by prayer. They do as much for the Lord's cause who pray like Moses on the mount as do those who fight like Joshua in the thick of battle.
K. The importance of thankfulness in our prayers. Asking God is one thing and praising God is another, but there is a close connection between prayer and thanksgiving. Notice that Paul says, "By prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God" (Philippians 4:6). "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving" (Colossians 4:2). He hardly ever wrote a letter without beginning with thankfulness. If we would be bright and shining lights in our day, we must cherish a spirit of praise to God. Above all, let our prayers be thankful prayers.
L. The importance of watchfulness over our prayers. We must be regularly on our guard. Prayer is where true religion begins and also decays. Tell me what a man's prayers are and I will soon tell you the state of his soul. Prayer is the spiritual pulse: by it spiritual health may always be tested. Prayer is the backbone of our practical Christianity. Nothing will make up for the neglect of private prayer. Observe carefully what friends and activities leave your soul in the most spiritual frame and ready to speak with God. To these cleave and hold fast, and shun what tempts you away. If you will take care of your prayers, nothing shall go very wrong with your soul.
I offer these points for private consideration in all humility. I know no one who needs to be reminded of them more than I do myself. But I believe them to be God's own truth and would like all of us as God's people to feel them more. I want those who never prayed yet to arise and call upon God, and I want those who do pray to improve their prayers every year, being mindful and zealous daily.
