A famous Russian story centers on a man who was born in a region north of Ukraine.[1] His life was filled with suffering and loss.
● When he was three and his brother was ten, his parents died. He and his brother were taken in by their grandfather, who raised them.
● When the brother became a teenager, he became unruly and began drinking heavily. Once, the older brother pushed his younger brother and permanently damaged the younger brother’s arm. The younger brother lost all use of his arm.
● Eventually, the grandfather found a wife for the younger brother. Upon his death, he left his home and property to the younger brother and wife. The older brother, jealous that the grandfather had left everything to the younger brother, set fire to the house one night. The younger brother and his wife barely escaped.
● They were now destitute, without any clothing or money. For two years they lived as landless peasants, selling the handiwork which the wife was able to sew.
● Then, she became ill. And she, too, died.
This poor man had now suffered the loss of his parents, the injury to his arm, estrangement from his brother, the loss of his grandfather, the loss of his home, and the loss of his wife. Overcome with grief, the husband took his Bible, and set off on a pilgrimage, searching for meaning and purpose in life.
One day on this pilgrimage, he entered a church and he listened to the Scripture reading. It included these words from 1 Thess. 5:17:
“pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17)
The word translated “without ceasing” means to pray “without interruption,” to pray “incessantly.” It’s only used here in the New Testament. Paul, the author of 1 Thessalonians, is the only writer in the Bible to use this word. And he ties it to prayer. Paul calls for perpetual prayer.[2] He commands, “pray without ceasing.”
This wounded, grieving, weary pilgrim, upon hearing this unusual command tucked away in Paul’s letter to the church in Thessalonica, was struck by it. The Russian story, entitled The Way of a Pilgrim, describes his response in this way:
“The words made an indelible impression on me, and I began to wonder how it was possible to pray unceasingly…I thought about this for quite a while but was unable to understand it.”[3]
He became captivated by this vision of prayer. Was it possible for prayer to be so much more than he had ever thought? Was it possible for his relationship with God to be so much more than he had ever believed?
He was captivated by this deeper vision of a spiritual life. One that wasn’t limited to some prayers and songs and a sermon at a church building. One that wasn’t limited to feeling connected to God at big moments like retreats or when life was good and then feeling disconnected when you got home or went to school or to work. He was thrilled with the the possibility that a person might feel connected with God, might be in prayer, all day, every day. In highs and lows, in the extraordinary moments and ordinary moments. And, so, in the story, the pilgrim devoted the rest of his life to pursuing and practicing Paul’s little command to pray without ceasing.
Not all of you may feel as excited as this pilgrim. The thought of praying without ceasing may, at first, feel unappealing. Earlier in the week I was on the phone with a woman who told me she hadn’t prayed in five years. Why? Because when her husband came down with cancer, she prayed for his healing, and he died anyway. And she gave up on prayer. There are reasons why some of us might be turned away from this vision of unceasing prayer. And I’ll try to address those.
But at it’s core, these three little words in English–”pray without ceasing”–offer to us something quite beautiful. The possibility of a relationship with God that endures all day long, not just in a quiet time or a worship service, no matter what we’re doing, and no matter whether we’re on a sunny mountain top or a dark valley.
Consider Richard Foster’s reflection on this text:[4]
“I am sure you sense the desperate need for Unceasing Prayer in our day. We pant through an endless series of activities with scattered minds and noisy hearts. We feel strained, hurried, breathless. Thoughts dart in and out of our minds with no rhyme or reason. Seldom can we focus on a single thing for long. Everything and anything interrupt our sense of concentration. We are a distracted people. Unceasing Prayer has a way of speaking peace to the chaos…Does not every cell within you cry out for this life? Is there not deep inside a longing for his continuous presence? Do you not crave an increase of God’s love, God’s joy, God’s peace, God’s power? My bet is that a little prayer sprinkled here and there is simply not enough for you. Oh, no, you want more, much more. You long to burn the eternal flame of devotion on the altar of perpetual prayer.” [Richard Foster]
In this four-part series, we want to explore the beautiful vision for the spiritual life which is wrapped up in Paul’s little command. And we want to look at four specific ways we can experience this beautiful picture of life with God.
Frederica Mathewes-Green points out that this command is actually given to four churches.[5] We find similar commands given to the churches in Thessalonica, Colossae, Rome and Ephesus:
Four Churches Called to Unceasing Prayer
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Thessalonica (1 Thess. 5:17) “pray without ceasing” |
Colossae (Col. 4:2) “Continue steadfastly in prayer” |
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Rome (Rom. 12:12) “be constant in prayer” |
Ephesus (Eph. 6:18) “praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints” |
The fact that Paul tells four churches the same thing is significant. Pray without ceasing, he tells them. Four times he tells them. It must have been very important to Paul.
And, we know this was not limited to only these four churches. The language Paul uses indicates he’s picked this up from other churches in the ancient world. The word he uses in three of these instances–Colossians, Romans and Ephesians–is the same word which Luke uses when he describes the prayer habits of the early church:
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Colossae (Col. 4:2) “Continue steadfastly in prayer”
Rome (Rom. 12:12) “be constant in prayer”
Ephesus (Eph. 6:18) “praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints” |
Disciples of Jesus (Acts 1:14) “All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer”
Apostles (Acts 6:4) |
Although it’s translated differently, the word in bold is the same word in each case. The word means “to continue at all times, to persevere and not faint, to persist.”[6] Three times Luke tells us that the early church had members who were persistently and unceasingly praying. And three times Paul uses the same word to call the churches he was associated with to the same type of prayer–ending with his climactic command in 1 Thessalonians to “pray without ceasing”
Paul’s words about pray to the Ephesians are particularly striking. We might listen to John Stott’s reflections on these words:[7]
“Prevailing Christian prayer is wonderfully comprehensive. It has four universals, indicated by the fourfold use of the word ‘all’. We are to pray at all times (both regularly and constantly), with all prayer and supplication (for it takes many and varied forms), with all perseverance (because we need like good soldiers to keep alert, and neither give up nor fall asleep), making supplication for all the saints (since the unity of God’s new society, which has been the preoccupation of this whole letter, must be reflected in our prayers). Most Christians pray sometimes, with some prayers and some degree of perseverance, for some of God’s people. But to replace ‘some’ by ‘all’ in each of these expressions would be to introduce us to a new dimension of prayer” [John Stott]
In Ephesians, Paul is calling for an “all” kind of prayer. Prayer at all times. With all sorts of prayers. With all devotion and perseverance. For all sorts of people.
Notice briefly that this text comes on the heels of Paul’s description of Christian armor. We put on a
● Belt of truth
● Breastplate of righteousness,
● Shoes of peace
● Shield of faith
● Helmet of salvation, and
● Sword of the Spirit.
And as a something that binds all of this together, Paul wraps prayer. The way in which Paul writes this verse, according to one author, it’s as if he’s saying, put on each piece of armor while praying.[8] Put on each piece of armor by means of prayer he may be sayingh.
Perhaps another way of envisioning both this verse, especially with its four-fold use of “all” and it’s call for perseverance, and all of the verses we’ve seen this morning, is in this way:
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|———-W O R K O F T H E L O R D———| conceived continued, and concluded in prayer
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This work we are doing together with the Lord and for the Lord, this battle in which we are engaged in against the devil and his forces of darkness, is one in which prayer plays the central role from from beginning to middle to end. There is nothing we conceive, there is nothing we continue and there is nothing we conclude without prayer. We conceive everything in prayer. We continue everything in prayer. And we conclude everything in prayer. We pray without interruption. Without distraction. We are called to live in unceasing prayer.
But, of course, the question is why? In this sermon and next Sunday’s, we’ll explore the two primary answers. The first answer is this one word: resources. Unceasing prayer is our avenue to divine resources. The tools we need for this battle. The strength we need for this conflict. The resources we need come through unceasing prayer.
Consider this statement from Jesus: ]
5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (Jn. 15:5)
Apart from Jesus we can do nothing. With Jesus we can do everything. Unceasing prayer becomes the way in which we gain all the resources needed in order to bear all the fruit Jesus has called us to bear. Unceasing prayer became the way the early church bore the fruit it was called to bear.
How, though, do we pursue this way of prayer? How do we move throughout our day in a spirit of prayer? How can we practice prayer in this kind of unceasing way so that we have the divine resources that are needed in every minute of every day?
The Russian pilgrim whose story I began with revealed one answer to this question. In this series we’ll look at four ways to experience unceasing prayer. The Russian pilgrim, in the book The Way of a Pilgrim, talked to many priests and preachers. At first, none could tell him how to do this. Finally, he found a monk in a monastery who shared a prayer practice that had been written about in a Russian collection of works on prayer that dated to the fourth century. The practice was called the Jesus Prayer. And it went like this:[9]
“Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.”
Say that out loud with me: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.”
The monk taught the pilgrim to pray this prayer repeatedly through the day. As often as he breathed he was to pray this prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” In this way, he would pray without ceasing.
Frederica Mathewes-Green tells us a little more about this prayer.[10] In the third century, prayerful men and women began to go into the deserts of Egypt and Palestine to devote themselves to prayer. The desert was appealing because it eliminated distractions and made it possible to focus entirely on prayer. Many of these men and women took to memorizing and praying through the Psalms. One famously meditated upon and prayed upon the words of Psalm 39 for nineteen years. Soon, the prayer “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me,” emerged as a favorite prayer among these Desert Fathers and Mothers. It was drawn from texts like these:
22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” (Matt. 15:22 ESV)
12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers,[f] who stood at a distance 13 and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” (Lk. 17:12-13 ESV)
46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mk. 10:46-47 ESV)
14 And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. (Matt. 17:14-15 ESV)
What ties these all together, Frederica Mathewes-Green points out, is that they are cries for help. In other words, they are requests for resources. Mercy isn’t necessarily a cry for forgiveness. It’s a cry for help. For resources. One of the reasons, therefore, the Jesus Prayer developed was as a way to continually request the resources, the mercy, required during the day, all day, every day.
Richard Foster, in his book Prayer, reveals that the prayer was to be uttered so often, so unceasingly, that it became a kind of breath prayer.[11] It was a way for prayer to become so unceasing that it rivaled that other thing we do unceasingly–breathe.
As you move through your day, from waking up, to eating breakfast, to going to work, to watching the kids, to meeting a friend for lunch, to watching some TV, to reading a book, to taking a walk, to exercising, to answering emails and phone calls, to interacting with neighbors, this prayer becomes like breath: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.” It becomes a way in which we stay connected with God and Jesus throughout the day. It becomes a way in which we seek the divine resources, the mercy, we need in order to live and serve in the way God intends. It’s one way we pray without ceasing.
I often pray the Jesus Prayer in meetings. I’m in a lot of meetings during the week. And, silently, in the back of my head, I’m praying the Jesus Prayer in each meeting, asking Jesus for the divine resources we need in each meeting.
I often prayer the Jesus Prayer when I’m on a phone call with someone in crisis. It’s the prayerful soundtrack playing as we talk. Through it, I’m asking for the divine resources needed in this conversation.
Lawana Maxwell and I recently introduced the Jesus Prayer to our Quest class on Wednesday nights. It was met with some skepticism by a few class members. In fact one class member reported, “I tried it out. I prayed the Jesus Prayer during the day. In fact I fell asleep praying it. I fell asleep saying ‘Lord Jesus, Christ have mercy on me.’ And I woke up saying something as well. I woke up saying, ‘That Chris Altrock is a strange preacher!’” This may be strange to you. But give it a chance. It’s a fruitful way to begin praying without ceasing.
Charles Spurgeon was a London preacher who, in the 1800’s, grew his congregation from around 200 to well over 5,000.[12] He was known for his ability to preach in ways that reached the common person, the street people of London. Over his lifetime he preached to tens of thousands. A story is told about five young college students who were spending a Sunday in London, so they went to hear the famed Spurgeon preach.[13] While waiting for the doors to open, the students were greeted by a man who asked, “Gentlemen, let me show you around. Would you like to see the heating plant of this church?” They were not particularly interested, for it was a hot day in July. But they didn’t want to offend the stranger, so they consented. The young men were taken down a stairway, a door was quietly opened, and their guide whispered, “This is our heating plant.” Surprised, the students saw 700 people bowed in prayer, seeking a blessing on the service that was soon to begin in the auditorium above. Softly closing the door, the gentleman introduced himself. It was none other than Charles Spurgeon.
Unceasing prayer is the heating plant, the power plant of the church, and of our lives. The Jesus Prayer is one way to move in that direction.
[1] The Way of a Pilgrim, Annotated & Explained, Skylight Illuminations, 73-79,
[2] [Spicq, C., & Ernest, J. D. (1994). Theological lexicon of the New Testament (Vol. 1, p. 32). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers.]
[3] The Way of a Pilgrim, 3.
[4] Richard Foster, Prayer (1201-122):
[5] Frederica Mathewes-Green The Jesus Prayer, 3.
[6] Προσκαρτερέω – Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship; Προσκαρτέρησις -Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 662). New York: United Bible Societies.
[7] [Stott, J. R. W. (1979). God’s new society: the message of Ephesians (pp. 283–284). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.]
[8]Foulkes, F. (1989). Ephesians: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 10, p. 182). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
[9] The Way of a Pilgrim, 15.
[10] The Jesus Prayer, 4-6.
[11] Richard Foster, Prayer, 122.
[13] David Larsen, The Anatomy of Preaching, 55.
