A Summary of Christian Doctrine
An Adult Bible Study on the Basics of the Christian Faith
Lesson 11 — Prayer and the Last Things

What is prayer?

Prayer is talking to God in words and thoughts.

Psalm 19: 14
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”*

Prayer is addressed to God.

Matthew 4: 10
“Jesus said to him, ‘Away from me, Satan! For it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”

Isaiah 46: 7
“They lift it to their shoulders and carry it; they set it up in its place, and there it stands. From that spot it cannot move. Though one cries out to it, it does not answer; it cannot save him from his troubles.”

Isaiah 63: 16
“But you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, O Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.”

Why do we pray?

Matthew 7: 7
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”

Psalm 50: 15
“and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”

I John 5: 14
“This is the assurance we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.”

How should we pray?

John 16: 23
“In that day you will no long ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.”

James 1: 6-7
“But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord,”

Luke 22: 42
“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”

Matthew 6: 7
“And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.”

I Timothy 2: 1
“I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone”

Matthew 5: 44
“But I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, “

Hebrews 9: 27
“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgement,”

I Thessalonians 5: 17
“pray continually;”

What is the most excellent prayer?

Matthew 6: 9-13 (see also Luke 11: 2-4)
“This is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10. your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11. Give us today our daily bread. 12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one for yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”

What happens when we die?

Ecclesiastes 12: 7
“and the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.”

Acts 7: 59
“While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’”

Luke 23: 43
“Jesus answered him, ‘I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.’”

What does the Bible say about Christ’s Second Coming (Judgment Day)?

Acts 1: 11
“‘Men of Galilee,’ they said, ‘why do you stand there looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.’‘

Acts 17: 31
“For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”

II Peter 3: 10
“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.”

Mark 13: 32
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

John 5: 28-29
“Do not be amazed at this, for the time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29. and come out — those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.”

Philippians 3: 20-21
“But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ’ 21. who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”

II Corinthians 5: 10
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for all the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”

Matthew 25: 34-46

“‘Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35. For I was hungry , and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36. I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38. When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40. The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ 41. Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43. I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ 44. They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’45. He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ 46. ‘Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.’”

Matthew 10: 28
“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Psalm 17: 15
“And I — in righteousness will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

Revelation 21: 4
“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

Revelation 7: 15
“Therefore, ‘they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.’” (or will dwell among them)

John 3: 16, 36
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” ... “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”

Revelation 2:10
“Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

* Unless otherwise noted, all Scriptures are taken from The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House) 1984.