Who do Christians Pray to?

How should Christians pray? Who exactly do they pray to? Since Christians believe in the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit) can we then pray to anyone of the Trinity?

First off let me say that God sees our hearts and knows when we are calling on him even when we get the order a little skewed or we use the "wrong" words or when we just don't know exactly what to say. God knows and God hears us when we call on him.

Let's look at what Jesus taught about prayer. When asked by his disciples that he teach them how to pray he gave them what we now call The Lord's Prayer." It begins with the words, "Our Father" which means that it is directed towards God the Father.

When Jesus prayed who did he pray to? He prayed to his and our Heavenly Father. In several passages of scripture he directed his disciples to ask the Father but to do so in the name of Jesus. Not a formulaic kind of phrase but rather under the authority of Jesus we may come freely and boldly directly to the Father. (John 14:13-14; 15:16; 16:23-24, 26-27)

What about the Holy Spirit? Can we pray to him since he is also God? 

There is no indication in scripture that we are to pray to the Holy Spirit but rather we are told over and over again to pray "in" in the Holy Spirit and that the Holy Spirit prays through us when we don't know what to pray. So the Holy Spirit directs prayers through us to the Heavenly Father. 

So we pray to our Heavenly Father, in the name of (or under the authority of) Jesus, in the Holy Spirit. Does that mean that God does not hear us if we pray incorrectly? Or that we should follow the formula exactly? 

Remember that God is not into formulas. He's into relationships. When we are in right relationship with him through faith in Christ then as we pray even if we don't get it right all the time we know that God hears us. Too often we get wrapped up in trying to follow some sort of pattern or formula when our focus is simply talking to our Heavenly Father and bearing our souls to him in prayer. 

As we mature in our Christian faith we learn to prayer better, fuller prayers but we should not look down on those who are still learning to pray. They will get it in time. It's the journey and how we walk with God that matters. 

So in closing, we pray to our Heavenly Father, in the name of Jesus in the Holy Spirit.

What about drinking alcoholic beverages?

The question is, "How do you feel about the body of Christ drinking alcohol? Most of us know it is a sin to get drunk, but is it wrong to drink beer, wine, etc. without getting drunk?"

There are some strong opinions on this issue but let's look at it with an open mind and see exactly what does the bible teach on this subject. 

There are many scriptures that tell us to stay away from wine such as found in Proverbs 20:1, "Wine is a mocker", or Proverbs 23:29-35, which talks at length about wine drinking but if you look closely at the context of Proverbs 23:29-35 it is clearly talking about getting drunk and not the casual cup of wine with a dinner meal. 

One of the rules of biblical interpretation is to let the bible interpret the bible. That means that you simply cannot use only one or two verses and make a doctrine but rather you must read all the scriptures on the subject and then make a balanced teaching using all the scriptures. 

We also have the examples of some in the Old Testament who would make a vow unto the Lord for a season and this vow included not to cut their hair, not to drink wine and not to touch anything dead like Samson who was a Nazarite. Jesus was from Nazareth but was not under a Nazarite vow as Samson and John the Baptist were.

There are also many scriptures which praise wine such as Judges 9:13; Psalms 104:15; Exodus 10:19; Zechariah 10:7 and Proverbs 31:6.

There are of course many scriptures that warn of drinking too much wine as mentioned above. Unfortunately in our society drinking wine or other alcoholic beverages has almost always a negative image associated with it because of it's over use and over indulgence. If you lived in Germany drinking beer is looked upon differently and if you lived in Italy you would probably drink a small glass of wine with every meal even as a small child.

Let's look again at what the apostle Paul said concerning eating pork or drinking wine in 1 Corinthians 10:31-33, "So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Don't give offense to Jews or Gentiles or the church of God. I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don't just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved. And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ."

As Christians we live by a higher law. The law of love. If we love our neighbors then we will take into account how they feel about certain things including drinking wine. In this day and age we can live full and rich lives without ever drinking any alcoholic beverages. However, if my Christian friend wants to take a drink of champagne at his wedding or an occasional drink with his meal it doesn't bother me. The key is always to do things in moderation. There are those who do not have any self-control whatsoever and we should be mindful of that if we do take a drink once and again. There are also those who when they were saved were also delivered from drinking and they may find it offensive to see their fellow believers taking a drink. 

My liberty in Christ should not be judged by another's weak conscious but in reality it often is. We must take that into account and live our lives with the goal of leading men and women to Christ and that includes our lifestyle. If that means never taking a drink then so be it.

Here is a link to a good article with much more information than I can provide:

www.biblestudy.org/basicart/does-bible-permit-drinking-wine-alcohol.html

We all go through tough times. Sometimes all we need is someone to talk to about it. Someone who will listen without judging or criticizing. If you are facing a crisis know that you are not alone. Know also that someone else may have already gone through it and may have some wisdom and a new perspective that can help you through it. You can visit the site listed on the photo at left to see some inspiring stories. Share this with someone you know. And as always feel free to ask any question and I am happy to help any way I can. Read yesterday's comments to see our first question on this blog on eating pork. I welcome your comments. 

I always wanted to know

I think there are people who want to ask a question but don't know who to turn to. Pastors know a lot about religion, love, loss, relationships and life in general. 

My answers will come from personal experiences, colleagues, and especially the Bible as I believe it has definite answers to many of life difficult questions and much wisdom to impart to those on the journey called life.

So my friends, ask away and I will do my best to give a response. You may not always like it but I assure you you will do well to heed good, godly advice from someone who does care.

Pastor Dan