Guía Práctica Para Hacer Oraciones Poderosas por los Demás

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3 Pasos para Analizar las Oraciones Efectivas en la Biblia

En mi última publicación del blog, Guía Práctica para Tener Más Confianza en la Oración, compartí la Oración de los Nudos como ejemplo de lo que muchas personas enfrentan en sus mentes y vidas: sentimientos de no ser lo suficiente bueno. Usualmente, estos sentimientos nos conllevan a creer que nuestras oraciones y nuestra relación con Jesús no son lo suficientemente buenas. Proporcioné una guía para orar las Escrituras con el fin de adquirir más confianza en nuestras oraciones, particularmente cuando oramos para superar tiempos muy difíciles en nuestras propias vidas.

Hoy les comparto algunas oraciones que se encuentran en la Biblia que son muy útiles cuando estamos orando por otras personas. Observamos las oraciones de las Escrituras no por ser las únicas oraciones que Dios honra, sino porque Dios nos dio estos ejemplos para enfocar nuestras mentes, corazones, y oraciones en la necesidad de otros.

Remember we do not know how to pray as we ought and the Holy Spirit comes to our aid by interceding according to God’s will (Romans 8:26-27). This great news brings much comfort when we are striving to pray effectively for ourselves or others.

Although Jesus gave His disciples what we call the Lord’s Prayer as a model for prayer, I will not address it because an abundance of information about it can be found on the Internet (see https://www.mydailytribune.com/opinion/8102/a-breakdown-of-the-lords-prayer, accessed September 9, 2020). Instead, I will share prayers found in the Bible that have been helpful in my life, starting with Paul’s prayer for the Church at Philippi in which he prays for love to abound.  I will share with you the value of praying that prayer for others and a way to analyze biblical prayers. When you read your Bible and notice a prayer, you will be able to stop and determine if there is someone for which you could pray that prayer.

Paul’s Prayer for the Church at Philippi

En Filipenses 1:9-11, el Apóstol Pablo ora por el continuo progreso espiritual de los cristianos en Filipos.

And this I pray:  that your love may abound yet more and more and extend to its fullest development in knowledge and all keen insight [that your love may display itself in greater depth of acquaintance and more comprehensive discernment], so that you may surely learn to sense what is vital, and approve and prize what is excellent and of real value [recognizing the highest and the best, and distinguishing the moral differences], and that you may be untainted and pure and unerring and blameless [so that with hearts sincere and certain and unsullied, you may approach] the day of Christ [not stumbling nor causing others to stumble].  May you abound in and be filled with the fruits of righteousness (of right standing with God and right doing) which come through Jesus Christ (the Anointed One), to the honor and praise of God [that His glory may be both manifested and recognized]. (Filipenses 1:9-11, AMP) [Traducción literal de The Amplified Bible.]

The Expositor’s Bible Commentary states, “Concern for others should express itself first in prayer, as one recognizes the importance of the divine factor in any lasting spiritual growth.” In addition to being concerned for individuals, we need to be concerned about the body of Christ as a whole.  If we are concerned, then we need to express that concern in prayer. This prayer is a good model for praying for such growth of individuals, particular parts of the body, or the body of Christ as a whole. Because Paul is concerned about the Christians in Philippi, he prayed for them.

Para analizar la oración, haremos tres preguntas y las responderemos.

Primera Pregunta: ¿Por qué ora Pablo? Él ora para que su amor abunde, es decir, que sea abundante y rico. Se enfoca en el amor porque es la parte del fruto del Espíritu que hace posible que todas las demás virtudes sean ejercidas apropiadamente (1 Corintios 13:1-3).

The love that Paul prays for is not limited to love for God.  It is unrestricted and refers to any continuing demonstration of godly love: Love for God; Love for me (the one praying the prayer); and Love for all people.

Segunda Pregunta: ¿Qué espera Pablo que ocurra cuando la oración sea respondida? Él espera que el amor y madurez espiritual se manifiesten en las vidas de los cristianos de Filipos a través del aumento en el conocimiento espiritual, percepción moral, discernimiento, y glorificando a Dios. Cuando oramos para que el amor abunde en otros, podemos esperar ver un incremento similar en sus vidas.

El conocimiento espiritual es la percepción intelectual que reconoce los principios de la Palabra de Dios a medida que los ilumina el Espíritu Santo.

La percepción moral es la aplicación práctica de ese conocimiento a las circunstancias de la vida.

Discernment is the ability to distinguish the good from the bad, even in gray areas.  It means to determine not only if something is or is not harmful, but if it is helpful and then walking accordingly to avoid stumbling and stumbling others. It helps us to stand before God blamelessly, purely, confidently.

Glorifying God is living a life that shines glory upon God, that honors and praises God.  A life glorifying God enables the full fruit of the Spirit to grow and mature.

Para recopilar la información, piense en una mujer que ama o por la que está preocupado porque tiende a responderle a la vida con mucho enojo. Si ora para que su amor abunde más y más, puede esperar que su conocimiento espiritual y su percepción moral incremente. En lugar de simplemente saber que es enojada, ella podrá percibir a través del conocimiento espiritual porqué está enojada de acuerdo a los principios que el Espíritu Santo le comunica a través de la Palabra de Dios, tales como su carne, orgullo o experiencias de rechazo.

The Bible teaches us to be angry and sin not (Ephesians 4:26).  After obtaining the spiritual knowledge to know the source of her anger, we can anticipate our friend will also obtain the depth of moral perception to know when she is about to cross that very important line between being angry and sinning. If the anger is motivated by her flesh, moral perception may lead her to subject her flesh to the Spirit by pursuing the Spirit (Romans 8:1). If motivated by pride, moral perception may lead her to humble herself before the Lord (James 4:10). And if experiences of rejection caused the anger, moral perception may lead her to accept that God has adopted her as His child (Romans 8:15-16). Thus, she can be guided by the Holy Spirit to manage her anger properly or release it altogether.

We can also expect our prayers for our friend to increase her discernment, empowering her to know whether her own words and deeds, or the words and deeds of others, are consistent with God’s will and teachings. She will then be able to respond to what she experiences through meekness and gentleness (Galatians 6:1, 1 Thessalonians 2:7), not through the experiences of her past or hurtful attitudes of others.   As our friend continues to grow, as her love abounds more and more, we will see her life glorifying God as the fruit of the Spirit grows in her.

Tercera Pregunta: ¿Por quién hizo la oración Pablo?  Paul prayed this for those new Christians that he influenced for Christ.  Note that this is a prayer for Christians.  It is not a prayer for those who have not yet come to repentance and salvation.

Considere por quién haría esta oración. Esta oración es apropiada para todos los cristianos. Si el amor de todos en nuestras familias y en nuestras iglesias abunda más y más, imagine cómo eso afectará la atmósfera de nuestros hogares e iglesias. Imagine el impacto que tendría en las relaciones entre los miembros de la familia y nuestros compañeros santos. Y considere cómo nuestras vidas impactarían al mundo conforme todos aumentamos nuestro conocimiento espiritual, percepción moral, discernimiento, y dando gloria a Dios.

Analizando Oraciones Bíblicas

As we went through Paul’s prayer for the Philippian Church, we analyzed it based on three questions. These questions can be asked in any order.

1. ¿Por qué está orando la persona?
2. ¿Cuáles son los resultados esperados cuando se responde la oración?
3. ¿Por quién se hace la oración?

Al analizar las oraciones bíblicas y utilizarlas como modelo cuando oramos por otros en situaciones similares, podemos tener confianza en la efectividad de nuestras oraciones a pesar de ser débiles y no saber orar como es debido.

A prayer for our Christian family members modeled after Paul’s prayer for the Philippian Church might sound something like this: “Lord, I ask that the love of my family members may abound more and more, increasing their spiritual knowledge so they may recognize your principles as illuminated by the Holy Spirit and apply those principles to their lives in order to walk according to your ways. I pray that abounding love will increase their ability to discern what words and deeds are not merely right or wrong, but that are beneficial to their own lives and the lives of the people they interact with. And I pray their lives will increasingly glorify You and the fruit of the Spirit will grow and mature in their lives.”

Más Ejemplos de Oraciones en la Biblia

The Bible is full of prayers. Since we know we are weak and don’t know what prayers to offer or how to do so worthily, we can learn from those in the Bible. Following are more biblical prayers we can confidently pray for others.

Oración por Guía:  In Jeremiah 42:3-4, Jeremiah was praying for the people of Judah (believers) asking the Lord for guidance, “the way in which we should walk and the thing that we should do.” He expected God to answer the request for guidance; to tell him whether or not the remnant of Judah should return to Egypt.

Based on Jeremiah’s prayer, we know we can go to God on behalf of others and ask God to show us His will for them. We can pray this prayer expecting God to answer it when we pray it for believers.

If you read further you will discover that God answered Jeremiah’s prayer but the people disobeyed the Lord and returned to Egypt. Although this prayer is effective, we must remember the people we are praying for still have a choice about obeying the Lord. We must not have unreasonable expectations that the people we are praying for will obey God’s word just because God answers our prayer. Instead, consider coupling Jeremiah’s prayer with Paul’s prayer for the Philippian Church (that love will abound in the people’s lives in order that they will gain spiritual knowledge, moral perception, discernment, and a life that glorifies God).  When this occurs, they will more likely obey God’s answer to the prayer for guidance.

Prayer for Others to be Counted as Worthy of God’s Calling: En 2 Tesalonicenses 1:11-12, Pablo ora por la Iglesia de Tesalónica (creyentes) para que Dios los considere dignos de su llamado y cumpla Su voluntad y complete cada una de sus obras hechas en fe. Pablo esperaba que el nombre del Señor fuera glorificado y llegara a ser más glorioso a través de los Tesalonicenses y ellos serían glorificados en Él de acuerdo a Su gracia.

I will admit if there is a prayer I would ask someone to pray for me, it is this one.  I want the works that I do in faith to bring glory to God and Him to complete them.  If you want to support me in this growing ministry, I would ask you to pray this prayer for me.

Other Examples

1. Oración por Fortaleza, Poder, Entendimiento, Conocimiento (Efesios 3:16-19).
2. Oración por el Espíritu de Sabiduría y Revelación (Efesios 1:15-19).
3. Oración por Sabiduría y Entendimiento Espiritual (Colosenses 1:9-12).
4. Oración para que Dios esté con Sus Discípulos (Juan 17:6-26).
5. Oración para Crecer y Abundar en Amor Unos para con Otros y Para con Todos (esto resulta en que Dios hace que los corazones sean irreprensibles en santidad delante de Dios, incluso hasta la venida de nuestro Señor Jesucristo (1 Tesalonicenses 3:12-13)).

Orar por los demás es muy poderoso. Modelar nuestras oraciones con base en las que se encuentran en las Escrituras después de analizarlas nos ayuda a ser más eficaces y seguros en la oración.

I trust these examples of biblical prayers and the process of analyzing them will help you gain more confidence in your prayers for other people.  I hope you will notice the prayers being prayed by the people you are reading about in your Bible. When you read a prayer, stop and analyze it to determine how you might pray the prayer for others.

Como siempre, aprecio recibir sus comentarios sobre las publicaciones del blog Confianza en Dios. Por favor, comparta sus oraciones favoritas de la Biblia y cómo las usa en su vida de oración. Juntos podemos construir confianza en la oración.