When our Lord's disciples came to Him regarding prayer, they did not ask Him to teach them how to pray, but rather they asked Him to teach them to pray. Obviously even those closest to Christ needed to learn to pray. And so do we. Here, some of our best Bible teachers and expositors give us instruction on prayer, from why we should pray, to what prayer is, how it ties in with God's sovereignty, what it means to pray in Jesus' name, what it means to hallow God's name, and why God is to be the focus of our prayers, not ourselves. These, and many other topics, are addressed in this helpful book.

Christians generally believe that in prayer they are free in their act to petition God. Christians also believe that they pray to a God that is sovereign and omniscient. Kyle DiRoberts maintains that explanation as to how one affirms these two truths is dependent upon one's account of divine providence, which determines how motivated the person is to offer petitionary prayer in the divine-human relationship. The theories of providence and their understanding of petitionary prayer discussed in this book include: compatibilism, hard determinism, open theism, and middle knowledge. Each of the theories of divine providence discussed in this book share a desire to construct a view concerning petitionary prayer that would propel the Christian toward God in relationship and then lead the body of Christ to pray without ceasing. DiRoberts argues that middle knowledge is the preferred theory of providence as it relates to petitionary prayer, because for middle knowledge, God's sovereignty includes both his omniscience and libertarian human freedom.

Many believers struggle with assurance of salvation, tending to approach obedience to God out of either guilt or legalism. We exist to display God's glory, declare God's gospel, and disciple for God's Great Commission. Instead of embracing these truths, many Christians have believed the lie that their identity in Christ does not affect how they live their lives in obedience to him. The gospel tells us that "being" (identity) comes before "doing" (obedience). This lack of understanding our gospel identity frequently results in either legalistic pride or frustrating guilt. The purpose of this book is to help believers understand their identity in the three persons of the Trinity and then joyfully serve God with gospel obedience. The gospel indicatives in the Bible serve as the fountain and power for obeying the moral imperatives in the Bible. The gospel roots our assurance of salvation and motivation to obey God in our identity, not in moralism, which elevates our performance instead of exalting the finished work of Christ.

The news is dominated by reports of inhumanity and tragedy. Things seem to go from bad to worse, and hope is hard to find. What is wrong with the world? Despite technological progress, humanity cannot overcome the senseless strife that plagues every generation. Into this world comes good news that shines so bright it turns the night sky into daylight. The good news is God news! God the Father so loved the world that He sent His one and only Son Jesus to rescue us from sin and eternal punishment. Many Christians know this good news but keep it to themselves. Yet the good news is too good to not share. Bodanza gives us an example of sharing the good news from his weekly column in a hometown newspaper. Use it to speak boldly, or give it to another to read. The gospel message is timeless and speaks to the ultimate issue of our lives.

Includes music.