THE BELIEVERS AND HIS PRAYER LIFE Part 1
As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in schools. — Author unknown
Prayer. Seems like it should be a simple enough topic. But just take a little sample of what people say about it:
- “God punishes us mildly by ignoring our prayers and severely by answering them.”—Richard J. Needham
- “Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays.” —Soren Kierkegaard
- “Practical prayer is harder on the soles of your shoes than on the knees of your trousers.” —Austin O’Malley
- “I prayed for twenty years but received no answer until I prayed with my legs.” —Frederick Douglass, escaped slave
- “Give a man a fish, and you’ll feed him for a day. Give him a religion, and he will starve to death while praying for a fish.” —Author unknown
- “When we talk to God, we are praying. When God talks to us, we are schizophrenic.” —Jane Wagner
Jesus had a lot to say about prayer, too. In John 15, as He finishes explaining the vine and the branches, He offers us another important facet of prayer to consider:
John 15:7-8 (NKJV) If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.
This passage is so much more than some sort of formula to get what we want.
Note the preconditions to answered prayer: “If you remain in me … if my words remain in you….” Jesus is talking about an intimacy so real that our will becomes conformed to His—so that anything we ask will be a reflection of who we are in Him and who He is in us.
Isn’t this the vine-and-branch relationship at its simplest, most profound level?
If you are living in the context of His love, there will be joy, sacrifice, and obedience… and whatever you pray, consider it YES, because you will be praying the right things!
True Vine, align my desires with Your will! I want my mind to be renewed and my life to be transformed so deeply that my prayers will be a natural reflection of Your will. I understand that this will require many things to be pruned from my life as You lead me and empower me for obedience to the Father’s glory. Amen.
James 5:13-18 (NKJV) 13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.
I would like to take just a few minutes to investigate these verses and see what James is trying to teach us about prayer. Join me as I search The Word for a while on The Believer and His Prayer Life.
- V. James 5:13-16a THE CHALLENGE TO PRAYER
(James is speaking primarily about prayer and healing of the sin-sick believer. However, he also gives us some insight into our own daily prayer life. The challenge set before Christians in these verses is to pray!)
- Subjects for Prayer
- Affliction – Afflicted means to “endure hardship.” Those who are walking through the valleys and trials of life are to pray.
Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV) 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
- Sickness – When we, or others are sick, we are to call out their names in prayer. God is a healer! Therefore, we are to go to Him in prayer on behalf of those who are afflicted with sickness.
- Brethren – We are to be in prayer for one another in the family of God. We have a duty to one another to prayer fervently about the needs, burdens and lives of our fellow believers. (Gal. 6:2)
Galatians 6:2 (NKJV) Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
- Joy – It is implied that when there is joy, that too should be expressed. What better place to express than before the Lord in prayer?
Ephesians 5:20 (NKJV) giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV) 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
- The Strength of Prayer – Back to James In verse 15, James mentions the “prayer of faith.” Faith is what gives prayer strength and effectiveness. God answers prayer, but He does so in response to the faith of His people – Matt. 21:22.
Matthew 21:22 (NKJV) And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”
James makes it clear that faith is an essential ingredient in effective praying –
James 1:5-8 (NKJV) 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
When Hudson Taylor went to China, he made the voyage on a sailing ship. As it neared the channel between the southern Malay Peninsula and the island of Sumatra, the missionary heard an urgent knock on his stateroom door. He opened it, and there stood the captain of the ship.
“Mr. Taylor,” he said, “we have no wind. We are drifting toward an island where the people are heathen, and I fear they are cannibals.”
“What can I do?” asked Taylor.
“I understand that you believe in God. I want you to pray for wind.”
“All right, Captain, I will, but you must set the sail.”
“Why, that’s ridiculous! There’s not even the slightest breeze. Besides, the sailors will think I “m crazy.” Nevertheless, the captain finally agreed. Forty-five minutes later he returned and found the missionary still on his knees. “You can stop praying now,” said the captain. “We’ve got more wind than we know what to do with!”)
All I am saying is that if you need something from God, then it must be asked for in faith. God does not simply respond to our asking; it is our faith in God that moves God into action.)
- The Source of Prayer – All prevailing prayer has its roots in the written Word of God. What I mean is this, you cannot simply pray for something frivolous and expect God to grant it. However, when He has specifically spoken to something in His Word, then you can pray with confidence. It is His will and He will answer it. Faith is always based on the Word of God –
Romans 10:17 (NKJV) So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
If there is a need, God will meet it – Phil. 4:19.
Philippians 4:19 (NKJV) And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
If there is fear, God will replace it –
Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV) 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 1:7 (NKJV) For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
If there is a burden, God will lift it –
1 Peter 5:6-7 (NKJV) 6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
If there is a need for someone to be saved, God will deal with them –
2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV) The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
If there is a sin, God will forgive it –
1 John 1:9 (NKJV) If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
All I am trying to get us to see is that when we pray, we can only pray in faith if we can base our prayers on the revealed will of God, His Word as found in the Bible. Anything else is merely something based on our own wants, our own desires, or our greed. Often, these things are not wrong and God may grant them. However, we can have absolute assurance that He will always answer those prayers that are prayed as a result of His promises.)
Philippians 4:20 (NKJV) Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
This is “The Challenge to Prayer” Next week we will look at “THE CHARACTER OF PRAYER”
