Developing Confidence in Prayer
This
sermon works on a very simple idea - pray what God wants
you to pray!
Confidence
in prayer is often eroded over the years by unanswered
prayer on issues that are important to us or by praying
for "promises" out of context and ending up disappointed
with God.
For
instance God promises Cyrus "I will give you the
treasures of darkness". I cannot claim this specific
prophecy to a particular individual to myself unless I
have it very clearly confirmed to me by the Holy Spirit.
Not every Christian can rule a vast empire!
Getting
our confidence in prayer back again involves going to the
Scripture and praying:
1. For the
things God asks us "ordinary believers" to pray for.
2.
Satisfying the conditions He places upon us for answered
prayer.
As we will
see there are ten things that God specifically
asks us to pray for and even PROMISES us by His
faithfulness that He will answer. These include:
1. Salvation and Forgiveness
2. The Holy Spirit and His Gifts
3. Provision of Daily Needs
4. Wisdom
5. The Ability To Cope With Today/Deliverance From
Temptation
6. The Difficult People In Your Life
7. The Good Things That You Are Seeking God For
8. Bold Proclamation Of The Gospel
9. For Governments To Grant Freedom To The Proclamation Of
The Gospel
10. The Cries Of The Church In Unity
11. Healing Based On Repentance and Confession
As well as
that there are numerous "anything you ask in my name..." type promises - eight of which are shown on the following
page. If you include parallel passages and very similar
passages it would be at least twice this number.
Issues
of Authority
Sometimes
we lack confidence in our prayers because we lack
confidence in our authority in Christ.
1. God
asks us to pray. (See the next three pages of verses!)
2. God
gives us the Holy Spirit to help us pray. (Romans 8:26)
3. He is a
gracious and generous God. (Romans 8:32 NASB) He
who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for
us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all
things?
4. He has
seated us in heavenly realms (Eph 2:6,7) where we shall
judge angels (1 Cor 6:3) and made us citizens of heaven
with direct access to God (Eph 1:19,20, Hebrews 4:14-16)
5. He has
forgiven us our sins so they are no longer an obstruction
to our prayers and fellowship with Him. (Col 1:13-15, 1
John 1:7-10)
6. Elijah
was a man "with a nature like ours" and was able to pray
mighty prayers. (James 5:16-18)
7. God
promises to hear our prayers that are in His will. ( 1
John 5;14,15)
General
Promises
(Matthew
21:21-22 NASB) And Jesus answered and said to them,
"Truly I say to you, if you have faith, and do not
doubt, you shall not only do what was done to the fig
tree, but even if you say to this mountain, 'Be taken up
and cast into the sea,' it shall happen. {22} "And
all things you ask in prayer, believing, you shall
receive."
(John
14:13-14 NASB) "And whatever you ask in My
name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in
the Son. {14} "If you ask Me anything in My name, I
will do it.
(John 15:7
NASB) "If you abide in Me, and My words abide
in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for
you.
(John
15:16 NASB) "You did not choose Me, but I
chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear
fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever
you ask of the Father in My name, He may give to you.
(John
16:23-24 NASB) "And in that day you will ask
Me no question. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you shall
ask the Father for anything, He will give it to you in My
name. {24} "Until now you have asked for nothing in
My name; ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be
made full.
(James
4:2-3 NASB) You lust and do not have; so you commit
murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain; so you
fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do
not ask. {3} You ask and do not receive, because
you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on
your pleasures.
(1 John
3:22 NASB) and whatever we ask we receive from Him,
because we keep His commandments and do the things that
are pleasing in His sight.
(1 John
5:14-15 NASB) And this is the confidence which we
have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to
His will, He hears us. {15} And if we know that He hears
us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests
which we have asked from Him.
Salvation
and Forgiveness
(Matthew
6:12-15 NASB) 'And forgive us our debts, as we also
have forgiven our debtors. {13} 'And do not lead us into
temptation, but deliver us from evil. <For Thine is
the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.>' {14} "For if you forgive men for their
transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you. {15} "But if you do not forgive men, then your
Father will not forgive your transgressions.
(1 John
5:16 NASB) If anyone sees his brother committing a
sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for
him give life to those who commit sin not leading to
death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that
he should make request for this.
(Romans
10:9-13 NASB) that if you confess with your mouth
Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised
Him from the dead, you shall be saved; {10} for with the
heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with
the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. {11} For
the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL
NOT BE DISAPPOINTED." {12} For there is no
distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is
Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon
Him; {13} for "WHOEVER WILL CALL UPON THE NAME OF
THE LORD WILL BE SAVED."
The
Holy Spirit And His Gifts
(1
Corinthians 14:1 NASB) Pursue love, yet desire
earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may
prophesy.
(1
Corinthians 14:13 NASB) Therefore let one who
speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret.
(Matthew
6:11 NASB) 'Give us this day our daily bread.
(Matthew
6:30-33 NASB) "But if God so arrays the grass
of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown
into the furnace, will He not much more do so for you, O
men of little faith? {31} "Do not be anxious then,
saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or
'With what shall we clothe ourselves?' {32} "For all
these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly
Father knows that you need all these things. {33}
"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness;
and all these things shall be added to you.
The
Ability To Cope With Today/ Deliverance From Temptation
(Matthew
6:13 NASB) 'And do not lead us into temptation, but
deliver us from evil.
(Luke
22:46 NASB) and said to them, "Why are you
sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into
temptation."
(Matthew
24:20-22 NASB) "But pray that your flight may
not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath;
(Matthew
6:34 NASB) "Therefore do not be anxious for
tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has
enough trouble of its own.
(1
Corinthians 10:13 NASB) No temptation has overtaken
you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful,
who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are
able, but with the temptation will provide the way of
escape also, that you may be able to endure it.
(Philippians
4:6-7 NASB) 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 comprehension, shall guard
your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
For The
Difficult People In Your Life
(Matthew
5:44 NASB) "But I say to you, love your
enemies, and pray for those who persecute you
(Luke 6:28
NASB) bless those who curse you, pray for those who
mistreat you.
Wisdom
(James
1:5-8 NASB) But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him
ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without
reproach, and it will be given to him. {6} But let him
ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts
is like the surf of the sea driven and tossed by the
wind. {7} For let not that man expect that he will
receive anything from the Lord, {8} being a double-minded
man, unstable in all his ways.
(Colossians
1:9 NASB) …we have not ceased to pray for you and to
ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will
in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
The
Good Things That You Are Seeking God For
(Matthew
7:7-11 NASB) "Ask, and it shall be given to
you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be
opened to you. {8} "For everyone who asks receives,
and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be
opened. {9} "Or what man is there among you, when
his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone?
{10} "Or if he shall ask for a fish, he will not
give him a snake, will he? {11} "If you then, being
evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how
much more shall your Father who is in heaven give what is
good to those who ask Him!
Bold
Proclamation Of The Gospel
(Matthew
9:37-38 NASB) Then He said to His disciples,
"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.
{38} "Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to
send out workers into His harvest."
(Ephesians
6:18-20 NASB) With all prayer and petition pray at
all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the
alert with all perseverance and petition for all the
saints, {19} and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be
given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known
with boldness the mystery of the gospel, {20} for which I
am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may
speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
(Colossians
4:2-4 NASB) Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping
alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; {3} praying
at the same time for us as well, that God may open up to
us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the
mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned;
{4} in order that I may make it clear in the way I ought
to speak.
For
Governments To Give Freedom To The Proclamation Of The
Gospel
(1 Timothy
2:1-4 NASB) First of all, then, I urge that
entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be
made on behalf of all men, {2} for kings and all who are
in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and
quiet life in all godliness and dignity. {3} This is good
and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, {4} who
desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge
of the truth.
The
Cries Of The Church In Unity
(Matthew
18:19-20 NASB) "Again I say to you, that if
two of you agree on earth about anything that they may
ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in
heaven. {20} "For where two or three have gathered
together in My name, there I am in their midst."
Healing Based On Repentance And Confession
(James
5:14-16 NASB) 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 offered in faith will restore the one who
is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has
committed sins, they will be forgiven him. {16}
Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for
one another, so that you may be healed. The effective
prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.