Prayer that Matters - 6

Final episode of the season covering prayer teaching in the epistles.  Hopefully it's a strong finish!

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Hello everyone and welcome back once again to Jeff's Bible Trek. This is the sixth and final episode of our season on prayer that matters. My prayer is that this season has helped you to enhance your prayer life, which would bless me to no end for sure. In our last episode, we ended by saying that the lesson learned in the book of Acts is that prayer is the place where there is a transference of the power of God to the Christian's life. So, armed with that knowledge, teachings on prayer began to roll out to the church through the letters or epistles from the apostles. So let's look at the teachings of the epistles on prayer. Let's look first of all at passages that contain clear instruction on how to pray. Let's look first of all at Ephesians 6, 10 to 20. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and pray in the Spirit on all occasions, with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people. Pray also for me that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly as I should. Note first the purpose of the armor of God, that you might be able to take a strong defensive posture against the schemes of the devil and his rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces in the heavenly realms. It's also a purpose that you might also take a strong offensive posture against the same things with the sword of the Spirit. This is the warfare aspect of kingdom praying, as instructed by Jesus in the Lord's Prayer. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. So I would suggest that part of our prayer life should be devoted to dealing with the forces of darkness. And if enough Christians united on this, we would begin to see some movement in the atmosphere that would usher in the dominance of the kingdom of God. Now, the venue for doing all of this is in the prayer closet. Because after listing all of the armor and weapons, Paul says, and pray, and goes on to use different forms of the word pray five different times. Note the role of prayer in the Spirit. God filled us with his spirit to empower us. And because that power has a vital role in wearing and using the armor of God. Paul talks about how often we are to pray. Well, that's simple. At all times. And with all kinds of prayers and requests. Man, that's a great yardstick to stand up against our prayer lives, isn't it? I pale. I pale in comparison. Well, hopefully we're moving ever closer to doing this. Finally, note also that verses 18 to 20 represent what I'm calling kingdom prayers, as Paul exhorts the Ephesians to pray for his apostolic activity in their praying, which is an expansion of the kingdom of God. We should be praying for our missionaries as well. Did you know that they can feel it when they are not getting adequate prayer support? Trust me when I say that. When I was pastoring, I had I had a missionary to Japan come and speak in our church on a Wednesday night. And he said that he could feel it when no one was praying for him, and it made him feel powerless. In Romans 15, 30 to 31, it says, I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea, and that my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints there. In 2 Corinthians 1, verses 10 and 11, it says he has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. He's talking about him and his group, his entourage. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us as you help us by your prayers, he says. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many. We need to pray for those doing missionary and evangelistic work because our prayers partner with their work and result in favor from the Lord. Let's talk about Philippians four, four through seven. It's a very um well-known passage. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again. Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. You know that's a short passage, but a there's a mighty principle in there that will change your life. It changed mine. I'll tell I'll give you my story in a few minutes. Many of us are carrying far more stress and anxiety than we should be. Paul simply says, Don't be anxious about anything. Jesus said something similar in a Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6. You'll say, Well, that's easy for Paul to say. He doesn't know what I'm dealing with. Oh, really? Well, here's what he dealt with. Paul is defending his ministry in comparison to the other apostles, and here's what he says. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Five times. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles, in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea, and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep. I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food. I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. How did Paul bear up under all that and thrive in his faith with joy? By practicing what he preached here in everything, everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving. Present your request to God. Peter said it this way cast your cares on the Lord because he cares for you. Paul was a true prayer warrior. He prayed all the time. He had an ongoing, continuous, never-ending dialogue with the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. First Thessalonians 5 17 has only two words in it, but it says a lot. Man, that's a mic drop moment right there. Paul preached it, and Paul practiced it. If we'll just move a little bit in that direction in our lives, the peace of God will come and chase away our anxiety and then stand guard over our heart so it cannot be overwhelmed with anxiety ever again. So here's my experience as a pastor. I, you know, seeing the underbelly of the church on a constant basis, things that you can't tell other people about, you you begin to you begin to see just the negative in the church. And that's that's what happened to me. It was like there was just one thing after another. And I couldn't see the good in the church. I couldn't see good in the people. And then I got a hold of this passage in Philippians. I'll tell you what, it it completely turned my attitude around. Where previously all I could see was the people who were not at an event. Now I was thankful for every person who did come to an event. I'll tell you what, that sounds like there's not much difference there, but it is a massive. It's a massive difference. In Colossians 4, 2 through 4, Paul says, Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly as I should. Verse 2 in the Amplified reads this way Be earnest and unwearied and steadfast in your prayer life, being both alert and intent in your praying with thanksgiving. You know, that kind of goes to the idea of persistence in prayer that Jesus taught, and to Jacob wrestling with God and not letting go of him unless he blessed him. Note that Paul always, or at least frequently, links prayer with giving thanks. In fact, Paul says in one place, give thanks in everything. Put that together with his instruction to pray for everything, and you have constant prayer and giving of thanks that should be going on in our lives. Did Paul give thanks for all those beatings and imprisonments? You bet he did. He thanked God that he was counted worthy to suffer for the name of Jesus. Down in that Philippian jail filled with human waste, he and Silas were singing praises and giving thanks to God and praying. And God sent an earthquake that opened the jail doors and resulted in their freedom. You know, it was only eight, seven or eight months ago where I went through a couple of my wife and I both kind of went through a couple of trials together. One, I had open surgery, open heart surgery to repair a faulty valve that was infected with a uh bacterial infection. Um so there was that. If that wasn't enough, uh two months later, my wife and I fell on in the ice here and uh had some pretty uh serious injuries. Um and so, you know, people come up to me every once in a while, they say, How are you doing? I said, Fine, I'm doing great, I'm getting back to normal. And they say, Boy, you went through a lot there for a while. And I said, Yep, you're right. But I'm grateful for all of it. You know, if we all would do the same thing, I'm confident we would see a mighty deliverance from our situations. In verses three and four, Paul again instructs the Philippians to engage in kingdom praying by praying for his missionary endeavors and preaching. The next passage I want to look at is 2 Thessalonians 3, verses 1 and 2. It says, As for other matters, brothers and sisters, pray for us, that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, just as it was with you, and pray that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people, for not everyone has faith or a faith. Once again, he instructs the church to pray for missionary activity. This is kingdom praying, as we're essentially saying to God, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. First Timothy 2, 1 through 4 is one that kind of speaks to an issue that's pretty prevalent in our country right now, and possibly even other parts of the world. It says, I urge then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving be made for all people, for kings, and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good and pleases God, our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. What we need more of is for the people of God to go into their prayer closets and pray for those in authority. I can say this confidently because we have clear instruction right here and other places in the scripture to do it. If enough of us do this, we'll enjoy what Paul describes as peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. I think there's too much complaining in the church. And I like to call that complaining misplaced prayers. They're things that they should be saying in the prayer closet to God. And don't worry about the so-called separation between church and state. If enough people in authority enter the kingdom of God, godly principles will just seep into their values, their actions, their speeches, and their congressional votes. How about James 5, 13 to 18? Here's how it reads. Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well. The Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. So there's some very practical instruction about prayer. And James uses the word pray in its various forms, not five times as in Ephesians 6, but seven times here. One quick instruction for the husbands who may be listening, and it's in 1 Peter 3 7, because it it it relates directly to prayer. Husbands, in the same way, be considerate as you live with your wives and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life. Why? So that nothing will hinder your prayers. Husbands, uh the more I read the Word of God, I find that God truly favors the oppressed, the downtrodden. And if our wives are among the oppressed by us, then God has a problem with us. If you're going to ramp up your prayer life, man, then resolve to respect your wife. And if you do anything to offend her, fix it immediately so you can get back to powerful, effective praying. Prayers that matter. Now finally, I want to end where we started with a couple of things that John saw in Revelation, the book of Revelation. The first is in chapter five, verses six through eight. Then I saw a lamb looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sending sent out into all the earth. He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne, and when he had taken taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty four elders fell down before the lamb. Each one had a harp, and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. In Revelation eight, verses two through five it says, And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. Another angel who had a golden censer came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer with the prayers of the saints on the golden altar before the throne. The smoke of the incense together with the prayers of the saints went up before God from the angel's hand. Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth, and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake. You know, it's comforting to me to know that our prayers are filling up bowls in heaven. And while this passage in Revelation 8 speaks directly to an outpouring of the prayers of the saints in judgment, I can't help but think that our prayers today will result in outpourings of blessing, favor, authority, power, anointing, and yes, judgment against the powers of darkness in the atmosphere and in the world. Let's fill those bowls with all haste. God bless you.