Masterpiece of a Praying Church

Recap Last Week:

The greatest struggle that Christians have in the spiritual battle that is being waged is wobbly unstable legs that have no firm foothold in Christ are an easy prey for the devil. Paul wants to see Christians so strong and stable that they remain firm even against the devil’s best attempts to knock us out.

It’s like a Rocky movie, have you ever noticed that Rocky has to get beat to a pulp before he starts to win the fight.

Some of us here this morning are being beat up against the ropes and ready to crumble. Why do we wait until our strength is failing and we are beat to a pulp before we turn to God and take up his armor and fight back against the enemy.

Ephesians 6:18–20 ESV

18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.

Now Paul adds prayer in verses 18-20 not because prayer is an afterthought or some other unnamed weapon, but because it is and absolute necessity in our battle plans.

Equipping ourselves in the armor of God is not a mechanical operation that we just go through the motions; it is an expression of our complete dependence on God.

Two clauses built around “praying” and “keeping alert”.

Note: Prayer warriors with little understanding of the spiritual nature of the battle that we are in is like a soldier without his weapons.

We cannot know what prayer is for until we know that life is war! Our weakness in prayer is largely to our neglect of this reality.

John Piper on wartime prayer

We have a wartime walkie-talkie for the mission of the church as it advances against the powers of darkness and unbelief. It is not surprising that prayer malfunctions when we try to make it a domestic intercom to call upstaisrs for more comfort in the den. God has given us prayer as a wartime walkie-talkie so that we can call headquarters for everything we need as the kingdom of Christ advances in the world.

HOW DOES PRAYER FIT INTO OUR BATTLE PLAN?

1. We pray Comprehensively

ILLUSTRATION Billy Graham Practices Unceasing Prayer

In 1982, the Today show in New York City scheduled an interview with Reverend Billy Graham. When he arrived at the studio, one of the program's producers informed Graham's assistant that a private room had been set aside for the reverend for prayer before the broadcast. The assistant thanked the producer for the thoughtful gesture, but told him that Mr. Graham would not need the room. The producer was a bit shocked that a world-famous Christian leader would not wish to pray before being interviewed on live national television.

Graham's assistant responded, "Mr. Graham started praying when he got up this morning, he prayed while eating breakfast, he prayed on the way over in the car, and he'll probably be praying all the way through the interview."

There are four universal indications of its comprehensive plan using the word “All.”

we pray at all times (both regularly and constantly / we drop to our knees and pray).

with all prayer and supplication (it takes on many varied forms).

with all perseverance (because we need like good soldiers to keep alert so we don’t give up or fall asleep).

making supplication for all the saints (Since the unity of God’s new society, must be reflected in our prayers).

Note: All of this points to the key of praying is prayer in the Spirit; prompted and guided by him, just as God’s word is ‘the sword of the Spirit’ which he himself employs. Scripture and prayer belong together as the two chief weapons which the Spirit puts into our hands.

What does it mean to pray at all times?

We read in 1 Thessalonians 5:17

1 Thessalonians 5:17 ESV

17 pray without ceasing,

So what does it mean to pray with out ceasing or to pray at all times? Obviously this does not mean that we go around all day with our heads bowed and eyes closed.

Paul is referring to an attitude of our conscious state of being that we carry with all the time as believers. Every waking moment is to be lived in an awareness that God is with us and that He is actively involved and engaged in our thoughts and actions. Much the way Paul describes it to the stoic and Epicurean philosophers in Athens when he proclaimed that “in Him we live, move, breath, and find our being.

When our thoughts turn to worry, fear, discouragement, and anger, we are to consciously and quickly turn every thought into prayer and every prayer into thanksgiving. Look what Paul says in Philippians 4:6

Philippians 4:6 ESV

6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

At Colossae he told believers to devote themselves to prayer by being watchful and thankful Colossians 4:2

Colossians 4:2 ESV

2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.

For Christians prayer should be like breathing. You do not have to think about breathing you just do it everyday, the atmosphere exerts pressure on your lungs and essentially forces you to breathe. That is why it is more difficult to hold your breath than it is to breathe.

When we are born into the family of God we, we enter into a spiritual atmosphere where God’s presence rests heavy on our lives and His grace exerts pressure, or influence, on our lives. Prayer is the normal response to the pressure.

Unfortunately many of us hold our “spiritual breath” for long periods of time, thinking brief moments with God are enough to allow them to survive. Many times such restricting of the Holy Spirits prompting in our lives is a direct result of sin.

*Praying at all times empowers us to depend on the Grace of God.

Problem: To many Christians presume on instead of depend on the grace of God. We become satisfied with physical blessings and have little desire for spiritual ones. When programs, methods, and money produce impressive results, there is an inclination to confuse human success with divine blessing.

THE RESULT: Our passionate longing for God and His help in our life will be missing.

What are prayer and Supplications?

The Hebrew and Greek words most often are translated to literally mean “a request of petition,” so a prayer of supplication is asking God for something. Unlike the prayer of petition which is asking God on behalf of someone else.

“Supplication” is an old-fashioned word for request, most often used in old literature in the context of weary pilgrims or tortured prisoners. No surprise, the verb “supplicate” originates from England in the 14th and 15th centuries as an Anglicized form of the Latin word supplicatus, which means “to kneel.” Its Middle English definition was “to pray humbly; to entreat or petition humbly.”

Supplication is a request. And if the request is made to God, it becomes a prayer.

We have many examples of prayers of supplication in scripture particularly in David’s psalms.

Psalm 4:1 ESV

1 Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!

Psalm 5:8 ESV

8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me.

Psalm 6:4 ESV

4 Turn, O Lord, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your steadfast love.

Paul instructs the Ephesian to remain alert in the spirit and to make supplications for all the saints.

Clearly the prayers of supplication are a part of the spiritual battle that we are engaged in. We read in Philippians 4:6-7 that we are to relieve our anxieties by remaining faithful in prayer, especially prayers of thanksgiving and supplication. He goes on to remind us that the formula for peace with God which passes all understanding is faithfulness in supplication and prayer.

Humility is Crucial in Answered Prayer

James 4:1–3 ESV

1 What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2 You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet 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 wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

NOTE: When we are humble before God we acknowledge our sinful condition as well as God’s holiness. Humble people pray with the right motives. We will pray on behalf of other people, we will believe in Gods sovereign wisdom to answer our requests and in His timing because we will not presume to understand God’s overarching plan.

*Supplication arms us with the strength and courage to suffer while we wait.

James 1:5–8 ESV

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

What does it mean to pray with all perseverance?

One of the most difficult aspects of prayer is persevering when it seems that God is not answering. Jesus instructed us to pray that the Father’s Kingdom would come and will would be done on earth as it is in Heaven. However, we are almost 2,000 years later, and that prayer has been prayed millions of times by millions of Christians throughout history and it still has not been answered.

All of us have had prayers that we have brought before the throne of God for years - requests that would be to His glory to answer - and yet it seems like God is not answering His phone and He does not even have an answering machine! In light of the problems, it is easy to lose hope and even to give up praying all together.

*Perseverance in prayer requires a proper view of God and ourselves.

Jesus gives a parable of a persistent widow in Luke 18:1-8. In the parable He says in effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. There was this certain city where there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. There was also a widow in the city who kept coming up to him crying out for justice against her adversary.

For some time he refused, but after awhile he said to himself, even though I do not fear God and I do not care about this woman, I’m going to grant her request just to get her off of my back.

Jesus then said, hear what the unrighteous judge says? Will not God give justice to his elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He delay in giving them an answer. I am telling you that He will give justice to them expediently. However, when the son of man comes will he find faith on earth.

WE NEED A PROPER VIEW OF GOD

God is never irritated with His children’s frequent requests. (He does not become weary of our requests like the judge did, he will honor our requests and vindicate them in due time.)

God desires to give good things to His children. Matthew 7:7-11

Matthew 7:7–11 ESV

7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

Note: God never delays his answers because of a lack of care or a lack or power. God’s delays are always for our good, even if the reasons are hidden from us.

WE NEED A PROPER VIEW OF OURSELVES

Prayer is more than asking for what we need.

Matthew 6:8 tells us that “God already knows what we need.” Prayer is not primarily about getting stuff, it is one of the most intimate acts we engage in before a father who loves us.

God has various names that reveal things about himself. When Moses is being used by God to deliver the children of Israel, God gives him HI sacred name: Yahweh. I Am that I Am. It means a self in eternal or mighty one. And throughout scripture, we see that God is the Father of Israel and that Israel is called His son.

Now we see Jesus , He is the eternal son of God in human flesh. And He says for us to call him father, the aramaic, which Jesus used was, Abba. So praying is God saying, I want you to see me. And I want you to learn from me. I want you to experience the power because you are my image bearer and you will bear my image into the world.

It’s important for us to understand that for us to have humility and empathy, to understand that most people have not had a prayer life modeled for them. Most of us have been taught that prayer is more of a Blab and Grab”

If I say this the right way, I can change God’s mind.”

Instead we need to grow a generation of people who actually listen to Jesus’s words and say, “Lord align my heart to it.”

2. We pray in the Spirit

“Praying at all times in the Spirit”

The Greek word “pray in” can be applied in several different ways.

In can mean:

“by means of”

“with the help of”

“in the sphere of”

Praying in the spirit specifically means that we pray according to the spirits leading.

We read about this in Romans 8:26

Romans 8:26 ESV

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

So, we do not know what to pray for but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT PRAYER

What praying in the spirit is not!

We must first look at the polar opposite which is praying in the flesh. Prayer in the power of the flesh relies on human ability and effort to carry the prayer forward.

We all know what it is to feel a deadness in prayer, difficulty in prayer, to be tongue-tied, with nothing to say, as it were, having to force ourselves to try. Well, to the extent that is true of us, we are not praying in the spirit.

Jesus warned us against thinking we would be heard if we used allot of meaningless words.

Matthew 6:7 ESV

7 “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Success in prayer does not depend on how much time we spend in prayer.

Many times we trust in having perfectly composed words, or doctrinally correct prayers that rely upon the right diction, cadence, language, emotion, or volume in prayer.

So, if praying in the flesh is counterfeit or imitation then praying in the Spirit is genuine and not forced.

What Praying in the Spirit is?

Praying in the spirit is experiencing the Spirit of life in our prayers.

Praying in the spirit means that the Spirit empowers the prayer and carries it to the Father in the name of Jesus. The prayer has a living quality by the warmth and the freedom and sense of exchange it brings.

Sometimes praying in the spirit will not feel electrifying at all but more like groaning as Paul mentions in Romans 8:26-27

Romans 8:26–27 ESV

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Loyd Jones “Living Water: Studies in John 4”

HOW TO PRAY IN THE SPIRIT

Step 1 Admitting our Inability to Pray.

We need to start by confessing our inability to pray as we ought. We must come face to face with our tendency to try to pray on our own starting to recognize that prayer is a spiritual activity that our flesh gives us no help to accomplish.

Step 2 Enjoy Living in Communion with God

You are aware of a communion, a sharing, a give-and-take, if I may use such an expression. You are not dragging yourself along; you are not forcing the situation; you are not trying to make conversation with somebody whom you do not know. No, no! The Spirit of adoption in you brings you right into the presence of God, and it is a living act of fellowship and communion, vibrant with life. (Lloyd-Jones, The Christian Soldier, 100)

The place where you pray seems to be transformed. I start out praying in my living room, and suddenly I sense that I am in the throne room.

One of the vast differences between praying in the flesh and praying in the spirit is that you do not feel rushed for the need to say anything.

Step 3 Pleading with Holy Boldness

The result of the Spirit’s work is that we bow before God as humbled children of God in awe of God. We do not bow before an unknown or far away god, and we do not skip into God’s presence with breezy familiarity. We come with an awakened sense of intimacy and awe. The Spirit breaths bold, fresh, new life into our dead, dry, bones.

3. We pray for Gospel Boldness

Note: Remember that Paul is in prison and could have prayed for his own release from prison or his own comfort. But, instead he prays that he would be given the words to speak to boldly proclaim the gospel. The greatest theologian and missionary of all time is asking for prayer!

This should encourage you!

Paul was wise enough to know his own need of strength if he was to sand against the enemy, and humble enough to ask for prayer when he needed it.

Paul was on house arrest and 24/7 each for shifts of several hours on end, he was chained, and they were his constant visitors. He could still witness to them, and he did so. There must have been other individuals besides Onesimus whom he led to Christ. Luke tells of Jewish leaders who came to him at his lodging at great ‘in great numbers,’ and heard him expound ‘from morning till evening’ about the kingdom of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, he did it openly and without being hindered.

Note: Why Satan does not want us to have the right words to say or to be bold in the face of conflict. Evangelism is spiritual warfare. The culture opposes it. So we need God’s power to do it faithfully.

Listen to how Paul describes the Lords presence in his own imprisonment.

2 Timothy 4:16–17 ESV

16 At my first defense no one came to stand by me, but all deserted me. May it not be charged against them! 17 But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.

*Clarity and Courage are crucial to Gospel Boldness

What is Christian Boldness

Boldness is not a personality trait. A typically soft-spoken, introverted person can be bold at a time when a typically driven, outspoken, brash person shrinks back.

Boldness is acting, by the power of the Holy Spirit, on an urgent conviction in the face of some threat.

Remember in Psalm 2 God has placed his king, Jesus on the throne, and the nations rage against God’s king. Because we are subjects of King Jesus, we can get caught up in the nations’ rage against God’s king.

Peter and John Before the Counsel

Acts 4 we find the first persecution of the Church

Remember that when we speak the gospel with boldness, we will be persecuted (Acts 4:1-3)

In Acts 4 the apostles represented the name of King Jesus, and that authority is a threat to the authority of the Jewish temple system. So, the Jewish authorities arrested the apostles. We should never be surprised by persecution; it is the norm for faithful, bold Christians (John 15:18-19 “If the world hates you remember that it hated me first”).

Remember that when we speak the gospel with boldness, SOME will believe (Acts 4:4).

Persecution is not only the result of boldly speaking the gospel. While some may persecute us, others may hear the gospel and believe (Acts 4:4). So regardless of the consequences, let us boldly share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

(The Philippian Jailer)

In desperation the jailer asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” Never missing an opportunity to share the good news, Paul and Silas said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” And that night, as Paul and Silas shared “the word of the Lord,” salvation came to that jailer's ...

The reason in the middle of Persecution we should continue to speak the gospel with Boldness.

1. We have the Holy Spirit (4:5-10)

The promise of the Holy Spirit is not just for the apostles, it is for all who believe! That’s you and that’s me. We have the Holy Spirit of God, and we should ask God to fill us daily with His Spirit that we may be empowered with the boldness to be a witness for Him.

Annas the high priest and Caiphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family asked “by what power and by what name do you do this?” (then Peter filled with the Holy spirit spoke)

2. We offer the only way of Salvation.

Even though there are many people today who are deluded into believing that there is more than road that leads to God, Peter boldly pointed out that the only name given by God by which we may be saved is “Jesus Christ.” (Acts 4:11-12) So, if there is no Salvation outside of Jesus Christ, doesn’t that mean we should be urgently engaged in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus with boldness?

Shouldn’t we do everything in our power to share the gospel with our unbelieving , family members, co-workers, friends, neighbors, with anyone who does not know Jesus.

Shouldn’t we be concerned about the millions of people around the world who do not know Jesus? The fact that Salvation is only in Christ means that we should be telling others bout Christ as often as possible.

3. We have been with Jesus (4:13-14).

“Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.”

We can speak the gospel with boldness because we have been with jesus and taught by Him. Every person who has the Holy Spirit living inside of them has an intimate relationship with the king of the universe.

The greatest thing that an unbeliever could say about you when they come in contact with you is, “surely they have been with Jesus.” Because we have been with Jesus we do not need a formal theological education to be able to share the gospel. We just need to tell people what we have learned from our personal relationship in our times of discipleship with Christ.

4. We cannot help but tell others what Jesus is doing in our lives (4:15-22)

They were clueless as to what to do with Peter and John, so they gave them a firm warning aka a slap on the wrist....

Peter and John answered, “whether it is right in the eyes of God to listen to you rather than God, you must judge, for we cannot do anything else but speak of what we have seen and heard.”

When we have truly been with Jesus and see what He is doing, we cannot help but tell others!

Every morning when our feet first hit the floor we should be asking God for the grace to speak the gospel with boldness whenever we have the opportunity, We will likely experience persecution, but, I pray, we may also experience the fruitfulness of our obedience to His Gospel calling.

The Ambassador in Chains

There are 3 reasons that Paul is in Prison

1. So that he can proclaim the Good News to the Gentiles. (initiating a new society)

2. Because he had been entrusted with the great gospel.

3. To remain faithful to the Gospel message.

Ambassadors were received with all the respect due the ones who sent them; as heralds, they were to be immune from hostility even if they represented an enemy kingdom. Paul was an “ambassador” of the greatest king and the greatest kingdom.

2 Corinthians 5:20–21 ESV

20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

CONCLUSION

Note: Notice how Paul ends his letter to the Church in verse 24.

He ends with in essence a question? “Love Jesus Christ with a love that is incorruptible. Paul is asking the question Do you Love Christ with an everlasting love?

Do You love Him? Are you a Christian? Have you turned from sin and placed faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? Do you love Him with an “undying love” that will go on into eternity.

What a great question to end such a letter. Folks this is not a game we are playing each Sunday. Soon we will see Him, and then we will put our weapons down, Then we will not regret having put all our trust in His perfect work, and we will not regret having been faithful soldiers engaged in His mission.

My prayer for you today as a Church is that you at all times pray comprehensively, that you pray in the Spirit, and that you pray for the Boldness to go proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ everyday of your life until the king returns to rule and to reign.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

December 4th Baptism

Bethlehem Experience

December 9th - 10th Prayer path.

December 25th Christmas Service