Jesus' Guide to Answered Prayers
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Who am I
My name is Jamie, I am the Next Step Pastor at REVO! I’m so excited to be able to give Pastor Stephen the Sunday off to spend with his wife for their anniversary.
I know for the last couple weeks we've talked about Christmas and then New Years, but today we are getting back into our Luke series
Let’s pray before we dive into the Word
Talk about Prayer
Talk about Prayer
When I was in middle school and high school I was notorious for doing something that I’m sure everyone else has done in this room at some point.
I did this all the time, and I wasn't even a Christian yet. I didn't get saved until my senior year
Every time before I had to take a test I would throw up a quick prayer “Lord I know I didn’t study, but please give me the answers”
Before every math test in High School, even when I wasn’t a Christian, “God if you are really there, you’ll let my hand magically write the correct answers, even though I have no idea how to do calculus”
Before every wrestling match, “God give me the strength to dominate my opponent”
Those are silly prayers, but there are also prayers I have threw up that I felt like didn’t get answered.
A rhetorical question for everyone in the room, how many times have you felt like you prayed a prayer that was never answered? Or that you felt like could have been easily answered but wasn’t?
I know I felt that a lot.
There has been many times I felt like my prayers weren’t being answered.
So how do we pray Godly prayers?
The book of Luke actually tells us!
Chapter 11 gives us a guide on how to pray Godly prayers
Luke 11:1
Luke 11:1
1 Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”
Pray in a “certain place”
If we want to pray Godly prayers we must be like Jesus, praying in a “certain place”
This doesn’t mean that Jesus always went to a specific spot and only that spot to pray
That meant that Jesus left his disciples, left all the distractions around Him and then prayed.
If we want to pray Godly prayers we must value our time with God just like Jesus did
Jesus valued His time with the Father so much that He always left distractions and prayed with God.
Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.
This happened as a giant crowd was bouding down on Him, and before He fed the 5000!
Before Jesus went on the cross, he went to the Garden to pray!
We must do the same!
We must pray in a “certain place” by elminating distractions and focusing solely on God - what could be more important!
If your prayers are so important, why are not giving God your fullest attention?
The first thing Luke shows us is that we must pray in a “certain place”
Luke 11:2-4
Luke 11:2-4
2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread, 4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.”
FOLLOW THE LEADER
If we want to pray Godly prayers we must use the guide that Jesus gave us!
We must follow the Leader!
So how do we follow the leader when it comes to the Lord’s prayer?
Do you just say that as your prayer, like my high school wrestling team did?
The Lord’s prayer is actually a beautiful guide to what our prayers should look like
See Jesus gives us five commands, or guides that we need to follow
Hallowed be your name
Hallowed be your name
The first thing Jesus says to do is make God’s name hallowed
Hallowed is the Greek word ἁγιάζω (hagiazō) which literally means to set aside as sacred, or to make Holy.
Jesus is telling us that when we pray, the first thing we need to do is acknowledge who God is. He is creator and Holy
He is the one that sustains us and knows us. He knows every hair on your head
So Jesus is telling us before we do anything else in our prayer life we must Hallow God’s name, set it aside as sacred and Holy
Kingdom come
Kingdom come
Jesus then tells us that once we praise God for who He is, we then need to make sure we are praying that His kingdom come!
Literally praying that God’s will would be done on earth today!
His will is actually quite simple, that every tongue tribe nation and people praise His name. That they would know Him and accept Him as King!
Jesus showing us that our prayers should be aligned to the will of God, His plans
Daily bread
Daily bread
Now the prayer should start to shift to us, after acknowledging who God is, and what God wants, we then are told to pray for daily bread
Literally we are told to pray daily for God to provide for us.
This calls back to Israel when they were wondering in the desert, God gave them manna to eat, but it was only for the day.
The same is true of our prayers, we are called to go to God daily, every day continually for strength
To pray for whatever situation we are going through daily!
Forgiveness
Forgiveness
Jesus then tells us to pray for forgiveness of sins.
We are to pray daily for our sins to be forgiven. We are sinful people and need to repent daily
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Jesus will cleanse us from all of our sin, but we must confess it!
It doesnt matter if youve been a Chrisitan for 1 minute or 100 years you are a sinner and must confess your sin to God.
There is no sin to bad that he will not forgive
Church sin is serious. Even if you are a Christian it is serious because it causes your walk with God, your relationship with your family and spouse, and your own life to all get destroyed - That is why Jesus was so adamant that we confess our sins
The lie or video that you watched and no one else knows about, it's completely serious to God, so confess to Him because he will forgive!
No Temptation
No Temptation
Jesus then guides us to end our prayers by asking that we would not be led into any temptation
Literally, that God would direct our path to where we would stay far away from anything that would cause us to sin
Sin is so serious to God that He tells us to actively pray for God to keep us away from sin
That God would literally guide our feet as we take each step so as to make sure that we are as far from sin as possible!
Sin is serious! Its deathly serious! So pray against it!
Wrap up 2-4
Wrap up 2-4
To pray Godly prayers we must follow the leaders guide:
Hallow God's name
Pray His Kingdom come
Ask for daily bread
Confess our sins
Ask for guidance away from temptations
Luke 11:5-8
Luke 11:5-8
5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs.
Immediately following the instructions for how to pray Jesus gives us a short parable
A man goes to his friends house asking to borrow some food because someone is coming to his house.
In Israeli culture at the time, you were always expected to feed your guests
However, the man said he could not help because it was midnight and it would wake the kids. The image is one of a single-room house where the sleeping quarters were confined to one room—usually on an elevated platform above the main floor. To meet the friend’s request would cause the entire family to be disturbed
But, since the man outside was persistent the man inside got up and got him whatever he needs.
The thing Jesus is teaching here is our third point
PERSISTENCE IS KEY
The parable is meant to point out the importance of being persistent. The sole reason the man got up to help his friend was because he was persistent
The Greek word for impudence literally means shameless. That is how we are meant to be with our prayers to God
We are to be shamelessly going to God
In contrast with the man who did not want to be bothered, God wants His people to pray to Him (11:9–10). So Jesus encouraged people to be persistent in prayer
Not to change God’s mind but to be persistent in prayer! We pray shamelessly because we are ultimately showing God how much we care about His will! About the guide that Jesus gave us.
God is not like like the man in the house. God wants to give to His people, He wants to help them and give them good gifts.
But he always wants to make sure that we want them and are ready for them.
This comes from our persistence in prayer. In continually praying according to the guide that Jesus gave us.
Luke 11:9-13
Luke 11:9-13
9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Jesus then finishes His discourse on prayer with one of the best things in Scripture
He tells us if we ask it will be given, if we knock it will be opened, if we seek we will find!
The last thing we can take away from Luke 11 is this
EXPECT GOD TO MOVE
When Jesus is telling us to ask, seek, and knock - it is not because God is hidden. Instead He is painting the picture of God being with us, near us, and wanting to help us
He is our heavenly Father, and what good Father doesn’t do what Jesus is describing? If your child asks for help, you help. If your child is looking for you, you make yourself found. If you child is in need of help, you help him.
God is so much greater than we are - so Jesus says of course He will help
We are told to expect God to answer, to expect that He will move. IF we are praying according to His Will. If we follow the guide that Jesus gave us.
God is the author of every good gift and every perfect gift comes from Him so of course He will answer when we follow the guide He gave us!
Listen to this quote from John Calvin, one of the founders of the Reformation Period, and the reason we are here today
Doubtful prayer is no prayer at all.
John Calvin
If we are praying and not expecting God to move, it is no wonder our prayers are not being answered
Doubtful prayers are not prayers. Praying without expecting God to move is crazy. Think about it? Why would you pray if you didn’t believe God would move?
Instead, expect God to answer them!
Conclusion
Conclusion
When it comes to our prayer life we must pray Godly prayers
Find a “Certain Place”
Follow the Leader
Hallow the name
Kingdom come
Daily bread
Forgiveness
No temptation
Stay Persistent
Expect God to move
If we do this, I guarantee you that your prayers will be answered
But if we are praying according to our will I know that our prayers will not be answered
God will not move in your good ideas, God only moves in His ideas
Proverbs tells us
Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
You can have many ideas, but church hear me, only the Lords matters
God will answer any and every prayer you pray IF you are following His guide
If you are praying true Godly prayers
21 Days or Prayer starts tomorrow church. Lets go out there and pray Godly prayers and I promise you that He will move!
I know God will move!
Let’s pray