Paul Said What? - Prayer and Fasting (2)
Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 5 viewsNotes
Transcript
Big Idea:
Big Idea:
Prayer and fasting perfectly preaches the gospel.
Intro:
Intro:
Good morning…
I want to start today with an apology. I’m sorry that ONCE AGAIN I’m going use a sports analogy to help us understand the Kingdom of God. I can’t help it…
I love sports. It’s just a filter I process ideas through. And I’m fully aware that some love it and others don’t. My apologies if you don’t.
It’s also kinda “biblical.” I mean, speaking about how to follow Jesus, Paul said…
An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
He too used sports to help him teach.
Speaking of which, we’re in a sermon series titled, “Paul said what?”… learning foundational truths and practices necessary for following Jesus as Lord, something our church is focused on in 2024. Now, some of these things might be new for you. For others… you already know and practice these things. If you’re the latter, that’s okay!
I grew up in the Michael Jordan era. He’s the GOAT. No debate. Can’t change my mind about it. I know many younger generations think it’s Lebron. I understand why, even if I don’t agree. But I think we skip over Kobe too fast. And I didn’t even like Kobe when he played. Nevertheless, I personally think he’s the 2nd best basketball player in history.
And one thing Kobe preached about was fundamentals. He was a huge fan of mastering the basics. If you could do those things well, you could succeed in basketball.
I believe the same is true for our faith. If you can master the fundamentals - the basics, the things we’re talking about in this series - you will live victoriously. And the fundamental things we will talk about today are praying and fasting.
Body:
Body:
I know this series is about what Paul said, but I want to start by reading something Jesus said. At the time, Jesus is teaching foundational things. It’s often referred to as the Sermon on the Mount…
“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
“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. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
There’s a lot in this passage about praying and fasting. But here’s what what I’d like to point out… praying and fasting is how our hearts connect with God.
They are not for show.
They are tools for deep relationship.
They are expressions of genuine faith - or as John Calvin (a pastor of old) once said, it’s the soul (the essence) of our faith.
Praying and fasting are at the heartbeat of our relationship with God. That’s why it’s necessary we take time to learn to practice them. So, let’s start with prayer…
What is prayer?
What is prayer?
We could answer this question in many ways. Prayer is a huge subject! But for the purposes of this series, I’m going to keep it simple. Prayer - at it’s core - is talking to God. Or, as I said a moment ago, it’s when our heart talks to God’s heart.
I need to say something else too, because Christianity isn’t the only spiritual group that practices prayer. So, in a biblically specific way, prayer (as defined in Scripture) is talking to the One True God. It’s speaking with the Triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - 3 distinct Persons, 1 in divine nature). What I’m talking about is prayer as defined and practiced in the Bible.
That being said… again, prayer is a huge subject. Even narrowing it to “talking to God” is still potentially broad. Because we can “talk to God” in dedicated prayer, on-going verbal or non-verbal conversation, in worship, as spiritual warfare, and so on. So, here’s another way I’ll focus our time together on this subject…
What did Paul say about prayer?
What did Paul say about prayer?
I’m going to share four things…
First off, Paul said this…
pray without ceasing,
That sounds easy, right?
I’m going to be honest. I’m a pastor. But the two quickest ways for me to fall asleep are reading the Bible and praying [Yea… you picked this church. That’s your pastor]. So, if the pastor struggles with praying, how are the rest us supposed to, “Never stop praying?”
Well, first… your faith isn’t based on me. It’s about your personal relationship with Jesus. And that’s actually the key to “praying without ceasing.” Remember, prayer is simply talking with God. Like being with a best friend or a spouse (right? A spouse… if you’re married and not saying “right,” sign up for the marriage retreat today!). Praying without ceasing is treating God as if He is real (because He is) and we’re in relationship with Him. We’re talking to Him. We’re listening to Him. We believe He is always with us (because He says He is). Therefore, we’re always talking with Him.
Maybe we can say it this way… “praying without ceasing” is fellowship or friendship with God. Or, in the words of John 15, it’s abiding (it’s connecting) with God. Do you know how to talk to people you care about? Then, honestly, you know how to “pray without ceasing.” It’s focusing your attention on God, and talking with Him.
Okay, second thing… Paul also said this…
Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.
Notice the three phrases found in this verse…
Everything.
Need.
Thank Him.
Prayer is consistently talking to God… and it’s talking to God about your life. Every part of your life. What did Paul say? He said, “Pray about EVERYTHING.” You know what “everything” means in the Greek (the original language)? It means everything. Talk to God about your entire life. Big or small. Why? Because He cares. Unlike some people in your life, He wants to hear it all. So, tell Him!
And here’s a cool promise that’s attached to praying this way…
Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
When you talk to God about everything, in a mysterious and supernatural way, His peace fills your life. And remember the context of this verse is anxiety. He started off saying, “Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything.” This is a pretty useful promise in a world that seems to overrun by anxiety.
Do you struggle with anxiety? Then, talk with God. A lot. About everything.
The third thing Paul says is…
I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.
Paul says pray all the time. Pray about everything. But also… pray for everyone. Prayer is interesting. It can be a simple practice, but it’s very mysterious. It’s something that requires faith (that is, believing God when He says it’s important, powerful, and effective). Because here’s what crazy… earlier we read Jesus saying…
Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
We hear this and - at least for me - ask, “If God already knows what we need, why pray?” Honestly, I don’t know. Prayer is a mystery. But here’s the truth… God tells us to do it because it’s part of the process He has chosen to accomplish His will on this Earth. Therefore, pray.
And pray for everyone. Pray for the people you love, especially those in the church. Why? Because Paul said this…
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
The context for this verse is a conversation on spiritual warfare - the spiritual battle between God’s Kingdom and spiritual darkness. And the truth is, when you follow Jesus, Satan and his armies will attack you. Following Jesus as Lord - and even taking prayer seriously - puts a target on your back. And prayer is a process God has chosen to protect and provide for His people.
But don’t just pray for those you love, pray for everyone. Jesus said…
But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!
Why? Because Paul said…
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
The truth is spiritual darkness is influencing our enemies. It’s not just human-to-human conflict. In the church, when people attack us, spiritual darkness is at work. And we can’t fight spiritual darkness with human methods. We need to use spiritual weapons like prayer.
Furthermore, God loves our enemies. We might not like that. Too bad. It’s not about us, it’s about Jesus. And Jesus said…
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
…which is why Paul says, “Pray for everyone.” Because God’s crazy. He does things differently. And He may use the prayer for our enemies, not just to deliver us from their attacks, but also to save their lives!
As often as I’ve used a sports analogy in my sermon, I also consistently say, “I didn’t grow up in the church.” It’s true. And one of the few Christians I knew was my grandmother. And growing up, I hated her.
She tried to tell me about Jesus. I didn’t want to hear it. So, I was mean to her. I ignored her. I never wanted to be around her. But I can remember her telling me, “I told the devil, you might keep my Georgie away from me, but you can’t keep me from praying for him.” And I am convinced one of the primary reasons I follow Jesus is because of her prayers!
Prayer changes things. Prayer changes people. Prayer changes us.
So, how do we pray?
Again, just talk to God. But let me also suggest three other simple ways to pray…
Just be quiet. Some call this contemplative prayer. Here’s how I practice it…
When I wake up, first thing I do is go to a quiet place and sit. That’s a lie. I start the coffee pot… but I promise there’s a purpose!
When I’m seated, I don’t say anything to God. I just listen. I just receive. Remember, prayer is a conversation. Conversations are two-way.
This is simple, but it’s not easy. We’re easily distracted. I get distracted. It’s like I start thinking of everything except God. So, when this happens, here’s a tip I learned… I simply say, “Jesus, I am here” to refocus me.
And I do this until the coffee pot dings - finished brewing. To start, only a few minutes. But it’s a powerful time of quiet prayer.
Pray Scripture. No better way to pray than to use the words that are inspired by God. Use a Psalm. Or the Lord’s prayer. And just personalize it. Make it your own.
When I first started following Jesus, I learned the acroynm AWCIPA. This can be a helpful guide to hit many aspects of prayer: Adoration (worship), Wait (listening), Confess (confessing your sins to God), Intercede (praying for all people), Petition (praying for your needs), Admire (thanking God - for all He has done, is doing, and will do… even believing that He’s going to answer your current prayers). [Btw, I’m gonna have this sent out through the WhatsApp Groups]
Alright… in a nutshell, that’s prayer. However, let me also mention this… if you’re interested in learning more about prayer, join a Life Group. In May, our Life Groups will be focusing on prayer. It could be a great opportunity to learn and grow in prayer. There are multiple Life Groups happening throughout the week, and even one that has started online [Life Group Application?]
Now…
What is fasting?
What is fasting?
Like prayer, fasting is a broad word used by many in our world - both religiously and not. For example, I’ve been intermittent fasting for about a year and half. And though it’s helped me stay healthy (and God cares about that), it really has nothing to do with biblical fasting.
So, what is fasting? Well, first off… it’s that: it’s biblical. It’s something we see practiced in both the Old Testament and New Testament. And most importantly, it’s something that Jesus practiced and taught. Sometimes fasting was associated with grief or suffering or repentance or important worship days… but it almost always accompanied serious times of prayer. When the people really needed God’s help.
Shifting gears - fasting is like nitrous oxide to prayer. See what I did there? If you don’t know what that is, it’s basically a gas that when shot into your engine, can add an instant 100-200 horsepower. But with fasting, instead of adding something, it is taking something away… and biblically, it’s food.
So, what did Paul have to say about this? Actually, he didn’t talk much about fasting (though he practiced it), but he did say this…
Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
God’s power is made perfect when we are weakest. John the Baptist said something along the same lines… speaking of Jesus, he said…
He must increase, but I must decrease.”
It might sound backwards, but our lives flourish when we are personally weak, because God’s presence and power are strong. And essentially, that’s what fasting is. It is intentionally weakening our flesh, so we can be strong in God’s Spirit.
Now, I feel led to say this… in the recent past, I’ve noticed that a lot of us have avoided fasting from food. For a variety of reasons. We may agree to a fast… like, “I’ll fast from social media, or TV, or sweets.” But not food. That’s too extreme or uncomfortable! Well, today, I want to encourage us to biblically fast - to abstain from food.
For some of us, there may be medical reasons to consider, and that’s understandable, but for the rest of us… it would be spiritually beneficial to deny ourselves food. In fact, I believe that’s what fasting really gets at. It’s practicing a principle Jesus emphasized…
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
One important part of following Jesus is learning to deny yourself. And fasting helps build this discipline. And we may not like that idea, but suck it up buttercup.
Going back to sports… it’s kinda like how basketball is a little soft now. Everything is a foul. People flop, meaning they fake being fouled. But real basketball is a contact sport. And following Jesus is a spiritual battle. And we may be acting a little spiritually soft. So, we need to spiritually toughen up. We need to fast.
So, how do we fast? We simply deny ourselves food, for a specific period of time, for the purpose of drawing closer to God… because we are broken over sin, because we are hungry for God, or because we desperately need His help.
And here’s a fasting tip that’s worked for me…
When I fast, I don’t focus on the denial or emptying, but on God!
If my life were a pie chart, let’s say fasting removes 1/3rd of the pie. But my goal isn’t to stay 33% empty. It’s to fill that portion with more Jesus.
And the way I do that is… when I get hungry, it’s a trigger (alert) to pray or read my bible. Instead of my hunger telling me it’s time to satisfy my desires, I turn my eyes to Heaven and say, “God, I need You!”
Response:
Response:
As we close, I want to point out something beautifully important about praying and fasting. Praying and fasting preaches the gospel. In a way, prayer is us telling God by faith, “I need You!” And fasting is saying, “God, I really need You!” And that’s what the gospel (the good news) is too. It’s about our desperate need for Jesus.
We are broken by sin and headed towards destruction.
But because God loves us, He desires to save us, even when we don’t deserve it.
All we need to do is call out to Him by faith and say, “God, I need Your help!”
And here’s the thing: The gospel isn’t just for people who currently don’t follow Jesus. It’s for His followers too. All of us need the gospel daily. We need God’s grace - His undeserved help - every day. It’s why Jesus said…
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
Following Jesus as Lord requires a daily need of the gospel, being connected and dependent upon God’s help. It’s how we’re designed to live. And prayer and fasting helps us live this way.
Let me put it this way… in basketball, there’s something called an “iso” or isolation. Basically, it’s when a superior offensive player has the basketball and the defensive player is forced to guard him - all.by.himself (because the rest of the team moves out of the way). And this often results with the offensive player scoring.
Kobe Bryant ran isolation plays often, especially at the end of the game, when he needed to win the game. With time running out, as the best player, he’d wave off his team, and attempt to win the game with a last second shot. And many times - like Michael Jordan - he succeeded.
Ultimately, basketball is a team sport. I love watching teams run well-executed offenses. But sometimes, you need to put the ball in the hands of the best player, and tell everyone else to get out of the way.
That’s praying and fasting. Prayer and fasting is when WE get out of the way, and let God can take over and win!
So, here’s some next steps…
Start praying. Talk to God - about everything. Be honest. He already knows and can handle it.
Also, pray with other people. If prayer is new or difficult for you, praying with others is an excellent way to learn. It’s actually biblical to pray with others - God calls us to community. And we have a few official opportunities to pray together…
We pray Thursday mornings via Zoom at 730am.
We pray Sunday mornings at 830am.
And this Thursday is the National Day of Prayer. We’ll be meeting at the Town Center Fountain at 12pm to pray. Join us!
Finally, ask the Lord if He wants you to fast. Is there something that has been troubling you for a while? Maybe you need to fast and seek more of God’s help?
That happened to the disciples. They were trying to heal a young boy and couldn’t. Jesus called an “iso” and beat the demon. But the disciples were confused why they couldn’t do it… and…
So He said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.”
Prayer and fasting are practices God uses to bring forth victory. Jesus used them. How much more should we?
Communion:
Communion:
As the worship team comes up, we’re gonna end service with Communion… A special time for people who call Jesus Lord to remember what He has done for us on the cross. But, as I’ve said lately, this is not an opportunity for exclusion… because the truth is: Jesus went to the cross so that every person [in this room] could come into His Kingdom.
So, if you haven’t made that decision to turn from sin and follow Jesus as Lord and Savior. Do that today, join His family, and take communion with us.
1 Cor 11…
Let’s pray…
Father, we need the gospel today. We need Your help. We need Your grace. Change our lives. Forgive us for our selfishness. Help us to do whatever it takes - maybe even fasting - to walk in the victory You’ve planned for us. Too often we’ve tried to win by ourselves when what we really need to do is give you the ball and get out of the way. So, today, we say You’re in control. You are Lord. In Jesus name, amen.