God Always, Always, ALWAYS Answers Prayer

I plan to talk about God’s answer to Paul’s prayer. It’s part of a fun train of thought. To understand, we need to talk about the context where Paul describes God’s answer to his prayer.

It’s a basic rule for reading, esp. reading the Bible. You can’t understand a sentence without understanding broader context. You’ve got to look at what comes before and after what you’re reading. It’s the only way to do justice to what you’re reading.

Let me back up. When we looked at Mt. 6 last Sunday, Jesus warned his disciples against being phony when they prayed. He warned against being sanctimonious: Showing off publicly so they looked good and holy. Jesus calls out their behaviour to show their foolishness:

When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. Matthew 6:5 (NIV)

In this letter to Christians in Corinth, Paul also deals with sanctimonious people. Like Jesus, Paul gets creative to make a point.

Paul is fed up with foolish boasting about holiness, visions, and God’s special revelation. Apparently, some people in Corinth were boasting about the visions they experienced to gain a reputation for holiness. It’s foolish pride.

Paul’s response? I’ll show how foolish you’re being: I can boast too. He introduces his teaching style in ch. 11: 1

I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness. Yes, please put up with me! II Corinthians 11:1 (NIV)

Paul explains further halfway through the ch. 11:

I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then tolerate me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool. Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast. II Corinthians 11:16–18(NIV)

The opening paragraph of ch. 12 is a parody of the worldly boasting Paul hears from Christians in Corinth.

If you’re going to play that game with Paul, he’s got lots he could brag about, including a vision we read about in ch. 12.

I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows—was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 2 Corinthians 12:3–4 (NIV)

The way Paul describes this experience, it sounds like he has some fun while making a serious point.

Here’s the thing, though: Paul really had this experience. He had a vision of heaven. It’s different from his experience on the Damascus Road. Three times in the book of Acts (Acts 9, 22, 26), you can read how Paul was arrested when Jesus appeared in the brilliant, glorious light from heaven, leaving Paul blind and pondering God’s amazing grace for 3 days. That vision near Damascus was the turning point in Paul’s life and faith.

After encountering Jesus: risen, holy, and glorified, Paul was convinced that he would never be good or righteous enough by his own efforts. That’s why earlier in II Corinthians Paul speaks of God’s love in Jesus’ sacrificial death:

Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 2 Corinthians 5:14–15 (NIV)

Paul sums up the good news a few verses later:

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

Let that soak in a minute: By faith in Jesus, you can “become the righteousness of God!” That’s the gospel Paul preaches wherever he goes, including his visits to Corinth.

Since it’s only Jesus’ victory over sin and death that makes us the righteousness of God, we’ve got no reason to boast. Everything we have is a gift from God. (2x) And if God the HS gives us visions, wisdom, and insights, it’s still nothing to boast about. Visions are a gift from God’s lavish grace to strengthen our faith and service.

Paul learned a painful lesson after receiving this vision 14 years earlier. Perhaps he lapsed back into spiritual pride. Paul writes about God’s discipline:

Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. II Corinthians 12:7b (NIV)

In scholarly literature there are all kinds of guesses about Paul’s thorn in the flesh.

What is he talking about? Nobody knows for sure if it’s a literal thorn or if Paul is talking about a limp or stomach cramps or somethings else with this figure of speech. All the wild guesses distract us from Paul’s point.

God allowed Paul to be tormented by “a messenger of Satan” so that he wouldn’t become conceited. It’s God’s tough love.

God’s word in the NT book of Hebrews talks about fatherly discipline in Hebrews 12:

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Hebrews 12:7–8 (NIV)

That’s the lesson Paul learned from the thorn in the flesh.

And yes, the lesson was unpleasant. Paul is honest:

Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 2 Corinthians 12:8 (NIV)

3x! Do you get a sense of Paul’s desperation?

Maybe you can relate. Do you have a request that you keep bringing to God: a hope, a desire, something you desperately hope God will do for you or someone you love?

· Finding a spouse,

· conceiving a child,

· healing from mental or physical illness,

· Chr. faith for someone you love.

You’re invited to submit your request again and again. Bring it up every time you talk with God! Beg and plead, if you feel that strongly. Jesus encourages us to be persistent in prayer.

In the Gospel of Luke 18, Jesus told a parable of an unjust judge. This judge didn’t fear God or care about what people thought. But when a widow kept coming and pleading for justice, he made sure she got it. Here’s moral of Jesus’ story:

The Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.

Luke 18:6–8a (NIV)

If an unjust judge gives justice to a persistent person, won’t our heavenly Father – who is just and loving,  holy and generous – won’t our heavenly Father do what is right for his dearly loved children, especially when they ask and beg and plead?

I’m convinced that God always, always, ALWAYS answers us when we pray to him! “Yes,” “no,” and “not yet” – are all answers to prayer. More importantly, God empathizes with our hopes, fears, and desires. He understands. He gets you.

Yet we pray humbly. We confess that God is bigger, stronger, and wiser than us. Just like parents tell their kids, “Trust me, I know what I’m doing,” we’re invited to trust our heavenly Father. I assure you, God knows what he’s doing! He knows what is best for you.

When my kids were younger, they offered suggestions and made requests. “Dad, can we go to McDonalds? Dad, can we have cookies and ice cream for lunch?”

It’s tough to disappoint them. “No McDonalds today. That’s a special treat.”

Parents must make tough calls. We’ve got to be the adults in the situation. Moms and dads say “No” or “not now,” even though a lunch of just ice cream sounds fun.

Do you think the heavenly Father has the same feeling when he says, “No” or “not now” and he sees your disappointment?

In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray, “Your will be done.” That’s the proper attitude for prayer. By all means, tell God your preferences, your hopes, your dreams! He loves hearing your druthers and takes them into consideration.

But also tell God that you trust him. Tell God that you trust him to do what is best for you and for others. You can even tell God that you want to trust him, but you find it hard right now.

That’s another part of the lesson Paul learned from this thorn in the flesh to keep him from being conceited. God knows best:

Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. II Corinthians 12:8–9 (NIV)

It’s not always fun nor pleasant, but God’s power shines through human weakness.

Years ago, I had a prof. who said, “I know what you can do with a congregation of thousands and lots of staff. The real question is: What can you do with a small group of people?” With a small group, you’re forced to rely on God. That’s a far better place to be.

This paragraph of foolishness in Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth is a lesson about pride and humility. Success in church and in life is not about us. Our goal is to bring glory to God.

Our job is to point to Jesus as the author and perfector of our faith. God’s power shines through the actions of imperfect, fragile people like me and you. Are you okay with that?

Sometimes when we look back, we can see that God’s plan is best. Sometimes when we look back, we remain puzzled about why God let things go the way they did. It still doesn’t make sense to us. Along with Paul, we’re invited to trust that God’s grace is sufficient.

By his grace, you have been rescued from sin and death. God’s grace is on full display when Jesus was crucified for your wrongdoing and raised to life 3 days later. On Good Friday and Easter, Jesus did what we can’t do for ourselves. By God’s grace, you have life, faith, with countless gifts and blessings on top! It’s all God’s grace! Isn’t that sufficient?

You have God’s assurance that he always, always, ALWAYS hears you when you pray. AND your heavenly Father treats you like his dearly loved child: discipline and good gifts both come from God. It’s all for his glory and your good. Are you okay with God in control?

Can you say with Paul, “God’s grace is sufficient for me?”