Sermon Tone Analysis

*Sermon Worksheet & Manuscript*

*Robert L. Hutcherson, Jr.*

*Quinn** Chapel A.M.E.

Church*

*                                        Sermon Preparation~/Delivery*

                                                   *Ephesians 1:15-23*

*/“Unleash The Power of Prayer”/*

*The Rev. Karla J. Cooper, **Pastor*

*May 17, 2007*

\\                                                *Ascension of the Lord*

\\ Sermon Worksheet & Manuscript

*TEXT*

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/"Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all."

(Ephesians 1:15-23 KJV)/

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*BODY*

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*In 1907, the great preacher E.M. Bounds wrote these powerful words which are still challenging the hearts of God's people to this day.

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*God's plan is to make much of the man, far more of him than of anything else.

Men are God's method.

The Church is looking for better methods; God is looking for better men...What the Church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more and novel methods, but men whom the Holy Ghost can use--men of prayer, men mighty in prayer.

The Holy Ghost does not flow through methods, but through men.

He does not come on machinery, but on men.

He does not anoint plans, but men--men of prayer.

(Preacher and Prayer, E.M. Bounds, 1907, p. 5,7) *

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*In the past several weeks Almighty God has been continuously probing my heart concerning prayer; the time that I spend with Him resting in His arms, listening to His voice, and heeding His call upon my life.

I have to admit to you that it has been one of the most challenging times I have experienced in a long time.

I, like most of you, have convinced myself that I am too busy to spend extended times in prayer, or doing "nothing" as some of us would say.

I have things to do, people to see, places to go...you know the line.

I have rationalized and justified my busyness by seeking to convince myself that if my sermon doesn't get written then I could be in big trouble.

If the lessons don't get written for the Bible studies then we will publish blank sheets of paper.

If I don't make myself available to every single person who feels a need to talk then I will be talked about in negative terms.

God has shown me in recent weeks that the problem with all of the above concerns is "I."

I have made myself the focus, the creator of all that flows from me, and I have been wrong.

John Wesley once said, "I have an especially busy schedule before me today, therefore I will need to spend an extra hour in prayer."

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*God has shown me that He wants me, humbled and still before His presence more than He wants the sermons I write, the studies I lead, the counsel I offer, or even the people I hope to lead to His Son.

God wants me and you to come before Him seeking nothing more than to know His heart, to be still so that we can hear His precious voice calling us to a deeper relationship with Him.

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*I am learning that it is in these quiet moments of seeking the heart of God in prayer that He unleashes the power for walking in His Spirit and living as He has called us to live.

I want to encourage you this morning to unleash the power God has supplied for living victoriously in our day-to-day lives.

For our study this morning we will focus on Ephesians 1:15-23.

This is Paul's prayer for those he loves.

This is also my prayer for you, who I love and pray for continuously.

Because of what I do the Lord allows me to have an insight on some of the intimate details of people's lives.

I have arrived at some conclusions that burden my heart.

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*I am convinced that most of the followers of Jesus are beaten down, locked down, as Pastor says “tore up from the floor up” and living defeated from day-to-day.

Satan is beating up on the Body of Christ one-by-one.

He has convinced scores of believers that they are losers, inept, incapable, insensitive, and ineffective in their Christian walk and in short, in everything but the love and grace of God.

As a result they have taken a seat on the sidelines of life in exchange for the slim satisfaction of knowing that if they do nothing then they won't have to face failure ever again.

Those who have suffered the break-up of their marriage vow to never go through "that" again.

Those who volunteered to work in a ministry and were hurt or discouraged back away from the vision God placed in their heart and vow to never make themselves vulnerable again.

Those who once shared a deep friendship only to have their heart ripped out vow to never get that close to another person again.

Those who tried to start a business that would give glory to God only to have the responsibilities of leadership lead them into sleepless nights promise themselves that they will quit as soon as they can find someone to take over.

Those who decided to attend a Bible class only to find they have gotten behind in their lessons decide that they just can't do it and never go back again.

Those who committed to daily prayer miss a day or two or a month and give up prayer altogether.

Satan is having a field day with the foot soldiers of the Kingdom!

God's desire for you and for me is that we would unleash the power He has provided for us in order that we might live each day to His glory and honor.

God's desire for each of us is that we might live in the fullness of His presence and come to understand the immeasurable grace and power that He has for us as we seek His heart.

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*One of the greatest barriers that prevent us from unleashing God's power for our lives is our misunderstanding of prayer.

Far too many believers today understand prayer to be some kind of "heavenly 911."

I'm not saying that God doesn't want us to cry out to Him when we are in the throes of despair and needing help, but if that is our only understanding of prayer then we are in trouble.

Imagine with me for a moment.

Think of your very best friend in all the world.

If you only heard from your friend when he or she was in trouble how would that impact your friendship?

Would that change the way you felt about your friend?

Of course if would.

There is a friend of mine who calls periodically to talk to me.

He hasn't been to church in several years.

He never stops by to say, "Hi."

When he calls, he calls collect.

I usually answer, with the assumption that he is in jail again and needing me to pray for him or come to visit him downtown and maybe help him to get some money on his books at the jail.

I care for him.

That is why I always accept his calls.

I will continue to accept his calls and I will continue to pray that the Lord will break through to him some day, but I do not share the deep spiritual intimacy with him that I might otherwise.

I know that he sees me as some kind of "Get out of jail free" card to be called upon whenever he gets in trouble.

What I desire for him and I is that we might be able to sit down like we do in Men’s Group and talk about what the Lord is doing in our lives.

I wish that we could pray together and give God thanks for what He is doing.

I would love for us to be able to come to know each other's hearts in a deeper way.

As it is with my friend and I, so it is with God and you, and God and me.

The Father wants us to call upon Him when we are in trouble, but more than that He wants us simply to come into His presence.

Jesus said, *

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*Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

(Mat 11:28-30 NIV) *

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*We need a correct understanding of prayer.

Prayer is not going to God to get what we want.

Prayer is going to God so that we can gain a better understanding of His heart and what He wants for us.

That is the heart of prayer!

That is the heart of God for you and for me.

Not that we simply pray to get out of whatever we have gotten into, but that we do the will of God each day of our lives.

In the time we have left, I want us to focus on three keys to unleashing the power of God in our lives through prayer.

You need to know something as we begin.

If you pray simply to have power you will miss it and find yourself powerless.

That leads us to our first lesson.

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*/Pray seeking intimacy./**

When we humble ourselves before God we should seek first and foremost to come to know the Father in a deeper way.

If our prayer time is full of our words then our prayers are merely full of us.

Prayer is not a recitation, it is a /conversation/!

If I want to get to know you then I need to be quiet and listen to you share your heart with me.

J.I. Packer wrote:*

*“The aim of prayer is not to force God's hand or make Him do our will against His own, but to deepen our knowledge of Him and our fellowship with Him through contemplating His glory, confessing our dependence and need, and consciously embracing His goals.”

When we come to know God in a deep, personal way, a sense of security will permeate our being and we will be able to live free in His grace.