Rom 1-Fervant Prayer
| Fervent Prayer! Romans 1:8-10
November 13, 2005 8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you. Scripture memory:I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. – Romans 1:16 Intro: What motivates us to pray? Few genuine believers would argue that for a Christian, being a man or woman of prayer is a sign of true godliness. And yet I know very few, including myself, that I would call a man or woman of prayer. Our passage this morning is a statement from a man of prayer, from a man who seemed to make prayer a way of life, a constant part of his life.This morning we are going to remind ourselves of some of the reasons we all, deep down, want to pray more than we do. Eight Reasons Why we pray:1. Because we acknowledge that we need God to work if anything of real significance is going to be accomplished.Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. (Psalm 127:1)"The great cry of our day is work, work... organize, organize, give us some new society, tell us some new methods, devise some new methods, devise some new machinery; but the great need of our day is prayer, more prayer and better prayer." (R. A. Torrey) 2. Because we long to see Him workWe DO believe, yet we struggle with unbelief in this technological world in which we live.Prayer is largely intangible. Often it is relegated to a last-resort status—if nothing else will work…And yet we resonate with stories of answered prayer.Those of us who love God and long for His appearing are greatly encouraged every time we hear testimony of God’s faithfulness and divine intervention. 3. Because we believe that God delights to hear and to answer our prayersLittle children:Dear God, I think about You sometimes even when I'm not praying. - Elliot Dear God, Thank You for the baby brother, but what I prayed for was a puppy. - Joyce Dear God,I bet it is very hard for You to love all of everybody in the whole world. There are only 4 people in our family and I can never do it. - NanA little girl, dressed in her Sunday best, was running as fast as she could, trying not to be late for Bible class. As she ran she prayed, "Dear Lord, please don't let me be late! Dear Lord, please don't let me be late!"While she was running and praying, she tripped on a curb and fell, getting her clothes dirty and tearing her dress. She got up, brushed herself off, and started running again.. As she ran she once again began to pray, "Dear Lord, please don't let me be late... But please don't shove me either!"O for the faith of a child! – To take God at His Word – to believe Him enough that prayer becomes as natural to us as breathing… 4. Because we believe that our God is the same God who has worked miracles throughout history.Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)The same God who parted the Red Sea…The same God who caused the walls of Jericho to fall…The same God who raised our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead…The same God who withheld rain for three and a half years because of the prayer of Elijah and then gave rain when he prayed again…God does not change. We change. We become more self-sufficient. We prefer action to trust, cause and effect to grace. 5. Because we believe that our God can do much more than we think or even imagine. He is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope. (Eph. 3:20 – NLT)"None can believe how powerful prayer is, and what it is able to affect but those who have learned it by experience." (Martin Luther)Deep down, we do believe that we are only seeing a portion of God’s mighty power. Deep down we know that we might well see a great outpouring of that power in response to our humble prayers, and yet…We are like the young adult who, given the choice of $100,000 in cash or a college education, chooses the cash; like the person who chooses immediate gratification over long-term benefits. | | 6. Because we want to be obedient Far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. (1 Sam. 12:23)We know that we need to pray. We know that we are commanded to pray. And if we truly love Jesus, then we long to obey Him. And yet… 7. Because we want all the glory to go to GodThat is our highest calling. That is what we will rejoice in throughout all eternity. And when we pray, we are acknowledging our dependence and our desire for His glory above our own.Prayer is an expression of one’s dependence upon God while prayerlessness is an expression of one’s independence from God. This is partly why prayer is SO MUCH MORE than merely asking God for things. 8. Because we understand that we are in the midst a great spiritual battle which can only be fought & won on our kneesThis Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness / the mission field, etc.In prayer we hold the ultimate weapon which God has entrusted to us to win the spiritual battle which rages around us. Do we wield it with power, or do we allow it to sit in our closet, dormant through neglect, and so concede defeat? Summary / Review:This is why Paul constantly… remembers [them] 10in [his] prayers at all times. He prays for the believers in Rome Because he understands that he needs God to work if anything of real significance is going to be accomplished.He prays for them because he longs to see God work, to see Him change lives.He prays for them because he understands that God delights to hear and to answer our prayersHe prays for them because he is convinced that his God is the same God who has worked miracles throughout history.The same God who parted the Red Sea…The same God who raised our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead…He prays for them because he is convinced that God can do much more than he thinks or even imagines. He prays for them because he wants to be obedient He prays for them because he wants all the glory to go to GodHe prays for them because he understands that we are in the midst a great spiritual battle which can only be fought & won on our knees A truth to remember: God delights to hear and answer the godly prayers of His people.A Challenge to Consider:In prayer we hold the ultimate weapon which God has entrusted to us to win the spiritual battle which rages around us. Do we wield it with power, or do we allow it to sit in our closet, dormant through neglect, and so concede defeat? After what I have heard this morning, I think God us nudging me to: |