God Answers Prayer 2020

Happy New Year! We made it! 2020 is now behind us or should we say… 2020 is now officially hindsight!

What a year it has been! And I wish so badly that I could say that all of 2020’s pains, discomforts, inconveniences and challenges went away as soon as the clock rolled over from 11:59 PM to 12:00 AM on Dec 31st! We know that the calendar year has changed… but many of the challenges remain.

Now, I’m not wanting to start this new year off with downer information… and I realize that no one needs to remind you of the challenges we are facing… because we are facing them together! However, today I want to remind us of what can make all the difference this year. It made a HUGE difference this last year and I truly believe it is the key to not only making it through this next year… but BREAKING through this next next! Today we are going to talk about prayer!

WE BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF PRAYER! This is one of our core values at HWC and for good reason! Why? (MAIN POINT) Because we know that things begin to change as God’s people faithfully pray!

Every year, the Assemblies of God encourages it’s affiliates to dedicate the first full week of the new year to prayer. That week… is this week - Jan 3-Jan 10. This year, the theme is “God Answer’s Prayer” and we know this to be true because of what Scripture says AND because of what we have personally experienced. GOD ANSWER’S PRAYER!

Here’s the deal: the issues we face today are not governed by the calendar nor are they controllable by humankind. Try as we might… our “answer” to the problems we face sometimes fall short. But God’s answer… will never fail!

But prayer is not limited only to the challenging days we face. 2020 sure had its fair share of surprises… but it also had an overload of tremendous victory! If we desire to overcome the challenges AND experience overload in victory… then we must be fully committed to being a people of prayer.

Our main verse and the theme verse for this week of prayer comes from 1 John 5:14 and it reads, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.

First, let’s work to define some words presented in this passage.

Confidence - the feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something; firm trust.

Firm, unquestionable trust. In who can we find and place such trust? In God.

Approaching God - to move toward God - to engage with in prayer. To approach is to draw nearer toward your goal.

Think of this for a moment - not only does “approaching God” move you closer in proximity to our Heavenly Father, but it also moves you closer to His resolve regarding the situation at hand. The faith that leads you to pray also leads you to His answer.

His will - God’s plan. God has a plan! Did you hear me today? GOD HAS A PLAN! It is a detailed plan and it is a GOOD plan!

His Will is the road map or blueprint. His will is what we should aim to align our life with. To be clear: Our lives are to align with His Will, not the other way around. This is a CRITICAL faith piece that must be considered as we pray - as we approach God with confidence.

He hears us - this one is pretty simple and has two parts. He HEARS and ACTS upon our request. That action is the answer.

Now, we need to understand something very important. Sometimes God answers yes… and sometimes His answer is no. Sometimes His answer comes in a way we never considered or thought possible. But the key… the faith piece that must always be remembered is what? THE ANSWER WILL ALWAYS LINE UP WITH HIS WILL!

There are two very important points that I want to draw out today regarding prayer AND God’s answer to prayer.

We believe in the power of prayer… and we know that God answers prayer. What I want to focus on today moves us from knowing… to experiencing. God has done some amazing things through answered prayer this last year… and I believe He is only getting started!

Misplaced Confidence = Misplaced Prayers

Remember what confidence is… the ability to rely on another. FIRM TRUST. What does firm trust look like?

How many here today would say you have a relationship with someone you can trust. I mean REALLY trust? It’s a good feeling right? You know they stick to their word. You know they will come through. You know they will not let you down.

God is WORTHY of such trust. God has your BEST interest in mind. Not second best or third… but your very best interest in mind. God desires for you to have life to the full even while living in this world. We realize this world does not make it easy to experience life to the full… that is why it is essential that we place our trust… in the One who has overcome this world.

1 John 5 tells us of these very truths

Verse 4 reads, “everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.”

Jesus Christ HAS overcome this world! This truth is made clear in John 16:33. His death on the cross paid our sin debt in full. If you are in Christ, SIN IS NO LONGER YOUR MASTER! Sin has lost its grip on you! Jesus’ death became your death meaning your faith in Christ has set you free from sin.

AND… just as His death became your death, His resurrection becomes our resurrection.

Verse 11 of 1 John 5 tells us the testimony God has given about His Son, “this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”

Life is found in Christ. Death is the absence of life. Death… is the absence of Christ in our lives. In Christ, we find life that cannot be found anywhere else. Did you hear me today? In Christ… we find life that cannot be found ANYWHERE else.

So let’s recap for a moment: Those who believe in Christ are born of God and those born of God can overcome the world. Those who have the Son has life - eternal life given by God the Father.

I bring these to our attention to reinforce what I said a moment ago - GOD HAS YOUR BEST INTEREST IN MIND. He has given all that is needed to overcome this world and to experience life to the full.

Where do I get this phrase “life to the full?” From John 10:10 where Christ said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

These truths given to us in 1 John 5 are presented to INCREASE our confidence in God… to firm up our trust in Him. When our confidence is STRONG in God… Our prayer life will be strong as well. Why? Because we are going to approach the One we trust.

But what happens when our confidence is… misplaced? What happens if we do not fully believe that God has our BEST interest in mind?

Misplaced confidence = misplaced… or missing prayer. First off, believers should spending time talking to God just because… HE IS GOD! But can our confidence be misdirected to a degree that our prayer life suffers? I would argue… yes it can.

If 2020 has taught us anything it is how quickly our culture was willing to comply in the face of the unknown. Now, I’m not casting judgment or condemnation, but a lot has changed in a very short period of time. These changes were implemented on the basis of trusting that our government knew what they were doing.

And one of the unfortunate casualties in the process was… faith. Many turned to man and his answer while neglected to talk to God and trust in His answer. Church… specifically our weekly gatherings… was deemed non-essential and such was met with little resistance. More trust was placed in the word of man instead of the Word of God.

Thankfully, we at HWC have NOT followed this trend! This is said NOT to boast in ourselves, but to testify of what happens when our confidence is placed in God.

We have every reason to trust in God! As we remember who God is and what God has done, I pray such information compels us to talk to God more… to pray to God more… with the assurance that God hears our prayer.

But there is one more reminder that we need to cover regarding the prayers we offer to God...

Will Alignment = Heart Alignment

Remember that our main text read, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.” Firm trust in God helps us in approaching God in our prayers… but as we ask, we need to be aligned.

Alignment defined is to put (things) into correct or appropriate relative positions. We know how important it is for… our car to be properly aligned. If neglected, it can cause damage to the car and make for a not-so-fun driving experience. However, when all four wheels are properly aligned, the car travels down the highway with ease.

Per our definition, the things we need to make sure are aligned when it comes to prayer is God’s will with our heart - specifically our hearts need to come into alignment with His will… or redemptive plan.

In context, our main text is given as a closing statement to a very clear presentation of the gospel. In fact, the header given for 1 John 5 in the NIV is Faith in the Incarnate Son of God. it speaks of what faith leads us from and what… rather who faith leads us to.

When we think of prayer… it should never be thought of as a kind of Genie in a bottle type thing. We rub the lamp just right, say the right words, vocalize the correct wish and WHAM! God gives us whatever we want!

Here’s the deal: God HAS given us MORE than we could ever want… the gift of His Son Jesus Christ! And it is God’s desire, God’s heart, that ALL people would experience redemption through Jesus. God hears and answers prayer according to HIS will… HIS plan. And believe you me… no one has a better plan than God.

And this brings us full circle back to our first point… and I’ll say it as simply as I can. Either you believe… or you don’t. Either you are going to place your confidence in the Word of God… or the word of man. Do you truly believe that God’s plan is the better plan?

If you trust in God… if your confidence in placed in Him, then you will naturally trust in His plan. If your confidence is misplaced… then His plan… and your heart… may be misaligned.

If you are struggling to know God’s plan… then it’s time to get back into God’s Word. His plan is right here. His plan is detailed for us in this book. Maybe what we need to do is turn off CNN and Fox News and get off Facebook and Twitter and get back into the Scriptures that were literally breathed into existence by God.

And as we consider aligning our hearts with God’s plan… I want you to see the prayer points for this week. Look at the handout in the bulletin.

From lost to found. From hate to hope. From sickness to health. From brokenness to restoration. From apathy to action. From empty to filled.

These points all highlight God’s plan for you! God wants to move you from where the world has you positioned to what He has promised you! Watch this: TRANSFORMED is His plan! RESTORED is His plan! HEALED is His plan! FILLED is His plan! FORGIVEN is His plan! SET FREE is His plan! REDEEMED is His plan!

Christ is the Key

And the key in all of this is faith in Christ! Jesus is who made all of this possible.

His work on the cross made it possible for our fellowship to be restored with the Father, for our sins to be forgiven, for death to give way to life, for hope to be restored, for lives to be renewed, for victory to become reality!

As believers, we are not defined by the struggles we face in this world… we are defined by our ability to overcome this world. Our overcoming was NOT something we did on our own but was found only in faith in Jesus Christ!

This same faith leads us to pray… to approach God with confidence… to ask according to His will… and to believe that He hears us AND answers our prayers.

THINGS BEGIN TO CHANGE AS GOD’S PEOPLE FAITHFULLY PRAY!

This might sound crazy but… I want another year like 2020. Not so much because of the trouble we faced… but because of the faith that raised up! We have some amazing reports coming up in later weeks but church… I am pleased to tell you God did some BIG things this last year and I believe He has even bigger things on the way!

Remain confident in Him! Remain aligned with His will and pray Pray PRAY! And as you pray… believe that He hears you and will answer your prayer.

The greatest prayer we could ever prayer is one of salvation.

We’ve spoken of God’s desire to redeem all through the blood of Christ. We’ve spoken of His desire to help you overcome this world and to give you life to the full… but you must believe. Are you willing to pray that prayer with me today? PRAYER - Salvation

Secondly, I want us to pray for our confidence in God to increase. This means it might need to decrease in other things. Where do you place your hope? Where do you place your trust? Today, let’s place our trust in the One worthy of our trust.