“ Praying everyday and not even expecting “

Acts 12:1-16

Question: who’s praying and really not even expecting things to change

You could be praying EVERYDAY

And not really expecting

Your prayers to change things

Because your prayers now

Has really become out of HABIT & ROUTINE

This church in Acts

Was under attack

Herod was plotting

But the church was praying

And prayers can override

Any good plot any day

But when we look at verse 5

It looks like in verse 5

As the church was praying

That the church had effective prayers

But that wasn't the case

—————————————————————————————————————————

When we pray

God wants us to expect

Simply because of who He is ( Know His Word )

This church was praying

But they wasn’t expecting

Because we can see it in their actions

They prayed but it wasn’t effective prayer

We can see 3 things about their prayer

1st They Prayed Endlessly

2nd They Prayed Entirely

3rd They Prayed Exclusively

1st They Prayed Endlessly

Prayer was made without ceasing 24 hours a day someone was praying

1st They Prayed Endlessly

2nd They Prayed Entirely

The whole church is praying the old and young and all the ministries

Their prayer is an SOS ( Suspended Other Services )

1st They Prayed Endlessly

2nd They Prayed Entirely

3rd They Prayed Exclusively

Everybody in the church is praying JUST FOR PETER not for the poor, sick and shut in, for more money, for more members or more ministries

Even though the church was praying

Endlessly — Entirely — Exclusively

But the church

Wasn’t praying Expectingly

4th They didn’t pray Expectingly

Look at verse 13-16

The church praying ALL week

And not even EXPECTING

Because when Rhoda told them

That Peter was at the door

They said girl you’re crazy

( Astonished - Amazed ) — Praise party

Footnote: Somethings about God don’t surprise me because He’s FAITHFUL , I just praise Him for it

Someone goes through

The exercise of praying every day

And really don't believe

God is going to do it for you

There's something in the text

That was blocking their belief

How is it ?

That a whole church can come together

And pray — Endlessly — Entirely — Exclusively

And still don't believe

That God is going to do

What they are asking Him to do

1st They knew the History of Herod Hand ( V. 1 )

Verse — 1 Herod Hand

( Certain of the church ) — James & Peter

The people praying for Peter

Knew that Herod

Was nobody to be messed with

They knew the HISTORY of the Herod’s

They knew that every Herod in the bible

Had a history of handling his business

They knew whenever Herod said

He was going to GET YOU

You was as good as GOT

Because Herod didn’t play

The Herod in this verse 1

Is the grandson

Of King Herod the great

In Matthew Chapter 2:16

You remember Doing the days of Jesus Christ

A decree went out from

Herod the great

That every male child under the age of 2 yrs. old

Was to be killed

That King Herod back then

Is the grandfather of

This Herod in the text

There was another King Herod

During the days of John the Baptist

And that John the Baptist

Had his head cut off

Because of the King Herod of that day

Order his head to be cut off

Well that King Herod then

Is the uncle of this

Herod in the text

So they knew the history

of King Herod’s

They knew if King Herod

Said I'm going to kill you

You was just good as killed

But they forgot about SOMETHING

They forgot about

The history of God's hand

And they listen to the history

Of Herod’s hand

And forgot the history of God’s HAND

Note: When you are praying don’t every forget about the history of God’s Hand

Footnote: Sometimes history can mess us up

The History of :

Cancer — lupus — blood disease — covid-19 — daddy alcoholic — mother on drugs — divorce in family — no college person in family

But let me give you a Name & a Word that rules over History

Name: Jesus

God’s History

Is greater than any history in the world

God’s Name is above any name

Philippians 2:9-10 KJV

9 “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;”

And the only reason

Why you have survived

The hell you've been through

Is because you got history

With the hand of God

It was not you

That got you where you are today

It was the hand of God :

The house - the car - the child - the healing - the job

Give God Praise for the History of God’s Hand

Somebody today

You are wrestling with history

You have a history :

Of failure - of disappointments - of brokenness - of mistakes - bad relationships - of depression

Footnote: Your History haunts you every week

What often hinders prayer

Is history

One WORD - can mess you up

The news media - can mess you up

Past statistics - can mess you up

And what also hinders prayer

Is DELAYS

But your DELAY is not a DENIAL

Peter had been in jail

All week and the saints was praying

But just because

They had to keep praying

It wasn’t a DENIAL ( Keep Praying even when there’s a DELAY )

Footnote: God is the ONLY person that can be late and still on time ( John 11 - Mary - Martha )

But you got to write

Some NEW HISTORY

Romans 8:35 (KJV)

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Romans 8:37 (KJV)

37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

Philippians 4:13 (KJV)

13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

2 Kings 6:16 (CSBBible)

16 Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them.”

Psalm 30:5 (KJV)

5 : weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

2 Chronicles 20:15 (KJV)

15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.

They are praying for Peter

But in the back of their minds

They don't believe Peter

Is coming out of this

1st They knew the History of Herod Hand ( V. 1 )

2nd They knew the Persecution Pointed at Peter ( V. 4 )

They knew

That what Peter was going through

Was something that was unusual

Peter is going through what you call

Unprecedented punishment

DEFINE: UNPRECEDENTED — never done or known before

And notice how many times ( HIM ) is mention

Look at verse 4

This wasn't normal persecution

That the king had him apprehended

The king had him put in maximum-security

The king had him guarded by 16 soldiers

The king had him shackle to 2 soldiers

Had him guarded by 2 soldiers on the outside of the cell

And had those 4 soldiers

Rotating all 4 shifts of the night

And the people praying for Peter

Thought that because of

Herod persecution

Was pointed directly at him

That there was no way for him

To be SAVED

Note: What you have been going thru is unusual and you don’t even know how to pray for what you’re going thru ( 1st Time for THAT but not 1st time for trouble )

But what the church

Failed to recognize

As about Peter

That this was not the same him

That they knew before

That this Peter had been changed

In fact

Him been with the Lord

This ain't the same him

That denied Jesus 3 times

This ain't the same him

That would talk out of turn

This ain't the same him

That would cut the soldier ear off to stop the arrest of Jesus

This ain’t the same him

In Matthew 26:74

That began to curse & swear I know not Jesus

Define: Curse — to swear by invoking a curse upon oneself or another for failure

This is The new Peter

This is the him

In Acts 2:1

That was in that

Large upper room on the day of Pentecost

When the Holy Ghost fail

This is the him

In Acts 2:41

That preach one sermon

And 3000 people join the church

This is the him

In Acts 3:1

That got to the gate called beautiful

And saw a lame man

And grabbed him by the wrist

And said

Acts 3:6

6 But Peter said, “I don’t have silver or gold, but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”

This is the him

In Acts 4:12

That testified

Acts 4:12

12 There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved.”

This is the him

In Acts 5:15

That was so anointed

That people got in Peter’s shadow to be healed

This him been with the Lord

You are going to make it

Because you just like Peter

It's a new you

You've been with the Lord

And just like Peter

Peter is now catching more hell

As the new Peter

Than the old Peter ( Explain ) The new you been thru Divorce; Cancer; Layoff; friends forsaking you; sickness

But the church underestimated Peter

Don't underestimate your situation

Because you've been with the Lord

You might not know a lot of scripture

But friends & family better not underestimate you

You might not preach like Peter but don't underestimate You might not know a lot of scripture but don't underestimate me You might not pray like some people don't underestimate

They are praying for Peter

But they don't believe

Peter is going to survive this

1st They knew the History of Herod Hand ( V. 1 )

2nd They knew the Persecution Pointed at Peter ( V. 4 )

3rd They knew the Day He was Determine to Die ( V. 4 )

Herod said in verse 4

As soon as the Passover

Is completed

I'm taking Peter out

Herod made a public declaration

As soon as the feast of the unleavened bread

The Passover is done

I’m bring Peter out

And Peter is going to die

The Passover feast was a 7 day feast

And when you look at verse 6

Verse 6 suggest

That this deliverance of Peter

Took place the night prior

To Passover being completed

Passover is a 7 day feast

When Peter first got to prison

The Saints started praying

But the night before the completion

Of the Passover

Peter is still in jail

They've been praying for Peter

But nothing ain't happen YET

And here it is

The night before

Peter is to be executed

God hadn’t moved YET

And because God hadn’t move YET

They are starting to doubt

Whether or not God is going to do it

Because there was a deadline in place

And the deadline is getting close

And God haven't fixed it YET

You are starting to doubt if God is going to do it

But somebody should have gotten excited

Because if you want to know

What God can do

Just look back at what He has already done

Herod was trying to wait

Til Passover

But know that there’s

Something special about Passover

Because the Passover historically

Is the time

When God allowed

The death angel

To pass through Egypt

And skip over

Those houses that had

Blood on the door post

The Passover was not a time

When things died

But it was a time

When things was delivered

The text is Tailored to teachers us

That Herod made a mistake

Herod should have killed Peter

Prior to the Passover

But the Devil made a mistake

With you

He should have killed you

Before you got SAVED

BUT HE WAITED

1st They knew the History of Herod Hand ( V. 1 )

2nd They knew the Persecution Pointed at Peter ( V. 4 )

3rd They knew the Day He was Determine to Die ( V. 4 )

1st They Prayed Endlessly

2nd They Prayed Entirely

3rd They Prayed Exclusively

4th They didn’t pray Expectingly

Preached @

4’s - Pastor Betty Tillman

Solid Rock Baptist Church